Exodus chapter 25. The last couple weeks we looked at the tabernacle, we looked at the materials in chapter 25 gathered for the things that are going to be built. And now I come back to chapter 25 and we are going to look at the ark. It's actually the first thing mentioned In the building of these material things, these are the tabernacle, lampstand, table for the showbread.

But it's the last thing, I think, made. It's the first thing mentioned, though. But everything else has got to be made, and then it's going to be put into the tabernacle. It's not going to just sit around. It's not going to just be made and set over to the side. This represents Christ here.

Now the title is this, TYPOLOGY 101 PART 2 THE ARK. Is that too long? TYPOLOGY 101 PART 2 THE ARK. Now Exodus 25, 10-22 we are introduced to the Ark, later called the Ark of the Covenant or the Ark of Testimony. And this is the most important piece of furniture, and I believe I can say it that way, that's put in the Tabernacle because here above this Ark, God said, I will meet with you. Right here, I'll meet with you. He said from above the mercy seat, I'll meet with you.

Now the word ark just simply means a box. It's a box. But what a box this ark was. It represented a person. It represented the Lord Jesus Christ in whom the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily. This is where in Christ is where God meets sinners and deals with sinners in mercy. So this is a very important portrait we have here this morning in the ark. Here we find mercy and acceptance is given. We're not accepted of God anywhere else except in Christ. whom this ark represents.

Now in verse 10, And they shall make an ark of Shiddim wood. The material here is given and it's very important, it's not to be overlooked, don't just read through it. The material is Shiddim wood, that's the Hebrew name for the Acacia tree, that's the Acacia tree is what that is. And the ark was made of this acacia tree, and this tree grew in the desert. It grew in that desert where they were in the wilderness. It grows in Australia and some parts of Asia. But it grows in a desert is where it grows at, in a desert.

It's rough and thorny. Some believe this is the crown of thorns that was placed on our Lord's head was made from this tree. because there's two species of it. One of them, the thorns are about three inches long. But it's very thorny, very thorny tree, very rough looking tree. I pulled it up on YouTube and looked at it. It's a very, just very rough looking tree.

And it grows in this desert. And it's known, this is interesting, it's known as the umbrella thorn or the umbrella tree. If you ever watch a movie on Africa and you see the Serengeti and you see this tree that grows up and it's bushed out like this, that's it, that's the Acacia tree. It gives shade, it gives shade to the beast.

But it also, it reflected the harsh land in which it grew. It grew in very harsh land. And the roots of it go very, very deep into the ground to where it reaches water in that very arid climate. I thought this is a great picture of the people whom the Lord came to save.

They're very rough, unattractive. I know we think we're attractive. I know that. I know what we think we are. We're like mirror, mirror on the wall. Who's the prettiest of them all? Well, it ain't you. It ain't you. It's terrible when you laugh at your own humor, isn't it?

But it's a great picture of those whom the Lord came to save, isn't it? When the Lord came into this world and He walked through Jerusalem HE SAVED THE CRIPPLED, THE DISEASED, HE RAISED THE DEAD, HE SAID THE PHYSICIAN DOESN'T COME TO HEAL THE WHOLE BUT THE SICK, HE CAME TO SAVE THE SICK, AND THAT'S ME SPIRITUALLY, THAT'S ME, THAT'S ME, AND THAT'S YOU. So it's a great picture of the ones He came to save. And what a picture we have here of the Lord truly becoming one of us. He became one of us.

He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant and as a root out of dry ground. He has no form of comeliness. And when we shall see Him, there's no beauty that we should desire Him. Christ came in humility. He came in humility. You know, man judges by appearance, don't we? But God looks on the heart and there's never been a heart like His heart. He loved God with all His heart and His neighbor as Himself. He truly did.

Now there's something else that's interesting about this tree, this acacia tree. It produced honey. I mean, the bees, you know, the bees that took the nectar from the flowers of that tree, it produced a very light-colored, sweet, very aromatic, and very medicinal honey.

I thought, that's so much like our Lord. so much like Him. Psalm 119, 103, How sweet are thy words unto my taste, if you have tasted that the Lord is gracious. How sweet are thy words unto my taste, yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth. We not only hear of Him, we taste Him. His words of mercy. Are they not sweet to us? Are they not sweet to the broken heart? They're sweet. His words are sweet. Grace, it said, poured from His lips. Grace poured from His lips.

