Last Lord's Day evening, as we considered the tabernacle, we thought upon the very first thing the person who sought to enter the tabernacle was faced with. And that, of course, was the gate. The gate of blue and purple and scarlet and of fine twined linen. This gate stood out in the most magnificent way from the rest of the perimeter of the tabernacle. The rest of the perimeter, of course, was a white linen color. And so this gate was that which was unmistakable. It was very clear, it stood out. And the person who sought to enter in, not only would have seen that this gate was the way in, but also would have been taught that it was the only way in. The only place of access into God's presence, that place where God had promised to meet with his people. Of course, as we considered last week, the gate speaks of Christ, who is the light of the world. The genuinely seeking soul, the person who desires to know God and to have their sins forgiven, they will find Christ. They will meet with Christ. The book of Jeremiah tells us in 29 verse 13, And ye shall seek me and find me when ye search for me with all your hearts. God in Christ wants the sinner to seek Him. God in Christ wants the sinner to find Him. And so the great message of the Gospel is, if you come in sincerity of heart, and you see God in that place where He has revealed Himself in the Word of God, Then you will find the gate to glory. Then you will find Christ himself, our access into heaven and onto the Father. The gate in the tabernacle was not some small and practically impossible entrance to find, but a glorious, and it was a magnificent sight for the searching soul. An invitation, we can say, that called out, enter in, come on to me. And of course, we can identify with this in the New Testament as Christ proclaimed, Come on to me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. But the question is, are you a seeking soul? Is it your desire to find the way to God, and to have your sins forgiven, and to meet with God? Is that your desire tonight? Do you want to have fellowship with God? Do you want to have the problem of sin dealt with in your life? Is that what you desire? Is that what you want? If you have been honest with yourself, You're happy wandering in the wilderness of sin. You're not really seeking God tonight. Oh, you don't mind coming to God's house and joining in with God's people. But you couldn't be described as a seeking soul. You're not after the way of life and the way of truth tonight. You're happy just to be associated with God's work. May God open your eyes and heart tonight, not only to see Christ, but also to see clearly that without Him, you're without hope in this world. and heading to a lost eternity. So the seeking soul would come first of all to the gate. The next thing that the person coming to the tabernacle would be faced with, and this is what I want us to look at this evening, is the brazen altar. The brazen altar was situated just inside the gate of the tabernacle. And it was the place where the sacrifices and offerings were made to God. The brazen altar would have been the most disturbing sight for anyone coming into the tabernacle. There was the sight of blood that was shed. There was the smell of burning flesh as the animals were burnt upon the altar. There was the cries of the animals as they were strapped down and fixed to the altar and as they struggled and as they cried out. And their life was taken from them. And this was the first impression as soon as someone came through the gate of the tabernacle. A most horrific a most disturbing sight. But you see what is set before us here is the work of Christ for the sinner. The gate speaks of Christ. It sets Christ before us as the only way of approaching on to God. That is what the gate does, speaking about that only way on to God. But the altar doesn't speak about the only way on to God, it speaks about the work of Christ for us. That's what it speaks about. the work of Christ, Christ's suffering, Christ's atonement for sin, Christ paying the debt that was the sinners, Christ being the sacrifice for us. The altar reminds us of how low Christ stooped in his humiliation to lift the sinner out of the misery and condemnation of his sin. And that is the most awful sight, the sight of God's Son descending into this world and humbling himself being obedient unto death, even the death of the cross is the most heinous, is the most terrible sight to behold. As the people of Israel brought their sacrifices to the altar, and the awful sights and sounds and smells of that place filled their senses, they were being reminded each time of the awful consequences of sin, and the terrible cost if their sin was to be put away. Every time they came to the altar, this was a reality for them. This is what sin has done. the smell of burning flesh, the blood that was shed, the blood that was all around the altar, the animals as they cried out. It was testifying to the people. This is the consequences of sin. And also of the awful cost that there is in the work of redemption. And you know, as we consider Christ's work, as he offered himself a sacrifice for sin upon the cross, it is a most awful and a most heinous sight. It teaches us again of the consequences of sin. All of Christ's suffering are redemptive. Christ's suffering, all of His sufferings