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[0:00] We have been going through a sermon series on Sunday mornings called the Typology of Christ.

[0:20] ! Now, the typology of Christ is the study of persons, places, or objects in the Old Testament! that foreshadow the work of Christ. We have been going through this all summer, and it has been a great series that really teaches us to read the Bible with Christ as the main character through it all. Jesus is not a character in the New Testament or in the Gospels alone. Jesus is the main theme of the whole story. He is the main player in God's story and history of redemption, and without Him, it all falls apart. Now, the thing that we are going to be talking about, or the object that we are going to be talking about today that foreshadows Christ is the tabernacle. If you go to Exodus, you're going to see all the directions, everything that is related to the tabernacle, the laws, the materials, the objects within. And when I talk to people about their Bible reading, for some reason this is a section that is described as burdensome.

[1:22] Maybe they don't want to read through it. I think it has to do with a lot that we don't like the instructions that come with the box sometimes. Has anyone been there? Whenever you get a box, you're supposed to put something together, you have to look at the instructions?

[1:37] Now, yeah, thank you, sir. Me personally, I think that if I'm going to buy something, I shouldn't have to assemble it. I don't like the instructions. I'm not good at assembling things.

[1:53] If you go to Google and look up how to change a light bulb, it just says, are you kidding me? I know. Well, a few months ago, my mother-in-law and father-in-law, Yvonne and Ed, they bought this play set for all their grandkids. And I was excited. They showed me pictures of it.

[2:15] I was like, this is going to be great. I can't wait to see our kids playing on this. And then they said, you need to come help us put it together. I'm like, what? Are you kidding? So we get there next Saturday and we start unboxing this thing. And the more parts that we keep pulling out, they seem to be multiplying into more parts. The boxes and the wrappings never end. And I begin to lose hope. Now, thankfully, TJ and Ed were there. And Ed is just extremely diligent and follows the instructions, the letter of the law. TJ doesn't need instructions. He just knows how to put Gidgets and GASMOs together. I don't know how he does it, but they both are able to see the whole picture of this thing. And they're kind of getting excited. They're getting their tools ready. They're getting the parts divided up and it just seems to be easy for them. And thankfully, after many hours of labor, the handyman genius of TJ, the diligence of Ed, the sonic drinks I provided, we had a new play set. But there was a strict adherence to the instructions that had to happen for this. Now, a lot of times when people read the tabernacle section, they just kind of gloss over it. But one of the things that we need to remember is that these dimensions, these laws, the objects that were to be made, they were handed down by a holy God. These rules and regulations were no less inspired by God than anything else we read in his word. So it's good that we're studying this stuff. And adherence to these laws and these regulations, this wasn't just them mindlessly reading a blueprint.

[4:04] This was the children of Israel's adherence and obedience to the words of a holy God. In Exodus 25, 8 and 9, it says, and let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell in their midst exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle and of all its furniture. So you shall make it. So the tabernacle was not just this idea that God said, hey, I have this idea, children of Israel, you just go along with it and I'll see what you come up with. Oh, he had a plan in mind for this structure. He had specific designs for everything, the furniture, even to the type of incense and perfume that was burned in this tabernacle. There was a plan and a design behind it. So obedience to a holy God was absolutely necessary for this tabernacle to be built as it was supposed to build. And even more important than all this, God intended for this to foreshadow and point towards a greater fulfillment that these children of Israel needed at this time, which was a picture of Jesus. Now, they may have not quite understood what it was all pointing towards yet, but there was obviously a need for fulfillment. And my hope is that through today's sermon, that we're going to see the picture of Jesus that God is trying to paint through the tabernacle.

[5:31] So if you would turn to Hebrews chapter nine, we're going to read part of our main text for today, verses one through 10. If y'all would stand together as we read. Now, even the first covenant had regulations for worship and an earthly place of holiness for a tent was prepared. The first section in which were the lampstand and the table and the bread of the presence. It is called the holy place. Behind the second curtain was a second section called the most holy place, having the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold in which was a golden urn holding the manna and Aaron's staff that budded and the tablets of the covenant. Above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat of these things.

