Why the Temple Veil Was Torn: Access to God (Luke 23:45; Matthew 27:51)

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Let's pray for this message.

Father, I thank you so much for your word.

I'm excited to discuss this topic this morning having grown up in a works-based religion and

felt separated from you in terms of needing to only approach you through whether it was

priests or Mary or the saints.

It was dramatic to me to learn that the veil on the temple had been torn and I had been

given access to you that didn't need to go through any earthly intercessor.

I don't, perhaps that's why this is so dear to me, Lord, such a blessing to discuss

this access that we have and I pray that you would help me to be able to reveal the

greatness of that access to your people.

For those who are already aware of it, who know that we can go to your throne through

your Son, Jesus Christ, needing no other intercessor mediator and then I pray that you would

even just increase our appreciation for that wonderful truth that's so good to be reminded

of things which is why your word does repeat things to us, we're forgetful and so I just

pray this would be a morning where you speak to your people and encourage them to approach

your throne room for the grace and mercy we need knowing that that veil has been torn

and I think maybe we best appreciate that by contrasting our covenant we have with you

with the covenant that the believers in the Old Testament experience.

I assume we probably take for granted the approachability we have whereas if had we been in

the Old Testament for even a day I'm sure we would greatly appreciate what we have been given

under the new and so I pray for that revelation to be given to your people and ask this in Jesus' name.

Amen. I know there's a sermon and I came here what movie is about that I told you we had a VHS

collection. Do you guys remember that I told you we had a bunch of movies on VHS cassettes when I

was a kid and for all of you who are not as old as I am that means it's a cassette that you'd

actually have to rewind when you were done and so we had maybe like five or ten cassettes movies to

watch and one of them was Indiana Jones Raiders of the Lost Ark by a show of hands who's seen that

movie. Okay most of you okay so I had watched this movie more times than I could count just in

case any of you haven't seen it I'm going to tell you what happens at the end so Indiana Jones

by the way one reason I'm super thankful for that movie is it's given me a joke that I've gotten a

ton of mileage out of because over the years people are always asking what happened to the ark and I

can say the Indiana Jones found it. Okay you laughed every other time I've made that joke I don't know

why you guys didn't laugh it's like the one time I've anyway let's move on. So Indiana Jones and

Marion have been captured by the Nazis along with the ark they're taken to this remote island where

the Nazis plan to open the ark of the covenant and so the Nazis tie Indiana Jones and Marion to

this pole this tall post back-to-back so that they're forced to witness what's about to happen and

they can't interfere. Now Beleck who is the rival archaeologist who throughout the movie has been

trying to get to the ark before indeed is going to lead this event where they open the ark and he's

even dressed in like these priestly robes to make a show of it and so they open the ark and at first if

you remember it looks empty it's just like dust and fragments in there so I guess by this time that

10 commandments and Aaron's staff that abutted in the pot of man had been removed right and so they

look in there and they're very discouraged but so much so they even kind of laugh about it like

it's almost comical all of the effort that they had went to and there's nothing but sand but then

everything changes and there's this wind and this light and there's this terrifying supernatural

manifestation that begins and Indy understanding what's happening he tells Marion he's like close

your eyes tightly don't look and so they're tied to this pole and they're turning their faces away

and they have their eyes closed but then everyone else who's incredibly fascinated by what's

happening and even entertain starts being killed by whatever this supernatural manifestation is

that came came out of the ark now the horror isn't I mentioned this isn't to you know recount my

movie collection as a kid or something it's to make the point that even as a non-Christian kid

and all I wanted was to be entertained when I'm watching this you know I'm not looking for any

spiritual truce what's interesting is that even I could tell that there was something about God's

holiness that made approaching him dangerous and even this secular movie is able to communicate

this truth so you sure not going to build your theology from Indiana Jones but at least this is

something that seemed to be communicated well that you just don't appreciate approach God how