are a payment. The result of our sin, our sin being laid upon Him. And the cost of the atonement for sin was God giving His Son. We can think of the people of Israel. They brought the lamb. It was the very best of the flock. The very best goat, the very best bullock, the very best lamb had to be brought. The most valuable one. And it was slain there to atone for sin. And we can think of Christ. The very best man. The God-man. And that's what it cost to atone for our sin. And as we stand at the cross of Calvary, we see the consequences of sin and the cost of sin. And this is what the altar points to this evening. It directs us to consider the Lord Jesus Christ and his great work of atonement for his people. And so I want us to consider this altar this evening and to see a number of things in how this altar points to the cross of Christ, our Redeemer. The first thing I want us to notice here is the situation of the brazen altar. As I've already said, the altar was located or situated just within the gate of the tabernacle. In Exodus 27 this passage we have read gives us the instructions for building the altar but in Exodus 40 in verse 6 we are told where it was to be placed. It says there, And thou shalt set the altar of the burnt offering before the door of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation. So we are told that the altar was to be set before the door of the tent of the congregation, not speaking about over against the door. facing the door. And that's where it was situated. The altar was situated over against the door and then in between it was the laver. And so the altar was the very first piece of furniture that the person coming to the tabernacle was faced with. It was the altar. Again, it's good to remind ourselves what God was doing as he gave Israel the tabernacle. He was teaching them how they could meet with God, how they could approach God. how they could have fellowship with God. And the very first thing that God shows them is their sin must be dealt with before this can take place. Payment must be made before man can have fellowship with God. That's why God placed the altar at the very gate of the tabernacle, the very first thing. Everything inside the tabernacle speaks about fellowship, speaks about the blessings of the Christian life. But the altar is the place where sin is dealt with. where sin is put away and God was showing them that before anything else can be experienced by the Christian or by the soul that seeks him, sin firstly must be dealt with. Of course this truth is one that is taught throughout all of Scripture. When Adam and Eve sinned what did God do for them? He covered their nakedness by the shedding of the blood. Genesis 321 tells us Unto Adam also, and to his wife did the Lord make goats of skins, and closed them. The animals were slain, they were closed. Before Adam and Eve could meet with God and fellowship with Him. And that's what God was teaching them. Fellowship with God now could only be experienced upon the shedding of the blood, upon the basis of atonement, and upon the basis of redemption. And the lesson here of the tabernacle is the very same. God was saying the very first thing you must get right, the very first thing you must deal with if you want to meet with me is your sin. Sin is the obstacle. Sin is the problem. Sin is that barrier between you and me and that must be removed. That must be dealt with. And that's why the altar was placed at the gate. Because sin is our trouble. Think of the Israelites as they came to the tabernacle. And they came to the tabernacle because God said to them, And there I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark of the testimony." God had promised to meet with him. And so this person, this Israelite was coming to the tabernacle because of this great promise. God says, I'll meet with you. And yet as the Israelite came to the tabernacle to meet with God, the very first thing they seen as they entered the gate, was the suffering for sin. That awful sight that we have described. And think of the impression that would have been made upon their hearts and minds. I can only meet with God when my sin is dealt with. When there has been atonement made for my sin. How important it is that this most solemn truth is learned. How important it is that we don't miss this. If we miss it, we miss it to the damnation of our souls. Not unless your sin is dealt with in Christ's sacrifice, then you will never be accepted by God. It doesn't matter what else you have. It doesn't matter what else you do. If your sin is not dealt with, then you will never know what it is to be in God's presence and to be accepted by God. What I am saying is, have you ever appropriated the work of Christ to your life? Have you ever had your sins forgiven? Christ has made payment for sin. But can you say, He was wounded for my transgressions? He was bruised for my iniquities? That's what it is to be a Christian. That's what it is to have acceptance with God. Having this sin problem in your life, man's greatest problem, the barrier between man and God, removed. The altar was situated in such a way that Israel would learn not until sin was dealt with could they meet with God or could they know any blessing by a holy God and that is the very first lesson of the altar that is always the very first lesson