Permanently Engraved

It should have become very apparent to each of us that every single piece of the instructions, the entirety of God's message to Moses is interwoven and interconnected.

We began with the tabernacle and each piece of the tabernacle that we have studied and each piece of the priestly clothing that scripture defines for us are described and come together to demonstrate the precise nature by which

God revealed himself to the Israelites and how he revealed himself to us and continually shows us his redemptive plan pointing us forward to Christ.

Briefly, you may recall last week that as we began this conversation in earnest and talked about the

Afad, one of the statements that we find in earlier in chapter 28 is that the clothing that was to be made for the priest and more specifically for the high priest was to be done and manufactured for glory and for beauty.

Now, the reason that it is important that we continually remind ourselves of certain things such as this is because, well, as creatures, as people who are, although we are justified, we are still yet sinners.

And as sinners, it is easy at times for us to become distracted and bored.

We often find as we read passages that we move from a position of reading them, and this tends to happen when it's a passage we don't understand or we think is just simply too repetitive, and so we move from a practice of reading the passage to skimming through the passage to get through the material so that we can check off something on our to -do list for today versus digging in and studying and reading for the purposes of understanding the purpose of the text that God has placed before us.

We seem to think that it is necessary and that we are unnecessary and that we have seen all we need to see, and so we move from here to a place where we think it's more exciting and maybe even more easy for us to comprehend.

Oftentimes, as we go through this exercise, it results in the making of excuses, especially making excuses to ourselves.

Sometimes we make excuses to other people when they are asking us about our Bible reading and trying to help us be accountable, but most of the time, we have these excuses that we use and we use them internally, and so we even get to the point where we become biblical in our excuses.

We point to the text in the Word that talks about how some things are just beyond our comprehension, and so we become very close friends with those texts, and we want to bring them out and show them to everyone and say, listen, this is why

I miss over it or don't continue reading it because I'm never going to understand it, and so we skip to things that we think are easier.

For example, most folks would much rather read about Daniel in the lion's den or David confronting

Goliath than they would to read through the tabernacle in the priestly clothing or even the genealogies that we find in Scripture, and they do so in a manner because they think that they understand what the passage is teaching them, but the problem is that by doing this, they begin with the wrong frame of reference or the wrong standard because they begin from here instead of in the beginning, and so as we look at the

Word of God, the standard by which we determine the meaning of every text, everything in our life, we see that God's Word is built piece by piece, word by word, defining for us who

God is, demonstrating for us how He works, and continually reminding us that He is

God alone, that He is holy, and that all things exist for His glory.

To understand these truths, however, to grasp these realities, we have to be willing to put forth the effort.

One of the reasons that easy -believism is such a popular truth is because it demands nothing from the individual.

What we assure, Scripture is very clear, that it is by faith alone, in Christ alone, that we are saved.

However, what Scripture teaches us beyond that point is that we have a responsibility that comes out of that salvation.

Paul, writing to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2, verse 15, said, Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.

Now, I want you to understand that this is not Paul saying that we should have full and complete knowledge of everything, that we will understand every jot and tittle.

What he is saying is that we are to be diligent workmen, that we are to seek understanding.

Therefore, since we are called to be workmen, let us labor faithfully in His word as we continue this morning to know the glory and the beauty of the high priestly clothing.

Our text today, and actually today and next week, comes from Exodus chapter 28, verses 15 through 30.

The reason we're going to split this up into two weeks is because at the very end of this passage, in verse 30, we are introduced to two objects that quite honestly deserve and require their own amount of time.

So this morning, we will focus on the breast piece, and next week, we will talk about the umen and the thumen, the urem and the thumen.

So if you will, please rise as we read the infallible, complete, and authoritative, sufficient word of the living

God. We will begin again in Exodus chapter 28, the 15th, and following to verse 30.

You shall make a breast piece of judgment, the work of a skillful designer.

Like the work of you shall make it of gold, of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen, you shall make it.

It shall be square, having been folded double, a span in length and a span in width.

You shall mount on it four rows of stones. The first row shall be a row of ruby, topaz, and emerald.

The second row, a turquoise, a sapphire, and a diamond. In the third row, a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst.

In the fourth row, a barrel, and an onyx, and a jasper. They shall be set in gold settings.

