Garments of the High Priest: Mitre and Golden Crown — John Stubbs

Now we welcome all in the Lord's precious name to the meeting tonight. We're certainly very glad to see all. Tonight is the last meeting as such on the garments for glory and beauty. Though we have indicated during the week past that we will be looking at Aaron in his white pure linen coat, which he wore on the day of atonement in Leviticus chapter 16.

That is the passage that we will read tomorrow. So we'll turn the chart around and look at the less colourful adornment. We'll hardly call it adornment, but the clothing of Aaron or the coat of Aaron as he went into the immediate presence of God, into the holiest of all to accomplish the great work of atonement.

A very significant chapter, Leviticus 16, and in a wonderful way it points to the atoning work of our Lord Jesus Christ. Now compared to last night, our reading is much shorter. Again it's in Exodus chapter 28, please.

Exodus chapter 28, and we're going to read from verse number 36. Verse 36 of Exodus chapter 28, please. Now we do trust that this short passage of Scripture in Exodus that we've read, that God indeed may bless it.

Aaron's Garments as Types of Christ's High Priesthood

Now so far looking at the garments of glory and beauty of Aaron, we have been thinking of various aspects of his priesthood. It points on to the glories and excellencies of our great high priest in heaven now, our blessed Lord Jesus Christ.

For example, the first item of clothing he would put on daily would be the coat, worn next to his skin, close to his body, kept close to his body by the unseen girdle, underneath the robe of blue. And we have suggested that the coat, the linen white coat, brings before us the sinlessness of our Lord's priesthood.

Underneath the robe of blue next, the girdle, the service of our Lord Jesus Christ as our great high priest. Then in this wonderful all of one piece, blue robe, the robe of the ephod, we have the sphere of our Lord's present high priestly ministry.

Not on earth, but in heaven. So we have the color of the sky, if you like, the heavenly color, the blue robe telling us where our Lord Jesus Christ functioned for us. It's in heaven and not on earth. Then in the ephod, we looked at the ephod also speaking of the manhood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

One thing I may have omitted to mention is that the word ephod means to get on or to get to oneself. And that in a way is exactly what happened when our Lord Jesus became man. He got as it were to himself manhood, true manhood, sinless manhood.

He became for the first time a real, true man, absolutely in his life, day by day, dependent upon God. Thank God this evening for the truth of the manhood, a real man, our blessed Lord Jesus Christ. That renders him suited and fit and able to function for us and intercede for us at God's right hand.

He has been here before. He has been a true man. This is why we suggested in the ephod speaking of the manhood of the Lord Jesus, his unique and lovely manhood, that really it brings before us the suitability or fitness of our Lord Jesus to be our great high priest.

The Breastplate and Christ's Love for His People

Then last night we thought of the subjects of Aaron's ministry. We have this in the four square breastplate on the heart of Aaron, speaking to us of the love of Christ, the affection or the compassion of Christ.

And we made a number of New Testament references to bring before us to refresh our hearts, I trust, with thoughts of the love of our Lord Jesus Christ. How wonderful we have a high priest, a great high priest in heaven right now.

And he serves us in undying love, unchanging eternal love. He serves us in love. So, there it is, the breastplate secured on the ephod. No way could it be separated from the ephod. And indeed, as we said also last night, the golden chains prevented it from going down.

And the blue lace held it firmly in place so it couldn't rise above the heart. And there we see the blue lace fastening the breastplate to the ephod. So, that's the subject of Aaron's priesthood. Pointing to the Lord Jesus, who intercedes for us as believers.

We have all the twelve tribes there. Looking at the breastplate stones on the breastplate, we can see the thought of individuality. Every individual tribe is there, even the weakest or the smallest. As well as the most illustrious like Judah.

There's individuality, there's variety, there's unity. All the twelve tribes are there, there is unity. And there is security too, security. We did mention last night, didn't we? That there's no way these stones could fall off or they didn't hold their place loosely.

