THE EARTHLY HOLY PLACE – HEBREWS 9:1-10 Our Heavenly Father, Creator of all things and Master Teacher, we humbly come into Your presence to seek Your Holy Spirit to open our eyes to these Holy Scriptures. We earnestly pray for enlightenment as we study together, and we ask You, Father, to open our eyes to see the truths contained in these words. Open our minds to comprehend that which we are reading, and open our hearts to receive the message that You have for us. Finally, dear Father, we ask for the strength and courage to live our lives in a manner of the called, constantly giving You the glory, honor, and praise that You deserve. We pray these things in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. Hebrews 9:1, 2 (a) Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary. For there was a tabernacle made… The Lord instructed Moses to establish a place of meeting between Him and the people, wherein a courtyard one hundred fifty feet long and seventy-five feet wide was to be cordoned off with white linen. I’m sure when Moses heard these dimensions, he thought, Wait a minute. There are three million of us. We’ll never fit in such a small place. But it’s almost as if the Father was saying, “That will be sufficient because, at any given time, there won’t be that many who will want to spend time with Me.” Hebrews 9:2 (b) …the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is called the sanctuary. Beyond the courtyard was the sanctuary, or tabernacle. It looked just like the tents the people lived in as they wandered through the wilderness, and was covered with badger skins. Forty-five feet long, fifteen feet high, and fifteen feet wide, it was divided into two compartments. The first compartment was thirty feet long and was called the Holy Place. In this Holy Place stood the table of showbread to the right, upon which twelve loaves of bread sat. To the left, was the golden candlestick, comprised of seven oil lamps. Straight ahead was the altar of incense, wherein incense would be offered to the Lord. And behind the altar of incense hung a massive veil, held up by four golden columns that rested in silver sockets—a beautiful picture in itself, silver being the metal of redemption. Hebrews 9:3–5 And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all; which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant; and over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercyseat; of which we cannot now speak particularly. Behind the veil was the Ark of the Covenant—a three-foot-by-two-inch box containing the Ten Commandments, Moses’ rod, and a pot of manna. Covering the ark was a lid called the mercy seat. And above the mercy seat were two golden angels whose wings met and whose eyes looked down upon the mercy seat. I draw your attention to verse 4, where mention is made of a golden censer, or altar of incense. According to Exodus, this altar of incense was in front of the veil. But here in verse 4, the author puts it behind the veil, in the same room as the Ark of the Covenant. Is the Bible contradicting itself? No. I suggest that somehow the altar of incense was moved. Somewhere along the way, someone put the altar where it wasn’t supposed to be. Yet God still worked—which is a great relief to me because in my heart, at my house, in the church, things get messed up. Furniture gets out of place—but God can handle it. So, too, I’m amazed at how God has worked through the Church. Some churches are led by men in pointy hats, scarlet robes, backward collars—and I wonder how God could work through guys dressed like that. Other churches have pastors who wear sweatshirts, Birkenstocks, and sit on stools. How could God work through them? Some churches have big programs. Other churches have none. It’s amazing to me that all of us haven’t so messed it up that no one can find the Lord. Yet somehow God breaks through and works through us all to draw people to Himself. Amazing! Hebrews 9:6 Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God. As he prepares for ministry, the young Levite goes into the courtyard and sees his dad offering sacrifices. Finally allowed to minister himself, he goes into the Holy Place, where every morning and evening he would trim the wicks, refill the oil in the lamps, and replace the incense on the altar of incense. Once a week, he would replace the twelve loaves upon the table of showbread. Hebrews 9:7 (a) But into the second went the high priest alone once every year… Once a year on the Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur, it would be the high priest’s privilege to go alone into the Holy of Holies to sprinkle blood on the mercy seat and catch a glimpse of the Shekinah glory of God. In Jesus’ day, here’s what would transpire: The week before Yom Kippur, the high priest would never leave the temple ground, for every day of that week, he would rehearse what he would do on the Day of Atonement. When that day finally came, arrayed in his high priestly robes, he would sacrifice a bull on the brass altar in the courtyard as a dedicatory offering. That done, he would take off his high priestly garments and put on his linen garments—long underwear, really, covered by a tunic and sash. Then he would sacrifice another bull as a sin offering for himself. At this point, two goats would be chosen by lot and a red scarlet cord would be tied around one, signifying it was the sacrificial goat. The other goat—the scapegoat—would be carried into the wilderness. Why two goats? Because our sins are not only forgiven—they are forgotten, carried away as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12). The priest would then take the coals from the outside altar with two handfuls of incense into the Holy Place. And as he put them on the altar of incense, a cloud would fill the room. Returning to the brass altar, he would carry the blood that had drained from the bull back into the Holy Place, and this time he would go through the veil into the Holy of Holies, where he would sprinkle the blood seven times on the ground and seven times on the mercy seat. After that, he would sacrifice the sacrificial goat and take its blood back into the Holy of Holies, where he would sprinkle it again seven times on the ground and seven times on the mercy seat. Finally, after sacrificing the bull and going into the Holy of Holies, and after sacrificing the goat and going into the Holy of Holies, he would come back out and place his hand upon the living goat, saying, “Bear and be gone.” In other words, “Bear the sin and take it away.” Then, at last, the priest would stand before the people. With both hands, he would pronounce, “Forgiven,” and the people would begin to hoot and holler and celebrate because if the priest was not