This tape is the second of six in a series of teachings entitled, The Priesthood of All Believers, delivered by the Reverend John W. Howe, Rector of Truro Episcopal Church in Fairfax, Virginia. The title of this teaching is, The Levitical Priesthood. Exodus 19, and let's look this time at the paragraph that begins with verse 16. Exodus 19, verse 16. And Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the Lord descended upon it in fire, and the smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln, and the whole mountain quaked greatly.

And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder. And the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai to the top of the mountain, and the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up. God calls Moses we saw last week that he said I'm going to have major dealings with you here on this mountain and this begins them and he calls him to the top of Mount Sinai with a loud trumpet blast just note that and then what follows is he gives him the Ten Commandments we're not going to go through this I'm just going to give you an overview and I hope you'll see why by the time we get toward the end of this.

It gives him the Ten Commandments with an introductory verse, I'm the Lord your God who brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, and then 15 verses worth of content. And then almost all of the rest of this book of Exodus is an elaboration of the incredibly specific instruction that God gave regarding the building of the tabernacle. Both the building itself and the priestly garments that Aaron, as high priest, and his sons as sort of assistant priests would wear.

The building and the attendance to the building. Now that's somewhat of an overstatement. First of all, there's an elaboration on conduct.

a number of very specific laws and ordinances sort of press the point of some of the Ten Commandments. And then in chapter 23, there are instructions about the three principal feasts of the Old Covenant. Talks about the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Harvest, and the Feast of Ingathering.

That's a whole subject of itself. I'll just comment on that. This is parenthetical.

Feast of unleavened bread is Passover. The deliverance from bondage in Egypt when God slays the firstborn but brings the children of Israel out free and clear and that's fulfilled in Calvary. As the Lord Jesus, we say in the liturgy, Christ, our Passover, has been sacrificed.

He fulfills the Passover. We are delivered from bondage by virtue of the shedding of his blood. The Feast of Firstfruits or Harvest is otherwise known as Pentecost, 50 days after the Feast of Passover and Pentecost is fulfilled in Pentecost.

Ancient Pentecost is fulfilled in New Testament Pentecost, the giving of the Holy Spirit. The Firstfruits, okay, The ancient Pentecost was the harvest of the springtime crop, the first fruits. What happened at Pentecost in the New Testament?

The first outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the first fruits, if you will. It anticipates something more to come, and that more to come is the feast of ingathering at the end of the year. That's the feast of tabernacles, and it has yet to be fulfilled in Christian experience.

We look forward to the great ingathering when the Lord draws to himself those of every nation, tribe, and people at his coming again. Chapter 25, we begin with approximately 15 chapters worth of instruction about the tabernacle. And I think that's interesting. I think I mentioned that last week.

15 verses for the Ten Commandments, 15 chapters for the building of the tabernacle. It's not to demean the importance of the commandments, but it is to say God is very concerned about the nature of our worship and the place that we do it. The tabernacle is a traveling tent.

It is a portable place of worship. and they moved it in fact 40 times in 40 years the wanderings in the wilderness were 40 years long funny thing happened on the way to the promised land should have taken nine to eleven days if they had walked there directly but instead it took them 40 years but that's because god was directing them elsewhere and during that 40 years they would camp in one place for as long as he said stay there and then when he said it's time to move on they'd move on and it happens that in the 40 years they move 40 times the tabernacle is a sort of prototype if you will of solomon's temple or turn it the other way around when they came to build solomon's temple it was a much grander much larger, much more glorious, and a permanent version of the tabernacle. Okay?

And eventually, that was destroyed by the Assyrians and then rebuilt, the second temple rebuilt under Ezra and Nehemiah and then refurbished and expanded and enlarged and made still more glorious under Herod and it eventually became known as Herod's Temple. what we refer to as the temple when Jesus went up to the temple was Herod's temple it was called that because Herod took Roman monies to refurbish the Jewish temple and that was partly a political decision on his part he wanted to curry their favor and partly because he was I think honestly honoring the God of Israel in other words what I'm telling you is that when you read about Solomon's temple you're reading about a larger version of the tabernacle. When you read about Jesus going up to the temple you're reading about a still larger, far more splendid version of the same thing.

