Leviticus 15-16:6 - 2012 - Skip Heitzig

[Music] welcome to expound our weekly worship and verse by verse study of the Bible our goal is to expand your knowledge of the truth of God as we explore the Word of God in a way that is interactive enjoyable and congregational and we're back with expound verse by verse through the Bible turn in your Bibles to the Book of Leviticus your favorite chapter 15 let's pray Lord the songs that we have sung remind us of your presence with us as well as our need for you we're reminded lured by the very truths that we have proclaimed that we we rely upon you on a daily basis that we ask the Spirit of the Living God to fall afresh upon us in our understanding of truth in our application in our lives that you would shape us mold us and use us we were instructed Lord in your word on how to relate to you as well as how to love and relate to one another so settle our hearts we pray just now as we receive you in a new way as we worship you by the willingness to listen to what the Bible teaches that in and of itself is an act of worship we are saying that God speaks and I need to listen and so father speak your servants here in Jesus name Amen I will confess to you that some chapters of the Bible are a blast to teach you look forward to going over them there are certain topics that the Bible presents like the resurrection if you're gonna teach on the resurrection you're just in great territory or the sacrifice of Christ on the cross certain topics that stand out certain chapters that are winsome and wonderful Isaiah 53 John chapter 3 Psalm 23 Genesis 22 there are so many but then there are other chapters that you'd rather avoid well they're just not as fun and we happen to be in one as you will see by looking at the first couple of verses the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron saying speak to the children of Israel and say to them when any man has a discharge from his body we won't even finish the verse and we're already going Yawk it's not something that you would typically think of discussing nor having a meeting over and yet here we are we find ourselves engaged in the very truths that we wouldn't normally be senator gravitated around to me that's the delight of being an expository Church is that you are confined to what the Bible says and when you go through the Scriptures chapter by chapter verse by verse you cover all that is important to God all that is revealed you can't write a hobbyhorse you can't talk about the same subject over and over again you are confined to how the text navigates the truth you find whatever is on God's heart in its context and the level of its importance depending on how much he wants to repeat himself but since we haven't been in Leviticus a while because of the holiday season it's good to refresh our memory on a few things the first deals with the whole issue of why are we studying this book why do we read the Torah the first five books of Moses especially Leviticus especially this chapter well here's why in the New Testament it says all Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable if I'm to believe that text all scripture then I have to confess that chapter 15 of Leviticus is profitable in fact the entire script of the Book of Leviticus is given by inspiration of God and is profitable studying Leviticus will do a number of things for you first of all it will unlock other books of the scripture that will remain locked unless you have a working grasp at least of the contents of this book you won't understand Hebrews without understanding its background which comes from Leviticus you really won't understand the New Testament temple worship and all that is mentioned even in the Gospels or acts in reference to the Jews being in the temple unless you have a working knowledge of this book so the Book of Leviticus unlocks other books of Scripture number one number two this book unveils to us the presence of God in every aspect of life as I read this book one of the things that I am confronted with over and over again is God gets in my face and says I want to be a part of that part of your life as well as that part of your life every part he intrudes into the bedroom the bathroom and the boardroom he wants to weigh in on what he thinks about personal hygiene and human sexuality as well as worship so it unveils the presence of God in every part of my life a third thing it does is it will undo stale patterns of worship we all get used to doing certain things a certain way and when somebody changes the certain way we do things we don't like it we're human but suddenly in this book were confronted with a very dynamic system of worship that would have changed even for ancient Israel the way they always did things as the drama of redemption is seen before them as part of their worship system they would see blood coming out of the throat of animals and animals being burned and the smell of that flesh being consumed all to approach God very dynamic so it will undo stale patterns of worship finally it will underscore the holiness of God it is a key theme of the book 152 times the word holy or holiness or sanctify is seen in the Book of Leviticus so it it'll underscore the holiness of God the Hebrew word Kadosh unique separate holy is seen in this book now again by way of review Leviticus keeps you in the same location it opens up at the foot of Mount Sinai it closes at the foot of Mount Sinai when you open the book and when you close the book you haven't changed places it was all given in one geographic location the first 10 chapters and we've already gone through so many of the chapters we're already in chapter 15 the first 10 chapters are vertical chapters it's all about my worship of God but beginning in chapter 11 through 15 it changes from vertical to horizontal now I'm dealing with how I hang out with and relate to people so the first 10 chapters vertical the next few chapters horizontal our worship of God our walk in the world the first seven chapters were all about sacrifices do you remember them there were five that were given the burnt offering the grain offering the peace offering the sin offering the trespass offering so as I read those chapters I'm confronted with a