Commentary: Exhortations From the Sanctuary

Exhortations From the Sanctuary

Memory Text: "And since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water" (Hebrews 10: 21, 22, NASB).

The book of Hebrews borrows a lot on Sanctuary imagery. Many believe it was written to give Christian Jews a correct understanding of the Sanctuary.  This understanding had Christ at the center.  The sanctuary was a representation of Christ and His plan of redemption.  He was the lamb. The blood shed was Christ's.  Christ was the priest; indeed, even the High Priest. 

This correct understanding must never be divorced from Christ becoming humanity.  As Levi was in Abraham when Abraham paid tithes to Melchisedech, we were in Christ when Christ lived, died, and was resurrected. 

 

Ephesians 2:4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

Ephesians 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

Ephesians 2:6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

 

Since, objectively, and by faith, we are already in the presence of the Father, we should have no problem approaching Him in prayer.  Paul says,

 Hebrews 10: 19 Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus,

Hebrews 10: 20 by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh,

Hebrews 10: 21 and having a High Priest over the house of God,

Hebrews 10: 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

Hebrews 10: 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works,

Hebrews 10: 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

As we can read in this passage the implications are many.  But, Ellen White perhaps sums it up best,

"From the Holy of Holies, there goes on the grand work of instruction. The angels of God are communicating to men. Christ officiates in the sanctuary. We do not follow Him into the sanctuary as we should. Christ and angels work in the hearts of the children of men. The church above, united with the church below, is warring the good warfare upon the earth. There must be a purifying of the soul here upon the earth, in harmony with Christ's cleansing of the sanctuary in heaven. There we shall see more clearly as we are seen. We shall know as we are known."  15MR 24.

 

Hebrews 9 and 10 describe His High Priestly ministry as cleansing the hearts of His people, "putting away sin," "purging the conscience," preparing a people to "receive the promise of eternal inheritance," "purifying" hearts and minds and lips, to "make the comers thereunto perfect," to render obsolete any "conscience" or "remembrance of sins," to "take away sins," to "perfect forever them that are sanctified," to write His "laws into their hearts ... [which are] sprinkled from an evil conscience," to "provoke [motivate] unto love and good works," to "believe to the saving of the soul."

 

He naturally wants His people to understand why what He is doing is so incomparably important, and second, He would appreciate our cooperation because He can accomplish nothing without you. Your cooperation means you stop interposing a rebellious will to counteract what He is seeking constantly to do for you!

 

In other words, through His Vicar (the Holy Spirit) Christ as High Priest is constantly pressing upon His people the conviction of sin buried deeper than they had imagined it to be; and when the conviction is welcomed and the sin is gladly surrendered and put away, the heart is more closely reconciled to Him. This process is called "atonement," or becoming at-one-with God. In Romans 5:11 it is "receiving the atonement" or "reconciliation." Thus, the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary is a "final atonement."

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

The Cosmic Conflict Over God’s Character

The Cosmic Conflict Over God’s Character

In Matthew 25: 14 – 30, we find the Parable of the talents.  We read that two of the servants improved on what they were given.  We are not told why.  But, the last servant hid the talent, and did not improve on it, but we are told why.  This man’s action based on what he thought of the Master,

Mat 25:24 Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed:

Mat 25:25 And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.

We could imply that the other two servants thought the opposite of their master.  Ellen White seems to tell us that Eve had a similar problem,

The tempter intimated that the divine warning was not to be actually fulfilled; it was designed merely to intimidate them. . . .  {CC 15.5} 

            Such has been Satan's work from the days of Adam to the present, and he has pursued it with great success. He tempts men to distrust God's love and to doubt His wisdom. He is constantly seeking to excite a spirit of irreverent curiosity, a restless, inquisitive desire to penetrate the secrets of divine wisdom and power. In their efforts to search out what God has been pleased to withhold, multitudes overlook the truths which He has revealed, and which are essential to salvation. . . .  {CC 15.6}

Eve really believed the words of Satan, but her belief did not save her from the penalty of sin. She disbelieved the words of God, and this was what led to her fall. In the judgment men will not be condemned because they conscientiously believed a lie, but because they did not believe the truth, because they neglected the opportunity of learning what is truth.  {CC 15.7}

Eve doubted God’s integrity.  She judged God’s character incorrectly.  This is what provoked her downfall.  She now needed to restore her trust In God. 

Did you notice that Ellen White says that Eve’s experience applies to all men?  What lie are men choosing to believe that leads them away from believing God? We read from Ellen White,

In the opening of the great controversy, Satan had declared that the law of God could not be obeyed, that justice was inconsistent with mercy, and that, should the law be broken, it would be impossible for the sinner to be pardoned. Every sin must meet its punishment, urged Satan; and if God should remit the punishment of sin, He would not be a God of truth and justice. When men broke the law of God, and defied His will, Satan exulted. It was proved, he declared, that the law could not be obeyed; man could not be forgiven. Because he, after his rebellion, had been banished from heaven, Satan claimed that the human race must be forever shut out from God's favor. God could not be just, he urged, and yet show mercy to the sinner. {DA 761.4}

Our lesson has made it clear throughout the quarterly that this is what our denomination believes: Sin must be punished.  And, it is God who must punish it.  Is it not disturbing that we believe of God what Satan says of Him? 