And so there was no way that they could fall out. They were in their golden enclosures, absolutely secure. And that would tell us that our security in the Lord Jesus is divine. It is indeed heavenly and eternal.

Thank God that we're in Christ and we'll never lose our salvation. It's called in the Word of God, an eternal salvation. So, how interesting is the breastplate? But now, we come to this part, this item of the clothing for glory and beauty of Israel's first High Priest Aaron.

The Golden Crown and Christ's Millennial Kingship

Now, notice the last piece of adornment that Aaron put on was the mica and the golden crown. It's interesting, it's the last to be detailed. It's the last to be made. It's the last that he actually put on.

And we have a little hint and glimpse of the kingship of the Lord Jesus in this golden crown. It is called in the book of Leviticus chapter 8, a holy, a holy crown. What's the last thing just about that God is going to do with our Lord Jesus?

What's the last thing? Just about. He's going to bring in the Lord Jesus Christ into this world. There's going to be the second advent. And in the scene of the Lord's very rejection, God is going to vindicate Christ.

The nation of Israel will be restored. It's God's great prophetic program to establish Christ as King. He will be a universal King all over the world in the millennial reign. He will be a wise King, an ideal King, God's ideal King.

Oh yes. And Isaiah tells us in Isaiah 32, a King shall reign in righteousness. So not only is He a universal King, a wise King, a King of great discernment, He'll judge between the nations, He's a righteous King.

He will rule in absolute righteousness. He'll be the King of the Kings and the Lord of Lords. How wonderful to think of the destiny and view for the Lord Jesus. Of God's program for our Lord Jesus. He's going to be a universal King.

And He's going to reign, we believe from Scripture, a thousand years. Six times over in Revelation chapter 20, we read a thousand years, a thousand years, a thousand years. No amount of spiritualization of that can get rid of the fact there's going to be a literal Kingdom.

A spiritual Kingdom, yes. A righteous Kingdom, yes. But a literal Kingdom, a millennial Kingdom, the Kingdom of God will be established on earth. And God will rule a theocracy through our Lord Jesus Christ.

You see, the only one worthy to have, as it were, the crown of gold, the regal kingly crown upon His head is our Lord Jesus. Psalm 21 verse 3 says, put the crown, the golden crown on His head. Psalm 132 verse 18 says, God will clothe His enemies, the enemies of Christ the Messiah the King, with shame.

But His crown, listen to this, His crown shall flourish on His head. Whose head? The Messiah's head, our Lord Jesus Christ. No priest in Israel could ever become a King. But in our Lord Jesus Christ, and especially when He comes back to the earth to reign, He'll be a King.

Only in the Lord Jesus Christ do we see priesthood and kingship combined. Zechariah 6, we have a wonderful prophetic vision there, tells us a priest. As a priest, our Lord Jesus, the Messiah, Israel's Messiah, will sit upon His throne.

How wonderful. Priesthood and kingship combined so beautifully balanced, so perfectly, in our blessed Lord Jesus Christ. Interesting about the golden crown, the kingly crown, we could ask the question tonight, couldn't we?

Think of this. Why was the mitre made? It was made, beloved, so that this kingly crown of gold could be placed upon it. With the words engraved upon it, holiness unto the Lord. I said I'd got some up-to-date information.

In my several visits to the Temple Treasury in Jerusalem, while in Israel, I noticed in there, they had so many things to get ready for the Messiah, their Messiah to come. This is what they believe. I mentioned they've got the two silver trumpets, the altar of incense, all kinds of things to do with Judaism in the past, Israel's history, religiously.

And they have, too, the garments of the priest, the high priest. I didn't notice last time I was there, actually, but maybe they didn't have a golden crown. They might have had some substitute, I don't know.

Why do I say this? This is interesting. Because they have just finished, after working for about a year on this golden crown, they've just finished it. And they're quite excited about it, these Jewish rabbis or the Orthodox Jews, quite excited about it.

Do you know that that crown that they've made in Jerusalem, by skilful craftsmen, is worth over $30 ,000? It's made of 600 grams of gold. Very interesting. But the Lord will not need to wear them when He comes to the earth.