Do you follow what I'm saying so far? We have a sort of a parallel right here at Truro. In 1766 Payne's Church was built out on what we now call Route 123 right across from the section known as Middle Ridge.

And that was taken over during the time of the Revolutionary War. It was eventually taken over by another denomination. In 1932, we built what we now call the Truro Chapel as a replication of Payne's Church.

a little bit larger, a little bit more glorious, still fairly humble church. In 1957, they built this building. And if you compare it with the chapel, you'll see it's roughly the same thing on an expanded basis.

But it's still Truro. Do you follow what I'm saying? In 1982 and 83, we expanded it.

and we made it, I think, a good deal more glorious. The present Truro is a far larger, far more splendid version of old Payne's church. Or, turn it around, if you could go back to Payne's church, you would see in it a sort of a prototype of this building in which we meet tonight.

Do you follow what I'm saying? That kind of a thing. So, if you were to go back to the ancient tabernacle of the Old Testament, what would you see?

If you turn to Exodus 25, you can sort of follow along. I'm not going to read all this. There's much too much.

But as I speak, you might just sort of follow along. And I've drawn you a rough sketch. You have an external tent.

This is an open tent. These are just four walls. We're looking from the top.

And geographically, we're told even how this is situated. This is north, south, east, and west. Inside this tent, which is accessible only from the east, there's another tent.

And this one is covered. It's a tent within the tent. This one is divided into two rooms with a very thick curtain in between them.

This is called the holy place, and this is called the holiest place, or the holy of holies. Let me start in the holy of holies. This is what is most important, as the name suggests.

Inside the holy of holies, there is one very important piece of furniture, and that's called the Ark of the Covenant. And how many of you have seen Raiders of the Lost Ark? You have some idea.

It's a box. It's a large box made of acacia wood, or some translations would say shittim wood, or some would call it gopher wood. Acacia wood covered with gold, and on top of it is a slab of pure gold.

inside the box are the two tablets of stone, which Moses brought down from the mountain. Actually, it's the second version. The first one, you remember, he threw down and smashed into smithereens when he saw them doing idol worship at the foot of the mountain.

Then he went back up and got a second set. The two tablets of stone with the Ten Commandments. Aaron's rod.

Remember the rod of God that he holds out over the Red Sea, and it parts, and they go through dry shod. The rod of God with which he strikes the rock, and it gives forth water in the desert. The rod of God which he holds up in the battle against the Amalekites in the valley of Rephidim, and so long as Moses is holding the rod of God up, the Israelites are winning, and when his arms droop, the Amalekites begin to win, and so Aaron and Hur come and sit on either side of him, and prop, you know the story.

The rod of God. Yes, sir. otherwise known as Aaron's rod, and also a jar of manna, which they were to keep in there.

They were otherwise told not to try to save the manna. The manna is given fresh every day, except for this particular jar, which they're told to put into the Ark of the Covenant. So it's a large box.

It has poles that you can carry it with because it needs to be portable like everything else. On top of the box is a slab of pure gold, and that's called the mercy seat. It's sometimes also called the throne of God.

Because literally, this is the place that God has appointed as the meeting point between himself and his people. So everything in this whole paraphernalia revolves around the mercy seat. This is what it's all about.

This is the literal geographic point at which God meets with his people. We're not done yet. On either end of the mercy seat, there is a sort of a statue, a carved figure of a cherubim.

An angelic figure. It doesn't look like a wispy, feminine little angel in a negligee like we have in our Christmas stories. This is a very fierce creature with the face of a man, the body of a lion, and wings on its back.

And these are facing each other from opposite ends of the mercy seat. And between them, God gives visible evidence of his presence by virtue of a flame of fire. No fuel.

Nobody adds fuel to this fire. This is an uncreated light, a fire. It's called the Shekinah glory of God.

This is visible evidence of his presence inside the holiest place, the Holy of Holies. That's the innermost room. It is separated from the outer room by this very thick curtain or veil, which is made up of several layers of linen.

It's probably about a foot thick, actually. And all over this veil, there are embroidered cherubim. So I want you to see the picture here.

The Shekinah glory of God is literally surrounded by representations of the cherubim, the angelic host, singing his praises. This veil separating all of this from the outside room. Right in front of the veil is a small altar, again made of wood and overlaid with pure gold.

