A Whispered Prayer.

 

Guilty

 I'm guilty. Do I want to be guilty? No, I don't want to be guilty. Do I want to make excuses to explain away the guilty, give reason for the actions of guilt? Yes. I do not want to be guilty. Being guilty is an awful thing. Having no excuse good enough to wipe away the guilty, is horrible.

You've been blindsided with horrible news, someone you love has tragically been murdered. You drown your sorrow in a few alcoholic beverages and then get up enough nerve to drive home to face the tragedy with others. On the way home you crash into another car and kill someone. You are guilty of killing someone because you chose to put alcohol into your body which caused your driving skills to be diminished. You put alcohol in your body because of a tragedy you experienced. Such a vicious turn of events. Your reason for doing what you did is comprehensible on some level but at the same time you caused yet another tragedy. Guilty. The reasons for the guilt do not negate the guilt. A penalty must be paid for the guilt. How many people have gone to prison for things they didn't mean to do, but are none the less guilty of doing. They are paying for their actions, unintentional actions perhaps but their actions. 

I am guilty. Unintentionally, and intentionally guilty. My guilt has many facets unfortunately. 

What am I guilty of? So many, many things. Chief among my guilt is my worshiping of myself above God, and the putting of myself above others. 

I am guilty.

I deserve punishment.

I stand before my judge, God the Father.

I turn to my advocate, Jesus Christ the only begotten Son. 

I yield all of me to the Son. I believe the Son alone can make me guiltless, by choosing to take my guilt upon Himself. He doesn't tell me I'm guilt free, but rather He tells me the guilt I have He will take from me, He tells me that He suffered, that He died, that He did that for me. He tells me that His blood was shed for me. He chose to end His life in order to save my life eternally.

My Savior ascended from death's darkness to heaven's light. 

My Savior stands before the Father, advocating for me right now and as long as there is time He will plead for me. When the cup is full and probation for all mankind has run out, when the Savior finishes all His advocating for all His people and the way of salvation is over, I will be on saved solely by His grace!

In the heavenly sanctuary right now Christ is advocating for us, but soon He will finish His work of advocating and take on His kingship, coming to call all His people to be with Him.

This is truth!

Lord, I am nothing, you are all. All glory to YOU, all glory to GOD.

Will We Yield?

 Lessons to Learn.

Being taught, something we've all experienced, right? You can't say no if you're reading this, because you were taught to read. Spiritual learning is our being taught by the Spirit, and we are taught this way once we are born of the Spirit. The lessons the Spirit teaches us are lessons for our eternity. We live now and right now we are being perfected for our eternal life. We have a spirit and our spirit with the Holy Spirit learn things of the Spirit. You may think it's not important to be Spirit taught, but it is. The Spirit convicts us, and our convictions become more and more intense the more we are taught of the Spirit. A conviction causes us to realize our complete and utter need of relying upon our Savior. We realize this need by comprehending our inability to save ourselves. 

The sanctuary was a structure that was a blatant reminder of man's sin and need of a Savior.

'The earthly sanctuary was a teaching tool for mankind and the lesson it was teaching was taught. That lesson all pointed to the heavenly sanctuary, to our Savior and His offer of salvation. Christ lived the sanctuary upon earth and after living out the sanctuary on earth He went to the heavenly sanctuary to finish the lesson there. The lesson… we have a High Priest in heaven right now! And once that High Priest FINISHES His priestly work in the heavenly sanctuary- He and His Father will become the all that the sanctuary of embodies.'

Christ is a working High Priest. Christ isn't simply a figurehead for people to look to, but a REALITY. HE is our ADVOCATE, our HEAVENLY LAWYER pleading our CASE. He has ALL the evidence, all the proof to be able to redeem us! What will determine each case is our accepting our Lord as our Savior- fully accepting that HE alone can save us! Yielding ourselves to salvation in Christ Jesus. Will we yield all we are to Him?

Not Made With Hands

 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

Christ entered the heavenly holy places NOT MADE WITH HANDS. So, how was the heavenly sanctuary made if not with hands? It was made by the WORD of God.  God spoke and it was! Just as the earth and all that is in it exists, just as this universe and all the other universes exist by the spoken word of God. The heavenly sanctuary was spoken into existence and God gave detailed instructions to Moses on that heavenly sanctuary so there could be an earthly one made that was like the heavenly.  Why TWO sanctuaries? Why a heavenly and an earthly sanctuary?  Why a heavenly, let's talk about that first.

A heavenly sanctuary because- MANKIND being given the ABILITY to choose wrong from right needed a place where, should they choose wrong, would be able to find salvation. God KNEW He was creating a multitude of beings, not a single entity, but many and each and every one of those beings would have the chance to choose right from wrong. God did not want to condemn all mankind for one man's mistake. God is just and righteous, in fact, all justice and all righteousness comes from God. Each and every one of us has been created in the image of God with the potential for being a companion of God's. Made in His image we are similar to God in many ways. If I created a like-like replica of myself with the know how to make it look realistic I would still forever and always be the creator of that replica. That replica could not create something from nothing, forever the replica would be subservient to its creator out of sheer ability. The replica exists ONLY because it was created. The Creator exist because the Creator has always existed. We forever owe honor and glory to our Creator! Our Creator has given us all we need to be His forever and always.  However, because the original creation of mankind chose to leave God's glory in seeking his/her own glory, they condemned themselves and all mankind. God knew all mankind would need a chance to choose God service or Self service and provided this chance. How was it provided? Through the Sanctuary.

