WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.160 So, again, just to remind us, Alec Mateer had that helpful idea that the tabernacle 00:00:07.160 --> 00:00:12.080 is the greatest of all biblical visual aids to spiritual realities, that we can look at 00:00:12.080 --> 00:00:18.679 the details of the tabernacle and discover truths for our lives, truths about the gospel. 00:00:18.679 --> 00:00:26.359 But let's begin this evening going on a guided tour. So imagine we are approaching the tabernacle 00:00:26.359 --> 00:00:30.859 complex. The first thing we would come to would be the outer courtyard, and there would be 00:00:30.859 --> 00:00:37.119 a curtain that we could then go through in order to access. From there, we would then 00:00:37.119 --> 00:00:43.219 come to the tabernacle tent itself. Again, there'd be another curtain we could enter. 00:00:44.060 --> 00:00:51.120 And then right at the heart of the tabernacle, as we moved in, we would come to another, the 00:00:51.119 --> 00:00:58.919 final curtain. Beyond that curtain lies the Holy of Holies. And the thing that's so surprising 00:00:58.919 --> 00:01:05.739 that would have surprised people, were they able to enter that, compared to every other 00:01:05.739 --> 00:01:17.879 temple in the ancient Near East, behind the curtain, at the center of the tent, there was 00:01:17.879 --> 00:01:27.679 not a statue of a god. Instead, there was this small, beautiful box holding a copy of the 00:01:27.679 --> 00:01:36.299 Ten Commandments. This is utterly unique. Israel's worship is unique because they don't have an 00:01:36.299 --> 00:01:46.719 image of God. Everybody else would have expected the big statue, but they have the ark. That's 00:01:46.719 --> 00:01:50.620 how we would probably do a guided tour. We'd begin on the outside and we move in. But actually, 00:01:51.560 --> 00:01:59.560 when you look at the book of Exodus, Moses, as he writes it, begins at the center, begins at the 00:01:59.560 --> 00:02:07.420 heart. So the first thing that is detailed and the first thing that is constructed is the ark, 00:02:07.420 --> 00:02:18.060 because the ark is the symbol of God's presence and God's rule. And this ark is the way for us to 00:02:18.060 --> 00:02:26.020 understand this new relationship that God has entered into with his people, which is a covenant 00:02:26.020 --> 00:02:32.360 relationship. We're going to think about that. So it's a really significant box. Of course, the ark 00:02:32.360 --> 00:02:38.840 has been a source of endless fascination. For those of us who grew up with a golden age of 00:02:38.840 --> 00:02:44.660 movies in the 80s and 90s, Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark was huge. 00:02:45.700 --> 00:02:51.160 And then it's really interesting, if you ever had time, look at the history of the 20th century 00:02:51.160 --> 00:02:59.480 for the number of times that people went to search for the lost ark. All kinds of schemes to try and find 00:02:59.479 --> 00:03:09.000 this ark. But we want to understand why does it matter for an Old Testament worshiper? What did it 00:03:09.000 --> 00:03:18.819 signify? And then how does it matter to us? What does it teach us about Jesus and the gospel? 