The Tabernacle, the Temple and You

One of the elements that we look to in the Scripture that helps to prove that the Bible is the inspired Word of God is the unity that exists throughout Scripture. And by unity, I'm referring to the manner in which there are a number of authors that have written this book. They've lived over the course of 1,500 years. Their writings have come from various backgrounds and circumstances in which they've lived. And yet, when you put them all together, these writings have agreement. When you look through the Scripture, as we have it preserved today, there's a basic unity of thought and principles that span from cover to cover, starting in Genesis, taking us all the way through Revelation.

And what's interesting is that some of these unified thoughts and principles that we find, they existed in a literal physical application under the terms of the Old Covenant. But when we come forward to the New Testament, we see that they exist just as literally in a spiritual application under the terms and conditions of the New Covenant. In other words, what existed as a type in one place points to a spiritual fulfillment somewhere else. And throughout the whole process, as this takes place throughout Scripture, the application of unity remains intact.

And again, for us, that helps to reinforce the fact that the Bible is the inspired word of God. Today in my message, I'd like to follow the thread of one such unified topic in Scripture. I'd like to examine the pattern and the function that existed in the tabernacle of God in the wilderness, and that pattern that carried on through the temple system. I'd like to compare it to what the Bible shows to be the spiritual fulfillment in our Christian lives today.

For those of you that like the title, the title of the message is the tabernacle, the temple, and you. Tabernacle, the temple, and you. Because as we see, brethren, there is this flow of unity in the Scripture of God. And as we'll see today, there is, in fact, a correlation. My message today will be a rather Scripture-intensive message, and it's probably more of a Bible study type format that we'll be walking through.

Each of the points that I touch on today, we could actually expand into a sermon in and of themselves. But sometimes it's nice just to step back and look at the overall picture. That's what I'd like to try and accomplish for us today. So I'd like to begin back at the beginning of the tabernacle thread, as we have it recorded in Scripture, back in the book of Exodus. So if you'll follow me, please, to Exodus chapter 25. We'll look at God's instructions to Moses and Israel as the process for building this tabernacle began. Exodus chapter 25, and beginning in verse 1, it says, And so there was this offering that was going to be given up to collect the materials that would be used in the construction of the tabernacle.

And as the next few verses go on, it walks through the various items that were donated and collected for the construction. Jumping down to verse 8, it says, So what we find is the primary purpose of the tabernacle structure, and later, as that pattern was repeated in the temple, was that it was to accommodate God's desire to dwell among his people and to have a relationship with them. And when this tabernacle was constructed, Israel could essentially look to that. They could see the presence of God had descended upon that tabernacle, and they could understand that the internal God of the universe was with them.

He was dwelling among them. He was guiding and leading them as they walked through their life, first through the wilderness, and then into the Promised Lamb. And they, in turn, could have a relationship with God through the sacrificial system and through the system of the priesthood as it was established.

Now, looking at verse 9, God said, So this design was to be very specific, and the tabernacle pattern was to be followed exactly, because it was, in part, at least a replica of God's throne in heaven. Now, if we go to Exodus 29, we carry on with the thought, and we see God's desire, once again, to dwell among his people in this way. Exodus 29, verse 43. Here God's referring to the tabernacle, and he says, And the tabernacle shall be sanctified by my glory.

Now, that means it would be set apart as a holy place, because God's presence was there. Verse 44 says, So, brethren, as we see, God is a relational being. He's a being that desires to dwell among his people, to have a relationship with them. And so, by this specific design of God, the tabernacle was built. God's presence then came to dwell among his people. Now, chapters 25 through 30 of Exodus describe the pattern by which the tabernacle and the court surrounding it was to be constructed.

And we'll look at some of those things in detail shortly. But first, I want to jump forward to a few pages. Exodus, chapter 40. We're going to look at God's presence actually descending on the tabernacle, following its completeness. Exodus, chapter 40, looking at verse 34.