Israel's Rejection of Jesus and Future Recognition

In all their preparation for the Messiah, these dear Jews are blinded. They have no time for Jesus. If you mention Him in conversation, they will spit upon you. And how do these Orthodox Jewish people, odd rabbis, refer to our Lord Jesus?

In this way, the hangman, the hangman. What a terrible description of the Saviour, the hangman. A term indeed of humiliation. Yes, thank God, the veil is over the heart of Israel. One day, 2 Corinthians chapter 4, it will be taken away.

Their eyes will be opened to behold the beauties of the Lord. And that they made a terrible mistake, humanly speaking, in crucifying their very Messiah. That's interesting about the golden crown. In fact, I was told that, a little bit different to that, they've made it in such a way that it doesn't matter how small or how big the head of the priest may be, it'll fit the head.

Christ's Holiness and the Acceptance of Believers

But let us think of a typical value and nature of the mitre and its holy golden crown. To begin with, I see three things. Do you see them? I see what Christ is to God, the pure linen mitre. As God looks upon it, as the high priest moved in God's sanctuary, in the holy place, with his garments of glory and beauty, God would look upon it.

Christ is to God, His own perfect, pure, sinless Son. But I also see, not only that, I see what Christ is in Himself, pure. And then I see what Christ is to every believer to be found. Did you catch, or did you not understand, this very unusual statement at the end of verse number 38, in fact at the beginning?

It shall be upon Aaron's forehead that Aaron may bear the iniquity of the holy things. That's a strange expression. What a combination of words. That Aaron shall bear the iniquity of the holy things. What does that mean?

What does it mean? Our service is often stained with sin. Our prayers, our worship, our service, is not what it should be. But the intercessory work of our Lord Jesus as our high priest in heaven, renders what would be unacceptable because we are sinners, and sin clings to us, renders our service, our prayers, our worship, perfectly acceptable to God.

Aaron should bear the iniquity of the holy things. You think of all the holy things to do with the offerings, all the ritual, everything that God prescribed, called holy things. But the offerers and those who served in that old economy were sinners.

Sin, as I've said, clung to them. But thank God there was a wonderful, merciful provision to hallow those things, to make them perfectly acceptable to God, through the mediation, through the intercessory work, through the service and assistance of the high priest Aaron.

It's easy to apply that, isn't it? And I trust we're in the good of this tonight. That we have a great high priest in heaven who renders our prayers to God acceptable. Even our worship of Christ acceptable.

And our service acceptable. Otherwise, what difficulty there would be. What disappointment there would be. We would hardly know that we're in the presence of the Lord, or know or enjoy the reality and blessing of His presence.

Apart from the great high priestly ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ. Did you know, fellow believers, tonight there's a three-fold bearing in connection with Aaron the high priest? If you look at verse 28, he bears their names on the breastplate.

If you look at verse 30, he bears their problems. Aaron shall bear the judgment of the children of Israel upon his heart before the Lord. He bears their interests, he bears their problems and decisions and difficulties.

And thirdly, in verse 38, he bears their service. Aaron may bear the iniquity of the holy things. Isn't this suggestive? Isn't this most interesting, most fascinating? To think that Aaron, in his service, in a priestly way, bore the interests of the people of God.

Bore the judgments of the people of God. Even bore the service of the people of God. Is it not so, beloved, with our Lord Jesus Christ? Has he not made our interests his own? Has he not got such a deep interest and care about us, personally, individually?

Your interests are known to him. Your need is known to him. Your name is known to him. He never forgets you. What an uplifting truth this is. That just as Aaron, Israel's first high priest, bore the interests of the people, in his daily service of God with his garments of glory and beauty, so our Lord Jesus Christ.

There he is in heaven. Our interests are his own. You know, that's very sweet. That's certainly a consolation to me, and I hope it is to you, just to think that I'm upon the heart of the Saviour. He never forgets me.

