In Christendom there are some varied views concerning the completion of the work of redemption. Some argue that the cross is the stopping point of the Christian’s experience; while others believe that the Christian’s walk goes further than being justified through the death of Christ. In other words, the work of sanctification (being made righteous) needs to be accomplished in our hearts before the Second Coming of Christ, in addition to being justified (being declared righteous) at the cross. There needs to be an ‘at-one-ment’ between us and our Saviour while on earth. For this to be accomplished, anything between our soul and our God, namely sin, must be removed, cleansed from the soul; thus the reason for the antitypical Day of Atonement.
Is there any Biblical evidence to support the latter view? This is the purpose of this blog post. I pray that by the end of this study, you will not have just gained interesting ‘knowledge’, but also learn how to become a partaker of the Divine nature before the door of your probation closes. God’s way is in the Sanctuary………
Is there any Biblical evidence to support the latter view? This is the purpose of this blog post. I pray that by the end of this study, you will not have just gained interesting ‘knowledge’, but also learn how to become a partaker of the Divine nature before the door of your probation closes. God’s way is in the Sanctuary………
The Sanctuary on Earth
When the children of Israel were dwelling in tents in the wilderness, after being miraculously delivered out of Egyptian bondage, God made them the depositaries of His law, and then gave Moses the following instruction:
‘And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.’ {Exodus 25:8}
The purpose of the Sanctuary and its services was to teach them in visual format, the plan of redemption that would be accomplished. Their minds had been so defiled by the corrupt and abominable practices of their heathen neighbours, that they now needed the true worship of Jehovah to be broken down to them in bite sized pieces. They needed to understand practically: Justification and Sanctification.
For this, God gave implicit instructions on how every part of the Sanctuary and its furnishings were to be made. The pattern that Moses was to follow was the pattern of the Heavenly Sanctuary:
‘According to all that I show thee, [after] the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make [it].’ {Exodus 25:9}
There were two apartments in the Sanctuary: The Holy Place, and the Most Holy Place. The outer court was where the sacrifices of the animals would be performed, and their bodies burned. Daily the congregation of Israel would bring their lamb or goat to the Priest, and there would they confess all their sins upon that animal. The Priest would then kill it and the blood of all the animals of that day would be taken into the first apartment of the Sanctuary (Holy Place), and would sprinkle the blood therein; thus symbolising the SINS OF THE PEOPLE BEING TRANSFERRED TO THE SANCTUARY.
Throughout the year this round of service would happen evening and morning. The priests would assist one another in this work. However, once a year a day was appointed where only the High Priest would enter into the Most Holy Place and make an ATONEMENT FOR GOD’S PEOPLE BY CLEANSING THE SANCTUARY OF ALL THE SINS THAT WERE IN TYPE TRANSFERRED THERE.. This day, was called, The Day of Atonement.
[For a Biblical and more detailed description on what took place on this day, please read Leviticus 23:27-30; Leviticus 16:4-28; Numbers 29:7-11]
The Need for Cleansing of the Temple
When Jesus died on Calvary’s cross, the awesome prophecy of Genesis 3:15, was fulfilled:
‘And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; It shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise His heel.’
‘And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; It shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise His heel.’
Indeed, the deadly power of sin lost its power and hold over mankind when Jesus was crucified! Sin does not have to have dominion over us! Yes that is great news for anyone who longs to be delivered from their deep rooted habits and lifestyle of sin. However, even though it has been accomplished at the cross, the power of God’s grace needs to be now administered into the heart, mind and life:
‘For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only [so], but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by Whom we have now received the atonement.’ {Romans 5:10, 11}
You may ask, ‘The Atonement? Are you saying that we need to set up another Sanctuary on earth, and perform the same service that our forefathers did back in the Old Testament?’
No, that is not what I am saying, for that would be totally contradictory to God’s Word:
‘And He shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week He shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease..’ {Daniel 9:27}
The ‘midst of the week’, is speaking about A.D.31 when Christ was crucified, and the sacrifices of the Sanctuary, with all the ceremonial laws were nailed to the cross.
‘Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.’ {Daniel 9:24}
The Hebrew for the word ‘sins’, is translated as sin and sin offering. This Hebrew word is also used in Leviticus when speaking about the daily offerings. So when Jesus yielded up His life, sin offerings, the Sanctuary services, as well as sin, were put to an end.
However, what I am saying is this:
‘For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people, Saying, This [is] the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you. Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry. And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. [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 than these.’ {Hebrews 9:19-23}
When Christ ascended into Heaven, He entered into the first apartment of the Sanctuary above to begin His work as our Great High Priest: to offer His forgiveness through His blood, every time man would confess and repent. But there came a point in time when Christ moved into the second apartment, just as it was done in the earthly service, to begin His work of cleansing the Heavenly Sanctuary.