principle a truth I need a sacrifice that's what those chapters tell me I need a sacrifice if I'm going to approach God I can't just barge in I have to come with a sacrifice that's the first seven chapters 8 9 and 10 will we're still dealing vertically as I read those chapters another principle is revealed to me I need a pre I need a go-between I need a representative somebody who can represent me before God I can't just come in by myself with a sacrifice a priest has to bear the sacrifice for me but beginning in chapter 11 and we're in this section now in chapter 15 we're dealing on the horizontal level so we've been dealing with what foods you can eat chapter 11 kosher and unco sure what is put in my body that's chapter 11 chapter 12 what is produced by my body children when children are born how do I deal with them before the Lord but chapter 15 as I mentioned is the yuk chapter you go I thought we've already done the yuk chapter wasn't that chapters 13 and 14 you know the whole leprosy thing yeah that was pretty bad but can I just say you ain't seen nothing yet here's the difference between the last couple of chapters that we have already read and the one you and I are about to read leprosy is something that is obvious everybody would know it oh yes it starts small in insignificant and you are probably the first one to realize it but then pretty soon it is so obvious that everyone knows it and you are ostracized from your community unless chapter 14 becomes your reality and you are cleansed this is the law of the leper in the day of his cleansing if by an intervention of God or natural causes that God brings into play you are cleansed wonderful that's the law of the leper and the day of his cleansing but again leprosy is obvious everybody will know about it the bodily discharge chapter this one this is private these are things no one would know except for you and yet and yet God is interested in it God writes laws about it again god intruding himself into virtually every area of my life and it tells me that I have a public as well as a private world so to you you have a reputation but you also have a character as we mentioned Sunday your reputation is what people look on the outside and think you are your character is who you really are when nobody's looking you in private is that the same as you in public because God is concerned with the private as well as the public David and Psalm 19 had a very interesting prayer have you ever prayed this Lord cleanse me from secret faults guard me from presumptuous sins deal with that part of my life that is private so that I'm clean before you from the secret faults and again Psalm 51 same author David he said for you desire truth in the inward parts the inward parts the damning thing about religion is it deals so often with the outward and doesn't really deal with the inward you can get by treating superficially your life by going through the motions going through the rituals yeah I I paid my tithes I went to church I gave the sacrifice or whatever your religious background inclined you toward God isn't too interested in that he's interested in the heart always and so to Isaiah and through that prophet he said to his own people the children of Israel what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices saith the Lord I hate your feast days I hate the sacrifices you bring you go wait wait wait stop stop stop you know you're the one who started the sacrifices and the holy days why do you say you hate them because your heart's not in it you say one thing and you do another you desire truth in the inward parts and this chapter has that overarching principle so don't get too bogged down in the pus and the discharge but get to the principle behind the pus yuck the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron's saying speak to the children of Israel and say to them when any man has a discharge from his body his discharge is unclean now that's a general rule but as these verses unfold it would seem and i underscore scene because you can't always be sure I've read all of the different opinions and commentaries it seems that in the next several verses we are dealing with discharge that comes from venereal disease and I say that because and offering a sin offering will be required for it not all of these discharges is that true but for this one it is and this shall be his uncleanness verse 3 in regard to his discharge whether his body runs with his discharge or his body is stopped up by his discharge it is his uncleanness every bed is unclean on which he who has the discharge lies and everything on which he sits shall be unclean and whoever touches his bed shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean to leave me he who sits on anything on which he who has the discharge sat shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until evening and he who touches the body of him who has the discharge shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until evening if he who has the discharge spits on him who is clean well that's cruel then he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until evening any saddle on which he who has the discharge shall ride shall be unclean whoever touches anything that was under him shall be unclean until evening he who carries any of those things shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until evening in whom ever the one who has the discharge touches and it's not rinsed his hands in water he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean till evening the vessel of the earth the clay pot in other words that he who has the discharge touches shall be broken and every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water and when he who has a discharge is cleansed of his discharge then he shall count for himself seven days for his cleansing wash his clothes and bathe his body in running water then he shall be clean these are individuals that have running sores that could be contagious you can see the concern if you have some contagion in your body and you spit on somebody it could be carried in this fiddle if you're drinking from a vessel or you grab somebody else's glass across the table who has been drinking you know his water