The local assembly, its order — Frank Sona

The Lampstand and the Necessity of Divine Light

Turn with me to the book of Exodus chapter 27, Exodus chapter 27. I want to look and I was actually wrestling between two subjects of what to take up at this point and. And speaking to one of the brethren here.

Think I received a little bit of light to go on this subject. So We're going to look at actually the subject of light. Light in terms of what the purpose of light. That God has why he has introduced such why we need this and the fact that it is not an optional resource.

But an integral part of the very operation of the gatherings of his people. So in Exodus chapter 27 We are going to look at The lampstand and this was vital in the tabernacle and we'll look at that for a number of reasons why in a moment Exodus 27 and verse 20 and thou shalt command Command the children of Israel.

That they bring thee pure olive oil beaten for the light the lampstand. To cause the lamp to burn. Always in the tabernacle of the congregation. Without the veil or outside the veil, which is before the testimony.

Aaron and his sons shall order now. That's the key word that we're going to be looking at in this message that I'm going to give order divine Order and the light that is an integral part of that order.

Aaron and his son shall order it from evening to morning. Before the Lord that's interesting. Every expression here is vital to grasp number one. There would be no labor in the tabernacle in the evenings.

You would have the morning sacrifice. You would have the evening sacrifice and the priesthood would be functioning for the most part during the day and yet the lamp here is told to be burning from the evening until the morning so that when they when the Activity had ceased that was visible.

The light was still burning. It was inside but really it didn't make any difference did it? Because the lampstand was inside the holy place, right and there were no windows inside the holy place. So they had no natural light.

It was darkness in that place. Apart from the light of the lampstand. So the light of the lampstand would be vital to shine as a luminary in that area. So that they could see what they were doing so that they could operate Notice as well.

It was before the Lord now the Lord can see in the dark. So why is it before the Lord? The priest needed the light but it was before the Lord. Because the Lord is observing ultimately how these men keep his word that he has given to them.

That's what he was watching. He was viewing to see how would these priests function? Would they carry out his word? That's why this begins with the Lord commanded the Lord commanded and so it says it shall be a statute forever unto their Generations on the behalf of the children of Israel.

Notice as well. The olive oil was pure. It was beaten. This is in other words. It was You ever get those bottles? It's an extra extra virgin olive oil. And so it doesn't just say olive oil, but it's the finest.

This is the beaten pure the purity of this olive oil is stressed and the reason for that would be there would be a numerous Reasons, but one of the reasons from a practical standpoint would be that this lampstand was a seven branched lampstand with a center shaft.

So six on each side a center shaft. Interestingly, we're not given the height of the lampstand nor we give an information about the base of the lampstand, but it was pure gold Was beaten out gold and there would be pipes inside the shafts and The pipes would allow the oil to run and to supply the fuel.

So that the light would burn. So if the pipes got clogged if it wasn't pure beaten fine clean oil The light would flicker the light would go out. You see the whole point is this God not only wants Continuance of the light But he wants consistency in the light so that the light wouldn't flicker.

They wouldn't flash. They would go they would be burning brightly all the time now keeping that in mind. Let's go over to Exodus chapter 40. Exodus chapter 40 and verse 4 remember that word order and Thou shalt bring in the table and set in order The things that are to be set in order upon it and thou shalt bring in interesting the first thing that's mentioned the lampstand and Light the lamps thereof verse 23 and He set the bread in order Upon it before the Lord as the Lord commanded Moses.

Israel, the Priests, and the Supply of Oil

Leviticus chapter 24. Leviticus 24 and verse Of verse 1 for connection and the Lord spake unto Moses saying command the children of Israel that they bring unto thee Pure olive oil. No, this is for the children of Israel.

They were to bring the pure olive oil. The the lamps were to be burning the lampstand was to be burning in the holy place. But the people would bring the oil to the priests to burn. So the burden of supplying the fuel as it were the oil for these lamps was upon the people.

So there's an integral link Between the people and the priests and that's exactly what God wants to show us because there's a tremendous link between What we are in our lives and What we bring as a people.