Exodus, 40, 34, it says, Then the cloud covered the tabernacle of meeting. This cloud is the glory of God, his presence descending on the tabernacle. It says, And the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tabernacle of meeting because the cloud rested above it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And so this glory of God, the Shekin of Glory, as it's often referred to, descended. God's presence filled the tabernacle, and Israel knew that the Lord their God was among them. Now, the dedication of Solomon's temple, we won't turn there, but in 2 Chronicles, chapter 7, verse 1, you'll recall that a similar incident occurred, where at the dedication of that temple, God's presence in the Shekin of Glory descended upon that temple filled that holy place as well.

Now, brethren, based on what we've seen so far, let's compare to how this correlates with the spiritual relationship that we have with God today. Let's examine the unity of the Scripture between this tabernacle and the wilderness and our New Covenant relationship with God. Let's go to 1 Corinthians, chapter 3. A very direct Scripture shows very clearly for us what the connection is. 1 Corinthians, chapter 3, verse 16. There's the Apostle Paul writing to the Corinthian church. Some very important insight and instruction for them. 1 Corinthians 3, 16. He says, Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Holy Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy. Which temple you are.

So, looking at this, you probably see some similarities between this passage and what it is we've already looked at. It was a tabernacle that was constructed in Israel by the people of Israel. It was actually constructed in the wilderness, but the people of Israel brought it into the Promised Land. But that tabernacle was constructed so that God could dwell among his people so that he could have relationship with them. Likewise today, brethren, God is dwelling among his people. Those converted individuals of God are that temple. So, if you've been baptized, if you've had hands laid on you, and you've received the Holy Spirit of God, you are the temple of the living God. And God is dwelling in you today through the presence of his Holy Spirit. Additionally, what sanctified the tabernacle was the fact that God's presence was glowing there. Again, to sanctify something, to set it apart for a holy purpose. And by God's presence being there, that place was made holy. Likewise, God's people are holy by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. And in fact, our children are holy because they are our children. God works in relationship with them, and he guides and leads them as well through the power of the Holy Spirit. It's not indwelling, but his presence is there as well among our children. Now, the Greek word translated temple, here in 1 Corinthians chapter 3, the word translated temple is neos. Neos, and it's spelled N-A-O-S, and it's a very important word for us to know. According to the New Testament Greek lexicon, neos is used of the temple at Jerusalem, but only of the sacred sanctuary itself, consisting of the Holy Place and the Holy Apollites. So if you take your hand out which you have, and there's a diagram there of the entire courtyard that surrounded the tabernacle in the wilderness, and then you see the building structure of the tabernacle itself, rather than we recognize that the building structure itself and the function of it represents what we are as the temple of God.

I want to repeat that. The building structure itself and the function of it represents what we are as the temple of God. We're the fulfillment of the pattern that made up the Holy Place and the Holy Apollites, and all the items in that sanctuary are a type of what is fulfilled in the life of a Christian today. Now, the outer courtyard that you see that extends beyond the sanctuary building itself is a bit different. It's not part of our spiritual temple structure, but it actually represents what it took for us to come to the point that we became the temple of God. That courtyard area and the implements of it represent the conversion process. So, brother, let's go back to Exodus. Let's take a look at the tabernacle, the items that were consisting of that layout in detail, so we can understand how it is that these things are so. Turn to me, please, back to Exodus 27.

Exodus 27.

I realize we are moving rather quickly, but again, so many of these things we'll cover today, I would encourage you to go do some personal study in detail. I think you'll find it very rewarding. Again, today we're trying to get the big picture. Exodus 27 gives a description of the overall dimensions of the tabernacle and the court. I'd like to pick it up here in verse 18 of Exodus 27. We're going to look at the dimensions first of that court. Exodus 27 verse 18.

