HOW TO BE VINDICATED IN THE PRE-ADVENT JUDGMENT (CONTINUED)

Before ministering at the Altar of Burnt Offering and previous to entering the Holy Place, each priest would wash his hands and his feet in the Brazen Laver. “Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:  “You shall also make a laver of bronze, with its base also of bronze, for washing. You shall put it between the tabernacle of meeting and the altar. And you shall put water in it, for Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet in water from it. When they go into the tabernacle of meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister, to burn an offering made by fire to the Lord, they shall wash with water, lest they die. So they shall wash their hands and their feet, lest they die. And it shall be a statute forever to them—to him and his descendants throughout their generations.” Exodus 30:17-21.

This ritual washing was an essential part of the plan of salvation. It was a representation of baptism. Because it symbolized the new birth. All of these rites and ceremonies were sacred. Therefore, only born-again people were qualified to partake of them. The priests were worship leaders. Symbols of what The Lord Almighty desired the people of Israel to become. Accordingly, not only were they required to be cleansed in the blood of Jesus, the true meaning of the washing. It is especially important to note that only those who believe in Christ and are baptized will have life. Those who reject God’s invitation will be destined for eternal death. “And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved, but he who does not believe will be condemned.” Mark 16:15-16.  The priests also had to be dressed in white. A symbol of the pure status of righteousness that the redeemed would occupy at the end of the ages. As we are instructed in the apocalypse.

“Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?” And I said to him, “Sir, you know.” So he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” Revelation 7:13-14.

Baptism is the only way to enter the Christian Church. Since that institution is the body of Christ. “For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. For, in fact, the body is not one member but many…Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.” 1Corinthians 12: 12-14, 27. All of the items of furnishing and also the twenty boards standing erectly in the northern and southern sections of the Tabernacle are covered with gold. So are the eight boards standing in the western section of The Most Holy Place. The gold represents the unadulterated, spotless, and impeccable righteousness of Christ. There are twenty boards in the northern and southern sections of the Fence around the Court and they are also present in the same locations within The Tabernacle of Meeting. The warning being declared in the Fence around The Outer Court is being repeated here.

The members of the human race who keep The Ten Commandments (10 + 10) are those who will be cleansed by the blood of Jesus and covered with His life. Jesus told the parable about the ten virgins. That number represents the totality of humanity. But only five virgins were actually saved. Those who faithfully adhered to the teachings of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy). “How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?  Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you—Moses, in whom you trust. For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” John 5:44-47. All the boards within The Tabernacle of Meeting were standing upon silver footings/foundations. The boards comprising the fence of The Outer Court were crowned with silver Capitals and held in place by silver braces. Silver in scripture invariably represents God’s Word. “The words of the Lord are pure words Like silver tried in a furnace of earth, Purified seven times.” Psalm 12:6.

In every age of earth’s history, God’s true people lived up to the standard of righteousness declared in God’s Word; they were supported by God’s Word; and even during the era of the Christian Church, they will stand firmly upon the foundation of God’s Word. Heaven does not demand more than this of its citizens. But it will be satisfied with no less. As we read in scripture, “Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law, he meditates day and night.” Psalm 1:1-2. God’s law within this context is the five books of Moses.