It sounds strange to hear that something which is in Heaven, in perfection, needed to be cleansed. Let us bear in mind that in the typical daily service, the sins of God’s people were daily confessed upon the animal; the animal was then slain; then the blood was brought into the Holy Place and sprinkled therein. Symbolising the sins of the people being transferred to the temple.
So while Christ was officiating in the Holy Place, immediately after His ascension, the sins of the people of God, was transferred to the Sanctuary.
God ‘remembers our sins no more’, this is true. This means that when you confess your sins and repent, He looks at you, and treats you as if you never committed that sin; but it is recorded. This is because, if you are lost, and your loved ones realise that you didn’t make it to Heaven, they will see for themselves that it was your own sin that blocked you from the kingdom, and not any fault on God’s part. God’s character will be vindicated as just and true in all of His ways. Amen!
‘For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only [so], but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by Whom we have now received the atonement.’ {Romans 5:10, 11}
You may ask, ‘The Atonement? Are you saying that we need to set up another Sanctuary on earth, and perform the same service that our forefathers did back in the Old Testament?’
No, that is not what I am saying, for that would be totally contradictory to God’s Word:
‘And He shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week He shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease..’ {Daniel 9:27}
The ‘midst of the week’, is speaking about A.D.31 when Christ was crucified, and the sacrifices of the Sanctuary, with all the ceremonial laws were nailed to the cross.
‘Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy.’ {Daniel 9:24}
The Hebrew for the word ‘sins’, is translated as sin and sin offering. This Hebrew word is also used in Leviticus when speaking about the daily offerings. So when Jesus yielded up His life, sin offerings, the Sanctuary services, as well as sin, were put to an end.
However, what I am saying is this:
‘For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people, Saying, This [is] the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you. Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry. And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. [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 than these.’ {Hebrews 9:19-23}
When Christ ascended into Heaven, He entered into the first apartment of the Sanctuary above to begin His work as our Great High Priest: to offer His forgiveness through His blood, every time man would confess and repent. But there came a point in time when Christ moved into the second apartment, just as it was done in the earthly service, to begin His work of cleansing the Heavenly Sanctuary.
It sounds strange to hear that something which is in Heaven, in perfection, needed to be cleansed. Let us bear in mind that in the typical daily service, the sins of God’s people were daily confessed upon the animal; the animal was then slain; then the blood was brought into the Holy Place and sprinkled therein. Symbolising the sins of the people being transferred to the temple.
So while Christ was officiating in the Holy Place, immediately after His ascension, the sins of the people of God, was transferred to the Sanctuary.
God ‘remembers our sins no more’, this is true. This means that when you confess your sins and repent, He looks at you, and treats you as if you never committed that sin; but it is recorded. This is because, if you are lost, and your loved ones realise that you didn’t make it to Heaven, they will see for themselves that it was your own sin that blocked you from the kingdom, and not any fault on God’s part. God’s character will be vindicated as just and true in all of His ways. Amen!
‘[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 than these.’ {Hebrews 9:19-23}
Just as it was necessary to cleanse the earthly Sanctuary (‘patterns of things in the heavens’) because of the sins of the people that were in type transferred there, it was likewise needful for the Heavenly Sanctuary to be cleansed. Not with the blood of animals, but ‘with better sacrifices than these.’ {Hebrews 9:23}
Upon the testimony of at least two, shall a thing be established. So I’ll just share with you a few more other places in the Bible, that teaches the truth that the Day of Atonement, is repeated in Heaven: [The following comparisons, are taken directly from Steven Haskell’s book: ‘The Cross and Its Shadow’, p. 218-219]
Type
Leviticus 16:29, 30- On the tenth day of the seventh month the sanctuary was cleansed.
Anti-type
Daniel 8:14- “Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the Sanctuary be cleansed.”
Type
Lev 16:15-19- The sanctuary was cleansed, and sins removed by the blood of the Lord’s goat, at the end of the year’s service.
Anti-type
Acts 3:19, 20- Sins will be blotted from the heavenly records near the end of Christ’s work as high priest.
Type
Lev 16:2- God’s presence was in the Most Holy Place on the Day of Atonement.
Anti-type
Daniel 7:9, 10- The Father enters the Most Holy Place of the heavenly Sanctuary before the opening of the judgment.
Type
Lev 16:4-6- The high priest made special preparation to enter the Most Holy Place apartment.
