I. THE TEMPLE

Of man it is said, "You are the temple of God." (2 Cor. 6:16; 1 Cor. 3:16-17; Jn. 2: 19-21. So it is instructive to see how man resembles the temple and what lessons this model given by God gives us.

The temple was built up precisely according to the plan that was given by God in the Sinai Mountain to Moses, while he was with God. (Ex. 25:8-9:30). A detailed description of the temple and all the furniture in it are found in Ex. 25:10 - 30:38 and in Ex. 35:1-39:43. A short summary is given in Ex. 40 and also in Hebrews 9:1-10. We will summarize this in figure 6 giving the plan and position of the furniture.

Fig 1

THE TEMPLE

AS GIVEN TO MOSES BY GOD

 

AS GIVEN TO MOSES BY GOD

We can immediately see the correlation with the figures 1 and 2 in the Trinitarian image.

Here is the comparison:

  

The Temple though given to the Jews in the Old Covenant, also represents the organism of Church. In this comparison, the Body of Christ consists of individual believers all over the world and in all time. Their life and witness are outreach of the church which communicates with the rest of the gentile world. The soul of the church is the oneness of mind of the saints (the assembly). The Holy Spirit was given to the Church at the time of Pentecost. Thus the church is an organic person, with its body, mind and the Holy Spirit and forms the bride of Christ. We could then add another column for the church to the above tabulation. Again in the next section we will see that Hebrews 9 the author indicates that the temple also indicates the growth of the Christian church through history. Invariably by comparison it also indicates human growth from childhood, youth and fatherhood as the Christian's growth to maturity. This is clearly expanded in the letters of John. See 1 John 7-14.

Then we could add three additional columns of comparison as follows.

 

 II THE OUTER COURT

The outer court is the body of man. Here we come in contact with the rest of the mankind and with the physical world. Through the five senses we perceive this world and express ourselves through our body. This is the interactive field with the external world.

In God, the outer court, the body is the Word. It is the word that created the physical world. It is the Word that maintained the physical world. God deals with sinful man through Jesus - the Word who became flesh. God cannot communicate with the world except through the Word, incarnate or otherwise, because that is only point of contact and in the same dimension between God and fallen man. After the Ascension of Jesus, Church is that body with Jesus as its head. (Col 1:18) Thus today God interacts with the rest of the mankind through the Church. It is the members of the Church as members of the body who have the responsibility of giving the Word of God to the rest of the world and to keep the society from decaying. "You are the salt of the earth" . "You are the light of the world." (Mt. 5: 13,14)

The temple is also the place of worship. Thus it signifies the dynamics of redemption of man as also the human approach to God -as he enters from the outer court to the Holy of Holies for worship. The carnal man is body centered. "Those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the flesh...To set the mind on flesh is death." (Rom. 8:5,6) Before he can even think of approaching God, he needs to be reconciles with Good. There is only one gate to the temple. Jesus said, ""I am the way>" (Jn 14:6), "I am the door>" (Jn. 10:7,9) "And you, who once were estranged and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy..." (Col. 1:21,22) "And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name given among men by which we must be saved." (Act. 4:12)

In the outer court itself, an eternal forgiveness of sins and cleansing is available to us in Jesus. This is represented by the altar of sacrifice and the brazen laver. Hebrews 10 describes the difference between Israel and the Church. "We have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ, once and for all." (Heb. 10:10) Through him then let us continually offer up sacrifices of praise to God, that is the fruit of the lips that acknowledge him. (Heb. 13:14-15) There is thus a once and for all act of acceptance of Jesus as your sacrifice in accordance with the law. (Lev. 16:8-12) and a continual offering of praise. It is clear that the Lord’s Table is not a sacrifice. If you are already born again, the only sacrifice now needed is the sacrifice of praise. This sacrifice is brought to the Holy of Holies by the Royal High Priests. No other ritual is taught in the bible under the new covenant. If symbols are to be used as a means of communications, use them. All communications must involve symbols, either audible or visible or oleofatic. But do not make it an idol. If it becomes an idol, break it into pieces even it is considered most sacred. 1 Ki. 18:3 tells us a story of the destruction of such a holy relic viz. the brazen serpent which Moses lifted up in the wilderness. We know that it represented Jesus, but it was not Jesus and hence it has to be destroyed. For the unregenerate ritualism is a necessity to constantly remind them of the necessity of cleansing, of their slavery to the gods of this world who cannot save.

