Strangers in the Sanctuary Ezek:44 (9th in Church Series)

By: Sylvia Huffnagle (ordained minister)

Ezek:44:1-3: Then he brought me back the way of the gate of the outward sanctuary which looketh toward the east; and it was shut. 2: Then said the LORD unto me; This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter in by it; because the LORD, the God of Israel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut. 3: It is for the prince; the prince, he shall sit in it to eat bread before the LORD; he shall enter by the way of the porch of that gate, and shall go out by the way of the same.

4-6: Then brought he me the way of the north gate before the house: and I looked, and, behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD: and I fell upon my face. 5: And the LORD said unto me, Son of man, mark well, and behold with thine eyes, and hear with thine ears all that I say unto thee concerning all the ordinances of the house of the LORD, and all the laws thereof; and mark well the entering in of the house, with every going forth of the sanctuary. 6: And thou shalt say to the rebellious, even to the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; O ye house of Israel, let it suffice you of all your abominations,

7-8: In that ye have brought into my sanctuary strangers, uncircumcised in heart, and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in my sanctuary, to pollute it, even my house, when ye offer my bread, the fat and the blood, and they have broken my covenant because of all your abominations. 8: And ye have not kept the charge of mine holy things: but ye have set keepers of my charge in my sanctuary for yourselves.

(I think this scripture can be applied to the church today, because all scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 2 Tim: 3:16 How has the church brought the uncircumcised into the sanctuary? Jesus established the church as a place for believers to meet and worship their God together. It was to be a place where they gathered together in His Name.

Then in Acts 5: 12-14: we read: And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people; (and they were all with one accord in Solomon's porch. 13: And of the rest durst no man join himself to them: but the people magnified them. 14: And believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women.)

And in Eph: 4: 1-16: I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, 2: With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; 3: Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4: There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; 5: One Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6: One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. 7: But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. 8: Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. 9: (Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? 10: He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11: And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 12: For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 13: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 14: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 15: But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 16: From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

Eph: 5:19: Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; (I picture a place where believers can share and grow without fear of offending the heathen.)

Col: 3:16: Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

Heb: 10:10:24-26: And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: 25: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. 26: For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,

(These verses are not conclusive, but I do believe that God provided a sanctuary for believers where they can come together in unity of faith and purpose to build one another up in the faith.
A sanctuary is:
1 a holy place, as a building set aside for worship of the divinity or of one or more deities; specif., a)
the ancient Temple at Jerusalem b) a Christian church c) any church or temple d) a particularly
holy place within a church or temple, as the part around the altar, the holy of holies in the Jewish
Temple, etc.
2 a) a place of refuge or protection; asylum: orig., fugitives from justice were immune from arrest in
churches or other sacred places b) immunity from punishment or the law, as by taking refuge in a
church, etc.

Notice it started out as a holy place. To me that means a place where everyone is conscientious about doing things God’s way. The church is the pillar of truth--a place where Christians are strengthened and encouraged by being among those who believe as they do.

Pertaining to sanctuary--it is a place where believers can rest from dealing with the pressures of the world and enjoy the kingdom of God together. There is no place in church for ungodly behavior, speech, or dress. I’m not talking about rules here, I’m talking about one body and one Spirit.

Today church has a dual purpose--to do the above and to be used as an evangelistic center. To have the church be an evangelistic center is to take away the sanctuary part. There may be a little strength in knowing that others in the building believe as you do, but because of the way things are handled today, the true believer must be very careful what he or she says for fear of offending the disobedient and unbelieving. The result of this dual purpose is a mixed multitude which causes confusion of doctrine.

God doesn’t want heathens in the sanctuary, for the above reason. He does not want pollution. Not only are Christians now taught to wear blinders as far as offenses go, they are also taught not to discern between the righteous and the wicked. The teachers thought they were teaching the Word, but the Word was talking about true believers overlooking one another’s faults. God wants us to discern between the righteous and the wicked.)

Mal: 3:13: Your words have been stout against me, saith the LORD. Yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against thee? 14: Ye have said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the LORD of hosts? 15: And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered. 16: Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name. 17: And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. 18: Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.

God has instruction for how to handle those who come in among us:
Num: 15:14-16 it says: And if a stranger sojourn with you, or whosoever be among you in your generations, and will offer an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD; as ye do, so he shall do. 15: One ordinance shall be both for you of the congregation, and also for the stranger that sojourneth with you, an ordinance for ever in your generations: as ye are, so shall the stranger be before the LORD. 16: One law and one manner shall be for you, and for the stranger that sojourneth with you.

Ezek: 44:9-14: Thus saith the Lord GOD; No stranger, uncircumcised in heart, nor uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter into my sanctuary, of any stranger that is among the children of Israel. 10: And the Levites that are gone away far from me, when Israel went astray, which went astray away from me after their idols; they shall even bear their iniquity. 11: Yet they shall be ministers in my sanctuary, having charge at the gates of the house, and ministering to the house: they shall slay the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister unto them. 12: Because they ministered unto them before their idols, and caused the house of Israel to fall into iniquity; therefore have I lifted up mine hand against them, saith the Lord GOD, and they shall bear their iniquity. 13: And they shall not come near unto me, to do the office of a priest unto me, nor to come near to any of my holy things, in the most holy place: but they shall bear their shame, and their abominations which they have committed. 14: But I will make them keepers of the charge of the house, for all the service thereof, and for all that shall be done therein.

(God wants there to be a clear distinction between the circumcised in heart and the uncircumcised in heart. God only wants those who have entered into the crucifixion and resurrection to take communion and or to call themselves Christians. If this were so, then the leaders could insist upon certain things such as everyone dressing modestly, and everyone living a sanctified life, and everyone doing all for the glory of God, etc. Meddling comes in when the leaders dictate precisely how these things must be done.)

Notice how God feels toward those who a zealous for His precepts:
15-22: But the priests the Levites, the sons of Zadok, that kept the charge of my sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from me, they shall come near to me to minister unto me, and they shall stand before me to offer unto me the fat and the blood, saith the Lord GOD: 16: They shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall come near to my table, to minister unto me, and they shall keep my charge. 17: And it shall come to pass, that when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come upon them, whiles they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within. 18: They shall have linen bonnets upon their heads, and shall have linen breeches upon their loins; they shall not gird themselves with any thing that causeth sweat. 19: And when they go forth into the utter court, even into the utter court to the people, they shall put off their garments wherein they ministered, and lay them in the holy chambers, and they shall put on other garments; and they shall not sanctify the people with their garments. 20: Neither shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to grow long; they shall only poll their heads. 21: Neither shall any priest drink wine, when they enter into the inner court. 22: Neither shall they take for their wives a widow, nor her that is put away: but they shall take maidens of the seed of the house of Israel, or a widow that had a priest before.

(God condones those who are zealous for the truth. He has called some in the church to be prophets. They are to show where the church is going to the left or the right off of the written Word of God. Read the last two verses.)

23-24: And they shall teach my people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean. 24: And in controversy they shall stand in judgment; and they shall judge it according to my judgments: and they shall keep my laws and my statutes in all mine assemblies; and they shall hallow my sabbaths.

© Sylvia Huffnagle

Article Source: http://www.articles.narrowisthepath.com

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