Turn with me, if you would, to Exodus chapter 28. I don't know whether I'll get across what I intend to, but the truth is beautiful. This is another one of these things that I've had questions about for many years, and this is right here in the scripture, if I'll just open it up. I can open up the scriptures, you can open up the scriptures, but unless the Holy Spirit gives illumination, it's just another book.

Let's start in verse one, one, two, and three, and then verse, 30 and then we'll, wait a second, is that right? Yeah. Exodus chapter 28, verses one through three. And take thou, this is the Lord speaking to Moses. He's Moses, the Lord tells Moses to take unto the Aaron, Moses' brother, and his sons with him from among the children of Israel, that they may minister unto me, God, in the priest's office." So Aaron is the first high priest. This is the establishment of him right here. And then God's going to tell Moses how he used to make the garment, how he used to make the breastplate, how he used to make all the priestly garments. In verse two, and thou shalt make holy garments for Aaron, thy brother, for glory and for beauty. And thou shalt speak unto all that are wise-hearted, whom I, God, have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron's garments to consecrate him, why, that he may minister unto me in the priest's office. Verse 30 of the same chapter and he's beginning to enumerate what he's instruction from God to Moses and in Moses to men whom the Lord has put the spirit within and thou shalt put in verse 30 in the breastplate of judgment the urim and the thummim that they shall be upon Aaron's heart when he goes in before the Lord And Aaron shall bear the judgment of the children of Israel upon his heart. before the Lord continually. Now, Aaron is obviously, obviously, he's not talking about any person in the scriptures. The scriptures, Christ must have the preeminence. In all things, Christ must have the glory. And in all these Old Testament, the Old Covenant, the Old Testament, all these garments, the showbread, the tabernacle, all these things are a picture or a type representative of the Lord Jesus Christ. These priests, they died every year, just like priests today, they're gonna die. So who are you gonna put your trust in? You're gonna put your trust in the one high priest, the Lord Jesus Christ, which is stated throughout the whole scriptures and specifically in Hebrews. We have a high priest who's not made with hands. the Lord Jesus Christ. So if we look at this person, Aaron, as a picture or a type of the Lord Jesus Christ, now let's look at our text. Verses 36 through 38. And thou shalt make, okay, they made the urn and the thyme. Thou shalt make a plate of pure gold, verse 36, and grave upon it like the engravings of a signet holiness to the Lord holiness to the Lord and thou shalt put it on a blue lace that it may be upon the miter upon the forefront of the miter it shall be and it shall be upon Aaron's forehead that Aaron may bear the iniquity of the holy things which the children of Israel shall hallow in all their holy gifts, and it shall be always upon Aaron's forehead, that they may be accepted before the Lord." Now, you see what's going on? Aaron has been consecrated, but the things he's got on, the whole thing pictures Christ. And here's the question that I've had for a long time. Even as believers, I've often thought, we sin knowingly, when we leave this room, and we may, in this room, and after the message, after the Lord's Supper, we sin knowingly, or perhaps unknowingly, how is it then God who is so holy and cannot even look upon sin, why does he not smite us down immediately? Why does he not kill us immediately? Even the Apostle Paul, turn with me to Romans chapter seven. The Apostle Paul, after salvation, he made his comment, and this is what the cry, this is what every believer says, Paul says in verse 18 of Romans 7, for I know, said Paul, a saved sinner, that in me, that is in my flesh, dwells no good thing. For to will is present with me, but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would, I do not. But the evil that I would not, that I do. Now if I do that, I would not. It is no more I that do it. but sin that dwelleth in me. For I delight, I'm sorry, verse 21, for I find in a law that when I would do good, evil always is present with me. He's talking about two natures. He's talking about the nature of God in the soul We're created in Christ Jesus, a new nature. We're washed, we're cleansed. Like he said to the disciples, to Peter, when Christ was washed in her feet, Peter said, wash me the whole way. And Christ said, no. You don't need to be washed because you're clean. You're clean every whit. And we looked at what that word meant. You're clean. But you need your feet, those which touch the ground, which you go to work, Excuse me you You intermingle with the people the world you all these things you get dirt on your feet. So he says that's why I'm washing your feet and I Was looking at numbers. We won't turn their numbers. I believe it's chapter 8 and verse 7 he's talking about Consecrating the the priest again and he says that the people will get together and they'll wash the Levites and they'll cleanse them and they'll shave them Now and I'd never never in my life I never thought about this way but let me ask you and you know, I need to answer but Did you shave today will you shave this week? Why because it's natural, the hair grows back. That's just like the old man. And the razor, it would be like the Holy Spirit. It's quicker. The word of God is quicker and able to divide asunder. We shave. Now, it doesn't count towards heaven because grace has already been established. I thought, what a beautiful picture. Hair, it just comes naturally. It grows naturally. So if you want to look good, But that doesn't do anything for your heart. But that's what the Holy Spirit does when we gather together, we read the word, and we desire to be more like Christ. It's the same thing. Everybody, because that hair, the longer you let it go, The worse you look I don't know how else to phrase it, but that's that it's it's a good illustration And if you think about look at numbers actually look at what Tim James says on numbers chapter 8 verse 7 I've never seen before very clear very clear. We just keep It's like I said, the feet washing, it's the same thing. We put under every day the old nature. Henry Mahan would say to plow the garden. If you don't plow the garden, what happens? Weeds. Why? Because it's natural. Tim James would say, don't feed the wolf. So that was my thought. I've always wondered how the Lord can put up with us When we say we know him and we continually sin, the answer is in this passage. Look at verse 38.

