“We bring the same thing that the sinner at the wilderness Sanctuary brought. We bring the very core of our being. We bring our heart.”

TEXT:

Chapter 13, Page 129 –

I’m sure you understand that everything about the Wilderness Sanctuary was very real, while at the same time symbolic. 

The very real courtyard with its curtains symbolized that even in the midst of the very real, very human encampment of the children of Israel, God wanted a sacred spot in order to do what He’s always wanted to do, in order that He “may dwell among them” (Exodus 25:8). This has been His goal from before Eden and it will be His concluding triumph in the earth made new. “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He shall dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be among them” (Revelation 21:3).

 

The very real Altar of Burnt Offering symbolized the Gift of Jesus: 

  1. Described symbolically by John the Baptist as “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). 
  2. Described graphically by Jesus: “the Son of man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28).
  3. Explained theologically by Paul, saying, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus . . . for a demonstration . . . of His (God’s) righteousness at the present time, that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus” (Romans 3:24, 26).
  4. Explained resultantly by Paul: “He [God] made Him [Jesus] . . . to be sin on our behalf . . . so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21).

What does this mean for you and me in actuality – since we aren’t bringing a lamb to an actual altar, since Jesus has already been sacrificed for us? We bring the same thing that the sinner at the Wilderness Sanctuary brought. We bring the very core of our being, the place where we choose. We bring our heart (see Romans 10:9).