And this is called the altar of incense. This is not an altar of sacrifice. This is the altar of incense.

And incense is to be burned on this altar continually. It just goes up before the veil as a symbol of praise. And that carries over right into our own Episcopal worship.

We have in our evening prayer, the very first sentence that introduces evening prayer, is let my prayer be set forth in your sight as incense, the lifting of my hands as the evening sacrifice. That comes out of the 141st Psalm. This is described, by the way, in chapter 30.

I'm skipping a little bit ahead. Another reference to the same thing in what we call the Jubilati Deo, Psalm 100. Enter his gates with thanksgiving.

Go into his courts with praise. That is not simply a redundant statement. That's saying there's two stages here.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving. See, we come, we don't even approach God apart from thankfulness. We come recognizing the wonderful things that he's done.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving. But if you want to draw really close, get beyond that. Thanksgiving is saying, I acknowledge what you've done.

Praise is, I acknowledge who you are. Get it? Enter his gates with thanksgiving.

Come into his courts with praise. So this is the altar of praise before you come even closer, higher up and further in, as C.S. Lewis would put it.

okay the next thing over here on the left hand side as you're facing the veil is a seven branched candelabra which is carried over right into contemporary Judaism in the menorah seven branched candelabra probably the principal symbol of Israel apart from perhaps the star of David in the little cups in the menorah pure olive oil is burned there's continual flame of fire and across from the seven branched candelabra is a table called the table of showbread s-h-o-w bread show bread to show the bread display the bread and on it are twelve loaves of bread why would you guess? To the twelve tribes. And a cup of wine.

Interesting symbolism, isn't it? Sure, that is carried over into the New Testament with the twelve disciples, but the wine is always a symbol of celebration, of joy. So, symbolically, right there in the presence of God, or just around the presence of God, are the twelve tribes, and joy in their salvation.

That's the holy place. Now outside of all that, this is the tent of meeting, and outside of all that, there are two other things. A large place of washing called the laver, where the priests wash themselves symbolically, ritually.

They're washing themselves before they even approach the holy place. And before that, The first thing that you come to, right inside the door of the tabernacle itself, is another altar. This one was the altar of incense.

This is an altar of brass. And it's called the altar of burnt offering, or the altar of sacrifice. This is the place that the sacrifices are offered up to God.

And that's what it's all about. this place of meeting, is a place in which we come to offer sacrifices for sin that we might go free. Someone else, or in this case, something else, an animal, an innocent animal, a third party, its blood is shed, its body is offered in place of myself, in place of you.

It's a substitute. a substitutionary atonement the priest comes in and offers on this altar a bull or a sheep or a goat and its blood is shed that ours might be spared he goes from that and washes in the labor goes on into the holy place where he's surrounded by these various paraphernalia the seven branch candelabra with the oil burning, the twelve loaves of bread, the cup of wine, symbolic of celebration and joy, and the incense as a continual offering of praise. The veil separates all of that from the holiest place because the priests, not even the priests, can go into the Holy of Holies.

there's only one person who can do that and that's the high priest. And he can only do that once a year. And that's on the day of atonement.

Okay? In very brief, that's the tabernacle. If you want to read a whole lot more, there's a whole lot more here in detail.

You know, all the details of the ark are all symbolic of Christ and the full bill. You can look for that. Let me call your attention in chapter 25 to a little phrase that comes up over and over.

Verse 9. Well, let's take verse 8. And let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell in their midst.

This is God speaking to Moses. Let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell in their midst. Verse 9.

according to all that I will show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle. Just, if you've got your own Bible there, underline that. According to all that I will show you of the pattern.

All right? That's repeated over and over again. Verse 40.

See that you make them after the pattern for them which is being shown you on the mountain. Chapter 26, verse 30. And you shall erect the tabernacle according to the plan for it, which has been shown you on the mountain.

Chapter 27, verse 8. You shall make it hollow with boards as it has been shown you on the mountain, so shall it be made. God is giving extremely detailed instruction.

And I do bid you to go. I mean, this is a fascinating study. If you want to go through line by line and look for the symbolism, I think you could find a very, very rich study here.

I just want you to see the overview tonight, okay? What it's about and what the principal dimensions of it are. God is giving a detailed plan, a detailed pattern, and Moses is instructed to work that out for the people of Israel.