of the altar sin must be removed sin must be put away sin must be dealt with my friend if you take nothing from this meeting take this with you your sin must be dealt with if you're ever going to be in heaven if you're ever going to have peace with God if the wrath of God that is against you and the judgment of God that hangs over your head is going to be removed then your sin must be dealt with it is absolutely imperative that's what God was teaching Israel as he said put the altar right beside the gate they couldn't approach any further until sin was dealt with. So we see the situation of the brazen altar here. Notice then the structure of the brazen altar. We have it in verses 1 and 2 of Exodus chapter 27. It says there, And thou shalt make an altar of sherem wood, five cubits long and five cubits broad. The altar shall be four square, and the height thereof shall be three cubits. And thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof. His horns shall be of the same. and thou shalt overlay it with brass. As we think of the structure of the altar, we must consider firstly here the material that it was built with. The altar itself was built from wood and overlaid with brass. From a human perspective, building an altar in which fire was continually to burn with wood and then to overlay that wood with brass seems to be a very nonsensical thing to do, a foolish thing to do. such an altar surely wouldn't last a very long time and those in the past have suggested this. But in more recent times it has been discovered that hard wood such as Shetland wood that is completely sealed makes a very fire proof substance, makes something that is fire resistant. And so what men have only recently discovered God knew from the very beginning. Even the very make up of this altar teaches us of the omniscience of God. God knows all things. God knows how to provide a substance here that will not perish quickly and that the fire will not consume. And so both these materials used in the construction point us to something that is significant. They point us to the Lord Jesus Christ. The wood speaks of Christ's humanity. Isaiah 11 and 1 tells us of Christ that He is the branch that sprang out of the root of Jesse. And so Christ is known as the branch. When it refers to His humanity in the book of Isaiah, it is referring to Christ as wood, as the branch that came out of Jesse. That's speaking about His humanity. That is clearly seen. And yet this wood was covered in brass. And brass, as we noted last week, speaks about God's righteous judgment against sin. God's righteous judgment Revelation 1 and 15 Christ appeared to John in the Isle of Patmos and we read that his feet were like onto fine brass as if they burned in a furnace and so Christ's feet as John seen them were like fine brass remember what Christ does to his enemies he judges them by putting them under his feet 1st Corinthians 15 25 tells us for he must reign till he hath put all enemies under his feet And when we think of that time when Christ appeared to John in the Isle of Patmos, how those scenes of his revelation must have encouraged his heart. Why was John in the Isle of Patmos? He was there because the enemies of Christ had come against him, had sent him into exile. He was separated from his people and from the work of God. Yet Christ reveals himself in such a way that he shows John, I will judge my enemies. I will stand upon them with my brass feet. That was the message that John received. was going to judge the ungodly because he had feet of brass. And so brass testifies of God's judgment against sin. Christ has feet of brass that remind us that he will judge his enemies. But we see on the altar that both come together. There is the word that speaks of Christ's humanity. The very fact that Christ was flesh of our flesh. But then this word was covered in brass that points to how Christ would suffer Christ would come in the likeness of sinful flesh. And what would He do? He would execute judgment against sin in His own body. And that's what, of course, happened at Calvary. Remember the altar here? It points to the cross. And the very materials used here point to what would happen to the cross. Christ, as a man, as the God-man, would suffer the judgment of God, the righteous judgment of God, against sin. Christ as he came, man, he suffered the full judgment. He died. The altar was completely covered in brass and Christ as he suffered upon the cross, he suffered the full judgment of God against sin. He is the woman's seed that would bruise the serpent's head. He suffered the full punishment of sin. And so therefore the brazen altar reminds us of how Christ in the state of humility, having the likeness of sinful flesh, would judge sin in the flesh. That's what it points to. In Hebrews 9 and 26 it says, but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And Paul says that Christ appeared, it refers to his humanity. Remember God is a spirit, but when God appeared, he appeared in sinful flesh. And so Paul is referring to how Christ came and was flesh of our flesh. Why did he come? To put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. The materials of this altar all point to the righteous judgment of God upon Christ for our sin. And that is what is seen here. God's justice being carried out upon Christ. There is the