[6:26] We cannot now speak in detail these preparations having thus been made. The priests go regularly into the first section, performing their ritual duties, but into the second only the high priest goes and he but once a year and not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the unintentional sins of the people. By this, the Holy Spirit indicates that the way into the holy places is not yet opened as long as the first section is still standing, which is symbolic for the present age. According to this arrangement, gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the conscience of the worshiper, but deal only with food and drink and various washings regulations for the body imposed until the time of reformation. This is the word of the Lord Church. You all may have a seat.

[7:20] The first part of this sermon, we're going to be using a lot of PowerPoint. This may seem a lot like a transfer of information at the start of this, but if you have never studied the tabernacle before, and the tabernacle and the temple are two different things, okay? The tabernacle was the place of worship. After they had come out of Egypt, they were still a nomadic people. This was what Moses had built. The temple, at least the first one, was constructed by Solomon, and that was after Israel had become an official nation and settled in the land of Canaan, and Jerusalem was now their capital.

[7:55] So these are two different structures that still served the same purpose, but the main idea that I want us to draw from this study today is that Jesus fulfills God's desire to dwell with his people.

[8:11] So let's go to the first slide. Now this is a reconstruction of the tabernacle. I told you that in Exodus that it gives you pretty much the dimensions, the materials, the colors, everything that was to be used in the tabernacle, and there are people that have actually done reconstructions or replicas of the tabernacle, and they give you a tour of it just to kind of, you know, bring the Old Testament to life.

[8:39] Now you may think, well, this looks like just a giant tent. Well, that's because it was. Again, I told you earlier that the Israelites had just come out of Egypt. They did not have a permanent home yet. They were a nomadic people at this point in time, and everything about this structure was meant to be nomadic. It was meant to be transportable wherever God led them in the wilderness. This also was a symbol of God's presence among his people. God's presence literally dwelt in the tabernacle, and that tent that you see in the center there inside an inner chamber within that tent was where God's presence dwelt, and we're going to talk more about that here in a little bit. Now another thing to, another important thing to remember about this tabernacle, moving this stuff, even touching it, even coming near it, was something that was strictly reserved for the Levites.

[9:34] Nobody was allowed to come near the tabernacle. That's why the Levites, whenever they would set up camp, the Levites would all camp around the tabernacle, and the only time you were allowed to come near to the tabernacle was to offer your sacrifices to atone for your sins. So there were no advertisements in the Israelite bulletin to stick around after Yom Kippur to help pick up tent pegs. Only the Levites, from the greatest to the smallest, were allowed to touch the things of the tabernacle. Otherwise, you would be cut off from your people. All right, let's go to the next slide. This is the Ark of the Covenant. The Ark of the Covenant was probably one of the most significant elements of the tabernacle.

[10:15] It was located in the most holy place within the tabernacle, that tent that you saw in the middle of the courtyard, which we're going to describe that more here in a couple of slides. But the Ark was the very symbol of God's presence within that tabernacle. Wherever the Ark went, that's where God was to them.

[10:34] Anytime the children of Israel would be wandering through the desert, they were following the Ark of the Covenant that was being carried by the Levites. In Exodus 25, 22, it says, There I will meet with you. And from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the Ark of the Testimony, I will speak with you about all that I give you in commandment for the people of Israel. So those two cherubim that you see on top, that was where God would speak to the high priest from and give all the commands that the Israelites were to follow. And inside the Ark, you know, there was the jar of manna, there was Aaron's staff that budded, and then there were the stone tablets of the covenant. So this bared much significance for the children of Israel at this time. Let's go to the third slide. This is the table of showbread. This was within the holy place, not the most holy place, but the holy place. And you see this gold table, everything in the tabernacle and in the temple was just covered with gold. But on this table, you see 12 loaves of bread. This was to be constantly presented to the Lord. This was a symbol of God's provision to his people. And obviously, the 12 loaves represent the 12 tribes of Israel and God's desire to commune with them. Let's go to the next slide.