If this is what we believe then we believe that something must be done to avoid the punishment.  God must be appeased.  This is the core belief of every pagan religion.  This is why they practiced sacrifices.  Only “the smell the blood” would appease the angry god.  Christians have adopted this understanding of God.  Christians understand that “Christ died to reconcile the father unto us.”  You will find no such thought anywhere in the Bible.  The Bible is very clear,

2 Corinthians 5:19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.

We read in John 3: 16 that God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son – the Lamb slain from the beginning of the World to away its Sin (Revelation 13: 8, John 1: 29). It was the Father Who wanted – and still wants - to be reconciled to us.  We read from Romans,

Romans 5:6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

Romans 5:7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.

Romans 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

Romans 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

In Christ, while we still saw God as the enemy, we were reconciled to God and not God to us.  Christ says in John 14,

John 14:7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

John 14:8 Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us.

John 14:9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?

Many read the story of Jesus and realize that there concept of God differs from Jesus.  Jesus Himself tells us that He and the Father are One.  Jesus is a prefect representation of His Father.  Any concept of God that differs from Jesus is wrong.  Ellen White says,

There stood in the world One who was a perfect representative of the Father, One whose character and practices refuted Satan's misrepresentation of God. Satan had charged upon God the attributes He himself possessed. Now in Christ he saw God revealed in His true character—a compassionate, merciful Father, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to Him in repentance, and have eternal life. (1 SM, p. 254).

A good surgeon cuts into the body of its ill patient (thus inflicting pain), not to punish the patient for having a harmful health condition, but to get rid of what is ailing the patient.  God intervenes in our life not to punish us, but to get rid of the Sin which will kill us otherwise.  Those whom He loves, He chastens.  “Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby (Hebrews 12:11).  “…weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning (Psalm 30:5).

Commentary: Our Prophetic Message

The following story is representative of what the 3rd Angel's Message will produce in those who receive it by faith.

My niece Katrina* and I are not blood related. In fact, I met 16-year-old Katrina when my adopted sister married her father, a man who already had children. Soon I became her father's friend and Katrina's uncle. In fact, Katrina and her sister Katherine* have both become my nieces. There is nothing in our relationship which indicates that we are not related by blood. The fact that I'm Caribbean-born and they are American-born doesn't seem to make a difference.

When Katrina was younger she studied my home country for her research paper. In college, she went abroad to study the language and customs, which provided a common ground between us. As young women, she and her sister worried about disappointing me and sought my company often. Today they have graduated college, and grad school respectively, and I'm the uncle they call when they need to pray about work projects or have questions about the latest Latin dish they are trying to prepare.

God's demonstrated love has created a love and closeness between us which has erased every hint of difference. We are family.  So it is when God's people allow themselves to become one together with Him. In identifying with Him, our aims, and purposes become united and we become one family, one body. Although God's family comes from all parts of the world, our different languages, complexions, features and cultures should merely serve as a memorial to God's creativity -- nothing else. God has called us together as one body to serve Him and to invite others to serve with us. 

How will the world respond to our invitation if we are scattered by our differences?

In God's kingdom there are no rich or poor, no educated or ignorant, no great or small. We are all children of the Almighty in His Son. Through Him we understand that we have been enabled to work with each other in order to prepare others for His kingdom. "Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all" (Col. 3:11, NIV).

No matter how different we are, God wants us to function as one. As a part of His body He gives us His Spirit -- of Agape-love, peace and joy, which is demonstrated in caring for the needs and wants of others, all sharing in the hope of Jesus Christ.

You may be asking yourself, "What does this story about God's love as a uniting factor have to do with the message of the three angels"? Simply this: you cannot love those with whom you do not identify.

Christ's identification with us is the foundation of the gospel, the cornerstone of the doctrine of Justification by Faith; it itself is the gift through which every other gift flows. Christ's death on the cross was merely the out-flowing of His agape which was first found in His identifying Himself with us from the foundation of the world.

To be justified is to be made right with God legally and forensically as well as morally. The moral law rests on this – Agape – Supreme love to God as our response to His wooing, and love to man as He has loved us. To be justified (by faith) then, is to recognize in heart and mind that I am all men and all men are me. We are all one humanity, and in Christ all one body. The loss of any part through ignorance, willfulness or neglect, is the loss of me – part of me.

To those who wonder what justification has to do with the three angel's message, Ellen White said this, "Several have written to me, inquiring if the message of justification by faith is the third angel's message, and I have answered, "It is the third angel's message in verity"-- Review and Herald, April 1, 1890; {Ev 190.3} (Emphasis author's).

The three angel's message is a prophetic message, and traditionally we have taught that this message of commandment keeping -- particularly Sabbath keeping or worshiping, is paramount to being saved; and likewise, that those who do not heed the warnings, will receive the mark of the beast, and be lost. Sadly, many of us have equated our positive performance of keeping the law, attending church, attending and promoting evangelistic series and AY's along with camp-meetings and the like with not being found wanting in the judgment. To buttress our position, we've used texts which seem to say that we are saved by our faith in Jesus and judged according to our works.

