#9 Tabernacle: Overview of Outer Court
In other studies we have seen the types and shadows of the Old Covenant are pictures for us of spiritual truths for the New Covenant. The Tabernacle of Moses is a picture for us of the Tabernacle of God. REV 21:3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He shall dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be among them.
God's desire has always been to dwell among His people and be their God, Father and provider. When Israel came to Mt. Sinai, God revealed His heart's desire and His purpose for Israel. He wanted them to come up the mountain into His presence and hear His voice and obey.
EXO 19:4 'You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and {how} I bore you on eagles' wings, and brought you to Myself. 5 'Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; 6 and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. 'These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel. "
God's desire was for all of Israel to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation and a people for God's own possession. For that reason God brought them out of Egypt and brought them to Himself. God had tremendous plans for Israel but it required that all of them come up into His presence and hear His voice, keep His covenant and obey His voice. This is still God's desire and requirement today.
Israel was afraid because of the fire and turned back and stayed in the valley. DEU 5:4 "The Lord spoke to you face to face at the mountain from the midst of the fire, 5 {while} I was standing between the Lord and you at that time, to declare to you the word of the Lord; for you were afraid because of the fire and did not go up the mountain. They requested that God not speak to them again but appoint a man to go up the mountain, hear His voice and come and tell Israel what God said. This is also a popular concept today but will not produce a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. 27 'Go near and hear all that the Lord our God says; then speak to us all that the Lord our God will speak to you, and we will hear and do {it.}'
God presented His plan which the people rejected. Then the people presented their own plan and God accepted it. However, Israel never fulfilled God's desire to become a kingdom of priests etc. Still, God wanted to dwell among His people. For that reason God gave Israel the pattern for the Tabernacle and all the requirements to sanctify a place for His presence. EXO 25:8 "And let them construct a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell among them. :9 "According to all that I am going to show you, {as} the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furniture, just so you shall construct {it.}
This truth has various fulfillments under the New Covenant. Each of us personally are designed to become a temple of God for the dwelling of God in the Spirit. The church is also the corporate dwelling place of God. The Tabernacle of God is the final fulfillment and the reality of all others. The tabernacle of Moses was constructed in three parts. The Outer Court, the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place. The Tabernacle of God also has three places. The New Earth, the New Heaven and the New Jerusalem. The Ark of God was in the Most Holy Place and the throne of God is in the New Jerusalem. Man also has three parts. He has an outer court, the body. A holy place, the soul and the most holy place, where God dwells, the spirit. All three need to be sanctified and set apart for God and His purpose. 1TH 5:23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
While the whole tabernacle of Moses was the general dwelling place of God, the exact dwelling place was in the Most Holy Place above the ark of the covenant and between the two Cherubim. EXO 25:22 "And there I will meet with you; and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are upon the ark of the testimony, I will speak to you about all that I will give you in commandment for the sons of Israel. God speaks from the Most Holy Place. Those who only visited the outer court did not hear the voice of God.
There are hundreds of details in the construction of the Tabernacle. Each one is important to our understanding of God's eternal purpose but too involved for this study. We will just develop the more obvious truths.
The Tabernacle was completely closed in by a curtain around the whole perimeter with the exception of a gate. The Tabernacle was about 150 feet long and about 75 feet wide, while the gate was about 30 feet wide. There was only one way into the Tabernacle and that was through the Gate. Everything in the Tabernacle speaks of Jesus Christ. He is the Way to the Father and the only Way. Unless we approach through Jesus Christ there is no access. The gate closed says stay out, do not trespass. However, the gate will open to provide access to all who meet the requirements.
Our access through the Gate is by repentance. This means to change our mind and change our direction. It means to turn and face God and at the same time turning from sin. Those who acknowledge their error and turn to Jesus Christ for forgiveness and set their face to please God have open access through the Gate, which is Christ. However, repentance and forgiveness are two different things. Repentance is on our part and is initiated by us. Forgiveness is on God's part and has been provided by Him through the blood of Jesus Christ. Repentance, like the gate, provides access to the altar. This corresponds with Israel crying out to God in Egypt. Forgiveness is provided through the sacrifice of God's Lamb, Jesus Christ, on Calvary. This corresponds to the Passover lamb in Egypt. This takes place at the altar of bronze, which is the first piece of furniture in the outer court. The altar speaks to us of Calvary.
LEV 1:3 'If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he shall offer it, a male without defect; he shall offer it at the doorway of the tent of meeting, that he may be accepted before the Lord. LEV 1:4 'And he shall lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering, that it may be accepted for him to make atonement on his behalf. LEV 1:5 'And he shall slay the young bull before the Lord; and Aaron's sons, the priests, shall offer up the blood and sprinkle the blood around on the altar that is at the doorway of the tent of meeting.
All the various offerings speak of Jesus Christ and His all inclusive sacrifice on Calvary. It required many sacrifices in the Tabernacle just to give us some insight into the tremendous provision God has made for us at Calvary. Each sacrifice speaks of a different aspect of the provision of Calvary. The sacrifices certainly speak of more than forgiveness of sins.
Under the Old Covenant they brought bulls, heifers, goats, sheep and birds along with various grain offerings and drink offerings but each was a shadow of the reality of Calvary. Each of these sacrifices and offerings looked forward to Jesus Christ and Calvary. None of these sacrifices was able to take away sin or cleanse the conscience. That was reserved for the blood of Christ alone. HEB 9:6 Now when these things have been thus prepared, the priests are continually entering the outer tabernacle, performing the divine worship, HEB 9:7 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. HEB 9:8 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, HEB 9:9 which {is} a symbol for the present time. Accordingly both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make the worshiper perfect in conscience, HEB 9:10 since they {relate} only to food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until a time of reformation. HEB 9:11 But when Christ appeared {as} a high priest of the good things to come, {He entered} through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; HEB 9:12 and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. HEB 9:13 For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled, sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh, HEB 9:14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? HEB 10:4 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
HEB 9:22 And according to the Law, {one may} almost {say}, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. LEV 1:5 'And he shall slay the young bull before the Lord; and Aaron's sons, the priests, shall offer up the blood and sprinkle the blood around on the altar that is at the doorway of the tent of meeting.