[11:55] Okay. We have the golden lamp stand. This served a dual function. This was also within the holy place where the table of showbread was located. And this kind of served a dual purpose. It was dark in the tent. They obviously needed light to do their jobs. But symbolically, what this represented was the light in life that God brings to his people, the children of Israel. Let's go to the next slide.

[12:26] This is the bronze altar. This was out in the courtyard of the tabernacle. I swear to even begin with the significance that this represents. Because God is perfectly holy and righteous, he righteously demanded justice and payment for the transgressions that were against him, against his holiness.

[12:50] This was what the altar was for. This is where the priest would offer burnt offerings to the Lord continually and where God would accept payment for their sins. This painted a very real picture of the severity that God has towards sin and his desire for justice and was but a shadow of the greater sacrifice that was to come.

[13:16] If you go to the next slide, this is the bronze washing basin. This is where the priests were to wash themselves ritually before they would perform sacrifices or go into the tabernacle.

[13:30] This was a representation of God's desire for purity for those that serve him. Because God is perfectly and completely holy, he cannot be associated with sin. He cannot be associated with uncleanliness of any kind. So the priests, before doing their duty, they were required to be ritually clean. And this was a lasting ordinance that was to withstand the whole priesthood.

[13:55] So, that is what the bronze wash basin was for. The next slide here is the altar of incense. This altar of incense stood directly in front of the entrance to the Holy of Holies.

[14:08] Now, the incense that was mixed for this altar was specifically to be used for the tabernacle. And just to show you, there was a command given that if anyone was caught mixing this particular incense or perfume that was being burned at this altar, they were to be cut off from their people.

[14:25] This served a very specific purpose that God did not want tainted with anything else. The altar continually burning before the Holy of Holies, before the presence of God, was supposed to be a reminder of Israel's constant need for an intercessor.

[14:42] Their constant need for someone to intercede for them before the Lord. We can look forward to how Christ would later fulfill this, which, again, we will talk about towards the end of our sermon here.

[14:55] But as we go through these objects, one of the things that a lot of people struggle with is wondering, well, why do these matter to me now? Jesus has come. Why is it important for us to learn these things?

[15:10] While they do not provide salvation, they are part of God's perfect inspired word. And because of that reason alone, they are worthy of our attention and our study.

[15:21] Second reason is that God was trying to tell his people something. There was a greater problem that faced them than their need for freedom from Egypt. There was a greater problem that faced them than their need for a national identity or their need for a land that they could call their own.

[15:40] God was trying to paint a picture of their problem of sin and how it separated them from his presence. Even though the tabernacle was a representation of God's presence among his people, the barriers, the veil between the holy of holies, the fact that only the priests could approach, the high priests could only approach the holy of holies, also showed a very real separation because of the sin that was within their community.

[16:09] And the last reason is that knowing the history of our faith is important. I love learning about history. It's one of my favorite things to learn about as far as just, you know, listening to podcasts or videos on it.

[16:23] I just find it fascinating. And it's because the lessons of our past give context to our present and they give direction for our future.

[16:35] When we learn about the tabernacle and the old covenant, what we are seeing is the history of our faith. faith, we are also seeing this journey of redemptive history that God has led his children through and that we can glory all the more in because of the finished work of Christ on the cross.

[16:58] Seeing where God has led his people through all these years, we now get to celebrate in the fulfillment of these things because of what Christ has done for us on the cross. And this also gives hope to our future because Christ has conquered death.

[17:15] We have a greater hope looking forward to look forward to in heaven one day when we are completely glorified with him. And that is all because of the work of Christ, which was all of these things we're pointing towards.

[17:28] So go ahead and throw up this last slide here. Again, this is just kind of a diagram of the tabernacle. Now, again, you see this tabernacle or this tent in the middle of the tabernacle courtyard.

[17:43] You've got the holy place, which is where the incense, the table of bread, and the golden lampstand were. And that's where the priests would go in and just kind of perform their duties.

[17:54] The priests were allowed to go in there, but then you have the most holy place, which is where the Ark of the Covenant was, where God's presence resided. Only the high priest was allowed to enter the most holy place.