The instruction here says, The length of the court shall be one hundred cubits, and the width fifty throughout, and the height five cubits, woven a fine linen thread in its sockets a bronze. As you can see on the handout, the perimeter of the court were the curtain partitions that were hung. If we go by the principle that a cubit equals a foot and a half, additionally what we find is that it was a rectangle in shape, and it measured roughly a hundred and fifty feet long and seventy-five feet wide. That was the complete footprint of the tabernacle and the courtyard area. A hundred and fifty feet long and seventy-five feet wide. As the diagram shows, there was a single gate that entered into the courtyard which faced east. So this whole building and structure and courtyard was faced east with that gate at the east.

Now this single gate is where an individual would enter with their sacrifice that was to be offered on the altar of burnt offering before God. If you look at your diagram, the altar of burnt offering is the first thing you see as an individual would enter through that gate. Exodus chapter 27 contains a description of that altar, and I'll just give you the reference to drop down. Exodus 27 verse 1 through 8.

You can read up on that later. The tabernacle or the altar was essentially a square box. It was square. It was made of acacia wood. It had a horn on each corner of that box. It was overlaid inside and out with bronze. There were four rings on the box by which two poles could be inserted, and then the priest could pick those up with the Levites at the time when it would be transported. They could pick up those poles and transport that altar.

Now the purpose of the horns was to keep the sacrifice in place on the altar. You didn't want to have part of the lamb or the bull rolling off on the ground while it was being burned up on the altar. So those horns were there in place. I'll just give you the reference of Psalm 118 verse 27 where it says, "...to bind the sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar." Whenever you hear reference of something being bound to the horns or somebody grabbing onto the horns of the altar, this is the altar that is referencing.

The original fire on the altar was started by God, and it was never to go out. So whenever the tabernacle was taken down and moved, whenever the altar was essentially shut down for transport, those priests would somehow have to keep that fire alive to build it back up and reignite it again for the sacrifices.

It was to be a continual fire that never went out. Now the altar of burnt offering was used for a number of sacrifices. There were the daily sacrifices before God, and that consisted of a lamb being offered morning and evening. We understand and we've probably seen many times the references in Scripture to the morning sacrifice and the evening sacrifice.

Those occurred daily. Additionally, people also brought burnt offerings. There were sin offerings and grain offerings. There were peace offerings. There were trespass offerings. There were a whole number of offerings and sacrifices that would be put up onto this altar to be sacrificed and offered before God. So as you can imagine, probably from daylight to dark, this altar was in continual use. Now if we turn to Leviticus 1, we find a process by which a burnt offering was offered, and it's rather insightful. I believe we'll see a number of parallels here.

Leviticus 1, beginning in verse 1, it says, He says, And so basically what would happen is when an individual had a desire to bring an offering or they recognized their need to bring one because of sin, they would bring the sacrifice to the gate of the court. Can you see that gate on your handout? They'd be accepted at that gate by the priest. They'd be brought into the outer courtyard area where the sacrifice would be prepared.

Continuing on in verse 4 of Leviticus 1, it says, Now this is interesting. By putting his hand on the head of the offering, again, this is the person bringing the offering, he was ceremonially transferring the guilt of his sin onto that animal. The person who placed his hand on there, the penalty, the consequence, the guilt of that sin would be placed upon that animal. And it's very possible that at that time the individual actually confessed what his sins were, that he laid his hand on the head of that sacrifice. Verse 5, it says, And the priest, Aaron's sons shall bring the blood and sprinkle the blood all around on the altar that is by the door of the tabernacle of meeting, and he shall skin the burnt offering and cut it into its pieces.

And so it was the sinner who was responsible for the killing of this animal. He was the one who was responsible for preparing that sacrifice in that way. After all, it was his actions that required the death of this animal. If it was a sin offering, it was his actions, as we understand through Scripture, that requires the shedding of blood.

Verse 7, it says, And the priest shall burn all on the altar as a burnt sacrifice, and offering made by fire a sweet aroma to the Lord. Brethren, what you and I need to understand is that the process by which the sacrifice was brought to the altar and offered is a type of what it took for us to have our sins forgiven. Again, it's a type. What we see reflected in physical application in the Old Testament, pointing to the spiritual fulfillment in the New.

