As you remember, it was just two weeks ago that the Lord gave me a vision of two tabernacles standing side by side, then said, “Jesus did not enter the old covenant tabernacle with His blood.” I had been curious for a long time what the meaning of the articles of the furniture was. The writer of Hebrews begins to enumerate them in Hebrews 6 but then states that he does not have time to go in to their significance at that time but I began to wonder if he did interweave their explanations in his subsequent teaching. As I studied chapters 7,8,9, and 10, sure enough, the explanations were there all this time.
I would encourage you to approach this as a totally new teaching. I would dare say you have never heard anything like this taught before, even though you have heard teaching on the tabernacle before. My experience is that all teachers use the old covenant tabernacle, which is vastly different than the new covenant tabernacle, as the basis for their teachings. Jesus did not enter into the old covenant tabernacle with His blood; He entered the new covenant tabernacle. Even though the old covenant tabernacle was built based on the pattern of the new covenant tabernacle, Hebrews 8:5; that is where their similarities ends.
Over and over and over again, Jesus said, “Be careful how you hear, for the same gravity you place on what you hear will determine the amount of truth you receive back” (my paraphrase). When you decide, “I’ve heard that before,” you’ve limited how much new truth you will receive and when you decide, “I believe this is important,” and go back to study over and over again, there is no limit to the truth you can receive.
To answer your question from my perspective, the tabernacle is a life sized model of the written document that is the new covenant. Salvation is universally thought of as dwelling in the presence of God. The outer courts of the tabernacle contain the bronze laver for washing and the brazen altar for sacrifice. However, the presence of God is not in the outer courts. Jesus, in John 14:21, unequivocally said; only those who keep my commandments will experience the manifestation of God. Since Jesus is the blessed only Potentate, 1Timothy 6:15, it is Jesus that is in the holy of holies of the new covenant tabernacle and it is His manifestation we seek. The only way to arrive in the holy of holies, according to Jesus, is to keep His commandments. Only Christians can keep Jesus' commandments. Therefore, it is those who are cleansed by the laver and redeemed by the altar that is tasked with the keeping of Jesus' commandments.
The gate to the outer court is wide and open to all but the gate to the holy place is only open to those who have Jesus' commandments. The gate to the holy of holies is stricter still and only open to those who have Jesus' commandments and keep them. Even then, entrance is not guaranteed. There is a curtain, 4" thick, guarding the presence of God. You might remember that the veil of Herod’s Temple was rent in two from top to bottom at the death of Jesus, Luke 23:45, but Jesus did not enter into Herod’s Temple with His blood. Have you ever wondered why the curtain was not ripped all the way down? The book of Hebrews tells us that Jesus entered behind the veil, Hebrews 6:20, so the veil of the heavenly tabernacle was still standing at Jesus' resurrection and still stands today. John 14:21 still applies, but Jesus said, "Strive to enter at the strait gate" Luke 13:24. A haphazard keeping of Jesus' commandments will guarantee failure but a staunch clinging to the commandments of the Lord will produce success.
Jesus died on the cross as a man but was raised from the dead as the blessed only Potentate four days later. There are three days time between the outer courts and the inner courts of the new covenant tabernacle. The outer courts pertain to the man Christ Jesus but the inner courts pertain to the Lord Jesus Christ. The outer courts pertain to the work of the cross but the inner courts pertain to the work of the Lord. It is the Lord Jesus Christ that sanctified the outer courts with the blood of the Saviour. Jesus laid aside His power and authority to come to earth; the Saviour has no authority to save; only the Lord has authority to save. In order to obtain salvation, Christians must progress through the tabernacle. To remain in the outer courts is to deny the Lord of salvation.
So, anyone who comes to God must believe that He is and that He rewards those who diligently seek Him, Hebrews 11:6. To acknowledge God is to acknowledge that God has a standard of behavior that He deems correct. And therefore, it is by keeping God’s standard for righteousness that His blessings are bestowed upon us. He rewards right behavior with blessings.