The stones shall be according to the names of the sons of Israel, twelve. According to their names, they shall be like the engravings of a signet, each according to his name for the twelve tribes.

You shall make on the breast piece chains of a twisted work of cords in pure gold.

You shall make on the breast piece two rings of gold, and you shall put two rings on the two ends of the breast piece.

You shall put two cords of gold on the two rings of the ends of the breast piece.

You shall put the two ends of the two cords on the two filigree settings, and you shall put them on the shoulder pieces of the afod at the front of it.

You shall make two rings of gold and shall place them on the two ends of the breast piece on the edge of it which is toward the inner side of the afod.

You shall make two rings of gold and put them on the bottom of the shoulder pieces of the afad on the front of it close to the place where it is joined above the skillfully woven band of the afad.

They shall bind the breastpiece by its rings to the rings of the afad with a blue cord, so that it will be on the skillfully woven band of the afad.

And that the breastplate, breastpiece, will not come loose from the afad.

Aaron shall carry the names of the sons of Israel in the breastpiece of judgment over his heart when he comes into the holy place for a remembrance before Yahweh continually.

You shall put in the breastpiece of judgment the Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be over Aaron's heart when he comes in before Yahweh.

And Aaron shall carry the judgment of the sons of Israel over his heart before Yahweh continually.

Father, again our heart is drawn out in thankfulness for your grace, for the gift of Christ, for the work of the

Holy Spirit. Father, we are reminded of your grace and mercy.

We contemplate eternity in your presence. We see over and over again in our lives the continued provision that you have made.

Father, we acknowledge the fact that you and you alone have raised us from death to newness of life.

Lord, it is our desire not to seek the favor of men, for the favor of men fades and is fleeting.

Father, your favor is eternal. May we serve you in whatever ways that you require of us, regardless of the trials, of persecutions, of tribulations that rise against us.

Lord, may we always remember that your grace is sufficient for our lives.

Lord, that we acknowledge you in all things, glorify you in all things, and desire nothing more than to make your way our way.

Lord, we pray that you in Christ settle us, give us assurance and certainty that we are his and he is ours, and that our hearts will be filled with joy and with peace.

Lord, we ask all of these things in the blessed name of Jesus Christ. Amen. You may recall as we began our text last week that there was a list of priestly clothing given to us in verse 4 of Exodus 28.

In that list, the first item that is mentioned in regards to the clothing that he commands to be constructed is the breast piece.

Verse 4 says, These are the garments which they shall make, a breast piece, and then a fod, and a robe, and a tunic, of checkered work, a turban, and a sash.

And they shall make holy garments for Aaron, your brother and his sons, in order for him to minister to me as priest.

The fact that the breast piece is the very first item on the list actually reminds us of the significance of this particular article of clothing.

Now, to be sure, every article, every piece is important, but in all reality, these pieces serve as a backdrop or as an accentuation to this specific piece, to this breast piece.

As you read, or as we read, hopefully you noted that the colors of this breast piece were to, again, be the same colors that we have continued to see as we worked our way through the tabernacle, through the afod of the priestly clothing.

This blue, and scarlet, and purple, and crimson, and white.

Each time we have seen this same arrangement. Again, reminding us continually of this unification between the tabernacle and the priesthood, and all of these things pointing us to Christ.

The celestial blue, again, reminding us of his heavenly origins.

The royal purple, that reminds us of his sovereign kingship overall.

The bloody crimson, reminding us of his precious blood spilt on the cross for the sins of his people.

And last, but certainly by no means least, the pure white linen, reminding us of his purity and his perfection, both as truly

God and as truly man. The purity and the perfection that enabled him to grant us the righteousness that is required for us, that ensures our entry into the presence of the almighty, that allows us access behind the veil, into the holy of holies, as the people of God, redeemed for the glory of God, and for our good.

Oftentimes, we will hear this breast piece referred to as a breastplate, which is a little bit misleading in that this is not a piece of armor.

It was not designed to protect the chest of the high priest.

It was fabricated of cloth, and as something fabricated of cloth, it was not made of metal.

It was not going to offer very much in the way of protection. You may recall that last week, as we were studying the

Afad, we briefly mentioned that the Afad and the breastplate, or breast piece, in most places in Scripture are listed as one singular unit.