First, brethren, we recognize that we were sinners in need of forgiveness. We dwelled outside of the presence of God. We lived our life. But once we came to the understanding that we were sinners and we needed forgiveness for our sins, God drew us, essentially, to the gate. Now, just as a sinner in Israel entered through the gate, seeking atonement from God, we, too, entered the repentance process as the only gate that was available to us.

That was Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the gate in which we enter. It's only through Him that we can find forgiveness of our sins and access and relationship to God. Jesus said in John 14, verse 6, I am the way, the truth, and the life.

No one comes to the Father except through me. So he's that gate through which we enter in order to be reconciled with God. Again, quoting John, chapter 10, verse 9, Christ said, I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved. The gate of the tabernacle court was symbolic of the access that is available through Jesus Christ through the forgiveness of sins and relationship with God.

Now, as you look at your handout, you see there were actually three gates or doorways complete through this tabernacle complex itself. First of all, there was the gate to the courtyard. There was the door that led into the holy place on the sanctuary itself. And then there was the veil into the holy police. And, brethren, you and I have access through all three to the blood and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

Now, as we entered through the court gate of the repentance process, we were confronted by the altar. We were confronted by the altar on which these sacrifices were offered. And it symbolized our need to recognize Jesus Christ as our perfect sacrifice for sin. The Hebrew word for sin, the root word, means to slay. It means to slaughter. In Hebrews 9, verse 22 tells us that without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sin. So, again, Jesus Christ played the role here. He was the perfect sacrifice without blemish, without spot. He was the one who was offered up on our behalf. Jesus Christ was the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. And just as the Israelite offering the sacrifice would put His hand on the head of that animal for the transfer of guilt, likewise, Jesus Christ accepted the penalty of our sins upon His head.

2 Corinthians 5, verse 21 says, For God made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. So, brethren, this is an incredible act of mercy that was poured out upon us by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Additionally, the altar symbolizes the responsibility that you and I have to live our life as living sacrifices. As we walk through this life, we're to emulate the example of Jesus Christ. He laid down His life and sacrifice in every way that He could. Likewise, you and I must go through this life as living sacrifices as we serve before God. Now, once we came to the gate, once we recognized the altar sacrifice in our life, the next step in our conversion process was baptism. If you look at the diagram once again, you see that the item that stood between the altar and the tabernacle structure itself was the bronze labor. And we find a purpose for that labor in Exodus 30, beginning in verse 17. We'll go ahead and turn there, please. Exodus 30, beginning in verse 17.

Here's the purpose. It says, Verse 21, So here we don't actually have a description as to what the size of this bronze labor was, but its purpose was for the purification of the priests. And they were to wash themselves before they entered into the holy place, or before they conducted a sacrifice at the altar of burnt offering. For you and I, washing at the labor is symbolic of our baptism, by which we were washed clean of our sins, and we were purified before God. But rather than before we could approach God, before we could enter into the holy place, as it were, and become the temple of God, we had to walk through this ceremonial cleansing process. It's a process that was typified in what we see here in the pattern of the tabernacle service. Now Hebrews 10, verse 22 tells us, It says, In full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Brethren, that's the only way that we can be in a position to draw near to the presence of God. It's only through the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ our sacrifice. It's only through the purification and the cleansing of baptism that we can come near God and be reconciled in relationship to Him.