Many more scriptures could be used but this gives us a clear picture of the sacrifice and the blood of Calvary through which we have forgiveness of our sins by faith and much more.
The shadow of the altar defines for us our approach to Calvary. The one who came for atonement of sins had to bring an offering with him. He had to identify himself with the sacrifice that was going to die in his place. He laid his hands upon the head of the sacrifice to identify his life with it's death. The sentence of death was upon the sinner but God permitted them to bring a substitutionary sacrifice to die in their place. God had ordained that the soul that sins shall surely die. For every sin there had to be a death take place. God permitted Israel to bring an animal to die in their place. It was Jesus Christ that died in our place at Calvary. The blood of bulls and goats could not take away sin. It required a sinless and blameless man to die and shed His blood to take away sins.
1CO 15:21 For since by a man {came} death, by a man also {came} the resurrection of the dead. 1CO 15:22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive. ROM 5:12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned--
Since by man sin and death entered into this world, it must also be by man that forgiveness and reconciliation be provided. However, it must be by a sinless and blameless man who was not born into this world through the first Adam because all who were born of him were already sinners. The only solution was for the Word of God to become man and die for the sins of the whole world. He would have to live on this earth sinless and blameless, without spot or disobedience until the time of His offering Himself as the substitutionary sacrifice for all of mankind, that exercised faith. This is the reality of Calvary.
Each of us who want forgiveness of sins, must personally identify with Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on their behalf. We must, in effect, lay our hands upon Jesus and identify our life with His death knowing by faith that He died in our place. The sentence of death was upon us but He took our place. His blood was shed for all of mankind but we must appropriate it for our sins personally by faith. Without His blood there is no forgiveness.
Now, the rest of the Tabernacle speaks of going on with God to fulfill His eternal purpose. God has not just called us to be "saved" but to be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation and a people for God's own possession. He not only wants to dwell with us, He wants us to hear His voice, keep His Covenant and obey His voice. Under the Old Covenant, eleven of the tribes of Israel could go no further than the altar and forgiveness of sins. Only the tribe of Levi could participate in next provisions of the Tabernacle. They were the priests and Levites that served in the Tabernacle. Once again God has called each one of us to be kings and priests to Him.
REV 1:6 and He has made us {to be} a kingdom, priests to His God and Father; to Him {be} the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. REV 5:10 "And Thou hast made them {to be} a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth." REV 20:6 Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years. 1PE 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for {God's} own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
Now, if we see how the sons of Aaron were consecrated to become priests, we will see how God has called us. First they stepped up between the altar and the laver and removed their normal clothes. This speaks to us of laying aside our former manner of life. Our garments speak of our covering. These earthly garments are like fig leaves in the garden. They don't hide our nakedness in the presence of God. God's plan is for us to be clothed with Christ or to put on Christ as a garment.
After removing the garments, they stepped up to the laver and they were washed all over. EXO 40:12 "Then you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the doorway of the tent of meeting and wash them with water. EXO 40:13 "And you shall put the holy garments on Aaron and anoint him and consecrate him, that he may minister as a priest to Me. EXO 40:14 "And you shall bring his sons and put tunics on them; EXO 40:15 and you shall anoint them even as you have anointed their father, that they may minister as priests to Me; and their anointing shall qualify them for a perpetual priesthood throughout their generations.
Aaron was the High priest and also had to be washed all over with the water, the same as his sons. Jesus Christ is our High Priest and He also went to the Jordan to be baptized by John. John didn't want to do it but Jesus said he must permit it because He had to fulfill all righteousness. MAT 3:14 But John tried to prevent Him, saying, "I have need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?" MAT 3:15 But Jesus answering said to him, "Permit {it} at this time; for in this way it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." Then he *permitted Him. Baptism is required in order to participate in the eternal purpose of God. LUK 7:28 "I say to you, among those born of women, there is no one greater than John; yet he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he." LUK 7:29 And when all the people and the tax-gatherers heard {this,} they acknowledged God's justice, having been baptized with the baptism of John. LUK 7:30 But the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected God's purpose for themselves, not having been baptized by John. This may seem like a very small thing to reject John's baptism but God evaluated it as a pivotal experience. Our great High Priest treated John's baptism as righteousness fulfilled. In the same way, all His sons who are to be priests must also be baptized and put on the garments of God.
GAL 3:27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. The Amplified Bible says " For all of you who have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ as a garment". There are also the garments of salvation, the garments of praise and the garments of righteousness. This corresponds with the Red Sea baptism and the songs of Moses and Miriam. The authority over Israel changed following the Red Sea. Of course, these garments all speak of Christ. Our baptism precedes the garments.
When all the garments, including the bonnet, were put on, the next preparation of the priest was the anointing. The priest stepped up between the laver and the doorway of the sanctuary. Then they brought out the horn of anointing oil and poured it upon the bonnet. PSA 133:2 It is like the precious oil upon the head, Coming down upon the beard, {Even} Aaron's beard, Coming down upon the edge of his robes. PSA 133:3 It is like the dew of Hermon, Coming down upon the mountains of Zion; For there the Lord commanded the blessing-- life forever. It was this anointing that qualified the priest to minister to the Lord. EXO 40:15 and you shall anoint them even as you have anointed their father, that they may minister as priests to Me; and their anointing shall qualify them for a perpetual priesthood throughout their generations. "
This anointing speaks to us of the BAPTISM OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. This corresponds with the Mt. Sinai experience and the Feast of the Fiftieth Day. Baptism speaks of an immersion from the top of the head down to the feet. When Aaron was anointed with the oil it flowed from the top of the head down to the feet.