materials of the altar. Think also of the measurements of the altar here. verse 1 it tells us of the altar and how it was five cubits long, five cubits wide and three cubits high. If we were to compare this to all the other pieces of furniture in the tabernacle we could say that the altar was the biggest piece of furniture. It was the biggest of all the pieces of furniture and that is significant in and of itself. We're also told here that it was four square in verse 1. Four is the number that speaks of the world. Scripture speaks in a number of occasions of the four corners of the earth. And so, we can say, as we think of the measurements of this altar, it points to the truth that Christ's cross work is sufficient enough to atone for the sins of the whole world. It was the greatest and the biggest piece of furniture. It was four square, pointing to the four corners of the world. And it speaks of how Christ's sacrifice was a sacrifice of infinite value. It is power to deal with all sin and every sin. It doesn't matter what part of the world you heal from or how big your sin is, there's room at the cross for you. And that is what the altar is very clearly teaching us. The biggest piece of furniture was that piece of furniture that dealt with sin, that atoned for sin. Christ's work upon the cross is able to put away your sin, no matter what that sin is this evening. Someone once said, the work of Christ is sufficient for all, but only efficient to those that believe. If you come to Christ tonight, there is cleansing to be had in his blood for your soul. It is able to deal with your sin, your problem, no matter what that is. And so we see the structure of the brazen altar here. It is pointing us once again very clearly to Christ and to his work of atonement. Then moving on quickly here we have the satisfaction at the Breezing Altar. This altar was made for one purpose that God's justice would be satisfied. Sin demands a punishment and God who is a holy God must punish sin. His justice demands that. God cannot simply ignore sin or forget about sin. Such a thing would be absolutely unjust and would be at odds with the very nature of God. God says of himself, I will by no means clear the guilty. And God is basically saying, I will not turn a blind eye to sin. I will not ignore your sin. I will not forget about it. I will by no means clear the guilty. God, in his absolute unerring justice, must deal with sin, must judge sin. And so his justice demands satisfaction. that is why God gave to Israel the altar so that sin could be punished and so that God's justice could be satisfied. If we turn to the book of Leviticus just for a moment, Leviticus chapter 1 and the verse 9, we see here how the sacrifice upon this altar satisfied God. Leviticus chapter 1 and the verse 9, says there Leviticus 1 9 but his inwards and his legs shall he wash in water the priest shall burn all on the altar to be a burnt sacrifice an offering made by fire for a sweet-smelling savor unto the Lord notice what the priest was to do offer this sacrifice and this sacrifice ascended towards heaven as that sweet-smelling savor unto the Lord that speaks of how God was satisfied with this offering satisfied with his sacrifice for sin it pleased him it was as a sweet-smelling saviour his justice his holiness was satisfied therefore he was pleased to meet with his people if you now turn with me to Ephesians chapter 5 and the verse 2 we see here what it says about Christ our sacrifice Ephesians chapter 5 in the verse 2 Read here of Jesus Christ, Ephesians 5, 2. And walk in love as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and sacrifice. Notice the words, to God for a sweet-smelling savour. Christ's sacrifice as he suffered upon the cross ascended towards heaven as a sweet-smelling savour. That speaks of how God was pleased with that sacrifice. How it satisfied him. How it delighted his justice. And that's what it means when it speaks about that sweet-smelling Savior. Christ was offered unto us. And as Christ's sacrifice was offered upon the cross of Calvary, it ascended towards heaven. And God delighted in it. God was pleased with us. His justice was satisfied. And you know that's the most amazing and the most wonderful truth. Christ is our sacrifice. He was offered for us. And yet that sacrifice that was offered for us ascended towards God as a sweet-smelling saviour. God was pleased with that. And if God was pleased with Christ's sacrifice, He will receive all for whom Christ has died. We are atoned for. Our sin has been dealt with. God's justice that demands punishment has been pleased, has been satisfied. And therefore there is now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus. because this sacrifice ascended to God as a sweet-smelling savor. It delighted, we could say reverently, the nostrils of God. His justice was pleased. As we stop for a moment to consider how Christ satisfied God's justice by the offering up of himself upon the cross, then how absolutely foolish a thing it is to try and please God in any other way. It took Christ, His very life's blood. It took Christ to lay His life down upon the cross of Calvary to be the sweet saviour for us. And there is people who think that they can please God by their life and by the things that they do. You see, my friend, if that is how you're thinking, you're