Alright, our lesson, or instructions
anyway, for this tabernacle fence is found in Exodus 27, beginning
in verse 9. And thou shalt make the cord
of the tabernacle, for the south side, southward, there shall
be hangings for the cord of fine twine linen, of a hundred cubits
long for one side. And the twenty pillars thereof,
and their twenty sockets, shall be of brass. The hooks of the
pillars, and their fillets, shall be of silver. And likewise for
the north side. In length there should be hangings
of 100 cubits long, and his 20 pillars and their 20 sockets
of brass, and the hooks of the pillars and their fillets of
silver. And for the breadth of the court on the west side should
be hangings of 50 cubits, their pillars 10 and their sockets
10. And the breadth of the court on the east side eastward should
be 50 cubits. The hangings of one side of the
gate should be 15 cubits, their pillars 3 and their sockets 3.
And on the other side should be hangings 15 cubits. their
pillars three, and their sockets three. Now this court fence that
went around the core of the tabernacle is 150 feet long, 75 feet wide. The tabernacle inside the fence,
that's where God dwelt. Outside of the fence, that's
where men dwelt. And this fence marks the clear
dividing line between where God dwelt and where men dwelt. And
first of all, this white fence, whenever you see the color white
in scripture, it's a picture of God's holiness. His white,
perfect holiness. That is the chief attribute of
God. God's holiness. Everything about God, everything
God does is holy. That's His chief attribute. His
most important characteristic is God's holiness. God is perfect
in all of His ways. Now I want you to look first
at Isaiah chapter 40. His name is holy. The name of the Father,
the name of the Son, and the name of the Holy Spirit is all
holy. Isaiah 40, verse 25. Do I have a volunteer that would like to
read this verse for me? Okay, excuse me. To whom then will ye liken me,
or shall I be called? Sayeth the Holy One." That's
God the Father speaking. His name is the Holy One. God the Son, His name is the
Holy One of Israel. God's Spirit, what's His name?
The Holy Spirit. God's Holy, isn't He? That's
His name. The only word that the angel
came to describe or to announce the birth of Christ The only
word he could think of to describe that child in Mary's womb was
that holy thing. God's holy. Those angels flying
around the throne that Isaiah saw, they cried, holy, holy,
holy is the Lord of hosts. God's chief attribute is his
holiness. And the very first thing that
God teaches someone when he saves them is God's holy. He's different from us. We're
sinners and he's holy. Everything about God must be
holy. God cannot violate his holy nature. He can't do something that's
not holy. And the problem with false religion
today is this, or it starts from this anyway, they don't know
God's holy. They know that God's love. They know God's gracious.
They know God's merciful. But they don't know God's only
gracious in a way that will not violate his holiness. God is
love. That's true. I'm so thankful
that God's love, that God's love is for holy people and holy things. God can only love holy things.
In Habakkuk 113, the prophet said, Thou art a purer eye than
to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity. God's so holy,
he can't even look on sin. So God must punish sin, because
he's holy. He hates sin. And God cannot,
and he will not, accept a sinner as we are into his holy presence,
because God's holy. The only way to stand in the
presence of God, the only way to be in the presence of God,
is if we are as holy as God himself. And if we're not, God will kill
us. And this fence is even a picture
of that. If you look at Numbers chapter 3. Numbers, chapter 3, verse 38. I have a volunteer. Stand up and read, of course,
nice and loud, The stranger that cometh nigh,
touches that fence, shall be put to death." Because it's a
picture of God's holiness. God will not allow a sinner,
as we are, into His presence. are holy. We're sinners. So we
can't come into the presence of God. Our sins have separated
us from God. We can't blame God for us being
separated from God. It's our sins that have separated
us from God. It's our fault. This white fence
that separated where the people dwelt and where God dwelt was
very, very different from the tents that the children of Israel
lived in. Their tents were made of goat's
hair. Goat's hair is dark. That's a picture of the blackness
of our sin. That's where they lived in darkness.
