How You Can Enter Boldly into God's Presence
When Jesus died on the cross, the Old Testament
priesthood came to an end from heaven's perspective. This was signified by the fact that the heavy
curtain which separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple was rent
from the top to the bottom at the very point of His death. Matthew 27:50-51
says,
And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and
yielded up His spirit. Then, behold, the veil of the temple was rent from top
to bottom; and the earth quaked and the rocks were rent.
This veil was about 30 high and four inches thick. No
one was allowed past this veil except the high priest who went in once a year before
Almighty God to offer a blood sacrifice for the sins of the people of Israel. It
was a fearful thing, even for the high priest, to venture into the presence of
God hidden behind this veil.
This veil was so strong and thick that the Jewish
historian, Josephus, stated that even two oxen could not tear it. However, when
Jesus died, it was ripped from the top to the bottom.
This was an obvious act of God. It was God saying, “The
way has been made. The ultimate sacrifice has been offered. The redemptive price
has been paid. You are welcome to come into My presence.”
At that point, the Old Testament priesthood ended.
There was no longer any need for a human priest to mediate between the people
and God. The veil was rent, and all could not now enter freely into His
presence.
Because of what Jesus has done, we have become a
kingdom of priests, as John wrote in Revelation 1:5-6, To Him who loved us
and washed us from our sins in His own blood and has made us kings and priests to
His God and Father.
There are NOT many paths to God. There is only One. Jesus
Himself said in John 14:6, I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one
comes to the Father except through Me. Paul echoed this truth some years
later when he wrote, For there is one God and one Mediator between God and
mankind, the man Christ Jesus (I Timothy 2:5).
What a wonderful privilege we have in this New
Covenant of freely coming into the presence of Almighty God through Jesus and
His atoning death. The writer of Hebrews spelled it out when he wrote in 4:16, Let
us therefore come boldly to throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace
to help in the time of need.
Yes, the veil has been rent, and even now God Almighty beckons you to come.
This article was derived from the book, Discovering the Real Jesus, by Dr. Eddie L. Hyatt. He is the author of around 30 books, which can be found on Amazon and his website at www.eddiehyatt.com.
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