Tuesday, July 19, 2005
1 John 2:1-2 Jesus Christ . . . Himself is the propitiation for our sins.
DON'T REMOVE THE COVER!
If you ever saw the film "Raiders of the Lost Ark" you probably recall how the Nazis supposedly located the lost Ark of the Covenant in 1936 -- despite the efforts of Indiana Jones. But then they made the terrible mistake of opening the ark, of removing the lid. And the supernatural power they thus unleashed destroyed Hiler's minions, melting their faces in a ghastly manner as they virtually vaporized where they stood.
Hollywood's fanciful renditions aside, the truth is, the cover of the Ark of the Covenant provided protection from a force far more devastating than any special effects department could ever devise. For within the original Ark the Lord had Moses place the 2 tablets of stone He had given him on Mt Sinai -- God's own summary of His holy law.
The power of the Law of God is not the product of some film-maker's imagination. It is all too real, melting our flimsy alibis, vaporizing our rationalizations, destroying the defenses we produce to cover our sin-guilt, evaporating our excuses, leaving us condemned sinners sentenced to eternal separation from God forever in hell.
Don't remove the cover of the Ark of the Covenant!
For the golden cherubim with their outstretched wings and the place between them that was known as the "Mercy Seat of God," the lid of the Ark, gives divine protection from the accusations of the Law to all who believe the promise of propitiation pictured there.
It was here that Old Testament High Priests sprinkled the blood of the appointed sacrifices on "Yom Kippur," the Great Day of Atonement.
Of course, the stain of guilt on your heart and mine could not be removed "by the blood of beasts on Jewish altars slain." That could only be brought about by the blood of a substitute who was actually one of us, who had truly kept the commandments which rightfully condemn us, and who could absorb the full force of the Law's condemnation in our stead.
The LORD, who in His blueprint for the Ark of the Covenant, provided a cover which would be an effective shield for the Law's accusations when He offered His own blood to shield sinners once and for all.
And that is why in the verse before us the Apostle John was led by the spirit of God to use a word He knew from His Greek Bible -- from the description of the Ark of the Covenant. You see, where in English we have the word "propitiation" or "atoning sacrifice," the actual word is "the mercy seat," "the cover of the ark."
By His blood Christ our Lord shields us from the Law's condemnation.
