My subject tonight is that part
of Aaron's priestly attire that's called the Urim and the Thummim. You'll find it in Exodus chapter
28. Exodus chapter 28. The Urim and the Thummim are
mentioned only five times in the scriptures. The Urim mentioned
by itself two other times. So altogether just seven times
these things are mentioned throughout the Word of God. Yet these two
pieces in the breastplate of God's high priest are very significant
and highly symbolical and instructive for our souls. Let's begin reading
at verse 28 and just read the next verse with it. Exodus 28
and 29. I'm sorry, Exodus 28 verses 29
and 30. And Aaron shall bear the names of the children of
Israel in the breastplate of judgment. That word judgment
means verdict and it means discernment. Aaron shall name, wear the names
of the children of Israel in the breastplate of God's verdict. and of God's discernment upon
his heart when he goeth in unto the holy place for a memorial
before the Lord continually. And thou shalt put in the breastplate
of judgment the urim and the thummim, and they shall be upon
Aaron's heart when he goeth in before the Lord. And Aaron shall
bear the judgment, the discernment, and the verdict. of the children
of Israel upon his heart before the Lord continually. Now, if
you will turn to Hebrews chapter seven, just put your mark there
in Exodus 28, Hebrews chapter seven. Aaron, as you know, was
a high priest, the first high priest in the nation of Israel,
representing the children of Israel before God in the holy
place. He is that one who ministered
to the Lord for Israel and ministered to Israel for the Lord as their
priest. He went in and obtained blessing
for the children of Israel and bestowed blessing upon the children
of Israel in the name of God. As such, he was a great, beautiful
picture and type of the Lord Jesus. Here in Hebrews chapter
7, verse 24, But this man, talking now about the Lord Jesus Christ,
because he continueth ever, that is because he lives forever,
he's not a dying man, he's one who lives forever, hath an unchangeable
priesthood. A priesthood that doesn't change
from son to son and son to son, generation after generation.
A priesthood that shall never be taken from him as it was taken
from the house of Aaron and given to the house of Levi and taken
from Levi and taken from the house of Levi in the days when
Ichabod brought shame to Israel. Wherefore, he is able, because
he lives forever, he is able also to save them to the uttermost
that come to God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession
for them. For such an high priest became
us. That is, this is just the kind
of priest we required. Who is holy, harmless, undefiled,
separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens. Who
needeth not daily as those high priests to offer up sacrifice,
first for his own sins and then for the people's. For this he
did once when he offered up himself. For the law maketh men high priest,
which have infirmity, weakness. But the word of the oath, that
is the oath of God in his covenant, which was since the law, maketh
the son who is consecrated forevermore. As Aaron was a priest chosen
and appointed by God, who alone could appoint the priest and
accept him. So the Lord Jesus is that priest chosen and ordained
and appointed of God on our behalf. As Aaron alone made atonement
for the children of Israel, that is, as he ceremonially made atonement
for the children of Israel, so the Lord Jesus Christ has in
actuality, by the sacrifice of himself, made atonement for the
Israel of God. As Aaron ministered in the holy
place, representing God's Israel before him, so the Lord Jesus
ministers in our stead in the holy place, representing us the
Israel of God before our God. As Aaron's priesthood was ceremonially
effectual for just one group of people, just one group of
people, Aaron didn't make sacrifices for He didn't pray for, he didn't
provide blessing for, he did nothing for anyone except that
one chosen nation. All the other nations on the
earth were left without a priest, without an altar, without a sacrifice. Because Israel represented typically
God's Israel, his church, his elect, his kingdom. those people
who alone are the objects of God's grace, for whom alone Christ
has made intercession and makes intercession, for whom alone
Christ has made atonement, and for whom alone Christ intercedes
in heaven as our advocate and high priest. Moses then put a
special holy garment, or holy garments rather, on Aaron as