00:03:19.459 --> 00:03:25.099 So we're going to trace together briefly four ideas that we find from the ark. We're going to think 00:03:25.099 --> 00:03:33.659 about kingship and covenant and atonement and access. So some huge themes that we're going to cover 00:03:33.659 --> 00:03:41.120 very briefly. But let's begin thinking about the ark and kingship. So as I said, unlike all other 00:03:41.120 --> 00:03:48.859 temples in the day, Israel's tabernacle tent is unique because there is no idol or statue there. So we might 00:03:48.860 --> 00:03:57.660 ask, well, how is kingship shown by the ark, by this box? Well, the first thing perhaps that strikes us is 00:03:57.660 --> 00:04:04.400 the gold. So look at verse 11, overlay it with pure gold both inside and out and make a gold 00:04:04.400 --> 00:04:12.400 molding around it. And gold from the very beginning has been associated with glory and royalty and also 00:04:12.400 --> 00:04:21.600 with purity. There's an interesting little detail that the box has feet. And so people have asked, 00:04:21.699 --> 00:04:27.240 why is there feet on the box? And I think it was probably to avoid any contamination from putting 00:04:27.240 --> 00:04:33.199 the ark on the ground. So it's a purity thing. And it's the same reason why there are these poles 00:04:33.199 --> 00:04:43.699 to carry the ark, that this is where God's presence, God's holy presence is represented, therefore it cannot 00:04:43.699 --> 00:04:52.019 be defiled. So the gold helps us to think about glory and kingship. Secondly, there's the cherubim 00:04:52.019 --> 00:04:58.419 on the top. Verse 19, make one cherub on one end, the second on the other, and they've got those wings 00:04:58.420 --> 00:05:05.600 that spread and overshadow the ark. We meet cherubim through the Old Testament, the first place we meet 00:05:05.600 --> 00:05:13.600 them all the way back outside the Garden of Eden. Once Adam and Eve have sinned against God and they 00:05:13.600 --> 00:05:20.620 are thrown out of the sanctuary, the holy place, as judgment, then there are the cherubim, Genesis 3, 24, 00:05:20.620 --> 00:05:27.840 to guard the garden. God's holy place cannot be defiled. But we understand that the cherubim 00:05:27.839 --> 00:05:35.560 represents something of the rule of God. They are His royal attendants. And then the significance of 00:05:35.560 --> 00:05:43.799 the cherubim really becomes clear in 1 Samuel 4 and verse 4. As they're talking about the ark and what 00:05:43.799 --> 00:05:52.719 the ark represents, it is said there that God is enthroned between the cherubim. So when we think of 00:05:52.720 --> 00:05:58.400 the ark, we think of the gold, we think of the cherubim, we are invited to think of this is God's 00:05:58.400 --> 00:06:08.880 throne. This is the place where He rules from. And we're also told in this little section, what is the 00:06:08.880 --> 00:06:17.600 foundation of God's rule? And we find that in verses 16 and 17. For the people of God who have been 00:06:17.600 --> 00:06:24.520 redeemed by His grace, there are two things. Put in the ark, first of all, the tablets of the covenant 00:06:24.520 --> 00:06:31.160 law, and then they are to make an atonement cover. So there is a covenant law to keep. 00:06:32.480 --> 00:06:38.720 Here is how to live in relationship with God. Keep the law. And wonderfully, graciously, 00:06:39.379 --> 00:06:46.020 for when that law is broken, there is the atonement cover. There is a place where sin can be atoned for, 00:06:46.019 --> 00:06:55.139 where forgiveness can be found. So that's just a little on the ark and kingship. On a related theme, 00:06:56.120 --> 00:07:00.180 let's think together about the ark and what it says to us about covenant. 