Now in addition to that, we continue the purification process today. We're not perfect, and we need to continue to be purified. We need to continue to learn and grow in God's way. And so we continue the purification process through the washing of the water of the Word. Which means when we study God's Word, we wash away the impurities of our old way of thinking, our old way of doing things. And we replace them with a pure mind of Jesus Christ. Washing at the laver symbolizes the final step that you and I must walk through before we can serve before God as His holy temple. Now again, going back to the diagram that we have, the next item is the tabernacle structure itself. And again, it symbolizes the elements of what we are as the spiritual temple of God. Now the tabernacle structure in the wilderness was approximately 15 feet wide. It was 45 feet long. Honestly, it wasn't as big as I would have thought it would be. But it played a very important process. 15 feet wide, 45 feet long, it was divided into two rooms. There was the holy place, which would have been the first compartment that was entered, as the person went through the front door of the tabernacle. The holy place was the larger room, at 15 feet wide and 30 feet long. And then on the other side of the curtain, at the far end of that would have been the Holy of Holies, which was a square room 15 feet by 15 feet. The Holy of Holies was separated again from that holy place by the veil, which hung before it. That separated man from the presence and the glory, the direct glory of God. Now, there were three pieces of furniture in the holy place. I should probably point out in Scripture, when we read the tabernacle of meeting, as we already have walking through this, it's referring to the holy place. So there were three pieces of furniture here in the holy place. The first one we'll discuss was the menorah. The menorah, also known as the Golden Lampstand, you can find that described in Exodus chapter 25, verse 31 through 40. I'll leave you to read that at a later point. Exodus 25, verse 31 through 40. Now, the Golden Lampstand stood to the left side of the holy place. So as you came through that screen, entering into the holy place, if you looked to the left, the Golden Lampstand would stand in that place. The menorah had a central branch, which went up, which three branches extended from each side, forming a total of seven branches. So you had the main stem that went up, three branches on either side, forming seven branches. And at the top of each branch, there was a bowl holding olive oil and a wick, and that was the light. Each branch is described as looking like an almond tree containing buds and blossoms and flowers. There was rather intricate detail within which this had to be made. And you can read through that passage, and in some ways it's pretty awe-inspiring to try to imagine what it was that they had to make. Now, the menorah's measurements are not known. However, the Bible does say it was fashioned out of one solid piece of gold. So this isn't something that was sort of pressed and melted and molded together in pieces. This was fashioned out of one piece of gold. And you understand why God had to give His Spirit and give ability through His Spirit to various individuals to accomplish these things, because it was rather a complicated process.

Now, Exodus 27 shows the responsibility that the priest had towards these lamps. Let's go ahead and turn there. Exodus 27, beginning in verse 20.

Exodus 27, verse 20.

It says, So it was the job of the priest who ministered to the tabernacle to not allow the lamps to go out.

Evening and morning, they had to refill these lamps with oil, trim the wick, make sure that they stayed lit, burning continually. Likewise, you and I are to be filled with God's Holy Spirit in our lives. We're to be constantly working to replenish it through prayer, through Bible study, through fasting, through meditation. We're to be filling the vessel of our life with this Spirit of God, which is portrayed by the olive oil. You and I are to make sure, brethren, that we never allow the flame of the Spirit of God to go out. Now, the parable of the ten virgins, we won't turn there, but you might just think about that for a moment, because it reminds us of the importance of keeping our lamps filled. We had the wide virgins, five wide virgins and five foolish virgins. The foolish virgins didn't have enough oil. The lamps were going out. As a result, that Spirit was quenched, and they were shut out from the kingdom of God. Brethren, the menorah was the only light in the holy place. Without it, the priests would have to stumble around and do their work in darkness. Now, Scripture shows us that Jesus Christ additionally was the light of the world.

More than one parallel here. We have the Holy Spirit in us so that we can give that light, but also Jesus Christ was the light of the world. He was the beacon that shined forth in darkness. As long as you and I are filled with the Holy Spirit of God, we will be that light as well. Let's go to John 8, verse 12. See the important words of Jesus Christ.

John 8, verse 12. He says, Then Jesus spoke to them, saying, again, I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life. So Jesus Christ was that light. He's the source of that light. And if we're His disciples following in His footsteps, we'll reflect that light as well. Let's go back to Matthew 5, verse 14.

Matthew 5, 14. Again, the words of Jesus Christ.