And the tree, listen, this tree, as I already mentioned, it provided shade in a burning desert. Those wild beasts And when I pulled this up and I was watching it on YouTube, there was a leopard laying on a branch, birds nested in it, and wild beasts were under it. And I thought, that's just like us, under the shadow of His wing. So sinners, listen, sinners find rest in Christ as they pass through this weary land, this desert.

I didn't realize what a desert we lived in until God saved me. I didn't realize that the whole world really does lie in wickedness until the Lord saved me. Until He saved me, it was a playground. Before He saved you, it was a playground, but afterwards we see it for what it is, don't Remember when the Lord touched that man's eyes and he says, what do you see? I see men as trees walking. And he touched him again and said, now what do you see? I see men as men. I see men as men. And that's all they are. They're just a worm like me and you.

How sweet are his words. and what shade He provides us in this weary land. Then the measurements of this ark is given, two cubits and a half and a cubit and a half. The measurements are perfect proportion. The measurements were exact, they were divinely ordered. And these are thoughts that struck my mind as I was reading.

It was not too large or too heavy to carry. Christ is not unbearable. He's not too heavy. He's not too heavy. I got that song going through my mind. I know you know what it is. He's not heavy. He's my brother. I gotta say it or I'm gonna go nuts. But there's a truth to that. He's not heavy. He's my brother. He's my brother. Listen to Matthew 11, 29 and 30. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart. You shall find rest to your souls, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Christ is not heavy, is He?

That ark was made, it was divinely ordered to where those priests could just pick it up on their shoulders and carry it ever how far they had to carry it. Oh the wisdom of God and though He appeared as an ordinary man in that art dwelt the fullness of God. You know here's what's amazing the heaven of heavens cannot contain God yet all of God and all His glory and all His greatness is contained in that one man. THE HEAVEN OF HEAVENS CAN'T CONTAIN HIM, BUT IN THAT ONE MAN, THAT ARK, IS CONTAINED THE FULLNESS OF GOD.

Can you see that? I see it. I see it. Now we have the gold overlay in verse 11. Thou shalt overlay it with pure gold within and without. That's important. Here is the Deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. We had the acacia wood, His humanity, bone of our bone, flesh of our flesh. But now we have His Deity. That wood was overlaid with pure gold, refined in the fire. And this was not for beauty. This was not so this box would look beautiful as they carried it and people would see it and say, Well, that's a beautiful box. It represents Christ's deity, God Incarnate.

This man is God in the flesh. This man who took a child and set that child on his lap and blessed that child is God. Can you imagine that? You know in the Gospels it speaks of Him taking this one child and putting it on His lap and blessed Him. Wouldn't you like to follow that child's life? It says He blessed Him. It would have been interesting to follow His life.

Here as a man, listen, as a man alone, Jesus Christ can't do anything for me. But as God, as the God-man, He can save me. He can truly save me. He can represent me. God alone can't represent me, but God as a man can represent me. He can represent me.

You know, it is written over in Acts 20, 28, Paul tells the elders there to feed the Church of God over which He's made them overseers. HE SAID GOD HAS MADE YOU OVERSEERS TO FEED THE CHURCH OF GOD WHICH HE HATH PURCHASED, WHICH GOD HATH PURCHASED WITH HIS OWN BLOOD. HE DID NOT QUIT BEING GOD WHEN THEY NAILED HIM TO THE CROSS. HE DID NOT QUIT BEING GOD. YOU SEE, NOW LISTEN, I SAID THIS WAS IMPORTANT.

The gold was within and without, not just the outside where you could see it, but on the inside where you can't see it. You see, Christ was not half God and half man. He was not half one and half the other. You buy milk, it's called half and half. He's not half and half at all. He is fully man, fully God, and yet one undivided person. That's who He is.

And then a crown of gold was put on the top and surrounded that ark. It went all the way around, all the way around, a circle without beginning or ending. It speaks of His eternal deity. It speaks of His authority, His power, a crown. CROWN HIM WE SING WITH MANY CROWNS. I think we're going to end with that, aren't we? CROWN HIM WITH MANY CROWNS. ALL THE SAINTS CAST THEIR CROWNS BEFORE HIS FEET. HE'S THE ONE WHO WEARS THE CROWN. THIS CROWN IS AROUND THIS ARK. GOES ALL THE WAY AROUND. UNBROKEN. UNBROKEN.

