God’s Way to Reconciliation For His Fallen Creation
The Israelites had languished in bondage in the land of Egypt for 400 long, hard years. Ten, perhaps eleven, generations passed, during which time they gradually become enslaved by their heathen hosts in that strange land. And with each passing generation their knowledge of the God Who had raised them up diminished until, by the time of Moses, they knew no God but the pagan Egyptian deities.
That’s when God summoned Moses back to Egypt, to lead Israel out of their oppression and into the Land that He had promised to give to Abraham, five centuries prior to that. But before He could permit them to occupy this beautiful land of abundance, God knew that His people needed to be prepared to receive their inheritance. They had to be taught to know Him, to acknowledge Him, and to learn once more to place their implicit trust and confidence in Him.
So the Lord took them to school. He led them. He shaded, and sheltered them in the Pillar of Cloud, thru the vast wilderness each day. He protected and warmed them by the Pillar of Fire at night. He parted the Red Sea for them; drowned the Pharaoh’s pursuing army right in their sight, and then He gave Israel victory after miraculous victory over every enemy they encountered. He supplied all their temporal needs, and He fed them with the Manna, the bread that came down from heaven. He gave them water from a Rock that actually followed them as they sojourned toward Canaan.
God finally brought His children to the foot of Mount Sinai, where He instructed Moses to set up camp, because He was about to reveal to them His wondrous plan for their restoration to His grace and favor.
And there at the base of the mountain, God proclaimed audibly from the smoky heights of Sinai His Ten Commandment Law, punctuated with lightning and thundering. Then, He delivered to Moses His precepts, etched into both sides of two large tables of stone.
And for the next 40 days, God verbally dictated to Moses His Statutes and Judgments, which we find primarily in the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy – often referred to as “The Law of Moses” – although “The Law of Moses” is in actuality “The Word of the LORD by the hand of Moses”, according to the Masoretic Text. God gave these Statutes and Judgments to further define and amplify, and to articulate specific applications of His Ten Commandments.
It was here and at this time, that God gave to Moses some very explicit instructions for the establishment of …
The Earthly Tabernacle: A Pattern of the Sanctuary in Heaven
Central to, and directly associated with, God’s delivering to Moses His Commandments and His Statutes, was this explicit instruction:
Exodus 25:8, 9 “Let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them. According to all that I show you … The pattern of the tabernacle and … all its furnishings, just so, you shall make it.”
God told Moses that this holy structure was to be a scaled-down, transportable model of God’s actual abiding place in heaven. It was to be a living, fully-functioning object-lesson of God’s master plan for the rescue and reclamation of fallen humanity.
King David wrote: “Thy way, O God, is in the Sanctuary.” Psalms 77:13 God’s Master Plan, His “Way” of redeeming His Creation and setting man right is made clear – it springs to life – in the Sanctuary.
The Tabernacle would serve as God’s textbook – His teaching tool for all generations. Everything associated with the Sanctuary and its functions pointed to the coming Savior, and was symbolic of all that the Annointed One would do to reconcile Man with the Father in heaven.
It’s impossible to fully grasp the true significance of God’s Plan of Redemption until we understand the function and the purpose of His Sanctuary; because the Tabernacle that God instructed Moses to build, and the services and functions of this earthly counterpart were a direct parallel of what was to take place on earth and in Heaven. Its significance concerns every person who has ever drawn breath!
This is the indictment against mankind: Romans 3:23 “All have sinned, all have fallen short ” of the mark, Romans 3:10 “There is none righteous, no not one” Ezekiel 18:20 “The soul that sinneth, it shall die” Hebrews 9:22 “Without shedding of blood is no remission” of sin. The Tabernacle is God’s way of redemption for all.
We’ll begin with a thorough look at the physical floor plan of the earthly Tabernacle; then we’ll examine the furnishings and the features, and what each item represents; and finally, we’ll follow the services and functions of the earthly model, or the type, and then the anti-typical, the true Sanctuary, in the courts of heaven.
