April 13, 2023
Your way, O God, is in the sanctuary; who is so great a God as our God? Psalm 77:13
In this verse we are given a beautiful reminder of Yahweh’s plan of salvation, how He carries it out, and the essential element of our wholehearted cooperation with the process. Our great God of love does not want anyone to be deceived or lost. But we need an awareness that Satan is working feverishly to derail the plan at every point.
The sanctuary and its furnishings are given to communicate clearly the process of salvation. The past two days we looked briefly at how Satan has worked as an “insider” to radically alter the perceived message of the first article of furniture in the courtyard of the sanctuary, the altar of burnt offerings, which symbolizes the death of Jesus and His complete victory over sin.
The second article encountered in the courtyard is the laver of washing. It was here that the priests washed their hands and feet before entering the sanctuary. Also called the bronze sea, this washbasin symbolizes resurrection from death because of sin’s destruction. The laver embodies a symbol of new birth for the sinner who desires to be cleansed from old sins and live a new life. Baptism by immersion is given to us in the Scriptures to illustrate the sinner’s willing repentance, “death” to sin (symbolized by the suspension of breath), burial under the water, and resurrection to a cleansed life of remission of sins. The first breath drawn after a believer’s baptism symbolizes the entrance of the Spirit of God to reside and guide thenceforth. Here we begin to see our bodies as a temple for the Lord to inhabit. Through this simple act, the sinner who has accepted the substitutionary death of Jesus celebrates His resurrection! By faith, he or she is declaring that Jesus’ victory over sin and death can become his or her own. In addition to the baptized one’s celebration with his fellow believers, the angels of heaven also celebrate!
Satan’s first lie about death is the springboard for his continuing series of deceptions. “Inherent immortality” and the “never-ending furnace of fire” are followed closely by infant sprinkling in place of believer’s baptism. This major alteration to believer’s baptism by immersion brings multiple attacks on the character of God. The implied message behind infant sprinkling is that unbaptized babies who die go directly to a pit of burning for eternity. In separating the essential element of sincere repentance from baptism, Satan promotes the idea that the ordinance of baptism without repentance is pleasing to God. This false form of baptism is just another empty ritual.
Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. Acts 2:38
Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out. Acts 3:19