We quote Romans 2:13 – "Not just the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified." But perhaps our understanding of hearers and doers is not accurate. The hearing which Jesus has in mind is active, eager focused listening with the intent to understand and receive what is being said (because the speaker is intimately known), willing to do, even before knowing what (content) is being spoken. While here on earth, Jesus Himself said, "I of mine own self can do nothing…as I hear…" (John 5:19, 30). It is He who brings everything secret and hidden into judgment – words, thoughts, motives and actions. The man or woman, whom He justifies, has the law engraved on the heart and mind. Why? Because the Holy Spirit who is residing inside and embodies the law, gives the gift of love, peace, joy, faith… (Gal.5:22, 23). Works of the flesh, no matter how good they seem are condemned as sinful, because they are not done by those whose hearts and minds have been filled with the faith of Jesus, which works by agape- love, and by which the soul is purified.  

Friends, the basis of the three angel's message of warning is the everlasting gospel. It is the pleading of the prophetic body of messengers – to accept by faith the good news of Christ's deep and abiding self-denying love which was demonstrated in His identification with us – His taking on our sinful nature -- and His death on the cross in fulfillment of the wages of sin.

I Peter 4:17 says "For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?" "For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached (margin: the word of hearing) did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it" Heb. 4:2. The hearers did not understand that the "works" they were to do, had been finished from the foundation of the world" Hebrews 4:3. Have we understood?

(* Names have been changed)

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

“The Eschatological Day of Atonement”

“The Eschatological Day of Atonement”

Eschatology is that branch of theology concerned with the final events in the history of the world and the final destiny of mankind. This involves beliefs concerning death, the end of the world and the ultimate destiny of mankind. This includes the doctrines concerning the Second Coming of Christ, the resurrection of the dead, and the Judgment.  In our lesson for this week the vision of the 2300 days is referred to as being fulfilled “many days in the future” (Dan 8:26) from the time of Daniel. The vision was sealed until the distant future.

So, the title of our lesson is referring to a day of atonement in the final days of earth’s history.   Since, atonement is the process of becoming one or reconciliation, it means that something is happening to remove what separated man from God?  What separates man from God?   What separated Eve from God?  Ellen White states,

“Eve believed the words of Satan, and the belief of that falsehood in regard to God's  character, changed the condition and character of both herself and husband. They were changed from good and obedient children into transgressors...” (RH, January 5, 1886 par. 8).

Ellen White elaborates on the danger of believing lies about God,

In rejecting the truth, men reject its Author. In trampling upon the law of God, they deny the authority of the Law-giver. It is as easy to make an idol of false doctrines and theories as to fashion an idol of wood or stone. By misrepresenting the attributes of God, Satan leads men to conceive of Him in a false character. With many, a philosophical idol is enthroned in the place of Jehovah; while the living God, as He is revealed in His word, in Christ, and in the works of creation, is worshiped by but few. Thousands deify nature while they deny the God of nature. Though in a different form, idolatry exists in the Christian world today as verily as it existed among ancient Israel in the days of Elijah. The god of many professedly wise men, of philosophers, poets, politicians, journalists--the god of polished fashionable circles, of many colleges and universities, even of some theological institutions--is little better than Baal, the sun-god of Phoenicia. {GC 583.1}

Here is one more quote from Ellen White where she again talk about lies about God,

In the opening of the great controversy, Satan had declared that the law of God could not be obeyed, that justice was inconsistent with mercy, and that, should the law be broken, it would be impossible for the sinner to be pardoned. Every sin must meet its punishment, urged Satan; and if God should remit the punishment of sin, He would not be a God of truth and justice. When men broke the law of God, and defied His will, Satan exulted. It was proved, he declared, that the law could not be obeyed; man could not be forgiven. Because he, after his rebellion, had been banished from heaven, Satan claimed that the human race must be forever shut out from God's favor. God could not be just, he urged, and yet show mercy to the sinner. {DA 761.4}

You will notice that Satan’s claim is part of the creed of many Christian denominations.  So, these lies have infected Christianity.  Therefore, these lies have to be removed out of Christians, primarily.  How do these lies translate into our lives?  We believe we must be afraid of God or we see God as a sort of Santa Claus.  This then translates on how we treat each other. 

For the most part we are unaware of how much we distrust God.  The judgment is to show us what is truly in our hearts.  As God told Laodicea,

Rev 3:17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:

The judgment is to reveal it as a patient is revealed his condition, and once the patient knows his condition the doctor can prescribe a form of intervention.  Spiritually, the intervention is,

 “Jer 31:33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

 “Rev 3:18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.” 

Ezekiel 11:19 And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh:

Ezekiel 18:31 Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel?

Ezekiel 36:26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.

It is the indwelling Holy Spirit which reveals Sin to us and at the same time impresses Jesus in our minds (john 14: 16 -17; 15: 26; 16: 8, 14).   Because He indwells us, we are His sanctuary (1 Corinthian 16: 9).  In the Day of Atonement the cleansing of Sin from the Sanctuary was complete.  In the eschatological day of atonement the cleansing of Sin in us, must be complete also.  How clean should it be?

Christ is waiting with longing desire for the manifestation of Himself in His church. When the character of Christ shall be perfectly reproduced in His people, then He will come to claim them as His own.  {COL 69.1} 

If the records in Heaven are a perfect reflection of us, then when we are cleansed so are the records in Heaven.  According to Daniel 8, when does the cleansing start?  It has to be after all those empires spoken of in the prophecies either no longer exist or no longer have the power they held before.  This would take us to the year 1798. 