00:07:02.659 --> 00:07:07.719 Our legal contracts, if we've ever entered into a legal contract, perhaps with a mortgage or something 00:07:07.719 --> 00:07:15.120 like that, are going to be held securely in a legal office somewhere, a record of binding agreements 00:07:15.120 --> 00:07:23.220 between a bank and a person or a company and an individual, they're going to be recorded and kept 00:07:23.220 --> 00:07:35.439 securely somewhere. The ark functions in some ways like a safety deposit box, because within the ark, 00:07:35.680 --> 00:07:43.199 there is the covenant agreement that has been entered into between God and His people. 00:07:43.199 --> 00:07:53.360 Just help us think about that. What is this idea of covenant and a covenant relationship? So presupposing 00:07:53.360 --> 00:08:00.639 where we're at just now is the fact that God, by His grace, has chosen to save a people for Himself. 00:08:01.819 --> 00:08:09.159 So He has saved Israel out of slavery, brought them to Himself, has met with them in the wilderness, 00:08:09.160 --> 00:08:13.300 established a new relationship, established a new relationship with them, and has given them 00:08:13.300 --> 00:08:22.960 the covenant law, the Ten Commandments as the great summary of that. So a covenant, simply put, 00:08:23.020 --> 00:08:30.340 is an agreement between God and people where God promises blessing if His conditions are kept 00:08:30.339 --> 00:08:40.240 and threatens curses when His conditions are broken. And so we see that through the Old Testament. This is 00:08:40.240 --> 00:08:48.339 how to understand what's going on. So the covenant contract in the ark, you know, God has been faithful, 00:08:48.539 --> 00:08:54.659 God has saved them, God has established this relationship, and now here is what Israel is to do, 00:08:54.659 --> 00:09:04.579 to keep the terms of the covenant, to love God and to love their neighbor. And so the ark speaks of 00:09:04.579 --> 00:09:11.120 a covenant relationship, and it speaks of covenant obedience that is required. 00:09:11.120 --> 00:09:18.799 And that's why the next thing we need to think about is so important, because we move from there to think 00:09:18.799 --> 00:09:29.240 about the ark and atonement. So, so far we have at the heart of Israel's worship this ark, this box, 00:09:29.360 --> 00:09:38.779 this chest as a symbol, that God is present and He rules as King, that God has entered into covenant 00:09:38.779 --> 00:09:45.439 relationship. And the tablets in the ark, and the tablets in the ark stand as evidence, and they stand as 00:09:45.439 --> 00:09:58.759 the requirements if the people are to enjoy blessing. And God is enthroned above the ark and the law. 00:09:58.759 --> 00:10:10.860 From His throne, what does the Holy God see? As He looks down, as He looks around, as He looks at His people, 00:10:12.419 --> 00:10:18.519 sadly we know that He sees that His people break those covenant conditions. 00:10:18.519 --> 00:10:28.699 that His people don't live in obedience. They don't live with love for God with all their heart, soul, mind, 00:10:28.759 --> 00:10:36.480 and strength, and they don't love their neighbor as themselves. The people of God have broken 00:10:36.480 --> 00:10:47.559 the covenant contract. If we were to fast forward to Exodus 32, the sad incident of the golden calf, 00:10:47.559 --> 00:10:51.699 Moses is up meeting with God at Mount Sinai, the people say, Moses has been away for a long time, 00:10:52.039 --> 00:10:59.059 let's make a calf that in some way represents God. And they begin this kind of revelry and wild, 00:10:59.239 --> 00:11:05.699 immoral worship, and God tells Moses to go down, and He sees what's happening. And remember, as He sees 00:11:05.699 --> 00:11:13.379 what's happening, He smashes the tablets with the Ten Commandments. It's really an enacted symbol 00:11:13.379 --> 00:11:21.139 that God's people that God's people have smashed the covenant by their disobedience. 