I refill like it and this brings us to lesson one access to God was limited under the old covenant

and the people at the end of that movie learn that the Nazis learn that the hard way

so in the Old Testament you can't just approach God whenever and however you want you can't just

handle the holy things anyway you choose you can't just walk into God's presence on your own terms

there were boundaries warnings restrictions and when people violated them they were punished

and I think we can probably think of some of the examples what comes to mind as an example of a

time in the Old Testament that someone approached God or individuals approached God on their terms

and suffered as a result didn't appreciate his holiness let's say I bet you'll be able to

mention the examples I came up with as he says about the most famous one yeah so David's bringing

the ark into Jerusalem early in his reign a godly man who after establishing his capital wants the

ark there they put it on a cart because that's how the Philistines had returned the ark to the

Israelites are supposed to be carried on poles it starts to tip on this cart and as it reaches out

and touches it and God strikes them dead brings David up short in front of the entire nation

so that definitely communicated about the whole procession to a halt that you don't get to

approach God you don't get to touch the holy things another example Aaron's sons Leviticus 10

Nate Abin and Bihu they decided we're just going to go to God offer profane fire we don't know

exactly what it was but it definitely wasn't according to God's restrictions and so they're like we'll

just go to God and do what we feel like doing and see how this goes and then they ended up being

killed by God other examples do you guys remember Uzziah not us of the man who touched the priest but

you remember King Uzziah like this Renaissance individual who'd done so many different things I don't

know if there's anyone in scripture or I mean this sincerely who did as many things as Uzziah did

and I guess one day he woke up and he decided well you know what I haven't been a priest yet

and so let me occupy that office too so he goes into the temple to offer incense thinks he's

just going to approach God how he feels is best and then what happens 70 priests going to stop him

he breaks out with leprosy that's so bad that at that point he he Uzziah just sees the horror

on the priest faces that he allows them to usher him out of the temple and the other examples come

to mind I was kind of thinking when the Philistines took the ark God started afflicting them they

started getting tumors and rats or tumors that look like rats I don't know that we know exactly

but it was bad enough and then God started beating up their fault the stature their false God

day gone knocking it off and so God just showed very clearly there you're going to treat me with

reverence or I'm going to flick your whole nation it was so bad they're sending the ark all

around of these different Philistine cities finally they're like let's just send this thing back

to Israel and send it with gifts just to hope they'll even they'll take it and then last example

which actually resembles Indiana Jones I don't know if this was Steven Spielberg had a mind

but the bet the men of Beth Shemesh they decided they're going to look in the ark

1st Amal 619 says that God struck the men of Beth Shemesh when they opened the ark and looked into it

so let me get you to think about God's first interaction with Israel which occurred at Sinai

so the first time God really interacts with Israel as a nation he had interactions with individuals

like Abraham but in terms of interacting with Israel as a nation the first time occurred at Mount Sinai

so consider these great lengths that God goes to deliver Israel from Egypt first he commissions Moses

to go into Egypt and to confront Pharaoh and command Pharaoh to let the Israelites go which in and

of itself that was a pretty challenging thing when you consider how reluctant Moses was to go

2nd God releases these 10 plagues on Egypt to get Pharaoh to release the Israelites culminating in

the final plague which is almost unique from all the other ones Passover where the firstborn

sons die after they get out of Egypt God leads the nation with a pillar of fire at night a cloud

by day so that the Israelites know exactly where to go and then the Egyptians are chasing the

Israelites they reach the Red Sea the people are pinched between the Israel the Egyptian army behind

them the Red Sea in front of them and in this incredibly dramatic supernatural moment the Red Sea

parts the Israelites pass through then the walls of water crash down and just swallow up the entire

Egyptian army and then finally the Israelites reach Sinai considering all God had done to get them

there what would you expect that first experience to be like well if God was going to talk to them