He insistently cares for me. It's real. But he not only, like Aaron, bears our interests, he bears our judgments. It is, after all, the breastplate in his call of judgment. Do you have questions, unsettled?

Do you have problems? Even over the Word of God, you don't understand everything? Do you have difficulties and problems in your life? Come to the Lord Jesus. Be frank and free with him. Tell him all that's in your heart.

Come to the throne of grace, to use the language of Hebrews 4. And find grace to help in time of need. There were those who came before Solomon and opened their heart to him, just like the Queen of Sheba.

But what is Solomon's wisdom compared to the infinite, divine wisdom, eternal wisdom of our Lord Jesus Christ? Very often, as believers, when we have questions, when we're in difficulties, when we don't know what to do or what to think or say, we seldom see the need to get into the presence of the Lord himself.

And tell him all about it, and as Peter says, cast all your care upon him, for he cares for you. Maybe you've seen before, it's nice, isn't it, in 1 Peter 5 and verse 7. There's two different words for care there.

Casting all your anxious care upon him. For he affectionately cares for you. Isn't that lovely? There's a parallel to this, Psalm 55, that has to do with the tribulation time and the remnant, and how they'll be persecuted.

And have to live in the period of the Antichrist, the beast, who will have worldwide control. He won't even allow any man or woman to have a conscience about things. What does it say? Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he will sustain thee.

What a word they need, and will need, in the tribulation time. Difficult, though it is and will be, in the pressure and the suffering, cast thy burden upon the Lord, he'll sustain you. Some will be martyred for their faith and preaching the kingdom and saying the king is coming back.

Some will suffer death. Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he will sustain thee. Are we used to this, child of God? Are we in the habit of this? You see, our Lord is our great High Priest. He's not only in deceit for our interests, he's not only concerned about our interests, and as I've heard, he makes our interests his own.

Sweet, very blessing that, isn't it? But judgments, questions, problems. We may need an answer. We may need light shed upon the sacred page. There may be other things in our lives that we don't understand and we have a problem about.

You may not immediately get an answer. Maybe we'll have a test in time, but get into the habit. Telling the Lord all about it. These three bearings are interesting, aren't they? He bore their interests, he bore their judgments.

And here in this verse, verse 38, he bore the iniquity of their holy things. You see how we need the Lord Jesus Christ? You may not realize what's happening when you pray or when you come together as a Christian assembly to worship, but he's interceding.

We do it all through the medium of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is the object of worship. Christ is the subject of worship. The Holy Spirit is the power of worship. But it's the Lord Jesus Christ that inspires the worship and leads the worship and leads the singing and renders even that service so beautifully, perfectly acceptable to God.

Christ's Holiness as the Standard for Priesthood

If you don't take much from the ministry, even tonight, take away the thought of the threefold bearing. Three things Aaron bore in his service daily. And transfer those thoughts, what Aaron did, to something higher and greater, what our Lord Jesus as our great high priest does.

Yes, we do see, I trust we do, in the mitre, the white mitre, and the golden crown engraved upon it, holiness unto the Lord. Which brings me to the point. Passing on from the subject of our Lord's high Christian ministry, seen typified in the twelve stone, on the brush lip, we come now to the standard of his priesthood.

What's the standard of the high priestly ministry of Christ? Aaron had to be daily reminded with an external reminder on his foy, holiness unto the Lord. God would not allow him to forget that the standard in which he had to serve was holiness.

Our Lord Jesus Christ, when he was here, and even now in heaven, listen, never, never needs any external reminder to be holy. He is holy. Inherently holy. Eternally holy. Always holy. Absolutely holy.

He is the holy one with the right hand of God now. These are wonderful things, beloved, concerning our Lord Jesus. Put it another way, to what we've put it already, what Christ is to God, what Christ is in himself, and what Christ is to us, we cannot do without him, bearing the iniquity of the holy things, that they, not only the offerings and services, but the people of the nation, that they may be accepted.