or Diet Coke or whatever and you put it to your lips which again would be cruel they'd be offensive to spit on somebody or take their vessel and get your germs on it especially if you have a contagious disease so these are the laws that govern that now what you have just heard apply that to sin imagine what sin is like to God God views sin like a running sore like running pus and he sees the sin of mankind in need of being cleansed there's a repeated phrase over and over and over again in the verses we have just read washed with water or cleansed with water so you have an issue of contagion you have a medical condition wash it with water what's interesting is how long ago this was written years before we had what was discovered really a few hundred years back at at the latest and that was that water is good when it comes to washing away disease for surgical procedures up until that point doctors did not believe that was true they believed in bloodletting you let a person bleed out and you apply different things but the idea of taking clean water and washing wasn't even brought into medical practice until more recent years the last couple of centuries way back then in the law of course God knew these things and he talked about the washing of water now we have a parallel if we are comparing these laws with the spiritual laws of redemption and being cleansed from sin isn't it interesting that the Bible declares the Word of God as something that cleanses you like water jesus said now are you clean by the word that I have spoken unto you the book of Ephesians chapter 5 speaks of the washing of the water by the word the cleansing of the word of God how shall a young man cleanse his way a state but by taking heed according to your word verse 14 on the eighth day this is now after the seven-day cleansing has passed the key shall take for himself two turtledoves or two young pigeons and come before the Lord to the door of the tabernacle of meeting and give them to the priest the priest shall offer them the one is the sin offering the other is a burnt offering so the priest shall make atonement for him before the Lord because of his discharge this is the reason why the previous verses probably are referring to a venereal disease because you will notice that a sin-offering is required for the discharge a sin-offering if you remember back from our chapters previously it was the confession of my sin it was the admission that I had done something wrong before the Lord and the sin offering simply prove that the burnt offering was the consecration of my self the sin offering was the confession of my sin and both of these are brought into play with these discharges so what a great combination blood and water the blood of redemption the washing of the water by the word we could ask a simple question we could ask it every time we meet why are we here are we here because we're bored are we here because well it's a down night there's nothing great on TV I can kill an hour or two go to that place over on Osuna know you're here I believe because you believe that the work of God is done by the Word of God that you actually grow you grow in the grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ by studying the scriptures by doing what we're doing now you are washed and cleansed by the Word of God by the way this kind of cleansing by the word we got to do it all the time oh I do it once a week you got to do it every day first thing I do is get up in the morning and open my Bible with a cup of coffee of course but open the Bible I want to be washed I want to be cleansed you remember at the Last Supper when Jesus took his garments laid them aside got a basin of water washed the disciples feet he comes to Peter Peter goes oh no you're not gonna wash me Peter if I don't wash you you have no part with me well the Lord oh just give me a whole bath you know dunk me under head hands everything Jesus at Peter if you've already been cleansed you don't need another bath basically just need your feet washed there's a principle there I've been cleansed from all my sin when I was saved but I walk in this world and my feet get dirty so to speak and I need my feet cleansed by the washing of the water with the word that's the principle Jesus got across to Peter and I think is underscored here in principle form verse 16 if any man has an emission of semen I can hear a pin drop then he shall wash all his body and water and be unclean until evening in any garment and any leather on which there is semen it shall be washed with water and be unclean until evening also when a woman lies with a man and there is an emission of semen they shall bathe in water and be unclean until evening now this does not refer to the discharge brought on by a venereal disease but the normal activity within marriage no sin offering is required no sin has been committed the book of Hebrews says the marriage bed is undefiled a husband and wife were designed by God to enjoy it ought to be pleasurable it's not defiling it's wonderful it's fulfilling sex is not dirty God invented it but as we have often said and it bears repeating that which has been god-given must always be God governed if it's not God governed then that which is clean becomes dirty now you could ask a simple question ok so if you're not unclean why does it say they are unclean until evening that's an interesting question because they're not bringing a sin offering and they're not waiting seven days but because there has been a discharge this couple is unclean until evening I can only put it this way this is how I figure it even the most normal natural god-given things are tainted by sin because we live in a sinful world that's why Paul in Romans 8 said we groan all of creation is groaning waiting to experience the full Redemption as children of God even the best things in life aren't the way they were originally intended to be before the fall so they're unclean until evening verse 19 through 24 is another discharge but this is the issue of blood that comes from the menstrual cycle of the woman monthly if a woman has a discharge and the discharges from her body is blood she shall be set apart seven days and on whoever and whoever touches her shall be