Alright, now if you'll turn back
with me to Hebrews chapter 9. Hebrews chapter 9 speaks of a
people who are looking for, they're looking for, they're expecting
to see and with expectation waiting upon the appearance of Jesus
Christ, our Lord. Now the chapter begins with a
clear definition of the Christ as he was set forth in the Old
Testament in the priesthood under the law of Moses. And this testament
or covenant was about to be laid aside. That's what I read to
you in Hebrews chapter 8. He's saying there was some faults
in this testament. There's some faults with it.
There are some weaknesses about it. It wasn't meant to cleanse
you. It wasn't meant to save your
soul. It was patterns and types. And
now the real thing is about to appear. Hebrews 8, verse 13 says, In
that he saith a new covenant, he hath made the first old, Now
that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away. It's about to go away. So why
then, today, when I look around, do I see priests? If this priesthood is gone, then
why am I seeing priests? If these ceremonies are taken
away and fulfilled, why am I seeing ceremonies? because men are ignorant that
this old covenant has been laid aside. Its time has come and
gone, and now it waxeth old, and it's about to vanish away.
It had served its purpose. What was the purpose of the ceremonial
law? Well, he tells us in Galatians
3.24 that it was our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ to be justified
by faith. How did it do that? Well, he
tells us over here in Romans 3. Turn over there with me for
just a second. This passage here in Romans 3, I've read it to
you often. It speaks both of the Old Testament
type and the New Testament gospel. And I quoted to you from Galatians
there a few moments ago about the law is our schoolmaster to
bring us to Christ to be justified by faith. Now watch this, Romans
3, 24. Being justified freely by His
grace through the redemption that's in Christ Jesus. Now watch
this. What Paul's talking about here
is Old Testament ceremony. whom God has set forth to be
a propitiation, that word is mercy-seeking, through faith
in His blood to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that
are past, that is Old Testament saints. How do I know this is
talking about them and not talking about our sins? How do I know
He's not talking about our past sins? Well, one, because I know that
salvation, I have to have more than just my past sins forgiven.
Because I'm a sinner. I make new sins constantly, continuously. So it's not going to do me any
good to get rid of my old sins and leave me in my sins. So he
can't be talking about that. But there's a couple of things
here that I want you to see. First of all, he finishes this
verse saying, through the forbearance of God. That's not talking about
me, that's talking about those Old Testament saints and talking
about those Old Testament types. God forbear them. And he forbade
these foreshadowing types until the fullness of the time of his
sons appearing in this world. And then secondly, I know that
it's not talking about my past sins because I read the next
verse. Sometimes it's very helpful if
you just read more than one verse. Listen to what he says here in
verse 26. To declare I say at this time. So he was talking
about that time, and then he started talking about this time. his righteousness, that he might
be just and justifier of him which believeth in Jesus." The
object of their faith was in the coming Redeemer who was sent
forth under this ceremonial law, and our faith is in the Redeemer
who has come and fulfilled all that was written of Him. The
Old Testament ceremonies and priesthood were about to vanish
away, not because they were not accurate, Or not because they
were not used of God, but because the One that they pictured and
pointed to, the One they foreshadowed, the One they figured, was about
to appear and accomplish the work. That's why He laid them
aside. Now let's look at, as Paul sets
forth before us the old covenant of the priesthood back in Hebrews
chapter 9. I hope I'm not confusing you,
having you turn back and forth, but you need to understand that
this is what this is saying. Hebrews 9, verse 2, Paul is going
to describe to us those days and those ceremonies. For there
was a tabernacle made, made by God's decree, it was made by
God's direction, and it was made for His elect, typified in the
nation of Israel. There was a tabernacle made,
every detail, described and fashioned exactly as God showed its pattern
to Moses in the mount. And it consisted of two parts.
Look here, Hebrews 9.2. The first we're in was a candlestick
and a table and the showbread, which is called the sanctuary.
And then after the second veil, the tabernacle, which is called
the holiest of all. which had the golden censer and
the Ark of the Covenant overlaid round about with gold wherein
was a golden pot that had manna and Aaron's rod that budded in
the tables of the Covenant, and over it the cherubims of glory
shadowing the mercy seat of which we cannot now speak particularly. Now that outward sanctionary
sanctuary where the common priest came and did their service is
described in the law in this tabernacle. And then the Holy
of Holies where none but the high priest was permitted to
go, and he could only go in there one time a year. And he better
not go in there without blood. Verse 6, Hebrews 9, verse 6.