AND IT ALSO SPEAKS OF THE GLORY HE NOW POSSESSES THROUGH HIS SACRIFICE AND RESURRECTION. HE NOT ONLY HAS THE CROWN BECAUSE OF WHO HE IS, HE EARNED THAT CROWN. HE EARNED IT. IT'S HIS. HE PURCHASED IT, SO TO SPEAK, WITH HIS BLOOD. IT'S HIS. IT'S HIS BECAUSE HE'S GOD, IT'S HIS BECAUSE HE SHED HIS BLOOD, AND HE EARNED IT. HE BOUGHT THE KINGDOM. THE KINGDOM'S HIS. HE PURCHASED THE KINGDOM WITH HIS OWN BLOOD.

Says over in Romans 2.9 that though He was made a little lower than the angels for a little while, but crowned with glory and honor.

God crowned Him with glory and honor that we've not yet really seen. We're about to. But we haven't really, really, really seen it. Not until you get there. Not until we arrive in glory can we really, really see the glory of Jesus Christ, that man See Him in His full glory. Now we come to the rings and the staves during 12-15.

Because this testimony, this art that has the testimony in it, it's got to be carried. It's got to be carried. And it says that there's four gold rings were cast, not welded. They're not a weak link in Christ. There's no weakness in Him. It was cast of solid gold. And then it was attached to the ark. It was in the four corners. The four rings were cast, they were not welded, they were placed in its corners.

And the thing that came to my mind is the four gospels. The four gospels that bear witness of the Lord Jesus Christ from generation to generation. You know, we have the epistles where the doctrines are given, where we have the doctrines of grace and the application of grace, but when you go through the four gospels, you have Christ from beginning to end. It's all about this man who walked on this earth and who is God.

And we start with Him. That's where we start. That's where we start. We start with Him. If you're going to talk about election, you start with Him. He's the elect and we were chosen in Him. That's what God says in Isaiah 42, Behold Mine elect. And He's talking about Christ. And we were chosen in Him. We were chosen in Him.

Now these staves here, they were also of the same material, wood overlaid with gold. You didn't just pick up some stick or make some pole and stick through those rings. No, it's of the same nature. This shows it's oneness. This is all one, this is all Christ. But this gets interesting here.

THE ARK WAS TO BE CARRIED BY THE PRIESTS USING THESE STAVES, EVEN THE PRIESTS WERE NOT ALLOWED TO TOUCH THE ARK. THE PRIESTS DIDN'T TOUCH THE ARK. THEY DIDN'T TOUCH THE ARK. THOSE STAVES WERE IN THE RINGS AND THEY PICKED THE ARK UP WHEN IT WAS READY TO MOVE AND CARRIED IT.

BELIEVERS, IT IS SAID IN THE SCRIPTURES, OUR MAID, KINGS AND PRIESTS, unto God. We are made kings and priests unto God. We have the privilege of carrying the gospel of Christ from one generation to another. We are still carrying the gospel. We're still carrying this ark, except we're not carrying a box. We are taking the gospel throughout the world and preaching. There's people in other countries listen to us.

And these staves were not to be removed from the ark while it journeyed. Only when it came to rest in Solomon s temple were the staves removed. Now, all the other things like the lampstand, the table for the showbread, and the altar, all those staves were removed. When they were carried, they were carried by those staves, but they were removed, but not the ark.

NOT WHERE GOD SAID HERE'S WHERE I'LL MEET YOU. IT WASN'T REMOVED UNTIL IT WAS PUT INTO THE TEMPLE. AND IT WASN'T REMOVED TO BE CARRIED FROM THERE NO MORE. THERE'S WHERE IT STAYED. MY THOUGHT ON THIS WAS WE CARRY THE GOSPEL THROUGHOUT THE WORLD. But there's coming a day when the whole church of God, the whole elect of God will be in glory, and we will carry it no more. We won't go around saying, Know the Lord, know the Lord, know you the Lord. No, we won't say that because we'll all know Him. It says from the least to the greatest. Until then, we'll carry the gospel. God will use us to carry the gospel, but one day it's not going to be carried like it is now.

THAT'S GONNA BE OVER! THAT'S GONNA BE OVER! IT'S ALL GONNA BE FINISHED! THE TEMPLE, EVERYTHING, GONNA BE FINISHED! CHURCH, THE BRIDE, IT'S ALL FINISHED! AND WE'LL KNOW HIM! WE'LL KNOW, IT SAYS, EVEN AS WE ARE KNOWN! THERE'LL BE NO STRANGERS THERE! WE WON'T BE STRANGERS TO ONE ANOTHER! I CAN'T EXPLAIN THIS, BUT WHEN WE SEE ABRAHAM, I'LL KNOW THAT'S ABRAHAM! DAVID? NOBODY'S GONNA SAY HERE, I WANT YOU TO MEET DAVID!

