Sanctuary

 Sanctuary…

The Heavenly Sanctuary existed before the earthly sanctuary. We know this because God's word tells us the earthly was patterned after the heavenly.

The sanctuary in the future we are told… is God and Jesus Christ. 

Rev 21:22  And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. 

So here we have a preexisting sanctuary in heaven, a sanctuary on earth modeled after the heavenly, and then ultimately the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb (Jesus Christ) are the temple. 

To comprehend the need of a heavenly sanctuary is to know it's existence had to come into being for a purpose. The purpose… mankind's salvation. 

The history of the sanctuary- 

Heavenly.

Earthly.

Christ.

God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son.

Let's look briefly at mention of the sanctuary after Christ.

Heb 8:1  Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; 

Heb 8:2  A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man. 

Heb 8:3  For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer. 

Heb 8:4  For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law: 

Heb 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. 

Heb 8:6  But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. 

Heb 8:7  For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second. 

Heb 8:8  For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah: 

Heb 8:9  Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. 

Heb 8:10  For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: 

Heb 8:11  And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. 

Heb 8:12  For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. 

Heb 8:13  In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away. 

Heb 9:1  Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary. 

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. 

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. 

Heb 9:6  Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God. 

Heb 9:7  But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people: 

Heb 9:8  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: 

Heb 9:9  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; 

Heb 9:10  Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation. 

Heb 9:11  But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; 

Heb 9:12  Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for 

us. 

Heb 9:13  For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: 

Heb 9:14  How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? 

Heb 9:15  And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance. 

Heb 9:16  For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator. 

Heb 9:17  For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth. 

Heb 9:18  Whereupon neither the first testament was dedicated without blood. 

Heb 9:19  For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people, 

Heb 9:20  Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you. 

Heb 9:21  Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry. 

Heb 9:22  And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. 

Heb 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. 

Heb 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: 

Heb 9:25  Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others; 

Heb 9:26  For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. 

Heb 9:27  And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: 

Heb 9:28  So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

More on this tomorrow by the grace of God. 

Until I Went Into the Sanctuary...

 

We often fall far short of having a clean heart. We ask God to create a clean heart in us because we know the dark, dirty depths we are living in, sinking in, struggling as if stuck in a mucky miry pit of the thickest quicksand. We beg God to keep our heads above the suffocating filth as only He can. In Psalms 73 we read that God is good to those who have clean hearts… then we read in the next moment of one struggling, of one whose feet are almost gone, whose steps slipped.  We can comprehend this all too well. We live in a world where evil reigns, that fact really isn't debatable.  Evil prospers. One who would walk with the Lord knows the rewards promised to them are eternal rewards, not temporal ones. As long as we live with our hearts outside of the sanctuary, we are can't fully comprehend our world, and our place in it.  When we go into the sanctuary we know the end of all evil is to come, the end of all temporal life will be over. To go into the sanctuary is to realize fully the difference between the temporal and the eternal. To go into the sanctuary is to draw as near to God as we can ever be. Ultimately we know this..

Rev 21:22  And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it

Truth.  The sanctuary exists at all to reunite man and God. It is only in comprehending that we unite with God, with Christ, in the sanctuary that we comprehend that all without the sanctuary do not. 

By the grace of God may we go into the sanctuary and find comprehension all through the Holy Spirit.

Psa 73:1  A Psalm of Asaph. Truly God is good to Israel, even to such as are of a clean heart. 

Psa 73:2  But as for me, my feet were almost gone; my steps had well nigh slipped. 

Psa 73:3  For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. 

Psa 73:4  For there are no bands in their death: but their strength is firm. 

Psa 73:5  They are not in trouble as other men; neither are they plagued like other men. 

Psa 73:6  Therefore pride compasseth them about as a chain; violence covereth them as a garment. 

Psa 73:7  Their eyes stand out with fatness: they have more than heart could wish. 

Psa 73:8  They are corrupt, and speak wickedly concerning oppression: they speak loftily. 

Psa 73:9  They set their mouth against the heavens, and their tongue walketh through the earth. 

Psa 73:10  Therefore his people return hither: and waters of a full cup are wrung out to them. 

Psa 73:11  And they say, How doth God know? and is there knowledge in the most High? 

Psa 73:12  Behold, these are the ungodly, who prosper in the world; they increase in riches. 

Psa 73:13  Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency. 

Psa 73:14  For all the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every morning. 

Psa 73:15  If I say, I will speak thus; behold, I should offend against the generation of thy children. 

Psa 73:16  When I thought to know this, it was too painful for me; 

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

Psa 73:18  Surely thou didst set them in slippery places: thou castedst them down into destruction. 

Psa 73:19  How are they brought into desolation, as in a moment! they are utterly consumed with terrors. 

Psa 73:20  As a dream when one awaketh; so, O Lord, when thou awakest, thou shalt despise their image. 