00:11:23.139 --> 00:11:27.559 But the thing that's so important for us to understand is that's not just an Old Testament 00:11:27.559 --> 00:11:31.919 Israelite problem. That's a universal problem. 00:11:31.919 --> 00:11:43.860 That we are made in God's image to glorify Him, to live in obedience to Him, to live worshiping Him. 00:11:45.579 --> 00:11:50.939 But just like Israel, we too break those commands. We break faith with God. We dishonor 00:11:50.939 --> 00:11:54.360 God in our thoughts and our words and our actions. 00:11:54.360 --> 00:12:04.519 Remember what God is like. Think about that golden ark. He is pure. He is holy. He is the king. He is ultimate authority. 00:12:06.860 --> 00:12:13.379 His law has been broken. He must judge what is evil and harmful and wrong and disobedient. 00:12:13.379 --> 00:12:23.299 And if we only had the box with no cover, we would be in trouble. 00:12:25.799 --> 00:12:37.759 That this box has a lid is of crucial importance to the good news of our salvation, to the story of human history. 00:12:37.759 --> 00:12:44.819 The ark needs its lid if we can ever know God and live at peace with Him. 00:12:45.000 --> 00:12:49.939 If we can ever hope to find forgiveness and to enjoy life with Him. 00:12:52.200 --> 00:13:01.559 Verse 17, make an atonement cover of pure gold, two and a half cubits long and a cubit and a half wide. 00:13:01.559 --> 00:13:06.599 Indeed, this will become the place of atonement. 00:13:06.759 --> 00:13:11.659 A few weeks ago, we were in Leviticus 16, thinking about the day of atonement. 00:13:12.819 --> 00:13:18.259 That one day in the year where the priests could enter in, and there had to be the right washings, 00:13:18.279 --> 00:13:24.239 and there had to be right sacrifices, and the blood was sprinkled so that the people could be forgiven, 00:13:24.719 --> 00:13:27.059 that all the uncleanness could be dealt with. 00:13:27.059 --> 00:13:32.219 It happens here, on the atonement cover. 00:13:34.659 --> 00:13:39.159 Forgiveness secured at the cost of the blood of a substitute. 00:13:39.819 --> 00:13:46.299 And notice in verse 17, if you were to compare the dimensions with verse 10, 00:13:48.099 --> 00:13:49.599 this lid is an exact fit. 00:13:49.600 --> 00:13:59.080 And that's so important for us to know, that the blood of the sacrifice will be an exact fit, 00:13:59.420 --> 00:14:07.180 an exact payment to cover over and to atone for a broken law. 00:14:09.420 --> 00:14:15.420 And then we have this detail in verse 20 of the cherubim with their wings spread upwards, 00:14:15.680 --> 00:14:17.220 overshadowing the cover. 00:14:17.220 --> 00:14:21.320 I was thinking all week, what's the significance of this overshadowing? 00:14:23.300 --> 00:14:26.220 Well, I think it speaks to the significance of atonement. 00:14:27.320 --> 00:14:36.779 Because at this atonement cover, the sinner who has broken the law can be shadowed and shielded 00:14:36.779 --> 00:14:40.320 from the just judgment of a holy God. 00:14:40.320 --> 00:14:49.900 Because now, when God looks down from His throne, He doesn't just see a law that has been broken. 00:14:49.899 --> 00:14:57.840 He also sees that a sacrifice has been made, that blood has been shed, 00:14:58.899 --> 00:15:07.600 that a worshiper who trusts by faith, though a sinner, is shielded and safe 00:15:07.600 --> 00:15:13.319 because of the ark and because of the atonement cover. 