God’s salvation work, displayed before the universe, is centered in and proceeds from the sanctuary in Heaven.    Purchase the DVDs and study notes at www.SecretsUnsealed.org  

God’s salvation work, displayed before the universe, is centered in and proceeds from the sanctuary in Heaven. Purchase the DVDs and study notes at www.SecretsUnsealed.org

Secrets Unsealed

His Way is in the Sanctuary

Stephen Bohr

1. His Way is in the Sanctuary

Our loving Heavenly Father, as we begin this series on the Hebrew sanctuary that you gave as a model of the plan of salvation, We ask, Father, that you will enlighten our minds and that you will soften our hearts so that we might understand the great truths that we find in the sanctuary and not only understand them in our minds but also apply the lessons in our hearts.

We ask for the presence of your Holy Spirit, for human minds cannot understand the great things of God unaided, so we plead for your presence.

And we thank you, Father, for the privilege of approaching your throne boldly, because we do it in the precious name of Jesus, our Savior and Lord.

I'd like to invite you to turn in your Bibles with me to the book of Psalms.

We're going to Psalm 73, and I would like to read verses 3, and then verses 12 through 14, and then we will jump down to verse 17.

You know, many of the psalms were written by David, but this particular psalm was written by an individual called Asaph.

And basically what Asaph is struggling with is the prosperity of the boastful and of the wicked.

And I want you to notice how he expresses this envy at the beginning and then how he answers his question about why the wicked prosper.

Let's begin by reading Psalm 73 and verse 3.

For I was envious of the boastful when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

Then we jump down to verse 12, Behold these are the ungodly, who are always at ease, they increase in riches.

And then he says, Surely I have cleansed my heart in vain, washed my hands in innocence.

For all day long I have been plagued and chastened every morning.

In other words, what use is it to cleanse your life to be righteous because the wicked prosper and the righteous are chastened?

But now I want you to notice the answer that he found to his problem.

It says there, Until I went into the sanctuary of God, then I understood their end.

There was something in the sanctuary, in the Hebrew sanctuary, that explained that it is good to cleanse your heart from sin and that the wicked who prosper, the boastful who are successful in life will eventually receive a just reward for their deeds.

The Hebrew sanctuary has the explanations that many times leave questions in the mind.

Now I'd like to begin by mentioning the sanctuaries that are brought to view in Scripture, particularly the earthly sanctuaries.

Now the first sanctuary that was built of course was the sanctuary in the wilderness in the times of Moses.

This sanctuary was built around the year 1445 BC And I'd like to read Exodus 25 and verse 8, and then we'll go down to verse 40, where this particular tabernacle or this sanctuary is spoken of.

Exodus 25 and verse 8, here God is speaking and he says, and let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them.

And then in verse 40, God told Moses to make this sanctuary according to the pattern that he showed him in the mountain.

It says there, and see to it that you make them according to the pattern which was shown you in the mount.

And then in Exodus 36 through 39 we find the building of this sanctuary that God told Moses to build.

Now after the sanctuary had been built, all of its different parts, we find in Exodus chapter 40 and verse 34 that the Shekinah glory of God entered the Hebrew sanctuary.

Let's read that verse Exodus 40 and verse 34.

The sanctuary has been built, all of its parts are complete, and now we find these words.

Then the cloud covered the tabernacle of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.

So this is the first sanctuary that is mentioned in Holy Scripture that was built on earth.

The Hebrew sanctuary at the times of Moses.

But then God had Israel make a more permanent structure because the sanctuary in the wilderness was actually a tent that they could move around.

But when Israel entered the promised land God told David and then Solomon to build a more permanent structure which came to be known as Solomon's Temple.

Now that's a misnomer because it wasn't Solomon's Temple.

Solomon built it, but it was really the Lord's Temple.

This temple was built around the year 960 BC.

And to give you a little bit of background if you read in 2nd Chronicles chapter 6 you'll find that Solomon offered a prayer after the building of this temple and then in 2nd Chronicles chapter 7 verses 1 and 2 once again the Shekinah glory of God entered the sanctuary or the temple that Solomon had built.