Let’s look at the physical floor-plan of the earthlyTabernacle …
It was situated in the center of the encampment of the 12 Tribes. The Tabernacle building itself was surrounded by an open, outdoor courtyard.
A 9ft high curtain wall enclosed the entire Tabernacle grounds (about 160′ x 80’ to 180’ x 90’), and was suspended from bronze pillars with silver attachments.
Even the anchor pegs for the curtain wall and the Tabernacle were made of cast bronze!
The Eastern gate faced west, away from the rising sun, as the surrounding nations were sun-worshiping pagans.
The Tabernacle building dimensions were about 50’ x 18’ x 18’ high
Consider now: All that took place in the outer court of the earthly Sanctuary is what would actually happen here on this earth. This represents Christ’s earthly ministry, where Justification took place!
And what took place inside the Tabernacle building was to meet its fulfillment upon Jesus’ Ascension, when, at that time, He entered the true Sanctuary in Heaven, to begin His ministry of intercession. It is here that the process of Sanctification takes place.
Central to Christ’s earthly ministry is the Cross, represented by the Altar of Sacrifice. Central to Christ’s ministry in heaven is the Throne of God the Father, which is represented by the Ark of the Covenant.
Keep in mind that when the Tabernacle and its services were established, all of this symbolized events that were still in the future, throughout the Old Testament times. The Tabernacle Services are in actuality an ancient prophecy which has now nearly reached its fulfillment!.
Now,we’ll take a closer look at the various items & furnishings in the Sanctuary … all of which point to, and are symbolic of, the Messiah, Jesus Christ … and what each one of them represents.
The Tabernacle was completely portable – it was taken down when they broke camp, and set up again when they pitched camp.
The enclosing curtain wall, which “robed” the Tabernacle, was comprised of finely-woven white linen, representing the purity and righteousness of the coming Messiah.
The Tabernacle services ran 24 / 7, just as does Jesus’ ministry, without ceasing!
The outer court represented Christ’s earthly ministry, while the” Tent of Meeting” represented Christ’s ministry in Heaven
As we enter at the East gate, we first see …
The Altar of Sacrifice -7.5’ sq x 4.5’ high, fabricated of bronze, with four horns extending from the top corners, and steps leading up to it. The Altar of Sacrifice represented the Cross of Calvary, which was Jesus’ “Altar of Sacrifice”. The Altar fire burned continuously, day and night.
The Bronze Laver – An immense bronze basin where the priest washed his hands and feet before ministering at the Altar and before entering the Sanctuary tent. The Laver represented Christ’s resurrection, as well as our baptism – our re-birth by water and the Spirit.
The Sanctuary building was divided into two apartments, 1) the Holy Place, representing where Jesus, our High Priest, ministers daily on our behalf, and 2) the Most Holy Place, representing the throne room in heaven, and the very presence of God.
The roof of the Sanctuary Building, or the Tent of Meeting, as it was also called, had 4 layers: the inner, 1st layer, was red, blue, purple, embroidered gold. The embroidering symbolized the countless Cherubim attending God’s throne.
2nd layer: white goat skin representing purity of the sacrifice, Christ. Also, goat skin was an excellent insulating material against heat, as well as the cold!
3rd layer: red skins, representing the shed blood of the sacrifice, Christ, our Passover Lamb.
4th layer: Badger skins / some references identify the outer covering as Sea Cow – most obviously for weatherproofing, either way.
Stepping INSIDE the Tent, the first apartment was called “The Holy Place” …
The interior –The walls were constructed of wooden panels, overlaid with pure gold. The entry curtain, the ceiling, and the veil between the two apartments were scarlet, blue, and purple, with embroidered gold cherubim.
On the right-hand side, to the north, stood The Table of Showbread (also called The Table of the Presence) – 2cu x 1.5cu x 1.5cu. Made of Acacia wood, overlaid with gold, with a beautiful crown around the top perimeter.