And the blackness of our sin is the opposite of the white
perfection of God's holiness and his righteousness. Even what
we call our righteousness, when we think, oh, I've done a good
thing. This is the best thing I can do. God looks at that as
an abomination because God's holy and he sees things as they
are. And there's no way around the
holiness of God. There's no way to get around
the holiness that God requires. This fence goes all the way around
the tabernacle. You can't walk around it. It
just goes all the way around. It goes all the way to the ground.
You can't crawl under it. There's no holes in it that you
can find to walk through it. There's no loopholes in God's
holiness. So you've got that, God's holding
it. But I want you to listen to me. Holiness. God's holiness is not a hard,
unjust attribute of God that's an ugly thing that's against
us. Don't ever think of God's holiness
as an ugly thing that keeps us from God. God's holiness is beautiful. Look at Psalm 29. It thrills my soul. to think
of God's holiness, how he's holy, and his holiness is a beautiful
thing. In Psalm 29, verse 2. Do I have
another volunteer? Lucy looked at me. Did you read
that verse for us, Lucy? Verse 2. 29, verse 2. Good, thank you. of holiness. God's holiness is beautiful. Now this fence, it pictures God's
holiness that separates sinners from God. The second, this fence
is a picture of Christ. Everything about this tabernacle,
if we look at it right, it's a picture of Christ. This fence
is a picture of Christ and good things to come. This fence is
a picture of the righteousness of Christ. This fence touches
both where God dwells and where men dwells. That's a picture
of Christ the mediator. Look at 1 Timothy chapter 2.
1 Timothy 2 verse 5. Isaiah, could you read that one
for us? Verse 5. Good, thank you. There's one
Mediator, the man Christ Jesus. The Mediator is the go-between. The Mediator can touch both warring
parties. The Mediator can talk in peace
to both warring parties. And the Mediator can satisfy
both warring parties. And that's a picture of Christ
our Savior. But now, how does that apply
to us? The mediator can talk to both warring parties. He can
satisfy both warring parties. How does that apply to you and
me? What applies to us because of this? Men by nature are at
war with God. Our sin has declared war against
God. We're born with a nature that
hates God. And God's angry with the wicked every day. And there's
a great gulf between God and men that man cannot cross. It's
too great for us to cross. But the Lord Jesus Christ crossed
that gulf. He's the mediator, and He touches
both warring parties. He's God, so He can touch God. And He became a man so He could
talk to men, touch men, be the Savior of men. What Isaac just
read for us there, there's one mediator, the man, Christ Jesus. And that's what this linen represents.
Linen is made from flax that grows from the ground. Well,
what's our bodies made out of? The dust of the ground. This
flax is a picture of the humanity of Christ. God's Son became a
man. What a miracle that he could
and would become a man. The Mediator, the Savior between
God and men is the only holy man to ever live. This white
linen picture is a holy man, the God-man, the Lord Jesus Christ. But now, this Mediator, he does
a whole lot more than just touch both warring parties. He does
a whole lot more than just touch God and men. Christ makes God
and His people friends. Christ, the man Christ Jesus,
satisfies the Father and He satisfies men. Christ satisfied His Father
by living as a man. And He lived perfectly. He worked
out a perfect righteousness. He honored and magnified God's
law. And the Father said, He's well
pleased with the Son. He's well pleased with the righteousness
of His Son. And when Christ became a sacrifice
for the sins of His people, God imputed the sin of His elect. He made His Son to be guilty
of the sin of His elect. The Father loves the Son. Doesn't
Scripture say that so plainly? God the Father loves His Son.