Beginning in chapter 28, we shift from the building to the garments of the high priest himself. And then after that, the garments of the assistant priests. Again, I'm just going to go very quickly over it.

He's told that he's to wear a breast piece, which is just a square of cloth on his chest. And on it are sewn 12 stones, again one for each of the tribes of Israel. He's to wear an ephod under that, which is a sort of a vest to which the breastplate is attached.

He's to wear a robe, a coat, a turban, a sash, or a girdle. And at the bottom of his robe, he's to wear little bells and pomegranates, little golden bells and pomegranates all the way around the fringe of his garment. There's a legend about that.

I don't know that you can find it anywhere in scripture, but it's a legend. That one of the reasons that he did that was that on that one day a year when the high priest goes into the Holy of Holies, he goes in there representative of all the people, having offered sacrifices for their sins, and this is the day of atonement to make reconciliation with God for the whole year past. But if there's unconfessed sin anywhere, especially in the life of the high priest himself, if there's something wrong with the sacrifice, if for any reason this is rejected by God, he's struck dead.

Now you've got a problem. how do you get him out? nobody else can go in there the legend is they tied a rope on his ankle and so long as they could hear the bells jingling they knew he was okay if the bells stop jingling you better haul in the ropes and hope you'll do better next year on his turban he has a little gold plate right on his forehead and inscribed on the gold plate are the words holy to the Lord.

Okay? What I want you to see is that the high priest in particular and the priests in general are representative people. That's what they're about.

Let's just concentrate on the high priest. He is a representative person. He represents the people to God.

He offers sacrifices on their behalf. He comes before this holy God of Israel on behalf of the people. And if all of that is accepted, he turns around and he represents God to the people.

And he pronounces blessing upon them. Your sins are forgiven. God is happy with you once again and specifically that little plate on his turban kind of sums up the whole thing holiness or holy holy or holiness to the lord holiness is a gift of god you see they've done nothing to earn it it is a gift through sacrifice a gift through substitution somebody else has died in order that I might live.

And God, for reasons that I don't fully understand, has ordained that this is the way it's to be. And God has chosen to make his gift to me on the basis of my sacrifice to him. Do you follow it?

Now, let's take a little closer look at chapter 29. now this is what you shall do to them to the priests that they may serve me as priests we've been told how they're to dress and in brief we've been told what they're about here's what you're to do to ordain them take one young bull and two rams without blemish and unleavened bread, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, unleavened wafers spread with oil. You shall make them of fine wheat flour and you shall put them in one basket and bring them in the basket and bring the bull and the two rams.

You shall bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the tent of meeting and wash them with water. And you shall take the garments and put on Aaron the coat and the robe of the ephod and the ephod and the breastplate and gird him with the skillfully woven band of the ephod and you shall set the turban on his head and put the holy crown upon the turban and you shall take the anointing oil and pour it on his head and anoint him. Then you shall bring his sons and put coats on them and you shall gird them with girdles and bind caps on them and the priesthood shall be theirs by a perpetual statute.

That's what we saw last time. Thus you shall ordain Aaron and his sons. Then you shall bring the bull before the tent of meeting.

Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands upon the head of the bull and you shall kill the bull before the Lord at the door of the tent of meeting and shall take part of the blood of the bull and put it upon the horns of the altar with your finger and the rest of the blood you shall pour out at the base of the altar and you shall take all the fat that covers the entrails and the appendage of the liver and the two kidneys and so on and so on and burn it. This is a sin offering. The horns of the altar.

are simply the corners of the altar. Take blood and put it on the horns of the altar. Pour it on the base of the altar.

Then you shall take one of the rams, and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands upon the head of the ram. And you shall slaughter the ram and take its blood and throw it against the altar round about. And you shall cut the ram into pieces and wash its entrails and so on and so on.

It is a burnt offering to the Lord. It is a pleasing odor and offering by fire to the Lord. You shall take the other ram, and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands upon the head of the ram.

And you shall kill the ram and take part of its blood and put it upon the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and upon the tips of the right ears of his sons, and upon the thumbs of their right hands, and upon the great toes of their right feet, and throw the rest of the blood against the altar round about. What is that saying symbolically? what you what you hear what you touch and where you go you see he's a symbolic person he's a representative person you shall take part of the blood that is on the altar and the anointing oil and sprinkle it upon Aaron and his garments and upon his sons and his sons garments with him he and his garments shall be holy and his sons and his son's garments with him.