Let's read from 2nd Chronicles chapter 7 and verses 1 and 2.

It says, When Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple.

And the priests could not enter the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord had filled the Lord's house.

And so once again we find the building of a sanctuary.

This is a permanent temple in the year 960 B.C.

The building is actually described in Second Chronicles chapters 3 and 4 and 5.

And then in chapter 6 we have Solomon's prayer, and in chapter 7 we have the Shekinah glory entering the temple that Solomon built.

But because of the apostasy of Israel, This temple was destroyed by King Nebuchadnezzar in the year 586, and of course Israel was taken captive for a period of 70 years to Babylon, and there was a promise that after they were in Babylon for 70 years they would be able to go back to their land reestablish their religion and build the temple once again so after the captivity in the year 536 they went back to their land and they built the temple and the temple was finished in the year 515 BC.

This temple is spoken of in Haggai chapter 2 and verses 6 through 9.

Now there's something very interesting about this temple that was built after the captivity, and that is that this temple had no Shekinah glory go into it.

In fact when this temple was finished many of those who had seen Solomon's temple actually cried when they saw how inferior this temple was to the temple that Solomon had built.

Let's read about this temple in Haggai chapter 2 and verses 6 through 9.

For thus says the Lord of hosts, Once more, it is a little while, I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land, and I will shake all nations, and then, and notice, and they shall come to the desire of all nations, and I will fill this temple with glory, says the Lord of hosts.

The silver is mine and the gold is mine says the Lord of hosts.

And then comes this promise, the glory of this latter temple, that is the temple that was built after the captivity, The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former, that is, than Solomon's temple, says the Lord of hosts.

And I will give in this place peace, says the Lord of hosts.

Do you know the Jews are still trying to explain how this prophecy was fulfilled?

Because the temple that was built after the captivity, at least outwardly, never reached the magnitude of glory that the temple built by Solomon had reached.

What was meant here when God gave the promise that this post-exilic temple would be filled with glory and that the glory of this latter temple would be greater than the former temple?

The fact is that this was fulfilled because Jesus Christ himself walked in the courts of this temple.

Now his glory according to Scripture was veiled, but he brought peace to this place because he was the prince of peace.

Now this temple was actually beautified and remodeled and enlarged by Herod the Great.

We find a description of this in John chapter 2 and verse 20.

Actually, it took 46 years for Herod the Great to remodel and to enlarge and to beautify this post-exilic temple.

It says there in John chapter 2 and verse 20.

Then the Jews said, it has taken 46 years to build this temple and will you raise it up in 3 days?

Of course Jesus had said destroy this temple and in 3 days I would raise it up, and they thought that he was talking about the temple that Herod had remodeled that had taken 46 years to remodel and to beautify.

So we find these temples in scripture, we find the sanctuary in the wilderness, we find the temple built by Solomon, we find the temple which was built after the exile in the year 515, and then the temple that was beautified and enlarged by Herod the Great.

Now the question is what did these sanctuaries represent?

Did God just build these sanctuaries because he wanted to dwell among Israel?

Or was there a particular reason why God told Israel to build these sanctuaries?

The fact is that these earthly sanctuaries were symbolic or represented several things.

I want you to notice the first thing that these sanctuaries represented or symbolized.

The earthly sanctuary actually was a symbol of the heavenly sanctuary, it was a scale model of the heavenly sanctuary.

God wanted Israel to understand by looking at the earthly sanctuary things about the heavenly sanctuary.

Let's go to Hebrews chapter 8 and verses 1 through 5 where we find very clearly that the earthly sanctuary was a symbol or was an illustration of the much greater heavenly sanctuary.

It says there in Hebrews chapter 8 and verse 1.

Now this is the main point of the things we are saying.

We have such a high priest who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the majesty in the heavens, a minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected and not man.

For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices.

