Review John's Gospel So Far / Preview John 17

During the course of our journey through John’ gospel, we have also taken a journey through the tabernacle, and we have seen how all of its imagery is fulfilled in Jesus. He is the Lamb of God, offered upon the brazen altar at the entrance to the courtyard. He is the laver (ceremonial wash-basin) by which the priests were cleansed, and in Him is the water of everlasting life. He is the table of the bread of the presence, nourishing those who eat of Him with the true life of fellowship with God. He is the golden lamp stand, or candlestick, the tabernacle’s only source of light. And now, just before He offers Himself up for our sins, we see that He is likewise the fulfillment of the symbolism in the altar of incense.

This altar of incense, which stood immediately before the holy veil that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies, unlike the altar in the courtyard, was overlaid with solid gold (Exodus 30:1-6). And, unlike the altar in the courtyard, it was not for the blood of burnt offerings, but for the burning of fragrant incense, which rose up as a sweet smell to God – with one important exception. Leviticus 4:1-12 tells us that, when the anointed priest of Israel sinned, he was to take some blood from the bull which he had offered on the brazen altar for his sin, and to place it on the altar of incense. So what does all this mean? Well, at least in the case of the anointed priest, the sweet smell of incense signified the pleasant and peaceful effects of the bloody sacrifice that had been offered. The brazen altar was a place of death and blood, and could not help but look and smell somewhat gruesome; but the effects were altogether lovely, for they included forgiveness and reconciliation to God. This sweet result of a bitter sacrifice was the symbolic intent of the altar of incense. But more than just that, the altar of incense also signified the prayers of the saints, rising up to God as pleas for forgiveness, grace, and deliverance from their enemies. Because the blood sacrifices had been efficacious, God was pleased with these prayers of faith, and willing to answer them. Revelation 8:1-5 contains a beautiful example of this symbolism.

Now, let us think of Christ, in relation to the symbolism of the altar of incense: just as the anointed priest, He had a sacrifice to offer – but His sacrifice was His own body! And just as the priest, He went before God on the basis of that sacrifice, and offered up His prayer for the people’s forgiveness. The priest put the blood of the sacrifice on the altar of incense, and said, as it were, “Now, because of this blood, forget the sin which I have brought upon this people, and hear my prayer for their reconciliation.” In the same way Jesus took His own blood and offered it up to God, saying, “Now, because of this blood, let Your people be reconciled to You!”

But how much greater is Jesus than the old High Priest, for He did not have to offer the same ineffectual offerings for His own sins, and then for the sins of the people; no, He offered up Himself, as the sinless sacrifice, to atone for His people forever (Hebrews 9:23-10:14). And, just as His atonement was effective, He likewise connected it with His effective intercession, so that we who have fled to Jesus for refuge might be doubly sure of our forgiveness and favor with God (Hebrews 5:5-10). He is the Lamb of God, who offered Himself up on the brazen altar as the effectual, atoning sacrifice for our sins; but He is also the priest who brings the blood of that sacrifice before God, as an effective, intercessory plea for the people. At the brazen altar, we see Jesus, our sacrifice; at the altar of incense, we see Jesus, our High Priest; and in the conjunction of His two, diverse ministries at these places, we have an immovable hope: we cannot fear God’s just wrath any longer, for the blood of Christ satisfies the strictest demands of justice; and we cannot fear that God will forget about the law-satisfying blood of Christ when He looks upon us, for Jesus continually offers it up to Him as the sweet smell of His accomplished reconciliation. We have rejoiced with John the Baptist in Jesus our sacrificial Lamb; now, let us rejoice before the throne of God in Jesus our intercessory High Priest!

And so we come to chapter 17, in which we have an amazing and precious glimpse of Jesus, standing in the tabernacle, and offering up the blood of His own self-sacrifice as a plea to God for His people’s forgiveness. This passage has long been called, most appropriately, “Jesus’ high-priestly prayer”; for in it He offers up His pleas to the Father in our behalf, as our own High Priest, the one who mediates, intercedes, and brings us to God. What could possibly be more comforting, more exhilarating, more practical for our everyday lives than to hear Jesus, who is One with the Father, and who is always heard and answered by Him (John 11:41-42), plead specifically for us with such strong devotion, asking for spiritual blessings beyond our wildest dreams? In this chapter, we can do that very thing: we can come into the holy place of the tabernacle and hear our great High Priest as He brings His blood before the Father, and intercedes for us on that basis. Let us be thankful for Jesus our High Priest as well as for Jesus our spotless Lamb!