Matthew 5, 14. Christ says, You are the light of the world. You are. You are His disciples. You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor did a light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand that it gives light to all who are in the house. He says, Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. And so for you and I, that's part of our job description as a temple of God. You and I are to be lights that shine forth in the world of darkness. We're to be the lights that reflect the truth, the knowledge, the way of life that Jesus Christ brought into our lives.

The next furnishing that we find in the Holy Place is the Table of Showbread. And it stood along the right side of the wall as we were to walk into the Holy Place. It stood opposite of the lampstand. And the light of the lampstand actually served to shine and illuminate the area in which showbread was placed. Exodus 25, beginning in verse 23. Let me see some interesting things. Exodus 25, verse 23.

Look at the description here. Here's the instruction to Moses. It says that you shall also make a table of Acacia wood. Two cubits shall be its length, a cubit its width, and a cubit and a half its height. And you shall overlay it with pure gold and make a molding of gold all around it. And what's an interesting thing to note is that all the articles of service inside the temple and inside the tabernacle structure here were made of gold. They were overlaid with gold, as opposed to what was on the outside in the courtyard, which was bronze. And gold symbolizes purity. You and I as the temple of God are to be pure in all that we do, in the manner in which we live. And jumping down to verse 30, it says, And you shall set the showbread on the table before me always. And so on this table of showbread, there were two stacks of bread, six loaves. And those two stacks of six loaves symbolized God providing the twelve tribes of Israel with physical and spiritual bread. Each tribe was represented by a loaf of bread. And the priests baked that bread with fine flour, and it remained on the table before the Lord for a week. And every Sabbath, then, they would come. They would take the week-old showbread off. They would place the fresh bread on. And then the priests would eat that showbread in the holy place, because it was holy.

Today, brethren, the Church of God partakes of the true bread of life, which is Jesus Christ. Let's turn to John 6. John 6 will read about Christ, our bread of life.

John 6, beginning in verse 32. Jesus said to them, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who came down from heaven and gives his life for the world. Then they said to him, Lord, give us this bread always. And Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life. Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life. You who comes to me shall never hunger. You who believes in me shall never thirst. They say to you that you have not seen me, and yet do not believe. Jesus Christ said, I am the bread of life. If we jump down to verse 48, again he repeats that phrase. He says, I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness and are dead. This is the bread which comes down from heaven. That one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I shall give is my flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.

So, brethren, Jesus Christ is that holy bread that sustains us today, as the people of God, which have taken him daily. As we exist as the temple of God, we're to have Jesus Christ living in us. We're to accept him as our Lord and Savior. We come to the Passover every year and we take of that bread, symbolizing Jesus Christ, our sacrifice, but also symbolizing that he is the bread of life that sustains us.

Now, the final furnishing in the holy place was the golden altar of incense. As you can see, that sat in front of the curtain and that separated the holy place from the holy of holies. You can read about that in more detail in Exodus 30, verses 1-10. The altar of incense was square, with each side measuring one cubit, and it was two cubits in height. It was made of acacia wood and overlaid with pure gold, and there were four horns that extended from the four corners of that altar as well. It had four gold rings in which two poles could be inserted for transport. Now, God commanded that air and burnt incense on the golden altar every morning and every evening at the same time as the tending of the lamps and the morning and evening sacrifice, which occurred out at the altar of burnt offering. The incense was a special mixture of three spices that were beaten fine, and then they were combined with frankincense, and it was a mixture that was considered holy. People of Israel were not to reproduce that mixture outside of the tabernacle service. Now, to burn the incense, Aaron would take a censer. He would bring live coals from the altar of burnt offering into the holy place. He would put those on the altar of incense, combine those with the incense to produce a sweet fragrance that billowed up before the physical throne of God. The incense burned on the altar morning and evening was symbolic of the prayers of God's people going up before him as a sweet-smelling fragrance. Now, King David makes reference to this concept in Psalm 141, verse 2, where he says, Additionally, if you look at Revelation, chapter 5, verse 8, it describes our prayers as incense before the throne of God. And so the altar of incense is a reminder to us of the importance of maintaining a close and proper relationship with God through prayer. The fact that the incense was beaten fine seems to indicate that we need to have fine detail in our prayers. We need to be specific when we come before God and lay out our desire and our concerns and our praise to Him.

