WEEK 23 “ THE ARK OF THE COVENANT: HIS MERCY COVERS YOUR FAILINGS” (HEBREWS 9:3-5)

A picture of The wonderful mercy of God to us through Jesus Christ!

His mercy covers our failure!!

Read Hebrews 9:3-5

“Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place, which had the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered ark of the covenant. This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron’s staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant. Above the ark were the cherubim of the Glory, overshadowing the atonement cover. But we cannot discuss these things in detail now.” (Hebrews 9:3-5)

In this passage, our Heavenly Father tells us that The ark of the covenant contained 3 things. The stones with the 10 commandments, the budded staff of Aaron, and a jar containing some of the manna God provided for Israel in the wilderness. These 3 items were placed (under God's instructions) into the ark and then the mercy seat (atonement cover) was placed on top to cover the ark.

What could these items represent? According to Numbers 17:5, the budded staff of Aaron was in response to Israel's rebellion (led by Korah) and God's way of putting to end the constant grumbling by the Israelites, while according to Numbers 21:5 and Exodus 16:2-4, we are reminded of how Israel grumbled against Moses about not having food in the wilderness. God then provided manna, sent from heaven for the people!!!

In Exodus 32:15-19, the stone tablets not only remind us of how Israel worshipped a calf idol when Moses first brought them back down the mountain, but Romans 5:20 and 3:20 also tells us that the purpose of the law (the old covenant) was to show us how sinful we are!!

So in one sense, each of these items (in the ark of the covenant) is a reminder of man's failings/sins and rebellion against our Heavenly Father.

When we look at it this way, then what a wonderful thought Hebrews 9:4-5 truly becomes!!

We see that the failure of man is covered over by the mercy seat of God!!

In other words, this could be a wonderful picture of how God's amazing mercy covers our failures and sins when we come Into a saving relationship with Jesus!!

Praise you Jesus!!

What is also very interesting to note is that we are not told the height of mercy seat in the bible (Exodus 25:17- only mentions the length and the width). In other words, God's mercy towards His people through Jesus is unlimited, reaching as high as the heavens! His mercy is beyond measure!!

Psalm 103:11- 'For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His MERCY for those who fear him;'

Micah 7:18-19 'Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show MERCY. You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.'

Ephesians 2:4-5 'But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in MERCY, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.'

Hebrews 4:14-16 'Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive MERCY and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Praise you Heavenly Father for your wonderful mercy towards your children through your Son Jesus!!