Once redeemed by the sacrifice of Jesus, the believer is to cleanse himself daily from the water in the laver - symbol of washing with the Word of God. (Eph. 5:26) "He who has washed (in the blood of Jesus Rev. 7:14; 1 Cor. 6:11) does not need to wash, except his feet, because he is in contact with the world in his daily interaction and walk. He doesn’t require a fresh sacrifice, only washing of the feet is required. "If any one sin, we have an advocate with the father, Jesus Christ, the righteous, and he is the expiation for our sins and cleanses us from all unrighteousness. (1 Jn. 1:9)

In the outer court, the worship is essentially ritualistic simply because we are in the material physical dimension. They certainly shadows the reality of self-sacrifice and the

need for cleansing from sin continuously. This is the first step in man’s approach to God in worship. written word kills, but it is the spirit that gives life. When understood in terms of the spirit in which the word is written it realizes growth. Word by itself is legalism. Food by itself is flabbiness. The body will eventually succumb to its own weight. This is what happened to the Pharisees at the time of Jesus. Spirit by itself without the Word is fanaticism. It is typified in the Jewish system of temple worship. Most of it is ritual centered. Most, if not all religion, excluding Christianity, fall into this group. Many Christian groups and denominations also fall into this category. They go to church (some churches has compulsory days of attendance) , repeat prayers or chanting, making of the sign of the cross, carrying of the cross, kissing the book, kneeling before images and icons or altar, take home and revere relics and symbols etc. Hebrews 9:6-10 describes this situation, "By this the Holy Spirit indicates that the way to sanctuary is not yet opened as long as the outer tent (the tabernacle) is still standing. (Which is the symbol of the present age) { the Early Church Age}. According to this arrangement...... regulations of the body were imposed until the time of reformation." What is this reformation? Reformation in church history took place at the time of Luther and Calvin. The church continued to be ritual centered until that time at least from 315 A.D. It also implies that we will not be able to realize true worship in spirit until the time of transformation of our bodies. Hebrew author reefers to the temple structure in terms of the ages in the church leads us to think that the temple also indicates not only man’s journey to God; but also the how church grows into the likeness of Jesus. It tells us the historical development of the church in becoming the bride of Jesus. The ritualistic church of the Orthodox period is the entry of the church in the outer court. It was only the beginning of the total redemption of mankind.

Chronologically this is man in childhood. This is the time the baby learns about his external world through his five senses. In the growth of the Christian this is the initial stage when the person comes to know Jesus and his sins are forgiven and he is given a clean slate to start with.. "I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven, for his sake." "I write to you, children, because you know the Father." (1 Jn. 2:12-13)

III .THE HOLIES

The inner court is the court of the redeemed - the meeting hall for the congregation of the chosen ones. No non-Jew is allowed inside this Assembly Hall. No sinner even from among the Jew is permitted inside until they have been atoned by sacrifice. This is the soul of the people of God. Here members of the community commune with each other, share their burdens, help each other, worship together, learn together, discuss all matters concerning the society. This indeed is the true character of the redeemed community of God. This is the soul of the church. Here the redeemed shall gather together to worship and to grow as an organism. "Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and to do good works; not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some; but encouraging another..." (Heb. 10: 24,25)

There are three elements of furniture in the Holies that signify the nature and function of this part of the temple. These are the Table of Presence or the Bread Table, the Incense Table and the Six Pronged Lamp with Oil Stand. The Shew Bread Table made of gold carries twelve loaves of bread one for each tribe of Israel made of unleavened flour dough. This is renewed every Sabbath and the bread are eaten by the Priests and the Levite. The bread is interleaved and anointed with incense. Bread represents the need of constant feeding on the Word of God for the growth and strength of the Church. One function of the Church is to read and ingest the written word of God and to realize in their personal life the

living Word of God - Jesus. "I am the living bread, he who comes to me shall not hunger, and he who believes in me shall never thirst." (Jn. 6:35) "I am the living bread which came down from heaven.." (Jn.6:48) But the written word must be mixed with incense, the spirit so that it becomes life giving word. The Fanaticism will only cause its own destruction, as it degenerates into myths and fancies. Word with Spirit is growth and Strength. In every believer, Christ likeness is produced only by continual feeding of the Word in Spirit. This is represented in the church in the breaking of bread and the ministry of the Word. In the case of natural man, it represents the youth, caused by the feeding materials of food, mind feeding materials of books that we read, the friends that we have, the movies that we see, the people with whom we work with etc. We have a choice to accept or reject in these. In some cases we ingest it, and in other cases we reject it. There is a constant fight and struggle in this area. It is this exercise of muscles that builds us into strong men. In the same way it is the exercise of our faith that builds us into strong believers. Thus John addresses the young men thus: "I am writing to you young men, because you have overcome the evil one.... I write to you young men because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one." (1 Jn. 2:13-14)