And you shall take the fat of the ram and so on and so on. It goes on in much more detail. Verse 26.

You shall take the breast of the ram of Aaron's ordination and wave it for a wave offering before the Lord. What do we do that's like that? That's one thing.

If you're a hand raiser. What else? On Palm Sunday.

That's a wave offering. Literally. That's just what it means.

We're waving before the Lord. It's a celebration. It shall be for Aaron and his sons as a perpetual due from the people of Israel, for it is the priest's portion to be offered by the people of Israel for their peace offering.

It is their offering to the Lord. And so on. Now, verse 38.

Now this is what you shall offer upon the altar. Two lambs, a year old, day by day, continually. every day forever more two lambs this is called the continual burnt offering and with the first lamb a tenth measure of fine flour mingled and a fourth hin of beaten oil and a fourth of a hin of wine for a libation the other lamb you shall offer in the evening and shall offer it with a cereal offering and its libation as in the morning for a pleasing odor morning and evening two a day two lambs a day forevermore it shall be verse 42 it shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tent of meeting before the Lord where I will meet with you to speak there to you there I will meet with the people of Israel and it shall be sanctified by my glory I will consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar Aaron also and his sons I will consecrate to serve me as priests and I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their God.

They shall know that I am the Lord their God who brought them forth out of the land of Egypt that I might dwell among them. I am the Lord their God. Three things go together.

If you get nothing else out of this whole thing, three things go together. Priest, altar, sacrifice. That's what it's about.

the Levitical system is one in which the priest is a representative of the people chosen by God to make sacrifices on their behalf at an altar of burnt offering. And then, as I've already said, having performed the sacrifice, he turns around and becomes the representative of God to the people, assuring them of the forgiveness of their sins there at one. Atonement.

Atonement. It's simply a conjunction of English words. At-one-ment.

They are at one with a holy God against whom they've sinned. Incredible, impossible, sinful people are at one with holy God because of the sacrifice that's been offered and their repentance. Hold your finger here.

We're not quite done with Exodus, but I want you to look very quickly at the next book. Just one paragraph over in Leviticus, chapter 16, verse 20. Just another dimension of the work of the priest.

and specifically the high priest. Leviticus 16 verse 20 And when he has made an end of atoning for the holy place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall present the live goat. And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat and confess over him all the iniquities of the people of Israel and all their transgressions, all their sins, and he shall put them upon the head of the goat and send him away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is in readiness.

The goat shall bear all their iniquities upon him to a solitary land, and he shall let the goat go in the wilderness. That's where you get the name scapegoat. And what they're doing continually, whether it's with the bull or the lamb or the goats, when they lay their hands upon them, this is a matter of symbolically putting on to this innocent animal my guilt, my sin.

And then it's either killed and offered in burnt offering or in this particular case driven off into the wilderness and I escape because the goat bears my sins away. You get the symbolism? It's very, very vivid.

Escape, goat. I escape because the goat bears my sins away. Back to Exodus, chapter 31.

Just a footnote to the story, but an important one. The Lord said to Moses, See, I have called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, son of Hur of the tribe of Judah, and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood for work in every craft. This is a very skilled foreman.

He can handle all building materials. And so God has been giving all these instructions how to build the building, and now he says, I've got a guy. Don't worry about it.

I'm not just going to give you the plans. I'm going to give you a guy who knows how to put them all together. And I call your attention to it simply because it says that he's filled with all these skills, but that's not enough.

I filled him with the Spirit of God as well. And that's a pattern. That's, again, another whole subject.

When God calls someone to leadership, it's not just on the basis of his or her natural talents and abilities, but it's also, I would fill him or her with my Spirit. And so he does. He gives to Moses the plans, and he gives to Moses the person to implement the plans, a builder of extraordinary skill filled with the Spirit of God by the name of Bezalel.

Skipping to chapter 36. Actually, let me back up just one paragraph, the end of 35. Moses repeats to the people what God has just said to him.