To how we function as a priesthood. So that the light had to be supplied with the oil that the people brought. And of course the oil is a picture of the Holy Spirit. We know that the oil is a picture of that verse 3.

Without the veil of the testimony and the tabernacle of the congregation shall Aaron there's a word again order it From the evening unto the morning before the Lord. Continually it shall be a statute forever in your generations.

Verse 8. Every Sabbath, he shall set it in order before the Lord continually being taken from the children of Israel by an everlasting Covenant. Now, we're going to go to the New Testament 1st Corinthians chapter 7 now this word order.

We are going to find in our in the epistles seven times. Five of them five of the occurrences are going to be in this letter in 1st Corinthians. So 1st Corinthians chapter 7, which is actually a chapter about marriage and relationships and so on.

But it's interesting what he writes here verse 17 as he is. As he has written about a number of these relationships and so on verse 17 but as God hath distributed to every man as the Lord hath called everyone so let him walk and so Ordain, that is the word order.

I In all the churches, so again. This is the first reference to this work order ordain in this letter. It is associated with their personal lives and relationships. So the Spirit of God is drawing an an intimate correlation Between what they were in their private lives and relationships to the order that's going to be carried out in the assembly.

A very simple fact is this if you are disorderly in your life in terms of the things of God. You will be disorderly in the assembly. If there are disorderly lives in the sense that that God is not at the highest order.

If he does not set the tone of your life. If he does not set the tenor the tempo of your life the beat of your life if he is not supreme sovereign highest. Neither will he be in the assembly and that is what he's bringing out here whether the people are bringing the oil.

Whether ordain I in all the churches and yet he's talking about personal lives now. We're going to go to chapter 11. Chapter 11 and verse 34 and if any man hunger. He's already been writing saying that the Lord's Supper is not a meal.

It's not something that you come together to eat and so on. And if any man hunger let him eat at home. That you come not together unto condemnation and the rest will I set in order? When I come chapter 14 and verse 40 let all things be done decently and in order.

Chapter 15 verse 23. But every man in his own order. Christ first. Christ the first fruit. Afterward they that are Christ's that is coming chapter 16 verse 1. Now concerning the collection for the Saints as I have given order to the churches of Galatia even so do ye.

Assembly Order and Christian Conduct

And we'll look at one look at Colossians chapter 2 just for two final readings. Colossians chapter 2 and verse 4 and This I say lest any man should beguile you that's the idea there is cheat you unless anyone should cheat you with enticing words.

Draw you away. For though I be absent in the flesh yet Am I with you in the spirit joining and beholding your order and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ? He's writing here about assembly order.

The interesting thing is Paul had never been a Colossian. So, how do you know the Lord? How can he say I'm beholding your order because what he saw them doing in obedience. Was the exact same thing that every other assembly was doing.

There was an order that was consistent with every assembly a pattern. If you will that was given to each assembly that they were keeping so Paul could say this. Now one final passage in 2nd Thessalonians chapter 3.

2nd Thessalonians 3 in verse 1. Finally brethren. Pray for us. That the word of the Lord notice not the Word of God. Is that interesting you say? Well, it is the Word of God. Isn't that the same thing?

Listen, if the Spirit of God tells us is the Word of the Lord. It's the Word of the Lord and he's saying that for a reason. The Word of God is general. The Word of the Lord is specific. The prophets you remember will say the Word of the Lord came unto me saying.

So when Paul is writing this he is talking about that a risk there is to be a response by the Christians to the Word of God. Thus it becomes the Word of the Lord the word. I'm preaching now the passages I'm reading it is incumbent upon every one of us that there be a Obedient response to them.

That's why we read about the Word of the Lord. And his sovereignty. So he prays he's asking to pray that the Word of the Lord may have free course and be glorified. Even as it is with you now, let's go down to verse 6 now we command you brethren in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ association with his name.

That ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh Disorderly and not after the tradition which he received of us. For yourselves know how you ought to follow us for how we behaved ourselves.

This we behaved not ourselves disorderly among you and As he writes this word again, he's going to emphasize the fact that a brother or a sister Verse 11 for we hear that there are some which walk among you disorderly.