The second furniture is the Seven Pronged Lamp with Oil Stand. Lamp is meant to shine forth - to illuminate and to show clearly. The word in Greek actually mean : to manifest or to make known. The original Greek word for lamp stand is a feminine form of the yoke of a plow or the beam. It represents an exercise, or work through the power supplied to it. Mere feeding will not produce healthy tissues. It has to be exercised. This is enabled by the potential energy obtained from the oil. Oil therefore represents the Holy Spirit which empower the Church and the believer to effectively minister to the community. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are given to every believer and to the church for the edification and growth of the Church. It is the spirit within every man that enable man to perform in their gifts effectively. The gifts blooms in youth.

There are several manifestations of the Holy Spirit. This is represented in the seven pronged lamp. The sevenfold spirit of God is mentioned in Rev. 4:15. Some of these are mentioned in Isaiah. These are "the spirit of wisdom, and of understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord, " (Is.11:2) ; "and the spirit of judgment (justice)" (Is. 28:6)

The incense table represents the worship rendered congregational by the church and individually within every believer. This is the meditative aspect of man - the soul’s contact point with the spirit world. A man is determined by the God or gods he worship. Many people contend that it does not matter what or in whom you believe as long as the behavior and conduct are right. But your actions are determined by the world view you hold and this in turn is decided by what you believe in your heart. "Out of the abundance of heart, the mouth speaks." Our speech and actions are nothing but the outcome of our inner soul state. If we think negatively it will result eventually in destruction, defeat and death. If we think positively, it liberates and creates. This is true of the carnal man as well as of the spiritual man. Hence through out the Bible, we have an emphasis on

feeding and meditating on the word of God. "This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may be careful to do according to all that is in it; for then you shall make your way prosperous and then you shall have good success." Hence Paul gives the advise to all men, which is valid both in carnal sphere as well as in spiritual sphere. "Finally brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there be any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." (Phill. 4:8)

The incense altar represent the prayer and worship. This is a prayer with understanding - a conscious intellectual activity. In Cor. 14:15 Paul clarifies this type of prayer as distinct from praying in the spirit. However Heb. 9:4 indicates that the altar of incense actually belongs to the inner sanctuary - the Holy of Holies and is lent to the Holies to the Assembly.

Thus we may understand that prayer and worship has dimensions beyond the intellect, beyond mind and soul into the sphere of spirit. You may start praying in understanding

and go on into praying in the spirit. As we start worshipping in our mind and intellect we drift into the sphere of the spirit to worship the Lord in spirit and truth. Thus the incense altar is placed in front of the veil that separates the Holies from the Holy of Holies. Now Jesus has torn this veil from top to bottom at his sacrifice in the cross, that we may enter into the Holy of Holies. The veil no longer exists for the worshipper. Hence the confusion of the soul and the spirit is understandable.

In the growth of the Church this represents the Congregational Era. If the Orthodoxy was based on external ceremonies, the new era opened the Church where the emphasis was on the people as a community. The clergy based church gave way to people based churches. Bible was given to every one and the spirit gave gifts to all believers bringing for evidences of miracles, healing, prophecy, ability to teach, interpret etc. This is the period following the Reformation. In this era the emphasis on intellect. The faith was justified in terms of reason. The characteristics of the Church is the ‘oneness of mind and spirit’. Essentials of Christian growth is enunciated in Act. 2:42. "They devoted themselves to (1) the apostles teaching, (2) Fellowship, (3) to the breaking of bread and (4) prayer."