Jesus is our High Priest and He also had to have this anointing in order to qualify as our High Priest. MAT 3:16 And after being baptized, Jesus went up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, {and} coming upon Him, MAT 3:17 and behold, a voice out of the heavens, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased." ACT 10:38 "{You know of} Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and {how} He went about doing good, and healing all who were oppressed by the devil; for God was with Him. LUK 4:18 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are downtrodden, LUK 4:19 To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord. " LUK 4:20 And He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed upon Him. LUK 4:21 And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing."
The baptism of the Holy Spirit is the fulfillment of the anointing. It is this anointing that qualifies us to minister as priests to the Lord. Of course, in the same way that the Levites ministered to the people without the anointing, some today insist that is acceptable to God also. It is true that the Levites, who did not have the anointing, did many things in the Tabernacle and were valuable to support the priests but they could not enter into the Holy Place to minister to the Lord, to burn incense, trim the lampstand or participate in the shewbread. This was reserved for Aaron and his sons. 2CH 29:11 "My sons, do not be negligent now, for the Lord has chosen you to stand before Him, to minister to Him, and to be His ministers and burn incense."
1JO 2:27 And as for you, the anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you; but as His anointing teaches you about all things, and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you abide in Him. The New Covenant promises us that we will not have need of men to teach us for we shall all be taught of God. It is that anointing that teaches us. Jesus said JOH 14:26 "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. The Holy Spirit, who is the anointing, will teach us all things. Some have searched for a better way, but God's way is by the anointing.
Jesus would not permit His disciples to minister in any way until they had received the anointing. They had to wait until the fourth feast, the feast of Pentecost, to be clothed with power on high. That was the garment they needed for the anointing oil. It should be obvious that all who speak in tongues are not manifesting the power of God and the full anointing.
Some invite Jesus Christ to come and dwell in them as Savior. Some receive both Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, along with His gifts. Some also receive the Father. JOH 14:23 Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him, and make Our abode with him. When the Father, Son and Holy Spirit come to make their abode with us and in us, the reality of the Tabernacle is fulfilled in us, for this time period. The requirement is to love Jesus and keep His word. The outer court experiences are the foundation for fulfilling this reality. HEB 6:1 Therefore leaving the elementary teaching about the Christ, let us press on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, HEB 6:2 of instruction about baptisms, and laying on of hands, and the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. HEB 6:3 And this we shall do, if God permits. These are the foundations that first must be laid in our lives before God will permit us to go on to the reality. Repentance, faith toward God, baptism in water and the baptism of the Holy Spirit are just the foundations. If we have experienced these, we still need to go on to maturity or to the reality of fulfillment. The foundations are not designed as our dwelling place but are necessary for the proper building structure (the sanctuary ) where we are to dwell.
In this study, so far, we have seen six outer court experiences. First, repentance from dead works. Second, faith toward God and forgiveness of sins through the blood of Jesus. Third, removing of the old garments of nakedness. Fourth, baptism in water. Fifth, putting on the priestly garments, being clothed with Christ. Sixth, receiving the anointing, the baptism of the Holy Spirit. As we might expect there are seven outer court experiences and foundations.
The seventh preparation is the consecration offering. After the priests had completed the other six preparations, they still must be consecrated fully to God and to the work that God called them.
After Jesus had come to Jordan and was baptized, the Holy Spirit came upon Him. Most would think that He was now ready to begin His ministry. However, He must fulfill the type. Therefore, the Holy Spirit immediately drove Him into the wilderness. LUK 4:1 And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led about by the Spirit in the wilderness LUK 4:2 for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And He ate nothing during those days; and when they had ended, He became hungry. LUK 4:3 And the devil said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread."
Following the anointing must come the consecration offering. The consecration offering has to do with doing the whole will of God, whatever the cost. The Devil tested Jesus' resolve to serve God, and Him only, in every way. When the Devil could not deceive Jesus in any way and Jesus set His face to do the whole will of God, His consecration offering was complete and He could begin His ministry. He still had to complete the fullness and maturity of His consecration at Calvary. LUK 4:14 And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit; and news about Him spread through all the surrounding district. Sometimes we confuse the fullness of the Spirit with the power of the Spirit. Jesus went into the wilderness full of the Holy Spirit but He returned (following the consecration offering) in the power of the Spirit.
We see many who have received the Holy Spirit, been baptized with in Holy Spirit, been full of the Spirit but fail when tested by the Devil. They fail to complete the consecration offering and forfeit the power of the Holy Spirit. We attribute the failure to the "baptism" but the failure was really in the consecration.
