Lesson 28: Now - How Am I To Worship God? (3)

How was Old Testament worship done at the tabernacle as God laid it out?

First of all, there was a limitation about who could enter the tabernacle. The outer court could be accessed by any Israelite male. Later, in Jesus' time, there was a separate court for Israelite women and another for Gentiles. The tabernacle, however, only allowed the men to enter. This was not because God hated women or thought them lower than men – it was because God had declared the man the head of the household and he was to be a priest to his family and then represent his family before God at the tabernacle. All of it was representative – the husband represented his family, the priests represented the man, and the high priest represented the priests before God. This was done because God is a God of order and not confusion. When Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross was complete, His word also says there is no more distinction between male and female – now we can all come to worship Him (Galatians 3:28) because Jesus is now our personal representative to God the Father (1 John 2:1).


Everyone who entered the tabernacle area had to do so through a single gate or doorway. The first thing they encountered was the altar of sacrifice. This is still true today – there is only one door into worship, Jesus Christ. The first thing that must be encountered in the worship sequence is the sacrifice for our sin, the blood of Jesus Christ. As it was only priests who served in the tabernacle in the Old Testament, so it is only priests/believers who can enter into worship today. Unsaved individuals cannot worship God. They must enter through the single gate and through the sacrifice. We who are believers are today called a royal priesthood and therefore qualified to worship Him as priests (1 Peter 2:9-10).

So how do we worship God? We must serve him as the priests served in the tabernacle. We'll look at the things they did in another lesson. For now, let's just say that service is both individual and together as believers (Romans 12:1; Hebrews 10:25).

Once again, before we look at the positive, we look at the negative parts of service. According to Leviticus 10:1-2, there was only a certain kind of fire that was allowed to be used in the tabernacle area. Because Aaron's oldest two sons offered "strange fire before the Lord," they died. They had not paid attention to every detail of their worship, and it cost them their lives.

We also read in Exodus 30:9, 37-38 that there was a special incense that was to be offered in the tabernacle. This incense was not to be substituted, nor was it to be used for any purpose outside of the tabernacle – it was unique to tabernacle worship. The penalty for using this incense as a perfume in personal life meant that the individual was to be cut off from the tabernacle. These two are strong warnings that God has very specific standards about what is acceptable worship.

*How does worship in your church match what the Bible says?