Of Jehovah, of course. Coming back to the mitre and the golden crown. We have the mind of Christ, don't we? The mind of Christ. His divine mind, suggested in the head. The mitre on the head. His divine mind.

His pure mind. It says Philippians 2,. Let this mind be in you, which is also in Christ Jesus. He was obedient, even unto the death of the cross. Do you remember the exhortation in that context? Let this mind be in you, which is also in Christ Jesus.

What kind of mind was that? A humble mind. Thank God for the Lord's humility. An obedient mind. Thank God for the Lord's obedience. Says Paul in Philippians 2, verse 2. Be like-minded, having the same love.

Be of one accord and of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife or vain glory. Look not every man on his own things, but every man on the things of others. You see, if he was humble, God expects us, in a minor sense, to be humble.

If he was obedient, God expects us to be obedient. Listen. What are the elements and ingredients of assembly unity? Local church unity. These two things. Like-mindedness. Humility. Humility of soul and heart.

And attitude and disposition. And obedience. Implicitly. To the word of God. You cannot expect unity. Harmony in the assembly. If these two things are not to the fall. Think about it. So, when I look at the pure white mitre, and the golden kingly crown, that's the sense of the word crown there.

Holy crown, yes. In the Virgo's age. But, it's a kingly crown. What do we have? We have God's perfect attribute. What's that? Holiness. We have Christ's priestly assistance. He bears the iniquity of the holy things.

We have the believer's permanent acceptance. What does it say at the end of the little passage? To the mitre and the golden crown? That they may be accepted before the Lord. Isn't that lovely? The nation, I take it.

The people. Accepted before the Lord. That was wonderful in a way. But, not as wonderful, my friend, tonight. As our acceptance in Christ. Says Paul to the Ephesians, chapter 1. Accepted in the beloved.

Isn't that lovely? Isn't that precious and thrilling? Accepted in the beloved. That's our position. But, our acceptance in Christ goes further than that. And, I take it in 1 John 4, verse 17. Listen carefully.

Have you ever read the statement I'm going to refer to? Do you remember it? Listen. He is, even so are we in this world. Now, it's quite a while trying to understand that. Do you know what I'm going to tell you tonight?

If the Bible hadn't said what it does in 1 John 4, verse 17, I would never, never, never believe it. I think this is one of the most wonderful, precious truths. Touching the believer in all the word of God.

And, I'm not exaggerating. Listen to it again. As he is, not as he was, in the past on earth as man, as true, as wonderful. No, no. Not as he was. Listen. As he is, even so are we in this world. Now, if the verse had said, allow me to say it.

As he is, even so we're going to be. Oh, I could have taken that in. I could have appreciated that. As he is, even so I'm going to be. We believe that that's true. We will be where he is in heaven. We will be with him, blessed companions.

We will be like him, blessed conformity. We shall be satisfied when we are with his likeness, blessed contentment. How wonderful it will be to be with our Lord Jesus Christ. But John, in that first epistle of his, in chapter 4, verse 17, doesn't say, as he is, so we will be.

However true and it is true that is. But he says, as he is, so are we in this dark world. Will he catch it tonight? Will he be in the good of it tonight? Here is one greater than Aaron, our blessed Lord Jesus Christ.

As he is. What does that mean? As he is in heaven, says John, we have boldness with regard to the day of judgment. We do not have any anxious thoughts about the day of judgment. Our sins are gone, we're saved, we're in him.

We'll not have to stand before the great judgment day, the great white throne. We have boldness in view of that day. But he says, as he is, so are we in this world. As he is in heaven, how is he up there?

He is welcomed by the Father, so are we. How is he up there? He is near to the Father, so are we. As he is, he is dear to the Father, so are we. So near, near we couldn't be. For in the person of thy Son, the hymn writer said, we are a thrilling truth.

What a precious truth. Near, I see. Do you believe that? Do you enjoy that? Nearness to God through the Lord Jesus Christ. Yes, we have been brought nigh by the blood of Christ. Ephesians 2. But this is something even, in a sense, more wonderful.