We see this failure in an Old Testament picture of Israel when they were ready to enter Canaan. Israel was delivered by the Passover lamb and the blood in Egypt. They successfully crossed the Red Sea in baptism. They had participated in the Manna from heaven. They drank the water out of the rock. Then they came to Mt. Sinai on the 46th day. They had tremendous experiences on the fiftieth day, Pentecost, when God came down upon the mountain. One year later they kept Passover at Mt. Sinai and continued on to God's purpose. It was just a ten day march to Canaan. They could easily have been in Canaan on the fiftieth day to keep the Feast Of Pentecost and bring in the first fruits of the harvest to God. However, they had many delays. The greatest delay came when they were faced with their consecration offering. This offering should follow the Mt.Sinai, (Pentecostal), experience. They arrived, after much delay, at the border of Canaan on about the 46th day and could have gone on in. DEU 1:19 "Then we set out from Horeb, and went through all that great and terrible wilderness which you saw, on the way to the hill country of the Amorites, just as the Lord our God had commanded us; and we came to Kadesh-barnea. DEU 1:20 "And I said to you, 'You have come to the hill country of the Amorites which the Lord our God is about to give us. DEU 1:21 'See, the Lord your God has placed the land before you; go up, take possession, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has spoken to you. Do not fear or be dismayed.' DEU 1:22 "Then all of you approached me and said, 'Let us send men before us, that they may search out the land for us, and bring back to us word of the way by which we should go up, and the cities which we shall enter.' Instead of going on into the land for the feast of Pentecost, they wanted to send in spies to check out what God had said. Since they didn't fulfill their consecration they couldn't go on. The Feast of Pentecost passed while they waited for the spies. DEU 1:26 "Yet you were not willing to go up, but rebelled against the command of the Lord your God; They never returned to Egypt but died in the wilderness, short of the plan of God for their lives.
The restoration of the church from the reformation to the present day has followed very closely the pattern of Israel traveling from Egypt to Kadesh-Barnea.
The necessity of consecration is clear in the consecration offering that the Priests, the sons of Aaron and Aaron had to offer in order to minister in the Holy Place, which was as far as they could go in the Tabernacle of Moses. Could there be a lessor requirement to participate in the Tabernacle of God and to dwell in the New Jerusalem?
First, we will look at the consecration of Jesus, our High Priest.
HEB 10:5 Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, "Sacrifice and offering Thou hast not desired, But a body Thou hast prepared for Me; HEB 10:6 In whole burnt offerings and {sacrifices} for sin Thou hast taken no pleasure. HEB 10:7 "Then I said, 'Behold, I have come (In the roll of the book it is written of Me) To do Thy will, O God.'" HEB 10:8 After saying above, "Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and {sacrifices} for sin Thou hast not desired, nor hast Thou taken pleasure {in them}" (which are offered according to the Law), HEB 10:9 then He said, "Behold, I have come to do Thy will." He takes away the first in order to establish the second.
Jesus knew that sacrifices and offerings were not what God wanted from His people and God really never took any pleasure in those things. God's desire was always to have a people who would hear His voice and obey. That was God's revealed will at Mt. Sinai and not sacrifices. At Mt. Sinai Israel refused to come up the mountain and hear His voice. They ask that Moses go up to hear what God said and come and tell them but they didn't want God to speak to them again. Therefore, God gave them the law, the statutes and the ordinances. DEU 5:4 "The Lord spoke to you face to face at the mountain from the midst of the fire, DEU 5:5 {while} I was standing between the Lord and you at that time, to declare to you the word of the Lord; for you were afraid because of the fire and did not go up the mountain. He said, DEU 5:6 'I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. DEU 5:7 'You shall have no other gods before Me. DEU 5:8 'You shall not make for yourself an idol, {or} any likeness {of} what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. DEU 5:8 'You shall not make for yourself an idol, {or} any likeness {of} what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. Etc. God gave them the 10 commandments. At that time He gave no more law. DEU 5:22 "These words the Lord spoke to all your assembly at the mountain from the midst of the fire, {of} the cloud and {of} the thick gloom, with a great voice, and He added no more. And He wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me.
This is when Israel said they didn't want God to speak to them again. Then God called Moses up the mountain again and gave Moses the Law, the Statutes and the Ordinances. The reason was because they didn't go up to hear God's voice, therefore they could not obey.
God wanted and required obedience of Israel but now something had to substitute for His voice. God could not be GOD to those who didn't obey. For that reason He gave them the Law, the sacrifices, the statutes and the ordinances. However, God took no pleasure in those things. All these things were given as a substitute for hearing His voice and doing His will.
JER 7:21 Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, "Add your burnt offerings to your sacrifices and eat flesh. JER 7:22 "For I did not speak to your fathers, or command them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices. JER 7:23 "But this is what I commanded them, saying, 'Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you will be My people; and you will walk in all the way which I command you, that it may be well with you.' JER 7:24 "Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but walked in {their own} counsels {and} in the stubbornness of their evil heart, and went backward and not forward. JER 7:25 "Since the day that your fathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day, I have sent you all My servants the prophets, daily rising early and sending {them.} JER 7:26 "Yet they did not listen to Me or incline their ear, but stiffened their neck; they did evil more than their fathers.
Jesus had the clear revelation that sacrifices were not what God wanted. Therefore, when He came into the world He said " I have come to do thy will, O God". That fulfills what the Law was all about, DOING THE WILL OF GOD.
But now Hebrews 10:8-9 gives us four specific sacrifices that have been taken away in order to establish one New Covenant sacrifice of doing the whole will of God. HEB 10:8 After saying above, "Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and {sacrifices} for sin Thou hast not desired, nor hast Thou taken pleasure {in them}" (which are offered according to the Law), HEB 10:9 then He said, "Behold, I have come to do Thy will." He takes away the first in order to establish the second. The FIRST was (a) Sacrifices (b) offerings (c) Whole burnt offerings (d) sacrifices for sin. The SECOND was doing the whole will of God. That is all God wanted before the Law was given.
These four sacrifices were four of the six that was a part of the consecration offering. The consecration process is found in Exodus 28 & 29 and in Leviticus 8 & 9. Some details are found in other places in Exodus and in Leviticus. For this study we will just take an overall view. The combination of these four sacrifices will give us a picture of what it will cost and what it means to do the whole will of God. Both Aaron, the high priest, and his sons, the priests, were required to complete the consecration offering. This speaks to us of Jesus Christ, our High Priest, and His sons, the consecrated church, His body.
