Exodus 26 sets the veil right in the middle of the tabernacle, dividing the holy place from the most holy. The tabernacle and the temple were never just buildings, and the furniture was never just furniture. The brazen altar, the laver, the table of showbread, the candlestick, the altar of incense, the ark, and the mercy seat all pointed beyond themselves to the Lord Jesus Christ and his redeeming work.
The veil carried a weight that could not be missed. The veil said, “You can’t go any further.” The veil declared separation between a holy God and sinful man. Sin had already driven Adam and Eve from the garden, and sin still kept man from walking into the presence of God. No amount of sincerity, religion, good intentions, or good works could get a sinner beyond that curtain. The veil preached Romans 3 before Romans 3 was ever written: “All have sinned,” “there is none righteous,” and all human righteousness is filthy rags before God.
God did provide one appointed way, but that way required a high priest and blood. The high priest could go beyond the veil only with a sacrifice. The blood of bulls and goats satisfied the yearly pattern, but that blood could never take away sin. The same sacrifice had to be repeated again and again, and the veil still stood. The old system showed the need for something better, something perfect, something final.
Jesus came as that better sacrifice. John the Baptist cried, “Behold, the Lamb of God,” not a lamb that would roll sin back for a year, but the Lamb that would take sin away. Mark 15 shows Jesus crying with a loud voice and giving up the ghost, and then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. God himself tore what man could never open. The torn veil declared that the sacrifice had been accepted, and the way into God’s presence was now open through the blood of Jesus Christ.
Sin, however, still builds new veils in the lives of God’s children. Bitterness, grudges, unforgiveness, gossip, complaining, lying, worldliness, materialism, pride, neglect of prayer, neglect of Scripture, and idolatry all hinder the sweetness of fellowship. God never intended his children to live behind veils after Christ opened the way. Confession clears what sin rebuilds, and fellowship with God is found by living beyond the veil.
Key Takeaways
Youtube Chapters
- [00:00] - Welcome
- [02:10] - Seeing the Lord High and Lifted Up
- [22:27] - Fellowship and Morning Offering
- [31:14] - Turning to Exodus 26
- [32:33] - Reading About the Veil
- [34:58] - The Tabernacle Points to Christ
- [36:29] - The Veil as Separation
- [44:13] - The One Appointed Way
- [48:19] - The Veil Torn at Calvary
- [54:37] - The Way Open for Whosoever
- [57:51] - Building New Veils Through Sin
- [73:30] - Confession and Cleansing
- [75:12] - Invitation to Live Beyond the Veil
- [79:40] - Desire for Fellowship With God
- [81:30] - Announcements and Church Work