Three Transforming Experiences - Part 14
The Outer Court experiences of salvation and water baptism are wonderful, but God never planned for us to stay there. It has always been God’s will for us to press on into the glorious experiences that are represented in the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies.
“Therefore let us go on and get past the elementary stage in the teachings and doctrine of Christ (the Messiah), advancing steadily toward the completeness and perfection that belong to spiritual maturity.”—Hebrews 6:1 (AMPC)
“Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you.“—Philippians 3:13-15 (NKJV)
There have always been qualifications to enter into the “upward call of God.” Some believers qualify, but many don’t, as Jesus said, “For many are called, but few are chosen” (Matthew 22:14 KJV). There were qualifications to be a participant in the move of God in Gideon’s time, and there are qualifications to be a participant in the move of God in our time.
There have been many who were called to participate in the glorious experiences of the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies but were disqualified by their own choices and never entered into the fullness of those callings.
In the time of Ezekiel, these priests of God who disqualified themselves were relegated to the Outer Court.
“But the Levites who went far away from Me when Israel went astray, who went astray from Me after their idols, they shall bear the punishment for their sin and guilt. Yet they shall minister in My sanctuary, having oversight [as guards] at the gates of the temple and ministering in the temple. They shall slaughter the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister to them. Because the priests ministered to them before their idols and became a stumbling block of sin to the house of Israel, therefore I have lifted up My hand and have sworn [an oath] against them,” says the Lord God, “that they shall bear the punishment for their sin and guilt. And they shall not come near to Me to serve as priests to Me, nor come near to any of My holy things, to the things that are most holy; but they shall bear their shame and their disgrace and [the consequences of] their repulsive acts which they have committed. Yet I will appoint them as caretakers of the temple, for all its service and for all that shall be done in it.”—Ezekiel 44:10-14 (AMP)
These priests who had disqualified themselves were allowed to remain in the priesthood and minister to the people, but they were never again allowed to minister in the Holy Place, or to enjoy intimate communion with the Lord Himself in the Holy of Holies.
In contrast, those priests who met God’s qualifications, were able to press on into higher callings, more glorious experiences, and deeper intimacy with God Himself.
“But the Levitical priests, the sons of Zadok, who performed the duty of My sanctuary when the children (descendants) of Israel went astray from Me, shall come near to Me to minister to Me; and they shall stand before Me to offer to Me the fat and the blood,” declares the Lord God. “They shall enter into My sanctuary; and they shall come near to My table to minister to Me and they shall perform [the priestly] duty to me.”—Ezekiel 44:15-16 (AMP)
Pressing On to the Higher Calling
When God gave Moses the designs for the Tabernacle in the book of Exodus, He gave very precise specifications for the Tabernacle’s furniture. If you were to take a tour of the Tabernacle in Moses’ time, you would notice that all of the furniture in the Outer Court was made of brass, but as you progressed deeper into the secret place of God’s Tabernacle, you would notice that the furniture was no longer made of brass. Gold would become the primary material that would catch your eye in the Holy Place. Finally, if you were able to venture into the Holy of Holies, all you would see would be gold.
This illustrates what is required of us to press on into the higher calling of God. The requirements to enter into the Outer Court are very low. God invites us to come as we are to experience the salvation He has provided for us through Jesus’ sacrifice for our sin. The altar of sacrifice and the laver are both made of brass. Salvation and water baptism are made available for all who choose to follow Jesus by faith.
Requirements are higher to enter into God’s secret place beyond the Outer Court. Unlike the Outer Court, the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies were covered and not visible to those outside.
“Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’”—John 3:3 (NKJV)
Once a person is born again, he or she may feel called to press on into the deeper things of God that are represented in the Holy Place, but upon entering the Holy Place, there is a marked difference in the furnishings. Furniture is no longer brass, but all of the furniture and implements in the Holy Place are gold. Some are solid gold, and some are wood overlaid with gold. This speaks of the higher standards that are required as we press on to the higher calling of God.
Those who did not pass the first test to be a part of Gideon’s army would not have entered into the Holy Place. There is a higher level of consecration and sanctification that is required to enter into that place in God’s Kingdom. This is where believers consecrate themselves to become priests to the Lord, because only the priests were allowed to enter into the Holy Place of God’s Tabernacle.
“And let the priests also, which come near to the Lord, sanctify themselves”—Exodus 19:22 (KJV)
Through the process of sanctification, our human nature is replaced with God’s nature. In the Outer Court, we experience the transformation of our spirits, but in the Holy Place, our *souls *are transformed.
“And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”—Romans 12:2 (NKJV)
This transformation of our souls is illustrated in the gold of the Holy Place furnishings, as we take on more and more of the nature of Christ. Those who met the higher requirements to enter into the Holy Place were clothed in the holy garments of priests.
Of all those who found their way into the Outer Court, only a few ever met the requirements to enter into the Holy Place, and even fewer—only a very few—ever met the higher requirements to enter into the Most Holy Place.
The few who did enter into the Holy of Holies were clothed in garments reflecting their qualifications. When they entered into the Holy of Holies, all they saw was gold. Although the Ark of the Covenant was made of wood, it was overlaid with gold. The wood could represent humanity, but although it is there, no trace of it is seen in the Holy of Holies. The only color that is seen in the furnishings of the Most Holy Place is the gold representing the holy nature of God.
Neville Johnson said many times that the main problem in our relationship with God is an issue of compatibility. If we are to have any hope of meeting the requirements to enter into the Holy of Holies and experience the fulfillment of the highest call of God, we must be transformed through the Holy Place experience of sanctification until we are compatible with the nature of God. Our humanity must be overlaid with the golden nature of God so that when He looks at us, He sees Himself reflected in our lives.
“For those whom He foreknew [and loved and chose beforehand], He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son [and ultimately share in His complete sanctification], so that He would be the firstborn [the most beloved and honored] among many believers.”—Romans 8:29 (AMP)
In contrast, those believers who do not meet the requirements of the higher callings of God in Christ Jesus may be relegated to the Outer Court, which Jesus seemed to refer to as “outer darkness.”
Three Transforming Experiences
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