Therefore it is necessary that this 1, that is Christ, also have something to offer.

For if he were on earth he would not be a priest, since there are priests who offer the gifts according to the law.

And now notice what it says about the earthly sanctuary, who serve the copy and shadow of the heavenly things.

It was a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle.

For he said, See that you make all things according to the what?

According to the pattern shown to you on the mount.

So the earthly sanctuary was only a small scale illustration of the heavenly sanctuary to give an idea of what God's heavenly sanctuary is like.

Also Hebrews 9 verses 11 and 12 tells us about this comparison between the earthly sanctuary and the heavenly sanctuary.

It says there in Hebrews 9 verses 11 and 12 and I'm reading from the King James Version which is more accurate, it says.

But Christ being come a high priest of good things to come, Now notice, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say not of this building, neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption.

Notice once again that the true tabernacle, the heavenly sanctuary, is a more perfect tabernacle not made with hands.

In other words the earthly sanctuary had the purpose of serving as a scale model to illustrate great truths about the greater heavenly sanctuary.

So 1 reason why God had all of these earthly sanctuaries built was because he wanted people to catch a vision of the heavenly sanctuary.

But these earthly temples represented other things as well and we're going to study this in this seminar.

These temples also represented our body temple.

Notice 1st Corinthians chapter 6 verses 19 and 20.

2. The Sanctuary’s Angels

Our loving Heavenly Father, we thank you for the Sabbath, where we can just get away from the rat race of life, what we do every day of the week, and just bask in your presence, and enjoy fellowship with you and with fellow believers.

We ask father that as we open your holy word this morning that your Holy Spirit through the ministration of the angels will be present here.

Help us to understand your word, the great things from your word, and how they impact our own personal lives, our walk with Jesus.

We thank you, Father, for the promise of your presence, because we ask this in the powerful and wonderful name of Jesus, our Savior and Lord.

I'd like to invite you to open your Bibles with me to the book of Exodus, Exodus chapter 36 and verse 8.

As we examine the Hebrew sanctuary 1 thing sticks out I might say as a sore thumb, and that is the predominance of angels in the Hebrew sanctuary.

Now in Exodus 36 and verse 8 we have a description of angels that were embroidered on the different veils that were found in the Hebrew sanctuary.

It says there in Exodus 36 verse 8 Then all the gifted artisans among them who worked on the tabernacle made 10 curtains woven of fine linen and of blue, purple, and scarlet thread.

With artistic designs of cherubim they made them.

So there were angels embroidered on the different veils of the Hebrew sanctuary.

Now the Bible also tells us that On the veil between the holy and the most holy place of the Hebrew sanctuary, there were cherubim embroidered as well.

This is talking about the veil that divided the holy place from the most holy place.

Of course we talked about the holy place last evening where we find the 7 branched candlestick, we find the table of showbread, and we find the golden altar of incense.

And then of course beyond the veil is the Ark of the Covenant.

And he made a veil of blue purple and scarlet thread fine woven linen.

It was worked with an artistic design of cherubim.

Notice once again the idea that there were cherubim that were embroidered on this beautiful veil between the holy and the most holy place.

But there were 2 special angels in the sanctuary, actually in Solomon's temple there were 4, there were 2 on the ark of the covenant and there were 2 that were standing, in other words 4 of them surrounded the ark which represents the throne of God.

Let's read in Exodus chapter 25 and verses 20 through 22 about these 2 special cherubim that overshadowed the ark of the covenant.

These are instructions given to Moses, and you shall make 2 cherubim of gold.

Of hammered work you shall make them at the 2 ends of the mercy seat.

The mercy seat was the cover of the Ark of the Covenant.

Make 1 cherub at 1 end and the other cherub at the other end.

You shall make the cherubim at the 2 ends of it on 1 piece with the mercy seat.

And the cherubim, this is a key detail, and the cherubim shall stretch out their wings above, and now comes a key word, covering the mercy seat, which represents God's throne, with their wings, and they shall face 1 another.