despising the sacrifice that God is delighted in. This sacrifice that was a sweet savour to God, you're saying it is repugnant to me. I don't need it. It doesn't please me. It might please a holy God, an infinitely holy God, but it doesn't please me. I want to go my own way. How foolish. How sinful. How wrong. And so we see here there's satisfaction at this altar. Notice also the substitute. at the brazen altar. The substitute at the brazen altar. Verse 1 in Exodus chapter 27 tells us, and thou shalt make an altar. Thou shalt make an altar. The very fact that God gave to Israel the altar immediately teaches there would be a substitute for sin. The whole purpose of the altar was so that man would not personally have to suffer for his sin. That's the purpose of an altar. It is built so a substitute could suffer. And take the punishment in the sinner's place. Every time Israel brought an animal to the brazen altar, and as they watched that animal being tied down to the horns of the altar, and the priest cut the animal's throat, and that life being extinguished, they were being reminded each time, this life is taken instead of mine. This animal suffered in my place. This animal was paying my debt of sin. The teaching of the altar is all to do with the substitute. It is substitutionary atonement and that is what the altar speaks about. One dies in my place and suffers my punishment. That is what the altar tells us every time. As sinful men and women we cannot look at the cross of Christ without thinking of the innocent substitute. There God's holy song hung between heaven and earth. He was beaten and his visage was marred more than any man. Then as the sun was blotted out by the darkness of God's holy wrath descending upon his son, Christ suffered in the sinner's place. The wrath of God that was my Jew upon God's holy son was led and by the shedding of his blood, the debt for me was paid. That's what took place at the cross of Calvary. That cross was erected by God in eternity past so the substitute could hang there in our place and die in our state and it was as the Apostle Paul said this or thought upon this he said this in Galatians 6 and 14 but God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ as Paul thought upon how Christ suffered in his place and took his punishment he gloried in the cross he rejoiced in it my sin has been put away because one has died in my place and took the wrath of God for me is that what you're rejoicing in tonight and the fact that Christ has suffered for you can you personally say he is my substitute he died for me you can only say this if you have by faith visited the altar of Calvary and vowed the knee as a sinner before God, then you can say, He is my substitute. As we think of the altar and how it speaks so clearly of the substitute, it again reminds us of how God can only deal with sinners in one of two ways, either personally or through the sinless substitute. That's the only two ways that God can deal with the sinner. You will either stand before God bearing your own sin and its consequences or you will stand in Christ and receive what you have earned or what he has earned for his people upon the cross. That is the only two ways that God deals with sinners, either personally or as a sinless substitute. The altar of the great high priest will either plead forgiveness for your sin and peace with God or your sin will beg the judgment of God down upon your own head. God only deals with sinners in one of two ways. If God would deal with you, how would he deal with you tonight? If tonight you were to stand before the throne of God, that holy God, that infinitely holy God, that omniscient God who knows all things and who will judge all things in righteousness, how would God deal with you? You representing yourself as a sinner condemned already? Or would he deal with you in Christ? One who has paid the debt of the sinner, one who suffered to set us free. The altar speaks of the substitute very, very clearly. Then finally here, the altar also points us, there is symbolism also with the altar, the brazen altar. symbolism of this altar. As we have already seen here there is much symbolism that is before us in the tabernacle. It's all symbolic and it has got a greater purpose in directing us to Christ. That is what is so wonderful about the tabernacle. It symbolically teaches us of the gospel and what Christ has done for us and how he is our Savior. And as we think of this brazen altar there are two things that I want us to note that are symbolic about it. Of course there's many things but I want us to note just two things in closing. I want us to note the horns of the altar here. Verse 2 tells us, And thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof. His horn shall be of the same, and thou shalt overlay it with brass. Of course the horns had a practical purpose of binding the sacrifice on the altar. Psalm 118 verse 27 says, Bind the sacrifice with cords even unto the horns of the altar. And of course that is speaking about Christ in the Psalms there and it's a wonderful prophetic It's a most amazing thought. The psalmist speaking about Christ buying the sacrifice with cords even onto the horns of the altar. And so the horns had a practical purpose. But the truth that is behind the horns that were to be placed in the four corners