The Feast of Tabernacles is a collection of teachings by Richard Mikelson.

 

These teachings explore spiritual depths of influential texts of scripture,  and of the human condition.

God Hath Chosen the Foolish

God Himself lives and abides to express Himself in the person of Jesus. His spirit is full of love, His soul is merciful, and His body is immortal. Jesus changed to one transformed by being filled with LIGHT, LIFE, LOVE, and the POWER of GOD, the father of us all. The FATHER of lights gives power that makes Jesus shine as His son.

God invaded humanity when Jesus Christ took upon Himself human flesh (born of a woman, born under the law) in the likeness of sinful flesh. For thirty-three and a half years he lived, walked, slept, and died in that mortal body born of a woman. All the while God was within scope of His inner spiritual person. He effectively DENIED RULE OF HIS HUMANITY. No sinful flesh held power over Him in any way. God as a Father supplied endowment for Him to abide in the very essences of His spirit. 

Behold the Lord! God gives Him power and that power is also extended to our inner man to be lovingly kind to others in our family, fellowships, our neighbors, even our enemies. In our focus of attention, He gives believing hearts the truth of His Word until it dwells richly within. Many Christians have been baptized in the power of His Spirit — the Holy Ghost — and in that we received an earnest of our inheritance. It was just a down payment of a promise of a complete finished work to come. 

Now is the time He is willing to give in a fuller measure what He has promised. Christ within us connects us to the source of a full complement of the Godhead. And what was gained bodily by Jesus? Most Christians now living have not realized how important it is to know what God did in Jesus! He wants to provide those same inner qualities in us by having God's name (nature) written upon our inner spiritual mind. 

Beholding Jesus has led some of us to believe God the Father TABERNACLES with our inner spiritual man. To have God tabernacle within our spirit brings the power of His sound mind to be released within our inner consciousness made free from sin. He comes even with power to change our “vile bodies”, the bodies of our humiliating flesh. Beholding the Lord by the Spirit will establish a transforming work within us that changes our spirit, soul, and body into that same image and likeness that Jesus now is.

All Christians should seek to behold Jesus Christ in their inner being, to know Him as He is, to no longer celebrate Him as being a babe in a manger:

"…we are awaiting a Saviour also, the Lord, Jesus Christ, Who will transfigure the body of our humiliation, to conform it to the body of His glory, in accord with the operation which enables Him even to subiect all to Himself." Philippians 3:20-21 concordant

Jesus, when being mocked, had God living in Him. Jesus asleep in the back of a boat — God was with Him. Jesus going to a tree, finding nothing on it— God was revealing truth in Him. When Jesus was weary, persecuted, hated, spit upon, nailed to the cross, God was in Christ Jesus reconciling the world unto Himself. Behold what God did in Jesus, making it possible for Himself to be at home in human form:

"The tabernacle of God is with mankind, and He will be tabernacling with them, and they will be His peoples, and God Himself will be with them."   Revelation 21:3 concordant

Now there's a way man can be indwelt by God! Yes, beholding the Lord, we now see we are to become the true tabernacle not built by man’s hands:

"Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in you?"   I Corinthians 3:16

The Word was made flesh and the Spirit of God dwelt among us. Now we are instructed to do the same, personally letting Christ teach our inner spiritual being, 

"Let the Word of Christ dwell in you…"   Colossians 3:16

The God who is in Jesus, this same God is in US!  That is not just a figure of speech for believers who follow Jesus Christ. Our Father gives strength to our inner spiritual man to raise up an understanding of how to dwell with His light. Christ comes to dominate within us that we may learn directly of God’s transforming power to a fuller extent. This is the power needed for our vile bodies to also become like His glorious body. Our apostle Paul prayed for us, knowing what God wanted to do:

"…That you might be filled with all the fullness of God…"   Ephesians 3:19

"What manner of man is this Jesus?" In one moment, Jesus was wearily lying in the back of a ship and in the next He says, "Peace, be still," and the waves cease their roaring and the winds die at His command:

"Now at length, midway of the festival, Jesus went up into the sanctuary and taught. The Jews, then, marveled, saying, ‘How is this one acquainted with letters, not having learned?’ Jesus, then, answered them and said, ‘My teaching is not Mine, but His Who sends Me.’ "   John 7:14-16 concordant

Jesus,  the wisest man that ever lived, astounded the doctors and the lawyers and the theologians with the depth of His understanding of sacred scripture because He was supplied by God’s focused wisdom. God operates in principles of wisdom that are foreign to the natural minded man. Even now, established orders of the church world fail to grasp what the Spirit teaches, seeing only dimly many of the divine principles revealed in scripture.

