February 16  New Light On The Sanctuary-3

[The earthly sanctuary services serve as] a copy and shadow of the heavenly sanctuary; for when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, "See that you make everything according to the pattern which was shown you on the mountain." Heb. 8:5, RSV.

Yesterday we met O.R.L. Crosier, the friend of Hiram Edson who devoted his time to intensive and extensive biblical study on the meaning of the sanctuary and the cleansing that would take place at the end of the 2300 days of Daniel 8:14. Writing in the Day Dawn, published by Edson F. B Hahn, Crosier very systematically set forth his findings. One of his first conclusion is that Miller's interpretation was wrong since "the word Sanctuary cannot be applied to the earth upon any principel whatever." Crosier obviously has his concordance at hand when he notes that "the word Sanctuary occurs 104 times in the Bible-100 in the Old Testament, . . .and 4 times in the New Testament, all in the Epistle to the Hebrews."

Later in his article Crosier concludes that the sanctuary of Daniel 8:14 could not possibly be the Jewish sanctuary, because it had been "irrecoverably destroyed." "Yet, though the Jewish Sanctuary ceased to be the Sanctuary 1800 years ago, something else existed to the end of the 2300 days which was called the Sanctuary, and was at the end of that period, to undergo a chnage which is expressed by the word 'cleansed,' 'justified,' 'vindicated,' or 'declared just.'"

One things is clear from the book of Hebrews, Crosier pointed out: "That Christ at his ascension entered the place of which the Jewish Sanctuary was a figure, pattern or type, and that is the place of his ministry during the Gospel disepnsation." The book of Hebrews unquestionably indicates that "'we have such an High Priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty In The Heavens: A Minister Of The Sanctuary. . .' This is the only text in the New Testament in which the word Sanctuary is found, except the three that speak of the Jewish Sanctuary. And now we feel safe in stating, that there is no Scripture authority for calling anything else the Sanctary under the Gospel dispensation, but the palce of Christ's ministry in the heavens, from the time of his ascension to the Father till his second coming."

Today we can thank God that we have Jesus as our high priest in the heavenly sanctuary. "Consequently he is able for all time to save those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for us"(Heb. 7:25, RSV). Amen!