[18:08] And he could only do that once a year on the Day of Atonement, where he would offer a sacrifice for himself, for his sins, and for all the sins of Israel.

[18:20] So did God dwell amongst his people? Yes. Yes, he did. But there was still a very real separation of sin that no animal sacrifice could do away with. No amount of animal blood could satisfy the altar's thirst.

[18:34] and no ritually clean priest could permanently remove our sinfulness. God had made their need for redemption obvious. And we also look at these things and we're reminded of our need for redemption as well.

[18:50] For those that have been made new in Christ, we have received that redemption and one day we will be made completely like him. But for those of us that have not received that reconciliation, that have not been saved by grace, this is a reminder to us of what God has led us through to get to Christ where we can be his saints, his children.

[19:13] The old covenant did not fail. The old covenant was not obsolete. The old covenant was part of God's plan of redemptive history and the old covenant was fulfilled in Christ.

[19:29] Christ. So if this was your first time learning about the tabernacle, I hope this gives some context to the rest of our sermon and what we're going to be looking at today. And the main point of today is that Christ is the better tabernacle.

[19:44] He is the greater tabernacle. And I want us to see two truths from this. The first is that Christ purifies our hearts and the second is that Christ is the high priest of a new covenant.

[19:56] So if you would, let's go on reading. Starting here in verse 11 through 14. But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent not made with hands that is not of this creation, he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves, but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.

[20:28] For if the blood of goats and bulls and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ who through the eternal spirit offered himself without blemish to God purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

[20:51] So again, I want to remind everyone that the old covenant was not sinful, it was not flawed, it was instituted by God for a specific reason to point towards the greater atonement that was coming with Christ.

[21:04] So how do we know that the old covenant though, this old sacrificial system was not sufficient to cover our sinfulness? Because the sacrifice has never ended.

[21:16] More blood was constantly required every day. Yom Kippur or the day of atonement needed to be observed every year. And while these sacrifices might have been a payment for specific physical sins that they had committed, they were not able to atone for the sinfulness, the sinful nature of the individual.

[21:39] Their sinful nature was still alive and well and you could bet that these people would be back with yet another sacrifice. And no matter how many sacrifices were made, they were still not allowed to enter the Holy of Holies.

[21:54] They were not allowed to approach the presence of God. So let's look at verses 13 and 14 again and see how Christ has done something that no animal sacrifice could.

[22:05] for if the blood of goats and bulls and sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer sanctify for the purification of flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ who through the eternal spirit offered himself without blemish to God purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

[22:27] So, were the blood of goats and sheep brought an outward cleansing from actions, from our sinful actions, the blood of Christ has done something better within us. There is a purification that takes place within us that not only forgives us, but it frees us.

[22:44] We are no longer bound to our fleshly nature, but are freed to serve the Lord in the new nature that he has given us through his Holy Spirit. This was something that could not be done any other way, not through any animal sacrifices, not sacrifices that were offered by sinful high priests because they were sinful too.

[23:04] They needed atonement. This was a sacrifice though, that was offered by someone that was not sinful, that was perfect. This was a sacrifice offered by God himself.

[23:17] The very one that demands justice is the one that is making the payment. The very one who is the standard of righteousness that we have transgressed against is the one who is making the atonement.

[23:32] John the Baptist, he put it so eloquently when he said, Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Jesus' sacrifice was not just an atonement for a specific sinful action.

[23:50] He is atoned for our sinfulness, the very nature that has rebelled against God and he has given us a new nature, one that is pleasing to God. I want to jump ahead here to chapter 10 verse 16.

[24:04] I want to read this to you. This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord. I will put my laws on their hearts and write them on their minds.

[24:17] Then he adds, I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more. Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.

[24:29] This was a fulfillment of a prophecy, Jeremiah 31, 33, where God said that he was going to do something better in the lives of his children.

[24:40] He was going to put their laws on their hearts. This didn't mean that they were going to have the law memorized word for word and could quote it, but they were going to have a new nature that desired to be pleasing to God, a new nature that would also be pleasing to God himself.