The Father of spirits is sending the spirit of truth to those sons and daughters who can receive it. God plants the truth of His Word in our spirit to enable us to grow by the Word of the Lord, to PUT ON Christ, until spiritually God tabernacles in us too. 

God has made our spirit alive and has formed a spiritual body within that is transforming our mind. Truth flows to us with outpouring rivers until even what is physical and mortal about us begins to be swallowed up by the supply of His life. That's what the apostle Paul stated that God wanted to do: the “mortal must put on immortality”.

Can God so dominate our spirit so as to lead us into immortality? God's clear intent, His heart’s desire, is of showing our inner man how our greatest weaknesses can be overcome by the great strength in His Sonship spirit! God is pleased to manifest Himself to sons and daughters as brethren who are co-heirs with Jesus, because:

"God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things that are mighty, and the base things of the world, and things that are despised, hath God chosen,"   I Corinthians 1:27-28

Chosen people are despised of men. They are people the devil persecutes, yet being the very ones God has chosen. I say the way the natural minded man thinks reveals many conditions of insanity. The carnal minds of the religious are just as much an insanity of mind given to destructive delusions — a mental illness beyond his own comprehension. The mind of man is soaked with mistrust, full of worry, fear, and the ravishes of hatred, violent war, disease, and death—soaked in the lies lodged in the mind of man.

Scripture teaches that the universal insanity in mankind is called the "wisdom of this world," and that the wisdom of this world is FOOLISHNESS with God. The wisdom of this world is blind to God’s truth, and is rather temporal, mortal, sick, warring, confused, sorrowing. Imperfect thoughts of fallen men are deceived by the deranged mindsets of former generations. Men keep people in agreement with false doom in a darkness that is called normal, but is simply the wisdom of this world. The wisdom of this world is stupidity with God. 

God’s wisdom has the power to really make His followers alive to the image of His Son, to know Him as He now is. There is no boasting pride of fleshly life on His tongue or lodged in His mind. What is clearly on the mind of God is a supply of Himself through Christ to those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.

God's thoughts become our peace from the old mindsets and life patterns full of doubts and fears. We learn to “put off the old”, and put on the new”. It saves us to agree with the mind of Christ. Transformation is coming to our mind, so now we are becoming sane, sound, and precious. We are receiving the light from our heavenly Father’s truth, provided just as He promised.

The wisdom that is from above is in direct contrast to the wisdom of man expressed in earthly thinking, in fact opposes it. Christ within us makes it possible for us to partake of wonderful truth that is reserved in treasures of spiritual dimensions. In love He calls His beloved out of religious Babylon’s concepts to no longer maintain their status-quo, to be outside every camp ruled by man, not to continue in that form of worship limited by the thinking of carnal minded ministers. Although well intended, the realms we've known as church have fallen.

For two thousand years He has been calling out a people to lead them onward and upward by His Spirit to experience greater heights of spiritual understanding. He has placed some of those called out into places for sons and daughters of God on the threshing floors of spiritual Mt. Zion. Wisdom leads to the greatest heights in Zion, to become a people He can STAND ON in the fullest sense, as those He has called and chosen to write His name upon. They can hear the sound of many waters and are free to sing new songs. They follow the Lamb wherever He goes and in their mouth should be no falsehood. His word raises us out of any thoughts contrary to this way of thinking. What a blessing to have such a guide!

Christianity as a whole has people who are ripe for harvest into a higher kingdom dimension, ripe to hear the Lord’s voice saying "Come up here into a higher place, I will show you what must come to pass:"

"After these things I perceived, and lo! a door is open in heaven, and lo! the first sound which I hear is as a trumpet speaking with me, saying, ‘Come up here! and I will be showing you what must be occurring after these things.’"   Revelation 4:1 concordant

The called out have received spiritual insight to recognize truth that raises us up from within to form a lasting celestial body within us. This body has the right spiritual senses to understand God’s peaceful love and grants enjoyment of our heavenly homeland. We recognize that His Spirit is leading us onward to the fullest measure promised.

It always helps to realize that our Father desires to give us MORE OF HIMSELF. He anoints us with insight into the WISDOM OF THE LORD so we might live and function with His wisdom at our disposal. How blessed the freedom of such resources of His understanding, of His counsel in spiritual knowledge! In each case, He imparts MORE FULLY THE ATTRIBUTES OF HIS JUDGMENTS to us, TO KNOW what He has to give!

