Home>
Ministries>
The Pastor Nathaniel's Blog>
Pastor Nathaniel's Blog Archive>
Pastor Nathaniel's Blog Archive 2024>
Pastor Nathaniel's Blog September 4, 2024
"Christ’s Humanity in the Heavenly Sanctuary"
Have you ever known someone so holy and close to God that you wanted them to pray for you rather than you pray for yourself? According to Hebrews, we have such a person in heaven praying to God for us right now. Hebrews 9:24 says, "For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made with human hands that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence" (NIV). It's encouraging to be reminded that Jesus intercedes for us in heaven, but we often miss what this passage tells us is the means of Jesus' intercession for us - his humanity.
Hebrews 9:24 references three kinds of holy places: the moveable tabernacle used by Israel during their wilderness wanderings, the permanent temple constructed in Jerusalem, and the sanctuary that God established in heaven. The priests and Levites had to put up and then tear down the earthly tabernacle that was made of earthly materials according to the pattern God showed Moses. Solomon and his craftsmen (and others after them) built the earthly temple from earthly elements according to the pattern God revealed to David (which itself was based on the pattern Moses received). But God established a sanctuary in heaven that serves as the basis for the patterns Moses and David received - and God himself has put it together!
So where does Jesus fit into all this? Jesus serves in the heavenly sanctuary rather than any earthly tabernacle or temple. Jesus intercedes for us directly at the throne of God, instead of from a distance at some earthly location. But did you notice what it says Jesus does? "Christ...entered heaven itself" when he entered the heavenly sanctuary. Using imagery taken from the high priest's practice of entering into the entire earthly sanctuary complex, Hebrews 9:24 is stating that Jesus has done the very same thing in the heavenly sanctuary! And if we consider that the Israelite high priests entered the earthly sanctuary as humans, we discover that Jesus has done this, too! When Jesus entered the heavenly sanctuary, he brought his humanity with him so he can minister as our divine-human high priest "in God's presence."
Friends, rejoice in the benefit of having a celestial intercessor who uses his humanity to represent you before the throne of the Almighty.
God bless,
Pastor Nathaniel Gamble