Each Sabbath, the Levites would bake 12 cakes of unleavened bread (representing the 12 tribes), symbolizing Christ, the Bread of Life, come down from heaven – unleavened, meaning He would be without sin, and place them, hot, on the table, in two rows, six cakes per pile, with frankincense atop each stack. The Bread was renewed each Sabbath, indicating that we should gain a fresh experience each Sabbath thru the Bread of Life. This was a continual offering, as is the ministry of Christ, to this day! (Reference 40yrs of Manna, “the bread that came down from heaven”; also at the Lord’s Supper, Communion, the bread symbolizes His body.) Jesus said, “I AM the Bread that comes down from heaven!” And His Word is “the Bread of Life”! I love how all of God’s symbolism inter-connects!
At the end of each week, the bread would be removed and eaten by the priests, symbolizing receiving, and feeding on – internalizing – the Bread of Life, the Word of God, both of which represent Jesus.
The Golden Lamp-stand was on the left, the south side. Fabricated of one piece of wrought gold, it consisted of 7 oil-fed lamps with 7 beautiful bowls and delicate flowers. It represents Christ, the Light of the World. Also, it stands for the Church on earth, as well as the seven historical phases of the Church, which John later addressed in Revelation, as well as the 7 historical phases of the Church, thru to Christ’s return. . Finally, we, His present-day church, are to be that light – we are to reflect His light: Jesus said in Matthew 5:14 “Ye are the light of the world”.
The oil that fuels the lamps, without which the light could not shine, represents The Holy Spirit. Reference the 10 Virgins, 5 with a reserve of oil, and 5 without. “Not by might, not by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord”. There’s no shortage of power with God’s Holy Spirit.
The High Priest filled and trimmed the lamps each morning and evening, as we are to seek His Spirit afresh, daily. Keep your lamp trimmed and burning! The lamps burned continuously, day and night. Even when being maintained, at least one lamp was to be kept burning. John the Revelator saw in vision Jesus, our High Priest, standing among the golden lamp–stands in heaven (see Revelation 1:12, 13, 19, 20).
The Altar of Incense, where the Priest made intercession for the people, stood in the center, immediately before the Veil. It was 1cu square x 2cu hi, made of Acacia wood, overlaid with pure gold. Four horns extended from the top corners, and there was an ornamental crown around the perimeter. Within the crown, on the top of the Altar, holy fire was kept burning continually.
Each morning and evening, only the High Priest (Jesus) would take live coals from the Altar of Sacrifice and place them on the Altar of Incense. He would then place a special blend of four fragrant resins and gums on the glowing coals, from which ascended the fragrant smoke of the incense. Replication for personal use of this holy blend was strictly forbidden, and violators were cut off from the congregation. This service pointed to Christ’s mediatorial work on our behalf. The incense represented Jesus’ righteousness and the Holy Spirit mingled with, and ascending with, the prayers of the petitioner.
In like manner, as we present our petitions, Christ’s righteousness and the intercession of the Holy Spirit accompany our prayers as they ascend to the Throne of Grace.
The Veil between the two apartments was a thick, heavy curtain, representing Christ’s flesh, standing between sinful man and the Presence of God. Blood-red, royal-blue, and regal purple, embroidered with golden cherubim, it reflected the warm glow of the golden Lampstand.
At the crucifixion, on the Day of Passover, when the blood of Christ, the anti-typical Lamb, was spilled and He was slain, once-for-all-time, at the hour of the evening sacrifice, this veil was torn from top to bottom by an Unseen Hand (it was far too thick to be torn by man’s hand, particularly from the top to the bottom!) signifying the end of the necessity for the vicarious animal sacrifices, and signaling that there was available now direct access to the presence of God, thru the veil, thru the torn flesh of “the Lamb of God, Who taketh away the sin of the world!”
The Second Apartment , or “The Most Holy Place”: No one but the High Priest was to enter, and that only once each year, on the typical Day of Atonement, the Cleansing of the Sanctuary, and then, only with much repentance , personal sacrificial offering, fear and trembling.
The Most Holy Place was a type of the anti-typical Throne Room in heaven. The only furnishing there was the central figure of the entire Sanctuary, The Ark of the Covenant. Made of Acacia wood, overlaid, inside and out, with pure gold, it measured about 3.75’ x 2.25’ x 2.25’.
