p. 4 | The Sanctuary Service by George Ide Butler

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Aug 31, 1911

The Sanctuary Service

By George Ide Butler

Many Voices—No. 3

The Sanctuary Service

GEO. I. BUTLER

BEFORE considering the work and position of Christ in the heavenly sanctuary, it may be proper to notice some facts in Bible history bearing upon the subject of the Old Testament system of priesthood service, the sanctuary, etc.

From the fall of man till the erection of the sanctuary by Moses, B. C. 1491, according to Bible chronology,—that is, some twenty-five hundred years,—there was no temple building on earth, no sanctuary of worship on earth, and no order of priesthood among men but the patriarchal. That is to say, The head of each family, or possibly the head of each tribe in some cases, officiated in the simple act of offering sacrifices, and presided in religious rites and ceremonies and in the worship of God. Noah did this as they came out of the ark; Abraham and Jacob also made such offerings. Evidently this was the constant and continual custom of all who feared God during this long period of twenty-five hundred years. Gen. 8:20; 15:9-12; 22:1-13; 35:1-7.

The first instance mentioned of offering sacrifices to God was in the case of Abel. “And at the end of days it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: but unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door.” Gen. 4:3.

The result was that proud Cain slew his brother. The offering by Cain of the fruits of the field was simply an expression of gratitude for the blessing of life. But the offering of a lamb by Abel and the shedding of its blood was a recognition of the fact that he was a sinner, lost and undone, without a substitute. His life was forfeited because of sin. An innocent lamb was presented by the penitent sinner, thus showing his faith in the Lamb of God, “which taketh away the sin of the world,” and by that act recognizing the fact that he could not save himself by his own righteousness. Cain made no such confession of sin, and felt no need of a Saviour; hence sin lay unforgiven at his door. There have been many Cains in the past, and there are many in the present, who feel not the need of a Saviour. In this first recorded sacrifice the great facts of the gospel of Christ are shadowed forth. True repentance and faith in Christ, as manifested in obedience to God, are now, and have ever been since the fall of man, the fundamental truths of the Christian religion.

Here is the remedial system, recognized by faith in the remotest ages. For twenty-five centuries these great facts were being constantly acknowledged by all true worshipers of God. Then came additional light to the people of God—the chosen people—in the sanctuary and its services. All the truths of the past were still held by them and constantly practised. But in the sanctuary services additional light was given. What was this light?—A knowledge of God's plan for the final disposition of sin in all his universe. He gave this light in an object-lesson, a yearly round of services which was a miniature type, or representation, of heavenly things. The type was a round of services each year constantly repeated. The sanctuary commanded by God to be made (Exodus 24) was composed of two apartments, the holy place and the most holy place, or as it was sometimes called, the holy of holies. In the first apartment the regular services were carried on every day in the year save one, repentant sinners bringing their victims to the door of the tabernacle. The sinner laid his hand on the victim’s head, confessing his sins over him, thereby conveying in figure his sins to the victim, which was then slain, and its blood was sprinkled in the sanctuary, conveying those sins to the sanctuary itself, there to remain till the last day of the year, the tenth day of the seventh month, the great day of atonement. This was the only day of the year when the collected sins brought in by figure could be disposed of. This, in brief, was done by the high priest entering into the most holy place (after making offerings for himself and family) and offering what was called the Lord’s goat, confessing the sins of the people, and sprinkling its blood in the sanctuary and on the mercy-seat, thus cleansing the sanctuary and removing the sins conveyed there in figure to the other goat chosen, called the scapegoat, confessing over it the sins of the people. This goat was led away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness, and there let go. Thus very briefly we have tried to describe the main features of the yearly round of services in the earthly sanctuary. Every intelligent Jew will tell us that this great day of atonement was to that people “the day of judgment.”

This yearly round of services in the earthly sanctuary, we are informed by the Scriptures, represents the services carried on in the heavenly temple above. It was a feeble type of the greatest things occurring in the great scheme of redemption. During all the years of human history a record has been kept and preserved in the heavenly archives. Every one of those sins must be atoned for; every person has an account to settle with God. In the very last days of time the judgment will sit, and the books will be opened. The cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary will take place. All those books will be examined, and a decision will be made, eternal in its consequences. Sin will be forever removed from the heavenly sanctuary, and the responsibility of sin will be placed where it really belongs, on the head of the anti-typical scapegoat, which is no other than Satan himself.

The saints of God, those who have truly repented of their sins and have been true to him, will have their sins blotted out, and will be saved to all eternity, while unrepentant sinners will suffer for their own sins. Christ is the true Substitute shadowed forth by every sacrificial offering during all the ages of the past. Only the righteous choose to take Jesus as their Substitute. While all have the same privilege, only a small portion really make the choice, and the larger portion die in their sins, with no Saviour; and must suffer eternal death—the true penalty for their sins. The righteous are forgiven because they accept Christ as their Saviour after truly repenting of their sins; so it is but just that Satan shall become the scapegoat, upon whom these sins are placed in their final disposition. Thus the records of the sins of the whole world are examined, passed upon, and finally settled to all eternity. For this reason the sanctuary services under the Aaronic priesthood became a wonderful object-lesson to the children of men.

Bowling Green, Fla.