The third item of offerings is the silver and bronze, or copper (v. 24a). This item in verse 24 is called the heave offering. Although the offerings of gold are called the wave offering, the things of silver and bronze are referred to as the heave offering because they represent something of the heavenly authority. Silver is for the base, the support, and the foundation of the Tent of Meeting. The sockets as the foundation of the tent were made of silver (36:24, 26, 30).
The bronze is in the same principle. The fence for the outer court was placed upon the base of bronze (38:11, 17). The bronze was for the foundation as a protection for the tent. For God’s building to have a proper foundation, there must be the heavenly authority. If there is no authority, there is no foundation or protection. All the silver and the bronze is for the foundation as the protection to the tent, and this foundation and protection must be something heavenly. It is a foundation on the earth, but it is a heavenly foundation, representing the heavenly foundation and protection to the church on this earth. The heavenly characteristics of Christ become the foundation as a protection to the church.
The fourth item of the offerings is acacia wood (v. 24b), typifying the human character of the ascended Christ. We have to experience the character of the ascended Christ, which on the one hand is a human character and on the other hand is a resurrected, ascended, and heavenly character. Our character today has to be transformed and renewed into the likeness of the ascended Christ.
The fifth item is the precious stones (v. 27). These are offered by the leaders, the principal ones among the Lord’s children, who have the authority. These precious stones are something related to those who have authority. This means that if you are going to be one with authority among the Lord’s children, you have to have something to offer to the Lord as precious stones. If you do not have this kind of wealth, you cannot take the lead among the Lord’s children. To have something of the precious stones means that in your life, in your spiritual experience, you have suffered the burning and the pressure. Thus, with you there is something very solid, very strong, and very precious, like precious stones. These experiences are much deeper than the experiences of the utensils of gold. The precious stones typify the deeper and further experiences of Christ. If we have something precious of Christ as the precious stones, we have the authority. Then we will be ones who can take the lead among the Lord’s children.
The sixth item is the spices and oil (v. 28). As we have seen, the spices represent the sweet odor of the resurrection life of Christ. The resurrection life of Christ is so sweet to God. The oil represents the Holy Spirit, and this Holy Spirit is related to the resurrection of Christ. The resurrected Christ is the Christ who became the Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45b). The spices and the oil represent Christ resurrected and ascended to God and coming down to visit people to enable people to serve God. All the services offered by men to God are included in the spices and the oil. The spices are for the slain and resurrected Savior, the sweet odor offered to God, and the oil represents the Holy Spirit in whom we can render the service to God. The spices and oil are offered not by the people but by the leaders of the people. Only those who could offer the precious stones could offer spices and oil. This is quite meaningful. Only when one has the deeper and further experiences of Christ as the precious stones could he offer the spices and the oil. Because he is so matured, so full of the Holy Spirit, he can offer the spices and the oil. All these are the items of the offerings and are called the heave offering, something of the ascended and heavenly Christ.