Working not at all, but are busybodies. So what does he mean by this disorderly walk the word literally means To be out of step with the company picture the most well-trained militia the most impressive parade and the bands are marching and the soldiers are stepping and They're coming down the street or they're marching into battle or whatever and there's one soldier.

He's on the side. And he's moving around he just said what is wrong with that man, it's almost ludicrous doesn't he know he knows what he's doing. He's out of step with the company. He's introducing something Into that company, which is not only out of step with the rest of them.

It's disorderly and it's actually bringing reproach upon the entire company because while people look at that man His association is with that company. That's important for us to get a hold of. So I'll say something at the beginning of my message.

If there is someone here and you you want to enter there probably isn't someone here. So I'll just that's a good thing. But if there is someone here Who is seeking to introduce something? That Is either going to draw attention to self or detract attention from Christ?

You are walking disorderly. Because you're out of step with the company. Now that doesn't mean that God wants us all to be cookie cutter Christians either there's a balance to this. But it does mean that there are things that we do and it could be the way we talk.

It could be it could even be the worship that we give it could be the way we teach. It could be the dress we wear it could be a lot of things. But if there are is anything that is seeking to draw attention to yourself that you are out of step with the company.

You are in effect then walking disorderly. You're out of step and That's important God's intention for the assembly and we looked at collective gatherings. These collective gatherings we mentioned are linked with direction.

God directing his people in Contradistinction to the world around them. God Interacting with his people so that there's fellowship with that company God. God desires fellowship. That's why he made man an Interaction with a people that obeys him and that gives him his place as Lord Is actually a pleasing thing to God?

He desires communication. So that he communicates through the local assembly and through such gatherings as we're in the Old Testament. And he will do that in the future. Among his people too as well.

But one of the great reasons over all of this that overshadows every one of these is Distinction that there is a company that is distinct from what is around them so that they can make a clear Evidence To the character of God in a world around them.

Light, Darkness, and the Assembly's Distinct Witness

You see what happened was? When sin entered this world. Everything changed and not for the better the spheres the spheres changed and What was once one? Universal sphere. That God put his stamp on and said it is good.

But when sin entered into that all change in the world at all change and now the earth Becomes the world and the world Has a distinctive sphere about it. Love not the world. The world became the world systems that were in Embryo form when sin came into the world the seed for every world system was embodied in that single sin that began all things.

And When that happened? Adam lost his dominion. Satan now a prince of the power of the air. God in a way lost his place. Can I say it that way so that Satan is the god of this world. In short? The world was plunged Into darkness in creation.

God moved to dispel that darkness. Didn't he a different type of darkness a physical darkness and God said let there be light and. And God introduced light into the end of the creation and when he did that he dispelled the darkness.

But what God has been doing since the fall a different kind of darkness came in a moral darkness a spiritual darkness and We learn about that from physical darkness. God gives us physical things to teach us about spiritual realities.

That's the importance of your Old Testament to the new. And so when it comes to to darkness and light God wants to make because God is light. God wants to make a distinction in the world of more and spiritual darkness of the realm of light.

So that that you are as believers children of light. And that the assembly is a fellowship of light. That's important because there are those that are teaching that the local assembly is a fellowship of life.

It's a fellowship of light. We are displaying light to a world of unbelievers. Well, you say well you say well, don't we have to have life to do that? Yes, but the unbelievers don't have life and The difference the order is this light.

Life love so that they will see light before they will ever get life. We are a fellowship of light. It is obedience to the truth. Direction to the truth. Now, what does light do. Light does at least three things?

The first thing is light dispels the darkness. Light dispels the darkness. Darkness is. Darkness is not the presence of something. It's the absence of light. Right. Nobody says there's no such thing as a dark flashlight.

I don't think I think there's dark light. They call it dark light, but it's not black light. That's a misnomer. But there's no such thing as introducing darkness if you want darkness what you have to do is take away the light and if you take away the light then You bring about darkness because darkness is the absence of light.

So from a practical standpoint If the devil wants to make this assembly or the assemblies that are represented here if he wants to bring darkness into that assembly, he has to take away the light and taking away the light will be accomplished by a deviation a Disobedience to the Word of God and a direction that is geared to self and Satan.