Now when these things were thus ordained, the priest went always
or continually into the first tabernacle every day. They had
things to do in it. Accomplishing the service of
God. But into the second went the high priest alone once every
year, not without blood, which he offered for himself and for
the heirs of the people. One time a year, on the Day of
Atonement, The high priest of Israel would put on his linen
garments, and he'd take the sacrificial blood, and he'd enter in beyond
the veil, and he'd sprinkle that blood upon the mercy seat. And he did all of this beyond
the view of human sight. All Israel stood out. They didn't
stand outside the tabernacle. There was a big courtyard with
linen cloth over a man's head, high, that went all the way around
that thing. And Israel was on the outside
of the courtyard. Everything that went on inside
this tabernacle was out of their view. You couldn't see it. You
couldn't see it. Was that on purpose? For sure
it was on purpose. It's to show us that all that
Christ accomplished, we didn't see it either. We saw Him die,
but we didn't see Him ascend into glory. We didn't see His
dealings with the Heavenly Father. We didn't see any of that transaction
take place. But we know it did. We know it
did. Because God ordained it. And
because Christ came and accomplished it. And we believe that he went
into heaven, and that final transaction is taking place. All of this beyond the view of
human eye, and then he would return without the tabernacle,
go to the gate of the courtyard, and proclaim the blessings of
God's atonement upon the people. All right. What's all this got
to do with the gospel of Jesus Christ and the faith of God's
elect? Read on. Hebrews 9, verse 8. The Holy Ghost, this signifying. Here's what signified in all
those things. That the way into the holiest
of all, that is, into heaven itself, the very presence of
God, was not yet made manifest. While as the first tabernacle
was yet standing, which was a figure What was the figure for? For
the time then present. Well, you say, if we had priests
today, couldn't they figure it? No, it was for that time, not
for this time. Ain't that what that's saying?
For the time then present. In which were offered both gifts
and sacrifices, now watch this, that could not make him that
did the service perfect as pertaining to the conscience. It couldn't
then, and it can't now. Verse 10, "...which stood only
in meats, and drinks, and divers' washings, and carnal ordinances,"
now listen to the wording of this, "...imposed on them until
the time of reformation." What is this time of reformation?
It is the clear manifestation and revelation of Christ coming
into this world and accomplishing what was prefigured in these
ceremonies. Look across the page here at
chapter 10, Hebrews chapter 10 and verse 1. For the law having a shadow of
good things to come. That is a vague outline. You
know what a shadow is. You go out here. I walked over
to Richard's house the other night and you walk under one
of them streetlights and there's your shadow. You can see it.
The shadow didn't have any details. It was just a shadow. It was just dark. You look down
there and I can see my outline, but it didn't have a nose, it
didn't have any eyes, it didn't have anything on it. Just an
outline. Just a shadow. And that's the way these things
were. They had no details to them. It was just a vague outline. The law having a shadow of good
things to come, just a vague outline, and not the very image
of the things, can never, with those sacrifices they offered
year by year continually, make the comers thereunto perfect.
And you have to be perfect. This world is ignorant of that.
They think anything you do is acceptable with God. Oh, I beg
your pardon. When it comes to salvation, it
has to be perfect. It has to be perfect. If they could, Paul says, now
watch this, then would they not have ceased to be offered? If
that high priest entered in and the blood of that lamb was able
to put away your sins and make you perfect, why did they keep
offering it year after year after year? You see what he's saying? He's saying this to men who were
still offering sacrifices, still had a priesthood. If they could, the worshipers
once purged should have no more conscience of sins. Verse 3,
but in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of
sins every year. Why did they do that? Verse 4.
For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats should
take away sins. Wherefore, when he cometh into
the world, he saith, Sacrifice an offering thou wouldest not.