This miter, this holiness to the Lord is upon Aaron's forehead. Why? That he may bear the iniquity the holy things you want to tell me that when you came in the church this morning your motive your heart was totally pure and you You were ready to worship. You weren't thinking about Football games maybe today. You weren't thinking about sports today. You weren't thinking about You weren't thinking about you were thinking about yourself No, all these things. Yes That's our work. We're holy in the Lord We are consecrated But thank God our high priest, the Lord Jesus Christ, does not stop interceding for us. That's all I got to say.

And I think it's page 45 of the book that everybody took home or got some more coming from Carol Poole. It's called A Sinner Such as Myself. And he just beats himself up. That's what the believer does. We see how sinful we are, and yet we are so thankful that we have a mediator, an intercessor, a go-between, a propitiation, one among a thousand, says Job, to show man Christ's uprightness, his righteousness. Therefore, we're accepted. Because it's nothing that we do before salvation, it's nothing we do after salvation, it's all of grace. all of grace.

So we have a most wonderful and beautiful picture before us this morning. Aaron, our type of Christ, and it says that he specifically may bear the iniquity of the holy things before the Lord. Now before one another, but before the Lord.

Now let's go back a few verses and let's develop this lesson look at verse 36 and thou shalt make a plate of pure gold and grave upon it the like the engravings of a signet holiness unto the Lord holiness unto the Lord the most noted attribute of God is His absolute holiness. It's not His love. It's not His unchangeableness. It's not His omniscience. It's not His omnipresence. It's His holiness. And you wonder where we get the name of this book. It's not the Good News Bible. It's the Holy Bible. Why? Because that characteristic, that attribute is most often, often are used to describe Jehovah God.

Now I could be wrong, but years ago I took a concordance that has every word in the Bible and I looked under to see these attributes and holiness. There was more, that was the word more used to describe God than any other. I may be wrong, you can check that because it's been a long time since I've looked that up. However, He is essentially holy. He alone, God the Father, is without sin, separate from sin, and cannot coexist heaven with sin. And as the Father, so the Son, and the Son, so the Holy Spirit. This is the reason why God in Christ is both just and can still justify. This is why he sent his only begotten son to redeem fallen sinners. This is why he, God, retains his sinless perfection and also can admit sinners saved into glory.