According to Ephesians 2, Gentiles are born outside the covenants of God. In that Jesus died under the authority of old covenant law, a law Gentiles have no access to, we must ask ourselves: “How do Gentiles gain access to the death of Jesus?” There was a provision of the old covenant law that provided for one who owed a debt to another they could not pay, to sell themselves into slavery to the one who owned their debt. This action made the one who then owned the debt responsible for the well being of the slave. It is this provision of the law, which was applicable to the Jews and the strangers living among them, that Jesus uses to allow Gentiles access to His completing of the old covenant and subsequently the new covenant.
It was God, the Father, who instituted the old covenant and it was God, the Father, who so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. Notice the personal pronoun “He.” The giving of the Son was not a joint effort; the Father alone gave the Son to be crucified. Since the outer courts pertain to Jesus’ completing of old covenant law, the outer courts are under the authority of the Father. Thus, it is the Father God who administrates the outer courts of the tabernacle. Hebrews 11:6 states, “Those who come to God (the Father) must believe that He is and that He rewards those who diligently seek Him.” When lost souls come to God in this present age, He is inside the outer court of the heavenly tabernacle. The outer gate of the tabernacle is open to all who come to God, regardless of age, ethnicity, sinfulness, or status. The first article of the covenant they encounter is the brass laver, which is a large bowl, full of water, with a highly polished bottom. Those who come to God peer into the bowl and the true condition of their heart confronts them. They realize the debt of righteousness owed to God to be greater than their ability to pay and if they repent of their unrighteousness defined by God’s standard of righteousness, the Father God washes their bodies with clean water, Hebrews 10:22. However, they are now answerable to the old covenant’s law of righteousness, God’s law, and must repent of transgressions against that law, whereby the Father God washes them in clean water again. It is the Father God who owns the debt of righteousness and is responsible for the well being of the slave and the Father God is a good God who rewards right behavior with blessings. The blessings are the continual cleansings of the laver.
This is not the old covenant tabernacle. It is not sanctified with the blood of animals; nor does its authority come from the innocence of animals. The authority of the brass laver to wash clean the vilest soul is found in the blood of the Son of God but it is not the blood that washes the souls of men, but the authority of that blood, administrated by the Father who loves us.
The second article of the new covenant is the brazen altar, where Jesus has placed His sacrifice on the cross for transgressing old covenant law. Jesus had to fulfill the old covenant before He could institute the new covenant. He did this by living up to the standards of the law, then dying under its penalties. A second provision of the law allowed for a redeemer to purchase the debt of another and anyone who accepts Jesus’ death on the cross for sin as payment of their debt of unrighteousness owed to God are redeemed from the law; redeemed from the need to keep God’s standard for righteousness, Galatians 4:5. They are clothed with Jesus’ perfect keeping of the law; clothed with His righteousness. Here is where the work of the Father is ended. The purpose of God sending the Son to die is the redemption of mankind but before mankind can be redeemed, they must first be sold into sin. They sell themselves when they realize they cannot pay what God requires. This ends the outer courts.
Hebrews 9:1-3, describes the tabernacle as three different structures. The outer courts are one tabernacle. The inner courts are a second tabernacle. And the holy of holies is a third tabernacle. These three tabernacles are placed one inside the other. During the old covenant, the outer courts were called the people’s court because all the people came into the outer courts. Only the priests entered the inner courts or holy place and only the high priest entered the holy of holies. Three different and distinct tabernacles placed one inside the other. And, of course we are told Moses built the old covenant tabernacle based upon the pattern of the tabernacle in heaven, Hebrews 8:5. Now, we should not confuse the two tabernacles as the same; they are vastly different, as different as the blood of God is different than that of animals.
In the eternal scheme of things, I’m not sure how important all of this seems, but from my view, it is extremely important. The tabernacle is a life-sized model of the new covenant. Each article of furniture represents an article of the written covenant. If salvation was obtained in the outer courts, what would be the purpose of the inner courts or the holy of holies? While the inner courts could still hold significance beyond salvation, it seems more likely that salvation is a process. The outer courts pertain to Jesus’ completing of the old covenant law, something He had to do before He could establish a new covenant. Since Jesus had to fulfill the old covenant first, and Gentiles must enter through the old covenant in order to access the death of Jesus, the benefits of the new covenant don’t begin till the inner courts.