[24:58] This is an application point with all this as believers. This should tell us that we still have a much deeper problem than a singular sinful action. The action of repentance.

[25:11] It's not about saying sorry for one thing. I've heard so many Christians say, you know, I know I mess up, but you know, God's grace abounds all the more. It's fine. He's got my sins covered.

[25:23] That's not repentance. If that's you, if that is your idea of what repentance is, I'm sorry to bust your bubble, but. All right.

[25:37] You're not asking a pass for a singular sinful action. What you are saying is that, God, I am a sinner. I am in need of renewal.

[25:48] God, please make me more like your son, Jesus. Repentance is about being broken over our sinfulness that has deeply offended God. Yes, we repent for specific sinful actions.

[26:01] I'm not saying that we don't do that, but what we need to be aware of is our sinfulness and God's holiness and our need for something greater in our lives to be pleasing to him.

[26:12] So Jesus not only became the sacrifice that purifies our heart, but when he had completed the sacrifice and had atoned for our sinfulness, he also took up a new station.

[26:25] Christ is the high priest of the new covenant. So let's continue reading verses 15 through 28. Therefore, he is the mediator of a new covenant so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.

[26:49] For where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established. For a will takes effect only at death since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive.

[27:02] Therefore, not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood. For when every commandment of the law had been declared by Moses to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats with water and scarlet wool and hyssop and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people saying, this is the blood of the covenant that God commanded for you.

[27:26] And in the same way, he sprinkled with blood both the tent and all the vessels used in worship. Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.

[27:44] Thus, it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these rites but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these for Christ has entered not into holy places made with hands which are copies of the true things but into heaven itself now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf nor was it to offer himself repeatedly as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world but as it is he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself and just as it is appointed for man to die once and after that comes judgment so Christ having been offered once to hear the sins of many will appear a second time not to deal with sin but save those who are eagerly waiting for him the old covenant the high priest was required to go into the most holy place once a year and atone for the sins of himself first because if he's going to atone for the sins of other people he has to be ritually pure if not when he entered that holy place if he was impure

[29:11] God would strike him dead right there so the high priest took this very seriously that he was to be ritually pure before making atonement for all the unintentional sins of the people now there are three ways that I want to address how Christ fulfills the old covenant the day of atonement and the order of the earthly high priest the first one is this the high priest he needed atonement himself the high priest was no less sinful than the rest of the nation he struggled with temptation his heart could be corrupted and before he could enter into God's presence he needed to be atoned for the high priest was corruptible we saw that with the first high priest Aaron one of his most notable acts when he was the high priest was making a golden calf for the people to worship so the high priest needed to be atoned for as well and to do that a spotless lamb had to die verse 26 again says this but as it is he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself

[30:25] Jesus has done something better the actions of the earthly high priest have been fulfilled in Christ he entered not into the holy of holies made by man but he entered into the true holy of holies into the direct presence of God not with the blood of goats or sheep but with his own blood because he had sacrificed himself he had offered himself for our sins Jesus was able to offer his blood as atonement because unlike the earthly high priest he was perfect now many times when we hear the atonement of Christ the first thing that we think about is his death and his resurrection which that is definitely a big part of the atonement but the death of Christ would be meaningless without the perfect life that he lived see Jesus was spotless Jesus didn't do away with the law that God had handed down he followed it perfectly the way that

[31:26] God intended it to be followed and because he was completely perfect Jesus was able to fulfill this need for a sacrifice that would have lasting atonement for his people now the sacrifice is sufficient for all time for any who call on Jesus in faith but the second way that Jesus fulfills these traditions these old covenants is that the sacrifices presented in the holy of holies did not bring a lasting atonement this is why it had to be redone every year and you know not only did they bring a lamb to sacrifice but they also had this thing called a scapegoat ceremony some poor unsuspecting goat was made a spectacle in front of the whole community the whole community would symbolically lay their sins on this singular goat and it was this festival where they would chase the goat out of the community into the wilderness and this was to symbolize that they were putting sin out of their presence that they were chasing sin out of their community so that they could be pure to

