Francis Frangipane: The Tent of Meeting

November 6, 2005

Francis Frangipane: The Tent of Meeting

Ministries of Francis Frangipane
www.frangipane.org 

"When Thou didst say, 'Seek My face,' my heart said to Thee, 'Thy face, O Lord, I shall seek.'" -- Psalm 27:8
 

A Time to Seek God

There are certain times when the Lord calls us out of the routine of our daily lives. These are special seasons where His only command is, "Seek My Face." He has something precious and vitally important to give us that the familiar pattern of our daily devotions cannot accommodate. During such times, people are often delivered of sins that have plagued them for years; others discover a depth in their walk with God that leads to greater effectiveness in ministry and prayer. Still, others experience breakthroughs in their families and are used by God to see loved ones brought into the kingdom.

Yet, here we are not seeking God for things or even for other people. We are seeking God for Himself. Maturity starts as we break the cycle of seeking God only during hardship; holiness begins the moment we seek God for Himself. A touch from God is wonderful, but we are in pursuit of more than just an experience -- more than "goose bumps and tears." We are seeking to abide with Christ, where we are continually aware of His fullness within us and where His presence dwells in us in glory.

How do we enter this sacred place? If we study the life of Moses, we will see how he sought God and lived in fellowship with Him.

"Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, a good distance from the camp, and he called it the tent of meeting. And it came about, that everyone who sought the Lord would go out to the tent of meeting which was outside the camp." -- Exodus 33:7

Notice that "everyone who sought the Lord would go out." If we are going to truly seek the Lord, we must "go out" as Moses and those who sought the Lord did. We must pitch our tent "a good distance from the camp." What camp is this? For Moses, as well as for us, it is the "camp of familiarity."

Is there anything inherently wrong or sinful with the things that are familiar? No, not in themselves, but you will remember that when Jesus told His disciples to follow Him, He called them to leave the familiar pattern of their lives for extended periods and be alone with Him (Matthew 19:27 & Luke 14:33). Why? Because He knew that men, by nature, are unconsciously governed by the familiar. If He would expand us to receive the eternal, He must rescue us from the limitations of the temporal.

This is not to say we neglect our families or that we become irresponsible as we seek God. No. God has given everyone enough time to seek Him. It is there. Having done what love would have us do for our families, we simply say, "No" to every other voice but God's. We must redeem the time: cancel hobbies, forsake television, and put away the newspaper and magazines. Those who would find God, find time.
 

Security in Familiarity

Sadly, many Christians have no higher goal, no greater aspiration, than to become "normal." Their desires are limited to measuring up to others. Without a true vision of God, we most certainly will perish spiritually!

Paul rebuked the church at Corinth because they walked, "like mere men" (1 Corinthians 3:3). God has more for us than merely becoming better people; He wants to flood our lives with the same power that raised Christ from the dead! We must understand: God does not merely want us "normal," He wants us Christlike!

For the Holy Spirit to facilitate God's purposes in our lives, He must redefine both our definition of reality and our priorities in life. Christlikeness must become our singular goal.

For most people, however, our sense of reality, and hence, our security, is often rooted in the familiar. How difficult it is to grow spiritually if our security is based upon the stability of outward things! Our security must come from God, not circumstances nor even relationships. Our sense of reality needs to be rooted in Christ. When it is, the other areas of our lives experience eternal security.

Yet, our fears run deep and are numerous. Indeed, most of us pass through life umbilically tied to the protection of the familiar. Experience tells us that many good people remain in lifeless churches simply because they desire the security of familiar faces more than the truth of Christ. Even people who have been delivered from adverse situations are often drawn back into hardship. Why? Because adversity is more familiar to them.

Consider that certain prisoners are repeat offenders simply because they are more accustomed to prison life than freedom. Is it not sadly true that often young girls who have been abused by their fathers unconsciously tend to seek out and marry men who eventually abuse them as their fathers did? Groping blindly through life, they sought for the familiar. It is significant that worldwide, most people live within fifty miles of their birthplaces.

Humans are cocooned, insulated against change by the familiar. When we work all day only to come home, watch television, then collapse in bed, our lifestyle becomes a chain of bondage. These things may not necessarily trap us in sin as much as they keep us from God.
 

Stepping Outside the Familiar

Moses would leave what was familiar and pitch his tent "outside the camp," where he would then seek the Lord.

"Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered outside the gate. Hence, let us go out to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach. For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come." -- Hebrews 13:12-14

In the same way that Moses and those who sought the Lord went outside the camp, and as Jesus went outside the camp, so also must we, at times, leave the camp of what seems normal and predictable and begin to seek after God. Here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come.

This is one reason why Jesus said, "When you pray, go into your inner room, and when you have shut your door, pray" (Matthew 6:6). Christ desires us to leave the familiar, distracting world of our senses and abide in the world of our hearts, bearing in mind that the highest goal of prayer is to find God.

Every minute you seek God is a minute enriched with new life and new power from God. Give yourself a minimum amount of time -- an hour or two each day -- but do not set a limit, as the Lord may draw you to seek Him on into the night. And continue day by day and week by week, until you have drawn near enough to God that you can hear His voice, becoming confident that He is close enough to you to hear your whisper.

If we are going to become holy, we must sever the chains and restraints -- the bondage of desiring just an average life. We will choose to leave the camp of familiarity and place our tent in the presence of God.




Francis Frangipane
Ministries of Francis Frangipane
www.frangipane.org 

  ~~~~

Francis' Upcoming Itinerary:

February 10-11, 2006
Lutheran Renewal Equipping Conference
St Paul, MN
www.lutheranrenewal.org

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