While I believe the outer courts are under the authority of the Father God, I believe the holy place is under the authority of the Holy Spirit. In John 15:13-14, Jesus said: “When He, the Spirit of truth is come, He will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will show you things to come. He will glorify me: for He shall receive of mine and show it unto you.” According to the scriptures, the Holy Spirit had been on the earth for some 4,000 years, so what did Jesus mean when He said, “When He, the Spirit of truth is come”? It should be understood the Holy Spirit is now coming back to earth, after a brief time away, in a new and different capacity.
I believe Philippians 2:6-10 to be critical to understanding the new covenant. It is not insignificant that Jesus laid aside His power and authority to come to earth as a man to die for men’s sin, but was highly exalted at His resurrection on the fourth day after His death. Jesus, the Saviour, died on the cross but it is Jesus, the Lord, the Holy Spirit came to represent. This makes three days time between the outer and inner courts; three days time between the people’s outer tabernacle and the priest’s inner tabernacle. Jesus defined His Lordship by the commandments He personally issued the Church after having received all power in heaven and earth, Matthew 28:18. The title He received from the Father and Holy Spirit reveals He was also issued all authority, Philippians 2:9-10. Therefore, just as Jesus perfectly represented His Father in His earthly ministry, saying, “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father,” His Father and the Holy Spirit are perfectly representing Him today in the administration of the outer and inner courts of the tabernacle.
This leads me to believe John 14:21 holds the key to entering the presence of God behind the veil of the holy of holies. In order to enter the holy place, a place being administered by the Holy Spirit who is on the earth today to represent the interests of the Lord Jesus Christ, one must acknowledge Jesus as Lord, which Jesus defined by commandment. John 14:21 states, “He that has my commandments and keeps them, he it is that loves me, and he that loves me will be loved of my Father (the outer courts) and I will love him (the inner courts) and will manifest myself to him (the holy of holies).” Those who receive Jesus’ death on the cross for sin must have Jesus’ commandments before they can enter the holy place, Hebrews 10:16. It is the Holy Spirit who guards this entrance, serving in the capacity of the Lord’s representative.
Only Christians can keep Jesus’ commandments. A believer must go through the outer courts before the commandments of Jesus come into play. When Jesus says, “He that loves me keeps my commandments,” He is speaking of Christians, those cleansed by the laver and delivered from sin by the altar. Christians follow the Saviour first but then must transition over to following the Lord, Romans 10:10. In the outer courts, we are disciples of the Saviour but in order to enter the inner courts we must transition to disciples of the Lord. The two personages of Jesus are vastly different. John leaned back against the Saviour’s breast at the last supper, John 13:23, but fell dead at His feet at the appearance of the Lord on the Isle of Patmos, Revelation 1:17. Most Christians struggle to make the transition from following the Saviour to following the Lord because the Saviour asks nothing from us while the Lord demands our whole heart.
John 1:12 states: “But as many as received Him gave He power to become a son of God, even to those who believe on His name.” The name in question is the name of Lord, not that of Saviour. The first part of John 1:12 speaks of those who receive Him as Saviour, those who have become Christian. In fact, all those who receive Jesus as Saviour, receive the Holy Spirit as a well springing up to everlasting life, John 4:14. All they have to do to become a son of God is to yield to the well that springs up in their hearts. They must respond to the first commandment of Jesus; to saturate one’s self daily with the Holy Spirit, Acts 1:4.
The first prerequisite to entering the holy place is to be born of water. This is accomplished through the work of the Father in the outer courts. You must have your bodies washed in clean water, and redeemed from the demands of the law, clothed with Jesus’ righteousness. These are the administrations of the Father God in the outer courts. In order to enter the holy place you must acknowledge Jesus as Lord; you must make the transition from Jesus as Saviour to Jesus as Lord. This is the significance of the three days time between Jesus’ death on the cross and His resurrection from the dead. Jesus issued commandments as Lord, after being granted all authority and power in heaven and earth, and one must own these commandments before entering the holy place. Then, by exercising your responsibility to your Lord, you must keep Jesus’ first commandment. This is represented by the first article encountered in the holy place; the golden lamp stand.
The golden lamp stand is just that, a lamp stand fashioned out of gold. It has a hollow center and oil is poured down the center where it fills six arms, each with a wick. In the old covenant, the priests were tasked with maintaining the light of the lamp. This light was said to be the light of Israel. However, in the new covenant, we are the light of the world, Matt.5:14, and we are the flame that burns and we are responsible for maintaining the light. Thus, the divine service, the priestly service we perform in the tabernacle is different than that performed by the old covenant priests.