The breast piece is described as being a square pouch. It's not 100 % clear from just a basic read of the text, but the function of the breast piece was dual.

It would serve as what we'll talk about today, but it also served as a pouch that the Urim and the

Thummim were carried in. It was a nine -inch, roughly square pouch.

The measurement that we have used here is a span, and a span for them was half a cubit, or roughly the distance between the tip of your thumb and the tip of your pinky when your hands are sprayed out like this.

It would rest on the chest of the high priest.

As it was fabricated, it would be attached to the Afad in such a way that it would not be able to come off easily.

Rings were fabricated, made of solid gold, attached with gold chains that ran up to the filigreed shoulder settings that we talked about last week that were on the

Afad. It attached by chain from the corners or from the shoulders of the priest down to the corners of the breast piece.

Then behind it, there were another set of rings on the bottom and a set of rings on the

Afad itself. Then through those rings were passed a blue cord that bound it securely.

So securely, in fact, that in Exodus 28, we see that it says the breast piece will not come loose from the

Afad. This demonstrates again to us that this is a singular unit, the

Afad and the breast piece, along with the onyx stones all function as one piece.

As we'll see next week, this is extrapolated out over all of Scripture as we see this used multiple times in the life of history, in the life of the

Israelites. As usual, as we look through what is being described for us, the instructions that are being given to us, this is a type that is given here as we see, and we talk about this over and over again, but every jot and tittle of Scripture is important.

It's necessary. It's there. It carries weight. It carries meaning. The breast piece is certainly not merely a simple piece of clothing to be worn.

In fact, within the fabrication and the instructions regarding this piece are magnificent realities.

To behold. A .W. Pink writing a summary is helpful to us as he writes this.

There are at least five things which serve as guides to help us ascertain the distinctive typical meaning of this part of the high priest's dress.

What Pink is saying here is there are five things that begin to point us in the direction to understand what this is in its entirety.

The reality is, as we'll see next week as we talk about the second half of this, we cannot fully fathom the depths, but there is a great amount that we do know and do understand.

First, its name. It is called the breastplate of judgment or breast piece of judgment, verse 15.

Second, the 12 gems which are set upon it, which are engraved with the names of Israel's 12 tribes.

Third, it is inseparable from the ephod that the breast piece be not loose from the ephod, verse 28.

Fourth, the place where the breastplate was worn. It was upon the high priest's heart.

And fifth, the mysterious urim and thumen which were placed in it.

Now, next week we will see that the first and the fifth item or thing that is on Pink's list here are intricately related.

That the reason it's called the breast piece of judgment has to do primarily with the urim and thumen.

So we will tackle all of that next week. But that leaves us with three additional things that we still need to discuss.

The gemstones. The fact that it is inseparable from the ephod.

And finally, the location that the breast piece inhabits.

So as we read the text, it should become abundantly clear.

As we study this, even if it's just a cursory study, as we look at the detail which is given here in this passage, one of the things that first just jumps off of the page, to me at least, is that over and over again in this passage.

Now, to be sure, you need to be reminded that God has already told Moses multiple times to make exactly what he's telling him and showing him.

Remember as he was demonstrating or giving him the instructions for the tabernacle, he repeatedly tells him to build it just as you have seen on the mountain.

So we know that these things are commands of God. Just like in the instructions regarding the creation of the ephod.

We know that it is a command of God. But look at how God works when he comes to the breast piece.

Note the repetitive nature which we run into the fact that this is a command.

If you look here, verse 15, you shall. Verse 16, it shall.

Verse 17, you shall. Verse 20, they shall. 21, the stones shall.

22, you shall. 23, you shall. 24, you shall. You get my picture? There is an innate command that has been given by God.

But in this particular piece, God is very, just hammering the fact home to Moses that this thing is to be built with precision.

That it is to be done exactly like he describes.

As we look at the text, it also becomes very obvious, very quick, that these 12 stones that are set on the breast piece are the central focus of what's happening with the piece.

If you would just picture, just for a moment, just try and see this high priest standing before you.

A man dressed predominantly in white except from his shoulders to his thigh.

In that area he would have these majestic colors of blue and purple and crimson and white mixed in and gold fills the area.