I would almost expect them to say something like you're the apple of my eye you are my covenant

people I love you so much I'm so glad you're here I've worked so hard to get to this moment to be

with you let me bring you just a little bit further why don't you come up here on the mountain with

me and then of course God's going to make Mount Sinai seem like this you know wonderful pleasant

place the birds are going to be chirping and there's going to be sunshine and flowers and so forth

blue skies instead let me show you what it was really like look at Hebrews 12-18 then my son just

read and before we jump into the verses let me get give you the context the author of Hebrews

is contrasting what his Hebrew readers experience which is really to say the author of Hebrews is

contrasting what new covenant believers which includes us know under the new covenant in contrast

with what old covenant believers knew in the Old Testament or under the old covenant and so the

way that he wants to contrast our experience with God with their experience with God is by

bringing up what it was like when they reached God at Sinai so he's describing what it was like

when us were reached Sinai and verse 18 he says you you new covenant believers church-aid

believers you have not come to what may be touched referring to Mount Sinai a blazing fire and

darkness and gloom and a tempest so Sinai blazing fire darkness gloom tempest basically couldn't

see more unwelcoming right a terrifying experience gets worse verse 19 the sound of a trumpet

in a voice this is God's voice as it booms off the mountain whose words made the hearers beg that

no further messages be spoken to them have you heard people say they want to hear from

God does it sound like it was a pleasant experience to hear from God it was terrifying it was so

bad that they actually asked Moses to speak to them instead and this is why look at verse 20 they

said or it says the Israelites could not even endure the order that was given and this is the order

they couldn't even it doesn't mean they could obey the order they couldn't even they couldn't

even handle listening to the order being given because of how loud and horrifying God's voice was

and then this is the order if even a beast touches the mountain it shall be stoned animals can't

even come close so was it any better for Moses because Moses is God's friend right the

goodness says in verse 21 indeed it was so terrifying or indeed so terrifying was the site that

Moses said I tremble with fear and it says indeed because it's making the point like even Moses

even God's own friend was afraid now Moses who was able to handle all the plagues in Egypt

he couldn't even handle being in God's presence at Sinai so it's obvious that God wants to keep

people away from him in the Old Testament I mean if you tell people that you know how much

clearer can God make it if you want to seem unapproachable what's worse than if you come near me I'll

kill you right there's no way to sound more approachable than that that is the greatest threat you

can give people that will keep them away and it's fascinating to me as they're flexing on it this

past week that it would make a lot of sense to me if God was saying this to who maybe Canaanites

or Amalakites maybe Ninevites some Gentiles or pagan some of the wickedest people in history

but he's like this toward the covenant people that he loved even they could not come near him

and I told you before if I had to summarize the Old Testament in one word it would be the word

separation now do you sound the form just bless me your pastor the word holy tell me what the word

holy means that did bless me thank you yeah holy means set apart or separate and that's significant

because I think many people associate holiness with righteousness which doesn't really make sense

because inanimate or non-living things are holy but they can't be righteous whether it's the

ground that Moses stands on the ark itself you know the ark was holy but it wasn't righteous the

temple was holy but it wasn't righteous the holy land Israel is holy but it is not righteous

so holy means separate or set apart God's one attribute that's repeated repeated excuse me

in a thrice fold fashion is what okay let me say like this is God love love love mercy mercy mercy

he is what though he's holy holy holy there's no attribute of gods that is repeated in a

thrice fold fashion except for his holiness that's what the angels of all the things that they

get in Isaiah 6 I believe that's that incredible vision of the throne room of God of all the things

that the angels could say when they fly around mean even having to cover in their faces in their

eyes it seems almost unable to look on God's face they're singing about his or calling out a

camera says they're singing or just calling out about God's holiness and in the Old Testament

unholy people cannot approach a holy God now I don't think God's being cruel here I think

he's just being himself when he says you're gonna die I don't think that means I'm gonna be so

mad I'll kill you it's basically don't come near me so you don't die because I'm holy you're not

and you'll be extinguished this is just God being himself to a bunch of sinful people

who will be wiped out if they approach him now I want you to think about the dilemma they