To simplify the study we will combine all four sacrifices into one sacrifice because they are all speaking of one thing, DOING THE WHOLE WILL OF GOD. In order to see the details in Exodus and Leviticus we would need to examine each sacrifice and combine the results. Or we can make a composite sacrifice that shows many of the important details in each sacrifice, which will simplify the study. Instead of being weighted down with so many details we will just call this sacrifice " The Consecration Offering". Always bear in mind that we are combining four sacrifices to show this one sacrifice of doing the whole will of God. You will not find this one sacrifice in these chapters as one sacrifice but as four sacrifices combined. We are leaving out of this study many details from each sacrifice. A full study of each sacrifice would be helpful for those who need to see the details.
This study will show how completely Jesus gave Himself to do the whole will of God and it will show us what is required of us to do the whole will of God. We will be speaking of "the sacrifice" depicted as an animal. In reality we are speaking of each one of us who is presenting his body to do the whole will of God. ROM 12:1 I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, {which is} your spiritual service of worship. ROM 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. The K.J.V. says "this is your reasonable service". The Greek says " Logikos" which means according to "spiritual intelligence" and not by ritual or compulsion. The presenting of our body to do the will of God is just LOGICAL. In other words, anyone should be able to see the necessity for it. Three things are required to do the whole will of God. Presenting of the body to God and the escaping from the world system and the renewing of the mind. Most people who are seeking the will of God for their lives, fail in these three things.
One error is asking God to show us His will and then we will decide if we want to do it. God's method is for us to present our body to Him first as an intelligent and logical sacrifice without compulsion but with finality. Then God can easily show us His will. The world will still be a problem if we try to conform the will of God to the world system. Also, until the mind is renewed to understand from God's viewpoint, the will of God will seem strange or even confused.
In this study we will just focus upon what it means to present our body to God as a living sacrifice. This is the value of understanding the consecration offering. It is a picture for us of presenting our body to do the whole will of God. I say "THE WHOLE WILL OF GOD" because people get the idea that if they have done something of the will of God that is sufficient. For example: I have obeyed God in baptism therefore I have done the will of God. That may be true but here we are speaking of doing the whole will of God. The rest of it!
In order to bring the believer into the purpose of God for their lives, he first must be cleansed, forgiven, washed in baptism and all that means, clothed and anointed with the Holy Spirit. Then he must immediately be confronted with the truth of consecration. His ability to obey this truth will depend largely upon having been birthed in each of these primary experiences. JOH 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." JOH 3:5 Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. PSA 87:5 But of Zion ( the holy mountain-- the city of God) ( V 1 to 3) it shall be said, "This one and that one were born in her"; And the Most High Himself will establish her. PSA 87:6 The Lord shall count when He registers the peoples, "This one was born there." Selah.
For example: If we have not been truly circumcised in heart we will not love God sufficiently to consecrate all to Him to do His will. DEU 30:6 "Moreover the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, in order that you may live.
In 1 Cor 6:19-20 it is clear that He has purchased us in redemption and we are not our own. He has the total right of ownership over us. In 2 Cor 5:14-15 we see the believer's response to God out of love for Him. The basis of our consecration is His right to require it and our response out of love for Him. The renewed mind will think this way. Until this issue of consecration to do the whole will of God is settled, the believer will not be able to go on with God and he will have a stunted growth.
One of the purposes of this requirement of consecration is seen in LEV 9:6 And Moses said, "This is the thing which the Lord has commanded you to do, that the glory of the Lord may appear to you." Most of us are interested in the manifested presence or the glory of the Lord but are slow about making the consecration offering. Consecration is not God begging us to serve Him but it is man begging God for the privilege of serving Him. EXO 40:34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. EXO 40:35 And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 2CH 7:1 Now when Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the Lord filled the house. 2CH 7:2 And the priests could not enter into the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord filled the Lord's house.
Another purpose of consecration is attainment to the Kingdom of God. MAT 7:21 "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven; but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. MAT 12:50 "For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother." It offends many to hear that we must each do the will of God to be included in the family of God. HEB 10:36 For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. So many quote the promises to God as if that was all that was required. LUK 12:47 "And that slave who knew his master's will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, shall receive many lashes, Some read over these truths as if that doesn't mean the church, only unbelievers. 1JO 2:17 And the world is passing away, and {also} its lusts; but the one who does the will of God abides forever.
Even in this short study it is clear that doing the will of God is not an option. It is a requirement for all those who are going on with God into His purpose. The church should be taught that regeneration is an event that we experience in a moment of time. Our spirit comes alive and we are born again. However, salvation is a process that begins at regeneration and continues until we leave this earth. Doing the will of God is part of our salvation experience. Our sensitivity to the will of God will grow with maturity. Failure to lead the church into full consecration to do the whole will of God is the reason for the eternal childhood of the believer. If the believer develops the erroneous concept that only those who are going to serve God need consecrate, that believer will see no need for his own consecration. Many think it is proper to "just believe" and not worry about doing the will of God. Many are deceived in this area because the church has preached a " Gospel of salvation" rather than the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. In the Kingdom, everyone does the will of God. According to "the gospel of the giveaways" and the "gospel of the half priced sale" all God expects is for us to believe something about forgiveness of sins.
The word for serving in the Old Covenant meant " to wait on". It doesn't necessarily mean " incessant labor". It means to wait on to do His bidding. It doesn't mean to be caught up in "works" but caught up in doing His will. If He hasn't assigned you any work to do, you still make yourself available to Him by waiting on Him for instructions.