Anti-type
Daniel 7:13, 14- Christ is borne into the most holy apartment by the angels of Heaven.
Type
Ezekiel 28:9-21- The high priest bore the names of Israel over his heart and his shoulders when he entered the Most Holy Place.
Anti-type
Revelation 3:5- Christ knows each name, and confesses the names of the overcomers before the Father and the angels.
Type
Lev 16:20- When the High Priest came out of the sanctuary, he had “made an end of reconciling.”
Anti-type
Rev 22:11, 12- When Christ comes out from the heavenly sanctuary, He announces the eternal destiny of every soul.
Type
Lev 16:21- The sins were all laid upon the scapegoat.
Anti-type
Psalm 7:16- Sin will return upon the head of the originator of sin.
Type
Lev 16:22- The goat shall bears the sins into a land not inhabited, a land of separation.
Anti-type
Lev 16:20- When the High Priest came out of the sanctuary, he had “made an end of reconciling.”
Anti-type
Rev 22:11, 12- When Christ comes out from the heavenly sanctuary, He announces the eternal destiny of every soul.
Type
Lev 16:21- The sins were all laid upon the scapegoat.
Anti-type
Psalm 7:16- Sin will return upon the head of the originator of sin.
Type
Lev 16:22- The goat shall bears the sins into a land not inhabited, a land of separation.
Anti-type
Rev 20:1-3- Satan will be left on the desolate earth for one thousand years.
Type
Lev 16:23- The high priest left the robe he wore while officiating in the Most Holy Place in the sanctuary, and put on other garments.
Anti-type
Rev 19:11-16- Christ lays aside His priestly robes, and comes to the earth as King of kings and Lord of lords.
Type
Lev 16:27- The bodies of the sacrifices were taken without the camp and burned, and nothing but ashes remained as a reminder of sin.
Anti-type
Matthew 13:41-43; Mal 4:1-3- Christ will “gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity,” and they will be burned in the fires of the last day. Only ashes will remain.’
Type
Lev 16:23- The high priest left the robe he wore while officiating in the Most Holy Place in the sanctuary, and put on other garments.
Anti-type
Rev 19:11-16- Christ lays aside His priestly robes, and comes to the earth as King of kings and Lord of lords.
Type
Lev 16:27- The bodies of the sacrifices were taken without the camp and burned, and nothing but ashes remained as a reminder of sin.
Anti-type
Matthew 13:41-43; Mal 4:1-3- Christ will “gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity,” and they will be burned in the fires of the last day. Only ashes will remain.’
When did Christ begin the work of Atonement?
When did Christ move from the Holy to the Most Holy Place, to begin the cleansing of the Sanctuary?
Daniel 8:14- “Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the Sanctuary be cleansed.”
This time prophecy, which included the period of probation granted to the Jews to fill up their cup of iniquity; the time of Christ; the giving of the Gospel to the Gentiles; the Dark Ages; the Millerite history; would begin in the year 457 B.C, and would terminate on October 22nd, 1844. We calculate this, by using the Biblical principle of prophecy, that a day equals a year in prophecy. So it would be 2300 years.
And sure enough, at the expiration of the 2300 years, October 22nd, 1844, Christ moved into the second apartment, to administer the cleansing of the Sanctuary, for all the sins that were transferred there. Not just the cleansing of the heavenly, but also of the soul’s temple: our hearts.
Revelation 22:11-12 ‘He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. And, behold, I come quickly; and My reward [is] with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be.’
When Jesus comes the second time, His reward is with Him. You can’t be rewarded for something if you didn’t go through an examination first, correct? The reward will be given according to our work. You are rewarded for your works, because your works weren’t examined prior to the giving of the reward. So from the above verse, we can only come to one conclusion, and that is the fact that THERE MUST BE A PRE-ADVENT JUDGMENT. So the anti-typical Day of Atonement did not just occur on October 22nd, 1844, but continues on up until the close of human probation, as the above verse states.
Daniel 8:14- “Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the Sanctuary be cleansed.”
This time prophecy, which included the period of probation granted to the Jews to fill up their cup of iniquity; the time of Christ; the giving of the Gospel to the Gentiles; the Dark Ages; the Millerite history; would begin in the year 457 B.C, and would terminate on October 22nd, 1844. We calculate this, by using the Biblical principle of prophecy, that a day equals a year in prophecy. So it would be 2300 years.
And sure enough, at the expiration of the 2300 years, October 22nd, 1844, Christ moved into the second apartment, to administer the cleansing of the Sanctuary, for all the sins that were transferred there. Not just the cleansing of the heavenly, but also of the soul’s temple: our hearts.
