Friday, March 29, 2019

From the First Sanctuary Apartment to the Second.


Continued from yesterday….

The Apostle Paul clearly shows that Christ, while fulfilling his priesthood, occupies a sanctuary containing two apartments; the Holy, or first tabernacle, and the Holiest of all, or second tabernacle, within the second vail. In the Holy is the candlestick, the table of shew bread, and the golden altar.—See Heb. ix, 2 ; Ex. xl, 24-26. In the Holiest of all, is the ark of the covenant, the mercy-seat, and the two cherubims overshadowing the mercy-seat, above which is seen the most excellent glory, or Ancient of days.— See Heb. ix, 3-5 : Ex. xxvi, 33, 34.

Heb 9:2  For there was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is called the sanctuary. 

Exo 40:24  And he put the candlestick in the tent of the congregation, over against the table, on the side of the tabernacle southward. 
Exo 40:25  And he lighted the lamps before the LORD; as the LORD commanded Moses. 
Exo 40:26  And he put the golden altar in the tent of the congregation before the vail

Heb 9:3  And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all; 
Heb 9:4  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; 
Heb 9:5  And over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercyseat; of which we cannot now speak particularly. 

Exo 26:33  And thou shalt hang up the vail under the taches, that thou mayest bring in thither within the vail the ark of the testimony: and the vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy. 
Exo 26:34  And thou shalt put the mercy seat upon the ark of the testimony in the most holy place.

I am now prepared to explain the third division of the text, viz. " they that were ready went in with him to the marriage." In order to make the matter 'perfectly plain to your understanding, let us go back, and see in what way they went in, under the typical services.

Under the Mosaic economy, a cycle of one year embraced all the ordinances, and services of the tabernacle, and typified all the services of Christ, while acting in the capacity of a priest. Under the type there was a daily ministration for the sins of the people, for three hundred and sixty four days, then that ministration ceased. Then on the last day of this cycle of three hundred and sixty-five days, or the tenth day of the seventh month, the high priest, having washed himself in pure water, puts on the holy garments, made expressly for the services of this day. Thus prepared, he passes from the Holy, into the Holiest of all, bearing on the breastplate of judgement the names of all the tribes of Israel. In this' manner, all the true Israel went in with him.

Thus Christ, in the antitype, in the true tabernacle in heaven, closes the antitypical daily ministration in the Holy Place, clothes himself in the holy garments, having on the breast-plate of judgement, on which is inscribed the names of the true Israel of God, who are described by the following words in the text, " they that were ready." Thus arrayed, he is prepared to perform all -the services of the antitypical tenth day, and passes into the Holiest of all before the mercy-seat, and is brought near before the Ancient of days. Thus, they that were ready went in with him to the marriage as he went in to receive his bride, " and the DOOR WAS SHUT."

The cleansing of the sanctuary, blotting out the sins of all Israel, and sending them away upon the head of the scape-goat, &c. in the type, were performed by the high priest on the memorable tenth day of the seventh month, all of which were shadows of the services of Christ in the heavenly tabernacle, after his ministration -in the Holy Place closes ; some of which I may notice hereafter.

4. The marriage.

I think there are but three portions of Scripture in the New Testament that speak of marriage, which refer to Christ. The parable of the king's son, Matt. xxii, 2-14 ; the parable of the ten virgins, Matt. xxv, 1-12, and Rev. xix, 7-9 ; in all these it is used as a figure, to represent something that is, not real marriage; but that which bears a close resemblance to it. Therefore, the only reasonable conclusion that I can arrive at is, that marriage, when used in reference to Christ, represents the receiving into close connection, and perpetual union, the Kingdom, or some component part of the- Kingdom.

When the prophet says, "thy land shall be married,"—see Isa. lxii, 4—he means that the territory or locality of the Kingdom is to be brought into close connection with the KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. When the New Jerusalem is adorned as a bride for her husband, and is given to Christ, and the saints or virgins go in with him, as guests to the marriage, then it is that he receives the capital of his promised and long looked for Kingdom.

Isa 62:4  Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken; neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate: but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, and thy land Beulah: for the LORD delighteth in thee, and thy land shall be married. 

And when, as described to John in vision—see Rev. xix, 1-9—

Rev 19:1  And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God: 
Rev 19:2  For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand. 
Rev 19:3  And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and ever. 
Rev 19:4  And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia. 
Rev 19:5  And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great. 
Rev 19:6  And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. 
Rev 19:7  Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. 
Rev 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. 
Rev 19:9  And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God. 

God shall have judged her that did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and :shall have "avenged the blood of his servants at her hand ;" and when the voice as "of a great multitude," and " as the voice of mighty thunderings " shall proclaim " Alleluia, for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth, let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to him ; for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and . his wife hath made herself ready ;" and when to her is " granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white," which " is the righteousness of saints," then the subjects of the Kingdom become the bride; and in joint-heirship with the bridegroom possess " the Kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the Kingdom under the whole heaven."