The faces of the cherubim shall be toward the mercy seat.

You shall put the mercy seat on the top of the ark.

That's where the Shekinah came over and it continues saying and in the ark you shall put the testimony that I will give you and there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from between the 2 cherubim which are on the ark of the testimony about everything which I will give you in commandment to the children of Israel.

And so there were these special cherubim in the tabernacle in the wilderness, 2 of them on the ark of the covenant that overshadowed or covered the mercy seat which represents the throne of God.

And in Solomon's temple of course we had 2 additional cherubim that were standing which means that God's throne was surrounded by 4.

This is the reason why in Psalm 80 and verse 1 we find a description of where God sits or where God dwells.

It says there in Psalm 80 and verse 1 give ear O shepherd of Israel you who lead Joseph like a flock, you who dwell between the cherubim shine forth.

In other words there were 2 covering cherubs that overshadowed the mercy seat where the glory of God was manifested in the sanctuary.

Now inside the Ark of the Covenant were found the tables of the law with the 10 Commandments, and the reason why these cherubim according to scripture were looking down towards the mercy seat is they were looking down in wonder at the law of God which is the foundation of God's government.

In fact, let's read Deuteronomy chapter 10 and verses 1 through 5 where we find a description of the 10 commandments that were placed inside the ark of the covenant.

It says there, at that time the Lord said to me, hew for yourself 2 tablets of stone like the first.

Now the reason why it says like the first is because the first tables of stone that have the 10 Commandments were thrown to the ground and broken into smithereens when Israel was worshiping the golden calf.

So God tells Moses get 2 more slabs of stone and I'm going to write the 10 Commandments on those as well.

So it says, And at that time the Lord said to me, Hew for yourself 2 tablets of stone like the first, and come up to me on the mountain, and make yourself an ark of wood.

And then God says, and I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke, and you shall put them where?

Verse 3, So I made an ark of acacia wood, hewed 2 tablets of stone like the first, and went up the mountain, having the 2 tablets in my hand.

And now notice verse 4, the only thing that God ever wrote in Scripture with his own finger.

It says in verse 4, And he that is God wrote on the tablets according to the first writing the 10 commandments which the Lord had spoken to you in the mountain from the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly.

Then I turned and came down from the mountain, and now notice, and put the tablets in the ark which I had made, and there they are, just as the Lord commanded me.

So notice that we find inside the Ark of the Covenant, the tables with the 10 Commandments.

And 2 cherubim in the tabernacle in the wilderness, 2 additional ones standing that are looking down at the mercy seat, looking down at the law in reverence for the constitution of God's government.

Now, in Solomon's temple, we also find a predominance of angels everywhere in the temple of Solomon you find angels.

Notice 2nd Chronicles chapter 3 and verse 7, 2nd Chronicles chapter 3 and verse 7, there were angels carved into the walls because Solomon's temple is a solid structure, it's not made with curtains, it's actually made with solid materials.

And so it says in 2nd Chronicles chapter 3 and verse 7, he also overlaid the house, the beams, and doorposts, its walls and doors with gold, and now notice, and he carved cherubim on the walls.

In other words, on all of the walls of the Hebrew sanctuary you find angels, they're carved onto the walls.

Angels are very important obviously in the way that God administrates the universe.

We find angels also on the veil that divided the holy from the most holy in the temple that was built by Solomon.

Notice 2nd Chronicles chapter 3 and verse 14, 2nd Chronicles chapter 3 and verse 14, it says there, And he made the veil of blue, purple, crimson, and fine linen, and wove cherubim into it.

Also in Solomon's temple, which by the way is a misnomer because it's the temple that was built by Solomon, we find these cherubim that covered the ark of the covenant.

Notice 2nd Chronicles chapter 5 and verses 7 and 8.

2nd Chronicles chapter 5, 7, and 8 we're now noticing the temple that was built by Solomon it has the same principle, angels everywhere, angels carved on the walls, angels on this veil between the holy and most holy place, and we're going to notice now that they were covering cherubs as well.