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

The symbol of forgiveness, of redemption, of being made one with God again. 

The heavenly sanctuary was spoke into existence first, before mankind as a part of the plan of mankind should things go awry. 

Things went awry. 

The earthly sanctuary was eventually brought into existence to teach mankind the way of their salvation.

The earthly sanctuary was then made void when Christ died. Our living testament returned to the heavenly sanctuary to finish what was started upon the creation of that sanctuary. 

The earthly sanctuary was a teaching tool for mankind and the lesson it was teaching was taught. That lesson all pointed to the heavenly sanctuary, to our Savior and His offer of salvation. Christ lived the sanctuary upon earth and after living out the sanctuary on earth He went to the heavenly sanctuary to finish the lesson there. The lesson… we have a High Priest in heaven right now! And once that High Priest FINISHES His priestly work in the heavenly sanctuary- He and His Father will become the all that the sanctuary of embodies. 

More on all of this tomorrow by the grace of our LORD and SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST. 

Living In the Day of Atonement

 Self-affliction for the purpose of comprehending that we exist only because God allows us to exist. Self-affliction because we comprehend that our unworthiness of God's mercy is a very real thing. Self-affliction because all glory belongs to God and none to us. Self-affliction because we need the meekness of our Savior which calls for us to live as He lives. As our example, our Savior lived His life in service for others at all times. Our Savior lived self-renunciation. Our Savior lived wholly for the Father. 

We live in the existence of a perpetual day of Atonement, begun at a set moment in time only to end at another set time that only God the Father knows. 

Prior to Christ's sacrifice, the Israelis lived immersed in a sacrificial system that allowed for them to bring sacrifices to gain atonement. Once a year all the sins that had been placed on the altar of the sanctuary were cleansed.  

To cleanse the sanctuary the High Priest made ritual sacrifices with ritual ceremonies on that most holy of days. The people were told to afflict their souls on that day because it was the holiest of days as the power of God to forgive all sin was enacted.  

When Christ entered the heavenly sanctuary we weren't left entirely without a time table for future events. 

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

Christ began His work in the heavenly sanctuary - the same heavenly sanctuary we were told would begin to be cleansed in a prophecy given by Daniel. Without going into that prophecy in depth right now, it works out that in the year 1844 the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary began and it was then that the Day of Atonement figure came into effect.  For the last 177 years the heavenly sanctuary has been being cleansed. When the cleansing is over, that is when our Savior returns! Jesus has been in heaven for 1,955 years and for the last 177 years of that time He's been carrying out the cleansing of the sanctuary.

More on all of this tomorrow- by the GRACE OF GOD!

You Are On Trial In Heaven

We MUST afflict our souls as our SAVIOR makes the case for each of us who believe on Him. Afflict our souls. The day of our atonement is a very long day.

Christ our High Priest stands in our place before God bringing you, bringing, me, bringing all who would be His before God and pleading on our behalf as the trial for eternal life goes on in heaven for each of us. While our Advocate with God pleads our case we must die to self - afflicting our souls. We are to die on our cross daily.

Luk_9:23  And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.

In the earthly day of Atonement which took place once a year- this was how the people of God were instructed…

Lev_16:29  And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you

Afflict your souls.

Lev_16:31  It shall be a sabbath of rest unto you, and ye shall afflict your souls, by a statute for ever.

Afflict your souls.

Lev_23:27  Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.

Afflict your souls.

Lev_23:32  It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your souls: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath.

Afflict your souls.

Num_29:7  And ye shall have on the tenth day of this seventh month an holy convocation; and ye shall afflict your souls: ye shall not do any work therein

Afflict your souls. 

Afflict-

H6031

עָנָה

‛ânâh

aw-naw'

A primitive root (possibly rather identical with H6030 through the idea of looking down or browbeating); to depress literally or figuratively, transitively or intransitively (in various applications). (sing is by mistake for H6030.): - abase self, afflict (-ion, self), answer [by mistake for H6030], chasten self, deal hardly with, defile, exercise, force, gentleness, humble (self), hurt, ravish, sing [by mistake for H6030], speak [by mistake for H6030], submit self, weaken, X in any wise.

Total KJV occurrences: 83

Abase self. Afflict self. Chasten self. Humble self. Submit self.

Mat 5:3  Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 

Mat 5:4  Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. 

Mat 5:5  Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. 

Mat 5:6  Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. 

Mat 5:7  Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. 

Mat 5:8  Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. 

Mat 5:9  Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. 

Poor in spirit, they that mourn, meek, hungry and thirsty for righteousness, merciful, pure in heart, peacemaker.