And in the midst of all of this, there sits these 12 precious stones that are placed over the heart of the high priest.

That as he went about his priestly duties, he carried those stones, bearing them on his heart, if you will, before our

God. You may recall last week as we talked about the two onyx stones that sat on the shoulders, that they were engraved with the names of the sons of Israel.

And that they were positioned on the shoulders, a place of strength and support. Here we have on the breast piece 12 stones, each one carrying a singular name of a son of Israel, each one placed in a position of affection.

And so just as it is with the sons of Israel, so it is with all of God's people,

Christ, our high priest, bearing on his heart, sustaining and presenting before God his blood vault people.

As we continue studying the text that surround the clothing of the high priest, there's a theme that we must be aware of.

That continually we are brought back to the fact that all of this is being done before God or in the presence of God.

Now here's a place where we need to spend some time and develop our understanding.

And the reason I say that is because in our traditional church language, in just the language of the church in general, it is not uncommon to hear the term in God's presence.

We talk about being in the presence of God all the time. However, what I find in my life, and I would imagine that in many of our lives, we find that our lives are filled with things that we talk about on a daily basis, that we interact with on a daily basis, that we absolutely 100 % take for granted.

And I would argue that the presence of God is one of those things.

Now I want to be careful here because I want to articulate this in a way that it helps, that it heightens, that we understand how important this is in our life.

Listen, we all have things, right? We have family, we have friends, we have food, we have water, we have clothing, we have shelter.

Yet how often do we take these things for granted?

It's interesting. Lisa and I have commented over the years as lights have gone off, right?

And I'm old enough that there's been a massive change in how all that worked. When I was a kid, you start hearing a thunderstorm, everybody was quiet.

And you were told to be quiet. I don't know why, but we were told to be quiet. And over time, that kind of slipped away and you just dealt with it.

It was part of life. Lights go out, it's okay, it's no big deal. Now when the lights go out, we are concerned with how we're going to charge our phones, how we're going to keep the

Internet running, how we're going to turn our TV on. I remember back then,

I think it was Matthew or the storm the year before Matthew, we were out for like a week. And my biggest concern was getting a cup of coffee because the generator wouldn't run the

Keurig and keep the refrigerator running at the same time. All of these things are things that we take for granted on a day in and day out basis.

However, I would argue that there is one thing that even as the people of God, that we take for granted way more than we do anything else.

And that is the gift of the continual presence in the life of a believer of the

Holy Spirit. Let me see if I can put this in a picture that you would understand.

Take the Israelites. The Israelites were a people who had been called out of the land, brought to where they were placed in slavery for 400 years, brought out of slavery, brought out of bondage, out of Egypt.

And as they were brought out, they were given a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night to guide them.

Now, in a sense, God was ever present with them in this manner.

But he was unapproachable. They could not enter into his presence.

They could not simply bow their heads and go to him in prayer.

It was only through the high priest, only through an intermediary, that they could enter into the presence of God.

And you need to understand that even then, they weren't physically entering. The high priest was entering on their behalf.

He was their representative, just as Christ, as our representative, which allows us to now enter and have a personal conversation with God.

The Holy Spirit to indwell the life of a believer, to give us the ability to be obedient.

This is why the names being engraved on the stones was such a big deal.

Because here's what happened. This gave them personal representation in front of God.

It began with the shoulders, the place of strength, where all 12 tribes were listed together, right?

Two groups, six on each shoulder. Then we come to the chest, and on the chest, we have each individual tribe listed.

Douglas Stewart writes it this way, already the reader is aware that the two onyx shoulder stones of the

Aphod held the engraved names of the 12 tribes, six to a shoulder stone. Now the reader learns that there would be yet another means of representing those 12 tribes.

This time, by 12 individual precious stones, one for each tribe, with the name of a single tribe engraved on a single stone.

By means of the combination of the shoulder stones and of the breast piece stones, the Israelite tribes were represented both as groups and individually by the high priest.

In that way, both the entire family and the individual families were listed before God at all times of worship.

He goes on to explain that if you follow this psychologically to its logical conclusion, what it ultimately speaks of is not just the entirety of Israel being presented to God, not just the families of Israel being presented to God, but each individual

Israelite being represented. Not only were they represented, but if you study the text regarding the stones, what you will see is that they were securely held.

