12/11/05 - “The Longest Time Prophecy in the Bible – Part 1” 37L
Victory Ministries International presents:
Awesome Truths and Amazing Facts  
Treasures of awesome truths from God’s Word 
and facts that affect you!

Hello!  This is Richard Vaughn

Today’s subject – “The Longest Time Prophecy in the Bible – Part 1”

Before we begin today’s program, shall we reverently seek God’s presence. Heavenly Father we ask for divine guidance as we open the word and study the longest time prophecy in the Bible.  In Jesus name Amen.
I continue to keep my pledge to lift up my voice like a trumpet and to show God’s people where they are going against God’s Will.

Today, we're going to study the longest time prophecy in the Bible.  As you see its fulfillment and accuracy, it will build your faith in the Word of God, and aid you in renewing a commitment in your life, to be ready for His very soon coming. 
Now the prophecy we will study pertains to the sanctuary and the cleansing of the sanctuary.  First we will acquaint you with the sanctuary, to help your understanding. 
Revelation 22:12 
"Behold, I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be." 
Now we can't pinpoint the exact time of Christ's second coming but, 
	Acts 17:31 
tells us "He hath appointed a day in which He will judge the world." So the Bible is clear that there is a specific time period appointed by God when this judgment takes place. 
	Revelation 14:7 
says "The hour of God's judgment IS come." Daniel calls it, “The time of the end” a time which takes place before Jesus returns to “give every man according as his work shall be." 
 	So, if when He comes, rewards are given out, then there must be a judgment before He comes, to determine who receives what reward. Do you see? The Bible is clear on that.
	Paul makes a most important statement in the book of Hebrews. 
Hebrews 8:1,2  
"Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum:  We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens: A minister of the (what?) sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man."  
	Here we are told that we have a high priest, Jesus Christ.  He's a minister in the true sanctuary in heaven. 
	The Bible speaks of two sanctuaries. One was the earthly sanctuary God told Moses to build. It was a copy, a miniature model, of the other sanctuary, the heavenly one, where God's throne is.  
	Exodus 25:8,9  
"And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them.” You see it was God’s purpose that He was to dwell with the people. Going on,
	“According to all that I shew thee, after the pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of all the instruments thereof, even so shall ye make it." 
So God asked them to build a specific sanctuary to hold these sacrificial services, and He said, "I'm going to give you a pattern to build that sanctuary after." This pattern was of the sanctuary that already existed up in heaven. 
	Hebrews 9:1    
"Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine services, and a (what kind of sanctuary?) worldly sanctuary."
  	It says here, "Then verily the first covenant..."  We must understand that word "covenant."   That covenant was an agreement, that God made between Himself and His chosen people the Israelites or the Jewish nation.  God had said to them, "You're going to be my special chosen people, and I'm going to be your God.  If you do what I tell you and you walk in my laws, then I'm going to bless you above all people on earth, and I'll be your God, and you'll be my special chosen people." If the nation of Israel would not obey, He would cast them off with a great curse, and destroy and scatter them  
	It is important that we see the entire sanctuary service as a miniature illustration of the plan of salvation.  The sanctuary service was illustrative of Jesus' death and His High Priestly ministry. God used it as a visual aid to help us understand how God has chosen to deal with the sin problem that has entered planet Earth. Continuing on, 
	Hebrews 9:2
"For there was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is called the sanctuary." 