00:15:13.320 --> 00:15:23.600 And again, related to this in part, fourthly, is the idea of the ark and access. 00:15:24.300 --> 00:15:28.960 Now, the curtains aren't mentioned here, but we need to think about the curtains, 00:15:29.120 --> 00:15:31.220 and we need to think about doorways as well. 00:15:31.220 --> 00:15:32.200 So, we know this. 00:15:32.379 --> 00:15:39.240 Doors can be both a place of entrance, but sometimes a place of not entering. 00:15:39.540 --> 00:15:41.700 You know, sometimes you'll come to a door and the sign will say, 00:15:41.840 --> 00:15:46.840 staff only, and you'll find the door is locked, or access for authorized personnel only. 00:15:47.220 --> 00:15:50.519 You'll go to a shop and you'll see that it's closed and you can't get in. 00:15:50.519 --> 00:15:59.379 When the tabernacle is constructed, there is a sense in which the curtains have that same message. 00:16:00.860 --> 00:16:06.779 So, while it was possible for anybody to enter into the outer courtyard through the first curtain, 00:16:07.100 --> 00:16:12.439 there was only a certain type of people, if they were ritually clean and pure, 00:16:12.620 --> 00:16:16.079 who could enter into the tabernacle tent itself. 00:16:16.080 --> 00:16:22.840 But absolutely, when you came to the final curtain, it stood as a great big no entry sign, 00:16:23.100 --> 00:16:29.900 except for one day every year, when it became an authorized personnel only sign, 00:16:30.320 --> 00:16:34.020 because the high priest could go through on the day of atonement, 00:16:34.920 --> 00:16:39.480 to offer that sacrifice, to sprinkle the blood so that sin could be forgiven, 00:16:40.400 --> 00:16:42.120 that moral guilt could be dealt with. 00:16:42.120 --> 00:16:47.840 And so, you've got this tension within Old Testament worship in the tabernacle, 00:16:48.879 --> 00:16:53.060 that at one and the same time, God is both absolutely at home with His people. 00:16:53.740 --> 00:16:55.279 So, we thought about that last week. 00:16:55.379 --> 00:16:58.919 Here's God's tent, and all the tents of Israel are right around it. 00:16:59.000 --> 00:17:01.799 God has mercifully come down to be right at home with His people. 00:17:01.799 --> 00:17:07.440 But the curtain also says, no entry. 00:17:09.139 --> 00:17:10.359 There is a limit. 00:17:13.480 --> 00:17:17.399 Verse 22, as God speaks with Moses, He says, 00:17:17.480 --> 00:17:21.480 They are above the cover between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the covenant law. 00:17:22.059 --> 00:17:24.859 I will meet with you and give you all my commands for the Israelites. 00:17:24.859 --> 00:17:28.879 So, wonderfully, Moses enjoys the presence of God. 00:17:29.359 --> 00:17:31.079 He enjoys relationship with God. 00:17:31.399 --> 00:17:34.799 But, Moses cannot enter. 00:17:36.219 --> 00:17:37.259 He's not the high priest. 00:17:38.579 --> 00:17:38.939 Once the… 00:17:38.939 --> 00:17:39.759 I was thinking about this this week. 00:17:39.939 --> 00:17:41.919 Once the tabernacle is built, 00:17:43.699 --> 00:17:45.439 once the curtains are up, 00:17:46.199 --> 00:17:47.919 Moses will never see the ark again. 00:17:48.839 --> 00:17:50.419 Whenever it moves, it's always covered. 00:17:50.420 --> 00:17:53.960 So, he sees God with the eyes of faith. 00:17:54.640 --> 00:17:56.500 But there's a sense in which God is both at home, 00:17:56.580 --> 00:18:01.720 but there's a limitation of access for the Old Testament worshiper. 