Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary

Psalms {77:13} Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary: who is so great a God as our God?


Psalms {63:2} To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.

Psalms {73:17} Until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end.

Ps. {27:4} One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in his temple.

Ps. {68:24} They have seen thy goings, O God; even the goings of my God, my King, in the sanctuary.

Commentary on Psalms 77:13--
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/calvin/calcom10.xii.iii.html
13.
Thy ways, O God! are in the sanctuary.
Some translate in holiness, and they are led to do this, because it seems to them a cold and meagre form of expression to say, that God’s ways are in his sanctuary.
But as the rules of grammar will not easily admit of this, we must inquire whether a profitable truth may not be drawn from the term sanctuary, which is the proper signification of the original word ????, bakkodesh.
Some are of opinion that this is an abrupt exclamation, as if it had been said, O God, who art in the sanctuary! O thy ways! but of this I do not approve; for they do violence to the words of the prophet.
The clause should be read in one connected sentence, and the word sanctuary is to be taken either for heaven or for the temple.
I am rather inclined to refer it to heaven, conceiving the meaning to be, that the ways of God rise high above the world, so that if we are truly desirous to know them, we must ascend above all heavens.
Although the works of God are in part manifest to us, yet all our knowledge of them comes far short of their immeasurable height. Besides, it is to be observed, that none enjoy the least taste of his works but those who by faith rise up to heaven. And yet, the utmost point to which we can ever attain is, to contemplate with admiration and reverence the hidden wisdom and power of God, which, while they shine forth in his works, yet far surpass the limited powers of our understanding.
If it is objected, that it is wrong to attempt to confine to heaven the ways of God, which are extended through the whole world, the answer is easy; for although there is not a single corner of the globe in which God does not exhibit some proof of his power and operation, yet the wonderful character of his works escapes the eyes of men. If any would rather understand sanctuary as meaning the temple, it may be noticed, that we have met with an almost similar sentence in Psalm 73:16, 17,

-16When I thought how I might know this,

It was too painful for me;

17Until I went into the sanctuary of God,

And considered their latter end.


Easton Dict. Sanctuary

Denotes,
(1) the Holy Land (Ex. 15:17; comp. Ps. 114:2);
(2) the temple (1 Chr. 22:19; 2 Chr. 29:21);
(3) the tabernacle (Ex. 25:8; Lev. 12:4; 21:12);
(4) the holy place, the place of the Presence (Gr. hieron, the temple-house; not the naos, which is the temple area, with its courts and porches), Lev. 4:6; Eph. 2:21, R.V., marg.;
(5) God’s holy habitation in heaven (Ps. 102:19). In the final state there is properly “no sanctuary” (Rev. 21:22), for God and the Lamb “are the sanctuary” (R.V., “temple”). All is there hallowed by the Divine Presence; all is sancturary.

***

The sanctuary. Has it lost it's importance because Jesus did away with the sacrifices, becoming the ultimate sacrifice?

I say no. If anything it has only gained more importance because the entire earthly sanctuary service pointed to Christ's sacrifice, and we know that the sanctuary built on earth was a figure of a sanctuary in heaven. Read this--

Ex.
{25:8} And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.
{25:9} According to all that I shew thee, fter the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the nstruments thereof, even so shall ye make it.

Hebrews
{8:5} Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.

Hebrews
{9:23} It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better
sacrifices than these.
{9:24} For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us

***

Patterns of things in heaven. Moses was shown the heavenly sanctuary and a pattern for an earthy sanctuary was given. Why, you might ask, would there need to be a heavenly sanctuary if the sanctuary on earth in all its aspects revealed the need for a savior? Surely none in heaven are sinful and none need to avail themselves of the rituals even symbolically to be saved. I believe that the way to salvation began in heaven, the way for man to be saved from sin was decided before sin corrupted Adam and Eve, before even the world began.

1 Corinthians {2:7} But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory

2 Timothy {1:9} Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began.

Titus {1:2} In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began

John {17:1} These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:
{17:2} As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.
{17:3} And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
{17:4} I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.
{17:5} And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.

1 Peter {1:18} Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers
{1:19} But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot
{1:20} Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you

***

Before the world was, before the foundation of the world, before the world began... Jesus was with God, Son was with the Father.

Imagine if you will that before a great, wondrous *project* is undertaken all the plans are laid out for it. All the plans, all the scenarios that can happen are thought of and plans are made for any of those scenarios. Whenever you bring an unpredictable element into a plan you have to think outside the box so to speak, you have to think what might happen if things don't go as planned. How many *government* experiments have been scraped in the end because things didn't go as planned? Probably a lot. How many were undertaken and with the unpredicted results even greater plans were made? Can you imagine a room full of scientists sitting about discussing a propose project and each one comes up with a different scenario of possibilities. Just because the scenarios are plentiful and the possibilities unpredictable doesn't mean the project will be scraped, rather each scientist is told to set up the 'what if..' scenario with possible outcomes from their scenario. You can picture all that right? It's easy really because we've all seen movies on tv that depict various situations with 'projects' and for the most part the excitement of the movie comes from the projects going wrong and having to be fixed. That old, something goes horribly wrong, now what? Now we have to fix this problem. Usually kill a deformed alien of some sort, or find a cure for a wild virus, or some such thing. You know what I'm talking about, I'm sure.

So before the world even began as plans were being made Jesus Himself agreed that if something went wrong that He'd step in, He'd sacrifice Himself to set things right again.

A way was made for this to happen, the way was made in heaven.

After man sinned the plan had to go into effect. And know this...realize this...man did not sin right away. He wasn't created one moment and sinning the next. It might seem that way but truthfully we don't know how long Adam and Eve lived in the garden sinless before falling to temptation. God's plan, Jesus' plan, their creation of human beings didn't go awry the second after it was implemented. For awhile there it's very possible that they thought the contingency plan would not be necessary, that the creation of human beings was a success. These created beings were a made a little lower than the angels and given free will, and they were wonderful creations, a good thing-- a very good thing. Made in God's image, they were an amazing creation.

Then something went wrong.

Satan beguiled Eve. Beguiled her, tricked her, tempted her and she fell into the temptation and sinned.

Instantly the contingency plan was put into place, from that moment on the way to save humanity was begun. Satan was told this--

Genesis
{3:14} And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou [art] cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life:
{3:15} And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel

***
While Satan would hurt humanity, in the end humanity would triumph. Bruising a heel isn't life threatening, bruising a head is, and we're talking eternal life threatening. While Satan would hurt Jesus, he wouldn't kill him, yet Jesus in the end will do away with Satan and all sin.

Right from the beginning things were set in motion.

When Moses received the instructions for an earthly sanctuary they were patterned after the heavenly with good reason. The plan was made and not being implemented and it was important to get things right.

***

I do believe I'm going to be studying the Sanctuary for a bit now, but this is enough for a start. :)

Psalms {77:13} Thy way, O God, is in the sanctuary: who is so great a God as our God?

May God bless and help us to understand His way in the sanctuary and in truth understand more fully the amazing sacrifice made for each and every one of us by Jesus Christ His Son.

In His Grace and Mercy, by His Will.

Amen.