See, the Lord has called by name Bezalel, the son of Uri, son of Hur of the tribe of Judah, and he has filled them with the Spirit of God, with ability, intelligence, knowledge, craftsmanship, so on and so on, and he has inspired him to teach, both him and Aholiab, the son of Ahizamach of the tribe of Dan. He has filled them with ability to do every sort of work, and so on. And so we get into the actual building.

Chapters 36 to 39. They build the building according to all the plans that God has given. Chapter 39, verse 32.

Thus all the work of the tabernacle of the tent of meeting was finished. And the people of Israel had done according to all that the Lord had commanded Moses, so had they done. And they brought the tabernacle to Moses, the tent and all its utensils, its hooks, its frames, its bars, its pillars, and its bases, the covering of tanned ram skins and the goat skins and the veil of the screen, the ark of the testimony with its poles and the mercy seat, the table with all its utensils and the bread of the presence, the lampstand of pure gold and its lamps with the lamps set and with all its utensils, and the oil for the light, the golden altar, the anointing oil and the fragrant incense, the screen for the door of the tent of meeting, the bronze altar and its grating of bronze, its pole and all its utensils, the laver and its base, the hangings of the court, its pillars and its bases, the screen for the gate of the court, its cords, its pegs, and all the utensils for the service of the tabernacle for the tent of meeting.

The finely worked garments for ministering in the holy place, the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons to serve as priests. Verse 42, According to all that the Lord had commanded Moses, so the people of Israel had done all the work. And Moses saw all the work, and behold, they had done it.

As the Lord had commanded, so had they done it. and Moses blessed them. So the work's done.

That's a pretty fast overview, isn't it? You got it? You can go back and enjoy that at great leisure now that you know what you're looking at.

Okay? The final chapter of the book of Exodus is a remarkable picture. They put it all together.

Okay? And starting with Aaron himself, the high priest, and then with the Ark of the Covenant in essence what Moses is doing is he is consecrating each of these things that God has commanded him to make he is in essence backing out of the Holy of Holies do you follow what I'm saying? he's starting here and consecrating to the Lord the Ark of the Covenant and he backs out of that room and consecrates all of the utensils and all of the paraphernalia and furniture in the holy place and backs out of the room and consecrates the laver and the altar of burnt offering and backs out of the room.

It is all consecrated to the Lord. Moses has been responsible for the project from chapter 20 on. Moses consecrates it to the Lord never to enter it again.

Because he's not a priest. Got it? He's responsible for putting it together.

But he's not called to be a priest. He's not a Levite. He's not.

He is a Levite. He's not of Aaron's household. And so it's consecrated to God and Moses is backing out.

Look at a little phrase that appears over and over in chapter 40. We've already seen it. As the Lord had commanded, so had they done it.

Verse 16, thus did Moses according to all that the Lord had commanded him, so he did. Verse 19, as the Lord had commanded Moses. Verse 21, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Verse 23, as the Lord has commanded Moses. Each stage he's backing out. And finally it's all consecrated.

And it says, verse 33, he erected the court around the tabernacle and the altar, and set up the screen of the gate of the court, and Moses finished his work. Finished this work. And then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle, and Moses himself was not able to enter the tent of meeting, because the cloud abode upon it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.

Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the people of Israel would go onward. But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not go onward till the day that it was taken up. The cloud, visible by day, becomes fire, visible by night, the Shekinah glory.

We've already seen it. It hovers over the mercy seat. it hovers over the whole tent when God says it's time to move he takes up that Shekinah glory and they say better pack up and move and then when he says it's time to stay for a while the glory of God comes down and hovers over the mercy seat if the cloud was not taken up they did not go onward until the day that it was taken up for throughout all their journeys the cloud of the Lord was upon the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night in the sight of all the house of Israel.

Continual sacrifices are being offered. A continual burnt offering as well as incense being offered morning and evening. The high priest takes his part along with the other priests in providing these, as well as the thank offerings, peace offerings, wave offerings, and so on.

but on the day of atonement I've already referred to this Yom Kippur comes the major responsibility of the high priest there are these daily sacrifices, continual sacrifices but it's all summed up once a year and on the day of atonement he strips off all of his outer garments all of those splendid jewels that bedeck his chest that glorious turban and its plate of pure gold, all of that, he just wears a plain linen robe. And on that day, he enters the Holy of Holies with the blood of the sin offerings for himself and his household and for all the people. And he sprinkles the blood on the mercy seat.