According to Hebrews 9:1, there is a divine service expected of new covenant priests, and a new and living way that Jesus has consecrated for us to enter the new covenant tabernacle, Hebrews 10:19-20. The new and living way for priests to enter the tabernacle is speaking in tongues and speaking in tongues is how we keep Jesus’ first commandment, Acts 1:4. It is how we saturate ourselves with the lamp oil and maintain the light of the world. Most Christians are relying on the grace, mercy, kindnesses, and love of the outer courts for their salvation but these attributes were displayed by the Father when He allowed His Son to come to earth to die for our sins. The salvation provided by Jesus doesn’t begin till the holy place. You must enter at the straight gate. Jesus said, “Broad is the gate that leads to destruction and narrow is the gate that leads to life.” The outer gate of the first tabernacle is open to whosoever will and those who enter there are bathed in God’s love but there are two more tabernacles to be entered to gain salvation.
From what I can see in the scriptures, the gift of tongues is designed to be controversial. The point here is that God designed the gift of tongues to be contentious; it is designed to unnerve you. Jesus commanded the Church to wait for the baptism with the Spirit. The baptism with the Spirit is the action of the gift of tongues pouring from your innermost being. If Jesus is Lord, this commandment must be obeyed. The gift of tongues then becomes the focal point of whether or not each and every Christian makes Jesus Lord. Those who rebel against the Lordship of Christ after receiving the body and blood of the Saviour, rebel against the gift of tongues, they rebel against this commandment. It is not easy to transition from following the Saviour to following the Lord.
There are two lines of division in the new covenant tabernacle just as there were in the old covenant tabernacle. Remember, all the people were allowed in the outer courts but the inner courts were only open to the priests of God. In order for Christians to enter at the second tabernacle, Christians must be willing to take on their priestly duties and perform them.
As we perform the duties of the priesthood, we baptize ourselves into the body of Christ, 1Corinthians 12:13, represented by the table of show bread, by the administration of the Holy Spirit, who, as we stated before, is administrating the holy place but we are also held accountable to the second commandment of Jesus: to preach this gospel to all the world, Acts 1:8. Our responsibility is not just to ourselves, to enter the holy place and perform the duties of priests; we also have a responsibility to all the souls outside the tabernacle who don’t know the great love and compassion of our God.
There is one big difference in the placement of the furniture from the old covenant tabernacle to the new covenant tabernacle; the placement of the altar of incense. The altar of incense is where incense was burned. This burning of incense filled the tabernacle with sweet smelling odors. However, it is our obedience to the Lord’s commandments that fills the house of the new covenant tabernacle with sweet smelling odors. Under the old covenant, the altar of incense was placed in the holy place next to the center of the veil dividing the inner courts from the holy of holies. But in the new covenant tabernacle, the altar of incense is inside the holy of holies, Hebrews 9:3.
The altar of incense represents our persistence and consistency in the keeping of the Lord’s commandments. Jesus issued a promise in John 14:21. “He that has my commandments and keeps them…will receive my manifestation.” That is the manifestation of the Lord God Almighty, the ruler of the universe. It is power to witness of the Lord’s resurrection; power to witness of the love and compassion of God, but there is only one way to enter the new covenant tabernacle and gain access to this power. It was not the veil of the holy of holies that was rent in two at Jesus’ death; it was the veil of the holy place, signifying that every soul who accepted Jesus’ death on the cross now had entrance to the holy place. Every Christian is made to be a priest of God through belief in Jesus’ death. Albeit, we must enter at the narrow gate and perform the duty of priests. Jesus said, “He that has my commandments and keeps them, he it is that loves me.” Anyone who comes to God must believe that He is and that He rewards them who diligently seek Him, Hebrews 11:6. We can't make up this diligence on our own; Jesus defined it by commandment. Those who love Jesus enter at the strait gate and perform the duties of the priesthood. It is the Father who was Lord God under the old covenant but Jesus is Lord God under the new covenant.
