TempleProphecy.com
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In the Inner Court
In the inner court of the temple, God’s people renewed their covenant with Him and offered
sacrifices for their sins. The Torah (Law of Moses) is filled with God’s covenant and
requirements for sacrifices. Yeshua (Jesus) came to fulfill the Law of Moses, not to abolish it
(see Matt. 5:17-20). In addition to being our final physical sacrifice for sins, the Messiah has
also given us a spiritual understanding of the Word and will of God (see Luke 24:13-45 & 1
Cor. 2:12-16). As we grow in Him, the Holy Spirit teaches us to understand and spiritually
fulfill the Torah, every letter of it, so that we may fully understand and receive our God.
In the inner court of the temple, God’s people renewed their covenant with Him and offered
sacrifices for their sins. The Torah (Law of Moses) is filled with God’s covenant and
requirements for sacrifices. Yeshua (Jesus) came to fulfill the Law of Moses, not to abolish it
(see Matt. 5:17-20). In addition to being our final physical sacrifice for sins, the Messiah has
also given us a spiritual understanding of the Word and will of God (see Luke 24:13-45 & 1
Cor. 2:12-16). As we grow in Him, the Holy Spirit teaches us to understand and spiritually
fulfill the Torah, every letter of it, so that we may fully understand and receive our God.
Come Clean
Before entering into the Holy Place for an authentic worship experience with God, we must
pass through the inner court to renew our covenant and be cleansed of our sins. Yeshua
(Jesus) is our one-time physical sacrifice. Through His death and resurrection, we who live in
the physical body may now commune with God in the Spirit. Yet, there are spiritual
requirements for us to present ourselves holy before a holy God (see Rom. 12:1 & Heb. 12:
14). Studying the Torah with a spiritual eye reveals these requirements.
Leviticus 1:1-13 describes the burnt offering from the herd or flock for sin atonement. The
sinner laid his hand on the head of the animal for sacrifice as a symbolic transference of his
sins. The animal was then slaughtered, the blood splashed on the sides of the altar, the
animal skinned and cut into pieces, the head and the fat arranged with the other body parts,
the inner parts washed, and then all of that was thoroughly burned.
In this foreshadowing of spiritual cleansing, the animal represents our sinful nature. The
sinner had to place his hands on the animal’s head, also the place our sins begin: in our
minds. Hence, our deliverance must begin in our minds as well, a new thought planted into
our heads that what we are doing is a sin (see Rom. 7:7-14). Then ADONAI (the LORD) can
convict our hearts, thus bringing us to confess and repent. Confession is open
acknowledgment of our sins (see I John 1:9 & Jam. 5:16). Repentance, then, is laying our
sinful nature on God’s altar as a living sacrifice that He may turn us from the sin.
Just as the animal was slaughtered, so we must slaughter our sinful nature (see Rom. 6:5-13
& Gal. 5:16-25). Its blood must then be splashed on God’s altar. The blood is self-will,
because our will gives life to the sinful nature (see Jam. 1:14). Hence, we must surrender our
will to God to receive His will for us (see Jam. 4:7-10 & Rom. 12:1-2). The sin must be skinned
to show us what is covering it up; in effect, why we were kept from addressing it this long. We
must cut it to pieces, dissect it if you will, by allowing the Holy Spirit to show us the different
forms that sin takes in our lives, why we like it, what keeps drawing us to it and what effects it
has on us and those around us. The head must be cut off. This is the deeper issue that
drives the sin in us, the real reason we commit the sin, the spiritual strong man (see Matt. 12:
29). The fat must also be cut away. These are the things we have filled our lives with in order
to make it easy for us to commit the sin. Our inner parts must be washed thoroughly because
surely there was something impure in our hearts that allowed us to dwell on the thought of sin
once it came to mind (see Jam. 1:15). Lastly, we must immerse it all in the fire, everything, so
that we will be free of sin’s hold on us and purified for worship of our God.
Before entering into the Holy Place for an authentic worship experience with God, we must
pass through the inner court to renew our covenant and be cleansed of our sins. Yeshua
(Jesus) is our one-time physical sacrifice. Through His death and resurrection, we who live in
the physical body may now commune with God in the Spirit. Yet, there are spiritual
requirements for us to present ourselves holy before a holy God (see Rom. 12:1 & Heb. 12:
14). Studying the Torah with a spiritual eye reveals these requirements.
Leviticus 1:1-13 describes the burnt offering from the herd or flock for sin atonement. The
sinner laid his hand on the head of the animal for sacrifice as a symbolic transference of his
sins. The animal was then slaughtered, the blood splashed on the sides of the altar, the
animal skinned and cut into pieces, the head and the fat arranged with the other body parts,
the inner parts washed, and then all of that was thoroughly burned.
In this foreshadowing of spiritual cleansing, the animal represents our sinful nature. The
sinner had to place his hands on the animal’s head, also the place our sins begin: in our
minds. Hence, our deliverance must begin in our minds as well, a new thought planted into
our heads that what we are doing is a sin (see Rom. 7:7-14). Then ADONAI (the LORD) can
convict our hearts, thus bringing us to confess and repent. Confession is open
acknowledgment of our sins (see I John 1:9 & Jam. 5:16). Repentance, then, is laying our
sinful nature on God’s altar as a living sacrifice that He may turn us from the sin.
Just as the animal was slaughtered, so we must slaughter our sinful nature (see Rom. 6:5-13
& Gal. 5:16-25). Its blood must then be splashed on God’s altar. The blood is self-will,
because our will gives life to the sinful nature (see Jam. 1:14). Hence, we must surrender our
will to God to receive His will for us (see Jam. 4:7-10 & Rom. 12:1-2). The sin must be skinned
to show us what is covering it up; in effect, why we were kept from addressing it this long. We
must cut it to pieces, dissect it if you will, by allowing the Holy Spirit to show us the different
forms that sin takes in our lives, why we like it, what keeps drawing us to it and what effects it
has on us and those around us. The head must be cut off. This is the deeper issue that
drives the sin in us, the real reason we commit the sin, the spiritual strong man (see Matt. 12:
29). The fat must also be cut away. These are the things we have filled our lives with in order
to make it easy for us to commit the sin. Our inner parts must be washed thoroughly because
surely there was something impure in our hearts that allowed us to dwell on the thought of sin
once it came to mind (see Jam. 1:15). Lastly, we must immerse it all in the fire, everything, so
that we will be free of sin’s hold on us and purified for worship of our God.