What do all those things have in common? Affliction of self attributes, and in their place a knowledge that God reigns supreme. A knowing that an emptying of self is needed. A poor spirit comprehends their need of being selfless to be God-fearing. A self-affliction, knowing self has to be chastised within us. To be self-poor is to be God-rich.  To be spirit-poor is to be God-rich.

More on this tomorrow, by the grace of God!

The Day of Atonement-

Lev 16:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the LORD, and died; 

Lev 16:2  And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat. 

Lev 16:3  Thus shall Aaron come into the holy place: with a young bullock for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. 

Lev 16:4  He shall put on the holy linen coat, and he shall have the linen breeches upon his flesh, and shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired: these are holy garments; therefore shall he wash his flesh in water, and so put them on. 

Lev 16:5  And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. 

Lev 16:6  And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house. 

Lev 16:7  And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. 

Lev 16:8  And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat. 

Lev 16:9  And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD'S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering. 

Lev 16:10  But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness. 

Lev 16:11  And Aaron shall bring the bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and shall make an atonement for himself, and for his house, and shall kill the bullock of the sin offering which is for himself: 

Lev 16:12  And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the vail: 

Lev 16:13  And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not: 

Lev 16:14  And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat eastward; and before the mercy seat shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times. 

Lev 16:15  Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the vail, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat: 

Lev 16:16  And he shall make an atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins: and so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation, that remaineth among them in the midst of their uncleanness. 

Lev 16:17  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 Israel. 

Lev 16:18  And he shall go out unto the altar that is before the LORD, and make an atonement for it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and of the blood of the goat, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about. 

Lev 16:19  And he shall sprinkle of the blood upon it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it, and hallow it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel. 

Lev 16:20  And when he hath made an end of reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat: 

Lev 16:21  And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness: 

Lev 16:22  And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness. 

Lev 16:23  And Aaron shall come into the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall put off the linen garments, which he put on when he went into the holy place, and shall leave them there: 

Lev 16:24  And he shall wash his flesh with water in the holy place, and put on his garments, and come forth, and offer his burnt offering, and the burnt offering of the people, and make an atonement for himself, and for the people. 

Lev 16:25  And the fat of the sin offering shall he burn upon the altar. 

Lev 16:26  And he that let go the goat for the scapegoat shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward come into the camp. 

Lev 16:27  And the bullock for the sin offering, and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the holy place, shall one carry forth without the camp; and they shall burn in the fire their skins, and their flesh, and their dung. 

Lev 16:28  And he that burneth them shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp. 

Lev 16:29  And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you: 

Lev 16:30  For on that day shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before the LORD. 

Lev 16:31  It shall be a sabbath of rest unto you, and ye shall afflict your souls, by a statute for ever. 

Lev 16:32  And the priest, whom he shall anoint, and whom he shall consecrate to minister in the priest's office in his father's stead, shall make the atonement, and shall put on the linen clothes, even the holy garments: 

Lev 16:33  And he shall make an atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make an atonement for the tabernacle of the congregation, and for the altar, and he shall make an atonement for the priests, and for all the people of the congregation. 

Lev 16:34  And this shall be an everlasting statute unto you, to make an atonement for the children of Israel for all their sins once a year. And he did as the LORD commanded Moses. 

Lev 23:26  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 

Lev 23:27  Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD. 

Lev 23:28  And ye shall do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the LORD your God. 

Lev 23:29  For whatsoever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people. 

Lev 23:30  And whatsoever soul it be that doeth any work in that same day, the same soul will I destroy from among his people. 

Lev 23:31  Ye shall do no manner of work: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. 

Lev 23:32  It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your souls: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath. 

The Holy House of God.

 The Holy House of God.  

IT'S REAL!

Yes, I shouted, and I'll shout it again. IT'S REAL!

The earthly sanctuary was real, we have proof of that in Jerusalem today, the remnants of it exist there right now. Proven historical data details the sanctuary. The Bible itself reveals the origin of the sanctuary, it's reason for existing, the workings of it, and the demise of its earthly purpose. Once the ultimate sacrifice had been made, no other blood sacrifice, no other sanctuary sacrifice had any purpose. The blood of our Savior was shed and not a single other sacrifice could take the place of the blood of God in sacrifice ever again. The power of the blood of Christ is the greatest of all, and that is why the earthly lost its purpose and the heavenly purpose took over, the original sanctuary. 

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. 

A greater, more perfect tabernacle- the heavenly!

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; 

By His own blood He entered the holiest of all places where God, His Father dwelled.

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.

Christ, our High Priest!  Right NOW He is in the presence of the FATHER pleading His spilled blood to save us sinners! He is pleading for us to be reunited to God through HIS perfect sacrifice. He alone is WORTHY! By HIS grace we are saved! We MUST afflict our souls as our SAVIOR makes the case for each of us who believe on Him. Afflict our souls, the day of our atonement is a very long day.

More on this tomorrow by the grace of our LORD and SAVIOR!