5. THE SHUT DOOR.

A door supposes a change of scenery, or a change from one apartment to another. There are several things to which the term door is applied, such as " door of utterance," and "door of faith." "I  am the door," said Jesus. But the door mentioned in the text represents not only a change in the position of the bridegroom, (Christ,) but it also shows a change in his relation to the world, from that which he previously held. Here, again, let us examine the services of the typical priesthood, that we may understand the services of Christ in the antitype. After the priests had performed the daily, services, ordained especially for the Holy Place, or first apartment, and the memorable tenth day of the seventh month had arrived, then there was an entire change in the services of the sanctuary to be performed on that day.

By reading the sixteenth chapter of Leviticus, you will find that the high priest here washes his flesh in water, puts on the holy garments, and enters upon an entire new work. The offering up of the daily sin-offerings has ceased, and the high priest, on this day, atones for or blots out the sins of Israel, and removes them from the altar, where they have been imputed or laid during the year, through the blood of the victims daily offered. On this day of atonement, or of cleansing the sanctuary, the high priest (as above stated) passes into the Most Holy Place, bearing on the breast-plate of judgement the names of all such as, through obedience to the typical ordinances, have applied for a remission of sins, through the blood of their victims there offered ; and THE DOOR of the first apartment is SHUT. " And there shall be No MAN in the tabernacle of the congregation when he goeth in to make an atonement in the holy place, until he come out, and have made an atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the congregation of  xvi, 17. On this day of atonement, he is a high priest for -those only whose names are inscribed on the breast-plate of judgement. Now just so sure as the Aaronic priesthood was a type of the priesthood of Christ, then the sanctuary, with its apartments and appendages, were figures of the true sanctuary in heaven ; and the services and ordinances of the earthly tabernacle were shadows of Christ's ministration, which is the substance. With this view of the subject,, 'It is, plain that a time in Christ's ministration must come, (before he puts on the kingly robes, and girds his sword upon his thigh, and comes to execute judgement,) that he Will cease to be a priest in the first apartment of the true tabernacle for the sins of the whole world, and put on the holy garments, and, with the true Israel of God inscribed on His breastplate of judgement, go in with them before the mercy-seat, where John saw one having a golden censor offering the prayers of all saints (wise virgins) before the throne ' and be a merciful high priest over the household of faith, cleanse the sanctuary and place all the-sins of the true Israel upon the scape-goat, which is the devil: Then, he will lay off the priestly garments, and clothe himself with the garments of wrath, and come to gather his elect from the four winds, under heaven, and destroy the wicked, and burn up their City.

Having thus explained the text, I will now examine some ideas suggested in the -foregoing exposition. And first, the time of the fulfilment of the events, contained in the text, may be known by those which precede, and those that follow. Christ, after giving the signs of his coming, and a description of what should take place at his coming, proceeds to give a history of 'some of the scenes which should be transacted previous to that event. It appears that just before his coming, his wise and faithful servants, seeing the signs fulfilling, and some of the events which were to precede his coming actually transpiring, would raise the soul-thrilling cry—" The LORD IS COMING,"   and thus wake up others to an examination of this all-important subject by this " meat in due season." Then this cry would excite those professed servants, who were unfaithful in their Master's cause, and who loved the things of -this present world; to raise an Opposite cry—" My Lord delayeth his coming." While these opposite cries are being given, THEN commences the fulfilment of the parable of the ten virgins. Here some, by examining the arguments of the faithful servants, and 'seeing good evidence that the signs were fulfilling, were led thereby to go forth to meet the bridegroom. We here. plainly see that the cry of the faithful servants is the cause of their going forth, and that, their going forth is the effect produced by this cause; therefore, the fulfilment of the parable could never commence without the cry, The Lord is Coming," being first raised by the faithful servants.

Having Shown how this important parable must commence, let us examine the different steps of its progression. First, the virgins go forth to meet the bridegroom ; second, they meet with a disappointment ; third, they wait or tarry, still believing that his coming is near, yet, by waiting, they become drowsy, arid slumber and sleep ; fourth, a cry is heard, BEHOLD THE BRIDEGROOM COMETH)  GO OUT TO MEET HIM ;" fifth, a trimming of lamps, and oil effort, on 'the part of the foolish virgins, to -procure oil; and sixth, the scenes described in the text take place. Now has there been a succession of events, within our second advent experience, which, bears an exact resemblance to the above named events in the parable ? -If there, has, then we have, at least, some good reasons for believing that the door is shut.

TO BE CONTINUED….

THE PRESENT TRUTH.
PUBLISHED, SEMI-MONTHLY, BY JAMES WHITE.
Vol. I.] OSWEGO, N. Y. DECEMBER, 1849. [No. 6.

We are now studying - 'The Present Truth' papers published in the middle 1800's. These are called the 'Present Truth' because it WAS Present Truth for that time. So why study them now? Because TRUTH at any time is worth studying, and we KNOW that often ORIGINAL truth presented before Satan has had an opportunity to corrupt it, can be very enlightening. At the very least we will see, by the grace of God, through the Holy Spirit, what truth then is still uncorrupted today and still very relevant for us living in these dark, dark times. Our world today compared to a hundred and seventy years ago is so much worse than it was, with so much evil being called good, and good being called evil.  May God bless us as we seek HIS truth for us in our present, bringing us only closer to Him and prayerfully the Second Coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!


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