²⁴ For Christ did not enter a holy place made with hands, a mere copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us …

Finally, the picture comes into focus. The artist gives His interpretation. Modern artistic convention differs in that the artist leaves it for the viewer to make his own interpretation. I once asked an artist-in-residence at a near-by gallery what one particular work of his meant. It resembled a multitude of splashes of oranges, reds and yellows. His response, “What does it mean to you?” I, the viewer, was left guessing at why he painted it and what it meant. At best, the meaning was different for each person who viewed it.

God’s picture, the tabernacle of the Old Testament, shares with art a certain ambiguity. But the artist, in this case God, designed this imaginative creation to lead people forward, to learn something about God. To Old Testament believers, the meaning would not be obvious because the tabernacle pictured something that was beyond human experience. Like a photograph of someone you had not yet met, it was a flat, static representation. But, when you finally meet that person, the photograph becomes clear.

Today God, the artist, gives the explanation. We have the vantage point of a more complete revelation. When a person comes to Christ, the static picture comes to life. The tabernacle pictures heaven. In particular, the holy place pictures the very inner sanctuary of God’s presence. Jesus is pictured as the high priest (which earlier was shown to be a greater priesthood than Aaron’s, that is, His was a Melchizedekian priesthood that would never end). But when the Aaronic high priest entered the holy place, this pre-figured Jesus entering the presence of God. It is the spiritual reality foreseen in the tabernacle.

In explaining the spiritual reality, God now uses the tabernacle to frame the concept to our finite human minds. Christ is our High Priest who has gone into heaven as our intercessor, appearing before God on our behalf. This act is greater than what took place on the Day of Atonement, because it involved a greater priest, a greater holy place with a greater sacrifice. This is the “true one,” not designed by humans but by God.

The entire sacrificial system of the Jews was designed as a picture, to teach people, albeit in a limited way, about God and His ways. It was intended to keep the people looking ahead, to learn, to study about God. To the unfaithful, it was just an elaborate tent, a superstition if you will. But to the faithful, this picture, the tabernacle, was where they met God.

Lord, thank You for the pictures that You left for us that point to Your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. We fondly look forward to seeing You in person!