the high priest. These garments were put on Aaron,
being made by God's command and ordered by God himself for Moses
with his own hands to put them on the priest. The garment, the
coat and the girdle and the robe, the effort, the breastplate and
the miter. Those holy garments put on Aaron
symbolized the person and work of the Lord Jesus. That is, all
of those things pictured some aspect of our Lord's work as
our prophet, priest, and king, and some aspect of his work going
on for us now, as well as what he has done and shall do for
us as our priest. They symbolize the person and
work of Christ. He who is our priest is not one
for whom garments were made, but one who made the garments
of salvation that he puts on us. Garments such as the law,
represented by Moses, required, and garments which the law itself
puts upon us, that is, through the finished work of the Lord
Jesus. Moses, again symbolizing the law, puts something else
on Aaron's head. We read it in this 28th chapter
of Exodus and read it again in the book of Leviticus. Moses
was required of God to put a golden plate, a crown on Aaron's head. That's a strange thing. There
was never a priest in Israel who was also a king. Never a
king who was also a priest. Yet if you read Zechariah chapter
3, the priest garments were not complete without this crown being
placed upon his head. Because the priesthood from its
beginning was designed to represent something spiritual, not merely
a carnal priesthood. It was designed to point to that
one who alone is our king and priest upon his throne, our royal
priest, Jesus Christ the king. And so this crown holiness to
the Lord is put upon our great high priest, the Lord Jesus.
Many other things could be said. Many things ought to be said
concerning these garments. But tonight I want us to focus
just on that which seems to me to be the least understood and
the least appreciated, the least spoken of those things in the
priestly garments. And that's the Urim and the Thummim. The word Urim means lights. The word Thummim means perfections. The two words Urim and Thummim
are always used in the plural, only in the plural. But we have
no idea what the Urim and Thummim were. We're just not told. If
you want to read some nonsense, read what fellows speculate they
were. I read one commentator who ought to have known better,
he suggested that they were little images by which God gave Israel direction. Little idols by which God gave
Israel direction. Nothing further from the truth.
No. What were they? We're not told. We're not told
for a specific reason because God wouldn't have us to know.
We only know their purpose and the meaning of the words. That's
all we know. And using the purpose for which they were given and
the meaning of the words used to speak of the Urim and the
Thummim by the teaching of God the Holy Spirit in scripture,
it's not difficult at all to discover the significance of
the Urim and the Thummim. This much we know from the word
of God. The Urim and Thummim were placed with the names of
the 12 tribes of Israel, that is, the names of all the elect
nation on the breastplate of Aaron and were worn by Aaron
on his heart, specifically worn upon his heart as he went in
before the Lord God and made intercession as God's high priest. And by the Urim and Thummim,
God gave direction to Israel. and settled the difficulties
in the nation of Israel. Look again at our text, verse
30. Thou shalt put in the breastplate
of judgment the Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be upon
Aaron's heart when he goeth in before the Lord and Aaron shall
bear the judgment, the verdict, the verdict, and the discernment,
the wisdom, of the children of Israel upon his heart before
the Lord. Turn to Numbers chapter 27. Numbers
27. I want you to see that I'm not
just guessing about the meaning of this word judgment here. It
refers to a legal verdict, but it also refers to discernment
and direction. As Joshua was being prepared
to succeed Moses as the leader of Israel after Moses was taken
by the hand of God in death. In Numbers 27 verse 21, we read,
and he, that is Joshua, shall stand before Eliezer the priest,
who shall ask counsel for him after the judgment, the discernment
of the Urim before the Lord, at his word, that is at the word
of Eliezer the priest, who goes to ask counsel from the Lord
at the Urim, the judgment of the Lord. At His word, they shall
go out, and at His word, they shall come in, both He and all