[32:34] God again it was incomplete because it needed to be redone every year so how has Jesus fulfilled this in verse 12 says he entered once and for all into the holy places not by the means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood thus securing an eternal redemption an eternal redemption there was a single offering that needed to be made by Christ once and for all to purify us and rather than having to make a new sacrifice for every sin that we commit what we can do now is that we can look back to the sacrifice that Christ has made on our behalf and know that through faith and his perfect offering our sinfulness has been atoned for why is the sacrifice of Christ so much better the lambs were spotless the priests were pure before they made these sacrifices the sacrifices they were costly and constant but if you hear anything from me today about why the sacrifice of Christ is better it's this he came back to life

[33:57] Jesus our sacrifice for eternal atonement did not stay dead and it's because he came back to life that his blood is constantly interceding for us telling the righteous judge that these children that you have given me are atoned for and God sees the righteousness of Christ on us because Christ has died the perfect death he has came back to life and we now have his!

[34:25] righteousness that he has given us Jesus the very God who demands justice himself he became the spotless sacrifice and that lamb of sacrifice came back to life he has ascended to the highest place to be our eternal high priest his blood that was filled is interceding for us church I can't think of anything more that we would ever need than that one of the things that we can take away from that is that there's nothing left for us to do we don't have to wonder if we have done enough to be good enough if we have earned God's forgiveness!

[35:11] Jesus has done it all! He has spilled! enough blood! He has offered the perfect sacrifice on our behalf and he is still good enough as I was thinking about this just a good example that from my life when I was in college one of my friends and I we got into a pretty heated exchange and I said some things that I deeply regret even to this day I still regret the things that I said to him and it nearly severed our friendship for a while there was this period of silence between the two of us messages I tried texting him even at this time I was working at a donut shop in Oolaga as a summer gig and I would bag up all the leftover apple fritters and leave it on the hood of his car in his driveway in hopes that he would find these like okay I forgive him now but this whole time

[36:11] I was wondering have I finally done enough to reconcile myself with way have I finally done enough to be good enough have I finally done enough to be reconciled to God Jesus has done enough he has brought all the blood that was required he lived the life that was perfect on our behalf and all we have to do is believe in his sacrifice believe in who he was as God's son that he died that he rose again and now we can have salvation and forgiveness through his name we just have to believe there's a third and final way that I want to point out how Christ fulfills the day of atonement in the order of the high priest and this is probably the biggest visual reminder that there was still a separation between

[37:13] God and man and that's this the children of Israel could still not approach the mercy seat they could still not approach the presence of God even after a ritually pure high priest had made the perfect sacrifice of a spotless lamb even after sin was ceremonially driven from their presence in the scapegoat ceremony there was still a barrier between the people and the holy of holies no matter what sacrifices were made only the high priest could stand before the presence of God only a mediator could approach the mercy seat to intercede for the people this is what left everything hanging longing for something greater this is why this was the only a shadow!

[38:04] of the real atonement that was to come I want to read to you what happened when Christ made the final atonement for sins Matthew 27 verse 50 Christ has now been on the cross for hours the blood has been spilt the sins have been atoned for and Jesus says this in verse 50 and Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit and behold the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom and the earth shook and the rocks split the tombs also were opened and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many when the centurion and all those who were with them keeping watch over Jesus saw the earthquake and what took place they were filled with awe and said truly this was the son of

[39:10] God the final price was paid the curtain was torn the dead were raised and the lost were saved church the death of Christ has made a way for us to approach the throne of grace ourselves it is not that we're any less need of grace but through grace we now have righteousness to approach God aware of our sinfulness but confident in his righteousness humbled by his holiness but adopted to call him father Christ has done something so great that I don't think anyone in the old testament in the old covenant could have ever imagined and while we may still fall short and struggle with sin Christ intercession still pleads our case church Jesus has made a way he has fulfilled the old covenant the tabernacle it was meant to be a visual reminder to the people that

[40:13] God was dwelling in their midst in John chapter one says that the word became flesh the word Jesus became flesh and dwelt among us in Greek that is the exact same word for tabernacle Jesus has dwelt among his people in the flesh you could reach out and touch him you could see him the lamp stand that had symbolized the light and life that God brings Jesus came as the light of the world and shined into a darkness that could not overcome it the table of bread that had once symbolized the provision and desire for communion that God had for his people Jesus is the bread of life church he is sufficient to meet every need that we could ever have the mercy!

