There were two ‘tabernacles’, or tents, in David’s time, where worship was carried out in very different but equally important ways — the tent of David on Mount Zion in Jerusalem, and the tabernacle of Moses on Mount Gibeon.
I Chron. 16:37
“So he left Asaph and his brothers there before the ark of the covenant of the LORD to minister before the ark regularly, as every day’s work required;”
I Chron. 16:39-40
“…and Zadok the priest and his brethren the priests, before the tabernacle of the LORD at the high place that was at Gibeon, to offer burnt offerings to the LORD on the altar of burnt offering regularly morning and evening, and to do according to all that is written in the Law of the LORD which He commanded Israel;” (NKJV)
We are to be prepared to bring two kinds of sacrifice to The Lord in our worship, just as the Levites did:
1. David’s tent on Mount Zion in Jerusalem contained only one thing — the ark of the presence of God. Anyone could come in and minister to the Lord and be there in His very presence. The Levites were assigned there to ‘commemorate, to praise, and to thank’ Him with instruments and singing. In the presence of God, before the ark, they were to do what every day’s work required. They heard God in the moment and did that.
– Jesus said ‘I only do what I see my Father doing.’
2. At the very same time, what had always been right to do was still right to do. The law was carried out every day at the 500-year-old tabernacle of Moses — the bronze altar, the laver for washing, the incense altar were all still there, sacrifices were offered, the law was followed. They did what they knew to do.
– Jesus said ‘I did not not come to do away with the law, but rather to fulfill it.’
This follows the Biblical pattern of spirit and truth, prophetic insight and eternal ordinance, each carried out with equal intention and diligence.
We are to do all the routine things, to work hard at our craft, learn our instruments, train our voices, prepare our charts, read our Bibles, do all the natural stuff, and also be ready to follow the right now leading of the Holy Spirit to do something new required by The Lord in His service today, which may never be asked of us in the same way again.
We don’t get to have a favorite between these two — In this way, we are a people of both firm foundation and free and unrestrained expression. In this way we are able to truly make His praise glorious!
Harold