Jesus is not so easily fooled; there is no way to “pull the wool over His eyes,” or trick Him into believing that what you are doing is equivalent to keeping His commandments. We can’t manufacture our own way of making Him Lord. We can’t manufacture our own way of seeking Him. Jesus has a standard of righteousness that is different from His Father’s. Jesus said, only those who keep my commandments love me, therefore, all those who do not keep Jesus’ commandments are only feigning love for the Lord, regardless of how sincere they appear to be. They may love the Saviour or the idea of salvation, they may love the fellowship of other believers but they do not love the Lord. This is the Lord’s tabernacle and we either take up the responsibilities of priests or not but there is no fooling the Lord. The gate that leads to life is strait (narrow, concise, strict, rigid, and exact) and we must strive to enter thereat. All of those who do not keep Jesus’ commandments will not receive the manifestation of Jesus. Anyone who comes to Jesus must believe that He is Lord, and that He rewards them who diligently seek Him by the way He has designated as appropriate.
The altar of incense also represents Jesus’ third commandment: to disciple the converts. Each article of furniture in the tabernacle represents a duality of articles of the covenant.
Remember, the new covenant is the covenant of the Lord Jesus Christ and it provides the salvation authored by Jesus, the Saviour, and Jesus, the Lord. The tabernacle is the life sized model of the covenant. If we take full advantage of the outer courts, representing the work of the Saviour and the first phase of the new covenant, we have been brought near to salvation but are not yet saved, Ephesians 2:13. Jesus said “You must be born again,” John 3:3, because you must be born of water and of the Spirit before you can become a son of God, John 1:12, 3:5. Every one enters at the broad gate and is born of water but very few find the narrow gate of the second tabernacle. Once we are set free from the demands of the old covenant law we must voluntarily subject ourselves to the demands of the law of the new covenant. If we do not, we cannot enter the holy place by the new and living way that Jesus has consecrated for us and there is no way to end up in the presence of God.
Now, this might seem harsh but it is the same Jesus who laid aside His glory in heaven to come to earth and suffer and die a sinner’s death for mankind who told us to strive to enter the strait gate. Jesus warned us the broad gate leads to destruction. If we enter the broad gate and stop, believing we are saved, and miss salvation altogether, we only have ourselves to blame. Moreover, to attempt to charge this same Jesus with being cruel in providing a salvation so narrow is adding insult to injury. Jesus provided a beautiful salvation but it is very narrow in scope. Anyone can enter the outer gate of the tabernacle but only those who are willing to serve as priests can enter at the strait gate. The gift of tongues was designed to be offensive for a reason. It separates those who love Jesus from those who pretend to love Jesus.
When we have entered behind the veil, by a new and living way which the Lord has consecrated for us, we are made heirs and joint heirs with Christ Jesus; sons of God. We are not as the Children of Israel, who were separated as common people and priests. According to Peter, we are a nation of priests, meaning that we are each tasked with entering the new covenant tabernacle for ourselves and progressing through to its end, 1Peter 2:5. We have a high priest who has gone before us and blazed a trail but He has tasked us with following the trail He has mapped out for us. He has consecrated a new and living way for us to enter the tabernacle and stand in His presence as He presides over all the heavens and the earth. If we take up the mantle of priests, we are made one with the ruler of the heavens through our obedience to His edicts. The altar of incense is now inside the holy of holies. Remember, the new covenant is a written, legal, document but the tabernacle is a life sized model of that document. Through the picture of the tabernacle and its life sized model, we can see how to negotiate our way from the position of being outside the covenants of God, to being a son of God, dwelling in the presence of God.
It is the Father God that washes all who come to Him with clean water, but He does so under the authority of the Lord; because of the blood of His Son. Those who come to God must first believe that He is, that he exists, then they must also believe that He is a good God and that He will reward obedience with blessings (Heb.11:6). The new covenant tabernacle is a real tabernacle that believers enter by faith. Every day the believer wakes up, they must go through the tabernacle by faith. One can easily locate themselves in the tabernacle by identifying what they believe. Do you believe God is a good God? Do you believe God will reward your good works? Do you believe Jesus perfectly kept the demands of the old covenant law, and then died in your place, suffering the penalties of your sins? Do you believe Jesus has clothed you with the righteousness He earned by keeping the demands of the law? Do you believe you can be no more righteous than you are by faith? If so, then you are ready to enter the holy place.