unclean until evening everything that she lies on during her impurity or that is the menstrual cycle shall be also unclean everything that she sits on shall be unclean whoever touches her bed shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until evening and whoever touches anything that she sat on shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until evening if anything is on her bed or on anything in which she sits when he touches it he shall be unclean to leave me and if any man lies with her at all so that her impurity is on him he shall be unclean seven days and every bed on which he lies shall be unclean this is the normal cycle this is the woman's mess menstrual cycle the flow of blood no offering is given but she is separated for seven days interesting in fact some would say appalling what's up with this we would enquire why would a woman going through a monthly cycle be every month for a week treated like a leper separated from everyone as if unclean well as harsh as it sounds it was to be a monthly reminder to everyone of the fall and what the fall brought it brought separation between people and God and people from people and by the way you say well why do we need to be reminded of that so often because we forget it so often the world is tainted with sin and impurity hence the need for Jesus to come and cleanse us once for all so we're reminder of the fall a reminder of the separation that comes from the fall and I think a good practice is seen here within a marriage it is in one sense God saying to the guys give your wife some space you're able to be with her you're able to be intimate with her and enjoy her but during this time there's a separation leave her alone give her some space so that when you come back together it will be even more enjoyable this pattern was worked out on a monthly basis because of the cycle now in verse 25 we have a chronic flow perhaps related again to a venereal disease we've been dealing with the men now again with the women if a woman has a discharge of blood for many days other than at the time of her customary impurity or if it runs beyond her usual time of impurity all the days of her unclean discharge shall be as the days of her customary impurity she shall be unclean in other words she is perpetually as a leper every bit on what she lies all the days of her discharge shall be to her as the bed of impurity and whatever she sits on shall be unclean as the uncleanness of her impurity whoever touches those things shall be unclean he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and shall be unclean until evening but if she is cleansed of her discharge then she shall count for herself seven days after that she shall be clean and on the eighth day she shall take for herself two turtledoves two young pigeons bring them to the priest to the door of the tabernacle of beating then the priest shall offer the one as his sin offering and the other as a burnt offering and the priest shall make atonement for her before the Lord for the discharge of her uncleanness this is an abnormal flow of blood a long-standing issue of blood lasting weeks or even more it seems to refer to a venereal disease because once again a sacrifice is required because of it now here is where reading this gives us insight into the New Testament remember I said when we read Leviticus it unlocks other sections of Scripture so we're reading through the Gospels Matthew Mark Luke and we come to a very interesting story I'll read it to you out of the Gospel of Luke a woman comes to Jesus having a flow of blood for 12 years remember the story Jesus is on the way to the house of Jairus the leader of the synagogue in Capernaum the crowd is around him pressing in on him and as he's following the ruler of the synagogue a woman comes up touches the hem of His garment here's the story now a woman this is luke chapter 8 having a flow of blood for 12 years who had spent all her livelihood on physicians and could not be healed by any happens to have that happens every day by the way came from behind and touched the border of His garment and immediately her flow of blood stopped jesus said who touched me when all denied at Peter and those with him said master the multitude strong and press you and you say who touched me but Jesus said somebody touched me for I perceived power going out of me now when the woman saw that she was not hidden she came trembling falling down before him she declared to him in the presence of all the people the reason she had touched him and how she was healed immediately and he said to her daughter be of good cheer your faith has made you well go in peace she had been in a continual state of uncleanness for 12 years because of a vaginal hemorrhage the very thing were eating about in the Book of Leviticus because of that she had been put out of society she obviously believed in the power of Jesus touch here's probably what happened she had seen Jesus touch people and she saw the effect cause and effect he touches people people are better I bet it'll also work in Reverse if I touch him I'm gonna be cured it's in the touch so she set up the hem of Jesus garment a little tasseled garment the Jewish males wore with the blue fringe she set that little tassel garment as the point of contact to release her faith there wasn't anything magical in the garment I'm sure if it had been found it had been cut up in millions of pieces and then said to perpetually grow over time so that there they be all over the world and that there's magic in it a relic of sorts it was just a plain piece of cloth there was no inherent miraculous power in the hem but it was touching Jesus body and she said I'm gonna touch the hem of His garment and I believe when I do I'm gonna be healed because that's Jesus she had faith in Jesus not in the garment the hem of the garment was simply a point of contact to activate to release her faith so as soon as she touched it I know it's gonna happen I know it's gonna happen boom it happened and Jesus said somebody touched me he could tell the difference between the crowd pressing him touching him and the singular touch of faith for I perceived power going from me daughter be of good cheer your faith has made you well so