As he is, welcomed, near, dear, accepted, so are we in this world. Let me say again, if that hadn't been written in the inspired and followable word of God, I never, never would have believed it. And let me say again, it's one of the great statements of Scripture.

One of the great doctrinal truths of Scripture, touching our eternal security, touching our acceptance in Christ. There used to be an old man, now long since gone to glory, at some time of the day, he would be heard to say, more than once during the day, at least once in a day, every day, he would say this.

Are you listening? John's nine monosyllables all in a row are my delight and comfort wherever I go. I like that. See that verse, 1 John 4 verse 70, that statement is in nine monosyllables. Look, I'm not giving you a grammar lesson.

Check it out. I like it. John's nine monosyllables all in a row are my delight and comfort. A wonderful beloved to be accepted in Christ. And to move daily in the appreciation of it. How close we have been brought to God.

How dear we are to God. How near we are to God. Welcomed in heaven. Able at all times through our Lord Jesus Christ to tread God's courts, to come inside the veil. Speak the great God of eternity as our Father through the Lord Jesus Christ.

These things are unique to Christianity. And we need dearly to thank God and bless God for these things. I hope you're glad you're saved. And on the way to heaven, I hope you appreciate your position.

Your position in Christ. I said recently that one of the hardest things as I move among the Lord's people is to try, myself too, first, to try to get a believer's condition into line with his position.

Or his state into line with his standing. You know exactly what I mean. Very often there's unbalance. Very often there's inconsistency in our lives between what we are in Christ positionally and what we are actually unconditionally.

Very often we're far removed from what God intends us to be. And we should sit up and be alert and awake. And be careful with our lives. Seek to please God and be in the good of these truths, especially acceptance.

The Mandate and Model of Practical Holiness

God's perfect attribute. Holiness. Aaron needed to be reminded of that. We too, we too, 1 Peter 1. What's the mandate for holiness? Be ye holy. What or who is the model of holiness? For I am holy, saith God.

What's the motive for holiness? For as much as we have been redeemed, yes, by precious blood, not with silver and gold. Past the time of your sojourn in here in fear, saith Peter. That's the mark of holiness.

The model. The mandate, the command. Be ye holy. It's binding upon us as ever it was, the day. The model, the mandate. And the mark, reverential fear for God. Peter couldn't afford to make a mistake in his daily ministry.

He had to attend to it very conscientiously and responsibly. Attending to himself, making sure that everything was right as God desired it. What about the need of practical holiness in our lives? I remember reading about a little girl in a big cathedral with her aunt in London, I think it was, England anyway.

I don't know why this comes to mind. For what it's worth, we'll illustrate the point. And she looked up, the little girl of about nine, at the stained glass windows and the people on them. She said to her aunt, Who are these people, auntie, on these windows?

Oh, my dear, they're the saints, the saints. Do you know what she replied? Oh, now I know, auntie, what saints are. They are those that let the light shine through. See, the sun was streaming through the windows.

She wasn't far from the truth. Certainly the light of heaven should be upon our consciences, our countenances. The light of heaven should shine out from us. We are a heavenly people after all. Think of God's perfect attribute, holiness.

Holiness unto the Lord engraved upon the golden plate, the kingly crown. God is no less holy than he was at Sinai or on the day of Pentecost. He's inflexible, unchanging in his holiness. Just please remember that.

Expect us to be holy. It's perfect, yes. But thank God for the priestly assistance of our Lord Jesus, without which we could not be accepted before God in prayer or worship or service or anything to do with our relationships to God.

We are sinners. Even in our holiest moments, we are sinners. Sin affects us, clings to us. And God knows that. That's why we need a high priest in the person of our Lord Jesus at the right hand of God.

But what about not only his perfect attribute, his priestly assistance, but for the believer. What is the Lord Jesus Christ towards the believer? We see the believer's permanent acceptance. It's that they, not just the offerings I take, but the people of the nation, remember that, that they may be accepted.