As the temple of God, you and I need to make it our practice to come before God's throne on a regular basis, just as incense was offered morning and evening. You and I need to be regularly coming before our God, offering up incense and prayer to Him.

If we go to Revelation, chapter 8, we see that the actions of the tabernacle priests to offer up this incense is actually a type of what's fulfilled in Heaven. Revelation 8, beginning in verse number 3, Revelation 8, verse 3, It says, So, brethren, we see that God does listen to our prayers. He does want to hear them. He wants them to be lifted up before Him. Our prayers do, in fact, ascend before the very throne of our Father in Heaven.

The next item that we come to in the tabernacle is the veil. The veil separated the holy of holies from the rest of the structure. Let's go to Exodus chapter 26, beginning in verse 31. Exodus 26, 31. We'll read the description of that veil.

Here God said, You shall make a veil woven of blue and purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and it's fine linen thread, and it shall be woven with an artistic design of caravim. So, as this curtain was hung, as the priests would approach, and they could see that curtain, there were the emblems of the caravim that were embroidered on it. Verse 32, it says, You shall hang it upon four pillars of acacia wood, overlaid with gold. The hood shall be of gold upon the four sockets of silver. You shall hang the veil from the clasp. You shall bring the ark of the testimony in there behind the veil. The veil shall be a divider for you between the holy place and the most holy. You shall put the mercy seat upon the ark of the testimony and the most holy. You shall set the table outside the veil and the lamp across from the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south, and you shall put the table on the north side. But what we see was that this veil separated the holy place from the holy pulley. The ark of the covenant and the mercy seat were behind that veil.

Now, the holy of holies is where God's presence dwells above the mercy seat. And the veil served essentially to separate a holy God from sinful man. If anyone went through the veil, if they were to penetrate that obstacle, they would die.

The only exception was the high priest who could go behind that veil once a year, only on the day of atonement.

Exodus 25 and verse 10, we see that the ark of the covenant was described here, as well as the mercy seat. Exodus 25 verse 10, it says, "...and they shall make an ark of Acacia wood, two and a half cubits, shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its width, and a cubit and a half its height. You shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and out, and shall overlay it, and you shall make it a molding of gold all around. You shall cast four rings of gold for it, and put them in its four corners. Two rings shall be on one side and two rings on the other side, and you shall make poles of Acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. You shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, that the ark may be carried by them, and the poles shall be in the rings of the ark. They shall not be taken from it." Verse 16, "...and you shall put into the ark the testimony which I give you," which was the Ten Commandments, "...you shall make a mercy seat of pure gold, two and a half cubits shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its width. And you shall make two caravim of gold, of hammered work, you shall make them at the two ends of the mercy seat. Make one caravim at one end, and the other caravim at the other end, and you shall make the caravim at the two ends of one piece with the mercy seat." Verse 20, "...and the caravim shall stretch out their wings above covering the mercy seat with their wings, and they shall face one another. The faces of the caravim shall be toward the mercy seat. And you shall put the mercy seat on top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony that I give you. And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from between the two caravim, which are on the ark of testimony of all the things I will give you in commandment to the children of Israel." So what we see was that the ark contained the Ten Commandments, the pot of manna and Aaron's rod that budded were apparently added at a later time. The mercy seat that was above the ark was God's throne in the tabernacle. That mercy seat was flanked by two caravim with their wings overstretched, overshadowing the mercy seat in God's presence, the wealth, above the mercy seat. Now this is a physical representation of God's throne in heaven. There are descriptions in Revelation and other places in the Bible of the throne of God in heaven. It looks very much like this. And when the high priest came into the Holy of Holies on the day of atonement, he would bring with him burning incense to shield his eyes from direct view of God's glory. If he looked on the glory of God, he would die. So he would have this censure with incense burning. He would bring that in. It would create a cloud that billowed up and help to shield his view from directly encountering God's glory. And initially, he sprinkled blood from the bull on the mercy seat for the sins of himself and his household. The high priest would then go and sacrifice or actually slaughter the goat, and he'd return to sprinkle the blood of the goat in the same manner for all the sins of Israel. This was the process that took place on the day of atonement. And it was God's promise that when he saw the blood, he would cover over the sins of the people of Israel.