Inside the Ark of the Covenant, originally, was to be the Tables of the Covenant, the broken Law of God, which was the sole reason for the entire sacrificial system. Hebrews 9:4 states that a golden pot of manna and Aaron’s rod were also in there – and these may have been placed there at a later time – but the original instructions in Exodus 25:16 and in verse 21 stipulate only that the Testimony of the Law (the Ten Commandments, also referred to as the Tables of the Covenant) was to repose inside the Ark. The “Law of Moses” was God’s Statutes and Judgments, which He dictated to Moses on Mt. Sinai, was kept on the outside of the Ark. The Ark of the Covenant represented the throne, or the seat, of God, the foundation of which is His Law and His justice, as represented by the Tables of the Covenant..
The top of the Ark, called “The Mercy Seat”, was fashioned of pure gold, with a golden crown around the top, and two finely-wrought golden Cherubim at each end, facing each other, wing-tips touching, looking reverently downward at the Mercy Seat and the Law of God.
The presence of God was manifested in the brilliant Shekinah Glory- light, above the Mercy Seat; and thus, God’s mercy was interposed between His holy presence and the justice required by His Law.
In Exodus 25:22 God says to Moses: “And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above the Mercy Seat, from between the two cherubim which are on the Ark of the Testimony, about everything which I will give you in commandment to the children of Israel.” NKJV
So, the Ark symbolized God’s throne, and the golden Cherubim on the Ark, as well as those embroidered on the veil, and on the ceiling curtain, pointed to the countless angelic beings who attend the Lord without end, before His throne in the True Sanctuary, in the Heavenly Courts.
The glow of the Shekinah Glory shone above and over the veil, which was suspended from pillars, and did not reach the common ceiling serving the two apartments, and was visible in the adjacent Holy Place!
The Altar of Incense, Table of Showbread, & Ark of the Covenant were made of Acacia wood. Historians say the Cross on which Christ was crucified, which was His “Sacrificial Altar”, was also made of Acacia wood.
So, what actually took place in the daily services of the Tabernacle? Keep in mind: this is patterned precisely after the continuous services in the True Sanctuary, which is in heaven. What happened here in the earthly Sanctuary was to take place in the heavenly.
Thru the Tabernacle services, the complete Gospel of Jesus Christ was preached – was presented in living color and high-definition – to the nations for about 1500 years before Christ, before the Lamb of God, was born of a woman! Now, let’s see how all this actually works:
These are the Tabernacle services, which represent events to take place here on this earth, and what each one means:
You select from your flock, or if you’re not a herdsman, you purchase or barter for a spotless, unblemished lamb (representing the innocence of Jesus) & bring it to the Sanctuary.
The Priest, a figure of Christ, comes out to meet you just inside the gate. Remember, the father of the Prodigal Son (the repentant sinner) came out to meet him.
You present your sacrificial Lamb (Christ, the Lamb of God, in your place). You place your hands on the head of the Lamb, Jesus – lean your full weight on him – symbolizing placing your complete trust in, your full dependence on, Jesus, your Lamb, your Substitute. Here, the lamb becomes “you”, symbolic of the Incarnation of Christ into our flesh and bone and blood.
You confess your sin on the head of the lamb, which is symbolically transferred from you to the innocent Lamb.
The Priest hands you a sharp knife with which you slit the throat of your substitute. You – not the Priest – kill the Lamb. “Without shedding of blood, there is no remission of sin.”
“The wages of sin … is death.” This is a most-solemn, sobering moment, as it was our sin which caused the suffering and death of the Savior!
The Priest captures the shed blood of the dying Lamb in a vessel and the Blood is wiped on each of the horns at the four corners of the altar, and the remainder poured on the ground around base of the altar. The blood of Christ also was spilled on the ground around the Cross – during his vicious beatings, through the trials, and upon the Cross
In the case, for example, of an individual who was a leader of the people, the Priest took the blood into the Holy Place, and applied it to the horns of the Altar of Incense, sprinkled some blood on the veil (the symbol of Christ’s flesh), then poured the remainder on the ground around the Sacrificial Altar. That sacrifice was then taken outside the camp (as they eventually did with Jesus) and there it was burned.