Turn to Psalms 85. 85, verse 10 and 11. Look at this impossibility. Verse 10, mercy and truth. Those are diametrically opposed. Today, people show mercy at compromised truth, or they have strict truth and don't show any mercy. Only God can, in Christ, at the Calvary's tree, mercy and truth are met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed each other. Truth shall spring out of the earth and righteousness shall look down from heaven. In the person, the accomplishments, and the worth of Christ. This is the only place in glory, in the universe, that this could be said. Mercy and truth kissing together.

This is also why, turn it with me to Hebrews chapter 12. This is why in Hebrews chapter 12 and verse 14, he says, in the New Testament, it's also in the Old Testament, follow peace with all men and holiness, without which, without which holiness, no man shall see the Lord.

Well, how can a sinner who's born and trespasses and sins since the fall of Adam in the garden, how can they be holy? because Aaron, or Christ, bears the iniquity of even the holy things before the Lord. Even the holy things before the Lord. God is holy, we are not. We are born in sin and shapen in iniquity. That's what David says, Psalm 51, I was shapen in iniquity. Now, what's the answer? If God is holiness, what's the answer? Both Old Testament and New Testament. Aaron, how the above is accomplished. Aaron, as our picture of our lovely Lord Jesus, is in full view here. Do we see him? Do we see Christ in Aaron? Do we need Aaron? Do we need Christ in Aaron? Do we desire him? Do we must have him? Remember, he's the only one that can bring mercy and truth together. and righteousness and peace. He's the only one.

What this intercession does, look at verse 38. Aaron, substitute that name Christ, may bear. Now that word bear means literally to take or carry away. That's how. That's how. How is redemption accomplished? How is holiness obtained? How is righteousness sought after? Because Christ bears or takes away or carries away the iniquity, which means evil, fault or punishment of the holy things, of the holy things. He bears it, takes it away. He carries the iniquity or evil. Even our best deeds are holy things. Ourselves, even after salvation, when grace comes and has been placed in us and upon us, we have need to continually confess and plead Christ's blood and his own righteousness.

Isaiah 64 6 you say well, I'm pretty I'm pretty good. I've got a bunch of stuff going for me Well, what is Isaiah? 64 6 say Isaiah 64 6 But we are all as an unclean thing everybody in All our righteousness is that's the best you could do. That's the best I can do are as filthy rags I remember when I first heard that, I think it was Arthur Pink, made me pretty mad. Made me pretty mad because my mom, my mom, not my dad, but my mom always said I was one of the best children. I was highly ranked in her eyes. That's fine. We're talking spiritual. We're talking the eyes of Jehovah God. And incidentally, we all do fade as a leaf and our iniquities like the wind have taken us away. Oh, and if that isn't enough, verse seven, and there is none that calleth upon God that stirreth himself up to take hold of thee. Well, I called on God ever since I was a little kid. Your God, but not the God of the scriptures.

As I said, our best, our holy things need to be born and carried away. Do we get re-saved? Do we need another baptism? Are we lost, saved, lost, saved? No, no, no, not at all. You hear the gospel. And this passage, this passage in itself is also a clear statement in regards to once saved, always saved, our eternal security, or the perseverance of the church. This passage right here.

So, well, I don't feel holy. I've done some things that I'm ashamed of. Aaron, the Lord Jesus Christ has bore the iniquity of your best things, that they who, us, his church, his elect, his people, may be accepted before the Lord. It's just, it's like a bookend. It's like he has us. He has us locked in a corner. And I'm glad it's his corner. I'm glad he's got me there. The Jew tells us, unto Him that is able to keep us from falling, and to present us faultless before the presence of His throne. Only Him, only He can do that. So, because of Christ, What he has done, is doing, and shall ever do, we are accepted. It's what it says in the latter part of this verse.

Aaron wears this on his forehead. He may bear or carry the iniquity, the evil of the holy things, which the children of Israel shall hallow in all their holy gifts. You may think it's holy. You may think it's great. But if it doesn't measure up to God's perfections, it's not. That's why we need a substitute. He'll carry it on his forehead that they, who's the they? It's the children of Israel. It's not everybody. It's never been everybody. It's always been his people, whoever they may be, wherever they may be. Sinners, just like everybody else, no better. that they may be accepted.

