What Is Christ Doing Now?

What Is Christ Doing Now?

Guide 23

What is Jesus doing now? We can be sure of one thing: He's doing something for us. That is just the way Jesus is — always helping others. He cannot bear to be alone in His joy. He cannot reign in glory alone. He must share it with us. Jesus is doing something for us.

1. CHRIST EVER LIVES FOR US IN HEAVEN

When our Saviour had finished His work on earth, He went to heaven.

"And it came to pass, while he blessed them, HE WAS parted from them, and CARRIED UP INTO HEAVEN."—Luke 24:51.

So Christ, our Saviour, is now in heaven. We read the same thing in Hebrews 10:12:

"But this man [Jesus Christ, the Son of man], after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God."

Why didn't Christ stay in this world? Why did He go back to heaven? There are at least three reasons:

(1) He went back to heaven in order that the Holy Spirit might be given to us.

"It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you."—John 16:7.

Our Saviour could be in only one place at a time. He went back to heaven that the Comforter, or Holy Spirit, might be sent — that glorious gift of heaven that would bless the entire world.

(2) The second reason He went back to heaven was to prepare a home for His people.

"I GO TO PREPARE A PLACE FOR YOU. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also."—John 14:2, 3.

(3) Christ went back to heaven so that we might have a friend at court, an intercessor with God in the temple of heaven.

"Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing HE EVER LIVETH TO MAKE INTERCESSION for them."—Hebrews 7:25.

It's wonderful to have a friend at court, someone who understands. And Jesus is always there. He will never die. He is alive this very minute, our representative before the throne of God.

2. CHRIST MINISTERS AS OUR PRIEST IN HEAVEN

What special name is given to our Saviour when He acts as our representative, our friend, in the court of heaven?

"We have a great HIGH PRIEST, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God."—Hebrews 4:14.

Jesus our high priest, is superior to all earthly priests, "holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens."—Hebrews 7:26.

No other man who ever lived on this earth could take such honor as this to himself, or have it given to him by human beings. Christ is holy, He is harmless, He is undefiled. He is not a sinner, He has never been a sinner. He is separate from sinners and made higher than the heavens. Even the angels are subject to Him.

What a wonderful Saviour we have — a high priest to represent us and to intercede for us on the basis of His death on Calvary's cross!

"For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us: . . . but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself."—Hebrews 9:24, 26.

3. THE GOSPEL IN THE OLD TESTAMENT (Part 1 of 3)

When the Holy Scriptures are given their place as the Word of God and the supreme authority in human life, we discover that the Old Testament is the foundation of the New. It is a surprise to many that the full gospel is taught in type and figure in the Old Testament.

Much of the interest in Old Testament Scripture centers around a building, the holy temple; for this Old Testament temple was patterned after the temple in heaven where Jesus now ministers. Again and again the Lord instructed Moses to be very careful to:

"Make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount."—Hebrews 8:5.

Many have assumed that the temple with its ceremonies pertained only to ancient Israel; but thousands today are discovering that THE TEMPLE WITH ITS WONDERFUL TEACHING IS A REVELATION OF WHAT JESUS IS DOING NOW.

The temple and its services were all ordered by God.

In the days of Moses, while the people of Israel were encamped at the foot of Mount Sinai, God instructed them to build a movable tabernacle where He could "dwell" with them. (Exodus 25:8.)

Nearly five hundred years after the people of Israel came into the Holy Land, the portable tabernacle was replaced by the great stone temple built by King Solomon on the same plan as the wilderness tabernacle.

The services and ceremonies of the tabernacle in the wilderness are described in great detail in Exodus, chapters 25 to 40. The materials for its construction, the colors used, the arrangement of the furniture — all were symbolic and typical of things to come — of the gospel in all its fullness.

Let us describe this portable tabernacle: There was a courtyard surrounding it, 100 cubits long and 50 cubits wide — about 180 feet by 90 feet — enclosed with a curtain of fine twined linen 5 cubits high. The tabernacle itself was made of boards covered with gold set in silver. It was about 55 feet long and 18 feet wide.

3. THE GOSPEL IN THE OLD TESTAMENT (Part 2 of 3)

The space inside the tabernacle was divided into two sections: the larger at the east, called the holy place; and the smaller at the west, called the holy of holies, or the most holy place. The curtain separating the holy place from the most holy, called the inner veil, was made of blue, purple, and scarlet linen with figures of cherubim, or angels, embroidered in gold thread.