2 Chronicles chapters 29 through 31 show what happens when the priests are careless about their consecration and what happened when they began to consecrate according to God's design. They came from a lukewarm state to revival in a short time. This is also the pattern for the last days revival. Just binding the Devil and living to please ourselves is not revival ground. The Devil can deceive us by some "gospel of the bargains" but he can't stop the revival when the church makes a full consecration. In fact, that is how his altars get torn down.
It seems clear to me that God is waiting for the next restoration to take place. All former restorations took place exactly according to the pattern of the Tabernacle. The first six experiences have been restored. The seventh is the consecration offering. For about 10 years we have been waiting for the restoration that follows the further anointing of the Charismatic "renewal" which was the completion of the sixth. It is good to sing and praise the Lord but we have already done that. Each one of the six restorations need to be maintained and added to. We can still operate in the gifts, praise the Lord, restore the ministries and tie it all together with anointed teaching after the church consecrates to do the whole will of God. Those who restored water baptism to the church still held to justification by faith. Those who restored the baptism of the Holy Spirit still held to repentance form dead works, justification by faith and water baptism and holiness. We can continue to draw water from those wells and also dig a new one. The question is this: Are we waiting for God or is He waiting for us? He may be showing us where to dig but He is not going to dig it for us.
Consecration is not a rededication. Rededication has been worn down to a nubbin. It produced nothing or very little. Rededication is an admission that I have backslid and want to come back to where I was before I backslid. Consecration is a step forward. Consecration is for those who don't need to rededicate because they haven't backslid. Their goal is to go on with God and bring joy to God's heart and fulfill His purpose by doing His will, fully. This is not the status quo but the status go. It is obvious that the status quo is not working. Rededicating to the status quo is nothing.
Then how can this restoration be presented in a graphic way that even the ignorant can understand and do it? How can we remove the loopholes for the theologian and the intelligent? How can we skip over the "gospel of the giveaways" to show the purpose of God and the Kingdom of God?
The consecration offering is graphic, easily understood, offers no easy way out and relates to the whole church, instead of just those "professional ministers" who are in "full time service". This is how the full time church gets into full time service!
We will present" one sacrifice" that is a composite of four sacrifices related to the consecration offering. This one sacrifice will show us how to present ourselves to do the whole will of God.
THE CONSECRATION OFFERING
First, they brought "the sacrifice" to the altar and killed it. The sacrifice speaks of Jesus but also of us. This is a picture for us of our death to our own plans, of our own will, our own ambitions and desires and brings our past to a final conclusion. This settles our living for ourselves in the future. If we serve God after consecration, it must be in resurrection life and not in the old natural life and ambitions.
Then the officiating priest took the "Machaira", which was a very strong, very sharp two edged knife that could cut and separate the joints and skinned and removed the hide from the sacrifice. The hide was laid aside. This speaks about all the distinctions that hinder us from doing the will of God. Regardless of what color the sacrifice was, once it was skinned it was just meat and all looked alike. God is showing us that all distinctions must be laid aside if we are going to do the whole will of God. COL 3:11 --{a renewal} in which there is no {distinction between} Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is all, and in all.
Some of the distinctions are listed here. First a racial distinction between Greek and Jew. Now there are numerous racial distinctions because we live in a completely mixed society. If there is some race you can't accept, that will be the first group that God will send you. If we are going to do the will of God, we can't have racial distinctions. Then religious distinctions between the circumcised and the uncircumcised. The religious distinctions are the most complicated and the most common. There are religious distinctions between one Baptist church and another and one Pentecostal church and another. Even between churches that believe basically the same. Many of us don't even want to speak to someone who is in a cult. Most of us have cultural distinctions similar to those between the barbarian and the Scythian. I had a friend that pastored a church in Texas when the people from El Salvador began to flood across the border. Many in the church thought they were too highly refined to fellowship with the ignorant and unlearned. The barbarian lacked cultural manners and etiquette while the Scythian was quite cultured and proper. This type of discrimination will keep us from doing the will of God. Then there is the economic distinction between the slave and the free man. The slave had nothing of his own while the free man had no limitations upon what he could do. Some groups do economic surveys to see if an area can support a church. This would limit our ability to serve God, if He called us to a poor country or area. Those who only want to serve the rich are severely limited. In Gal 3:28 we see sexual distinctions. What ever the distinction, it will hinder us from doing the whole will of God. Therefore this problem must be quickly solved in our consecration.
Next, they took the " Machaira" and cut off the head and placed it on the fire in the whole burnt offering. This is essential to the will of God because it is in the head that we form all our traditions, concepts, opinions, debates and our arguments with God. It is here that we develop a system of procrastination and systems of service that interfere with God's plans and His ability to direct our life. Therefore one of the first things that God must deal with is the Head.
Within the head is the brain, the eyes, ears, nose, tongue and lips. God's desire is to have these for Himself. A consecrated brain is a great help in serving God. Also a renewed mind. Unconsecrated brains develop strange ideas. Consecrated eyes are for seeing into the plans and purpose of God. Jesus said " I only do what I see the Father doing". If unconsecrated eyes are not seeing they will need eye salve. What we used to look at is no longer lawful for us. Jesus said " I speak what I hear". The ears are given to God, for us to hear His voice, not to listen to unclean things. Therefore, they must be consecrated. God ordained that blood should be put upon the right ear of the consecrated priest. This is important to hear the commandments of God. Without blood we may hear all kinds of voices.
The nose is to discern what smells right from what smells wrong. The unconsecrated nose is confused. We all know the problem with the mouth. A consecrated mouth is to speak for God while an unconsecrated mouth will speak foolishness. JAM 3:2 For we all stumble in many {ways.} If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well. JAM 3:8 But no one can tame the tongue; {it is} a restless evil {and} full of deadly poison.
