The Outer Court

‘For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom’ 2 Cor.3:17

In time past, God chose for a dispensation a method of worship, that is, when the children of Israel want to worship, God said they should set up a tent of the meeting where man will meet with God. ‘Have the people of Israel build Me a holy sanctuary so I can live among them’ Ex.25:8. The tabernacle has three sections – the outer court, the holy place and the most holy place [holy of holies]. Even though God had chosen to be among the people, still there were levels of access. The outer court was the first level of access. Everyone can come to the outer court. However, even though the voice of God could sometimes be heard in the outer court, the manifest presence of God is not in the outer court. ‘Then Jesus shouted out again, and He released His spirit. At that moment the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, rocks split apart’ Matt.27:50-51. Jesus gave us direct access to God through His sacrifice on the cross. Yet, sadly a lot of people still remain in the outer court of their spiritual walk, their marriages, academics, relationships, finances and they don’t even know it. ‘Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty’ [2 Cor.3:17 KJV]. So if you are struggling to keep your marriage, struggling to make a head way in your academics, or struggling to move up the spiritual ladder, it is probably because the manifest presence of God is absent which translates to being in the outer court. Operating in any area of your life without the presence of God translates to an outer court experience. But God calls us into a much deeper relationship with Him and therefore has granted us access to the most holy place in Jesus. The only way to exit the outer court life is to come in by the Lamb of God. Operating without the presence of God is operating outside safety.  One sure way to secure the presence of God is to live the life of a worshipper [Rev.1:10]. It starts with having a relationship with the Father, Son and Spirit.

Prayer [song]: As I come into Your presence, Past the gates of praise, Into Your sanctuary, Till we’re standing face to face, I look upon Your countenance, I see the fullness of Your grace, I can only bow down and say… You are awesome in this place, Mighty God…