God is facing with his people so let's think about Sinai here God brings the Israelites to the

base of Sinai but it is not his plan to keep them a Sinai the book of Leviticus one month in length

and Israel's at the base of Sinai but we know his plan isn't for them to stay there his plan is

for them to go from Sinai to where they're gonna go through the wilderness but he wants to get him

where the promised land so God's plan for Israel is for them to meet him at Sinai received to

them commandments and then they travel to the promised land and they're settled there in the other

part of this now that be fine there be don't dilemma if that's all God wanted but he also wants to

go with them if God was gonna remain on Sinai there be no dilemma so do you see the dilemma if God

wants people that he can't be near because he'll destroy them to go somewhere and he wants to go

with them I mean how is he gonna go without wiping him out and you say no Pastor Scott that sounds

a little far-fetched the idea that he'd wipe out his own people doesn't really sound far-fetched

do you remember what happened at least twice that's recorded he almost wiped him out let me

remind you of this the first time was when they constructed the golden calf listen to this Exodus 33

verse 1 the Lord said to Moses go up to a land flowing with milk and honey but I will not go up

among you or else I will consume you on the way for you're a stiff neck people so God told Moses you

better go take him yourself and I'm I better not go where else I'm gonna kill all of them

after the rebellion with the 12 spies numbers 14 11 the Lord said to Moses I will strike them

referring to the Israelites with a pestilence and disinherit them and I will make of you a great

a nation greater and to mightier than them so God says why don't I just mean he literally said

this to Moses why don't I just wipe them out and start all over with you there's no there's not

going to be three patriarchs there's going to be one patriarch instead of the God of Abraham Isaac

and Jacob I'll be the God of Moses and there'll be a brand new nation that comes from you this

going to be better than this nation so God's got this dilemma so my point is it really was

this threat for him to be with them because of his holiness and their unholiness because of their

rebellion so how does God resolve this traveling with these people that he doesn't want to

wipe out he's got to keep distance he's got to separate himself from them so what was constructed

the tabernacle right so this brings us to lesson two God created boundaries between himself and his

people lesson two God created boundaries between himself and his people

God tells Moses to build this tabernacle and the tabernacle was basically this movable tent

that the Levites could assemble they could disassemble as they travel through the wilderness

from sign to the promised land so they're going to pitch the tent and then they're going to take it

down they're going to move they're going to pitch it again and then repeat this until they reach

the promised land and I want to tell you about the tabernacle by how many look at Hebrews 9-2 go

ahead and turn their Hebrews 9-2 since we're in Hebrews already

for a tent was prepared so this is the tabernacle it's got two sections the first section

in which were the lampstand so here's holy things that are amoral right these are holy things

that are not righteous there's a lampstand it's holy because it's not a part for God there's

this table there's the bread of the presents and this first room is called the holy place

so the tabernacles very simple to understand it's this rectangle it's 45 feet long it's got two rooms

the first room is 15 feet wide and 30 feet long so the tabernacle itself is 45 feet long 15 feet wide

15 feet high the first room is 30 feet long 15 feet wide 15 feet high and it's called the holy

place and only priests could enter the holy place not even all the Levites so all Levites were not

priests there's only the sons of Aaron who are priests so only the Levitical priest or we say

Levitical priest but really the Aaronic priesthood the descendants of Aaron only them the Levites could

assemble the tent but only the priest couldn't this first room and then beyond that's the second

room like verse three beyond the second curtain was a so there was a curtain to walk into the first

room and then there's the second curtain keep that in mind called the most holy place not the

curtain but the second room is called the most holy place and the second room is a square so if

you're kind of remembering the dimensions 45 feet long we've used up 13 feet for the first room

so now the second room the most holy place is a perfect cube it's 15 by 15 by 15 and they go past

this curtain or this veil to enter well I can't even say they because that sounds that's plural

there's one individual who could do this we'll talk about that in a moment we'll be keep that in