 

The little horn of Daniel 7, which is also the beast in Revelation 13, is in power for 1260 years.  This is based on the time prophecy, in which the beast persecutes for 1260 days:  “time, times, half a time”, or 42 months, which all prophetically are interpreted to mean 1260 years.  The time frame for this is historically said to be from 538 AD, when Justinian’s general, Belisarius defeated the last of the Arian nations, the Ostrogoths, drove them out of Rome and turned over the city to the Bishop of Rome.  1260 years later, would be 1798, and that year, the French general Berthier, enters Rome, declares it a Republic, takes the pope captive, exiles him to France where the pope dies a prisoner.

With the Pope removed and the papacy no longer exerting the influence it once had, men felt at liberty to study and preach the Word of God without any adverse repercussions: it was no longer illegal.  The book of Daniel was opened to the mind of many men, including William Miller.  William Miller’s message was the cleansing of the Sanctuary.  Although, the right interpretation escaped Miller, it set the foundation for further understanding: The cleansing of the sanctuary in Heaven is dependent on the cleansing of Sin from us.  

IJP: Investigative Judgment Phobia

IJP: Investigative Judgment Phobia

Originally Posted on Thursday, September 21, 2006

 Alex walked into the room. He heard a faint noise. Immediately, his heart started pounding faster. His face turned pale, and his forehead became shiny with perspiration. Very soon after this Alex started breathing hard and short breaths; he also started shaking. Suddenly, Alex stormed out of the room running as fast as he could. Every one in the room looked at each other all confused. You could see in their faces they were concerned. Fernando walked out of the room to see if Alex was OK, but Alex was no where to be found. What could set Alex off this way? Many things could, but in this case it was a phobia. The noise he heard reminded of him of something he feared. He reacted in the way many phobia persons react.

Phobias are defined as an intense, abnormal, or illogical fear of a specified thing. Every one of us can say we have a phobia of some kind or another. It may be some type of critter, closed or open spaces, crowds, heights, depths, strangers, etc. Some define fear as an acrostic: False Evidence Appearing Real. Their rational is that many causes of fear are truly unfounded. We are frightened of things and situations we have never encountered. We imagine the worst outcome, and of course, we end up the biggest losers. Phobias are in this category.

 Why do we fear things? Some say that one major cause is that we have no control over that which we fear. In other words, if we believed that we could overpower or had a way of escaping that which we fear we would not fear it. Could this be the reason why many fear the Investigative Judgment? The mention of an Investigative Judgment causes many to either fly away or fight (the normal reactions to fear.) Why? Why has the term Investigative been exchanged for Pre-Advent? Pre-advent sounds nice, and Investigative sounds invasive. God is going into our hearts and discovering what is there. However, God not only knows what is there, He also reveals it to us. And, this is perhaps what we fear: that we and others will know all the evil that abides in our hearts. But, this is good news! The uncovering of unknown Sin can only help us. I can hear you laugh sarcastically, while yelling out, "Yeah, right!"

 You see, God reveals Sin to us so that we can yield it to the Holy Spirit. As we yield it to the Holy Spirit, He will blot the Sin out of us. This is what King David did. David was not afraid of the Investigate Judgment. In fact, he not only welcomed it, he asked God to search His heart. In Psalm 139: 23, 24 David pleads with God,

Psalm 139: 23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
Psalm 139: 24And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting

 David understood that Sin separated him from God. HE wanted oneness with God. So he asked God – Who knows the secret of our hearts (Psalm 44:21) – to search his heart, cleanse it, and lead Him in the right way. If we pray as David prayed, then God can do this with us. God does this because He wants oneness with us and loves us with perfect love. When we accept the Lord He gives us His perfect Love. When we have this perfect love John tells us 1 John 4:17, 18 that

 1 John 4:17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

 To many, the Investigative Judgment may give false evidence that God is against us, but as we see this is far from the truth. We have no control over the Judgment, but we do have control over its outcome. If we yield to the Holy Spirit, He will lead us to eternal life.

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

IJP: Investigative Judgment Phobia

Originally Posted on Thursday, September 21, 2006

 Alex walked into the room. He heard a faint noise. Immediately, his heart started pounding faster. His face turned pale, and his forehead became shiny with perspiration. Very soon after this Alex started breathing hard and short breaths; he also started shaking. Suddenly, Alex stormed out of the room running as fast as he could. Every one in the room looked at each other all confused. You could see in their faces they were concerned. Fernando walked out of the room to see if Alex was OK, but Alex was no where to be found. What could set Alex off this way? Many things could, but in this case it was a phobia. The noise he heard reminded of him of something he feared. He reacted in the way many phobia persons react.

Phobias are defined as an intense, abnormal, or illogical fear of a specified thing. Every one of us can say we have a phobia of some kind or another. It may be some type of critter, closed or open spaces, crowds, heights, depths, strangers, etc. Some define fear as an acrostic: False Evidence Appearing Real. Their rational is that many causes of fear are truly unfounded. We are frightened of things and situations we have never encountered. We imagine the worst outcome, and of course, we end up the biggest losers. Phobias are in this category.

