“The Holy One Descends” (Ch. 21); “Jesus Our Passover Lamb” (Ch. 22)

Created to Draw Near: Our Life as God’s Royal Priests
by Edward T. Welch

Part 2: Jesus Our Tabernacle

“The Holy One Descends” (Chapter 21)

“When Jesus came to us in human flesh, the priestly story converged on him. More accurately, the priestly story and every detail of the tabernacle converged on him. Our entire priestly identity would soon be absorbed into his.” - Edward Welch

John 1:1 NIV

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

• Jesus, the Creator God
• Light and Life
• Entered our World
• Came to restore creation to its intended state
• He descended a ladder (Gen. 28:12-13).

John 1:47 NIV

47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.”

• “No deceit” refers to Nathaniel’s character and reminds us of Jacob, the deceiver (Gen. 27:35-36).

John 1:51 NIV

51 He then added, “Very truly I tell you, you will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’ the Son of Man.”

“The ladder itself was the same. Angels were freely going between two realms. What was different was that God, once seen at the top of the ladder, was now on earth. The Lord—the Son of Man, the Ancient of Days, Jesus the Christ—had descended in all humility and love. This was always his intent. In the weakness of a baby he gave up power. He came to us, and the distance between heaven and earth has been forever recalibrated.” - Edward Welch

John 1:14 NIV

14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

“Jesus Our Passover Lamb” (Chapter 22)

• The fate of the Israelite priesthood and temple: AD 70.
• How would worship continue after the dissolution of the priesthood and destruction of the temple?
• How would God be present with his people when his house was no longer standing?
• Why prepare themselves for worship by ceremonial cleansing when there was no house of God to approach?

The Ministry of John the Baptist

• Prepared the way for Jesus
• Announced his coming and the coming of the Kingdom of God
• Preached a message of confession of sin and repentance in preparation for the King
• Response of repentance was symbolized by baptism

“It was a suitable expression of the deeper cleansing of the soul that was to come, and one didn’t have to go to the temple or its pools. It pointed the way to what had been the hope all along:” - Edward Welch

Ezekiel 36:25 NIV

25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols.

• John also baptized Jesus.
• Not for forgiveness of sins, but for consecration as God’s priest.

Exodus 29:4 NIV

4 Then bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the tent of meeting and wash them with water.

• Father, Son, and Spirit at Jesus’ baptism

“This is the most obvious appearance of the triune God in Scripture. From all eternity, God was close within himself. The Father, Son, and Spirit shared the most intense nearness and friendship. For reasons we will never fully understand, God always planned to bring believing humanity into this divine nearness, and he would do it through the Lamb.” - Edward Welch

John 1:29 NIV

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

John 1:36 NIV

36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”

Jesus Our Passover Lamb

• The Creator God, our Light and Life, is also our Passover Lamb.
• Passover - rescue and redemption through sacrifice of a lamb.

“In Jesus, the Passover and its feast find their fullest expression. He is the reason for Israel’s rescue. Houses were protected in honor of his blood that would later be shed. Jesus is the Passover lamb, and God himself is the one who supplied the lamb. Jesus is God’s Lamb.” - Edward Welch

• Abraham & Isaac: “Where is the lamb for the sacrifice?” “God himself will provide the lamb.” (Gen. 22:7-8)
• All the sacrifices ever made in Israel’s history point to Jesus. Jesus is the Lamb of God.

John 19:14 NIV

14It was the day of Preparation of the Passover; it was about noon. “Here is your king,” Pilate said to the Jews.

Exodus 12:46 NIV

46 “It must be eaten inside the house; take none of the meat outside the house. Do not break any of the bones.

John 19:33 NIV

33 But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs.

“The world is being renewed, and the temple is where renewal began. Renewal did not begin with revival among the priests or with Jesus installed as high priest. It began with the perfect sacrifice, supplied by God himself, freely offered by the Son. If Jesus were simply an improved priest, he would have restored right worship and right teaching to the temple, and the day-to-day practices would have continued. But because Jesus is the Lamb, there is no more need for temple sacrifices, and when the heavenly court is in session, Satan can no longer raise legitimate accusations against believers.” - Edward Welch