mind and look at verse four to see what was in the second room the most holy place it had the golden

altar of incense it had the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold in which was a

golden urn holding the mana Aaron's staff that butted and the tablets of the covenant and then

above the ark were the cherimum of glory these two angels who have these wings that stretched out

toward each other and touched we know the descriptions from Leviticus in Exodus when it was built

when it was constructed and then it says overshadowing the mercy seat of these things we cannot

now speak in detail because that wasn't the author of Hebrews main point there's these angels

above the ark statues of angels whether wings stretch out and that space between these two angels

above the ark is known as the mercy seat and this is like the official place of God's presence

so this is where God's presence officially resides above the ark here now we're discussing the

tabernacle but when Israel under the promised land God didn't need to keep moving around any longer

so and that's why you move from a tabernacle to what a temple the tabernacles for movement once

the people are settled in the promised land now God gets this this house right we even think of that

I think it's that language in second Corinthians five our earthly bodies are tense but we will have

sturdy homes or mansions when you have a glorified body so God is moving around in this tent

or tabernacle but he then was going to have this sturdy home known as the temple

the temple replaces the tabernacle and I want you to think about this the temple it had a series

of courtyards and what was the point of those courtyards well to keep people out so there the temple

has a series of courtyards that kept people out the temple had a series of curtains or veils

that kept people out even the furnishings of the temple and the tabernacle communicate the

separateness so you enter the temple courtyard and there's an altar not in the temple but in the

courtyard that's used for offering sacrifices that reminds people of their sins that separate them

from God there's also a laver for cleansing which reminds people of their filthiness that

separates them from God even the names of the rooms themselves communicate separation because

they're called what holy place most holy place holy of holies or holiest of holies the word holy

sticks out so my point is even the names of the rooms communicated that God is separate or he

set apart and so there's this interesting tension as you're looking at the Old Testament between

God wanting a relationship with his people but needing to stay separate from them wanting to

bring his people close but having that to keep himself away from them I mean you see it when he

brings him to Sinai he clearly wants a relationship he clearly wants the people brought to him or he

wouldn't bring them to Sinai but then he's got to keep them back so that they aren't killed you got

the temple and God is basically inviting people to come to the temple for worship and for sacrifices

but then God's going to be hidden in the deepest part the deepest room of the temple so all of this

separation sin you say well if there's this most holy place with the ark and there's other elements

in there there had to be someone that went in there or what's the point of it right well there was

look at verse six these preparations having thus been made that means the construction of the ark

and the tabernacle the priests go regularly into the first section the first room the holy place

performing their ritual duties and then here it is but into the second room so this would be the

most holy place or the holiest of holies where the ark is the high priest would go he would

only go once per year that's on the day of atonement and not without taking blood which he offers

for himself and for the unintentional sins of the people now let me explain these verses by inviting

you to think about this of all the nations in the Old Testament only the nation of Israel had access

to the temple of the 12 tribes in the nation of Israel only one of those tribes the Levites could

actually serve at the temple so watch as we zoom in here all humanity to one nation one nation to one

tribe of all the Levites so there's one tribe the Levites they can serve at the tabernacle of all

the Levites it's only Aaron's sons who can serve as priests and enter the holy place of all those

priests it's only the high priest who can go into the most holy place where the ark was located

and even then he can only do this one day per year on the day of atonement so here's what you've got

you've got this almost trinity of holiness you've got the high priest who's the holiest man in

the nation of Israel and considering that Israel is the holiest nation in the world you got the

holiest man from the holiest nation he goes on the day of atonement which was the holiest day of the

year and he goes into the most holy place which as the name implies would be the holiest place on earth

and all this like trinity of holiness only allowed access once per year that's it that's all the

access that there was to God in the Old Testament and if you look at verse seven these are fascinating

words that says not without taking blood I just want you to notice that verse seven not without taking

blood and I want to explain the significance of this by sharing something I was reflecting on this

past week so Winston and I went to the chris home fellowship took a bunch of my kids and took a

bunch of my step-kids my step-kids are the motzkas kids okay so we go up to the chris home fellowship

brought about 30 kids with me and I'm listening to Andrew and he was sharing that he it was a portion

of the book he's reading that discussed coming before God and Andrew was sharing the coming

before God is a form of a communion or fellowship with God that we are to come before him or fellowship

discussing essentially this access we have and Andrew was sharing about different times and ways

that he spends time with God he's talking about going to work and even just on his drive to work

