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The Hebrew Sanctuary
The Lesson: In this series, we have already discovered some amazing Bible prophecies. A little review will help us to set the stage for this study. We have seen that the prophecies in the Old Testament establish unmistakably the identity of Jesus Christ and His divine nature. The attacks on the divinity of Christ are many, but Bible prophecy stands the test. In this study we want to look at more discoveries of who Jesus is. This is an important subject as the Christian faith is founded on who Jesus is. In this study we will unfold some of the profound mysteries of the ancient world of the Hebrews. The mystery of a lost ancient artifact reveals some startling facts that we will discover. The Sanctuary The Bible tells us that in ancient times God called a man by the name of Abraham. God gave the promise to Abraham that out of him a nation would come. The history of the Bible reveals how Abraham had a son named Isaac. Isaac had a son named Jacob, who had 12 sons, out of which came the 12 tribes of Israel. The Israelites were also called Jews or Hebrews. Not only was Abraham promised a nation, but also a land. The story of the exodus reveals how the Israelites were led out of the bondage of Egypt and into the promised land of Canaan. The whole reason for God having a chosen nation and a special land was for His truth to be spread and witnessed by the surrounding pagan nations. Through the worship and religion of the Hebrews, God would testify of His loving plan for humanity. As we study the ancient Hebrew religion, we encounter some astounding truths. When Moses led Israel out of Egypt, one of the first things God established with His people was the sanctuary service. “And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.” Exodus 25:8 The people were to make a sanctuary, and the whole reason for the Sanctuary was for God to dwell with them. This has always been the purpose of God from the beginning! Later this portable sanctuary was replaced by a temple in Jerusalem in the Promised Land. The Temple was built on Mount Moriah. This was the very same place where years before Abraham’s faith was greatly tested when he was asked to sacrifice his son Isaac. God then intervened, and a ram was sacrificed on the mountain. This pointed forward to Jesus who would come and die for our sins. Infact, the whole Sanctuary service pointed forward to this great event. God called a holy people to a holy land where they built a holy temple on a holy mountain. Certainly there must have been something important about this Sanctuary service. The Bible tells us that in the Sanctuary, and later in the temple of Jerusalem, were found various artifacts that also, in a marvelous way, reveal the worship of the Jews and how they point to the Messiah. In the most sacred place of the Sanctuary, called the Most Holy Place, was found an artifact called the Ark of the Covenant. The Ark of the Covenant The Ark of the Covenant was a wooden box overlaid with gold. On the top were two angels beaten of gold whose wings touched each other. In the ark was kept the ten commandment law received on Mount Sinai in the wilderness. But the most special thing about the Ark of the Covenant was that God’s presence dwelt there! God manifested His presence in the Shekinah glory dwelling between the cherubs! “Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth.” Psalm 80:1 God dwelt above the Ark of the Covenant. This priceless ancient artifact was so sacred that those that touched it died. This object was so sacred that it was found in the Most Holy Place of the Sanctuary. Few human eyes would see it and no human fingers would touch it. The Hebrews had this artifact in possession for centuries and it formed the centre of their worship. They did not worship the Ark of the Covenant itself, but the God that dwelt above it! The Ark of the Covenant was a symbol of God’s throne in the midst of His people. Where is the Ark of the Covenant Today? Many have wondered where the Ark of the Covenant is today. No one has been able to produce solid evidence that the Ark of the Covenant has been found. The last we hear of the Ark of the Covenant in the Bible is just before the invasion of Babylon in Israel about 600 BC. Nebuchadnezzar marched on Jerusalem and he destroyed the temple of the Jews. He sacked the temple and took the Hebrews captive and marched them some 1500 miles back to Babylon. At the same time the Ark of the Covenant suddenly disappeared! There is no record, not even in the Bible, of what happened to it. The Bible simply stops talking about it and you don’t see it again after the invasion. There are different theories about what happened to it. Some say it was destroyed or taken away by the Babylonians, but this is not likely. If Babylon would have taken the Ark of the Covenant, the world would have known about it. In ancient times when you captured a religious relic from your enemy, you would boast