I want you to note for just a second the attention to detail that we find in this passage regarding attaching the breast piece to the afad.

There are, if you will count, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven verses dedicated to attaching this piece to the other piece to ensure, as verse 28 concludes, that it will not come loose from the afad.

On top of this, if you go back up to verse 20 and you look at the very end of verse 20, you read these words.

They shall be set in gold settings. Now, this is the 12 stones.

The word that we translate settings there can also be translated as an enclosure or enclosing, meaning that they were not just attached.

They literally were enclosed in such a way that they were securely held and could not be separated from it.

Now, why this absolutely demonstrates the continual presence of each individual

Israelite in the presence of God, it serves us today as a type, because remember, we're not

Israel, not this Israel, right? And so the type that it serves, the demonstration that it serves points us to the eternal security of the individual believer upheld in the presence of the

Father on the shoulders and in the heart of the Son. A .W.

Pink is helpful again. Their position, meaning the Israelites, their position or standing before God was neither affected nor altered by their changing circumstances, infirmities, or sins.

Wherever Aaron went into the holy place, there on his heart were the names of all of God's people, emphasizing this truth of security.

Note carefully how their names were not simply written upon so that their erasure was possible, but engraved into the stones, still emphasizing the same thought.

Notice also how each jewel was secured to the breastplate in a golden setting that they shall be set in gold in their enclosings.

That was the early translation. Thus it was impossible for them to slip out of their place or for any one of them to be lost.

Note, too, the provision made for firmly fixing in place the breastpiece itself.

This is shown in verses 21 through 28, fastened by chains at the ends of a wreathed work of pure gold, and these were passed through two rings of gold on their ends of the breastpiece.

Thus the people of God, as represented by their names, were literally chained to their high priest.

You and I, as a people of God, are literally chained to our great high priest.

If you don't get anything else today that I say, notice the magnificent and wonderful precious gift that we have been given.

To know that we are bound eternally before the Father, not by anything that we have done or will do, but by the work of Christ.

Listen, the more that we see this, the more that we understand this, the less ordinary it will become and the more wonder, awe, amazement we will have as we recognize what it truly means to be in the presence of Almighty God.

But we cannot help but to also be captivated for a few moments by the listings of the stones that are used.

In the original text, in the original language, it's interesting to note, we cannot, with 100 % accuracy, identify each of these stones or the colors.

Now, you'll note that the LSB that we read today gave us a list of stones.

Most of those stones are probably familiar to you. But that is not a 100 % absolute.

That's a best guess. But what's also interesting is that this listing is not just arbitrary.

In fact, as we read this listing, hopefully it calls to mind some other listings.

First, in Ezekiel 28, verse 13. Ezekiel writes, you were in Eden, the garden of God.

Now, we all remember where Eden was, right? Hopefully. We all know where Eden was, right?

Y 'all wait. Okay. We all know what Eden was. Ezekiel is writing to the people of God saying, listen, you weren't there.

Every precious stone was your covering. Listen to this list. The ruby, the turpaz, and the diamond.

The beryl, the onyx, and the jasper. The lapis lazuli, the turquoise, and the emerald.

And with the gold, the workmanship of your settings and sockets was in you on the day that you were created.

They were prepared. Then we go, so that's one end, right?

The garden of Eden is on one end. I understand Ezekiel's in the middle, but he's talking about the garden of Eden, which is on one end of Scripture.

We go all the way to the other end of Scripture and we read the following in Revelation 21, verses 19 and 20 regarding New Jerusalem.

The foundation stones of the city wall were adorned with every kind of precious stone.

The first foundation stone was jasper. The second, sapphire. The third, chalcedony.

The fourth, emerald. The fifth, sardonyx. The sixth, sardis. The seventh, chrysolite. The eighth, beryl.

The ninth, turpaz. The tenth, chrysophage. The eleventh, jacent. The twelfth, amethyst.

Philip Rykin is helpful here. He says nearly all the gemstones were found in the garden of Eden and we will see them again in heaven where they decorate the foundations of God's city.

This is a hint that what God was doing with Israel at the tabernacle was a part of his plan for the world, a plan that stretches from creation to glory.