Psa 73:21  Thus my heart was grieved, and I was pricked in my reins. 

Psa 73:22  So foolish was I, and ignorant: I was as a beast before thee. 

Psa 73:23  Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden me by my right hand. 

Psa 73:24  Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory. 

Psa 73:25  Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee. 

Psa 73:26  My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever. 

Psa 73:27  For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish: thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from thee. 

Psa 73:28  But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.

The Gift of Life

 Blessed. 

(Excerpt continued)

Romans 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. 10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

"Reconciled by His Death." 

God is not our enemy, but we are or have been enemies to him. Therefore he does not need to be reconciled to us, but we need reconciliation to him. And he himself, in the kindness of his heart,  makes the reconciliation. We "are made nigh by the blood of Christ." Eph. 2:13. 

How so? Because it was sin that separated us from him, and made us enemies; and "the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin." 1 John 1:7. Being cleansed from sin, we must necessarily be reconciled to God.

The Gift of Life.

 "The life of the flesh is in the blood." "For it is the life of all flesh." Lev. 17:11, 14. In that Christ shed his blood for us, he gave his life for us. But inasmuch as the blood is applied to us, to cleanse us from all sin, he gives his life to us. In the death of Christ therefore, if we are crucified with him, we receive his life as a substitute for our sinful life, which he takes upon himself. Our sins are remitted through faith in his blood, not as an arbitrary act, but because by faith we exchange lives with him, and the life which we get in exchange has no sin. Our sinful life is swallowed up in his boundless life, because he has life so abundantly that he can die because of our transgressions, and still live again to give life to us.

"Saved by His Life." Christ did not go through the pangs of death for nothing, nor did he give his life to us for the purpose of taking it away again. When he gives us his life, he designs that we shall keep it forever. How do we get it? By faith. How do we keep it? By the same faith. "As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord,  so walk ye in him." Col. 2:6. His life can never end, but we may lose it by unbelief.

Let it be remembered that we have not this life in ourselves, but "this life is in his Son." "He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." 1 John 5:11, 12. We keep the everlasting life by keeping Christ. Now it is a very simple proposition that if we have been reconciled to God by the death of Christ,  if his life has been given to us for the remission of our sins, then we shall much more be saved by that life since he has risen from the dead.

People sometimes say that they can believe that God forgives their sins, but they find it difficult to believe that he can keep them from sin. Well, if there is any difference, the latter is the easier of the two; for the forgiveness of sins requires the death of Christ, while the saving from sins requires only his continued life.

By What Life Are We Saved? By the life of Christ, and he has but one. He is "the same yesterday, and to-day,  and forever." Heb. 13:8. It is by his present life that we are saved, that is, by his life in us from day to day. But the life which he now lives is the very same life that he lived in Judea eighteen hundred years ago. He took again the same life that he laid down. Think what was in the life of Christ, as we have the record in the New Testament, and we shall know what ought to be in our lives now. If we allow him to dwell in us, he will live just as he did then. If there is something in our lives that was not then in his, we may be sure that he is not living it in us now.

Christ Died For The Ungodly.

 (Excerpt)

Romans 5:

1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ; 2 by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also; knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 4 and patience, experience; and experience, hope; 5 and hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. 6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

"The Love of God." The reason why hope makes not ashamed is that the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. Note that it does not say love for God, but the love of God. 

What is the love of God?  "This is the love of God, that we keep his commandments." 1 John 5:3. The Holy Spirit, then, puts into our hearts obedience to the law of God; and it is that which gives us boldness in the day of judgment, and at all other times. 

It is sin that makes men afraid. When sin is taken away, then fear is gone. 

"The wicked flee when no man pursueth; but the righteous are bold as a lion." Prov. 28:1.

"Christ Died for the Ungodly." 

"This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners." 1 Tim. 1:15.

"This man receiveth sinners." Luke 15:2.

Strange that people will allow a sense of their sinfulness to keep them away from the Lord, when Christ came for the one purpose of receiving and saving them. He is able to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him (Heb. 6:25); and he says that those who come to him he will in no wise cast out (John 6:37).

"Without Strength." It was when we were yet without strength, that Christ died for the ungodly. Of course;  because he died for the purpose that we might be strengthened with might by the Spirit. If he waited for us to gain some strength before giving himself for us, then we should be lost. When were we without strength? Just now; and even now Jesus Christ is set forth evidently crucified among us. Gal. 3:1. "Surely, shall one say, in the Lord have I righteousness and strength." Isa. 45:24.

Righteous vs. Good. "For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die." Our English translation does not indicate the difference between the two words used here. The righteous man is the just man, the man who is careful to give every one his due. The good man is the benevolent man, the one who has done us many favors, and who does for us more than we could justly claim. Now, no matter how just a man may be, his integrity of character would scarcely lead one to die for him. Yet it is possible that for a man of great kindness some would even dare to die.