here we see the Book of Leviticus acted out in the New Testament she's under the law she's a Jewish woman she is ostracized from society and now she is healed verse 31 of Leviticus 15 thus you shall separate the children of Israel from their uncleanness lest they die in their uncleanness when notice this now when they defile my tabernacle that is among them I wrestled with that verse as I went through it it's one thing to have a bodily discharge a private personal malady but now God brings my personal malady and mixes it into the congregation of worship saying when they defile my tabernacle that is among them this is the law for one who has a discharge and for him who emits semen and is unclean thereby and for her who is indisposed because of her customary impurity and for one who has a discharge either man or woman and for him who lies with her who is unclean so as I wrestled with this I have some thoughts about it these issues that we're dealing with don't just defile personally but because I'm a part of the congregation as they were they defile corporately so I see that God is concerned about my body but he's also concerned about his body the church the body of Christ my personal physical body and what the scripture calls the temple of the Holy Spirit the body of Christ he's concerned about both you see this isn't just about hygiene but by introducing the verse that we just read it's about fellowship my personal matters my personal sin can affect everybody else really is that even possible is that true and is that sustained by other portions of Scripture uh-huh remember this story in the book of Joshua as they were coming into the land to inherit it crossing over the Jordan River and there was a guy you know they had been told look at every time we take over a city all of the spoil goes to the Lord you can't keep it for private remuneration but there was a guy named Aiken an Aiken acha in Aiken saw a beautiful Babylonian garment and he thought you know what's one garment I mean I love the colors I love the material he was a fashionista he thought this would look so good my wife will be so impressed just this garment I couldn't get it anywhere else it's not on sale anywhere I'm just gonna take it for myself in doing that singular personal private sin the entire children of Israel was brought into the judgment of God the congregation suffered because of his sin so you know the story he had to be taken out and he was stoned because he lied and he stole tried to cover it up so akin a CH aan was akin ACH I n G that's the moral of the story so here again here's the principle it's not just about hygiene it's about fellowship listen to this first John chapter 1 if we walk in the light as he is in the light we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin you know we can't just talk about our personal relationship with Jesus we'd love to do that as evangelicals is all about my personal relationship with Jesus to the exclusion of everybody else in the church in the body of Christ your personal relationship with Christ doesn't mean you can just live a private life and not have that private life affect everybody else God sees the congregation has defiled or enriched because of your personal private practices walk in the light as he is in the light your cleanse from sin and you have fellowship with one another now we have time to get into at least in part chapter 16 it is a hallmark chapter it is I would say as many commentators will say the center the central focal point of the Book of Leviticus in fact many rabbis will refer to this chapter because it talks about Yom Kippur the Day of Atonement that's what this chapter is all about the day of atonement is like the highest holiest day of the Jewish year it's so important that throughout time Jewish rabbis will simply call it hyoma or youma which means the day the day not just a day it's that day seventh month in the Jewish calendar on the tenth day now what that means is that Yom Kippur this year 2013 will be September 13th which falls on a Fridays Friday the 13th September will be on Kippur it's actually fitting as we read the description of it in this chapter chapter 16 of Leviticus is the Isaiah 53 of the Torah the five books of Moses Yom Kippur Day of Atonement Yom means day Kippur means cover or covering it's when sins were covered now marked that sins were covered not a race not eradicated not taken away they were covered the Old Testament pointed toward the time when their sins and their iniquities I will remember no more and there wouldn't be the need of weekly daily monthly yearly sacrifices and festivals but until then they're discovered the writer of Hebrews remember I said you need Leviticus to understand Hebrews the writer of Hebrews pointing back says those sacrifices of sheep bullocks etc could never take away sin this is about having them covered now verses one through seven is about the preparation of the priests verses eight through nineteen the preparation of the place the tabernacle verses 20 through 30 for the preparation of the people that's how the chapter is divided now there's something that we have touched on we talked about we've mentioned and I just want to underscore this we have in the Old Testament types shadows foreshadowing of New Testament truths especially of Jesus Christ you're familiar with that in Colossians it talks about festivals we're reading one but right here new moons and Sabbath's which are shadows of things to come but the substance is Christ these are shadows the substances of Christ now if you're if you're looking down and suddenly you see a shadow of a person overtake you you you can tell well it just got darker when you see a shadow of a person you know that there is a person to cast the shadow you don't look down at the shadow and have a conversation with the shadow because that's not the substance the substance is the person the substance is Christ these are shadows all of the festivals that pointed to Christ that's why we read in Luke 24 when Jesus was walking with those two disciples on the road to Emmaus it says and beginning at Moses hmm Moses Genesis Exodus Leviticus numbers Deuteronomy that's the five books that Moses wrote beginning at Moses and