I mean you don't really get much more casual than that I was reflecting on kind of the casual nature

in which Andrew comes before God he says let us be on the way to work and I'll be sharing with God

talking about my life or experiences or whatever essentially that's the point whatever he wants to

talk to God about he does he's talking about this very casual way he just comes before the Lord

and what I was doing was I was sort of contrasting what Andrew was saying he experiences and what all

believers can experience just with this phrase never without blood okay because that phrase never

without blood is literally the exact opposite of what Andrew was saying because when it says

never without blood it means the one the high priest entered the most holy place it's all business

he's on a mission he did not enter to spend time with God the high priest did not go

in there to relax there was nothing casual about it he didn't think about enjoying God's presence

it wasn't real fellowship it's under these very fixed conditions at this fixed time

he's just going to make a tome it and then he's going to leave and that's it now my suspicion

if you understand God's holiness and you understand the danger associated with approaching him

how quickly do you think that high priest wanted to get out of there I bet as soon as his work was

done now I don't know how long it took him to go in there and then sprinkle the blood on the

ark but I doubt it took long and I bet as soon as his work was done he exited and probably did what

okay I survived another year thank you Lord I mean we hear these stories about whether there's

bells on the feet so when the bell stopped ringing we know the guy died and then we can pull him out

by ropes so when the high priest walked out of the most holy place on the day of atonement after he

had a tone for people sins which is really to say after he walked out of God's presence

what was the most holy place like for the other 364 days and 23.75 hours of the year

it just empty it just sat there completely empty darkness silence no human interaction or involvement

whatsoever and then something incredible happened and that incredible thing brings us to

this morning's verse in Luke's gospel so that was the introduction for today sermon okay turn

to Luke 2344 so if you're new to joining us on Sunday morning he's been working away through

Luke's gospel verse by verse and last week we reached Christ crucifixion and there was an aspect

of it that I knew that I couldn't cover faithfully in one sermon and that is the tearing of the veil

but before we discuss that I want to give a little review of some things we discussed last week to

fully appreciate this miracle so miracles are also called what I talk they're called signs

that's right and they're given that title for a reason that they are a sign of something they reveal

or communicate something just as signs do in our days so it's important understand miracles

didn't occur just for miracles sake they were to communicate a spiritual truth or reality there's

always something behind a sign even this morning when Carl delivered the communion devotion he was

revealing how Jesus is miracle with the fish and lows was revealing or communicating spiritual

truths which is what every single miracle always did and at Christ's death there were numerous

miracles and each one communicated a different spiritual truth and what's fascinating is if you remember

last Sunday sermon there were individuals at the cross when Jesus died who understood the truth

of the miracles so how so the Roman centurion how many people do you think he saw die how many people

had he personally crucified so there and I doubt any of them were dramatic but when Jesus died

not because of his death but because of the supernatural or the miracles surrounding Jesus death

the Roman centurion understood that surely this man is innocent what did the unbelieving crowds do

after Jesus death they went home beating their breasts just like the tax collector in Luke 18 the

only other instance of someone beating their breast in scripture my suspicion is it is a sign of

brokenness over sinner repentance so these unbelieving crowds who came out for nothing more than

the spectacle of Jesus death because of what the miracle surrounding his death communicated they

went home beating their breasts their breasts too okay so look at verse 44 it was now about the

sixth hour there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour the darkness represented

the evil of Jesus death and the judgment of God if you want to hear more about that I covered