There were six pieces of furniture in the sanctuary. In the HOLY PLACE, or first apartment of this tabernacle, there were three articles of furniture. In front of the veil stood the golden altar of incense, on which the priest burned incense morning and evening, representing the righteousness and intercession of Christ which ascended with the prayers of God's people before His throne.

On the south side was the golden lampstand, or candlestick, with seven lights. These lights burned continually, reminding us of Jesus, the never failing "light of the world." (John 8:12.)

On the north side of the holy place was the table of shewbread, or the bread of God's presence. Twelve fresh loaves were placed there every Sabbath day, one for each of the twelve tribes of Israel. This reminded the people of the divine Creator who provided the manna as their daily bread during their wilderness wanderings. When He appeared on earth as our Redeemer, He called Himself the Bread of Life. (John 6:35.)

In the MOST HOLY PLACE, or second apartment of the tabernacle, was a chest covered with pure gold, within and without, called the ark of the covenant. On each end of the cover, called the mercy seat, stood a cherub, or angel, made of pure gold. Between these two angels on the mercy seat, shone a glorious light, a symbol of the presence of Jehovah. This represented the throne of God. By divine command, Moses placed inside the ark, under the mercy seat, the two stone tables on which the Ten Commandments were written by the finger of God.

3. THE GOSPEL IN THE OLD TESTAMENT (Part 3 of 3)

In the COURT, on the east, in front of the entrance to the tabernacle, were two articles of furniture. Near the door stood the laver, holding water for the priests to wash in, because they must be clean when they entered the tabernacle. This taught both the priests and the people that cleansing from sin through the coming Saviour is an essential prerequisite to acceptable and effective service for God.

Near the gate of the court was the altar of burnt offerings. Here the sinning Israelites brought their lambs and other appointed offerings. In the New Testament John the Baptist spoke of Jesus as "the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world." John 1:29.

According to the instruction of God, the sacrifice must first of all be "without blemish," for it pointed to the perfect holiness of the Lord Jesus Christ who was to die for our sins. The Bible declares that He was "holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners." Hebrews 7:26.

Second, the guilt of the penitent sinner must be transferred to the guiltless animal sacrifice by the laying on of hands. This pointed to the acceptance of our guilt by the Lord Jesus Christ. He who was sinless submitted Himself to be made "sin for us." (2 Corinthians 5:21.)

Third, the sacrificial animal had to be slain, for it pointed forward to the supreme penalty that Christ suffered on the cross. "The wages [or penalty] of sin is death." Romans 6:23. The killing of the sacrifice was a prophecy of Christ's death for our redemption, for "without shedding of blood is no remission." Hebrews 9:22.

So we see that these three essential requirements for a sacrifice correspond to our Saviour's work on earth, through which He made possible our salvation.

4. THE TEMPLE IN HEAVEN

The apostle, writing in the New Testament to the Hebrew Christians, said that the tabernacle of old was a figure for the time then present, and that it was patterned after the true sanctuary in heaven. (Hebrews 9.)

Is there, then, a real temple in heaven, of which this earthly building was merely a shadow or a type?

"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 sanctuary, and of THE TRUE TABERNACLE, which the Lord pitched, and not man."—Hebrews 8:1, 2.

There it is in Holy Scripture: the original tabernacle is in heaven.

Many years after our Saviour returned to heaven from His ministry on earth, the apostle John was shown in vision "the temple which is in heaven" (Revelation 14:17; 15:5; 16:17), the real heavenly tabernacle, of which Moses' building was a copy.

"The temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament."—Revelation 11:19.

In the heavenly sanctuary, or temple, John actually saw the most holy place and the ark, in which is the eternal moral law of God, of which the Ten Commandments are but a transcript.

In Revelation 4:5, the apostle says that he saw "seven lamps of fire burning before [God's] throne," just as there were seven lamps burning in the holy place of the temple on earth. In Revelation 8:3, he declares that he saw an angel, who —

". . . stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon THE GOLDEN ALTAR which was before the throne."

So we can see that the earthly tabernacle and its furniture were miniature reproductions of the real heavenly temple and the things in it.

5. SYMBOLS OF SALVATION

The temple ceremonies are wonderful pictures of the gospel and of salvation in Jesus Christ. Certainly the temple of the Israelites, in both its movable and permanent form, had ordinances of divine service that foreshadowed the sacrifice of Jesus and also His work as our High Priest in the heavenly temple. Definite proof of this is found in Hebrews 4:14-16, where the apostle says,

"Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."