of the altar is this altar has power to deal with sin. That is the truth behind the horns. Horns are symbolic of power and strength. And that's what they stand out as. And we can think of in the animal kingdom, how animals with great horns are powerful animals. The deer with the great antlers, they fight with their horns. And those with the biggest antlers or horns, they win the battle and they're the strongest and the most able animals. Horns speak of power and they speak of strength. And these four horns, they were placed on the four corners of the altar. And they symbolically teach us For the work of Christ and the sacrifice of Christ has power to deal with sin. The altar of Christ has power to deal with our sin. It's got strength to put it away. 1 John 1 and 7 says the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son cleanses us from all sin. There is power to cleanse from sin on the altar of Christ. Wash our sin away. What a tremendous thought that is. Our sin that is as black as night. Our sin that is filthy, our sin that cries out to heaven for judgment, the blood of this altar is able to cleanse us from sin, make us clean. Oh, it's power to cleanse. There's not a stain of sin that this altar cannot remove. There's not a guilty sinner this altar cannot clear. It's power to deal with sin. Ephesians 2 and 13 tells us, but now in Christ Jesus, we who sometimes were far off made nigh by the blood of Christ. And so this altar is not only power to cleanse from sin, but it's power to give us a standing in God's presence. This is power of right. You see, when we come to the altar of Christ and we're cleansed by the blood of the Lamb, then we have power to stand in God's presence with boldness. What a thing that is. A holy God, a righteous God, a God that must punish sin and yet the sinner who has come to the altar of Christ and has been washed in the blood of the Lamb can stand in God's presence. What power there is in this altar. What strength there is. Does this altar atone for your soul? Does it atone for your soul? The horns of the altar, they symbolically teach us of the great power of Christ to deal with sin. Then also, and finally think here of the handles of the altar. We have them in verses 6 and 7. Thou shalt make staves of the altar, staves of shed and wood, and overlay them with brass, and the staves shall be put into the rings, and the staves shall be upon the two sides of the altar to bear it. These handles or staves were used to carry the altar. Wherever God's people would go, this altar would go with them. They would bear it. What symbolism there is here. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1 and 23, but we preach Christ crucified. That is the duty of the church and of the believer, but especially the preacher of the gospel, to bear the altar of Christ before the people, to preach Christ and to preach him crucified. And that is our responsibility, that is our duty, to present the work of the cross. That is the theme of Scripture. That is the message of the gospel, the message of Christ's cross, the message of atonement, the message of blood shedding. And as the altar has been brought into this house tonight, the question is, what would your response be? Well, the altar of Christ has been brought into God's house, so to speak, tonight. We have preached Christ and Him crucified. We have pointed you to the only way in which your sin can be dealt with, through the blood of the Lamb. What would your response be? to walk by and wag your head and mock the work of Christ like many did at the cross? That's what they did. Or will you come and recognize your need as a sinner and seek Christ and that His work might be applied to your life? What will your response be to the altar of Christ, the blood-shedding, the work of atonement? It is the cross that divides the world. In this world in which we live in today, we're continually reminded of different divisions and different problems, but that which divides this world is the cross of Christ. We see this in the tabernacle. The altar was that which divided. Once someone went in and passed the altar, then they could go on and enjoy all the rest of the things that were there. but they couldn't do that until they passed the altar. The altar divided those that were able to enter into God's presence and those that didn't. The cross of Christ divides this world. Where do you stand in relation to the cross? That is what divides this congregation. That is what divides this town. That is what divides all men. The cross is either a work that is done for your soul and for your forgiveness and for your acceptance with God, or it is that which you reject and despise and in the end will condemn you to the lowest hell. The cross does divide. It divides this very meeting. As we have stood before the cross of Christ tonight, I would urge you to consider where you stand before God There is forgiveness, there's peace to be had. You can know acceptance with God tonight, but you must come. We have said this altar is sufficient to save, but it's only to those that believe. Will you come tonight by faith and take Christ as your Savior? And leave the house of God being able to say, He was wounded for my transgressions, He was bruised for my iniquities. May God even give you grace to do so, for His own name's sake. Amen.