Well, then why did He kill Him? The Father killed His Son. Because God's holy, and he must
punish sin, and when sin was found on Christ, the Father killed
him for it. And the Father's well pleased
with his sacrifice. He's well pleased with the blood
of his Son. And in that sacrifice, in that
blood, the Father is reconciled. The Father's satisfied, and he
proved it. He raised his Son from the dead,
because the sin's gone. There's no reason for the Father
to be angry anymore. The sin's gone, and God's reconciled. Now Scripture says, now you've
been reconciled. Well, how are we going to do that? How are
we going to be reconciled? How's a sinner going to be friends
with God? Because Christ satisfies the Father and Christ satisfies
the sinner. When God moves in power and grace
and gives life to a sinner, what we see is not a what, it's a
who. We don't see doctrinal truths
and things that we believe. The believer sees a person. The
child of God's in love with the person. We see Christ and Christ
becomes our soul's desire. There's nothing I desire more
than to see the Lord Jesus Christ. To be in His presence. To learn
more of Him. To see Him. To someday be made
like Him. He's the believer's desire. I
am well pleased with the Lord Jesus Christ. All our sins are
gone. I'm well pleased. I love him. I love the gospel that concerns
him. I am very pleased to put all
my hope of salvation in Christ. I'm well satisfied. Paul, he
was writing to Timothy, 2 Timothy 1 verse 12. He said, Timothy,
I know whom I believe. I'm persuaded. I'm confident.
I'm satisfied that he's able to keep everything I've committed
unto him against that day. I'm satisfied with Christ. Now,
that's a miracle of God's grace, but that's what Christ does.
He satisfies the Father and he satisfies sinners. Now, if you
look at this fence from outside the fence, you look at it as
a barrier, don't you? That barrier that won't let me
come in to where this tabernacle is. This barrier won't let me
come in to where God dwells. But if you go inside the fence,
If you were inside this fence and you looked around at the
outside, all you'd see is white, isn't it? All you'd see is this
white perfection of the fence, the white perfection that pictures
the righteousness of Christ. And the believer is in Christ. In Christ, we're surrounded by
the holiness, the righteousness of Christ. We're covered with
the righteousness of Christ. And that righteousness protects
us. from the wrath of God. Because
if we're as holy as Christ, if we're in Christ, we're just like
him. Right? So we're as holy as Christ is.
Well, if we're in Christ, we're protected from the wrath of God.
Because we're made righteous in Christ. And there's no reason
for God to be angry. Well, here's the question. If
I'm safe in Christ, if I'm made righteous in Christ, you know
what I want to know? How do I get any? Now, good question. How do I get in Him? If I'm safe
in Christ, how do I get in Him? We'll look at Romans chapter
3. God's Word tells us. Romans chapter 3, verse 21. But now, the righteousness of
God without the law, without our obedience to the law, is
manifested. being witnessed by the Law and
the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, which is by faith of
Jesus Christ, unto all and upon all them that believe, for there
is no difference." We enter into Christ by faith, by believing
Him. This fience, we'll look at this
next week, has one opening, this gate. that pictures the Lord
Jesus Christ. I'll show you that next week.
Every stitch of that gate pictures the Lord Jesus Christ. There's
one way into righteousness, and it's through the Lord Jesus Christ.
By believing Him. By trusting Him. The third thing
about this gate I want to show you is this. That faith in Christ
gives us a good hope. A good hope through grace. It's
a sure hiding place. This fence is held up by sixty
pillars. The scripture is not entirely
plain how these pillars of the fence were made, although we
have pretty good reason to believe that they are made of incorruptible
wood covered with brass. We know that the base of all
these is made of pure brass. We have pretty good reason to
believe that pillars are made of incorruptible wood covered
with brass because that's what the other pillars are made out
of. And that incorruptible wood pictures the perfect humanity
of Christ. Christ was a man. But he had
no sin. He did no sin. So his body never
corrupted. Even when his body lay in the
tomb, his body saw no corruption. Because there's no sin in it.
And that's what that incorruptible wood pictures. That wood never
rots. And the grass pictures this.
The deity of Christ. The man. Jesus of Nazareth. It wasn't like he was God. He is God, manifest to us in
human flesh. And that brass is known for its
strength. You put brass in the fire, it
won't melt. And that's Christ. He stood in
the fire of God's wrath against that sin that was laid on him.