Revelation 22:11-12 ‘He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. And, behold, I come quickly; and My reward [is] with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be.’
When Jesus comes the second time, His reward is with Him. You can’t be rewarded for something if you didn’t go through an examination first, correct? The reward will be given according to our work. You are rewarded for your works, because your works weren’t examined prior to the giving of the reward. So from the above verse, we can only come to one conclusion, and that is the fact that THERE MUST BE A PRE-ADVENT JUDGMENT. So the anti-typical Day of Atonement did not just occur on October 22nd, 1844, but continues on up until the close of human probation, as the above verse states.
The Bible describes this event
Daniel 7:9-14 ‘I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, Whose garment [was] white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne [was like] the fiery flame, [and] his wheels [as] burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened… I saw in the night visions, and, behold, [one] like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion [is] an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom [that] which shall not be destroyed.’
Revelation 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is [the book] of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
Daniel 7:9-14 ‘I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, Whose garment [was] white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne [was like] the fiery flame, [and] his wheels [as] burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened… I saw in the night visions, and, behold, [one] like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion [is] an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom [that] which shall not be destroyed.’
Revelation 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is [the book] of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
Revelation 11:1 And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.
Our Duty
‘So in the great day of final atonement and investigative judgment the only cases considered are those of the professed people of God. The judgment of the wicked is a distinct and separate work, and takes place at a later period. "Judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel?" 1 Peter 4:17.
'The books of record in heaven, in which the names and the deeds of men are registered, are to determine the decisions of the judgment….'
'The book of life contains the names of all who have ever entered the service of God. Jesus bade His disciples: "Rejoice, because your names are written in heaven." Luke 10:20. Paul speaks of his faithful fellow workers, "whose names are in the book of life." Philippians 4:3. Daniel, looking down to "a time of trouble, such as never was," declares that God's people shall be delivered, "everyone that shall be found written in the book." And the revelator says that those only shall enter the city of God whose names "are written in the Lamb's book of life." Daniel 12:1; Revelation 21:27.'
‘"A book of remembrance" is written before God, in which are recorded the good deeds of "them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon His name." Malachi 3:16. Their words of faith, their acts of love, are registered in heaven. Nehemiah refers to this when he says: "Remember me, O my God, . . . and wipe not out my good deeds that I have done for the house of my God." Nehemiah 13:14. In the book of God's remembrance every deed of righteousness is immortalized. There every temptation resisted, every evil overcome, every word of tender pity expressed, is faithfully chronicled. And every act of sacrifice, every suffering and sorrow endured for Christ's sake, is recorded. Says the psalmist: "Thou tellest my wanderings: put Thou my tears into Thy bottle: are they not in Thy book?" Psalm 56:8.’
‘There is a record also of the sins of men. "For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." Every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment." Says the Saviour: "By thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned." Ecclesiastes 12:14; Matthew 12:36, 37. The secret purposes and motives appear in the unerring register; for God "will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts." I Corinthians 4:5. "Behold, it is written before Me, . . . your iniquities, and the iniquities of your fathers together, saith the Lord." Isaiah 65:6, 7.’
‘Sins that have not been repented of and forsaken will not be pardoned and blotted out of the books of record…’
‘As the features of the countenance are reproduced with unerring accuracy on the polished plate of the artist, so the character is faithfully delineated in the books above…’
‘In the judgment the use made of every talent will be scrutinized…What have we done for Christ, in the person of the poor, the afflicted, the orphan, or the widow? God has made us the depositaries of His holy word; what have we done with the light and truth given us to make men wise unto salvation?…’
‘The hidden selfishness of men stands revealed in the books of heaven. There is the record of unfulfilled duties to their fellow men…There they will see how often were given to Satan the time, thought, and strength that belonged to Christ…’
‘The subject of the sanctuary and the investigative judgment should be clearly understood by the people of God. All need a knowledge for themselves of the position and work of their great High Priest. Otherwise it will be impossible for them to exercise the faith which is essential at this time or to occupy the position which God designs them to fill…’
‘We are now living in the great day of atonement. In the typical service, while the high priest was making the atonement for Israel, all were required to afflict their souls by repentance of sin and humiliation before the Lord, lest they be cut off from among the people. In like manner, all who would have their names retained in the book of life should now, in the few remaining days of their probation, afflict their souls before God by sorrow for sin and true repentance. There must be deep, faithful searching of heart…’
{Great Controversy, 480-489}
‘For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only [so], but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by Whom we have now received the atonement.’ {Romans 5:10, 11}
‘For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only [so], but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by Whom we have now received the atonement.’ {Romans 5:10, 11}