Jesus is our High Priest now in the heavenly sanctuary. There He represents us before God. The atoning sacrifice that He made by offering Himself upon Calvary's cross is the offering that He presents for sinners before the throne of God.

"Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them."—Hebrews 7:25.

What a glorious gospel these temple ceremonies of old picture for us! The ministering priest, the bleeding lambs — how beautiful the symbol when we think of Jesus, pure and holy and righteous, dying on the cross for us, then ascending into heaven to apply the benefits of His atonement as our mediator before the throne.

So the people of old carried the cross in the wilderness — in the tabernacle itself. In every sacrifice, Christ's righteousness was shown; in every cloud of incense, His intercession for us was revealed.

6. JESUS OUR HIGH PRIEST (Part 1 of 3)

In the earthly tabernacle, as day by day the people confessed their sins, the slain animal's blood was sprinkled on the corner of the altar, and the flesh was eaten by the priests in the holy place. (Leviticus 4 and 6.) Thus, in ceremony, the confessed sins were brought into the tabernacle — or sanctuary — and laid up there.

Yearly, on the Day of Atonement, the sanctuary was cleansed from all the sins confessed during the past year. (Leviticus 16.) To effect this cleansing, the high priest made a special sacrifice of a consecrated goat, and carried its blood into the most holy place. Then while he stood before the ark of the covenant, which contained the Ten Commandments, the high priest sprinkled this cleansing blood before the ark containing the law, to show that the blood of Jesus, the coming Redeemer, would pay the penalty for lawbreaking.

The high priest, in ceremony, then removed the confessed sins from the sanctuary and placed them on the head of another goat, which was led out into the wilderness to die. (Leviticus 16:20-22.) This ceremony on the yearly Day of Atonement cleansed the sanctuary from sin. THIS WAS LOOKED ON AS A DAY OF JUDGMENT, because all who had not confessed their sins were "cut off" from the congregation. (Leviticus 23:28-32.)

What the high priest did symbolically once a year, Jesus does once in reality as our High Priest. (Hebrews 9:6-12.) In the great judgment day, acting as our High Priest, He removes from the sanctuary the sins of all who have confessed them. If we are faithful to the end, the record of our sins will be forever blotted out. (Acts 3:19.) This is a work of judgment. As we will discover in our next lesson, this work of investigative judgment began in 1844 and is now going on.

Are your sins confessed? Are they in the heavenly sanctuary? Will you be counted among the redeemed?

6. JESUS OUR HIGH PRIEST (Part 2 of 3)

What is the nature of this judgment that is to precede the second advent of our Lord? It is the preliminary phase of the judgment, consisting of an examination of the life records of all professed believers in Christ to verify their eligibility for ultimate salvation. We, therefore, speak of it as an investigative judgment.

For whose benefit is such an examination made? Who needs an investigative judgment? Certainly the omniscient God who knows the end from the beginning needs no such investigation to determine the destiny of any man. But in view of the entrance of sin, and the charges by Satan that God is partial and unjust, the life history of every man has been recorded, and these records are to be revealed to demonstrate that God is just and true in all His ways. All the intelligent beings of the universe must see the character of God vindicated in His treatment of men.

When we think of all this, the words of the great hymn by Isaac Watts come to mind:

"When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of Glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss,
And pour contempt on all my pride."

The whole meaning of our lives is contained in this hymn — the real teaching of the temple ceremonies. At the altar of sacrifice the believing, repentant sinner who had just confessed his sins over the head of the innocent, dying victim, could look forward by faith to the Messiah, the Christ who was to come, and say:

"See, from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down;
Did e'er such love and sorrow meet?
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?"

Christ, the spotless Lamb of God, has taken our sins. He died in our place, if we will but accept by faith His payment of our debt, for —

"He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."—Isaiah 53:5.

6. JESUS OUR HIGH PRIEST (Part 3 of 3)

The ceremonies of the sanctuary taught by means of objects what the New Testament teaches in words. This is the gospel, the good news. It is for all men everywhere, and for all time until Christ comes again. It is for you and me today. Surrender your life now to "the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world." John 1:29.

The dying Lamb is now the Risen Saviour, your High Priest before the throne.

"It behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted."—Hebrews 2:17, 18.

"Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, . . . and having an high priest over the house of God; LET US DRAW NEAR WITH A TRUE HEART IN FULL ASSURANCE OF FAITH. . . ."—Hebrews 10:19-22.