Because you see you. Who will one time? Darkness are now light in the Lord. So when we introduce Fleshly carnal ways into the assembly. We are then taking away the light. And when you take away the light you introduce darkness.

That's why it is so important brethren to be reminded of these things now light does three things. I've got to move on quickly. First thing that light does is it dispels the darkness? So we said that so light comes in dispels the darkness.

We know God is light if we walk in the light as he is in the light. We have fellowship one with another. And so we are brought into upon salvation a sphere of light as well so in other words the light that we walk in and practice in the assembly is Consistent with the very salvation that we have come into the good of light dispels the darkness.

Light defines the deeds doesn't it? Light defines the deeds what workmen there are farmers here carpenters here electricians here. What what workmen works in the dark? You'd say that's ridiculous. You can't how can you see no, that's right.

That's right. So it defines the deeds if you're going to know what you're going to do and you're going to do it, right? You're gonna need light and the brighter the light the better. You ever try reading in the dark.

Can't really you can't really do it. It's not too good. You need light and the point is this try serving the Lord and that's what we're gonna go to with the lampstand in the dark. They're in the twilight or in the you can't do it.

We need to see what we're doing. Light defines the deeds but there's something else that light does because we can get away as Individuals and as assemblies we can sadly get away. And that's what happened for example in every one of these epistles almost that there is a getting away a Deviation a moving away.

Sometimes it's coasting. You don't really intend it, but you just kind of coast away and and and things drift. Sometimes it's intentional and there are men that will introduce things to take the assembly off track to take it on a course that they want rather than what God wants and When that happens whether it is intentional Or unintentional when that happens light determines the distance.

You're in a boat. You're in the middle of a body of water and it's dark. There is no way you will know whether you are one mile or a thousand miles from shore. If you don't have a light on the shore to tell you how far you are.

That's one of the purposes of lighthouse. Tells you you're getting close. Warns you of the rocks so that light Determines the distance. Light defines the deeds. Light dispels the darkness. We need light now.

That is another reason why? Satan knows this. Oh, come on. Your meals aren't getting you that quickly. I can see some faces nodding off. That's why Satan makes himself known as an angel of light. You see what I'm trying to do here brethren is I want I want to wrap these threads together.

Satan's Counterfeit Light and Obedience to Scripture

And I want to show you how these things interrelate. This is not something that randomly God is throwing out truth for us. It is important that men know this overseer. Know this people in assembly fellowship know these things.

Christians know these things so when it comes to the light then Satan manifests himself as an angel he appears as an angel of light and he throws himself as a substitute and that angel of light if he's listened to.

Can be can be taken into the personal realm and you can do things that you will justify. And you will you will actually Rationalize that God wants you to do these things and you will listen to not God now but you will listen to a cheap substitute and you will have substituted a Pseudo light.

Because Satan appears as an angel of light for the real light. And you can say that how I act what I do where I go. I know a man that he actually one morning. He said One Sunday morning was missing and I asked him the next week.

I said well, you know, we missed you. Where were you? Oh, he says I went fishing with my brother. I Says really I said why'd you go fishing instead of the meeting? Well, he says, you know He's not saved and I prayed about it.

And he said and I really felt that God wanted me to go fishing with him because it was the only opportunity I had To speak with him. So the gospel is more important than anything I said the gospel is very important, but the Lord gives us clear commandment this do in remembrance of me.

Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together and I said the work of the Lord. Will never contradict his word never. God will never tell you to do something. Contrary to his word the ends do not justify the means.

That's how the world operates and who is the God of this world? Satan. So he can tell you in your heart in your mind. Yes, you do that and it doesn't matter you know. This is a one-off. It won't happen.

And and you know what you start doing that and you start opening that door and I guarantee it. It won't close very it won't it'll open wider and wider. I Can give you scores of illustrations from the Word of God.

I don't have the time to do it. Read your Bible. You'll find them of men and women that just open that door a little bit and soon it was full open wide and Some of them were gone never to return a limo like is one of them in the book of Ruth.

