“The Courtyard, represents the condition of Justification, entered through faith in Christ, the `gate.’
Into this `Court’ only Levites (typical of justified believers) were allowed to come.
These had access to the `Brazen Altar’ and to the `Laver,’ and did service in the `Court,’ but had no right as merely Levites (believers) to go into the Tabernacle; no, nor even to look into it. (Num. 4:19, 20)
This shows us that even though someone may be a believer, a professed follower of Christ nevertheless they may still not be able to see (to comprehend) spiritual things, this because as of yet they have not been begotten of the Holy Spirit to a new nature, the spirit nature, and as such they are still natural men lacking spiritual insight. As it is written, “The natural man receives not the things of the Spirit . . . neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Cor. 2:12–14)
In the `Court’ all things were of copper (mistranslated brass or bronze), to indicate that the class admitted there were justified men. The Court does not represent the condition of the spiritual class during the Gospel age, though the priests (the spirit begotten) in sacrificing and washing, used it also.” (T18, 19)
“The `Courtyard,’ the justified human condition, is entered by faith only; but while we must retain the faith that justifies, we must do more, if we would experience a change of nature and become `new creatures,’ `partakers of the heavenly calling,’ to be `partakers of the divine nature.’ Entering the `Holy,’ therefore implies our full consecration to the Lord’s service, our begetting of the spirit and our start in the race for the prize of the divine nature—the terms of which are faithfulness to our vow, crucifying the justified flesh, presenting our human wills and bodies living sacrifices to God; no longer to seek human pleasure, honor, praise, etc., but to be dead to these and alive to the heavenly impulses. Yet, into this condition also, we still come through Christ Jesus our Lord, who not only opened for us the `Gate’ of justification through faith in his blood, but who also opened the `Door’ (the first vail) into the Tabernacle, `a new way of life,’ as spirit beings, through and beyond the second vail, by the sacrifice of our justified flesh.
This will be further elaborated upon as we continue with this study.
Next post.