Can you have any idea how many billions of people, innumerable company of people whom the Lord has saved of every kindred, tribe, tongue, and nation under heaven? And we'll know every one of them and they'll know us. They'll know us. That's just, well, it says we'll have the mind. We'll have the mind of Christ. So that should settle any questions if we have His mind.

And then we have the TESTIMONY here in verse 16, the TESTIMONY WITHIN. Thou shalt put into the ark the TESTIMONY. Inside the ark was the LAW, the TESTIMONY OF GOD. Now later on, Aaron's rod that budded in the pot of manna, but at this time it's just the LAW right here, the TESTIMONY OF GOD. It's put, this ark is made to put the law in, to KEEP the law in. There's going to be a lid made of pure gold here in a minute, we'll get to. It's going to be right over top of that.

I don't have time today, but I want to follow this out. I want to take the ark right here, and I want to follow it all the way through the Scriptures until it disappears, and see the effect that It has on those who love not the gospel. Those Philistines, they opened it up out of curiosity. God didn't give this to us out of curiosity. This is the portrait of Christ. This is sacred. But this law is kept in this ark.

Psalm 48 verse 8, Psalm 40 verse 8, I delight to do thy will, O God, thy law is within my heart. Our Lord said in John 5 17, Think not that I am come to destroy the law and the prophets. I didn't come to destroy but to fulfill, to keep the law. He kept the law. I can't emphasize that enough. He kept the law. Our Lord kept the law perfectly.

It was not, listen, it was not near Him. It was not something He carried around like we carry the Bible. It was in His heart. You know, He didn't need to have the stones to read to know what it said. It's in His heart, written in His heart. And God said, I'll write my law in your heart. It's also written in your heart now when God saves you. It was kept in him. And I mean in him, not just by him, but in him. Because you got to love the law first. You got to love God with all your heart and your neighbor as yourself. That's the starting point. That's the starting point. LOVE FULFILLS THE WHOLE LAW! And He fulfilled it completely, every jot and every tittle.

That s what He says there in Matthew 5.17. He said He didn t come to destroy the law of the prophets, but to fulfill them. And He said not one jot or tittle will depart or not be fulfilled. He said it will all be fulfilled, every jot and tittle.

Now we come to the MERCY SEAT. It is a pure gold. You see, the box is made of shidom wood, that acacia tree, and it's overlaid with gold within and without, it's covered with gold. But this mercy seed is pure gold, and the cherubims on it are made, formed out of that mercy seed. They're not just stuck on top of it, they're a part of it. THEY ARE A PART OF THE MERCY SEAT.

This is important. You see, here this represents Christ and His divine sufficiency. What did that centurion say when he was standing there at the cross right at the end? Truly, this is the Son of God. This is His divine sufficiency. He's the Son of God. Philip said to that eunuch, he asked about being baptized, and he said, if you believe, and he said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Here's His divine sufficiency for you and me. This is when the father said, this is my beloved Son in whom I'm well pleased. This is Him.

Now there's two cherubims, I'll get back to this mercy seat, but there's two cherubims of beaten gold stood on this mercy seat. It was on the lid of this mercy seat. This lid is solid gold, it's the same size of the ark, but not as tall, it's just the same width and length. And on it was two cherubs made out of gold.

AND THEIR FACES LOOKED TOWARD THE MERCY SEAT. BOTH OF THEM, THEY'RE LIKE THIS, LOOKING AT EACH OTHER, EXCEPT THEY'RE NOT LOOKING AT EACH OTHER, THEY'RE LOOKING DOWN AT THE MERCY SEAT. I LIKE WHAT C.H. MACINTOSH SAID, THEY WITNESSED THE FALL, NOW THEY WITNESS REDEMPTION. THEIR ATTENTION WAS FIXED ON THE PLACE OF MERCY, PLACE OF REDEMPTION. as our attention is placed on Christ who is our mercy seat and these two cherubs here what I think they represent and there's different ones you know different people have read they and I believe these this is so but these two cherubs I believe they speak of the Old and New Testament preachers that are in TOTAL AGREEMENT with each other.