It says there in 2nd Chronicles chapter 5 and verse 7.

Then the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place, this is after the temple is built, into the inner sanctuary of the temple, to the most holy place, under, notice, under the wings of the cherubim, for the cherubim spread their wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubim overshadowed the ark and its poles.

So notice the idea that these cherubim actually overshadow or they cover the ark of the covenant as they're looking down in reverence towards God's law.

But there were not only cherubim in the sanctuary, there were also six-winged creatures, angels known as seraphim.

Notice Isaiah chapter 6 and verses 1 and 2.

There were lots of angels in the sanctuary.

Notice Isaiah chapter 6 and verses 1 and 2 which is another order of angel besides the cherubim who had 4 wings, now we find seraphim who have 6 wings.

It says there in verse 1, in the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting on a throne high and lifted up and the train of his robe filled the temple and now notice and above it that is above the throne stood seraphim.

Each 1 had 6 wings, with 2 he covered his face that is in reverence for God, with 2 he covered his feet also a sign of reverence to God, and with 2 he flew.

And by the way, if you want to know how powerful are the voices of these seraphim, if you continue reading there in Isaiah chapter 6, it tells us that when the seraphim sang, holy, Holy, holy, the temple literally shook.

In other words, these are powerful angels who have powerful vocal cords.

Now we must ask the question, who are angels?

You know, there's a common theory today running even in the Christian world and that is that angels are spirits of the departed that come back to help those who are still walking on planet earth.

Perhaps this was popularized by a program on television many years ago that was called highway to heaven with Michael Landon.

May I see many of you saying yeah we remember that.

You know supposedly he died and then he came back to this earth to help people on earth and he came back as an angel.

The fact is that the Bible does not sustain such an idea.

The angels are a separate order of being that existed before human beings existed.

Go with me to Job chapter 38 and verses 4 through 7 and what we're studying is extremely important.

We're going to study later on about the state of the dead, and you better understand that angels will not come as the spirits of the departed to talk with you and to communicate with you.

This is a misconception that exists even within the Christian world unfortunately.

I want to show you that the angels existed before this earth was created.

It says there, and God asked Job a series of questions, where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?

And then God says with a touch of sarcasm, surely you know, or who stretched the line upon it, to what were its foundations fastened, or who laid its cornerstone, and now notice, this is speaking about creation, obviously, and something happened at creation.

3. Death and Life in the Sanctuary

Our loving Heavenly Father, what a privilege it is once again to be here in your house, seeking to hear your voice speaking through the ministry of the Word.

We ask, Father, that the same Spirit that inspired your Holy Word will come to explain it to us in this meeting.

We realize that human wisdom is insufficient to understand the great things of your Word And therefore we plead for your help.

And we thank you because you have promised that you hear our prayers and you answer them, because we ask it in the precious and powerful name of Jesus our Savior.

The title of our study today is Life and Death in the Sanctuary.

And I'd like to begin by reading a couple of verses that we find in Genesis chapter 1 and verses 26 and 27.

This passage is very well known undoubtedly by all of us.

It's speaking about the creation of our first parents, Adam and Eve.

It says there in Genesis 1 verse 26, Then God said, Let us make man in our image according to our likeness.

Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.

In these verses we find, as I mentioned before, the creation of Adam and Eve in a perfect world.

The Bible tells us that they were created in God's image and likeness.

At this time there was no sin in the world and therefore there was also no death.

In fact the Bible makes it clear that it was God's plan that Adam and Eve and the human race live forever.

It was never God's plan that anyone on this planet should die.

God's plan meant that man should reflect his image and likeness and live forever.

But man was not going to live forever because he had some type of immortal soul.

The Bible makes it very very clear that there was a secret to the perpetuation of man's life.

You see God placed in the Garden of Eden a certain tree.

Series

His Way is in the Sanctuary

1. His Way is in the Sanctuary

Transcript

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