 Why do we fear things? Some say that one major cause is that we have no control over that which we fear. In other words, if we believed that we could overpower or had a way of escaping that which we fear we would not fear it. Could this be the reason why many fear the Investigative Judgment? The mention of an Investigative Judgment causes many to either fly away or fight (the normal reactions to fear.) Why? Why has the term Investigative been exchanged for Pre-Advent? Pre-advent sounds nice, and Investigative sounds invasive. God is going into our hearts and discovering what is there. However, God not only knows what is there, He also reveals it to us. And, this is perhaps what we fear: that we and others will know all the evil that abides in our hearts. But, this is good news! The uncovering of unknown Sin can only help us. I can hear you laugh sarcastically, while yelling out, “Yeah, right!”

 You see, God reveals Sin to us so that we can yield it to the Holy Spirit. As we yield it to the Holy Spirit, He will blot the Sin out of us. This is what King David did. David was not afraid of the Investigate Judgment. In fact, he not only welcomed it, he asked God to search His heart. In Psalm 139: 23, 24 David pleads with God,

Psalm 139: 23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
Psalm 139: 24And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting

 David understood that Sin separated him from God. HE wanted oneness with God. So he asked God – Who knows the secret of our hearts (Psalm 44:21) – to search his heart, cleanse it, and lead Him in the right way. If we pray as David prayed, then God can do this with us. God does this because He wants oneness with us and loves us with perfect love. When we accept the Lord He gives us His perfect Love. When we have this perfect love John tells us 1 John 4:17, 18 that

 1 John 4:17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

 To many, the Investigative Judgment may give false evidence that God is against us, but as we see this is far from the truth. We have no control over the Judgment, but we do have control over its outcome. If we yield to the Holy Spirit, He will lead us to eternal life.

 Raul Diaz

Commentary: Christ our Priest

Christ our Priest

There are a couple of things we need to establish before we delve into Christ as a Priest.  We need to reestablish the fact that the sanctuary, its priest and services were a contingency plan.  God's original plan was to make the children of Israel a nation of priests.  They refused that plan.  So God established a teaching tool so the Israelites – and the world – could learn the Gospel.   This brings us to the second point, the existence and presence of the sanctuary was as much evidence of God's presence as it was evidence of the Israelites failure in Sinai.  The Levitical is part of that contingency plan.  Remember, God promised to make all Israel priests, only the Levites became priests, this reveals that something went wrong at Sinai.  Therefore the Aaronic priesthood is also a sign of Israel's failure at Sinai. 

Now last week we studied Christ as our sacrifice.  This is represented by the animals sacrificed at the altar.  These all point to Christ.  For the most part, in the Levitical system the priest kills the sacrifice.  In our world he who takes the life is superior than the one killed.  None of the animals killed were resurrected.  Christ presents a dilemma to the Aaronic priesthood.  Caiphas sought to kill Christ and succeeded.  Thus, it seems Caiphas was superior.  But, when Christ is resurrected, Christ proved to be superior.  He was a better sacrifice (Hebrews 9: 23). 

When we look then at the order of services we see that the priests take the blood do what with it what they are supposed to do in the service.   The Aaronic Priests never went through the experience the animals went when killed, but Christ did.  So, when we look at Christ as a Priest, we have someone that knows how it feels to be sacrificed.  In terms of Christ being the Lamb, the Lamb became a Priest.  And, the blood He shed as a Lamb, as a Priest He applies to us, for our cleansing.  We read in Hebrews 9,

 

Heb 9:11 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;

Heb 9:12 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

Heb 9:13 For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:

Heb 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

 

Christ was a better sacrifice.  His blood was more effective.  He was also a better Priest.  The Priests died and needed replacing, not Christ. 

 

Heb 7:22 By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament.

Heb 7:23 And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death:

Heb 7:24 But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood.

Heb 7:25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

 

What does it mean that Christ lives to make intercession?  But some ask why Jesus as our High Priest has to "make intercession" for us before the Father (Heb. 7:25). The word "intercession" implies that somebody is not happy and has to be interceded with on our behalf. Christ "is at the right hand of God," Paul says, "who also maketh intercession for us" (Rom. 8:34). John adds his insight when he compares Christ to "an advocate with the Father," the word "advocate" being parakletos in the Greek (1 John 2:1). Vine says the word "was used in a court of justice to denote a legal assistant, counsel for the defense, who pleads another's cause."

 

In other words, Jesus is a defense lawyer pleading a case "with the Father," John says. It seems that the Father is the Judge and that we are on trial before Him, and that we would lose our case if it weren't for Jesus being there in our behalf. This is 100 percent true; we would indeed lose out if it were not for our divine Lawyer working on our side.

 

The Father, as well as the Son, hate sin. But in accordance with the agreement between them Both, Christ became the representative Adam for the human race and paid the penalty as the sinner's Substitute and Surety, having tasted death for every man (Heb. 2:9). Thus God's wrath against sin was experienced by Christ on His cross. He suffered the curse of God which was the condemnation of the second death. His shed blood qualifies Him as mankind's Advocate with the Father. It makes it possible for the Father to shower his blessings of life equally on both the just and the unjust.