Let us glory in our acceptance in Christ. Far, far greater acceptance than ever Israel could have enjoyed, or even in the future when they're restored in their righteous nation. The church will be near and have a unique place as the bride to God and to Christ.

And even Israel will marvel at this relationship, this unique relationship between the church, redeemed by blood, and Christ, the heavenly bridegroom. The dignity, the unique position of the bride will be preserved throughout the whole of the millennial reign of Christ.

And also in the unending day of God, when time will be no more. We're part of the bride of Christ, we have a glorious future, as well as a present acceptance. Can you not see all these things and more typified in this last item of peace?

Of adornment. The crown in adornment, the mitre, the golden kingly crown. Speaking not only of the priesthood of our Lord Jesus Christ, but his kingship. May I put it, may I put it just another way? Still, we're only touching, to use the example, or use the expression, thinking of the garments.

We're only touching, beloved, the hem of his garment. There's a fullness about Christ, a sufficiency, a wonder about the Lord Jesus. I trust we'll get to know him more every day. And I trust every day is more precious to us than it was the day before, and very real too.

Head Coverings, Subjection, and Christ's Sovereignty

It might be worth saying, the pure linen mitre. The sons of priests, the priesthood, had bonnets. Not a mitre, quite the same way. They certainly didn't have a crown of gold on the forefront. As Aaron had, distinguishing with his garments for glory and beauty, as Israel's only high priest.

A covering on the head of a man, or a woman in particular, a covering usually suggests the thought of subjection. That's why a sister in an assembly of God, a church of God, gathered to the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, has to have a head covering on her head.

Her hair is not sufficient, that's natural. But artificially, she's to have a hat or a veil, a covering on the head. Why? Because of the angels. Go back to Genesis and Creation and Adam and Eve before the fall of man.

Angels were present, and as they looked down upon Adam and Eve, they saw God's order. A woman with her long hair, and other things. We can't go into detail about that. But look, 1 Corinthians 11 is not cultural.

It's divine order. That's why Paul goes right back to Creation to prove this. But at any rate, I just refer to the passage about the head covering because it suggests the subjection of the sister to man, and man is in subjection with no head covering to Christ, and Christ is subject to God.

That subjection doesn't imply inferiority. Don't ever have the idea, dear sister, because you wear a head covering in the assembly gathering that you are inferior to the brethren. No! A thousand times no.

That's not according to the Scripture. When we think of the subjection of Christ to God, is there any idea in that of inferiority? Is Christ inferior to God? No! You fill a very important role, sister, in the assembly.

I didn't intend to go along this line, but it is connected. So when I look at the head covering, the miter of Aaron, I think of the subjection of Christ. Then when I think of the golden kingly crown, I think of the sovereignty of Christ, the sovereignty of Christ, over all the world when he will reign.

But when I think of the high priest bearing the iniquity of the holy things and think of the Lord Jesus in that way typified, I see the service of Christ towards his believing people, his unending, his much needed.

We cannot do without his high priestly mediation and ministry for us. Is that not clear? Go away from these meetings, especially tonight, with a greater appreciation than Christ you had at the beginning, even of this meeting, of Christ.

And how much you need him in heaven at the right hand of God. His subjection to God is seen in the miter. His sovereignty over the world, his kingly crown, is seen in that golden holy crown, held perfectly in place by the blue lace for the miter.

But Christ's service towards us as believers is absolutely necessary. And we are to value it. Is there more? Oh, there's a few more things. Another preacher could come along next week and give you a nice outline or aspects that I never thought about.

That's the word of God, isn't it? But I've tried to exalt the Saviour. I've tried to bring before you the precious aspects of the personal work of our great high priest in heaven, our Lord Jesus. I've tried to bring these things into line in the New Testament to confirm our typical view of these garments.

The White Coat and the Day of Atonement

Tomorrow it will be no less significant. We'll turn that chart around and we will look at that plain white coat that Aaron will have and take in with him and wear on the great critical day of atonement upon which all the sacrifices and service of Israel absolutely depended.