[41:05] seat that was meant to be the holy place from which God spoke to a high priest through our new high priest now we can approach the throne of grace with boldness ourselves where the altar was continually needed to make atonement for sin the cross has offered the final sacrifice and it has quenched the altar's thirst for blood and the blood still speaks for us to this day church our main point of application that I think that we can all take from this that we can pursue the Lord now like there is no barrier between you and him now there is no longer a barrier between you and God so believers we no longer have to vainly wish for a closeness with God that is beyond our reach before Christ the tabernacle the temple that was as close as people could get to

[42:06] God but now through Christ James tells us to draw near to God and he will draw near to you God himself imparts his Holy Spirit to dwell within us intimacy with the Almighty is possible to anyone who calls on the name of the Lord through God's Holy Word through his church through the indwelling of his Holy Spirit we can now have a closeness with God that no one in the old covenant could have ever dreamed or imagined with this freedom church don't settle for a superficial relationship with the Lord don't settle just for the weekly worship attendance don't be content with simply throwing up an apathetic apology here and there for when we infringe on his laws communion with the almighty is possible every day for you because of what Christ has done and while we will never be able to scratch the surface of

[43:08] God's eternal glory we can still be completely filled by his glory and unbelievers glad you're here today we welcome you to this church we are glad that you have come and heard the gospel today and I want to share this!

[43:27] Jesus the very author of the old covenant himself had an interaction with the Pharisees when he was here on his earthly ministry see Jesus had a habit of dining and going to parties with the unrighteous with the tax collectors with the people that were outcast to the religious elites and these Pharisees who were supposedly the experts of the law confronted his disciples one day said why does your master eat with these sinners with these tax collectors Jesus said this I have not come to call the righteous I have come to call the unrighteous I want to say to you that that is you today Jesus has come to call you Jesus has died for you he rose again for you and this salvation can be yours today you can approach the throne of grace through faith in

[44:28] Christ the cost of your atonement has already been paid in full you can be clean you can be new you can leave the past behind and live in the new identity that Jesus provides for you I said earlier that our past gives context to our present and direction for the future your past has put you in present need for a savior your only hope for a future is salvation through Jesus Christ and he offers it freely to anyone who calls on his name will be saved so if you feel that Jesus is calling you today if you feel that conviction of sin that awareness of God's holiness my plea to you today is to not wait I'll be down at the front here in a minute to receive anyone that might want to come and have questions about how to have a saving relationship with the

[45:34] Lord I'd be happy to talk with you about that or after church it's too important to put off so as we close in prayer as we conclude our service today if that is you please don't delay and if you are the believer that has just been content with a surface level relationship with the Lord I want to remind you that the barrier between man and God has been removed he did not die so that you could just be content staying where you were at pursue the Lord draw close to him and he will draw close to you as James says let's pray father as we have seen from your word today Lord we we see the history of redemption that you have taken your people on

[46:36] Lord we see how everything that you have done was pointing towards the greatest act of atonement which was through your son Jesus Christ Lord we thank you that the veil has been torn Lord that you have made a way for us to be able to approach your throne of grace through the blood of your son Jesus and Lord I pray that if there is anyone here today that has never had that moment where you have called them when they have surrendered their lives to you Lord I pray that you would convict Lord that you would call and Lord that you would save today Lord all our eternal hope rests in you it rests in your son Jesus and what he did on the cross for us and I pray that would be a reality for some here today and Lord I pray that seeing what you have done for us as well would just draw us into a deeper relationship with you for those that have been redeemed Lord that we would glory even more in the finished work of

[47:40]  Christ on the cross Lord thank you for Jesus who is the true and better tabernacle and the fulfillment of the old covenant I pray for all these things in his holy name amen