IV .THE HOLY OF HOLIES

A summary description of the inner sanctuary is given in Hebrews 9:3-5. "Behind the second curtain stood a tent called Holy of Holies, having the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, which contained a golden urn holding manna, the Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant; above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat." There was the thick curtain separating the Holy of Holies from the Holies. Into this the High Priest alone went, and that too only once in a year, "and not without taking the blood which he offers for himself and for the errors of the people." (Heb.9:7; Lev. 16:1-19)

Entering into the presence of a most Holy God was an owe inspiring and risky job, because he "will by no means clear the guilty." (Ex. 34:7) Hence special golden bells were sewn into the skirts of the High Priest, ‘and its sound shall be heard when he goes into the holy place before the Lord, and when he comes out, lest he die." (Ex. 28:34) Thus people could know that he is alive. However as an additional precaution a chain was attached to the leg of the High Priest so that in case he was struck by God, due to iniquity he could be pulled out. Such was the awesome nature of the abode of the inner sanctuary. "There I (God) will meet with you, and above the mercy seat, from between the two Cherubim that are upon the ark of the testimony I will speak with you." (Ex. 25:17-22)

The ark represents the spirit of man, the mercy seat is placed over it where the glory of the God appears and speaks with man. Ark as the seat of the spirit of man resents the hearts of man. In it are (1) the tablets of the law, (2) Aaron’s Rod, (3) Manna. When a law is external, man will have to adhere to it by the force of punishment. But once the law is written inside the heart, he will know it and do it without external compulsion, because that is his nature. The law was originally written in the hearts of every man. But they have become hard due to sinfulness. The promise of God had been "I will give them one heart (all the people) and put a new spirit within them; I will take the stony heart out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they will walk in my ordinances and obey them. They shall be my people and I will be their God." (Ex. 11:19-20) "I will put my law within them, and I will write them upon their hearts., and I will be their God, and they shall be my people, and no longer shall each man teach his neighbor and teach his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord", for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest." (Jer. 31:33-34) By putting the Spirit of God as counselor within the spirit of man from the time of Pentecost this promise is being fulfilled in the believer.

The rod of Aaron is the rod that has done wonders in the wilderness as well as in Egypt. It swallowed up all the serpents of the Egyptian magicians (Ex. 7:10-15) and it did all the wonders over nature during the plagues that were imposed on Pharaoh and the Egyptians. (Ex. 8-14; 16;17:5-9); it gave power of decision and choice (Num. 17:2-9); brought forth water from the rock (Num. 17:2-9) and divided the Red Sea for Israel to pass through. It is the rod of authority and power over all the world, over all principalities and powers of darkness even in the high places and over nature. This power is there in a limited sense within every man, but enlivened and living in every believer and the church of God on earth.

Manna is the total requirement for living. It gave all the nourishment required by the body for the Israelites throughout their forty years of sojourn and wilderness. Hence it is symbolical of the fulfillment of all human requirements in the body, in the society and in the spirit. Thus manna is described often as the spiritual food. The point here is that the power to transcend moral laws, natural laws and to have power and authority over nature and beings are within the reach of every man, as it was given to Adam. The tablets of law, the rod and the urn of manna are there. In the natural man this power rests on the understanding of the natural laws and applying it. Science and Arts are employed to achieve power over man and nature. In that respect it is possible to reach them by inner meditation as Hindu thought strives. By understanding the laws that exists in the spirit world power can be obtained. However unless we can enter into the Holy of Holies this cannot be done. But once you are in it i.e. if you can enter without being destroyed - you can have these power. Otherwise you will have to pay the price which is destruction and death. Magic and witchcraft rely on these powers at its own price. "But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, then to wait until his enemies are made a stool for his feet. For by a single sacrifice he has perfected for all time those who were sanctified.... Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way which he opened for us through the curtain, that is through his flesh, and since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith." (Heb. 10:10-22)

Aaron’s rod which budded is symbolical of the resurrected Jesus. It is the name of Jesus that has the power over everything - "that at the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow." (Rom. 14:11) The name of Jesus is ‘far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named." and this name and authority is given to the church. (Eph. 1:21-23) Again Jesus is the manna that came down from heaven, not such as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this manna will live forever. (Jn. 6:58)

Jesus said, "And these signs will accompany those who believe, in my name they will cast out demons. They will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing they will recover." (Mk 16:17-18) "In that day .... you ask anything of the Father, he will give it you in my name." (Jn. 16:23) But why don’t all Christians enjoy these privileges and promises. Because they have not yet got the courage to enter into the holy of holies. The essential onus lie in the church itself. The intellectual church teaches intellectual things. It has been teaching elementary doctrines, emphasizing how sinful man is, how unworthy a dust and a worm he is. It treats Christians as babes and refuses to let them grow into maturity and to the full freedom of man in Christ Jesus. "Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrines of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God; with instructions about ablutions, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And this we will do if God permits. " (Heb. 6:1-3)

Today churches all over the world irrespective of denominational differences and theological differences are finding new dimensions in the spirit, new ways of worship and new power that rises out of this entry into the Holy of Holies.