Then the priest took the "Machaira" and removed the front legs. This was a very strong knife that was able to pry the joints apart and cut the tendons. This speaks about all our doing for God. We are busy doing all kind of things that God never told us to do. They may be "good things" but not consecrated things. Our hands must be reserved to work when He says to work and what He says to do. We can't be consecrated and be doing our own things, even if they are religious things. Blood was put upon the thumb of the right hand.
Following that, the back legs were removed. This speaks about our walk with God. Not just how we walk but also where we walk. We can't have consecrated legs in the U.S.A. if God is telling us to go somewhere else. Of course, we can't go somewhere else if God hasn't sent us. Consecrated legs will always walk uprightly, with integrity and into God's purpose. Unconsecrated legs will sit in a pew and act religious. Blood was put upon the big toe of the right foot.
Now, most people will think we are ready to serve God with all our heart. We are dead to our own plans. We have laid aside all our distinctions. Our head is being consumed, with all our arguments with God. ( Heads don't burn up like gasoline. They burn very slowly). Our hands are given to do the whole will of God and our feet are consecrated to walk where God says to walk and how God says to walk. Surely now we are ready! NOT YET! This is a whole burnt offering. That means that God is dealing with every part and aspect.
Next, the trunk of the body must be opened with the " Machaira" from where the head was to the rear because many hidden parts remain. These things can spoil our consecration.
The entrails are a very important part of our consecration because they represent all the hidden things in our lives that only God and us know about. Even the hidden things have to be exposed to the light of God. What remains in darkness can soon cause trouble. The T.V. scandals are an example. The belly was opened and the entrails were brought out into the light and separated. This aspect is seen in Lev.8:21. The entrails and the legs were washed with water. This shows us the washing of the hidden things must be done according to God's word. ( Washing of water with the word). Exposing these things to the wrong people can be disastrous. The entrails were not dragged around the camp for all to see but put upon the fire and burnt and went up in smoke. The entrails were an offering to the Lord.
One aspect of the fat in Lev.8:25 is the leisure time we take for ourselves. ( The couch potato syndrome) God ordains Sabbath Rest not slothfulness. God said "All The fat belongs to me". Why? Because He has the full right to demand it!
Now most people want to immediately set out to serve God and at least preserve something for themselves. Surely we can hold on to the rest of the carcass! No! This is a whole burnt offering. The carcass was divided with the " Machaira" and cut into pieces. Everything must go on the fire to be consumed, offered up in smoke and turned to ashes. Then the sacrifice itself was complete.
If we looked at the sacrifice now what would we see? Nothing but a few ashes. The sacrifice has become transparent. This is how God is preparing priests for the New Jerusalem, which is the bride of Christ. REV 21:10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, REV 21:11 having the glory of God. Her brilliance was like a very costly stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper. REV 21:21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; each one of the gates was a single pearl. And the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. How did this city, which is the bride, get transparent so that the light of God shines right through her to illuminate the nations of the new earth? By the consecration offering. REV 22:3 And there shall no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His bond-servants shall serve Him; REV 22:4 and they shall see His face, and His name {shall be} on their foreheads. REV 22:5 And there shall no longer be {any} night; and they shall not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God shall illumine them; and they shall reign forever and ever.
To teach that every born again child of God is going to stand alongside the bond-servants is misleading. This error is part of "the gospel of the giveaways", "the gospel of the bargains and the half priced sale". The law of the bond-servant is quite clear. EXO 21:2 "If you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve for six years; but on the seventh he shall go out as a free man without payment. EXO 21:3 "If he comes alone, he shall go out alone; if he is the husband of a wife, then his wife shall go out with him. EXO 21:4 "If his master gives him a wife, and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall belong to her master, and he shall go out alone. EXO 21:5 "But if the slave plainly says, 'I love my master, my wife and my children; I will not go out as a free man,' EXO 21:6 then his master shall bring him to God, then he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall pierce his ear with an awl; and he shall serve him permanently. DEU 15:12 "If your kinsman, a Hebrew man or woman, is sold to you, then he shall serve you six years, but in the seventh year you shall set him free. DEU 15:13 "And when you set him free, you shall not send him away empty-handed. DEU 15:14 "You shall furnish him liberally from your flock and from your threshing floor and from your wine vat; you shall give to him as the Lord your God has blessed you. DEU 15:15 "And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this today. DEU 15:16 "And it shall come about if he says to you, 'I will not go out from you,' because he loves you and your household, since he fares well with you; DEU 15:17 then you shall take an awl and pierce it through his ear into the door, and he shall be your servant forever. And also you shall do likewise to your maidservant.
Every child of God who has been purchased off the auction block as a slave in redemption, must serve God with twice the labor of a hired man. If he serves for six years he may go free. Of course becoming a bond-servant is not required and all may take their freedom in Christ. God will also give you liberally from the flock, from the threshing floor and from the wine vat. PSA 40:6 Sacrifice and meal offering Thou hast not desired; My ears Thou hast opened; ( Margin dug or pierced ) This is speaking of the bond-servant. To participate in Rev. 22 we need to become bond-servants. It would be nice if the whole church were bond-servants. TIT 1:1 Paul, a bond-servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the faith of those chosen of God and the knowledge of the truth which is according to godliness, It would be nice if the whole church just served God with twice the labor of a hired man and then went free. DEU 15:18 "It shall not seem hard to you when you set him free, for he has given you six years {with} double the service of a hired man; so the Lord your God will bless you in whatever you do. Sometimes it would be nice to have a church that just worked like a hired man. Even if they ran away when the wolf came. REV 3:18 I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire, that you may become rich, and white garments, that you may clothe yourself, and { that} the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes, that you may see. This city is made of Gold that is not free. Some things are free and some things we have to buy. This city is the Most Holy Place in the Tabernacle of God where the throne is. The lukewarm shall never see that place.