the children of Israel with Him, even all the congregation. But
the Urim and Thummim, Ezra tells us, were taken away during the
Babylonian captivity, and they were never found. They were never
restored. They'd been permanently lost,
as were several things having to do with worship in the Old
Testament. With Ezra's declaration that these things were taken
away, the Holy Spirit shows a clear deficiency in the priesthood
of Aaron and the Old Testament Levitical system. Turn to Deuteronomy
33. Deuteronomy 33. Here we have a prophecy concerning
the Urim and the Thummim. Moses speaks of another priest
here. As he's giving his final instructions
to Israel in Deuteronomy 33 verse 8, of Levi he said, let thy thumb
and thy urim, thy perfections and thy lights be with thy holy
one. Now watch this, whom thou didst
prove at Massa and with whom thou didst strive at the waters
of Meribah. Thy Holy One can only refer to
one person. That refers to the Lord Jesus
with whom Israel strove, whom Israel proved when they were
at Meribah, they found no water. And finally, the Lord commanded
Moses to smite the rock and out of the rock water flowed out
to Israel. You can read it in Exodus chapter
17. The Lord Jesus, our Savior, our Redeemer is Jehovah's Holy
One. He is that the man, thy holy one, the man, God's holy
one in his conception and in his birth, in all of his nature
and in all of his works. He is God's holy one. And thus
he is suitable for us as a priest, holy, harmless, undefiled, separate
from sinners and made higher than the heavens. He is the one
that Israel proved at Mesa in the wilderness. And so he is
that one spoken of here. Now, here's what I want you to
see. The Urim and Thummim symbolically representing lights and perfections. The only lights and the only
perfections in all of Israel. The only lights and the only
perfections in the holy place. The only lights and the only
perfections with which a man could walk in before God and
do business at God's altar and on God's mercy seat. Those things
symbolically clearly represent the Lord Jesus. The only lights
and perfections of God's Israel. Now let me show you just two
things here. Just two things. Christ is the Urim and the Thummim. He is the one spoken of by the
Urim and the Thummim. And as Aaron, the high priest
of Israel, carried the Urim and Thummim on his heart, so the
Lord Jesus Christ, our high priest, carries his people on his heart
in all his priestly functions. Here's the first thing. Christ
is the Urim. He is the lights and the perfections,
the Urim and the Thummim of God's Israel. He is the light. Turn to John chapter one, John
chapter one. He is the light in whom light
is found and from whom all light comes. In Genesis chapter one,
the light of creation, from the first to the fourth day was in
the sun. And so all the light of the new
creation is in Christ, the son of righteousness. The light that
was upon the earth was better reflection of the light of the
sun. And so the light that's in us is better reflection of
Christ, our light and the son of righteousness in us. John
1 verse 9, that was the true light which lighteth Every man
that cometh into the world lighteth every man. Does Christ give light
to all men? Indeed he does. Not light sufficient
to save all, not light sufficient to give all faith, but light
sufficient to condemn all, light sufficient to render all without
excuse. Romans chapter 1 speaks of men
having a knowledge of God that they suppress, they hold down. I know what's going on politically
in our society, and I know what's going on religiously in our society,
and the politics is but a reflection of the religion. And I'm still
going to be politically incorrect and religiously incorrect. Men
and women everywhere know that God is. I don't care who says
he's an atheist. I don't care who claims it. A
fellow who just a year or so ago was writing me up all over
the place and folks sending me letters about it has now declared
himself an atheist. Well, if he's standing right
here in front of me, I'd say to him now, as I said to him
then, you're a liar. You're a liar. And you know you're
lying because every man in his conscience knows that God is.
Every man. He may hold it down, he may scream
and say, no God for me, but he knows that God is. That's what
makes him uneasy. He knows not only that God is,
but that one day he must meet this God in judgment. That's
written on his conscience. Every man knows that God is and
he knows something about holiness and righteousness that God requires.
