The Apostle St. John, on the Lord’s Day, that is, ancient sources tell us is the First day of the week, that Jesus rose from the dead and appeared to the Apostles showing they, and we, that he is alive.
This living Savior Jesus comes to St. John, and all Christians in his day, and throughout the ages, to give encouragement and assurance that he, Jesus lives and is fully in control of the outcome of human history.
The Book of Revelation is not just about
"events" that unfold at the end of human history,
but rather. it speaks to us about Jesus, about who Jesus is for us and
with us in all times in which we live.
For Any & All Difficult Times
The Book of Revelation was written during
times of great stress and uncertainty for the late Apostolic church.
There were many hardships coming upon Christians, there were problem and
persecutions, within and without the Church.
They were in uncertain times much like our
own. The Book of Revelation was written to encourage Christians in any and all
times, whenever we face of hardship, no matter when they come upon us no matter
what age in which we live.
Seeing the Ark
St. John sees, we are told in the Eleventh
Chapter of the Book of Revelation, a vision which shows him, and all of
us, the Temple of God in the Heavens.
“Then God's temple in heaven was opened, and
within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of
lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a great hailstorm.” Rev: 11:19
Many wonder what this cryptic reference to
seeing the Ark of the Covenant in the
Temple means. Some may ask, "is the Ark now residing in the
Heavens"? Is there a spirit composed "real Ark" of which the earthly one was
but a copy? St. John sees it without obstruction, and we are told that the
Temple is "opened".
Day of Atonement-Beyond the Veil
Recall, that the Ark was kept within the Holy
of Holies, this was the part of the Temple behind the curtain Vail into which none were permitted to go.
"He made the veil of violet, purple,
crimson and fine linen, and he worked cherubim on it” 2Chron: 3:14
This Veil separated the Holy of Holies from
the Sanctuary and kept the Ark out of sight and inaccessible, except
once a year on the Day of Atonement, and
then access was given only to the High Priest who offered sacrifices on
behalf of the people of Israel.
Yet, for the rest of the Priest and
Leviets and the people, they could not enter nor have access to the symbolic
presence of the Great God.
We See the Ark in the
Open Temple
But now, St. John in vision on the Island of Patmos,
sees the Ark of God in an open Temple; and
we now see the Ark through the pages of Scripture there in Heaven. The
Temple and Heaven are now open, accessible.
What is the Holy Spirit speaking to us?
Is he just informing us of the location of a long sought for artifact? Is
the Ark of the Covenant in Heaven?
Well, maybe, the Holy Spirit is telling us
something more important, more relevant to our daily Christian lives;
especially in difficult times in which we may find ourselves.
Here, in vision the Ark is seen, that is, The
Temple is opened, the Veil has been rent asunder and we can see
the Ark in the Holy of Holies. This speaks to all of us, that we all can now go
where only the High Priest once could enter, that we are able to enter the
Holy of Holies to that place where only the High Priest could go but once a year,
we now have the right to enter without limitation, every moment of every day
not just once a year. The veil has been "rent", God is
accessible, not just to High Priest one day out of the year, but
always and to all of us.
The Rent Veil
When our Lord Jesus hung upon the cross, and there having suffered and died for all human sin, and in doing so, atoned for all of us, God in Christ wrought humanities atonement. Breathing his last, at Jesus' moment of death the veil within the Temple was rent from top to bottom opening the Holy of Holies to all.
"And when Jesus had cried out again
in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the
temple was torn in two from top to bottom." Matt: 27:50-51
The rent veil shows each and all that the way
to God is now open for all. Jesus’ death took away anything that could keep us
from God. The way to the Holy of Holies is opened to us all, we can
enter into the Holy Place of God.
All excuses are taken away, all reason for not
being in a relationship with the Great God are nullified through Jesus.
The Holy of Holies is an
unencumbered relationship with God, not just a position or place that is
occupied. We can come to our God at any time of need or hardship. This was
one of messages that the Holy Spirit was conveying to the Apostolic Church and
to Christians throughout the ages through St. John’s writings.
Consider how this impacted the early Church
facing hardship and even death would have impacted them as they faced oppression
from the world system. This gave early Christians , and we, confidence that our
God is there for us in times of difficulty, that he is accessible, the way is
open for us always.
"So let us come boldly to the throne of
our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to
help us when we need it most." Heb: 4:16
Jesus our High Priest has passed into the
Heavens and by him we are brought into the very Holy of Holies, Jesus is there
with and for us.
"We have this hope as an anchor for
the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain,
where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has become a
high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek." Heb: 6:19-20
The Rent Veil of Flesh
"Therefore,
brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of
Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his
body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw
near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts
sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed
with pure water.Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who
promised is faithful" Heb:10:19-23
Died in Him
By Jesus dyeing, we, in him, have died as
well. That is, the flesh's and sin's power is no longer keeping us
from our God.
"For Christ’s love compels us,
because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he
died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for
him who died for them and was raised again." 2Cor:5:14-15
"What shall we say, then? Shall
we go on sinning so that grace may increase? By no means! We died to sin; how
can we live in it any longer? Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized
into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with
him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from
the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
If we have been united with him like this in
his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. For
we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might
be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—because anyone who
has died has been freed from sin.
Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we
will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the
dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he
died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.
In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin
but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore, do not let sin reign in your
mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your
body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God,
as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your
body to him as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master,
because you are not under law, but under grace" Rom:6:1-14
We are baptized into the power of Jesus' Death
and Jesus' Life, sin's claim on us is broken in Christ. By Jesus' death we
are counted as dead, and by his resurrection we are count as alive. The
veil of flesh is "rent";
We see the Ark in the open Temple. We
have access to God at any and all times. There is nothing to keep us out but
our own unwillingness to enter in to that Holy of Holies Relationship.
St. John’s vision speaks to us about the
accessibility of our great God at all times not the locution of a relic long
sought by humanity, but so much more.
There is great comfort for us in being able to
enter that most Holy place, the Holy of Holies where we see the Ark of the
Covenant. The Temple is opened, we can see the Ark, we can enter into that
Holy place. This is encouragement in any and all times for Christians in all
ages.
Benediction: May we each and all look unto the
heavens and see the open temple of God where our Lord is there to assist us
all, today, tomorrow and forevermore. Amen
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Rev.Todd Crouch, Norman, Oklahoma
"If It Is Not About Jesus, It Is Not
About Anything"
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