“…having the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden urn holding manna and Aaron’s staff that budded, and the tablets of the covenant.”

By the time of the New Covenant the items belonging to the Most Holy Place were gone. The fact that those items which denoted the presence of God in the Tabernacle had dwindled away should have impressed upon the Jews that God was forsaking them. Many Christians today find they lose the presence of God because they allow their spiritual furniture to be misplaced and then lost.

When we deny the power of God in our lives we risk losing the spiritual furniture in our temple. The failure of the Jewish nation to follow God led to them losing the heart of the Tabernacle. When the mercy seat and the items in the ark went missing so did God. That special room and its contents were the reminders that God was with them. Make no mistake, the people lost God in their hearts before they lost His presence in the Tent.

Task for Today: You live under a new covenant which puts the holy furniture in your heart. If you allow the world to crowd that furniture out and fill the holy space with worldly things you definitely risk losing God. Jesus stands at the door and knocks. Is there room to let Him in?

(P.S. If you are interested in the argument about the misplacing of the altar of incense I suggest a detailed commentary by a learned scholar who can offer various points of view.)