The Veil (2)

The New Testament book of Hebrews draws back the curtain on the meaning of many Old Testament types and shadows, interpreting images and history in and through Christ. One can only wonder what the author might have written had his recipients been mature believers (Hebrews 5:11 - 14). As it is, much of what the author, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, has to tell us are things that we functionally reject out-of-hand; we may pay lip-service to the Gospel in Hebrews, but we generally aren’t about to take it seriously. The veil is a case in point - even though the veil has been rent from top to bottom by Jesus Christ, Christians generally live as if God is far away and inaccessible, they generally live as if the veil has been repaired, and they generally live as if they need any number of mediators to stand between them and God - functionally we often think, “Let someone else go beyond the veil, let it be someone else’s job, I’ll live outside the Holy of Holies and be just fine.”

This is understandable if we continue to reject our identity as brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ (Hebrews 2:9 - 18), it is understandable if we fail to confess the completeness of Christ’s work on the Cross (Hebrews 9:13 - 15; 10:10 - 14). It is understandable if we continue to insist on introducing guilt and the law again and again into consciences that Christ has cleansed; one of the imperfections of the Levitical system was that it could not “make the worshiper perfect in conscience” (Hebrews 9:9), and one of the results of the perfect work of Christ is that our hearts have been “sprinkled clean from an evil conscience” (Hebrews 10:22). But for some reason we don’t want to accept this, we think there is some merit is dredging up sin, dredging up the past, and convincing ourselves that we are destined to spend our lives in bondage to sin, the Law, and the flesh/natural man. Even in the face of liberating passages such as Romans 5:12 - 8:39 we tend to say, “Yeah but…” Even in the face of Jesus’ words in John chapters 13 - 17 we say, “Yeah but…” We qualify God’s Word, we qualify the Cross, we qualify the work of the Holy Spirit, we justify our shackels. This is, with all charity, anything but Christocentric, it is not focused on the glorious work of Christ but rather on our own failings; when we look at ourselves we will always come short of the glory of God - even in the guise of self-abasement and self-imposed humility. Humility is not saying, “I fall short of the glory of God,” humility is proclaiming that Christ is my righteousness, my sanctification, and my redemption (1 Corinthians 1:30 - 31).

The Trinity desires intimate relationship with us, and that occurs in the Holy of Holies,  it occurs as we learn to live life in His Presence and with His Presence in us. To remain simply on the other side of the Red Sea, having escaped from Egypt, is to preach and teach and live in less than the Gospel. To wander in the Wilderness for a lifetime is to experience less than the Gospel. To fear the giants in the promised land is to know and teach and experience less than the Gospel. To remain in the Outer Court of the Temple, to remain in the Holy Place (that section between the Outer Court and the Holy of Holies) is to experience less than the full Gospel - for Jesus Christ rent the veil thereby  making the way into the Presence of God open to us all in Him.

Consider this from Hebrews, describing conditions before the Cross of Christ:

“Now when these things have been so prepared, the priests are continually entering the outer tabernacle performing the divine worship, but into the second, only the high priest enters once a year, not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the sins of the people committed in ignorance. The Holy Spirit is signifying this, that the way into the holy place has not yet been disclosed while the outer tabernacle is still standing, which is a symbol for the present time. Accordingly both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make the worshiper perfect in conscience, since they relate only to food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until a time of reformation.” (Hebrews 9:6 - 10).

Now consider this from Hebrews, describing the work of Christ on the Cross and what that means for those in relationship with Him:

Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. (Hebrews 10:19 - 22).

In the lead up to Chapter 10 the author of Hebrews paints a picture of Jesus our High Priest in the Holy of Holies:

“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:14 - 16).

This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil, where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. (Hebrews 6:19 - 20).

This thread of the storyline in Hebrews first portrays Jesus beyond the veil (Hebrews 4:14-16; 6:19 - 20), and then shows us that when the body of Jesus was rent that the veil was rent, and then shows us that we now have access to the Holy of Holies, the very place where Christ is, in the Presence of God, calling us into the fellowship, communion, koinonia, of the Trinity. Our consciences have been cleansed and we can believe and functionally live in the reality of God’s promise that He will write His laws on our hearts and minds and that our “sins and lawless deeds I will remember no more.” (Hebrews 10:16 - 17). Belief that is not functional, that is not expressed, that is not relied upon, that is not confessed, that is not preached and taught - what kind of belief is that? Biblical belief is more than mere intellectual assent - it is living in the light of our belief, it is encouraging others in that belief - it is trusting in the Word of God in a marriage and unity of thought, word, and action in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is all sufficient for us and His sacrifice is perfect - do we really believe that?

I’ll close this post with some words from Martin Luther from his commentary on Galatians:

“Christ and the law can by no means agree and reign together in the conscience.”

We can only have one master, either the Law or grace; either Moses or Christ. He also writes, in commenting on Galatians 5:1,  that the issue of whether we live under the Law or grace is one of “everlasting liberty or everlasting bondage.” Luther counsels that we are not to trust our feelings but to trust God’s Word and His character.

“Therefore, if Christ appear in the likeness of an angry judge or lawgiver that requires an account of our life past [Luther is writing to Christians, to those in a relationship with Christ], then let us assure ourselves that it is not Christ, but a raging fiend [Satan is the one who accuses us, Rev. 12:10 - 11]. For the Scripture paints out Christ to be our reconciler, our advocate and our comforter. Such a one He is and ever shall be; he cannot be unlike Himself.”