However, if you are not convinced that God is a good God, rewarding obedience with blessings, then you cannot move past the bronze laver. If you are not sure whether Jesus perfectly kept the law and died under the penalty of your sin; if you are not convinced that you are delivered from the need to keep the demands of the law in order to remain righteous before God through faith in Jesus’ death, then you are not ready to move past the brazen altar. If you are still repenting of transgressions of old covenant law, you have not successfully negotiated the brazen altar. Jesus dealt with sin completely through His death on the cross and by faith in that death, sin should be completely dealt with in the hearts and minds of those who accept Jesus’ payment for sin as payment for their sin.
No one can move into the holy place until they have successfully negotiated the outer courts. However, once they are completely clean through the washing of the outer courts, they are ready to begin their priestly duties. There can be no awareness of sin in the holy place. All consciousness of sin must be left in the outer courts. It is the Holy Spirit who guards the entrance to the holy place and He will not let anyone enter who still has a consciousness of sin. Now, the new and living way Jesus has consecrated to enter the holy place is the action of keeping the first commandment of the Lord. Do you believe the commandments issued to the Church by the Lord Jesus Christ apply to you? Are you willing to take them to heart and obey them? Then you are ready to enter the holy place. Hebrews 11:6 has a dual meaning in that God is manifest in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In the outer courts, it is the Father one must come to, believing in His goodness, and it is the Father who rewards seeking with blessing, but in order to enter the inner courts, it is the Son, who has been highly exalted, made to be Lord of Lords and King of Kings, one must come to and believe in His goodness and it is obedience to His commandments that produces blessings.
Now, obviously you can receive the baptism with the Spirit and speak in tongues without having or keeping Jesus’ commandments but the duty of new covenant priests is to enter the holy place each and every morning with the gift of tongues. We are the light of the world and the flame of God burns on us, as illustrated by those first believers on the day of Pentecost. It is up to us; our priestly duty, to saturate ourselves with the oil of heaven so that we can burn bright for the Lord but we must also realize that we are not an island unto ourselves, we are also part of a body, the body of Christ. As we speak and pray and sing in tongues we baptize ourselves (saturate) in the body of Christ, becoming one with the ruler of creation but also have a responsibility to preach this gospel to our neighbor, our friends, and strangers, to the uttermost part of the earth, Acts 1:8. Finally, those who believe must be discipled in this faith. To disciple is to teach. If no one teaches this gospel, believers in Jesus’ death will have no idea how to enter the second and third tabernacle to receive salvation.
It should be obvious that I believe the majority of the Church preaches a gospel that does not lead to salvation. Sure they preach Jesus but they do not preach the gospel of the new covenant. They preach a different gospel. Most preach a singular gospel of the bronze laver, where the Father God washes sins away with clean water but those so washed are beholden to the law of the old covenant to keep it. Some add in part of the brazen altar but leave out Jesus’ complete redemption from the law, which is a complete redemption from sin. Most all believe the blood of Jesus is the agent that cleanses from sin but the Bible tells us the blood of Jesus ratified the new covenant; it sanctified the heavenly tabernacle (Heb.9:12). It is the heavenly tabernacle that cleanses from sin. Even the churches that believe in the baptism with the Spirit deny the commandments of the Lord. If you do not have Jesus’ commandments (the ones He issued as Lord), you cannot enter the holy place. Christians today are failing to transition from following the Saviour to following the Lord. They are stumbling at the commandments of the Lord, stumbling at the gift of tongues and stumbling over the duty of the priesthood. The outer courts will not save you. Salvation is becoming a child of God, something that is not accomplished till one is deep in the tabernacle. To be saved from your sin only prepares you to enter the second tabernacle.
Finally, it is our diligence in keeping the Lord’s commandments that ultimately brings us into the presence of God inside the holy of holies. The altar of incense is no longer in the holy place; its placement has changed. It is now placed in the presence of God, inside the holy of holies (Heb.9:3). Therefore, it is our priestly duties, the responsibilities of being priests that carries us into the presence of the Almighty God because the incense on the altar is our obedience to the Lord’s commandments.