in in the last sermon then verse 45 while the sun's light failed just pause there so last week we

discussed how the this is worded strangely you many wonder why it's there we we know there's

darkness over the whole land so we don't really need a verse telling us the sun's light failed because

we already know there's no light so why does it say that it's worded very precisely

because Jesus is the light of the world so it's hard not to hear an echo of his identity and

understand that God is describing the light of the world being extinguished and then the resurrection

associated with light now the other miracle for this morning look at the rest of verse 45

the curtain of the temple was torn in two so that's the veil in the temple that separated the

most holy place from the holy place 60 feet high 30 feet wide four inches thick it's torn down

the middle the parallel account in Matthew's gospel chapter 27 verse 51 tells us that the

the veil was torn in what way or what direction from top to bottom from heaven to earth signifying

that God versus man was the one doing this tearing and because this is a miracle a sign it is

communicating a spiritual truth or reality which is the access that we now have to God

and this brings us to lesson three

is the clock working it's not oh okay what time is it okay

all right well I will try to finish by the time you guys have to go to work tomorrow morning

lesson three Jesus sacrifice tore down the boundaries between God and man

Jesus sacrifice tore down the boundaries between God and man

so every miracle is conveying spiritual truths or realities no miracles just for miracles

sake so you got it so in every see a miracle we ask what is to be communicated behind this what

is the deeper spiritual reality that God wants to teach behind this miracle and the tearing of the

veil it really didn't do anything being torn it's what it communicated that meant something it's

what it symbolized and it's like God's sermon illustration it's like prophets have object lessons

in the Old Testament when they teach and this is God's object lessons because of Jesus' death

access is now open Jesus' death provides access to God's presence and when I had gotten saved

and come out of the college which I can't tell you how many times I quoted Matthew 2751 to my

family members that we didn't need to go through a mediator access to God is open we don't have to

go to a priest we don't have to go to Mary we don't have to go to saints there is an availability

to enter into God's presence simply because of what Jesus has done and that is communicated or

signified by the tearing of this veil and even the use of the word tearing I really like that

it conveys this dramatic nature and here's what I mean the veil it serves as a barrier right by

instead of being like a door that's unlocked the veil was the barrier and it's torn down

it's dramatic it is significant it's God's way of showing it's just like shattered the access

is there for us so God did not become less holy God is not saying holiness doesn't matter anymore

and instead he's saying the price has been paid the way is made you can come because the sacrifice

was sufficient to remove the separation that existed between us which was your sin it has been

resolved at the cross it has been taken from you and imputed to my son and his righteousness

his perfect righteousness has been imputed to you your sin to him his righteousness to you

so there was this holiness that kept sinners out but Christ death brings sinners near and listen

to the way Paul explained it I think Paul had I'm saying this loosely because maybe I'm wrong but

I believe he probably had the veil in view when he wrote this Ephesians 2 13 in Christ Jesus you who

once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ who has broken down in his flesh

the dividing wall of hostility that dividing wall referring to sin I think an illusion to the veil

being torn now some of you might know what Hebrews does in chapter 10 it associates Christ's

body with this veil so get give you a little bit of a preview of next week sermon so some of

you're going to listen to this sermon and say hey are we going to look at those verses or some of

you you know who know your Bible's will it might already be anticipating this thing well pastor

he must go to Hebrews 10 because that's where the veil is associated with Christ's body and the

idea is just as Christ's body is torn on the cross so too was the veil torn in the temple just

as Christ's body is being torn on the cross so too is that veil being torn that's next week's

sermon I couldn't fit it into this sermon and I'm actually trying to stretch things out a little

bit because if I can time things personally perfectly on Easter we'll be able to look at Luke 24

which is Christ's resurrection I mean that'd be pretty neat right so like 27 years ago when I

started Luke this is what I had in mind I have been spending all of these years timing these

sermons to get to Luke 24 on Easter Sunday in 2026 and I just I hope you guys are impressed by