Before that, he sprinkles it on the veil. Before that, he sprinkles it on the horns of the altar. that's in a nutshell the Levitical priesthood now we're right at the end and I've come to the most exciting part I'm sure you're aware that the major opposition that Jesus had was with the Pharisees and who?

not the Sadducees they also gave in trouble the priests and the Levites here is that group of people appointed by God to be his chief representatives and they're the ones who give Jesus the greatest amount of trouble he said that they had turned the house of God into a den of thieves it was the high priest who convicted Jesus what need have we for any further witnesses he's condemned himself of course it took the Roman government to actually execute him but the decision was that of the high priest. Jesus drove the money changers out of the temple and they returned the favor. And as I said last time, ultimately this conflict leads to his abolishing the Levitical priesthood and replacing it with what?

The priesthood of all believers, finally, but even before that, what? His own. He abolishes the Levitical priesthood and replaces it with his own.

But, it's much more wonderful than that. Turn to Hebrews chapter 8. I'll do this as quickly as I can.

If you have to leave, leave and get the tape. Hebrews 8. now the point in what we are saying is this we have a high priest one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the majesty in heaven a minister in the sanctuary and the true tent which is set up not by man but by the Lord for every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices hence it is necessary for this priest also to have something to offer.

Now if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all, since there are priests who offer gifts according to the law. He's not a Levite. Our high priest was not of the tribe of Levi.

He was not a male descendant of Aaron. He's not of that priesthood. If he were on earth, he'd do it the way they do it, but he's not on earth.

They do it their way. He does it his way. Verse 5, they, who's the they?

the Levitical priests they serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly sanctuary. For when Moses was about to erect the tent the tabernacle he was instructed by God saying see that you make everything according to the pattern which was shown you on the mountain. remember we saw that over and over again do this according to the pattern do this according to the pattern do this according to the pattern he was shown a pattern on the mountain and he came back down and said here's how we're to do it okay but as it is Christ has obtained a ministry which is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better since it is enacted on better promises let me ask you this question when Moses went up on the mountain and he was shown a pattern what do you think he saw?

Jesus? what did you say? the heavenly tabernacle?

what does that mean? what did he see? heaven who said heaven did you say heaven you said heaven he saw heaven what does that mean I don't know what he was with God he saw the reality of which the tabernacle is a representation do you get it Turn to Revelation.

Chapter 4. You see, John saw exactly the same thing. Exactly the same thing.

After this I looked, and lo, in heaven an open door. And the first verse which I had heard speaking to me like a... What called Moses up onto the mountain? A loud trumpet blast.

the first voice which I heard speaking to me like a trumpet said come up hither and I'll show you what must take place after this. At once I was in the Spirit and lo, a throne stood in heaven. What's that correspond to?

The mercy seat. The mercy seat. A little slab of gold here on earth is a pitiful representation of the throne of God at the center of the universe.

got it what hovers above the mercy seat no no no no what hovers above it the visible flame the Shekinah glory the uncreated glory of God hovers above this mercy seat here on earth but on the throne in heaven it says there was one seated on the throne not a representation of God but God himself and he who sat there appeared like jasper and carnelian and round the throne was a rainbow that looked like an emerald round the throne were twenty-four thrones and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders clad in white garments with golden crowns upon their heads and from the throne issue flashes of lightning and voices and peals of thunder just like the mountain and before the throne burn seven torches of fire which are the seven spirits of God and before the throne there is, as it were, a sea of glass like crystal. The one seated upon the throne at the center of the universe is surrounded by 24 elders. Number 24 suggests anything to you?

12 and 12. 12 tribes. 12 apostles.

Symbolically, this is the leadership of the redeemed. Not just twelve loaves of bread, which is only the Old Covenant, but twelve and twelve living loaves of bread surrounding the one on the throne. And a seven-fold Spirit of God, the seven spirits of God, the seven torches of fire reminding you of the candelabra.

Hold your finger here. We're almost done. But look quickly at Isaiah 11.

People say seven spirits of God. I thought there was only one. Isaiah 11 explains that to you.

Very familiar passage, but I wonder if you've noticed this. There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots, referring to who? Messiah?