about it. Once the Israelites foolishly took the Ark of the Covenant with them when they went to war against the Philistines. The Ark then got stolen by the Philistines who boasted and cheered. They put it in their temple beside their god, Dagon. Dagon was the fish god and they believed that when the sun set Dagon became a giant fish, which swam under the earth, came up again in the morning and became the sun. But what happened? In the morning as the Philistines came into their temple, their god, Dagon, had been mysteriously pushed over. They thought the Ark of the Covenant brought bad luck and put it on a wagon with oxen. Miraculously the oxen walked straight back to the Hebrews! The whole story reveals that if the Babylonians would have taken the Ark, they would boast about it like the Philistines. In AD 70 when Titus destroyed Jerusalem with the second temple the Jews had built, he boasted about the artifacts he took with him. Over on the east towards the Coliseum is an arch build by Titus. As you step into that arch you see a fresco carved into the stone of a group of people carrying away a seven-branched candle stick. Why? They had conquered the temple of the Jews, were carrying the furniture out, and they were proud about it. They wanted the world to know that their gods were greater than the gods of the enemy. If the Babylonians had taken the Ark, we would have known about it. In Daniel chapter 5 we read a story of the king using the sacred vessels which he had taken from Jerusalem in a riotous feast, but there is no mention of the Ark of the Covenant. But there is another theory which is more likely. Some people say that Jeremiah the prophet took the Ark and hid it in a cave. This is the story that Jewish history substantiates. The Ark of the Covenant is mentioned in one passage of an old Jewish historical book, called the Maccabees. The deuterocanonical 2 Maccabees 2:4-10 contains a reference to a document saying that the prophet Jeremiah, “being warned of God,” took the Ark, and the tabernacle, and the altar of incense, and buried them in a cave on Mount Nebo. This is the most likely theory, but we still know very little about where it is and nobody has found it! What is So Special About This Artifact? Over the years people have tried to explain what the Ark of the Covenant is and there are some really strange ideas spreading around. Science fiction movies and fantasy books have sensationalised the whole thing and made people believe the strangest things about the Ark of the Covenant. The most recent one is brought forward by Dan Brown, in his book the Da Vinci Code. Dan Brown says that the Ark of the Covenant was this mysterious place where ancient Pagan fertility rituals were carried out. There is no basis in history whatsoever for that theory. Yet the sad thing is that thousands upon thousands are reading the book and believing it. If these theories are not the truth, then what is the truth? It is easy to piece together, because the Bible is crystal clear about the Ark of the Covenant. According to the Bible, God told Moses to build the Ark of the Covenant. “And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it. And they shall make an ark of shittim wood: two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof.” Exodus 25:8-10 The description is given as the first article in the Sanctuary. It was here that God would meet with His people! The testimony, known as the 10 commandments, was placed within the Ark of the Covenant. The Ark of the Covenant was a powerful object mentioned frequently in the ancient Biblical record. As the Israelites were going to enter the Promised Land, the priests carrying the Ark stepped into the Jordan river and the water parted before them (Joshua, chapter 3). Then the Israelites carried the Ark around the city of Jericho six times and on the seventh day, after marching around the city an additional seven times, the high and strong walls of Jericho collapsed (see Joshua chapter 6)! We earlier highlighted the event when the Ark was taken by the Philistines, but miraculously brought back to the Israelites. There is another rather sad story which happened years later. King David was transporting the Ark on a wagon pulled by oxen. God had implicitly commanded that only the priests could carry the Ark. While the wagon was pulling the Ark of the Covenant, the Ark appeared to fall off, and a man by the name of Uzza reached out to keep the Ark from falling. As he touched the Ark of the Covenant, he suddenly died (1 Chronicles 13:10). The question is: Why? The Bible reveals that this object is not just any piece of furniture, but it represents the presence of God! The Bible tells us about the role of the Ark of the Covenant in the lives of the children of Israel. The spot above the Ark was the spot where God would manifest Himself for the people of Israel. The Ark of the Covenant is a symbol of God’s throne in heaven. There are several verses in the Bible talking about where God