Regarding Holiness Issues

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On Tue, 13 Aug 1996 12:29:22 -0300, you wrote:

>>Our standards are our protection, walls around our churchs and our families.
>>When the church stops obeying the standards, the angels cease their
>>occupation of protecting the saints.

>Very good point, I like it. We must never let there come a gap in the hedge
>that God has built around his church. One thing that Satan accussed God of
>concerning Job was that there was a hedge about him that God had put there.

Notice that God allowed that hedge to be removed. But when one hedge
was taken down, another was put up: " And the LORD said unto Satan,
Behold, all that he hath is]in thy power; only upon himself put not
forth thine hand..."

This is where the analogy breaks down. If we loose our separation, we
will be lost. God has brought us to where we are to join us to
Himself. Let no man tear down the things that God builds, or build
again those things that were taken down to make way for the Kingdom of
God. There awaits a very serious judgement for that person 

"For if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a
transgressor ." - Gal 2:18

But looking to another analogy, notice that the tabernacle was fenced
in by a holy separation. According to some, the shewbread, and laver
would be equally functional without the fence. Some see it as keeping
people out.. but ONE thing that the fence did was to frame the gate or
entrance to the tabernacle. In this sense, it did keep people out, for
it required all that entered to come by way of the eternally fixed
altar, always greeting the dawning light, and the sojourner with blood
and the priesthood of intermedation in one place ... where sinner
meets a holy God.

Does the tabernacle ever function without ALL the pieces intact and in
place? Not for a moment and while the earthly tabernacle was fading
from view, the Apostolic writer was still reminding the church:

"...as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the
tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things  according
to the  pattern  shewed to thee in the mount" (Heb 8:5)

Our standards (assuming they are not fashioned under law, but inspired
through lively impartation of the Holy Ghost through the ministry) are
as much protection for the world as they are for the church.

So many are trying to enter in some other way  (John 10:1), but the
curtains and fine linen of separation distinguish the truth dwelling
within, and set order to the vessels layout out within. 

(Ex 26:1  Moreover thou shalt make the tabernacle [with] ten  curtains
[of] fine twined  linen , and blue, and purple, and scarlet: [with]
cherubims of cunning work shalt thou make them)

The curtains were for
1.  A barrier of Protection preventing unlawful entry (notice that no
one was trying to "get out". The curtains were quite tall (about
8'9")... You could not peer in. The beauty was on the other side of
the gate. I am glad that Jesus is the door today. Yet, we are  the
location of the Kingdom of God. How does our appearance speak of the
Kingdom? Our bodies, the temple of the Holy Ghost, are what is seen
when some are looking for the door. If they come by your section of
the wall, are they aware there is a boundry there? Are they inclined
to seek the true entrance, or are we selling ourselves as "the way the
truth and the life ?" The boundaries must not speak evil of the truth
within, but neither can there be any mistake that the wall is but part
of a greater Kingdom.

2.  A line of demarcation. The things of God are generalized in
boundaries. There are 20 volumes contained in that statement, but the
principle is this: I know where something is by seeing its perimeters.
Here also, notice the curtain was bargerskin AND linen. The
demarcation was not designed to be appealing but enduring.

3. It identifies the way of approach, as mentioned above.


In the end, remember, preaching of holiness standards is easy when you
have a bunch yelling AMEN. The real value of it comes where there are
innocent and tender lambs that we really care about. It is THEN that
we need to consider the REAL value of standards, realizing that if we
dont get souls into the place of enduring love and safety, the whole
exercise was in vain.

Preaching holiness takes the Holy Ghost, Love, Patience, Prayer, a
prepared Mind, and some guts. I dont do as well as I would like. Any
other preachers like to address this ?

-mwb