He doesn't know what it is, but he knows God requires something
he can't give. He knows something about right
and wrong. And therefore, Paul tells us that man by nature does
those things that are written in the law. By nature, man does. Wherever you go in society throughout
history, you'll find people in the most barbaric places as well
as the most highly refined and well, maybe not in the highly
refined and educated places so much. But barbaric folks know. Barbaric folks know a man ought
not steal another man's wife. Most places, they'll kill you
for it. Barbaric folks know. One man ought not steal another
man's mule. They just know it. They know it because it's written
on their hearts by nature, written on their consciences. That's
light sufficient to damn. Light sufficient to render all
men without excuse because no man by nature lives up to the
light that he has. But Christ not only gives the
light of nature, the Lord Jesus Christ is he who gives light
of grace. causing sinners to know God. When I speak about the light
of grace, I'm talking about that light that comes to sinners born
in darkness, raised in darkness, living in darkness, choosing
darkness, walking in darkness, loving darkness. But light shines
and makes them light in the Lord so that those who were nothing
but darkness now are children of light, the light of the world. the light by which God shines
in this world. The light of grace causes sinners
to see what they could not see before. They see their lost condition
without God and without Christ. They see the depravity of their
hearts, the guilt of sin, the necessity of a Redeemer. They
see the finished work of Christ satisfying the justice of God
and the righteousness of God for them. Sinners who are given
light, seeing the revelation of the glory of God in the face
of Jesus Christ, had the light of the knowledge of the glory
of God. Sinners see how it is. Sinners
born of God's spirit, enlightened by his grace, now see how it
is that God in heaven can be just and justify a sinner. I
can't help but think of this every time I go down to Mexico
and visit the Mayan ruins. On those high pyramids, priests
would offer human sacrifices. to appease the angry gods. Idolatry of its most base form. And yet, in that act of idolatry
repeated, multiplied thousands of times around the world and
throughout history, in that base, crude idolatry, man is saying,
God must be satisfied or God can't accept me. And by the continually
repeated sacrifices, they're saying God's not yet satisfied. God can't yet accept a sinner. the sinner born of God's spirit,
taught by Jesus Christ, in whom Christ shines as the light of
the world, understands with absolute clarity that through the sacrifice
of God's darling son, God in absolute, unbending, strict justice
can justify a sinner. And here we are justified before
God. Sinners enlightened by Christ
Or like that man in John 9, they said, one thing I know, whereas
I was blind, now I see. And God's saints are called children
of light because they're called, irresistibly called by omnipotent
mercy and grace to the light of God in Christ Jesus. And all
who arise from the dead and come to Christ, God gives them light. Ephesians 1 14. Christ gives
light to us, the light of all the perfections of God, all his
attributes, all his being. Believers are people in whom
the light shines, a people who know God in Christ. And this
is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God
and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. It is only in his light
that we see light. Only in the light of Christ the
Lord himself that we see light, his own light. Now listen carefully. As we see the sun in its own
light, and it is impossible to see the sun in any light except
its own light. The only way to see the sun is
in its own light. So it is that we see Christ,
the son of righteousness, in his own light, and it's impossible
to see him by any other light. Brother Don, you're talking a
little redundant now, not quite so fast. Most people had the foolish notion
that we can hold up the candle of our intellect and cause the
light to be seen. That we can hold up the candle
of our reason and cause the light to be seen. That we can hold
up the candle of historic proof and cause the light to be seen.