exists in the courts of heaven. “…thou that dwellest between the cherubims…” Psalm 80:1 “…he sitteth between the cherubims…” Psalm 99:1 “O LORD of hosts, God of Israel, that dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone…” Isaiah 37:16 “And look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount.” Exodus 25:40 Again and again this was a symbol of God’s throne! Everything was to be made according to the pattern on the mountain. Moses saw it and was commanded to make something that looked like it. The Old Testament Sanctuary Service was a Picture of God’s Plan for Humanity “And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.” Revelation 11:19 The earthly sanctuary and temple was only a type of something greater in heaven. This true tabernacle also has an Ark of the Covenant, and John saw it in vision. John beholds the very throne of God in heaven. Moses made a replica of it on earth and by studying this replica we can learn something more about God and how He reigns. The Sanctuary has powerful and precious lessons for us today. In the Ark of the Covenant we find the Law of God. The Ark itself is important, but it remains a box. That which is inside is even more important! In the Ark of the Covenant we find the 10 commandments of God. The law of God is the transcript of His character as it shows us His character and nature. He does not lie, and does not steal, but is perfect and loving. As we come to God and to His throne we face His law. According to the Bible we have all broken this law and have been separated from God by sin. “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23 “But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.” Isaiah 59:2 We have been separated from God through our sins. We have been separated from the presence of God. This is why the Ark had to be hid inside the tabernacle and this is why no human being could touch it. It was a picture of God’s perfect, holy throne and we are not allowed there as sinners. And yet God still wanted to be with His people, and He placed the object of His presence in the very midst of the camp! The service around the Ark of the Covenant shows us how we can again come to God. This ancient artifact represents the justice of God, but also His love and mercy. It tells us that God is perfectly just as He rules by law and lives by law. But the Ark does not only tell us that God is perfectly just, but that He is also perfectly merciful! On top of the 10 commandments was a lid. The lid on the Ark of the Covenant was called the Mercy Seat. The law would condemn us all to death and destruction, because the law reveals what is sin. All have sinned (transgressed the law) and the wages of sin is death. But between the law and the repentant sinner, God brought in mercy. The mercy or grace of God cleanses and keeps us from sin, that we – clothed in Christ’s own righteousness – may be able to face the holy law. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23 The wages of sin is death. That’s why a sacrificial service is connected with the service in the Sanctuary. “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.” Revelation 21:1-3 In the new world that God will one day create for the faithful, the tabernacle of God is with men. There is no more sin and no more veil of separation. How do we reach this experience? The Bible tells us that it is only through Jesus who reconciles us to God. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” 2 Corinthians 5:17-21 We are to be reconciled to God through Christ and the ancient tabernacle is all about Jesus and this plan! This is a hidden history that not many have understood. A Journey Through the Sanctuary! Since the earthly sanctuary is a type of something bigger and greater in heaven it may be an idea to study the pattern to learn more about the real one. The ancient Hebrew Sanctuary reveals treasures to the Bible student. It illustrates the way to the throne of God. It reveals the plan of God to once again tabernacle with us! Everything in the Sanctuary tells us something very important about who God is and about the person Jesus. Let us take a quick journey through the Sanctuary and see what we can learn. The first thing we encounter is the entrance into the Sanctuary. There was only one entrance to the Sanctuary, located on the east side. “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” John 10:9 “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6 The door is a representation of Jesus as the only way. As you look at the landscape of world religion, many of them seem to be very inclusive. They make room for everybody and everything. They include Mohammed and Moses, Confucius and Buddha. There seem to be many doors. But if you look at the whole scope of world religions, Christianity stands apart from the crowd. It claims to be exclusive. There is only one way and that is through Jesus Christ. When you think about it, though, Christianity on the other hand is the most inclusive religion in