We are no longer receiving in-part measures, but the portion that brings us perfect peace by righteous governing in love. LOVE is our experience. We are made to be a tabernacle possessing PEACEFUL LOVE, standing for the justice of GOD'S WISDOM to be far better appreciated than the worldly wisdom presented by the confused leaders of present nations on this planet:

"Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom.”   Proverb 4:7

Wisdom has built her house…”   Proverb 9:1

“She has hewn out Seven Pillars…”   Proverb 9:1

I know keys to the kingdom are found in these Seven Pillars that are to be applied to our life. They can heal our illness unto death. Our inner man can be raised on high to embody pillars of godly character. Isaiah prophesied that Jesus would contain all these attributes, and I say all firstfruit sons must have them too: 

“Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit.  

[1st pillar] The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him,

[2nd pillar] The spirit of wisdom

[3rd pillar] and understanding,

[4th pillar] The spirit of counsel

[5th pillar] and strength,

[6th pillar] The spirit of knowledge

[7th pillar] and the fear [reverence] of the LORD.  

All these qualities our Father delights in giving, in exchange for the fear-soaked, dread, and dark attitudes of death within men.

“And He will not judge by what His eyes see, nor make a decision by what His ears hear;  But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked."    Isaiah 11:1-4  

These seven pillars of godly characteristics are being erected within our spiritual being as we are being tested, then sealed and delivered fit for a CHURCH OF THE FIRSTBORN, a tabernacle containing His Wisdom and truth.

The first pillar we receive is as the Spirit comes to baptize us with Christ. Christ formed within us teaches us all things, and being taught, we understand spiritual wisdom. When Jesus is in view, we then know the second pillar of spiritual wisdom. The third pillar is an understanding of our Father’s ways, an understanding that distinctly refashions our thinking.

The fourth pillar placed in our tabernacle makes us channels of His council that is flowing out from His Mercy seat. This is the central key! God spends great resources to affect our attitudes and words to ensure they are coming from the mouth of the MERCIFUL, BLAMELESS, FAULTLESS, AND GUILELESS SONSHIP SPIRIT. Christ keeps rising within us to deliver a better way, a more excellent ministry, releasing us from the voices mouthing continual blame and fault finding on others as religious men do.

The fifth pillar of God’s strength is now coming to produce the sweet tasting fruit of goodness and righteousness in you based in scriptural truth as the Spirit has taught. Christ within us makes inner qualities of character, inner spiritual fruit that shows IN ATTITUDES OF LONG SUFFERING, IN GENTLENESS, IN MEEKNESS, AND IN SELF CONTROL.

Sixth, withholding judging of others with partiality is quite challenging for many Christian people. When we learn to let God's just judgement reign in other people’s lives, we will be drawn closer, made one more completely with what God knows. Finally: to be REVERENT is proper and necessary for us to be raised, changed, and placed in the heights of Zion, where our Father desires us to be. Can God really make us that kind of people? Yes, He is already doing it!

These Seven Pillars show again the spiritual characteristics that can be found in people built together and joined to Jesus Christ by the spirit. God has taken a great many generations of hewing out Christian people whom He has used to build into His spiritual habitation, to a city which is the focal point of His heart toward us. The city, the new Jerusalem, is at this point in time COMING DOWN into our view to prove what He has done.

ALL HAIL the wisdom of God coming into the majestic overcomers crowned with mercies flowing like rivers. His mercies remove the “spots and wrinkles” within those who are still falling so far short of their rightful heritage. It takes a combination of these inner characteristics to make pillars in the lives of those called out of the candlestick churches into the city the Lord has put together and raised up:

"The one who is conquering, him will I be making a pillar in the temple of My God, and he may be coming out nevermore, and I will be writing on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which is descending out of heaven from My God, and My new name. Who has an ear, let him hear what the spirit is saying to the ecclesias." Revelation 3:12-13 concordant

Within us is peaceable assurance that spiritual Mt. Zion may be approached. We can be guided into a heart flowing with abundant mercy and able to feast on all the good spiritual fruits Our Father has been instructing us to yield unto. He teaches us to refuse evil impartiality in our judgments now, today, yet display splendid honesty without hypocrisy.

Before our God we daily are walking in the common faith promised the saints. The true saints have garments made up of gorgeous Godly characteristics that are unblemished and white, clothed in wedding garments of the principle characteristics of our Father’s wisdom. God, our Father, is writing His name upon some:

“The pure in heart shall see God.”   Matthew 5:8

The wisdom from above is first of all PURE. That is, it is not mixed with human reasoning nor warped with preconceived ideas generated around church doctrines, philosophies, superstitions, myths, or traditional ways men think. Yet it is PEACEABLE: there is no warfare or contention that is stirred up to instigate strife and agitation within others.

“But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.” James 3:17 KJV

What adjustments will make us fit in this higher order? We all know there has been an abundance of strife and division in the church world on every level. It comes from not having the inner pillars of God’s wisdom written upon our spirit in a complete manner. Those who lack God's wisdom should ask for it. I am one of those who are asking for wisdom daily in order to be saved from just reciting the facts of our faith. We need His wisdom to convincingly contend for our thoughts in Christian fellowships which trend toward division.