We're just going for a little while. Yes, things are rough. God wants us. God doesn't want us to be poor and you know what? You can hear all the wheels turning and actually if we had more money we could give that more to God.

And you can see all the little dominoes falling down of pseudo wrong thinking and you know what happened. He died in Moab never supposed to go there and The other people who really stuck it out. Like Boaz and those they were blessed.

Sometimes it's in the realm of the pattern not just personally. But the pattern and you know what we need to bring this into the assembly and we need to bring that into the assembly. And and you know what?

We can't sing here. There are poor singers here. So if we had a piano it would really live and things up and I think you know what God would not be upset if we Had a piano you don't have a piano. So I'm not going to go there for that one.

But there's a there's a score of other things. What about what about. What about some of the things from religious systems around you know what? Listen do not ever argue from the fact of the silence of the Bible.

There are people that say well, you know, it doesn't say the Bible doesn't say we can't do it. You know what the Bible gives us a positive pattern. God gives us a positive pattern in other words. We see in the Word of God what we should be doing and how we should be doing it.

And if you want to deviate from that, you know what there's no telling where that trains going to go. There's no telling what station that's going to stop at. Because it can just keep going because listen the Bible doesn't say a lot of things.

But you want to introduce that you're on you're on a slippery slope. God gave us just what we need and it's not cultural and it's not conditional. It's continual. And God is telling us here. The other thing is we can we can argue from the standpoint of precept as well.

The Meaning of Order in Genesis and the Tabernacle

Now, let me just get into my passages here. This order here. It's interesting 17 times in the Hebrew in the books of Exodus and Leviticus. Is this word order order and the first time we see it? In fact, the first time we see it is very interesting.

The first time we see it in the Bible is in the book of Genesis. Anybody remember? It's very serious passage. It's a very moving passage. It's a very lofty passage. Abraham has been told to offer his son.

He's not going to rush it. Some of us if we were told to do certain things. You ever have to go to the doctor and you don't want to go and you go. I just want to get it over with. I'm just going to go and get it over with.

Go to the dentist. Sorry and you say I'm just you know, I just want to get this over with let me go. Abraham didn't approach that God said offer your son. And Abraham said like, you know Abraham didn't say well, I just want to get this over with you know, son, come on, let's go.

Everything was focused in Full obedience and it says in Abraham claimed the wood. He cut his own wood. He could have given that to the servants to do Abraham. It says laid the wood in order. That's the first time an order first time in the book of Exodus.

Oh, I know it appears another time earlier than this in chapter 25, but it's a different word. Here the word means something else the word literally means in Genesis 22 and here in the book of Exodus it literally carries the thought of order or Estimation Proportion and Value.

So how you value something Will determine the order you give it. You will be very careful about something. That you value how much do you value the assembly? How much you value the assembly will be determined by how much you value the Lord Himself.

Who has claims over you claims over me? Because you cannot separate the two. We're not coming to church. It's not that church is one thing and God is another. The New Testament as well as the Old Testament and gatherings clearly teaches that the place and the person were inseparably linked together and That was unfolded by light.

And so when it comes to this light, I want you to think about this lampstand just for a moment. Lampstand when you have in this holy place, there were three sections to the tabernacle. The one was the outside the outer court and The furthest inside was the holiest of holies, right?

But the middle place was the holy place now the holiest of holies that only got used once a year and the other court. Well that got used every day, but it was but it was by the common people. They came they looked the Israelites and so on and there was the brazen altar out there but the holy place the That was the nerve center of God's presence among his people on a daily basis.

Was in the holy place. That's where the priests functioned. That's where the table of showbread was and the table of showbread. You remember there were twelve loaves of bread right on that table of showbread and that was for the priests food.

So that's representative of communion. They ate that twelve of them. You know how big each loaf was take a guess. We often think these were little rolls little pancake things on each loaf was anywhere from 10 to 14 pounds each loaf, yeah, look it up and They were stacked because the table wasn't that wide and They were each linked with one of the twelve tribes.

