Matthew 27:51
It was bigger than the shot that was heard
around the world. It was the rip that
divided human history. The day Christ died, the curtain in the temple was torn
from top to bottom. The direction is significant. God
was ripping humanity into two parts. This act of God stood in contrast
to what men could have done. Tearing this curtain from top to bottom was quite
spectacular. This was God’s doing, and the time and place were not
insignificant. The curtain was designed to separate man from God.
The tabernacle was a temporary structure
that God designed for the wilderness. It was where man was to meet God. The
temple was the replacement of the tabernacle. It was an upgrade, if you will,
of the moveable tabernacle. Gold replaced goatskin; the cedars of Lebanon
replaced bent sticks from the desert.
It was exquisite in beauty and breathtaking in appearance.
The Holy of Holies, which was behind the
veil, was a thirty-foot cube. The veil was a majestic fence keeping sinful men
away from a holy God. At the moment Jesus died, the veil was destroyed. The
fence was removed. With the simple back of His providential hand, God pushed
back the obstacle that separated God from man.
With the rip came a reach across the
forbidden span. Suddenly, between a holy God and sinful man, there was made
access. Whispers have replaced shouts, and it is because of the proximity. God
has drawn near to us and made it possible for us to draw near to Him. Prayer is much different for us than it was
for the Old Testament saint.
The tear in the curtain is like an open
door of invitation from God. He came into our world so that we might more
effectively enter into His. The righteousness that was promised the Old
Testament saint has been issued to his New Testament counterpart. Our High
Priest Who could not sympathize with our weaknesses now waits with His ear bent
toward us with a heart that knows the experience of finite limitations. Things
are different now.
The individuals who prayed in the Old
Testament prayed with the hope of the Messiah coming. They knew Him only
vaguely from a distance; we know Him as Jesus. They could only praise Him for
what He would do; we can thank Him for what He has done. They could only
anticipate the event; we can stand in awe of Him because of the details of
redemption that have been revealed to us. They knew His presence with them; we
know the Person of Jesus Christ. The curtain has been torn. The division is
gone forever!
Matthew 27:51
The Old
Curtain
A. Its size
B. Its significance
C. Its statement
The Torn
Curtain
A. Its size
B. Its significance
C. Its statement
The
Replacement Curtain
A. Its size
B. Its significance
C. Its statement