okay but I do think it would be wonderful to look at Luke 24 on Easter for now

earlier I said if I could summarize the Old Testament in one word it would be separation if I

had to summarize the New Testament in one word it would be reconciliation under the old covenant

you can tell the message was what just stay away keep your distance unless you want to die

under the New Covenant the message is drawn near come close access has been made approach me come to

me and notice the timing and just follow me on this if you think of the symbolism the miracles

the darkness lifts Jesus commits his spirit to the Father let me not say the darkness lifts the

darkness is covering the land Jesus commits his spirit to the Father the veil is torn judgment falls

on Christ so that fellowship can be restored to us and so the cry the cross it doesn't simply

forgive sin it restores fellowship it prefigures this intimacy that was enjoyed so you can tell

God's original plan was intimacy and where do you see the intimacy between God and man that he

desired but that sin broke where do we see that that was Eden writer that was the garden right so

in Genesis 3 there is an intimacy or a fellowship that God enjoys with his people his ultimate true

and greater reality for us was shown there in Eden it will be restored and I would say that

it's a big step in that restoration occurred at the cross so the cross is largely a restoration

heading back toward the fellowship that was known in Genesis 3 that will become the complete

reality for us in the future so in a sense what was lost in Genesis 3 is being restored

in Luke 23 with this veil being torn the way back to God no longer guarded open through the blood of

his son now consider this how many sacrifices after this veil was constructed in the tabernacle

and then in the temple how many sacrifices has been offered the all the Old Testament how many

Passover lambs had died before Jesus our Passover lamb was sacrificed I mean millions tens of

millions maybe hundreds of millions do you know what happened to the valedron all that time every

time one of those animals died nothing I mean it didn't shake it didn't waver there's no change

to that veil whatsoever no sacrifice did anything to it it hung there my point is none of them

improved man's access to God whatsoever because those sacrifices only looked forward to the true

and greater sacrifice Jesus would offer that would do what millions of sacrifices had never been able

to do now let me conclude with this when the veil tore it's almost like God is preaching a bit if a

miracle is God's way of kind of communicating spiritual truths miracles are almost God's way of

speaking or teaching us and he's preaching through this torn veil that access has been made

and it illustrates two things for us first if you're in Christ let me say it like this you don't

have to live far off anymore so now sadly some Christians do they still pray like they're outside

the courtyard or they still relate to God like the door is shut or they carry the guilt like the

veil is still hanging there for them but the curtain it wasn't repaired or fixed it was torn the

way into God's presence is open because Christ died for us now second if you're not in Christ then

don't miss this invitation because the torn veil doesn't mean that everyone is automatically

reconciled to God or drug into his presence it only means that the way has been provided

made open for us we don't come through through our own goodness or our religious effort or our

sincerity we come the same way that the high priest had to come through blood did you notice that

earlier it actually said the high priest enters but not without blood well what's going on there

here's my point the only way the high priest could enter into the most holy place was with blood

the only way that we can enter into the most holy place of the presence of God is

we must have blood and that's the blood of Christ so even that blood that the high priest was

bringing to be able to access the most holy place or enter into God's presence was prefiguring

or foreshadowing the way in which we would be able to enter God's presence not without blood though

but with the blood of Christ so the question is simple will we stay at a distance or will we draw

near will we keep trying to approach God on our terms or will we come through the one that he provided

the veil has been torn the barrier is down the price has been paid by faith repent and believe

and come to God through his son let's pray father thank you for sending your son to remove the obstacle

our sin that separated us from you I thank you that that way has been made and that it's not

through something we could do or would have to do both through Christ sacrifice and now if

there were repentance and faith in him we can enter into the most holy place into your presence

I thank you for that Lord help us to take full advantage of that I know that I don't I don't pray as

much as I should or I don't come before you as much as I should Lord help me to be a better

student my time to do that and just fully appreciate the greatness of what Christ has done for us

and we ask all this in his name amen