 

But who is He "pleading," "interceding" with? Who needs to be "persuaded" to accept us? Does it make sense to say it's the Father? Wasn't it He who took the initiative to "so love the world that He gave His only begotten Son" for us? How could He be against us, needing Jesus to "intercede" for us? Does the Father have a club behind His back, about to let us have it, and then Jesus steps up and says, "Look, Father, at the wounds in My hands, etc. Please be nice to these people!"? No, that doesn't make sense. The Father loves us just as much as the Son loves us! Then who is Jesus interceding with?

 

Is He interceding with the devil? Will he or his angels ever be persuaded to be nice to us? Hardly! Then who has to be persuaded to "accept" us, to stop condemning us? The good angels? No, they are "all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for" us, not against us (Heb. 1:14).

 

Then who is left who needs to be "persuaded," interceded with to "accept" us, except we ourselves? We are the ones who need to hold our heads high, to join Paul in being "persuaded" that nothing will ever "separate us from the love of God" (Rom. 8:38, 39).

 

Now, For Christ to intercede between God and us, to be our mediator, He needs to identify with us.  Ellen White said, 

 

"… the reconciliation of man to God could be accomplished only through a mediator who was equal with God, possessed of attributes that would dignify, and declare him worthy to treat with the infinite God in man's behalf, and also represent God to a fallen world. Man's substitute and surety must have man's nature, a connection with the human family whom he was to represent, and, as God's ambassador, he must partake of the divine nature, have a connection with the Infinite, in order to manifest God to the world, and be a mediator between God and man.

 

"Christ, the Son of God and Creator of the universe, humbled Himself beyond description to be joined together forever with the human race. As Adam was enjoined that in marriage a man would leave his father and mother and cleave unto his wife, so Christ left His Father in heaven to become forever a part of the human family.

 

"Clothing His divinity with humanity, He came to earth to be called the Son of man and the Son of God. He was the surety for man, the ambassador for God—the surety for man to satisfy by His righteousness in man's behalf the demands of the law, and the representative of God to make manifest His character to a fallen race." 1SM 257

 

The good news of what Jesus did for the human race as revealed in the gospel alone has power to extinguish our love for sin and prepare us for entrance to our heavenly home.

 

"For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need." Heb. 4:15, 16

 

A last word: you will notice that the work in the sanctuary is performed by the Priest and High Priest, not the sinner.  Likewise, the work in the Heavenly sanctuary is performed by Christ.  This means that the work of cleansing us, the Holy Spirit's temple, is also done by Him.  We just let Him. 

 

"The sinner may resist this love, may refuse to be drawn to Christ; but if he does not resist he will be drawn to Jesus ... in repentance for his sins" (Steps to Christ, p. 27). Therein is the essence of this cleansing of the sanctuary!

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

Christ, Our Sacrifice

Christ, Our Sacrifice

There are two aspects of sacrifice that shine out in lesson: the death and the blood.  The sanctuary had three compartments. In each of them something happened that pointed to Christ as a sacrifice.  Let enumerate them,

1.       Outer court – Passover (from an article in Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passover_sacrifice#cite_note-JE-2 )

a.       The killing took place in the court of the Temple at Jerusalem, and might be performed by a layman, although the blood had to be caught by a priest, and rows of priests with gold or silver cups in their hands stood in line from the Temple court to the altar, where the blood was sprinkled.

b.      These cups were rounded on the bottom, so that they could not be set down; for in that case the blood might coagulate.

c.       The priest who caught the blood as it dropped from the victim then handed the cup to the priest next to him, receiving from him an empty one, and the full cup was passed along the line until it reached the last priest, who sprinkled its contents on the altar. The lamb was then hung upon special hooks or sticks and skinned; but if the eve of the Passover fell on a Sabbath, the skin was removed down to the breast only.

d.      The abdomen was then cut open, and the fatty portions intended for the altar were taken out, placed in a vessel, salted, and offered by the priest on the altar, while the remaining entrails likewise were taken out and cleansed.

e.      The family would take their lamb home to roast it and eat it according to God's ordinance. 

 

2.       Outer court and Holy Place -  Daily sacrifice

a.       IN this sacrifice the blood was taken in the Holy Place to be sprinkled there.

3.       Outer court and Most Holy Place – day of atonement

a.       In this sacrifice the blood is taken into the Most Holy Place. 

In summation, in each event an animal was killed and blood was shed, and sprinkled in certain part of the sanctuary.   Let us look first as the killing of the animal.

I.                    The death

In all of these sacrifices Christ is prefigured.  They were a representation of what Christ would accomplish at the Cross.  He is the lamb that was slain from the beginning to take away the sin of the World*.  How did He take Sin away?

"He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed" (1 Peter 2:24, NASB).

 

This verse is a reference to Isaiah 53.  Here are some excerpts,

 

Isa 53:4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows…

Isa 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

Isa 53:6 … and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Isa 53:7 … he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, …

Isa 53:8 … he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken…

Isa 53:10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, …

Isa 53:11 … by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.

 

 "Christ was treated as we deserve, that we might be treated as He deserves. He was condemned for our sins, in which He had no share, that we might be justified by His righteousness, in which we had no share. He suffered the death which was ours, that we might receive the life which was His. 'With His stripes we are healed.'"—The Desire of Ages, p. 25.