These gemstones represented the people of God. They were 12 stones, one for each of the 12 tribes of Israel, each stone engraved with the name of a tribe.

This was a vivid reminder of what God said when his people first arrived at Mount Sinai.

Exodus 19, verse 5, Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession.

Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.

You and I sitting here today are that kingdom of priests. We are that holy nation.

We are the treasured possession that is identified. God's promise was displayed in the presence of Israel on the breast piece.

As the high priest went about his sacred duties, he represented the holy nation of God's people, a kingdom of priests.

By their inscriptions, the ruby, the topaz, the emerald, the other stones signified that these people were

God's treasure. The gemstones declared that Israel was precious unto God.

Now I don't know how many of you have ever had the privilege of seeing a raw, uncut gemstone in person or a picture.

But they are not found in nature in the dazzlingly brilliant way in which we present them.

They are, if you will, literally rough. In fact, diamonds and gemstones that are not cut, polished, are said to be in the rough.

There is nothing natural in the gem that makes it worthy without something intervening, much as there is nothing in the natural state of humanity that makes it worthy without the intervention of Christ.

Both the gem and the human, apart from the choosing of God, are nothing spectacular or noteworthy.

The fact is that the worthiness and excellency, or shall we say righteousness, that is imputed to both the gemstone through the process of cutting and polishing and the believer through grace by faith in the finished work of Christ is what makes it worthy in the eyes of God.

Theologian C. H. Bright notes, concerning each stone has been well said. Much, very much of its beauty depends upon its cutting, cut skillfully so as to reflect the rays of light from many sides.

It sparkles with a beauty quite unknown to its natural condition. Thus, too, with believers.

Undoubtedly, each one has some characteristic difference, but only as the divine hand in much patience and skill cuts and polishes the stone to catch and discover the colors of the divine light which illuminates it doth it appear beautiful.

Its beauty is not its own, but it has been endowed with the capacity to appreciate and reflect the beauty of him who is light and love.

And it is to reflect the beauties of the perfect one that we have been chosen.

That in the ages to come, he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness towards us through Christ Jesus.

So when that day of manifestation of the glory of his grace comes, the nations shall walk in his light.

These gems residing on this breast piece, as we have already noted, are secured in a position that was over the heart.

But for just a couple of moments, we need to dive into that statement just a little deeper.

The reason we need to dive into that statement just a little deeper is if you'll notice in verses 29 and 30, the phrase over his heart is repeated three times.

Now, we have not made a secret of announcing to you that any time something in scripture is repeated three times, it is being elevated to a status that is noteworthy.

And so it requires a little more than a cursory examination.

Once again, A .W. Pink is helpful. This is what he writes.

Lovely type was this of our Redeemer in his present heavenly ministry, exercising his power to uphold his poor people in his deep, tender, unchangeable love, embracing them, binding them close to his heart, and presenting them to the

Father in the glory and preciousness of the splendor with which he is invested. This is precious, and oftentimes we need to refresh ourselves by considering thus the apostle and high priest of our confession.

There are times when we forget that we have one on high whom in grace cares for and watches over those who are treading the path of faith he once trod here on earth.

And there are times when, though we remember this, we limit either his love or his power.

Precious then it is to be thus reminded that according to what he can do, his love makes us willing to do.

And according to what his affection is, he hath strength to carry out what it dictates.

It is beautiful to note in the Song of Solomon how the bride says to her beloved, Set me as a seal upon thy heart and a seal upon thine arm.

Let my name be engraven deeply in thine heart, where love is strong as death, which many waters cannot quench and the floods of the

Almighty have not drowned. And let my name be also graven in the seed of thy power, that I may be upheld from sin and folly, that I may not be like the adulterer and the adulteress who seek the friendship of the world.

If such a prayer suited the desires of an earthly people, how much more may this petition express the devotion and the longings of Christ's heavenly people.

Finally, this brings us to the one piece that we have only briefly mentioned.

And that is the blue cord which binds the breastpiece to the ephod. As you'll recall, blue is the heavenly color.

But this blue cord that brings together the ephod and the breastpiece completes the type that is set before us.

It demonstrates how we are bound to Him. Not by any action of our own, but by His strength, by His might.

He has bound us to Himself with the cords of an everlasting love, making us secure in a place close to His heart.