It's also called the "holy place."  The altar of burnt offering was outside but inside the holy place was the table of shewbread, the altar of incense, and the seven-branch candlestick.  That was the first compartment. 
Very quickly, what can we learn here.  
1)	The altar of sacrifice or burnt offering, was outside in the courtyard, and was where sacrifices of animals were offered daily.  Paul tells us we are to offer ourselves a living sacrifice to God—and that is to be done daily.  (Rom. 12:1, 1 Cor. 15:31)
2)	The laver was where the priest washed, and that was outside in the courtyard, between the Altar of burnt offering and the Sanctuary. We are told to be washed by the water of the Holy Spirit.  (Titus 3:5)
3)	There was just one entrance into the sanctuary on the east side. Jesus said there was only one way of salvation.  John 14:6.  Now notice in the Holy place, the candlestick is on one side and the table of shewbread on the other. And then notice the position of the altar if incense before the veil.
4)	The candlestick—Jesus is the light of the world.
5)	The table of showbread—Jesus said He was the Bread that came down from Heaven.
6)	The altar of Incense—It is the prayers and intercession of Jesus that make our prayers acceptable before God.  (Ps. 141:2)  
	Then there was also another compartment that was separated by a heavy veil or curtain made of animal skins about four inches thick.  It had beautiful golden angels woven in it. 
	Continuing, "And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all." It’s also called the "the Most Holy place." Let's see what it has in it.  Vs. 4, "Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant." That's the Ten Commandment law.  
	Vs. 5, "And over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercy seat; of which we cannot now speak particularly."  The ark of the covenant was just behind the veil in the most holy place.
This was a very sacred and holy area.  The main article of furniture was the ark of the covenant.  
It was 55 inches long and 33 inches wide.  The lid on it was made of solid gold, and it was called "the mercy seat."  On that mercy seat were two golden angels whose wings touched at the top, they faced each other and looked down upon the ark.  Between those angels was where the very presence of God dwelt in this sanctuary. 
What was under the mercy seat, in the ark? 	 
	Deuteronomy 10:4,5
“And he wrote on the tables, according to the first writing, the ten commandments… 
	“And I turned myself and came down from the mount, and put the tables in the ark which I had made.” So the tables of the covenant, the Ten Commandments was in the ark under the mercy seat.
	Now the Bible goes on to tell us that God's priests would work in this section, the holy place of the sanctuary, every day.  You can read that in Hebrews 9:6.  "Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always (that means daily), into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God."  
	Vs.7 "But into the second (or the Most Holy place) went the priest alone (how often?) once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people." 
	Here we see that there was a daily work and a yearly work performed by the priests.  From this we understand that there are 2 phases of Jesus’ high priestly ministry.
In Old Testament times, if you sinned, you had to bring a sacrifice to an altar near the sanctuary. The sinner had broken God's law. The Bible says, "The wages of sin is (what?) death."  What must that man do?  The sinner brought an animal sacrifice, because either the lamb had to die, or the man had to die.  Most of the time a lamb was brought, a spotless lamb without blemish.  The sinner would hold his hands over the lamb's head, and he'd confess his sin.  After confessing his exact sin, the man would take a knife and cut the throat and the lamb would die.  So the innocent victim would pay the penalty and the blood would be shed.  

Hebrews 9:22 says, "... without the shedding of blood is no remission (or forgiveness) of sin." As the man confessed his sins over that lamb, the sin was symbolically, figuratively, being transferred from the person—the real sinner—to the substitute, the innocent lamb victim. So guilt was transferred from the man to the lamb.
  
{slide #42}
	Who's our Lamb?  Jesus.  Before we confess our sin, who deserves to die?  We do. After we confess it, who has died in our place?  Jesus has. Who bears our guilt?  Jesus does, the Lamb of God. So we don't need to carry around a heavy weight of guilt.    
	THERE ARE ONLY 2 WAYS IN WHICH OUR SINS CAN BE ATONED FOR.  
1)  JESUS DYING FOR OUR SINS, or
2)  WE REFUSE JESUS, AND THEREFORE WE HAVE TO DIE the second death, for our sins.
	So the sinner would take the life of an innocent animal. God wanted us to understand that we are to take no pleasure in sin. Rom. 6:23. But according to the Bible, there was more to do beyond the sacrifice.  
	After the sinner slew the lamb, the priest entered the sanctuary with the blood, and he sprinkled the blood before the veil in the sanctuary.  Behind that veil was the Law of God, which tells us what we ought to do and shows us true obedience.  
The Law condemns us when we break it.  The priest coming into the sanctuary and sprinkling the blood before the Law indicates that Christ's blood atones for our breaking God's Law.

Time is up for this week, so be tuned in next week as we present “The Longest Time Prophecy in the Bible – Part 2”

Until next week, Jesus said in John 5:39, “Search the Scriptures, for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me”. Even so, Come Lord Jesus.