We can hold up the candle of great logic and cause the light
to be seen. No. Hold up your candle and just
hold it right between you and the noonday sun and just try
to see your flickering candle. Just try to see it. No, it shows
nothing. The Son is seen only in its own
light. And Christ, the Son of Righteousness,
is seen only in His own light. Well, how do we make men to see
Him? We don't! He does. We simply
declare Him. I'm saying all of this because
I want you to see the utter uselessness, the utter futility of trying
to prove things to men who will not believe. We continually see
these things. Long about Easter, they start
looking for the historic Jesus on television. And you just kind
of get intrigued with it, don't you? You just got to see that
foolishness. Let me ask you something. I'm sure most of you watched
some sometime or another. Have you ever learned anything
worth learning by it? And yet the whole world sits
around Now I understand what foolishness. Christ is such light that he
can only be seen in his own light. In his own light, we see him
as the brightness of the Father's glory and the express image of
his person. In his own light, we see him
as the only mediator between God and man. In His own light,
we see that He and He alone is the all-sufficient Savior of
guilty sinners. In His own light, we see the
glory and efficacy of His sin-atoning precious blood whereby we're
perfected forever and sanctified in Him. It's only in his light
that we see the completeness and perfection of his righteousness
made hours. And it's only in his light that
we see the immense treasures of God's grace and glory stored
up in him. John put it this way. If you're
still there, verse 14 of John one, the word was made flesh
and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory. We saw the light. The glory as of the only begotten
of the father, full of grace and truth. Christ is the light. He gives the light of nature
and he gives the light of grace and he will be all the light
in eternal glory. Listen to this. The city had
no need of the sun, neither the moon to shine in it, For the
glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. Soon we will safely arrive at
our glorious home in heaven, and we will walk perfectly in
perfect light forever. Turn to Isaiah 60. Isaiah 60. Oh God, soon all the lingering
darkness of infidelity in my heart, all the lingering doubts and
fears that vex my mind, soon will be completely dispelled
in the twinkling of an eye. Our very souls will then be radiant
with beams of light from Christ forever striking our hearts with
wonder, adoration, and praise. Isaiah 60, verse 19. The sun
shall be no more thy light by day. Neither for brightness shall
the moon give light unto thee, but the Lord shall be unto thee
an everlasting light. and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down. Oh, pause my soul and reflect
on that. Thy sun shall no more go down. Neither shall thy moon withdraw
itself, for the Lord shall be thine everlasting light. and
the days of thy mourning shall be ended. Christ is the Europe
and Christ is the Thumbel. He is the lights and he is the
perfections. Our Lord Jesus is that one in
whom alone perfection is found. That one from whom alone all
perfection comes. That one who is the perfection
of God, the perfection of man, and the perfection of his people.
He is himself the embodiment of perfection. For in him dwelleth
all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. Eternity. That's one of God's perfections.
We call his perfections his attributes. And one of his attributes is
eternity. Jesus Christ declares himself
to be he which he is and which was and which is to come the
almighty. Omnipotence is one of God's perfections. He's called the mighty God who
is our savior. Omniscience, oh, what a blessed
divine perfection that is. Are you ever impressed with the
way preachers use the Lord's omniscience to scare you to death?
The Lord knows where you are. He knows what you're thinking.
You can't hide from God. You slip over there behind the
counter when you're a little boy and he saw you steal those cigarettes,
go down woods and smoke them. God's going to get you. That's
what religion is designed to do, keep you scared all the time.
So you give your money and follow the preacher, the priest, right
on to hell. There, Chris, the sweetest thing
in this world to my soul is that Christ is the omniscient God. Peter, now tell me the truth. Do you love me? You know all things. Thou knowest
all things. In spite of everything I've said,
in spite of everything I've done, in spite of everything I am to
the contrary, Thou knowest that I love Thee. Lord, You know. You know. Omnipresence. That's one of God's perfections.