purified properly, if he went into the Holy Place presumptuously, his resulting death would signify that they weren’t forgiven. So the people always waited to see if the high priest would make it out of the Holy of Holies. Are we forgiven? they wondered. Did the sacrifices work? Is God pleased? Are we okay? Don’t you see what happened concerning our High Priest? The whole world was watching—without even knowing for what they were watching. And our Great High Priest, wrapped in white linen, emerged from the Holy of Holies on Easter Sunday. The tomb was the Holy of Holies? Certainly, for when the disciples peeked in that morning, they saw a bench sprinkled with blood—His blood where His body had lain. And we are told by the Gospel writer that on either end of the bench sat an angel. Thus the picture of a blood-sprinkled mercy seat was complete. When Jesus emerged from the tomb on the third day, it was a declaration of forgiveness—not just for a year, but for eternity. Therefore, because of the Resurrection, we are confident that our sin—whatever it is, whatever it was, whatever it will be—is forgiven, forgotten, no longer an issue. The Resurrection is crucial because if Jesus had not come back from the dead, we would never know if the offering took. And we had no other Priest to send in. “Show us the Father and it will suffice us,” said Philip (see John 14:8). And he was right, for the chabod, the glory of God as seen in the Holy of Holies, is what the heart of every man craves. Here’s the question: Where are you in your walk with the Lord? Maybe you’re in the courtyard, saying, “I’m saved. The sacrifice was made for me. Praise the Lord, I’m forgiven!” Many of you are in that place, and that’s terrific—but there’s more.… Move out of the courtyard and into the Holy Place, where you can serve—where you’re trimming the lamps, which is letting your light shine for others; where you’re changing the showbread, that is, feeding others; where you’re involved in offering incense, which is praying for others. The outer courtyard is the place of salvation. The Holy Place is the place of service. Most of us in this room have realized and celebrated our salvation and are now engaged in service. But there’s a deeper, better place. It’s called the Holy of Holies—it’s being in the presence of the Lord. “Tell Mary to come and help me, Lord,” cried Martha. “Oh, Martha, Mary has chosen the better part—sitting in My presence,” answered Jesus (see Luke 10:40–42). “What a waste,” complained Judas as Mary anointed Jesus’ head with costly perfume. “That money could have been used to feed the poor.” “On the contrary,” said Jesus. “What she has done will be spoken of throughout the world for all time” (see Matthew 26:13). Beloved, the highest, deepest, richest place to be is sitting in the presence of the Lord. I believe there may come a day when we as Christians finally understand that it’s not what we’re doing for Him in the Holy Place, but being with Him in the Holy of Holies that matters. There is nothing that more closely approximates heaven than being in the presence of the Lord. “But there’s a problem,” you might be saying. “When I go into the Holy of Holies, when I spend time in the presence of the Lord, my sin is ever before me. I see huge splotches on the garments I thought were fairly white.” You’re in good company, for when did Isaiah cry, “Woe is me. I am a man of unclean lips”? When he was in the presence of the Lord (see Isaiah 6). But the good news is this: An awareness of sin ushers in repentance. “Lord, I’m not what I thought I was, and I’m not who I want to be.” You know, I never have those thoughts when I’m playing golf. So if I fill my life with enough activity, I never have to deal with the splotches. People immerse themselves in hobbies, recreation, or even ministry because if they stay busy enough, they can walk around feeling pretty clean. It’s only when I come with you and sit before the Lord or have a quiet time in the morning hour that I say, “I’m dirty.” And conscious repentance results in unconscious holiness. For although we leave the Holy of Holies feeling as though we’re not worthy, as though we’re inadequate, as though we’re inconsistent—others see in us a holiness of which we are not even aware. When Moses descended from Mount Sinai after receiving the Ten Commandments, although he didn’t realize it, his face glowed (Exodus 34:29). Likewise, there are young men, older women, middle age guys who will read this and will choose to go deeper in the Lord, saying, “I’m not going to be satisfied in the courtyard celebrating salvation. And I’m not even going to be satisfied trimming wicks, changing bread, and offering incense. I’m going to be one who goes into the Holy of Holies.” If you make that decision, God’s greatness, grace, and glory will cause you to repent and say, “I’m nothing.” But people around you will say, “Man, you’re glowing. Share with us. Help us.” Truly, a man who has been in the presence of God will, like Isaiah, say, “Woe is me.” But he’ll be used. He’ll be blessed. He’ll glow because conscious repentance leads to unconscious holiness. Hebrews 9:7 (b) …not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people. The word translated “errors” literally means “ignorance.” Thus, the blood only covered sins done in ignorance, or unintentionally. You see, the only sins forgiven in the old economy were sins in which one was caught up without knowing what he was doing. That is why, after taking Bathsheba and then killing her husband, David cried, “For thou desirest not sacrifice; else would I give it: thou delightest not in burnt offering” (Psalm 51:16). In other words, “There’s no sacrifice, no burnt offering I can give for my sin because my sin was intentional. I knew what I was doing.” But then, looking beyond the sacrificial system and prophetically to the Cross, David goes on to say, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart… thou wilt not despise” (Psalm 51:17). “Sacrifices won’t work,” he said, “not for my sins. But, Lord, You know I’m sorry. I’m broken within. So somehow, some way, someday You’ll make a way that I will be forgiven.” Hebrews 9:8–10 The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing: Which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience; Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation. The problem with the Old Testament priesthood was that it provided limited access and limited effectiveness. It was limited in access because only one man (the high priest) could enter into the presence of God only one day (the Day of Atonement) each year. It was limited in effectiveness because the high priest was himself a sinner. Have a blessed day!
Posted on: Mon, 27 Oct 2014 13:29:21 +0000