It was an action that made a comment for them. It was an action that symbolizes what Jesus Christ has done for us. For us today, brethren, as the spiritual temple of God, the symbolism contained in the Holy of Holies is very important for us. First of all, the Ark of the Covenant containing the Ten Commandments reminds us that through the terms of the New Covenant, we have God's laws put on our hearts and written on our minds. In other words, they're a part of who we are. They're a part of how we live our life before God on a daily basis.

Additionally, the mercy seat, which was the lid of the Ark, it sat on top of the Ark of the Covenant, it shows us that mercy triumphs over the law. In other words, you and I, in this life, will stumble in points of law. We come to God for...we repent of our sins before God. We come to Him for His mercy and His forgiveness, but we still stumble. We still transgress the law of God. What is symbolized by the mercy seat is that God is merciful to cover over our transgressions when we come before Him in repentance. And so, again, that article is very important for us to recognize that mercy triumphs over the law in the life of a repentant Christian.

Additionally, we understand that the Shechem of Glory that dwelled above the mercy seat now dwells in us through the indwelling of God's Holy Spirit. And, brethren, that's a power that we can never afford to take for granted. Now, as we go back to the veil that was before the Holy of Holies, you'll recall that at the death of Jesus Christ, that veil was torn in two from top to bottom. It was a miraculous event that occurred and it exposed the Holy of Holies symbolizing that direct access to the throne of God had been granted to those that come before God through Jesus Christ. So, I'd like to conclude with this illustration today. Let's go to Hebrews 9. Hebrews 9 will see the fulfillment of the renting of that veil and what was the symbolism of the high priest on the Day of Atonement. Hebrews 9, beginning in verse 11, it says, But Christ came as high priest of the good things to come, with a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is, not of this creation, not with the blood of goats and calves, but with his own blood he entered the most holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. So what we see is that Jesus Christ represented both the high priest and the blood of the sacrifice that was put on the mercy seat for the atoning of sin. Jesus Christ played both parts. Verse 13, it says, For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashers of the heifer sprinkling the unclean sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the internal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, to purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? Verse 15, Now, going down the page a little farther to verse 24, it says, So, brethren, it was through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ that he came to God, the fact that he is now our high priest and our mediator of the new covenant. Our sins have been forgiven through his blood, allowing us to essentially approach God into the presence of the holy hope of holies at any time. That temple veil has been rent, access to God has been granted through Jesus Christ, you and I have the ability to approach God's throne directly. I wonder if we understand completely what an awesome opportunity that is. What a special blessing it is for you and I, the people of God.

Again, this was accomplished because Jesus Christ himself fulfilled the process of being the sacrifice, being the high priest, the one that was able to make it possible for there to be atonement on our behalf. We go back just a few pages to Hebrews 4, verse 14. Look at one more passage on this topic, Hebrews 4.

Beginning in verse 14. It says, seeing then that we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Again, Jesus Christ was that perfect sacrifice, the only one that could make atonement for us. In light of that, it says this in verse 16, it says, Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. And so that direct access to the throne of God is a blessing that's been extended to us as the people of God, by the mercy of God, and through the blood of Jesus Christ. Brethren, you and I are the temple of God. And as such, we've entered into a very special relationship with our Creator. It's a relationship that we see reflected in type by the tabernacle and the temple system that God designed. It's important for us to stop from time to time, to step back, to understand the overall picture, and to remember the process by which God has brought us into relationship with Him. And to recognize the process in which He's opened to us the door of eternal salvation.