Well, what's that word accepted mean? Literally means delighted in or favored. I always say this and Linda says, don't say that. I couldn't make this. I couldn't stick my theology in here. If I'm honest with myself, if I'm honest with the word, you just preach it. And I don't know Greek and Hebrew, but I got tools that tell me what it means. And even that, I consider myself like the apostles, an ignorant and unlearned man, but hopefully have been with Christ. I don't think you need any of these tools. I think they're very helpful, but I think they can be a distraction. The bare naked word of truth. That song we sing, nothing between my soul and the Savior, nothing. And that's the way we want it. We want it. We want an absolute holiness under the Lord, a representative for us who are unholy to bear the iniquity of the holy things, which is what we do. Which is what we do.

Yes, this holy, sovereign, unchangeable God is satisfied with the scheme to rescue fallen sons and daughters of Adam's race. We quote this passage frequently. For God hath made Christ to be sin for us, Christ who knew no sin, that we, sinners, might be made the righteousness of God in Him. Explain that? Nope. I believe it. I can't explain it. A lot of people have tried, and a lot of people muddy the water. It's in His Word. It's to be believed, not rested.

for this scheme, this decree, this purpose from God the Father. He initiated it all. Who's telling Moses to do all this? God. Who told the Lord Jesus Christ to come and voluntarily suffer and bleed on the cross for sinners? His Father did. It's all initiated by Him. It's all purposed by Him. Therefore, He will accept what he initiates.

I don't know if I'm saved. If you try to save yourself, you're not. If you try to make a decision for some Jesus you've conjured up in your mind, you're not. If your Jesus is the Jesus of modern day religion, modern day, it goes back to the garden, when Adam and Eve thought they could cover from the presence of holy God with fig leaves. And it's carried all the way through.

But if you're trusting and resting in his work before salvation and after, he doesn't save you and then do your best. No, he gives you a new heart, a new nature, a new creature. We love him because he says in John, 1 John, we love him because he first loved us.

Oh, the truth, there's never anything we could do to earn or merit or accomplish our own salvation or redemption or glory or even in keeping, it must be done outside of us, but for us. Someone who looks like a human, someone who acts like a human, someone who is tempted in all points like we did, didn't sin, couldn't sin.

So I close with this. Is this Astounding verse in verse 38 Christ may bear the iniquity of the holy things now We don't sin this does not promote sin If it does, you haven't heard the message right. This promotes holiness under the Lord. This promotes a desire to walk with him and to glorify him in everyday life.

So any doctrine or gospel, whatever you hear, that promotes you to sin or it's okay to do, no, it's not of God. But because Aaron may bear, Christ may bear the iniquity of the best that we can do, therefore, Our acceptance is of Him. It has nothing to do that they may be accepted before the Lord.

Is this good news to anyone here today? Is it good news? Is this specifically good news for you and for me? I think the lessons are to us here so we may absolutely rest and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ on the salvation and after salvation.

Let me reread this. And it shall be upon Aaron's forehead that Aaron may bear the iniquity of the holy things, which the children of Israel shall hallow in their holy gifts, and it shall be always upon his forehead, Christ never stops interceding for us. That they may be accepted before the Lord.

Let me ask you, how many good works and how hard did the one thief on the cross? He had two thieves. Christ in the middle. How hard did that one work for salvation? What did he do? Did he baptize? Did he get down and do good works? He did nothing. That shows the freeness of salvation. The Lord convicted him. Lord, remember me, a sinner. The other guy didn't say anything. The Lord convicted him. And he said, Lord, remember me. And what did Christ say? I'm going to see you today in glory.

Before, after, and incontinent salvation. Christ is and must be our all and all.

Nathan, would you close us please?

Heavenly Father, we think we know how much we sin or how badly we sin, how often we sin.