all of the prophets Jesus expounded or explained to them in the scriptures all the things concerning himself I'm sure I'm confident he went through the Day of Atonement the idea of the scapegoat the shedding of the blood the sprinkling of the blood the different offerings in leviticus the different festivals and how they pointed to him what the prophet said how he was mentioned in the psalms etc so we're dealing with the shadow now the Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron when they offered profane fire before the Lord and died remember when that was that was chapter 10 of this book Nate Avenue by who went in offered profane fire we talked about that they died so now God will tell them this the Lord said to Moses tell Aaron and your brother tell Aaron your brother not to come at just any time into the holy place inside the veil before the mercy seat which is on the ark lest he die for I will appear in the cloud above the mercy seat so this chapter opens up with a warning for Aaron and subsequent high priests that will come through his lineage look guys you can't just pop in and hang out with God anytime you feel like it if you try that you'll die fair warning high voltage don't touch explosives you know the signs are there he's putting the sign out why because we're told in Exodus 20:5 I will meet with you and speak with you from above the mercy seat which is on the ark between the wings of those two angels the cherubim I'm gonna hang out there my presence will be there and I will speak to you there so God promised to be with them and dwell among them above that Ark on the mercy seat so they can't just come in anytime they feel like it - the visible glorious presence of God lest they die as I am thinking about this I think about the casualness with which some believers talk about God have you ever had a conversation with someone you can tell they don't have a real deep rich relationship with the Lord when they talk about the man upstairs hey dude you know I talked to the man upstairs oh really that's what he is to you the man upstairs bringing God down to this low level human familiarity other than realizing yes I have a personal intimate relationship with God through Jesus Christ however there needs to be a holy familiarity I have to recognize the holiness of God I'm in the presence of the Living God yes I can come boldly now yes this is Old Testament and I'm in the New Testament but there ought to be a holy familiarity I'm in the presence of God not the man upstairs the Living God so the rules are given generally now for Aaron and his sons now can i refresh your memory to what we're dealing with we're dealing with the ark that's mentioned the tabernacle if you were to approach the tabernacle just try to visualize this as I tell it to you you would see from a distance a fence that's seven feet tall most of us couldn't look over it unless we were to jump very high seven feet tall the front of it would be 75 feet wide the depth of it would be a hundred and fifty feet deep that's the measurements of the outer court of the tabernacle there was only one approach to God one door one place where you could enter and exit even as Jesus said I am the door I am the way there's only one approach one door to God Jesus if you were of the right lineage you could be in the courtyard and if you were in the courtyard you would see in front of you a Laver a basin for washing a brass altar where sacrifices were being made and on the far side of that 150 by 75 foot courtyard you would see a tent-like structure oh great these are these are pictures by the way that I shot when I live no I'm just kidding when when they have a mock of it in the Judean Desert in Israel okay so in the distance you can see the blue veil and you can see the tent structure that structure of the tent structure is 15 feet wide by 45 feet deep divided into two rooms the first room is the biggest room it's 15 feet wide by 30 feet that's called the holy place the room behind it separated by another veil is the Holy of Holies that's a 15 foot cube 15 by 15 foot cube inside the holy place you would see that's inside the Holy of Holies but inside the holy place you would see to the right hand side if you were a priest you'd walk in and you would see in front of you a table with bread on it 12 loaves of bread show bread it's called representing the 12 tribes of the children of Israel to your left you would see a menorah a seven-branch candlestick and in front of you another altar smaller and made out of gold not brass the altar of incense and then behind the veil as you've already seen they've showed you behind the veil is the Ark of the Covenant which no one in Israel saw except the high priest once a year on this day Yom Kippur and he didn't even really see it because the whole place had to be filled with smoke God said incense a cloud had to cover it so it was a misty view he would see through a glass darkly so to speak he wouldn't get the full picture God said you better fill that place with smoke lest you die so through elaborate washings and sacrifices the high priest could go once a year for a short period of time into that room why to sprinkle blood on top of the seat called the mercy seat of that Ark of the Covenant now inside that Ark in that arc is a box it's 45 inches long 27 inches deep and 27 inches tall the lid is called the mercy seat solid gold must have weighed a ton and then these days would have been worth a fortune and then wood and gold cherubim covering it inside that box was the two tablets of the law excuse me word the two tablets of the law the law of Moses that would brought down from Sinai the second ones that Moses inscribed verse 3 the serán shall come into the holy place now notice in your Bible look at it carefully see the word play is it italicized that's because it's not there when you see an italicized word in your text it's inserted by the translators they're trying to give you what they feel is the best sense of the sentence it just says the holy ha kadosh the holy and it probably refers to especially the Holy of Holies but the holy place and the Holy of Holies that tent structure because you're gonna he is gonna eventually end up there Aaron shall come into