And the fire didn't destroy him. Not only did it not destroy him,
he destroyed it. He made that the fire of God's
wrath extinguished, just put itself out on Christ so that
there's no more anger for that sin. Christ destroyed sin. He destroyed death. He destroyed
hell. He destroyed Satan because he's the brass that did not change,
that wasn't destroyed or melted in the fire. His righteousness,
his personal righteousness gave him the strength to stand up
in that fire and not be destroyed because there's no sin found
in him. Now that fire would eternally destroy you, it may, because
all we are is sin. But Christ was unaffected. And
if you're in Christ, if you believe Christ, if you trust Christ,
if you rest in Christ, the fire of God's wrath won't touch you
either. It won't destroy you either, because Christ's already
born. And He's shielded. Everyone who
believes in Him has been shielded from that fire. So they're unaffected
by God's wrath. Look over in Isaiah 43. The fire of God's wrath against
sin will never touch, will never harm one of his people because
Christ shielded us from it. And the fire of trial will never
destroy or harm you who believe. Ever. Because Christ will keep
you safe from it. In Isaiah 43, verse 1. But now
thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed
thee, O Israel, fear not, for I have redeemed thee. I have
called thee by thy name, and thou art mine. When you pass
through the waters, I will be with thee, and through the rivers
they shall not overflow thee. When thou walkest through the
fire, thou shalt not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle
upon thee. For, because I am the Lord thy
God, the Holy One of Israel, This Savior who's made of incorruptible
wood and that brass protects his people from the fire of trial. That trial will hurt, it may
scare us half to death, but it will never harm any believer
because of the brass that's pictured in these fence posts. It'll never
harm you. Brass is known for its strength. We never read this
fence blown over. Windstorms are common in this
desert area where they used this tabernacle. We never read that
wind blowing over the fence. Inside this fence is a secure
hiding place. That fence will never be blown
over and let the enemies of God come in and destroy anyone hiding
in Christ. Christ is a sure hiding place,
a safe hiding place, and it's His righteousness that protects
us, the righteousness of Christ. The strength of Christ is a picture
of this brass. He's the mighty conqueror. No
one can overpower him so that they would harm any of his people. We're safe in Christ. Christ
is our shelter. Christ will never be shaken. Everyone in Christ will never
be shaken either because we're safe in him. And the wood and
the brass together Picture the two natures of Christ, his humanity
and his deity. He's the God-man. And that's
what all of this tabernacle, every bit of it, every element
of it, is all telling us this. A God-man is coming to redeem
his people from their sins. Now, these pillars have silver
tops, and we'll talk more about this in another lesson, but that
silver is a picture of the ransom price. The ransom price is connected
to the brass and the wood. Christ our Savior paid the ransom
price for His people with His own precious blood. We're not
redeemed with corruptible things as silver and gold from our vain
conversation received by tradition from our fathers, but with the
precious blood of Christ. And last, through these silver
fillets up here ran cords tied to the ground in pins, the cords
and the pins. Now these cords are made from
linen, just like the fence is. Grown from the flats, come from
the ground, which is a picture of the humanity of Christ. It's
white, it's perfect, it's perfect humanity. And the pins are made
of pure brass, a picture of the deity of Christ. And the cords
and the pins are tied together, showing us again the God-man,
the two natures of Christ. He's the God-man. That brass
is not going to rust. It's not going to decay. You
pound it down to the ground and leave it there forever. It's
not going to rust. It's not going to decay. It's perfect. Picture
of Christ. He'll never change. He will never
change his mind and cast one of his people out. He'll never
change and suddenly become faulty. He's perfect. And the grass won't
melt in the fire, which is a picture of Christ being tested, tempted,
in all points like we are, yet without sin. He never failed
a test. You and me failed every one.
We sinned every time. Christ never did. He was tested
by Satan. Satan offered Him the world.
You and me would have fallen for that. Apart from God's grace,
we'd fall for that. Christ didn't. He was perfect. He didn't. Too strong to fall
for that. Those Jews, they hailed Him as King. They said, oh, this
is coming, Hosanna, hail to the King. He's going to set us free
from Rome. Well, everybody loved Him. He wouldn't change his mission
to go to the cross and suffer and die for his people. He didn't
fail that test. He didn't fail that and veer
off to be their king and be loved by them. He went to the cross
to be hated by them, to put away the sin of his people. He wouldn't
fail. He was tested and tempted by his own disciples. Peter said,
Lord, you're not going to the cross. Far be that from you.