So they were the fruit of the priests twelve of them. So I'll link them with the twelve tribes. So you have the table of showbread. You have the altar of incense. And the altar of incense which had burning coals on it and those burning coals incidentally were taken from the brazen altar outside.

So that the priest would take them from the brazen altar. He would bring them into the holy place. He would put them on the altar of incense. Then he would take his hand full of incense and he would put that on the altar of incense and the place would be filled with the incense and.

Then there was another thing the lampstand. And the lampstand stood over and you know what the purpose of the lampstand was. Well, you say well the table of showbread that was to feed the priest they got food from that they fed that yes.

That's true. And the altar of incense they burned incense on that and they were they were putting their handfuls of incense. What about the lampstand? Lampstand really didn't do anything except For one thing it illuminated the whole holy place.

The light of that lampstand Lit up so it wasn't an optional resource. It was absolutely Necessary those priests Could not function they would not be able to serve Intelligently productively Fruitfully if they didn't have the light in that holy place.

They would need that light the light see you get the point when it comes to the assembly week. How are we to function? We're priests. How are we to carry out priestly duties, how are we to carry out there's that word Order if we don't have light.

It is a fellowship of light and as we move in that light We are intelligently Giving God his due. We are intelligently and fruitfully carrying out our work. We are representing him because God wants in the holy place in that and that sanctuary.

Sanctuary 1st Corinthians 3. Ye are God's Sanctuary ye are God's temple revelation 2 3 7 lampstands Luminaries lightbearers, that's the purpose of the assembly if you take away the light. You introduce darkness.

And you know what happens if you take away the light. That an assembly is to be. Then you blend into whether it's the religious or the moral the sphere the sphere of Darkness that is part of all the world.

That's why when it comes to 1st Corinthians and other passage passages. You have the within and the without. You read those expressions 1st Corinthians 5. The elder 1st Timothy 3 moreover. He is to have a good report to them that are without.

Without what outside the sphere of the assembly the world around in his business dealings in his personal dealings in his Neighborly duties in his on his street wherever he is to have a good report of them that are outside the fellowship.

That is one of the qualifications of an elder. It is one of the credentials and the criteria of an assembly that an assembly exists and forms a sphere of within and. So that a person who is walking disorderly if that continues is literally Introducing can I put it that way?

I know I said that opposite, but he's taking away the light. From what that company is to be. And as he takes away the light by walking disorderly He is bringing in The sphere of the without and God says no no that that's not how this fear operates.

This is a sphere of light and So you have that lampstand that was there. The other interesting thing about that lampstand so the lampstand is not an optional resource. It is vital. The second thing that I find is very interesting.

Christ's Responsibility for the Lampstands

We didn't read this, but maybe you caught it when I was just alluding to it in Exodus 27 that Aaron was responsible. So that while the priests had their duties. It's never ever said that Aaron's sons you might infer that by reading that Aaron's sons were also linked with the trimming of the lamps and Maintaining the lampstand and so on who would replenish the oil.

Who would trim the lampstands who would keep the wicks clean who would keep that. But it specifically says that when it comes to the lampstand and the light that it shone in Sanctuary that Aaron was responsible for that now when you have Aaron and his sons.

It's a link to the the people of God when you have Aaron alone. It's a picture of Christ and Aaron is alone here and what that tells me is this ultimately. While testimony has been put into our hands to carry out ultimately.

It is in the hands of the Lord Jesus, and that's why in Revelation 2 he can say Repent therefore else. I will come and take away thy lampstand. I Will remove thy lampstand. Ultimately he is responsible.

You know that's a that's a good thing, but it's also a scary thing. Because he's the one who walks in the midst of the churches. He's the one who sees What we're bringing into the assembly in terms of self-will in terms of carnality in terms of our personal ways or What we're bringing into that assembly in terms of as children of light.

What is consistent with that of himself in the sanctuary our worship our obedience? Our desires to make him first. Willingness to submit he sees all of that. And so in that sanctuary in that holy place the priests received nothing from that lampstand apart.

From light, but it was absolutely necessary now. Let me go to the New Testament for a second. Because it's important to understand that this light is linked with the order of the assembly now when you go back to the Old Testament I'll just one more second.