the world, as all are invited to follow Jesus. No one is left out! Only the one sinned against can offer forgiveness of sin. Jesus is indeed the divine Son of God, and if anyone sinned against God, only Christ can offer forgiveness of sin. No other man or religion provides the resurrection power from the dead. Buddha, Confucius, and Mohammed, are still in their graves. Only someone that is eternal can offer eternal life! The reason why only Jesus can provide eternal life is because Christ is the only one in human history that lived the perfect life, that died the death that we should die, and that came out of the grave, resurrected eternally. After entering through the entrance of the Sanctuary, you would come into the courtyard. In front of you would be the altar of sacrifice. The person entering the Sanctuary would have an animal, usually a lamb, with him. As he came before the altar of sacrifice he would put his hands upon the lamb and confess his sins. After doing this he would kill the lamb with his own hands and the lamb would be sacrificed on the altar. This entire service, taking place from day to day, pointed forward to Jesus and His great sacrifice. “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23 The wages of sin is death, and the lamb is a symbol of Jesus who took that death upon Himself. Did that little lamb actually forgive the sinner? No, but it pointed to Someone who could forgive the sinner! In faith the ancient Hebrews would look forward to the One that would come and die for all the sins of the world. “The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” John 1:29 It is no doubt who the lamb represents. Thousands of years before Jesus came to the earth, the ancient people of God knew that a Lamb would come and die for their sins. Thousands of years in advance we have an accurate picture of what the mission of Jesus would be! Modern critics can say what they want, but the ancients knew it because God showed it to them through the sacrificial service of the Sanctuary! The plan and purpose of God was illustrated in the Sanctuary. “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” Revelation 13:8 Jesus is the lamb slain from the foundation of the world. God was ready to handle the sin-problem at the moment you were created. You were created with the choice to turn against Him. Why? He wanted a relationship with us which necessitates the exercise of our own free will. The lamb was a reminder of what sin actually is. By taking the life of the lamb with your own hands, you would realise the serious nature of sin. “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.” Hebrews 9:26 Praise God that Jesus did appear to put away sin! Beyond the Altar of Sacrifice in the outer court of the Sanctuary we find the Laver. Here the Priests had to wash themselves before they entered the Sanctuary. The symbolic picture represents how we need to be cleansed from sin before we go to heaven. “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind... And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” 1 Corinthians 6:9,11 We need to be cleansed and it is Jesus that cleanses us. The Laver represents the cleansing power of Jesus. The New Testament brings marvelous meaning to this in the ordinance of baptism. It is a symbol of Jesus’ death and resurrection – and signifies our dying to sin and rising to a new life in Christ. “Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.” Romans 6:3-6 We are cleansed, and start a new life with Jesus. “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost.” Titus 3:5 A new life means Jesus working in us and His righteousness is displayed through us. This happens by the spiritual washing of regeneration! The priest washed himself before entering the actual tabernacle. The priest, just like the lamb, is also a symbol of Jesus. “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:15-16 Jesus is our High Priest officiating for us right now in the heavenly Sanctuary! You can come to Him with all your struggles in life. He can be touched with our feelings, because He was one of us. “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” Hebrews 2:14-15 Jesus can deliver us from the bondage of sin! The priest was a mediator between God and man. Who could better fill that position than Jesus? He is our High Priest. As you came into the first apartment of the Sanctuary, you would see a seven-branched golden lamp stand to your left. The golden rule of Bible interpretation is to let the Bible interpret itself. “Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” John 8:12 Opposite the lamp stand was a table of bread. What does it represent? “I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” John 6:51 Jesus is the bread of life! Bread is food in almost every culture on the face of this planet. It is a substance that feeds us and it is essential. You can’t live without it! Jesus, through his Word, feeds our daily needs. So far we see that everything points to