Jesus? Out of the lineage of Jesse? A branch from the one who is cut off?

And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him. Verse 2. The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.

Count it up. That is a seven-fold spirit. And the seven spirits of God is simply another way of saying the seven-fold, the utterly complete and perfect Holy Spirit of God, who rests upon Messiah, the Spirit of the Lord has anointed me, right?

And who indwells every believer, praise God. stop and think about it if I had a menorah here it's got seven little cups of oil and I took a taper to light them and I light them how many fires do I have? do I have seven or do I have one yeah it's one fire it's seven fold get it and there's a sea of glass like crystal everything else from this one who sits upon the throne.

What does that correspond to? The veil? We're in a holy place, but there's still a holiness of God that keeps us our distance.

Around the throne, on each side of the throne, are four living creatures full of eyes in front and behind. First living creature like a lion, the second living creature like an ox, third living creature with the face of a man, fourth living creature like a flying eagle the four living creatures each of them with six wings are full of eyes all round and within and day and night they never cease to sing holy holy holy is the lord god almighty who was and is and is to come what are these these are the cherubim the mighty angelic host of god you know those are the cherubim because that's what they said in Isaiah 6. Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty.

Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who is seated on the throne who lives forever and ever, the 24 elders fall down before him who is seated on the throne and worship him who lives forever and ever. They cast their crowns before the throne, singing, worthy art thou our Lord and God to receive glory and honor and power for thou didst create all things and by thy will they existed and were created the prayers of the saints rising like a great cloud of incense do you see what we're seeing this is the reality friends this is just a pathetic little tiny scale model a little cardboard representation of the reality and i saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back and sealed with seven seals and i saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals and no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to look into it and i wept much remarkable statement John sees some of the most terrifying, horrific, frightening things in his revelation that have ever been shown to anyone. This is the only place that he weeps.

He weeps because there's nobody in all creation who's worthy to come and open up the sealed will of God. And then one of the elders said to me, Weep not. lo the lion of the tribe of judah the root of david has conquered so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals and between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders i saw a lamb standing as though it had been slain with seven horns and with seven eyes which are isn't this an interesting phrase which are the seven spirits of god sent out into all the earth So the Holy Spirit is not only before the Father in His sevenfold fullness, but He's also literally in the Lamb and from Him sent out into all the earth.

Boggles the mind. And He, the Lamb, who was slain, who lives, went and took the scroll from the right hand of Him who was seated on the throne. and when he had taken the scroll the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the lamb each holding a harp and with golden bowls full of incense which are the prayers of the saints they sang a new song saying worthy art thou to take the scroll and to open its seals for thou wast slain and by thy blood didst ransom men for God from every tribe and tongue and people and nation and hast made them a kingdom and priests to our God and they shall reign on the earth.

this is the high priest and he's also the sacrifice what he offers is himself I'm going to close here and I hope I've tantalized you we have a lot of loose ends to cover the next couple of weeks this is the reality of which all the rest even though it came first in our history was just a preparation. Don't interpret the Lamb in the light of the Levitical system. Interpret the Levitical system in light of the Lamb.

Alright? Picture it this way. If I'm coming in through that door and there's a bright light behind me before I come through the door you're going to see what?

My shadow. The shadow is going to come first but it's not the reality it's just a shadow when I come through the door suddenly the reality is here the whole Levitical system the tabernacle the temple of Solomon Herod's temple priest, altar, sacrifice the whole thing scapegoats, bulls, goats lambs, turtle doves, pigeons the whole blessed thing is just a shadow to give us a little vague outline of an idea of what's to come. The reality which has been casting that shadow from the very throne room of God from before the foundation of the world is the Lamb who is our High Priest and whose sacrifice is Himself.

And the song of all creation, the angels and the elders in all creation is that you are worthy for you were slain and your blood ransomed us and made us what? a kingdom of priests and look at how the chapter ends then I looked and I heard round the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels numbering myriads of myriads and thousands and thousands saying with a loud voice worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing. And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea and all therein, saying to him who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever.

And the four living creatures said, Amen. And the elders fell down and worshipped. Amen.

Amen. Let's stand and pray together. if you want to do some homework for next time it would be very helpful to spend some time in the book of Hebrews Christy would you lead us in prayer Amen.