00:18:03.600 --> 00:18:07.560 So, the ark speaks to us of a king who's in covenant relationship with His people. 00:18:08.180 --> 00:18:09.060 He has saved them. 00:18:09.120 --> 00:18:10.279 He comes to be among them. 00:18:10.779 --> 00:18:12.580 But, as yet, there's no direct access. 00:18:13.900 --> 00:18:18.759 And that will continue to be the case until the coming of Jesus. 00:18:18.759 --> 00:18:20.960 Jesus, our great covenant king, 00:18:21.299 --> 00:18:23.559 who is God with us in a whole new way, 00:18:24.619 --> 00:18:27.500 who is the means by which, as the author of Hebrews says, 00:18:27.579 --> 00:18:31.259 we can boldly approach God's throne of grace with confidence, 00:18:31.500 --> 00:18:33.299 because we come by way of Christ. 00:18:34.839 --> 00:18:39.740 So, let's think together about how Jesus fulfills all that the ark pictures 00:18:39.740 --> 00:18:43.079 as we think about Jesus, our great covenant king. 00:18:43.079 --> 00:18:52.000 Because the gospels, of course, show us that Jesus is God's king. 00:18:52.399 --> 00:18:54.480 The ark represents kingship. 00:18:54.619 --> 00:18:56.220 Jesus comes as the king. 00:18:56.480 --> 00:18:58.099 And His message, as He begins, 00:18:58.220 --> 00:18:59.519 repent and believe the good news, 00:18:59.599 --> 00:19:01.319 the kingdom of God is near, 00:19:01.399 --> 00:19:03.539 because the king has come to be with His people. 00:19:04.639 --> 00:19:07.720 In the gospels, He is clearly identified as the Messiah, 00:19:07.839 --> 00:19:10.039 as the Christ, the anointed, promised king. 00:19:10.039 --> 00:19:14.940 We discover in the gospels that angels attend King Jesus. 00:19:15.980 --> 00:19:17.720 He's there at the birth stories. 00:19:18.559 --> 00:19:21.159 He makes sure that infant Jesus is protected. 00:19:22.519 --> 00:19:25.259 He's there at, the angels are there at Gethsemane, 00:19:25.799 --> 00:19:27.839 giving comfort and strength to Jesus 00:19:27.839 --> 00:19:32.879 as He anticipates bearing the sin of the world and its guilt. 00:19:33.119 --> 00:19:35.079 And the angels are there to report His resurrection. 00:19:35.079 --> 00:19:38.359 And, of course, the gospels themselves, 00:19:38.899 --> 00:19:40.759 as we consider the life of Jesus, 00:19:40.859 --> 00:19:41.919 they speak to Him as our, 00:19:41.980 --> 00:19:45.099 they speak of Jesus as our glorious King. 00:19:46.960 --> 00:19:49.339 And so, as we come into the New Testament, 00:19:50.740 --> 00:19:53.079 now we see Jesus is how God meets with us. 00:19:53.960 --> 00:19:56.099 Jesus is how God speaks to us. 00:19:57.039 --> 00:19:59.019 Jesus is the one we are called to obey, 00:19:59.359 --> 00:20:01.859 and Jesus is the one we look to for mercy 00:20:01.859 --> 00:20:04.500 when we break the law and fall into sin. 00:20:04.500 --> 00:20:07.839 Jesus is head of His church. 00:20:08.819 --> 00:20:12.700 Jesus comes to be enthroned in the praises of His people, 00:20:12.960 --> 00:20:14.180 and wonderfully, 00:20:15.539 --> 00:20:18.220 comes to be enthroned in the hearts of His people also. 00:20:19.099 --> 00:20:22.259 That's how near our God and King come. 00:20:23.619 --> 00:20:26.539 And Jesus is the King who comes to establish 00:20:26.539 --> 00:20:29.079 a new covenant with His people. 00:20:29.220 --> 00:20:31.980 It's there in the language of the Lord's Supper. 00:20:31.980 --> 00:20:34.880 The broken bread and the cup of wine 00:20:34.880 --> 00:20:37.259 become symbols of His broken body 00:20:37.259 --> 00:20:38.279 and His shed blood, 00:20:38.640 --> 00:20:40.220 which are themselves the means 00:20:40.220 --> 00:20:42.200 for the new covenant to be established. 