Jesus. The lamb, the priest, the laver, the lamp stand, the table of bread – all represent Jesus and his power that can be made manifest in our lives if we allow him by faith. In the back of the Holy Place, we find a third artifact, which is the Altar of Incense. What does it represent? “Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.” Psalm 141:2 “And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.” Rev 8:3 The Altar of Incense represents the prayers of the believers. In the Heavenly Sanctuary our prayers are represented, but our prayers are contaminated by selfishness. They need to be mixed with the righteousness of Jesus, our High Priest, in order to be a sweet smelling incense. Jesus is there to reconcile and bring us to God and God desperately wants to be with His people. Many people have a misconception of God and they think He is arbitrary and cruel. The sacrifice of Jesus was just as much a sacrifice of God! “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16 Any father understands what a great sacrifice this involves! God is waiting for our prayers and He is waiting for us to come back into His presence. We have been separated from Him by our sins, but are led back to Him through Jesus. The sanctuary is a beautiful picture of lost sons and daughters returning to their Maker! It is a picture of our growth in Christ. The table of bread not only points to Jesus but it teaches us that we need to partake of that bread which is a symbol of God’s Word. Just like we need bread to survive physically we need the Bible to survive spiritually. And when we partake of the Word of God we will naturally want to share the good news with others. Just like the lamp stand filled with oil giving light in the sanctuary, so you and I are called to be filled with the Holy Spirit so that we can be a light in this world. This is only accomplished by prayer, which is symbolized by the Altar of Incense in the Holy Place. So we have three special and unique pieces of furniture in the Holy Place all pointing to Jesus, but also all pointing to our Christian life. As we go behind the veil, we come to the second apartment known as the Most Holy Place. Here we find the Ark of the Covenant. We behold the glorious Ark with the 10 commandments inside and the mercy seat with the angels on top. But above all this we behold the Shekinah glory. Here we stand by faith in the very presence of God. Only through Jesus can we come to the throne of God. Only by faith can we come before his throne in the Heavenly Sanctuary. Jesus is there, God is there, and you can be there! You are facing the law of God which you have broken in your life. But your sins have been forgiven, and you face the Mercy Seat! You face Jesus, your High Priest, who pleads in behalf of you. “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for our’s only, but also for the sins of the whole world. And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments.” 1 John 2:1-3 The power of God upholds us and enables us to live in accordance with the will of God. There is a mystery that God wants us to understand. There is a mystery that God reveals when you step into his presence by faith. Paul talks about this mystery. “Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:” Colossians 1:26-27 Christ in you the hope of glory! Christ wants to live in you and this is exactly what the Sanctuary teaches. This is what the Ark of the Covenant reveals. It is the pathway to our Creator. Jesus is inviting you by faith to enter the heavenly sanctuary. Remember that Jesus is our High Priest. “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:15-16 Isn’t that a wonderful thought? What a plan God put in motion for us! Never forget that He understands you. Whatever you are doing, He understands and reaches out to you. No one may know or understand your pain and trials in life, but He knows. He sees those tears at night and He reads your troubled mind and asks you to give Him your burdens because He will joyfully carry them. There is a well known poem that has made an impact on many lives. It talks about a man walking down a beach. He looks back over the end of his life and he says, “God, you know, I’m a little perplexed. On the sands of time, there are always two sets of footsteps, Yours and mine. God, I went down into some valleys and there were two sets of footsteps, Yours and mine. I went up on mountains, and there were two sets of footsteps on the sands of life, Yours and mine. But God, there was a particularly deep valley, it was the greatest problem of my life. My life was crushed and broken. There was only one set of footsteps. God, you left me at that time, where were You?” And in heaven, as the story goes, God looks at him and says, “Did you look at those footsteps carefully? They are deeper, because during that period of time, I was not walking by your side, I was carrying you.” |
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Revelations from a Lost Ancient Artifact