the Holy with the blood of a young bull as a sin offering in a ram offering Ram as a burnt offering he shall put the holy linen tunic and the linen trousers on his body he shall be girded with a linen sash and with the linen turban he shall be attired these are holy garments therefore he shall wash his body in pure water and put them on now now wait a minute you're reading this I hope going I'm a bit confused because back in Exodus 20:8 we were given the specifications of the garments of the high priests and they weren't this right the high priests had very colourful ornately decorated a finally prescribed garments with a breastplate representing the 12 tribes and a turban a crown with a plate on it that said holy to the Lord but here he is given plain garments in fact the garments here on the day of atonement not only were they not the typical High Priest garments they weren't even the typical Priest garments they sound like the typical garments of a servant do you get the picture the high priest on the Day of Atonement lays aside his beautiful glorious ornamented garments and takes upon himself the garment of a servant the truth in Philippians who being in the form of God or thought it not robbery to be equal with God made himself of no reputation or poured himself out to the last drop and took upon himself the form of a servant coming in the likeness of men as a sacrifice that scene also in picture form at the Last Supper and supper being into John 13:1 supper being ended Jesus rose from the supper laid aside his garments girded himself with a towel and a basin of water and assumed the position of a servant washing the feet of his disciples again these monumental types and shadows and prefiguring zuv Christ on this day of atonement the high priest wore that hmm I think a verse that sums it all up in the beginning was the word and the Word was with God and the Word was God verse 14 and the word became flesh now he's in the form of a servant now he comes like a man and a woman and he shall take from the congregation of the children of Israel to kids of the goats to young goats as a sin offering and one Ram as he burned up now watch these two goats Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering which is for himself and make atonement for himself in his house now there's five animals that are used on the day of atonement two are for Aaron and his household a burnt offering and a sin offering a bowl for the sin offering a ram for the burnt offering that's for Aaron that's for his household because unlike Jesus our high priest this high priest is a sinner and again remember I said you have to understand Leviticus to understand the book of Hebrews right now here's a passage out of the book of Hebrews chapter seven speaking of Jesus for such a high priest was fitting for us who is holy harmless undefiled separate from sinners and has become higher than the heavens who does not need daily as those high priest to offer up sacrifices first for his own sins and then for the people's for he Christ did once for all when he offered up himself let's just suppose that we were Moabites all of us and we Moabites on the day of atonement we're up in the mountains close to the camp and we're all looking down at the camp we're seeing this whole thing unfold this guy dressed in white garments and going in and that strange structure called the tabernacle and a shepherd walks by an Israelite Shepherd going down toward the camp and we go hey wait a minute what is that thing down there that that weird contraption over that's called a tabernacle that's where God the God dwells that's where God will meet with mankind in the tabernacle and so we go well we'd like to go and maybe I'll speak first I want to go and he would say to me you can't go you have to be an Israelite to get there and I say oh man I wish I weren't Israelite I could go in there he goes oh no no you can't just be an Israelite to get in that structure you have to be an Israelite of the tribe of Levi the other tribe only the tribe of the other tribes can't do it only the the Levites can and so again we go Baumer I wish I'd have been in Israel I wish I was of the tribe of Levi and he goes oh but not only that you have to be an Israelite of the tribe of Levi and you have to be in the family of Aaron oh man this is getting more complicated we say boy I'd love to meet with God I wish I were an Israelite of the tribe of Levi of the family of Aaron and he goes oh no no no no not only do you have to be an Israelite of the tribe of Levi of the family of Aaron you have to be the oldest male in the family of Aaron to be called the high priest to go in there to go in that tent beyond the courtyard that inner tent you have to be a high priest man I wish I'd have been an Israelite tribe of Levi family of Aaron oldest male in his house to be a high priest because if I were we say to that Israelite I would go and meet with God every day in fact three times a day I'd be in there oh no no no contraire even the high priests can only go in there once a year for a short time with the elaborate washings and sacrifices or he will die now all hope of ever meeting with God are gone from our thinking it's very narrow is it not narrow is the way that leads to eternal life and very few will find it how grateful we are for our Lord Jesus Christ who has taken away the religious system and given us access to God through the blood of the Cross but even still it's a narrow way you have to believe in Jesus or there's no hope you might as well be a Moabite thousands of years ago in the wilderness hanging your heads and saying there's no hope Jesus offers hope he came as the sacrifice and the high priest offering himself dying resurrecting ascending to the throne the real Tabernacle in heaven in other words he did all the heavy lifting so hard to be a Christian what well yeah people don't like me okay whatever when is the last time you sweat drops of blood then you know what the Bible says you have not striven against sin unto blood like Jesus did he did all the heavy lifting you know what you have to do believe trust and trust or surrender your life to him he did all the work he accomplished all that for us you can't accomplish anything