Exodus 29:44-46 (ESV) 44 I will consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar. Aaron also and his sons I will consecrate to serve me as priests. 45 I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their God. 46 And they shall know that I am the LORD their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt that I might dwell among them. I am the LORD their God.
John 1:14 (AMP) 14 And the Word (Christ) became flesh (human, incarnate) and tabernacled (fixed His tent of flesh, lived awhile) among us; and we [actually] saw His glory (His honor, His majesty), such glory as an only begotten son receives from his father, full of grace (favor, loving-kindness) and truth.
Revelation 21:3 (AMP) 3 Then I heard a mighty voice from the throne and I perceived its distinct words, saying, See! The abode of God is with men, and He will live (encamp, tent) among them; and they shall be His people, and God shall personally be with them and be their God.
Salvation is not simply a matter of being separated from our past and freed from our bondage to sin; salvation means that we are joined to a Holy God. By pitching His tent in our midst, God identifies with His people through His very presence. The reality of a "God who is here"--personal and in our midst--is an extraordinary assurance, one which distinguished the Judeo-Christian faith from all other religions. But God demands something in return for His presence. He demands that we identify with Him--that we be holy because He is holy. Holiness is not an option. God will not tolerate our indifference to His central command. It is the central covenant and command of Scripture, the cardinal point on which the whole of Christianity turns. Charles Colson.