But a body hast thou prepared me, a sacrificial body, a representative
body, a body made to atone for sin, a holy body, a body given
to fulfill the redemptive will of God, not to figure it, like
the old things, not to foreshadow it, but he said, to do thy will,
O God. God give him a body to accomplish
his redemptive will. A body hast thou given me. Hebrews
10.10. Look at this. By the witch will,
that redemptive will of the Father, we are sanctified through the
offering of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all. Once for all. Go back to Hebrews
9 and look at verse 11. Hebrews 9, 11. But Christ, being come an high
priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect
tabernacle not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building,
neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood
He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal
redemption for us." Now then, look at verse 13. If the blood of bulls and goats
and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling the unclean sanctify to the purifying
of the flesh." What in the world is he talking about there? Well,
you need to go back to Numbers chapter 19 after a while. You
don't have to do it right now, but Numbers chapter 19 will give
you the law of the red heifer. But basically what he's saying
here is that that leprous man went in, that unclean man who
touched something unclean, he'd go in And through this law of
the red heifer, they washed him and it purified his flesh. His
flesh was pure. And Paul is saying, if the ashes
of a heifer sprinkling the unclean sanctify to the purifying of
the flesh, if that ceremony was sufficient to cleanse his filthy,
polluted flesh, verse 14, how much more shall the blood of
Christ who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without
spot to God." Now watch this, "...purged your conscience from
dead works to serve the living God." That conscience has to be cleansed. That filthy mind, It's been polluted
with every lie, every kind of deceit, every kind of twisted
notion that Satan in this world can conjure up. It has to be
purified. It's leprous. It's unclean before
God. It has to be cleansed. What's
going to cleanse it? That blood of that heifer? That
ain't going to cleanse it. What's going to cleanse it? That
eternal blood of Christ which the Holy Spirit through this
gift of faith and regeneration, sprinkles on your conscience. And it cleanses it. It cleanses
it. We don't circumcise ourself.
That which is old has been taken away. It's ready to vanish away.
Paul said that over 2,000 years ago. And we don't circumcise
ourselves to become legal Jews, nor do we go through priests,
common or otherwise. We don't slay lambs and goats
or wash in holy water. We don't do any of those things.
All those types and figures were imposed on God's elect until
the time of Reformation, which is Christ. They were figures,
he said, for the time then present. Patterns of things in the heavens
and shadows of good things to come. Hebrews 9.23. It was therefore necessary that
the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with
these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices. These types and figures are helpful
pictures to illustrate the work of Christ and His offices and
God's purpose in sending Him. And were it not for the priesthood
of Israel, we could not begin to understand the priesthood
of Christ and His church. He calls that foundation over
in Ephesians chapter 2. We are built upon the foundation
of the apostles and prophets. These were foundational truths
and were not for the various washings. We could have no understanding
at all of the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit. They were
necessary to lay this foundation of faith. But the things which Christ has
accomplished must supersede the old types. The heavenly things
require better sacrifices than these. Verse 24, Hebrews chapter
9. For Christ is not entered into
the holy places made with hands, which are figures of the true,
but in heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God
for us. These figures tell us something
of the work he came to do. As the high priest, he was ordained
for men and things pertaining to God, Hebrews 5.1. He was appointed
as the high priest over God's elect to offer both gifts and
sacrifices for sins. And being both God and man, He's
able to save to the uttermost all who come unto God by Him,
seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for us. Hebrews
7, 24 and 25. This accomplished redemption
is the message and witness of the Holy Ghost. What I'm telling
you this morning about this Old Testament law, these Old Testament
ceremonies, The Holy Ghost bears witness that these things were
fulfilled in Christ. And they're saying everything
else under the sun about the Holy Ghost other than that. But
Paul said the Holy Ghost is a witness to these things. He's a witness
to these things. And this he writes, our Lord
said, in the minds and hearts, of every believing saint. He
don't write, thou shalt not steal and thou shalt not commit it.
That's not what he's talking about when he said he'll write
his laws in your mind. He's talking about his laws fulfilled. He's talking about his law fully
accomplished, made perfect, honored, and exalted to its highest place.
That's what he writes in your mind. And that's what he writes
on your heart. And when he does, You don't go
back to that pool. Now where remission of these
is, now watch this, there is no more offering for sin. The worship of the New Testament
church does not include a priesthood. It does not include animal or
human sacrifices. I'm trying to quote the scripture
offhand in Matthew, where he tells them, he said, God doesn't require sacrifice
from you. He gives mercy. He shows grace. He's not looking
for a sacrifice. Well, my soul, Christ is the
sacrifice. He said, this is my beloved son
in whom I'm well pleased. He's well pleased with that.
Now I'm going to take my greasy old sacrifice and bring it in.