The Greatest Love. 

That is the highest measure of love among men. One may lay down his life for his friends,  "but God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners," and therefore enemies, "Christ died for us."

 "For the love of God is broader

 Than the measure of man's mind;

 And the heart of the Eternal

 Is most wonderfully kind."

Christian experience or Christian profession

Faith Must Abound

 Glory in tribulations…

Are you considered sadistic if you glory in tribulation? No. You are not seeking tribulation, getting joy from tribulation. The glorying in tribulations is the comprehension that the revelation of faith is made apparent. Being able to give glory to God in all circumstances…  

Yes, Jesus cried out asking the Father why he was forsaken, and He agonized over the path to the cross wanting not to drink of the cup that only he could drink-- these are truths. Would we call that glorying in tribulation? To have reactions to tribulation is expected, to not be joyful for impending tribulation understandable. Choosing to holdfast to the faith in God after that is where we glory. Accepting God is in control when our entire life seems out of control that is glory in tribulation. Faith as we suffer, faith as we endure this is patience. No, we do not want tribulation, but tribulation abounds, and because it abounds we need faith.

(Excerpt) 

Romans 5:

1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ; 2 by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also; knowing that tribulation worketh patience

Tribulation Worketh Patience. 

What is patience? It is endurance of suffering.

The root of the word "patience" means suffering. We see this in the fact that one who is ill is called "a patient." That is, he is a sufferer.

People often excuse their petulance by saying that they have so much to endure. They think that they would be patient if they did not have to suffer so much. No, they would not be. There can be no patience where there is no suffering. Trouble does not destroy patience, but develops it. When trouble seems to destroy one's patience, it is simply showing the fact that the person had no patience.

When Does It Work? The statement is that tribulation worketh patience. Yet there are many who become more and more irritable the more trouble they have. It does not work patience with them. Why not? Simply because they are not in the condition that the apostle is describing.

It is only those who are justified by faith that tribulation works patience.

Nothing but faith in God can keep one perfectly patient under all circumstances.

Will it Always Work? Yes, invariably. "Well," says one, "I am sure that anybody would be impatient if he had as much to trouble him as I have."

Question: Would Christ become impatient if he had the things to endure that you have? Did he not have as much to endure, and more? You must admit that he did. Was he impatient? "He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth." Isa. 53:7. Then if he were in your place, he would be patient. Why, then, do you not let him be in your place?

Peace that depends on feeling will depart

 (Excerpt)

Romans 5:

1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ

What Is peace? Most people have the idea that it is a sort of ecstatic feeling. They think that peace with God means an indescribable heavenly feeling; and so they always look for that imaginary feeling as evidence that they are accepted with God.

But peace with God means the same thing that it means with men: it means simply the absence of war.

As sinners we are enemies of God. He is not our enemy, but we are his enemies. He is not fighting against us, but we are fighting against him. How then may we have peace with him? Simply by ceasing to fight, and laying down our arms. We may have peace whenever we are ready to stop fighting.

"Peace with God." 

Note that when we have peace with God we are not simply at peace with him, but we have his peace. This peace has been left on the earth for men; for the Lord has said, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you." John 14:27. He has given it to us. It is ours, therefore, already. It has always been ours. The only trouble has been that we have not believed it. As soon as we believe the words of Christ, then we have in very deed the peace which he has given. And it is peace with God, because we find the peace in Christ, and Christ dwells in the bosom of the Father. John 1:18.

Joh 1:18  No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

Peace and Righteousness.

"Great peace have they which love thy law." Ps. 119:165. "O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea." Isa. 48:18. Righteousness is peace, because our warfare against God was our sins that we cherished.

God's life is righteousness, and he is the God of peace. 

Since the enmity is the carnal mind and its wicked works, peace must be the opposite, namely, righteousness. So it is simply the statement of an obvious fact, that being justified by faith we have peace with God. The righteousness that we have by faith carries peace with it. The two things can not be separated.

Peace and Feeling. 

The question is asked, "Can one have peace with God and not have a feeling of peace?"  What says the Scripture? "Being justified by faith, we have peace with God." What brings the peace? The faith.  But faith is not feeling. 

If it were necessarily the case that there must be a certain feeling with peace, then if we did not have that feeling we should know that we were not justified; and then justification would be a matter of feeling, and not of faith. The verses which follow show us that we may have peace in tribulation as well as when everything goes smoothly.

Glory in Tribulations. This does not mean that we are to seek for martyrdom, as some in the early centuries did.  But it means, as it says, that in the midst of tribulations our peace and joy continue the same. This must necessarily be the case with peace that comes by faith. Peace that depends on feeling will depart as soon as we begin to feel tribulation. But nothing can make any difference with the peace that comes by faith. "These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." John 16:33.