The Sacrifice is prepared (involving the removal of the waste-organs and the fat around them) and then burned on the Altar of Sacrifice, as Christ was offered on His altar, the Cross of Calvary.
The Priest washes his hands & feet at the Laver before serving at the Altar, and again before entering the Holy Place to intercede, representing the pure, undefiled Priesthood of Christ, our High Priest, and the purity required of us as His “Royal Priesthood” (I Peter 2:9). It is also symbolic of our Baptism, and daily cleansing, and our rebirth by water and the Spirit.
Now, representing events taking place in the True Sanctuary …
The Priest enters the Holy Place, which is symbolic of Christ’s ascension into heaven to minister in our behalf. while his intercession represents Jesus’ presenting our petitions, along with the merits of His own sacrifice, His own blood, His own death in place of ours. The Priest, on special occasions as for priests and civil leaders, carried the blood of the sacrifice with him into the Holy Place, to apply it to the horns of the Altar of Incense, as well as to the Veil, which was a symbol of the flesh of Christ, standing between sinful man and the Presence of God.
When the blood of the sacrifice was not to be taken into the Holy Place, the Priest would then consume a small portion of the flesh of the sacrificial animal, symbolizing our High Priest, Christ’s, “bearing the sin” of the repentant one, as the sin of the offender had been symbolically transferred to the sacrificed animal.
The priest’s intercessory prayers on our behalf ascend with the smoke of the incense – a representation of Christ’s merits, His righteousness, and the Holy Spirit’s interceding for you, making your prayer a sweet savor before the Throne of Grace,
Your sin has been symbolically transferred to Sanctuary, where it will be “blotted out” on the Day of Atonement – see Acts 3:19
There were morning & evening sacrifices each day for the entire congregation; and in addition … for the individual, there were sin offerings, trespass offerings, whole burnt offerings, food and drink offerings, and thank-offerings. The above sequence was a round-the-clock, non-stop service – a perfect parallel of Christ’s 24 / 7, perpetual ministry for us.
So, where are we at the present time, in this sequence?
Revelation 14:7 declares, “… the hour of His judgment is come.” We are currently living in the anti-typical Day of Atonement.
The Day of Atonement – A Type or Figure of the Final Judgment
Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, the High Priest himself, with much fear and trembling, and only after making heart- confession and sacrifice for his own sins, entered directly into the presence of the Lord, in the Most Holy Place. This event was the most solemn, the most important of all the Tabernacle services. This was “The Cleansing of the Sanctuary”, which represented the Conclusion, the Final Resolution, of the Judgment.
On this most solemn occasion, two goats were selected from the flock, and lots were cast on them. The first one selected, designated the Lord’s goat, was sacrificed for the collective sins of all the people, and its blood was offered by the High Priest, in the Most Holy Place, sprinkled before the Presence of God, above the Mercy Seat.
Then, the second animal, which was called “the Scapegoat” – and here is where that term originated! – the Scapegoat was prepared to bear the aggregate iniquity of all the congregation of the people.
The entirety of the sins that had been symbolically transferred: 1) initially, from the sinner to the sacrifice, and then 2) symbolically from the sacrifice to the Sanctuary throughout the year were symbolically placed upon the head of the Scapegoat, which represented God’s adversary, Satan.
The responsibility for the sins of all the people was transferred to the Scapegoat, which was then led away, far, far out into the wilderness, and left there to die. According to Hebrew historians, depending upon where they were encamped,the Scapegoat was often pushed off a steep precipice – or whatever would ensure that the Scapegoat could never, ever return.
In Old-Testament times, everything here represented events that were still in the future – pointing to things that were yet unfulfilled, at that time. Now, at the present time, our High Priest is interceding in the Most Holy Place in the true Tabernacle, before the Throne of Grace, at the Mercy Seat of God, which is in the Courts of Heaven. Jesus, our High Priest, now ministers in the Heavenly Sanctuary,in our behalf.