Every Christian (follower of Jesus) is called and anointed to serve the Lord in the tabernacle but, sadly, few take up that calling. Every soul who receives Jesus’ death on the cross, receives power to become a son of God (John 1:12). It is within them springing up like a well of everlasting life (John 4:14), sadly, few avail themselves of that power. Jesus warned us, “Strive to enter at the strait gate. For broad is the gate that leads to destruction and narrow is the gate that leads to life and few there be that find it” (Luke13:24 & Matt. 7:13-14) but we still enter at the broad gate and rejoice in our sins being washed away and ignore the strait gate beyond. If we do not enter at the strait gate, we will never find the way that leads to life. Jesus very clearly said, “He that has my commandments and keeps them, loves me, but he that does not have my commandments and does not keep them, does not love me.” Yet how many Christians ask themselves, “What are the commandments of Jesus?” or, “How can I keep them?” They cannot be the commandments of the old covenant, commandments that no man can keep. These commandments must be commandments mankind can keep.
It is not about receiving the baptism with the Spirit; it is not about speaking in tongues. It is about you taking up your position as priests of the Lord Jesus Christ and performing the duties of the priest hood in the heavenly tabernacle through faith. We are not saved by faith; we are saved through faith, Ephesians 2:8. The word, “by,” means, “a long side of,” but the word, “through,” suggests a journey. We are saved by going through the tabernacle, not by standing alongside of it.
It’s not a matter of your rising from your bed and speaking in tongues every day; it is a matter of your putting on your priestly garment by faith and entering at the broad gate, remembering that your body is washed in clean water by the Father God who loves you and that you are delivered from the shame and guilt of sin through faith in the death of the Son. It is a matter of your taking up the commandments of the Lord Jesus Christ, the ones He issued with all authority in heaven and in earth. You owe Him your allegiance! And it is a matter of your entering behind the veil of the second tabernacle through faith, having your heart sprinkled from an evil conscious and your body washed with pure water (Heb.10:19-23), and with full assurance of faith, saturating yourself with the heavenly oil and baptizing yourself into the body of Christ with the new and living way Jesus has consecrated for us and with boldness, offering your obedience to the Lord’s commandments on the altar of incense as you now stand before Him that rules the heavens and the earth.
Hebrews 10:23 states: “Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering, for He is faithful that promised.” The promise is John 14:21: “He that has my commandments and keeps them, he it is that loves me, and he that loves me will be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.” The profession of our faith is the speaking in tongues and the writer is encouraging diligence in your service to your king. He is saying, “Though the manifestation of Jesus tarry, don’t give up hope, He is faithful that promised,” but the truth is, if we do not enter at the strait gate, we cannot be saved. Moreover, Jesus defined love as obedience; we cannot love Jesus if we do not practice obedience to His commandments. There are many reasons one might seek the manifestation of Jesus, but only love produces obedience to His commandments. “By this we know that we love the children of God (the Father), when we love God (Jesus), and keep His (Jesus) commandments. For this is the love of God (Jesus), that we keep His commandments: and His commandments are not grievous,” 1John5:3-4.
Salvation is open and free to all but that doesn’t mean all will be saved. All who receive Jesus’ death under penalty of sin are given power to become a son of God (Jn.1:12) but that doesn’t mean all who receive Jesus’ death become sons. The garments of the priesthood are given to all who successfully negotiate the outer courts but it is up to us to put them on. The garments of the priesthood are the commandments of Jesus. All who take up the commandments of the Lord are clothed for the priesthood; they are prepared to serve as priests of the Lord in the new covenant tabernacle. The laws of the Lord are written in our hearts and in our minds when we take them up, Hebrews 10:16. The first prerequisite of the priesthood was stated by Jesus in John 14:21, “He that has my commandments.” The commandments of the Lord are the law of the new covenant; it governs salvation.
If we do not come to God, we can never be cleansed. If we do not accept Jesus’ death on the cross as our personal payment for our sins, we can never be redeemed from our sin. If we do not take Jesus’ commandments unto ourselves, we can never enter the holy place. And if we do not keep Jesus’ commandments faithfully we have nothing to offer on the altar of incense and no reason to be in the holy of holies. Salvation is up to us; it is a personal responsibility to clothe yourself with Jesus’ commandments daily and enter the holy place, saturating yourself with the heavenly oil and baptizing yourself into the body of Christ, becoming one with Jesus, and presenting your obedience on the altar of incense before the Lord of Lords and King of Kings.