It was an exchange: the priceless for the worthless trade.   He died, so we would live.  Ellen White says,

"Nothing less than the death of Christ could make His love efficacious for us. It is only because of His death that we can look with joy to His second coming. His sacrifice is the center of our hope. Upon this we must fix our faith."—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 660.

Simply, in order for humanity to be saved Jesus had to die.  There was no other way.  Paul says,

Heb 2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.

 

Christ's death reconciles to God.  Paul says in Rom 5:10, "For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, …" We are reconciled to live with him.  Let us read Romans

 

Rom 6:3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

Rom 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

Rom 6:5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

 

Notice the language: baptize into Jesus, buried with Him, planted together…We were in Him, when he died and resurrected.  And, now we are in Heavenly places in Him (Ephesians 2: 6). 

 

II.                  The Blood

 

Genesis 9: 4, Leviticus 17: 11, and Deuteronomy 12: 23 says that the life is on the blood.  Thereore any reference to blood signifies life.  When Jesus says in Mar 14:24 "… This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many," it is His life he is pouring.  We read in Hebrews 9,

 

Heb 9:12 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

Heb 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

Heb 9:22 And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.

 

Understanding then that the blood is a reference to the life of Jesus which accomplishes our redemption, let us read the following quote from Ellen White,

 

The law requires righteousness,--a righteous life, a perfect character; and this man has not to give. He cannot meet the claims of God's holy law. But Christ, coming to the earth as man, lived a holy life, and developed a perfect character. These He offers as a free gift to all who will receive them. His life stands for the life of men. Thus they have remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God. More than this, Christ imbues men with the attributes of God. He builds up the human character after the similitude of the divine character, a goodly fabric of spiritual strength and beauty. Thus the very righteousness of the law is fulfilled in the believer in Christ. God can "be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus." Romans 3:26. {DA 762.2}

 

Let us then allow for His blood to cleanses us, to purge our Sin away, to transform our minds and hearts after the similitude of Christ.

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

The Day of Atonement

The Day of Atonement 

Atonement is one of those words whose meaning has changed. If we believe God's law as an imposed law, it affects how we understand God's Word. Many think that atonement means "satisfaction or reparation for a wrong or injury; to make amends." Thus we draw all kinds of wrong conclusions: like Jesus had to die to appease the Father's wrath toward our sin. Some testify that as long as they believed that distortion, His love didn't flow in their heart. It was the truth that set them free and opened their heart to love. 

 When the King James Bible was translated into English in 1611, atonement had a different meaning than we typically ascribe today. In the 16th and 17th centuries the word "one" was not only a noun but also a verb. If two people were at odds and I wanted to bring them back into friendship I might say, "I am going to one them." I am going to bring them back into unity, into oneness. This concept quickly became known as "at-one" or "atone." We pronounce it atone rather than at-one because that is the old English pronunciation. When you are all by yourself, you are not "all one" but "alone." The process of uniting warring factions is, therefore, called atonement. 

 We are warring with God. And, God wants peace with us. We are estranged from God, and God wants to be reunited. The root of this warring and estrangement from God is distrust of God due to trusting lies that Satan has devised about God. How does God reconcile us to Himself? By revealing in our hearts and minds the truth about Himself and removing the lies. How does He do that? Let us read Romans 5, 

 Romans 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: Romans 5:6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. 

Romans 5:7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. 

Romans 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. Romans 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. 

Romans 5:11 And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement. 

 Justification by faith is more than a mere legal declaration, it becomes a reconciliation with God, an experience of "at-one-ment." It is now the time for a "final atonement," as Jesus ministers as High Priest on this Day of Atonement. If you don't resist the Holy Spirit, He will impart to you "the mind of Christ," the greatest joy you can have--to be totally "at-one" with Him. When the sinner hears the Good News and his heart responds and he believes, then he experiences justification by faith, which is the subjective gospel. 

 The message of justification by faith is intended to create in the hearts of God's people and in His corporate church, that yearning for "at-one-ment" with Him. It was to be like a bride who gladly chooses to "forsake all others" to be with Him. It was to be the end of worldliness in the church, and of all modern idolatry--not imposed by fear but by a mature response to the love of the Bridegroom. 

 In all of Hebrews' – especially chapters 9 and 10 - lofty theological acumen is one great promise! The ministry of Christ in His Most Holy Apartment in the heavenly sanctuary reveals Him as being close to us; as a true High Priest in ancient Israel who was always "for the people," always concerned for them, always revealing to them his nearness and his love, so Christ in His second apartment in the heavenly sanctuary, the Most Holy Apartment, is ministering His presence and His blessing to us as one who is described in Proverbs 18:24--He is "closer than a brother." He took on Himself the fallen, sinful nature of our father Adam so that He might reach us where we are; therefore He was "in all points tempted like as we are [tempted], yet without sin" (Heb. 4:15). 

 Also, Hebrews leaves us with the assurance that all the power of the Father who brought Jesus from the dead is directed now to the unprecedented work of preparing a people, to "make you perfect in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in His sight" (13:21). Ellen White says, 

 Christ is waiting with longing desire for the manifestation of Himself in His church. When the character of Christ shall be perfectly reproduced in His people, then He will come to claim them as His own. {COL 69.1} 

We shall be His people. We read in Jeremiah: ""This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time," declares the Lord. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people"" (Jeremiah 31: 33). We also read in Ezekiel 36, 

Ezekiel 36: 25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleanness; and from all your idols will I cleanse you. 