The author of the Book of Hebrews, reasoning with the Israelites who had rejected the Messiah, writes that the blood of sheep and bulls and goats cannot take away sin – it never did, and it never will. But these animal sacrifices were living representations; were symbolic of the coming Savior, Whose sacrifice, Whose shed blood, and death would indeed, in the future, provide remission for the sin of the world.
There is no question that the system of sacrificing animals ended at the Cross, when Jesus became the fulfillment, the literal embodiment of the innocent Lamb, slain for all mankind. However, this sequence of the Sanctuary services comprises a powerful instructional manual, a textbook, that accurately depicts God’s “way” of delivering the justice that His Law requires, thru the administering of mercy and grace, for His fallen Creation. God’s “way” of redemption and salvation, is in and thru Christ. “Thy “way”, O God is in the Sanctuary”. Jesus said, “I AM the Way…” It’s all in and thru … …
… Jesus! It’s thru Jesus, the door, and Jesus, the Lamb, and thru Jesus, the Priest, and the Sacrifice. He is the Resurrection, the New Birth, and He is the Light, and He is the Bread, and He’s the Incense, and the He’s the Veil, and … He is the Lawgiver, and He’s our Advocate, and He is our Judge! It all points to Jesus Christ. He is The Way! Eternal life is only in Him! And God’s “Way” in in the Sanctuary!
The Sanctuary was, and still is, and likely will be throughout eternity God’s schoolbook – His teaching tool – fleshing out every step in His Plan of Redemption; every step that the repentant sinner can – and must – take in order to receive complete redemption, and to obtain full reconciliation with our Heavenly Father.
God has revealed all of this, that we might fully grasp, and thus be moved to respond to all that He has done (the outer court – His earthly ministry) and is presently doing (the Sanctuary building – His heavenly ministry) on our behalf, in the True Tabernacle, pitched by God, and not man, in heaven.
OUR RESPONSE …
So, what do we do with this? How can The Tabernacle Textbook work for you today? This is a blueprint, a roadmap that will lead you to repentance and redemption, as you open your heart and follow the footsteps of Jesus, in to the presence of God.
Each day, take your own personal steps thru the Sanctuary. In prayer, in meditation … At the point in your prayer where you seek forgiveness and make confession, virtually present yourself at the door, the gate, of the Tabernacle. John 10:9 “I am the Door …” The Priest (Jesus) will come to meet you …
You no longer have to bring a lamb, because The Lamb of God has been provided! Receive Him anew and trust fully in Him and place your complete faith and confidence in Him as your substitute. He is your flesh, your Elder Brother. (see the message: “Christ In You, You In Christ”). Moreover, He’s your Redeemer, your Near-of-Kin (see the message: “Christ, Our Redemption”). 
You won’t need the knife – you don’t have to slay Him, as that has already been done, and we all are collectively guilty of piercing our Savior. But you can claim the precious blood He shed for the remission of your sins, without which there is no remission. It’s either His shed blood … or it’s your own! He has already shed all the blood necessary to redeem every soul who has ever drawn breath from Him.
As you look at the Altar of Sacrifice, claim as your very own the Lamb’s death on His Altar, on the Cross of Calvary. Galatians 2:20 “I am crucified with Christ.” Paul further states, “… that He, by the grace of God, should taste death for every man,” Hebrews 2:9 It is yours! Paul’s testimony is , “I die daily”!.
At the Laver, you’ll receive cleansing, renewal, re-baptism, the re-birth, which Jesus described to Nicodemus. John 3 “Unless flesh is reborn by water and Spirit …” Christ is that Cleansing Stream. “There is a fountain filled with blood, drawn from Emanuel’s veins; and sinners plunged beneath the Flood lose all their guilty stains.” Completing Galatians 2:20, “I am crucified with (in) Christ, nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.”
