Hearts On Fire

This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord:  I will put my laws upon their heart, and on their mind I will write them, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.  ---Hebrews 10:16-17

Last week I wrote about being involved in a church group for the purpose of encouragement and exhortation.  That is exactly where I was at 6:00 a.m. this morning, meeting with a small group of guys who are not afraid of the cold, or the dark, or even (this week) of the rain, as long as we are armed with a strong cup o'Joe (we meet at a Starbucks).

We are studying Hebrews, and this morning we read chapter 9 slowly and deliberately.  Before we began chasing rabbits and getting off topic completely,  I was struck with verses 3 and 4:

Behind the second veil there was a tabernacle which is called the Holy of Holies, having a golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden jar holding the manna, and Aaron's rod which budded, and the tables of the covenant.

Over the past few months our group has read scripture (particularly the book of Hebrews) in the context of the New Covenant brought about by Jesus Himself.  The Old Covenant contained a number of requirements, such as ritual cleansing and animal sacrifices, all of which were a type and shadow of the new, better covenant.  According to Thayer's Greek Lexicon, "The word covenant is used to denote the close relationship which God entered into, first with Noah, then with Abraham...and afterward through Moses with the people of Israel."  This covenant, this sacred contract, bound both God and the people to certain requirements, and could not be voided.  "By this last covenant (that of Moses), the Israelites are bound to obey God's will as expressed...in the Mosaic law, and He promises them His mighty protection and blessings of every kind in this world, but threatens transgressors with the severest punishments." (Thayer's)

It struck me this morning that God has always desired fellowship with Man.  He has always been willing to meet us in our worldly dwelling, to walk with us as He walked with Adam in the Garden in the cool of the evening.  In return, He expects and even provides (for we cannot attain it in ourselves) some form of sanctification.  Look at Hebrews 9:1.  "Now even the first covenant had regulations of divine worship and the earthly sanctuary."  Notice the confluence of the "worldly" and the "divine" or "holy."  Thayer's defines "holy" in this way:

"(The term) used of things which on account of some connection with God possess a certain distinction and claim to reverence, as places sacred to God which are not to be profaned.  (The term is also used) of persons whose services God employs...set apart for God; to be, as it were, exclusively His."

Friends, that's us.  God calls us to be holy.  In our worldly, profane setting, God calls us out.  Even with our sinful nature, He desires fellowship with us.  So much so, that He sent His only Son to be a sacrifice for our sins, so that the sinfulness that we possess innately is covered by Jesus' blood.

There has always been a wall of separation between sinful Man and holy God.  In the Tabernacle given to Moses, there was a veil or curtain separating the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies.  When Jesus died, the Bible says that this firewall was no longer needed.   "And behold, the veil of the Temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split." (Matthew 27:51).

Look at what we now have access to.  Hebrews 9:3-4 says, "Behind the second veil (the one that was torn apart when Jesus died) there was a tabernacle (or room) which is called the Holy of Holies (a holier place), having a golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden jar holding the manna, and Aaron's rod which budded, and the tables of the covenant."  What do these things represent?

Altar of Incense  We have the privilege of giving our worship directly to God.  We do not need a priest or a mediator, because Jesus Himself is our mediator (1 Timothy 2:5). Many times in the Old Testament, God described burnt offerings as "a sweet savor".  Today, we who offer our lives as "a living sacrifice" (Romans 12:1).  We have within our hearts a holy fire, and the smoke from that fire is as incense, a "sweet savor" to God.

Ark of the Covenant  Literally a box, commissioned by God to hold remembrances of His miracles of old, and symbols of Himself to us.

• Jar of Manna  A symbol of God's provision, of His grace and mercy.  In the Old Testament, the people of Moses were never without sustenance, because God provided a unique source of food every day.  This stuff that appeared on the ground every morning like dew was unlike anything the people had ever seen--that's why they called it "manna", meaning "what is it?"  It looked like coriander seed, and it tasted sweet like honey.  "His mercy is new every morning." (Lamentations 3:23).  His grace is so sweet, and God provides it for us daily if we walk with Him in an attitude of worship.
• Aaron's rod which budded  A symbol of God's favor, His divine selection or appointment.  If you are not familiar with the story, in the book of Numbers the people of Israel were challenging the authority of Moses.  Basically, they accused him of nepotism, as his brother Aaron was selected as the High Priest.  God told Moses to have each of the twelve tribes of Israel to present a rod, which was a symbol of power and authority.  All twelve rods were marked or identified in some way, so that each tribe knew which was theirs.  They were placed in the tabernacle overnight, and the next morning, they were collected.  Eleven of them were returned just as they had been presented--dead wood, without life or anything signifying God's anointing.  Only one, the rod identified as belonging to Aaron, was different: it had grown a bud, a flower like that of an almond tree in the springtime.  God had endowed it with signs of life, even though it had been cut off from the root.  Believers in Christ also have that endowment, that signal of life springing out of us. It is as if we were grafted into an unseen Vine (Romans 11:23-24).
• Tables of the Covenant  A symbol of the Law of God.  In Exodus we see that God literally wrote the Ten Commandments in stone with His own hand.  Paul wrote, "You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men; being manifested that you are a letter of Christ, cared for by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts." (2 Corinthians 3:2-3).

Note, too, the order in which these are listed.  If we approach God in a spirit of worship, we will see His provision, His grace and mercy.  As we know grace more fully, we will see His favor and His divine appointment.  Then as we commit ourselves to that divine appointment, we will desire to perform His will as expressed by good works, righteous behavior, and morality.  I think too many times the enemy attacks us because we are not good enough to be in the presence of God.  Shame and remorse keep us from fellowship with God, building again that firewall that Jesus tore down by His sacrificial death.  Whenever that occurs, we should realize that moral living is the last manifestation, not the first.  If it were first, then we would be slaves to a salvation based on our works, not on God's mercy and grace.  "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast" (Ephesians 2:8, 9) Or, conversely, so that no one should feel separated and ashamed because they do not measure up to a holy God.

In the Hebrew language, there is no word modifier like "-er" or "-est", as in "holier" or "holiest".  Instead they would repeat the word for emphasis.  A holy thing was "holy".  A holier thing was "holy, holy."  The holiest thing of all was "holy, holy, holy."  The writer of Hebrews describes the Tabernacle, the symbol of the Old Covenant, in this way.  Hebrews 9:2 describes the outer room of the Temple, the place to which all had access, as "the holy place."  The second room behind the curtain was described as "the holy of holies"--literally, "holy, holy."  Friends, now, because of Jesus, we have access to this "holy, holy" place.  And one day, we will also have access to the One described in Revelation 4:8 as "holy, holy, holy".  He is the holiest one of all.