for him so in this new covenant because our high priest offered his own blood and he was the perfect sacrifice lived the perfect life we could never live died the atoning death on the cross resurrected from the dead to help us conquer death giving us promising us eternal life if we believe in him so all you have to do all anybody has to do an American a Catholic American a Muslim from Pakistan any person anywhere in the world is trust in Christ he's made it easy for everyone he's made heaven accessible for everyone people say well such a narrow way and you Christians make it so hard saying only people who believe in Jesus go to heaven that's true that's what we say I'm glad you got the message because that is the truth however it's not that you can't go it must mean that you won't go you will reject that message because he's saying you can come but you have to believe you have to turn from your past from your sin you have to turn to me and let my work for you be enough and that's why people will reject the narrow way they want the broad way jesus said narrow is the way the least life broad is the way that leads to destruction and most people will walk that way that's their preference they'd rather go along with the crowd safe you want to be a real countercultural person be a Christian father we are out of time but this could be just the right time for some this could now be the moment in time when they're about to meet God face to face so to speak for the first time in reality by the confession of their sin and the repentance of it the turning to Jesus is their Savior so as we're closing the service with prayer a call out to you if you've never personally received Jesus as your Savior then you are not saved if you are not saved you will never go to heaven I don't care how nice you are sincere you are or other otherwise religious God has made a way for you to be saved to be in his heaven he alone has the keys he can let in anybody he wants and keep out anybody he wants but the Bible says he doesn't want anybody kept out he does not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance so he offers it to you and says do you want it you can have it I've done all the work all the heavy lifting I did the killing or the dying the sacrificing you can trust in my finish work for you and I'll make you a child of God I'll forgive your sins and I'll give you heaven when it's all over as we're closing this service as we're praying and our heads are bowed if you want to take God up on his offer I want you to raise your hand so I can see your hand I'll acknowledge you and I'll pray for you as we close his service you raise your hand up and you're saying yes to God I'm surrendering to him just keep it up for just a minute god bless you and you and you to my right toward the middle anyone else you raise that hand raise it up high maybe you need to come back home to him maybe you've wandered away from him and your life is so empty you want the hope of heaven rekindled you raise your hand up anyone else in this moment make it your moment and you right toward the aisle in the middle in the back a few more of you Father we thank you and we pray that this would be a night of new beginning for so many here and watching this webcast or listening on the radio do a work of transformation that's your business that's your job in Jesus name would you stand please Ryan and the band is going to sing a final song and as they sing the song if you raise your hand and I saw by the way hands go up around the auditorium I want you to get up from where you're standing I want you to find the nearest aisle I want you to stand right up here where I'm gonna lead you in a prayer to receive Christ as your Savior your high priests your sacrifice once for all Jesus called people publicly he called them publicly and I'm calling you in the same manner as Jesus publicly you come and be unafraid to stand for him right here if you raise your hand don't put this off you come and affirm your faith in your walk and your love for him come forward from now [Music] [Applause] and trust him in his presence day [Music] [Applause] Surrender yes nice try I soon read Oh all to be my blessed Savior I surrender I often find that there's one or two or three or five more that are standing there and they know they know they need to do this but for whatever reason human nature the sinful nature the enemy of our souls has to keep us back from that you will be much better off and feel much better when you just raised the flag of surrender Lord I'm I'm done fighting you I'm done running from you I'm done going up my way I want to do it your way now as we sing this one more time give you those those few at that opportunity if you're in the family room or the balcony just come on into the main auditorium through the doors or down the stairs come and give your life to Christ come and enjoy his life is awful to Jesus I [Music] the is fee [Applause] me pleasures all forsaken take me Jesus take me [Applause] I surrender [Applause] [Music] to the save your eye sir now what we've just been singing I surrender all I'm going to give you that have come forward the opportunity to do to surrender all that's what you're saying and coming to Christ you're surrendering yourself you're giving your life back to the God who gave you life to begin with you're simply saying lord I can't do it alone I need your help I need you living in me and so I'm gonna lead you in a prayer that is inviting Christ to come in to your heart your life as I pray this prayer out loud I'd like you to pray it out loud after me saying these words from your heart to the Lord he's ready to receive you and welcome you let's pray lord I give you my life I'm a sinner please forgive me I believe in Jesus that he died for me that he shed his blood for me and that he rose from the dead I turn from my sin I turned my life over to you fill me with your holy spirit and give me your power to live for you every day in Jesus name Amen [Applause]

Channel: Calvary Church with Skip Heitzig

Views: 4,180

Rating: 4.7560978 out of 5

Keywords: Calvary, Albuquerque, Skip, Heitzig, Jesus, Leviticus, Sermon

Id: twjse5DfbmU

Length: 68min 58sec (4138 seconds)

Published: Tue Jun 19 2018