Christian leaders do not all agree, with many becoming contentious and argumentative about what others value and say. What do we have to fight for but the proper faith? We are to hate every evil, yet only God’s judgments bring peace to us. His writing on our heart brings understanding of spirit that becomes a vital part of our being. Our spirit is alive because of what God did in Christ Jesus.

We do not have the right to cause fleshly word fights among brethren. God hates that! To be perfectly fit in Zion we each need to apply wisdom to every relationship we experience to the extent we even love our enemies wherever we find them in our lives. We can find opposition in our marriage, in our family, in our business, in our worship, and in our own thinking, yet we can bless and curse not:

"…love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who are persecuting you....You then, shall be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect."   Matthew 5:44-45, 48

God is choosing to show us His strength, the depth of His inworking by bringing each of us self control. He builds up treasures in our inner spiritual man in line with what and where He intends for each of us to be placed in the New Jerusalem order. The peace of God even now guides and is UMPIRE within our hearts:

“Let the peace of Christ [the inner calm of one who walks daily with Him] be the controlling factor in your hearts [deciding and settling questions that arise]. To this peace indeed you were called as members in one body [of believers]. And be thankful [to God always].” Colossians 3:15 Amplified

Clarity has met our charity, so that we are made to be peacemakers for real. We are no longer trusting in word bombs and dive bombing our brother's viewpoints with armies of yes men followers.

Wisdom that is from above is GENTLE – so as to be pliant, considerate, loving and yielding. Gentleness is a submissive quality that is not stomping about demanding one’s rights, nor with pushiness, nor abusiveness. The gentle nudge of truth has yielded a spiritual river that flows ever so gentle with God’s wisdom, SPEAKING THE TRUTH IN LOVE, so that for many it is EASY TO BE ENTREATED. Being gentle readies one to entreat others without rebuke or blame, not imputing to men their trespasses and failures, not being egocentric, or self-righteous, not demanding, but LISTENING WITH CARE.

The seven-fold spirit of wisdom is coming from the throne realm with the full FRUIT of love. Love is an enablement to enjoy peace on every hand, with an ability to be patient, kind, good, meek, temperate in all things. The third feast, the Feast of Tabernacles, is noted for having ALL the harvested fruit of the promised land, a land with milk and honey on the table.

A feast of fat things well refined is given WITHOUT PARTIALITY, without favoring for personal advantage, but rather a dispensation having justice for all, completely WITHOUT HYPOCRISY.

No wonder wisdom is spoken of as the tree of life:

"She (wisdom) is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her; and happy is every one that retains her…"   Proverb 3:18

All of wisdom's aspects shown in Proverb’s third chapter reveal characteristics that are LIFE-PRODUCING, life-building characteristics. The anointing of Christ quickens these characteristics to us, building a HOME FOR GOD WITHIN OUR SPIRIT with the many-sided personifications of God as a diadem:

“…we are heralding Christ crucified, to Jews, indeed, a snare, yet to the nations stupidity, yet to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God, for the stupidity of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

For you are observing your calling, brethren, that there are not many wise according to the flesh; not many powerful, not many noble, but the stupidity of the world God chooses, that He may be disgracing the wise, and the weakness of the world God chooses, that He may be disgracing the strong, and the ignoble and the contemptible things of the world God chooses, and that which is not, that He should be discarding that which is, so that no flesh at all should be boasting in God's sight.

Yet you, of Him, are in Christ Jesus, Who became to us wisdom from God, besides righteousness and holiness and deliverance, that, according as it is  written, He who is boasting, in the Lord let him be boasting.”   I Corinthians 1:23-31 concordant

All who are chosen by God to partake of wisdom have the mind to boast only in the Lord, only of what Christ has revealed within our own spirit. There, God writes His name upon us in many ways. Having the Father’s name hewn out within our inner spiritual being sets up a functioning together with God as a Father who redeems us to become His habitation in our spirit, in our soul, and in our body.

It is wonderful to BE the House of God — the building, the temple God inhabits by the spirit, a house not built with hands that has eternal connection to the heavens. The purest part of our heart is focused on our heavenly calling so we can be more fully washed, clothed, and prepared for His further appearings.

We are transformed by looking to Jesus so our body might be filled with the power of knowing God’s LOVE, LIGHT, and LIFE. God’s power makes Jesus shine in Mt. Zion, where the eagles have gathered. This is where “144,000” governmental sons have that place prepared of our Father. Rejoice! He WILL satisfy all of our longings for Him.

The Mercy Seat

Spiritual Sacrifices