Scripture records in Matthew that when Jesus died, the veil in the Temple was torn in two, top to bottom. This was symbolic of the fact that Christ’s death on the cross had opened up that which had previously been closed – access to God.
The Temple, and before it, the Tabernacle, provided Old Testament saints with a way to worship God that was very different from what we have today. Then there was much ritual, and things had to be done just so, and there was a great deal of symbolism. These things are pretty much not so anymore.
The Tabernacle was designed to be portable, to go along with Israel as it traveled though the wilderness. Scripture indicates it was patterned after things in heaven. Skilled and wise workmen took the design given by God and put together the building and its various parts. This Tabernacle served as Israel’s worship center for many years, until they were settled in the land, when it was replaced by the temple Solomon built. In that temple, and the one that followed it, the basic design remained the same, only the scale was different.
This place was the core of religion and theology in Israel. Here sacrifices were made, the priesthood labored at their tasks, the people came with their sacrifices, and sins were atoned. It was the center of all true worship in Israel.
But it was a very different kind of worship.
Should a common, everyday person wanted to meet with God, He had to come to the Tabernacle. There was no other divinely designated place. He had to bring his sacrifice with him. If it was a long trip, or expensive, he still had to come to the tabernacle if He wanted to meet with God. There was no other way, no other place.
He couldn’t show up at just any time, either. He had to wait until the Tabernacle was functioning for the day and its gate was open. It was there at the gate that the sacrifices were killed, that the blood flowed, and then the priests would carry the dead animal and put it on the altar to burn.
But that front gate of the tabernacle was as close to God as the common person could get. God met with them, but He stayed out of sight behind the altar, the tent, and the veil. And along with these physical barriers, there were procedural barriers as well. The priests served as go-betweens, as a buffer between God and man. Only the priests could approach God, and only the priests could take the sacrifices to Him.
It was worship. But it was different. From our viewpoint it seems distant and almost alienated. Impersonal or even inadequate. But it was worship. It was fellowship. It was a relationship with God that was real and meaningful. And through it God offered to His people everything they needed to maintain their relationship with Him.
But to us, even with that knowledge, it still feels like something’s missing, and something is. What’s missing is access. The ancients could worship God, but they couldn’t get to Him. Their worship was done through symbolism and go-betweens and always at a distance.
But that changed the day Jesus died. That’s why the veil was torn in two. Since that time, things are very different. Ephesians 2:17-19 says this:
And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father. Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners.
That difference is Jesus, crucified and risen from the dead. Living on this side of the cross and of the tomb, believers have access through Jesus to God. The altar, the place of sacrifice, that used to block the view of God? Now Jesus is Himself the sacrifice. The priests that served as go-betweens? Now “there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus.” The veil? Torn asunder, so that believers who want to worship God can now experience a very different kind of worship. Worship that is close, and has access to God Himself. And it’s only possible because of Jesus. “For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.”
Irv Cobb