In the chronological development of man this is the fatherhood of man, where he is mature and calm with depth of wisdom and understanding.

In the individual Christian, this stage is the Fatherhood as referred to in John 2:13-14 thus, "I am writing to you fathers because you know him who is from the beginning....." The mature Christian knows the God, the Ancient One. This is the stage we all look forward to.

TEMPLE  MAN

 

Recent research by Tony Badillo suggests that the Solomon’s temple might have been built actually in the form a man.  Jewish Kabalistic tradition holds that the Temple was built in the image of Adam Kadamon, the ideal man.  The floor plan reveals half man while the vertical structures indicates the remainder of man. ( see  Mishkan (tabernacle): did it have a hidden human form? Tony Badillo)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When we open up the vertical legs we arrive at the picture on the right

Now it is possible to  identify the full Man in the Temple as follows:

http://www.templesecrets.org/temple.html

Here is how the High Priest's body and clothing correspond to the Temple and all its furniture:

The High Priest as Temple Man

At left is the Temple Floor Plan from the previous page now trans- formed into a figure of the Levite High Priest. Within the figure are 13  numbers which are briefly explained below. All are in sequence except for nine (9).

1. TREASURE ROOMS, PRIESTS’ CELLS, west side – Gold and silver bullion was kept in the Temple (I Kgs. 7:51 ) possibly in its western cells. These form the High Priest’s turban (Heb., misnepet). The common priest’s cap was more globular, like an inverted cup.

9. PRIESTS’ CELLS, south and north sides – These form the arms. Only one entrance is named (I Kgs. 6:8) but Ezk. 41:11 includes a second. The entrances correspond to the onyx stones the High Priest wore on his left and right shoulders. Each was engraved with the names of six Israelite tribes, twelve names total, Ex. 28:9 -12.

2. TWO LARGE STARS – These are two10-cubit tall cherubs of gold plated olive wood (I Kgs. 6:23), they form Temple Man’s eyes.

3. THE ARK of the Covenant – This was a gold plated chest with a solid gold lid topped by two small cherubs (small stars).The chest is his nose. Its poles were attached to its long sides rather than its short ones. They were drawn forward, I Kgs. 8:8, after the Ark was installed in the Holy of Holies and depict extended nostrils.

4. STAIRWAY – A short staircase led from the Holy Place to a slightly elevated Holy of Holies. The stairway is his neck/throat.

5. INCENSE ALTAR – This small gold plated altar (I Kgs. 6:22) is the heart. Its sweet-smelling smoke depicts prayer and the spiritual life.

6. TABLES OF THE SHOWBREAD – On these gold plated tables (I Kgs. 7:48) were bread and wine, symbolizing flesh and blood, i.e., the humanity of national Israel, the High Priest, and the Messiah.

7. THE LAMPS – These (II Chr. 4:7) provided light while portraying a Tree of Life. Their seven flames each stand for the seven days of Creation Week and also the seventy nations of the world. Light may symbolize divine knowledge and the spirit of God.

8. THE PORCH – This antechamber, the ulam, (I Kgs. 6:3, II Chr. 3:4) corresponds to the human pelvis (hips) and depicts procreation, or more specifically, birthing (parturition), because this is the area of the genital organs.

10, TEN LAVERS – Five bronze lavers were on the north and five on the south near the Porch. These signify the ten fingers of the hands. They were for washing off any residue of blood in the sacrificial meats (I Kgs. 7:38; II Chr. 4:6). They were mounted on wheeled carts and each laver held 40 baths of water.

11. JACHIN, BOAZ – These large bronze pillars by the Porch were named Jachin and Boaz (II Chr.3:17) and are the Temple Man’s legs, Viewed standing, they portray two plants or trees and also the two kings, David and Solomon.

12. SEA OF BRONZE, TWELVE BULLS – This huge laver held 2000 or 3000 baths of water and was for the priests to wash their hands and feet (II Chr. 4:2). The laver depicts the basin of the Red Sea. Water too may depict God’s spirit and knowledge but also conception, and union (devekut) with him. The twelve bulls (v.4) are the twelve tribes of Israel.

13. THE SACRIFICIAL ALTAR – This (II Chr. 4:1) is the Temple Man’s feet, and also a king’s square footstool. The Altar signifies election/separation, war and conquest (victory), atonement for sin, and national Israel’s marriage to the Lord.

Tony also identifies the figure thus presented as the Metallic Messiah with the association of the predominant metal within each part.