Anyone who wants to be loved with this kind of love should seek Christ as Savior and Lord, requesting the very words of Solomon, that we are placed like a seal over His heart.

The names of the people of God are born upon the heart of the priest.

We are before God in all acceptance of Christ. When God looks upon the great high priest,

He beholds the people upon His heart. So as we wind to a close this morning, we are and have been once again confronted with the depth, the beauty, and the significance of the clothing of the high priest, specifically the breastpiece.

Every element of the breastpiece, the material, the color, the stones, the engravings, the fastenings, all of them have been divinely designed to reveal to us something of the nature of our

God and His redemptive work in Christ.

The instructions given with such precision to Moses are not arbitrary details that we should skim over.

They are pointing us to the glory of God's plan that has been meticulously woven throughout all of Scripture, throughout all of history, and culminate in the person and work of Christ, our great high priest.

It is no small thing that the aphod and the breastpiece were so tightly connected, that it was so securely fastened.

If there is one thing that we should come away, again, it is this eternal security that we have, not because of anything we have done, but because in Christ we are bound over the heart of our great high priest.

How often do we forget this glorious reality? How often do we struggle with doubts, with fears, questioning?

This is the reminder. This is the beauty that we are held together. Listen, we are in the right -hand side of the book.

We are all the way at the beginning of the left -hand side of the book, and already God is talking about how we are securely fastened and held forever.

So the question is, do you live as one who is securely held?

Do you rest in the assurance that your name is not merely written, but engraved upon his heart?

Or are you still striving in your own strength as if your security in him is something that ebbs and flows with your failures and your successes?

Hopefully you recall a few minutes ago I quoted from one of the writers that talked about how regardless of the position of the individual, it didn't have anything to do with what they were doing or where they were at or how they were behaving.

It was all based on Aaron's representation in the front of God. For us, it is

Christ's representation in front of God, and there is no better representation than the perfection.

As we think about all of these pieces, the gemstones, each one individually cut, each one individually chosen, each one individually polished and shaped and set in gold.

They were not valuable in and of themselves, but they were made precious by the craftsman's skill just like us, uncut, rough, marred by sin, and unworthy of divine favor.

Yet in Christ we are shaped, refined, and made into treasures in the presence of God.

Are you truly submitting yourself to the refining hand of the master craftsman? Are you submitting to his word, allowing it to shape you, to sanctify you so that you might more fully reflect his glory?

Think of the breastpiece resting over the heart of the high priest, not merely a decoration.

It is not merely a decoration. It is a declaration, a declaration of love.

God's people aren't merely carried indifferently or mechanically by their mediator.

They are born on his heart in the place of deepest affection.

Christ, in his love for us, has taken our sin upon himself, interceding for us, representing us before the

Father, securing our place in his eternal kingdom. There's nothing haphazard about it.

There's nothing that's left up to chance or arbitration. There's nothing that we can screw up because it is him and him alone.

Finally, that blue cord binding us, reminding us that we are not bound to Christ by our strength or our faithfulness but by his.

Listen, it was his righteousness, his obedience, his faithfulness, his righteousness, his love that keeps us in him.

It's none of these things of ours. The world may shake. Our hearts will falter. Our faithfulness will come and go.

Our obedience will ebb and flow and be really good and really bad, but our position does not change because of that.

So when we look at this, what is our response? Oh, what a beautiful way to close out a sermon because we're going to close the message out this morning with the same way we began our service today because our response is worship.

Our response to this is to worship, to adore our great high priest who carries us in his heart before the

Father, to know and to trust that we are eternally secure in him, to submit, allowing him to shape us, to refine us as he sees fit, not as we see fit, to rejoice.

Listen to me, brothers and sisters. To rejoice knowing that we are counted as a treasured possession in the eyes of the

Almighty as we worship him today and every day.

May we be reminded of these truths. Let us pray.

Gracious Heavenly Father, may we never grow indifferent to this glorious reality.

May we never skim over the details of your word, but instead may we dig deep, may we labor as workmen to rightly handle your word.

Father, may our hearts be filled with joy and peace, knowing that we are held, that we are loved, and that we are eternally secure in the presence of Almighty God, in the presence of the

Father because of the work of the Son, our great