00:20:42.440 --> 00:20:43.779 The law in our hearts, 00:20:43.880 --> 00:20:46.160 the Spirit given so we can truly obey. 00:20:49.079 --> 00:20:50.380 And then we think about the cross. 00:20:51.519 --> 00:20:53.460 We think about His sacrificial death. 00:20:53.460 --> 00:20:56.460 And we recognize there in the providence 00:20:56.460 --> 00:20:57.600 and the mercy of God, 00:20:57.840 --> 00:21:00.180 here is the exact payment 00:21:00.180 --> 00:21:02.980 to cover all of our sin 00:21:02.980 --> 00:21:05.120 and all of our guilt. 00:21:06.759 --> 00:21:08.799 The Bible is really clear about sin. 00:21:09.140 --> 00:21:09.880 Every sin, 00:21:10.380 --> 00:21:11.539 even the ones that we minimize 00:21:11.539 --> 00:21:12.720 and say they're no big deal, 00:21:12.819 --> 00:21:14.440 they are an infinite offense 00:21:14.440 --> 00:21:16.120 to an infinitely holy God. 00:21:16.119 --> 00:21:19.500 But in God's kindness, 00:21:19.639 --> 00:21:21.219 He has given His own Son, 00:21:21.299 --> 00:21:22.679 the sinless Son of God, 00:21:22.839 --> 00:21:24.599 and He lays down His life 00:21:24.599 --> 00:21:26.799 as an infinitely valuable sacrifice. 00:21:28.239 --> 00:21:30.000 This is the only payment 00:21:30.000 --> 00:21:32.019 that will satisfy God's justice 00:21:32.019 --> 00:21:34.979 and will demonstrate God's great love 00:21:34.979 --> 00:21:37.419 so that now as the Lord looks down from heaven, 00:21:37.919 --> 00:21:38.959 from His throne, 00:21:39.959 --> 00:21:42.119 He doesn't just see that we are lawbreakers. 00:21:42.119 --> 00:21:45.779 He sees that Jesus has given Himself 00:21:45.779 --> 00:21:46.779 as a sacrifice. 00:21:46.979 --> 00:21:48.899 The sacrifice has been made 00:21:48.899 --> 00:21:51.119 so that He can be merciful. 00:21:52.119 --> 00:21:54.639 That God Himself has provided the Lamb 00:21:54.639 --> 00:21:56.959 so the guilty can find grace. 00:21:57.559 --> 00:22:00.959 For us, the cross stands as our great 00:22:00.959 --> 00:22:04.500 atonement cover and mercy seat. 00:22:05.679 --> 00:22:08.119 So that when God looks at us 00:22:08.119 --> 00:22:09.259 as we are in Christ, 00:22:09.339 --> 00:22:10.459 when God looks at the Christian, 00:22:10.459 --> 00:22:11.500 He sees us. 00:22:12.119 --> 00:22:13.979 As we truly are, 00:22:14.019 --> 00:22:14.939 and sometimes we struggle 00:22:14.939 --> 00:22:16.559 to see ourselves this way. 00:22:17.799 --> 00:22:19.039 I was reminded this week 00:22:19.039 --> 00:22:21.659 of Heidelberg Catechism number 60. 00:22:22.719 --> 00:22:24.959 Let me share that with us. 00:22:25.759 --> 00:22:28.719 God, without any merit of mine, 00:22:28.859 --> 00:22:29.779 the catechism says, 00:22:29.879 --> 00:22:31.779 but only of sheer grace, 00:22:32.599 --> 00:22:34.599 grants and imputes to me 00:22:34.599 --> 00:22:37.279 the perfect satisfaction, 00:22:37.919 --> 00:22:38.500 righteousness, 00:22:38.500 --> 00:22:40.959 and holiness of Christ, 00:22:40.960 --> 00:22:42.539 even so, 00:22:42.539 --> 00:22:44.460 as if I never had had 00:22:44.460 --> 00:22:46.420 nor committed any sin. 00:22:47.420 --> 00:22:48.079 Yes, 00:22:48.279 --> 00:22:50.799 as if I had fully accomplished 00:22:50.799 --> 00:22:52.819 all that obedience 00:22:52.819 --> 00:22:55.180 which Christ has accomplished 00:22:55.180 --> 00:22:56.460 for me, 00:22:57.279 --> 00:22:59.019 inasmuch as I embrace 00:22:59.019 --> 00:23:00.579 such benefit 00:23:00.579 --> 00:23:02.960 with a believing heart. 