“That first covenant between God and Israel had regulations for worship and a place of worship here on earth. There were two rooms in that Tabernacle. In the first room were a lampstand, a table, and sacred loaves of bread on the table. This room was called the Holy Place. Then there was a curtain, and behind the curtain was the second room called the Most Holy Place. In that room were a gold incense altar and a wooden chest called the Ark of the Covenant, which was covered with gold on all sides. Inside the Ark were a gold jar containing manna, Aaron’s staff that sprouted leaves, and the stone tablets of the covenant. Above the Ark were the cherubim of divine glory, whose wings stretched out over the Ark’s cover, the place of atonement. But we cannot explain these things in detail now.
“When these things were all in place, the priests regularly entered the first room as they performed their religious duties. But only the high priest ever entered the Most Holy Place, and only once a year. And he always offered blood for his own sins and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance. By these regulations the Holy Spirit revealed that the entrance to the Most Holy Place was not freely open as long as the Tabernacle and the system it represented were still in use.
“This is an illustration pointing to the present time. For the gifts and sacrifices that the priests offer are not able to cleanse the consciences of the people who bring them. For that old system deals only with food and drink and various cleansing ceremonies—physical regulations that were in effect only until a better system could be established.”
When God’s people (the Israelites or Jewish people) were wandering in the desert after being set free from slavery in Egypt, God set up a tent so that he could camp out with them in the midst of the wilderness. You can see exactly how this all went down by reading Exodus 24-40. You can also check out my previous series on Exodus by using the “Search by Category” feature on the right side of FreedomForToday.com.
God’s instructions were detailed. There are instructions for the types of fabrics and threads to use. There are instructions for priests, right down to their underwear! God was extremely specific with them. However, these were merely physical rituals rather than supernatural ones. Why would God bother to go to all this trouble if it didn’t matter? What was the point of the old system in the first place?
God isn’t in a rush. He doesn’t get straight to the point. He was setting up a system as an object lesson for his people. If they could successfully be “good enough” and follow his laws perfectly, then they would have no need for a Savior. Ultimately they would have no need for God. Recall that when Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, the rules of the world fundamentally changed. Satan was given power on earth (by Adam and Eve abdicating their authority to him) and this created a separation between God and humanity. God was not defeated in that moment, humans were. God has never had any desire to give up his creation or ditch humanity. Rather, he set up a system in which humans could choose to return to him. Jesus created the path by which we can now access God. But without the old system, we would not see a need for a path. The reality is that we cannot overcome the devastation we caused. The old system proved that repeatedly. We have to turn to God for salvation. It’s the only way. That was God’s plan all along.