That's like those people in the Old Testament getting old. Well,
this lamb's about to die anyway. Before he kicks the bucket, let's
take him. Damn, we'll use him as a sacrifice. It was an abomination
before God. Well, that's what we kind of
do, isn't it, when we try to make sacrifices to God and don't
glorify Christ in that one great sacrifice, but we want to take
our old dead lamb and take it down there before it kicks the
bucket and all. God don't want it. He don't want it. It's an
abomination to Him. This is the sacrifice. It's Christ. Christ. He's superior to those
old sacrifices. And we worship God in spirit
and truth, understanding the person and work of Christ and
praising God for it. Now listen to this. Hebrews 10,
19. I'll try to hurry. having therefore, brethren, boldness
to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, Hebrews 10,
I'm sorry, verse 19. By a new and living way, Christ
said, I am the way, which he hath consecrated for us through
the veil, that is to say, his flesh, and having a high priest
over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart,
in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an
evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water, let us
hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering. For He
is faithful that promised. And let us consider one another
to provoke unto love and good works." That is, to consider
that we're all sinners saved by grace. Do you consider that
when you come in here to worship God? Before you make comments
about people, before somebody loses their temper, do you consider
when you come into this place? We need to get up early and start
considering it. And we need to consider it always,
but especially when we come here to worship. We need to get up
early and begin to consider these things. We are all sinners saved
by grace. Saved by our representative and
substitute. saved by His blood and righteousness,
given the gift of repentance, given the gift of faith. Now
look here, Hebrews 10, 25. Not forsaking the assembling
of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhorting
one another, and so much the more, as you see the day approaching. What day? What day? the day of His return. Now, I said all that to say this,
Hebrews 9, verse 27. As it is appointed unto men once
to die, and after this the judgment, so Christ was once offered to
bear the sins of many, And unto them that look for him shall
he appear the second time without sin unto salvation. As many as look for him as Israel
looked for the old high priest." Now get this picture in your
mind. Here's the tabernacle. This is the Day of Atonement.
And you all came out and gathered around. And you see him take
in the sacrifice. And he goes into the courtyard.
And you might even stand back and look through the courtyard
and you can see that great altar, that great altar that they put
the sacrifices on and offered to burn offerings on this sacrifice.
You can see that. You can see the sacrifices as
the flames come up and consume the meat. You can see all this
from the tabernacle door. And then this high priest comes
out and he gathers the blood of this sacrifice. And he kind
of disappears out of your sight. And he goes in that tabernacle.
And all Israel standing on the outside of that courtyard waiting
for that high priest to come back out. To come back out. Now that's what Paul is talking
about here in Hebrews chapter 9 when he is talking about those
who look for him. We stand with expectation, knowing
that Christ has entered into the holiest of all. He's entered
into heaven itself. He's offered that sacrifice.
He's making intercession for us, just like that high priest
did in that tabernacle. And everybody with an understanding,
are you with me? Everybody with an understanding
about what that priest went in there for, and who he went in
there for, Their names was written on his shoulders and on his breastplate. Written. And he went in that
tabernacle and everybody with an interest in what he was doing
stood with expectation on the outside of that courtyard waiting
for his return. Unto them who look for him shall
he appear the second time. He appeared once on the altar. And we saw it. They stood there
watching. They said, why stand you gazing up into the heaven?
They was watching him ascend into glory. This same one taken
away is going to come again. His sacrifice is going to be
accepted. We know it's accepted because
God raised him from the dead. We know he's going to be heard.
We know he's going to be heard. He's the son of God. He's the
only one worthy to be heard. And now we wait for His return. And all those who look for His
coming. Old Simeon looked, didn't he? God revealed to him that
he was not going to see death until he saw the first appearance
of Christ in this world. The consolation of Israel. Mary
and Joseph brought Jesus down to do to Him according to the
law. I suppose to have Him circumcised. It was on the eighth day. And
they brought Him down to the temple. And old Simeon saw Him. And he knew who He was. And he
went over and picked that child up. And he said, Lord, now let
us Thy servant depart in peace, for I've seen Thy salvation.
I've seen it. We look for Him the second time
the way Simeon looked for Him the first time. You see what this Scripture says?
Old Testament believers look for His first advent. New Testament
believers look for His second. And this consolation was in His
coming. Their consolation was. Our consolation
was not only in His coming, but in His resurrected person and
glory. And we both look at His person,
but we look with a little clearer eyes than they did, and with
greater revelation. And all these consolations, regardless,
Old Testament or New, it was all for those who look for Him. All those who have truly looked
to Him are looking for Him. Yes, I want his benefits. Without
his benefits, I have no hope. Everything God gives to the believer,
he needs. I need his righteousness because
all mine are filthy rags. I need his sacrifice because
God will have no other. I need His salvation because
with man salvation's impossible. I need to know His name for there's
none other name given among men under heaven whereby we must
be saved. I need His intercession because
I still live in a body of sin. I need Him to make a place for
me in glory for He's the only one who truly can. I need Him
to come and receive me unto Himself because I can't get there on
my own. Not gonna be very long. They're
going to lay me in a box. They're going to lay me in a
box. He's the only one getting me out. Huh? Don't you think we ought to look
for Him? I tell you, everybody that looks to Him, looks for
Him. They look for Him. Because He's the object of their
faith. He's their treasure. He's their treasure.