00:23:02.960 --> 00:23:05.420 by faith, 00:23:05.420 --> 00:23:08.279 we believe that Jesus' blood 00:23:08.279 --> 00:23:09.400 and righteousness 00:23:09.400 --> 00:23:11.019 overshadows us. 00:23:11.480 --> 00:23:13.640 We believe with John Newton 00:23:13.640 --> 00:23:15.180 and with our closing hymn 00:23:15.180 --> 00:23:16.900 that though our sins are many, 00:23:17.299 --> 00:23:19.500 His mercy is more. 00:23:19.740 --> 00:23:22.880 So that as we look to Jesus by faith, 00:23:23.120 --> 00:23:24.519 our Father in heaven 00:23:24.519 --> 00:23:26.079 can be as pleased with us 00:23:26.079 --> 00:23:27.779 as He is with His Son, Jesus. 00:23:27.779 --> 00:23:30.539 He can love us 00:23:30.539 --> 00:23:33.180 as He loves His Son, 00:23:33.759 --> 00:23:34.579 the Lord Jesus. 00:23:34.920 --> 00:23:36.599 And the result of 00:23:36.599 --> 00:23:38.059 the atoning work 00:23:38.059 --> 00:23:38.940 of the Lord Jesus, 00:23:39.579 --> 00:23:41.839 we have a new access. 00:23:43.259 --> 00:23:44.819 We have a new privilege 00:23:44.819 --> 00:23:46.099 that wasn't given 00:23:46.099 --> 00:23:47.740 to the Old Testament worshiper. 00:23:49.059 --> 00:23:50.240 Remember that curtain 00:23:50.240 --> 00:23:52.940 that stood as a no-entry sign 00:23:52.940 --> 00:23:56.039 at the Holy of Holies. 00:23:56.820 --> 00:23:57.779 Author of Hebrews says 00:23:57.779 --> 00:23:58.920 that also represents 00:23:58.920 --> 00:24:00.080 the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:24:01.259 --> 00:24:03.100 So in Mark chapter 15 00:24:03.100 --> 00:24:04.220 tells us 00:24:04.220 --> 00:24:06.500 that as Jesus breathed His last 00:24:06.500 --> 00:24:07.920 on Mount Calvary 00:24:07.920 --> 00:24:09.960 and down there in the temple 00:24:09.960 --> 00:24:11.539 the curtain was torn 00:24:11.539 --> 00:24:12.920 from top to bottom, 00:24:14.200 --> 00:24:16.000 we're to see the connection. 00:24:17.640 --> 00:24:19.480 That the curtain is torn, 00:24:20.200 --> 00:24:21.759 Jesus' body is torn, 00:24:21.759 --> 00:24:25.420 opening up the way to God. 00:24:26.240 --> 00:24:28.420 Jesus is the one way, 00:24:29.379 --> 00:24:30.819 the living way 00:24:30.819 --> 00:24:34.140 into the very presence of God. 00:24:35.160 --> 00:24:37.160 We can boldly come 00:24:37.160 --> 00:24:39.539 through the Lord Jesus 00:24:39.539 --> 00:24:40.700 and His sacrifice. 00:24:42.500 --> 00:24:46.220 So as wonderful as the ark was 00:24:46.220 --> 00:24:48.619 for an Old Testament worshiper, 00:24:48.740 --> 00:24:50.259 at the heart of our faith, 00:24:50.359 --> 00:24:51.480 at the heart of our worship, 00:24:51.759 --> 00:24:54.740 is someone greater by far 00:24:54.740 --> 00:24:56.180 than this ark. 00:24:57.200 --> 00:24:58.039 The Lord Jesus 00:24:58.039 --> 00:24:59.740 who comes to rule in our hearts, 00:25:00.299 --> 00:25:03.160 to bring us into covenant relationship, 00:25:03.660 --> 00:25:06.680 who calls us to obey His word, 00:25:06.819 --> 00:25:08.460 to live with love for God 00:25:08.460 --> 00:25:09.079 and for others, 00:25:09.160 --> 00:25:10.259 to live in holiness, 00:25:11.460 --> 00:25:13.500 and who graciously has provided 00:25:13.500 --> 00:25:17.039 for us when we fail to do that. 00:25:17.039 --> 00:25:19.359 and through Him, 00:25:20.099 --> 00:25:21.619 and only through Him, 00:25:22.420 --> 00:25:24.079 we're welcomed all the way in 00:25:24.079 --> 00:25:25.799 to life, 00:25:26.920 --> 00:25:27.700 to a home 00:25:27.700 --> 00:25:29.019 with our God.