No. Our Lord told Peter that he loved. Get thee behind me,
Satan. The Peter Satan movie used to
say that. That's satanic. I will not be deterred. I'm going
to go to the cross. He set his face like a flint
toward Jerusalem and he wouldn't go back because he's going to
redeem his people. And he did. Go and suffer and
die and successfully save all of his people from their sin.
Now these pens, when I think of a pen, I think of something
real, don't you? And that's not really the word that's used here.
It would be better to describe this as a stake. Other places
in scripture, it's actually the same words translated as a stake.
This is a big, giant thing driven down into the ground so that
these walls wouldn't be blown over. Look over in Hebrews chapter
6. Those stakes are a picture of
Christ. Hebrews chapter 6. Verse 18, that by two immutable, unchangeable
things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have
a strong consolation to have fled for refuge to lay hope upon
the hope set before us, which hope we have as an anchor of
the soul, both sure as steadfast, and which entereth into that
within the veil. is the anchor of our soul. And
that hope will not be moved because a few lessons down the road here,
it's in the veil. In that presence of God. And
we're anchored there so that the believer can't be lost. You all, when you get older,
you'll hear this. You all have heard this argument before. Arguing
about the security of the believer. Well, can a believer lose his
salvation? Not Christ saved him, he can't. Arguing about the security
of the believer is foolish if Christ is our Savior. Now, if
I've got to save myself, yeah, I'll have no security. But if
Christ is the Savior, we're secure because He's the anchor of our
soul. Now, these cords held everything
down. They even went over top of the
tabernacle. We didn't put the cords over top of our model so
we can lift up and look at the coverings and look what's inside
it. But when they set up camp, these cords even went over the
tabernacle to hold everything down, and they bent down and
held everything together. Well, that's a picture of Christ. He holds everything together. Christ draws His people to Himself. He said, I love thee with an
everlasting love. Therefore, with loving kindness
have I drawn you. Just like these cords draw everything
down, hold everything down. He draws his people to himself,
and those cords hold everything in their place. Christ said,
no man can pluck my people out of my hand. That's what these
cords represent. The security of the believer
in Christ. Our Lord asked his disciples
one day, everybody left him, this large multitude. So this
is a hard saying, you can hear it. And they all left. Twelve
of them were left. The Lord told them, you can go
if you want to. Will you also go away? Peter said, Lord, to
whom shall we go? We've got no place else to go.
Why wouldn't they go anywhere else? Because Christ loved him
and his love constrained us. His love bound his disciples
to them so that they would not leave. But now the pins and the
cords have to go together, don't they? The pin's not going to
do anybody any good if it's driven down into the ground, but it's
not tied to the cord. The cord, it's not going to hold
this wall down. If it's not tied to the pin,
I'm just flapping the wind on it. They have to be tied together. And that's on Lord Jesus Christ.
We're saved through the person and the work of the Lord Jesus
Christ, through the God-man, the Savior. If He's going to
save sinful men and women, boys and girls like you and me, He
must be both God and man. If Christ was just a man, just
like in me, well, his death on the cross wouldn't save anybody
because he's just a man. He's got sinful blood. That blood
couldn't pay for sin. His blood would have no power.
If Christ was just a man, he couldn't draw his people to himself.
He wouldn't have the power to hold his people to himself. If
Christ was just a man, he couldn't say, Father, I will. Only God
can say that. He must be God. So he has the
power. and the righteousness and the
character and the love. He must have all the attributes
of God if he's going to save sinners like good men. But if
Christ is not God, if he is just God, he can't die, can he? And
if the Savior doesn't die, there's no salvation. If Christ doesn't
shed his blood, there's no blood to apply. There's no blood for
the Spirit to come to apply. There's no blood to atone for
sin. Salvation requires, the salvation of a real sinner requires
the pens and the coins together. The God-man, he must be God and
man. And because the Lord Jesus Christ
is the God-man, he's both God and man, his death saves his
people from their sins. And we're eternally secure because
of him. All right, well, the Lord bless
that.