Now, in Christ, you can enter the Holy place with Him. See the Table of the Presence on the right. Receive the Bread of Life, that came down from heaven. Ask Him to give you a hungering for His Word. Feed on and internalize His Word; ever seek His presence. We’ve heard it said, “You are what you eat!” Internalize Him!!
To the left, the Golden Lamp-stand. Receive the Light of the World as a Lamp unto your feet, to Light your path. As He abides in you, ask Him to empower you to become His light in this world of growing darkness, ever seeking His power and His presence.
Avail yourself of Christ’s intercessory, mediatorial work before the Throne of Grace.
Here’s where you can offer specific petitions, concerns, and intercessory prayers for others – and for your own needs as well! See the smoke of the incense ascending, mingled with your prayer, as the Holy Spirit and the righteousness of Jesus present your petitions before the Father as a sweet-smelling savor.
See the torn veil of Christ’s broken flesh, revealing free, open access to The Heavenly Father’s presence, thru the torn flesh of Jesus, the Son. Hebrews 10:19, 20 “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living Way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, His flesh.” KJV
In Christ, you can step thru the torn veil, and come, as Paul says,” boldly” before the Throne of Grace, and directly into God’s Presence. He is the Door – He is the Way.
Above the Ark of the Covenant, see the Shekinah Glory, the manifestation of the very Presence of Our Heavenly Father. The Ark is the symbol of God’s throne, the foundation of which is His Law which is contained inside the Ark. His broken Law, of which I am guilty, demands justice, and yet, between His glorious Presence, above, and His broken Law, below …
… you see the Mercy Seat; and upon the Mercy Seat, you see the blood … the blood of the Sacrifice, of your Redeemer, Jesus Christ.
Remember the Passover in Egypt, and how the blood of the lamb, painted in faith on the doorposts of the house, caused the Judgment Angel to “pass over” that household in mercy?
Here, at this moment, is where your Passover becomes fulfilled prophecy. Because you’ve received the Lamb provided, claimed His cleansing blood, and accepted His death as your “Passover” into life.
Jesus says, in Matthew 10:32, “Whosoever therefore shall confess Me before men, him will I confess also before My Father which is in heaven.” KJV And right here is where that takes place.
If you’ve been his unashamed witness, a vindicator of His character, claimed Him as your Savior, He will claim you as His, and will present His shed blood, His death, and His resurrection to eternal life, and will claim you as His joint-heir of the Eternal Kingdom. That’s as Biblical as your Bible!
You can trust in the Mercy, Grace, & Justness of the Final Judgment, because you will be judged by Christ’s merits, and in His righteousness.
On a life you never lived, on a death you never died; but on the life of Jesus Christ, and on His death at the Cross of Calvary hang your eternity!
The Cleansing of the Sanctuary applies not only to the removal of sin from the Temple in the Courts of Heaven, but also …
Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 3:16 “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” KJV Long before the Incarnation, God’s promise was that He would “tabernacle with men” – that is, He would abide with, He would dwell among, or more literally, live “in” us. That promise was fulfilled first in the Tabernacle, and later in the Person of Jesus Christ, to Whom everything in the Tabernacle pointed. The ultimate fulfillment of that promise is by the indwelling of His Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ, through the process of sanctification!
And Peter said that we are “… living stones … built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” NASU 1 Peter 2:5
The “Cleansing of the Sanctuary” is therefore the cleansing of His people, who are His “Spiritual House!”
Hear God’s original instruction regarding the Day of Atonement: Leviticus 16:30 “…on this day, atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the LORD, you will be clean from all your sins. V.33 “…and make atonement for the Most Holy Place, for the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and for the priests and all the people of the community.” NIV
In closing: Take particular note that, in the Earth-made-new, there is NO TEMPLE, for the Lord is abiding, thru His indwelling Spirit, in all of His Redeemed. See Rev 21:22 …
“But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.” NKJV … Thru the transaction of Justification … and by the process of Sanctification … and ultimately, at His return, thru His Glorification, and by the indwelling of The Holy Spirit, the Godhead will abide with, and within, His Creation – abiding in His re-Creation – throughout all eternity… world without end! … Amen!
Rev 03-04-20
