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172 The Taber114clt -at the brazen la ·er. 'We were born again at the cross; we are cleansed daily as we let Christ, our Cleanser, forgive us of all our unrighteous acts and thoughts by the way. At the altar the animal sacrifice was slain; at the laver water was used to make clean the hands and feet. At the cross Christ was crucified; and from His wounded side there came forth "blood and water." From. the smitten rock in the wilderness there flowed a life-giving stream. And "that Rock was Christ" (I Cor. 10: 4) . No wonder the hymn-writer sang, "Rock of Ages, cleft for me, By the blood of Christ we are justified; by the water of the Word we are sanctified. The leper in Israel who was cleansed was sprinkled with blood seven times; then he washed himself and his clothes with water. Leprosy is a type of sin. "Nothing but the blood of Jesus" can take away the guilt of sin; and He has provided a living Foun- tain of Water through the Spirit and the Word whereby the redeemed of God may keep their garments "unspotted from the world," which thrust Him out at the point of a spear. (See James 1:27.) After the priests had washed their hands and feet at the laver of brass, they went on into the Holy Place. There they walked in the light of the golden candlestick which pointed on to Christ, the Light of the World. There they ate the shewbread, a picture of Christ, the Bread of Life. There they stood before the golden altar of incense Let me hide myself in Thee; Let the water and the blood, From Thy wounded side which fiowed, Be of sin the double c-ure, Cleanse me from its guilt and power."
The Tabernacle to pray for the people, prophetic of Christ, our Intercessor and "Advocate with the Father." From this place of communion they went forth to serve God at the brazen altar, and to serve His people, as their representatives. My Christian friend, how do we attempt to do the work of God? In the energy of the flesh? Depending upon our own supposed strength? Or in the power of the Holy Spirit alone? Long ago the prophet gave us the secret to soul-winning, when he said, " ot by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts" (Zech. 4: 6) . And again the apostle echoed the thought, saying, " ot by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the wash- ing (laver, R. V., margin) of regeneration, and renew- ing of the Holy Ghost" (Titus 3:5). "And having an high priest over the house of God; let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil con- science, and our bodies washed with pure water" (Heb. 10:21, 22). Cleansed for Service Only the priests could wash their hands and feet at the laver of brass; and to be a priest in Israel, one had to be born into Aaron's family. Only the born-again child of God can claim the cleansing power of the Word and the Spirit of God. Indeed, "the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned" (I Cor. 2:14). To approach the inspired Word of God merely as literature, or as a source of human knowledge, is to seek blindly for something
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