David said, where shall I hide from your presence? If I go into
hell, there you are. If I fly up to heaven, there
you are. Where can I hide from your presence, Lord? The Lord
Jesus is that one who declares where two or three are gathered
together in my name. There am I in the midst of them. Here we are gathered in the name
of our Redeemer. Down in Mexico, one of those
churches down there, probably several of them. Some of our
brethren are meeting together tonight, gathered in the name
of our Redeemer. And the Lord Jesus is right here,
and he's right there. He's the omnipresent God. He
said, Lo, I'm with you always. When you go through the valley,
I'm with you there. When you pass through the waters,
I'm with you there. When you ascend up to the slopes, I'm
with you there. When you go into the fiery furnace, I'm with you
there. Always with his own. Immutability. Oh, how I love
that word. Immutable. I am the Lord. I change not. Therefore, you
sons of Jacob are not consumed. Jesus Christ is that one who
is the perfection of immutability. The same yesterday and today
and forever. All the perfections of the gifts
of the spirit. are in Christ and flow to us
from him. All the perfection of grace is
in Christ and comes to chosen redeemed centers through the
blood and righteousness of Christ all for his sake. Christ is indeed
all to our souls. All the perfections, all the
blessings, all the promises of God given to sinners at any time,
for any reason, are in Christ. And in Him, they're all yea,
and in Him, amen. Christ is the lights, and Christ
is the perfection. And He carries us always in His
breast. As Aaron carried the children
of Israel on his heart, So Christ carries us on his heart all the
time before God. Look back at our text one more
time. Verse 29, Exodus 28. Aaron shall
bear the names of the children of Israel in the breastplate
of judgment upon his heart. When he goeth in unto the holy
place, he shall bear their names on his heart, now watch this,
for a memorial before the Lord continually. A memorial. A memorial? A memorial of what? A memorial of the fact that judgment
is finished for his own. Through Christ the Lamb slain
from the foundation of the world, represented in that Paschal Lamb
slain every year on the day of atonement. And thou shalt put
in the breastplate of judgment, in the breastplate of the verdict,
and the discernment, the Urim, the lights, and the Thummim,
the perfections, and they shall be upon Aaron's heart. I wonder why I know the modern
translations about all of them say they'll be on Aaron's breast.
I wonder why God specifically repeats this over and over again
on his heart. On his heart. Because Phil Simpson,
he intends for you to understand you're on his heart all the time. On his heart. On his heart. When
he goeth in before the Lord and Aaron shall bear the verdict. and the discernment of the children
of Israel upon his heart before the Lord continually. And let
me show you three things here, and I'll wrap this up. Number
one. God's elect are ever upon the
heart of Christ, our great high priest. From everlasting to everlasting
on his heart. On his heart, always. If you're on my heart, it means
I care. If you're on my heart, that means
you're tenderly cared for by me. If you're on my heart, that
means that anything that affects you affects me. Bobby, we're
on his heart. We're on his heart from eternity.
on his heart while he walked in this earth, on his heart when
he died in our stead, on his heart when he rose again, and
on his heart now as he ministers before the Lord. He carries on
his heart the verdict. Don Fortner is justified. Don Fortner is not guilty. Don
Fortner is righteous. as a memorial to the Lord and
the discernment, the wise discretion with which he orders the steps
of the righteous man, the man made righteous by his grace.
All right, here's the second thing. Everything Christ has done is
doing and shall hereafter do as our great high priest with
the Urim and the Thummim with the lights and the perfections,
he does as our representative, our mediator, and our substitute
before the Lord. When the sacrifice was offered,
when the sacrifice was accepted, when the sacrifice was consumed,
when the blood was sprinkled, when the glory of the Lord appeared
over the mercy seat between the cherubs, the children of Israel
were on the heart of their priest. And we are always on the heart
of our Redeemer as he carries out his work as our mediator
and our high priest. Number three, Christ the true
Urim and the true Thummim, the true lights and the true perfection
is that one by whom we're guided and instructed. All the time. All the time. He orders our steps,
James. He orders them. Like it or not,
he orders them. Oh, bless God, I like it, don't
you? We would choose our own way if we could, and he won't
let us. He orders our steps. You go in
and inquire at the Europe familiars of the priest and find out the
mind of God, because the lights and the perfections are with
the priest in the holy place. And so our Lord Jesus guides
us by his word and guides us by his spirit. And that's wonderful. That's wonderful. But don't leave
it there. It's not that he just shows us
the way, Rex, and says, now, now, come on, walk this way.
That's not all. That's not all. He shows us the
way. And he says, now, come on, walk
this way. And he takes us by the hand and tugs us along the
way and orders our steps and orders our feet through every
trial and every heartache. and every joy, every pleasantness,
every sickness, every time of health, every weakness and every
strength, every heartache and pain and every blissful moment. It is he who guides our steps
and will order our steps most directly to glory at last. He's the light. and perfection,
the Urim and the Thummim. Amen.