They are in TOTAL AGREEMENT with each other. They have the SAME MESSAGE. Same message. Am I not preaching Christ on the Old Testament? You know, God's preachers agree with one another. What are angels? To simply put it, they're messengers. That's exactly what angels are. They're ministering spirits. They're angels. You know, when the Lord writes to the church at Ephesus and all those seven churches, do you know who He addresses? The angel of the church at Ephesus. Who is that? It's the pastor.

Now I'm not saying I'm an angel like Michael, but I'm a MESSENGER! And I believe these are MESSENGERS of the GRACE and MERCY and REDEMPTION of Christ! They're MESSENGERS is what they are! They're MESSENGERS! And they're made out of this SAME GOLD! That which is born of the SPIRIT is what? It's SPIRIT! When those sinners whom God saves are born again, it is NOT REFORMATION! There is literally a NEW NATURE BORN, CREATED OF GOD IN RIGHTEOUSNESS AND TRUE HOLINESS, and that which is born of the Spirit IS SPIRIT, it is of the SAME NATURE IT IS BORN OF! Listen, we are ONE IN CHRIST! We're not just connected to Him. We're not an add-on.

We're literally a part of the vine. The branch grows out of the vine. It's not just stuck to it. It's part is coming out of it. And that's us. And we're witnesses to the gospel of Christ. And they're looking at the mercy seat. And their wings are hovered out like this and they touch one another. They touch one another. This shows their wings spread out like this. This shows the reverence and awe of God.

They're looking down on that mercy seat. And I mentioned this to you last week, even the angels desire to look into those things that you and I see. You know, I mentioned last week where the cherubim were woven into that covering over the ark. Those also, those represent the ministers of Christ in Him.

He's not without His witness, is He? He's not without His witness. God's never been without a witness, never. He's always had His preachers. And in a sense, every one of you who believe are a preacher, you're a witness of Christ. When God opens the door, you're out there in the community and work someplace, and God opens the door, you're able to witness to them of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Heaven itself is occupied with the glory of redemption. as well as His church here on earth. And then we have this covering, this mercy seat covering the law. It said, The mercy seat was placed above the ark, covering the law within. Covering that testimony within. This law that's in this ark was broken by us. It wasn't just broken by them. GOD'S LAW HAS BEEN BROKEN BY EVERY HUMAN BEING ON THIS EARTH EXCEPT JESUS CHRIST. AND THIS LAW THAT'S WITHIN REVEALS TO US OUR SIN, BUT MERCY, MERCY COVERS THIS BROKEN LAW, THIS LAW WE'VE BROKEN. CHRIST IS THAT COVERING.

Romans 3 25 whom God has sent forth to be a propitiation you can write there mercy seat that's what it means mercy seat perpetuatory through faith in his blood and here's what God says and it's what makes this this piece of furniture, if I can call it that, the MOST IMPORTANT. God says in verse 22, THERE I WILL MEET WITH THEE FROM ABOVE THE MERCY SEAT. Christ is the place where sinners meet God. He is the place where sinners meet God. He is the substitute.

That priest would come in there and he would sprinkle the blood. on that ark on that lid on that top of that mercy seat he sprinkled the blood you know he'd come in there with incense that it would cloud it up and he couldn't even really see see it not you you can't god said nobody could look on my face that's your kind of glory was so it was so bright He would come in there with that incense and the prayers of our Lord and then He would go over and sprinkle blood on that mercy seat.

Oh, the blood, the blood, the blood. That blood says the law in that ark is satisfied. Here's the atonement. God satisfied, wrath appeased, reconciliation accomplished. That's what this says. And it's truly this golden seat, mercy seat, is truly the throne of grace. Here's the throne of grace. Christ is the throne of grace.

It's where we come to God. We come to God in Christ, don't we? It's where God meets us. So where Christ is present, God communes with His people wherever He's present. The Lord said, we're two or three gathered together in my name, there am I in the mist. He's the only reason, He is the only reason God can be here this morning.

And then closing. The ark was a box, but it was far more than a box. It was a picture, a portrait, OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, HIS HUMANITY THE WOOD, HIS DEITY THE GOLD, HIS KINGSHIP THE CROWN, HIS PERFECT OBEDIENCE THE LAW WITHIN, HIS ATONING WORK THE MERCY SEAT, AND THE MEETING PLACE BETWEEN GOD AND MEN. Can you see all that? You know, a lot of people looked at that and they just saw a box. That's a good looking box. That's all they saw. Oh, we see more than that, don't we? Christ our Ark, Christ our Mercy Seat, Christ where God meets sinners in mercy. All right.