Coming into His Court

Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe

Isaiah 35:8-10

“A highway shall be there, and a road, and it shall be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean shall not pass over it, but it shall be for others. Whoever walks the road, although a fool, shall not go astray.”

The Tabernacle in the wilderness and, later, the Temple in Jerusalem provided the road map for the Highway of Holiness.   

Once we enter into the doorway, that is, once we enter through our acceptance of Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we find ourselves surrounded and protected by the purity of the unblemished Lamb of God. 

In the courtyard, we come first to the brazen altar of sacrifice where we are reminded of Jesus, Who became the ultimate sacrifice for our sins.

Isaiah 53-4-6: “Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”

Hallelujah! What a Savior!

Then we come to the laver filled with living water.  There the priests washed their hands and feet before entering the Tabernacle itself.  The laver reminds us that we need to be cleansed, to confess our sins and repent, before we can enter into the presence of God. We must open our Bibles and learn to walk and be washed by His word.

Ephesians 5:25-26: “Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for it, that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word.”

In the Old Testament economy, only the priests, all of whom were born into the tribe of Levi, could enter into the Tabernacle.  Today, if we are born again in Jesus, we can enter into that intimate relationship with God that is pictured in the Tabernacle.  In Jesus, we are all priests.

Revelation 1:5-6: “from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.” What an awesome privilege.  Only those who have accepted the sacrifice of our Lord and choose to walk with Him may enter into the presence of God Most High. 

We can be saved and remain in the outer court.  The outer court is good, but God has something even greater for us—intimacy with Him and other believers in the Holy Place, the front room of the Tabernacle.

Today is the day to accept that Jesus is the only way, to step through the gate and allow yourself to be surrounded by His purity and holiness, to recognize His sacrifice for you, to allow yourself to be cleansed, to put on your priestly mantle and become a part of that redeemed remnant who will bring the song back to Zion and the praise back to God.

Ctrl/click the following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NsrpSM2Fz-s

Holy Highway

Ginger Hendricks | Jim Hendricks