HEB 12:29 for our God is a consuming fire. Uncooked meat cannot be in His presence. ISA 33:14 Sinners in Zion are terrified; Trembling has seized the godless. " Who among us can live with the consuming fire? Who among us can live with continual burning? The answer is: Those who are already burned up and are transparent!
Then we come to the final part of the consecration offering. This is the key to understand the powerless "believers". LEV 8:25 And he took the fat, and the fat tail, and all the fat that was on the entrails, and the lobe of the liver and the two kidneys and their fat and the right thigh. LEV 8:26 And from the basket of unleavened bread that was before the Lord, he took one unleavened cake and one cake of bread {mixed with} oil and one wafer, and placed {them} on the portions of fat and on the right thigh. LEV 8:27 He then put all {these} on the hands of Aaron and on the hands of his sons, and presented them as a wave offering before the Lord. This is how they "ordained" the priests. To ordain literally mean to fill the hands. (Lev 8:33 N.A.S.B. margin.) If we have truly been "ordained" it means we no longer have empty hands. This may explain why so many are laying empty hands on the needy and they receive nothing because there is nothing there. God fills our hands as the final part of our consecration.
This ordination is for "seven Days" which is one complete time period. This represents the rest of our time here on this earth. The warning is "don't go out of the doorway of the tent of meeting lest you die". Heb 6 & 10 are similar warnings. Once you put your hand to the plow, don't look back. There is more than a crooked furrow in view here.
When the consecration offering was complete, God was watching and took note. LEV 9:22 Then Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and blessed them, and he stepped down after making the sin offering and the burnt offering and the peace offerings. LEV 9:23 And Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting. When they came out and blessed the people, the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. LEV 9:24 Then fire came out from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the portions of fat on the altar; and when all the people saw {it}, they shouted and fell on their faces. God doesn't let the sacrifice rot on the altar. He is a consuming fire.
CONCLUSION: The next experience after the consecration is the second veil that separates the outer court from the Holy Place. This veil is still intact. The third veil was torn when Jesus was crucified. It is a mistake to ignore the second veil which is a picture of Jesus Christ the Truth (REALITY). Consecration is our total commitment to do the whole will of God, whatever it costs, wherever it takes us. The revelations of the Shewbread, the functioning Lampstand and the operation of the Altar of Incense all depend upon us doing the will of God. It is difficult to conceive of a pure gold Lampstand that is hammered out of one piece of Gold that has parts stuck on that are just bronze. It is difficult to conceive of a lampstand Church that does not do the will of God. It is difficult to place the pure gold lampstand in the outer court where God didn't want it. Can the body refuse to do the will of the head? In every case, where the consecration is lacking, the church will be in want. REV 2:5 'Remember therefore from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you, and will remove your lampstand out of its place-- unless you repent.
There is only one seat in the Tabernacle of Moses and that is the mercy seat. There is just no place to stop and sit down until we get to the throne of God. It would be comforting if there were pews in the outer court. Too many are trying to enter into Sabbath rest in the wilderness. Some are not even wandering but are meditating upon the sand and thinking about building.
After the priests were consecrated, every time they passed the laver they had to stop and wash their hands and their feet. EXO 30:18 "You shall also make a laver of bronze, with its base of bronze, for washing; and you shall put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and you shall put water in it. EXO 30:19 "And Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet from it; EXO 30:20 when they enter the tent of meeting, they shall wash with water, that they may not die; or when they approach the altar to minister, by offering up in smoke a fire {sacrifice} to the Lord. EXO 30:21 "So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they may not die; and it shall be a perpetual statute for them, for Aaron and his descendants throughout their generations." After the initial washing, there was the continual washing. When the consecrated priests went from the Holy Place to the altar they had to stop to wash. When the consecrated priests went from the altar to the Holy Place they had to stop to wash. These times just their hands and their feet. JOH 13:9 Simon Peter *said to Him, "Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head." JOH 13:10 Jesus *said to him, "He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean, but not all {of you.}" EPH 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her; EPH 5:26 that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, EPH 5:27 that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she should be holy and blameless.
Jesus said there was a requirement in order to comprehend His teaching. JOH 7:17 "If any man is willing to do His will, he shall know of the teaching, whether it is of God, or {whether} I speak from Myself. Living our own life to do our own thing is the source of much confusion about what is valid doctrine and what is strange. If we are not willing to do the will of God, how will the Holy Spirit, who is speaking, get our attention? ROM 8:27 and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to {the will of} God. If we are not willing to do the will of God how will He intercede for us?
1PE 4:1 Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, 1PE 4:2 so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.
EPH 6:5 Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ; EPH 6:6 not by way of eye service, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart. The New Covenant priests will not be able to participate in the Holy Place life and ministry without fully doing the whole will of God. Are we preparing priests or are we caretakers of some "believers"?
HEB 4:12 For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword (MACHAIRA ) and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. HEB 4:13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.
If the next restoration of God is the consecration offering, may God impress the lukewarm to be zealous and repent. It appears that God has found a few bond-servants in each generation. In the Charismatic renewal there were multitudes that really wanted to do the will of God. Some got strange because there was a lot of raw meat held back from the fire. Many are speculating about what the next restoration will be. If God continues to restore according to the pattern of the Tabernacle of Moses, the next few years will be very interesting. Will the bride be fully committed or just sleep around?