Ezekiel 36: 26 A new heart will I give you and a new spirit will I put within you, and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 

Ezekiel 36: 27 And I will put my Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you shall heed My ordinances and do them. 

Ezekiel 36: 28 And you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and you shall be My people, and I will be your God. 

 Will we let Him do it?

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

Commentary: “Atonement: Purification Offering”

"Atonement: Purification Offering"

 

Last week we saw how the sanctuary was established as a result of Israel's unbelief at Sinai.  It is imperative that we see that the Atonement Day feast – as well as the other feasts - was also created due to the Sin at Sinai.  Let us briefly look at the History.  The record shows that The day of atonement was established in Leviticus 23.  Therefore it was given after the Sinai incident (Exodus 19 and 20), after the building of the sanctuary (ex. 25) and even after establishing the Levites as Priests and servants for the sanctuary (Exodus 38).  In fact, the only feast ordained before Sinai was the Passover (Exodus 12).

 

Now, in order to rightly understand this week's lesson regarding forgiveness and the defilement of sin (and thus the need for the final atonement - next week's lesson), the purification or sin offering must be seen in the context of Jesus's choice to fully identify himself with fallen humanity. It was His complete sacrifice as the representative of humanity (substitute and surety) which is the ultimate expression of God's love, and thus the ultimate teaching tool to break down the walls of resistance in the heart of man and cleanse from the defilement of sin.  Ellen White states,

   

"Christ has not been presented in connection with the law as a faithful and merciful High Priest, who was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. He has not been lifted up before the sinner as the divine sacrifice. His work as sacrifice, substitute, and surety, has been only coldly and casually dwelt upon; but this is what the sinner needs to know. It is Christ in his fullness as a sin-pardoning Saviour, that the sinner must see; for the unparalleled love of Christ, through the agency of the Holy Spirit, will bring conviction and conversion to the hardened heart. It is the divine influence that is the savor of the salt in the Christian." 1888 Materials, p. 1076.

 

We will see that this is what the Atonement sacrifice was designed to do.  Now, atonement – often presented as at-one-ment - means reconciliation.  It is the process in which God and man are reconciled or made one.  In Christian Theology it is the reconciliation of God and mankind through the death of Jesus Christ.   In this service we see that this Atonement is tied to purification or cleansing of anything that separates us from God.  We call it Sin.  We call many things Sin.  Is there something more specific?  What truly alienates us from God?  What alienated Eve from God?  Ellen White says that in believing the words of Satan, "…She disbelieved the words of God, and this was what led to her fall" (Conflict and Courage, p. 15) In another quote Ellen white elaborates on this issue,

"Eve believed the words of Satan, and the belief of that falsehood in regard to God's character, changed the condition and character of both herself and husband. They were changed from good and obedient children into transgressors, and it was only by repentance toward God and faith in the promised Messiah that they could hope ever to regain the lost image of God." {RH, January 5, 1886}

Ever since then this has been the devil's main technique, we read again from Ellen White,

"Such has been Satan's work from the days of Adam to the present, and he has pursued it with great success. He tempts men to distrust God's love and to doubt His wisdom. He is constantly seeking to excite a spirit of irreverent curiosity, a restless, inquisitive desire to penetrate the secrets of divine wisdom and power. In their efforts to search out what God has been pleased to withhold, multitudes overlook the truths which He has revealed, and which are essential to salvation. . . .  In the judgment men will not be condemned because they conscientiously believed a lie, but because they did not believe the truth, because they neglected the opportunity of learning what is truth." {Conflict and Courage, p. 15} 

The Israelites at Sinai chose not to believe the truth, and neglected the opportunity to learn the truth.  This is why they needed this Atonement service.  So, Atonement is then the removal of those lies about God and His character from our minds and hearts.  Atonement is a renewal of trust in God and His Word.  The feast was designed to effect this change of mind in its participants.  After all, "…it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins" (Hebrews 10:4).  The laying on of hands, the death of the animal, the blood manipulation, the burning of the fat, and the eating of the flesh of the animal were all for the purpose of bringing the sinner to understand how complete and far-reaching was the mercy of God in simultaneously giving His own life to humanity while bearing the pain and suffering that sin causes His own heart. They were to help the suppliant to enter into the experience of God rather than to create some change in the heart of God toward the sinner. It was so the sinner would, '… look on … whom [he] pierced [and] … mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn" (Zechariah 12:10).  A wise writer expounded on this subject,

"The Lord provided the sanctuary service to help us see exactly what He was willing to do for us. Every animal slain by the hand of the sinner was to be a miniature Calvary. It was to reveal the deep-seated enmity the sinner held against God. It was to prove that God held nothing back, not even His Son, if by any means He could get man to see the rebellion buried so deeply in his mind. The service was to be a catalyst to melt the proud and stubborn hidden unconscious sin - the will to kill God."  D.K. Short, Then Shall the Sanctuary be Cleansed, p. 35.

What brings forgiveness to the sinner personally is the realization and acceptance that the Divine Sin-bearer has already borne and taken away the sin and guilt of the world, and has already been carrying the sinner's personal sins at great cost to Himself. This is what the sanctuary purification offering was to teach.

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com