Gospel Sounders Rekindling Reformation Ministry

THE SANCTUARY ACCORDING TO DANIEL

Written by Ulrike Unruh

Introduction to Daniel The whole book of Daniel focuses upon God’s judgement. Daniel’s name means, “God is my Judge”. The stories in the first part of the book of Daniel reveal the issues in judgment. These we cannot now develop fully, but we hope to do so in a book soon.

For now consider that upon three occasions, Daniel and/or his friends are faced with choosing between obeying God’s will or doing the will of a human commander.

1. Should they eat the food (we can compare that to spiritual food as well as physical food) which the Babylonian authority sets before them? Or shall they eat the simply diet God has ordained.
2. Should they bow and worship an image set up by an earthly authority which has issued a command to bow down and worship on the pain of death? Or will they worship the Lord their God and to Him only bow? (One can’t help but see the symbolic parallel to Revelation 13 here)
3. Should Daniel pray in homage to the king, or should He continue to pray to HIS GOD?

In each of these situations Daniel and/or his friends are faced with the choice between following God’s will or obeying the dictates of human authority. They chose to obey God rather than man. They knew that man must not be allowed to judge on eternal matters for GOD IS MY JUDGE. To HIM they must be true.

Romans 14:4, 11, 12

“Who are you that you judge another man’s servant? To his own master he must stand or fall. Yes, he shall be held up: for God is able to make him stand. …But why do you judge your brother? or why do you condemn your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.”

 

Also in the stories of Daniel we see the investigative judgment and the executive judgment portrayed in Belshazzer’s feast. The message comes in blazing letters upon the wall. “You are weighed in the balance and found wanting.” Belshazzer’s life, as well as the kingdom of Babylon had been investigated by God, they were found wanting. And then the executive judgment took place, and Babylon the great, fell.

A third point we need to consider from the stories found in the book of Daniel, is the role of pride. Nebuchadnezzar also faced investigation, and the God of heaven knew this proud king depended upon self, he idolized self. Yet God, seeing within the king a heart not totally corrupt, refined and taught the proud monarch that all things are dependant totally upon God. Without God, man can do nothing. Following the refining process, Nebuchadnezzar put away his pride and praised and extolled and honored the King of heaven, and acknowledged His works as truth, and His ways of judgment (Daniel 4:37)

We, too, must always remember, it is God “who is able to make us stand”. Of ourselves we can do nothing.

Now we want to look at the role of the sanctuary of heaven as found in Daniel and how the forces on earth, have, at every step tried to counterfeit and draw people away from Christ’s ministry, and replace it with human designs and counterfeits.

Daniel 9 shows Christ’s ministry in the outer court of the sanctuary.

Daniel 8 shows Christ’s ministry in the heavenly holy place performing the daily. Daniel 7 shows Christ’s ministry in the heavenly most holy place in judgement, before the executive judgement takes place. And ends with the glorification of Christ and His saints.

DANIEL 9, CHRIST IN THE OUTER COURT

In this webpage we will not discuss all of Daniel 9, I have done this on another page, but we will look specifically at this passage as it applies to Christ fulfilling the ministry of the outer court of the sanctuary.

We know in the court of the earthly, sanctuary structure, stood the alter of sacrifice as well as the laver of water. When Christ came to this earth he was in the “outer court”. It was here that HE the LAMB of God was slain, it was here that HE was baptized.

From the decree for the restoration of Jerusalem (after the Babylonian captivity) until Messiah the Prince there will be 69 weeks (483 years)… and after three and a half days (three and a half years) Messiah shall be cut off, but not for himself. (Daniel 9:25, 26)

In AD 27 Christ was baptized and began His earthly ministry. Three and a half years later He was crucified.

“He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes we are healed….For HE WAS CUT OFF out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken….making his soul an offering for sin….and justify many; for HE shall bear their iniquities. (Isaiah 53:5,8,10,11)

 

Yet already in Daniel 9 we see the counterfeit prince. The Roman prince which Israel chose instead of Messiah the Prince.

 

“And Pilate said to them, ‘Behold your KING! But they cried out, “Away with HIM, away with Him, crucify Him.’ Pilate then asked them, ‘Shall I crucify your King? The chief priest answered, ‘We have no king except Caesar.” John 19:14-15

 

The Jews chose to serve the Roman power, rather than Christ. Yet that very Roman power swept over them like a wave of destruction destroying their city and their temple. That Roman power grew into the papal power and was not satisfied with destroying the earthly temple, for in Daniel chapter 8 we see it attempting to reach into heaven itself to pull down the true Prince, Who is ministering in the daily.

Daniel 8, CHRIST IN THE HOLY PLACE

“And he grew great, attempting to defeat the host of heaven, and casting down some of the host and the stars to the ground, and stamping on them. Yes, it set itself up to be as great as even the Prince of the host, and took from him the daily ministry, and he pulled down the place of the sanctuary. He gained control of the host (the saints) and over the daily ministry, by reason of transgressions. He cast truth to the ground, and he practiced and prospered….Daniel 8:10-12”

 

The book of Hebrews was written to draw people’s eyes away from the earthly services of the sanctuary and focus us upon Christ, the Heavenly High Priest, Who, with His own blood, shed in that ONCE AND FOR ALL sacrifice, entered into the heavenly sanctuary not made with human hands. There He is our constant Priest, making atonement for us, just as in the type, the earthly priest, after the sacrifice of the atonement was made, “administered an atonement for the person”. (Lev.4:20,26,31)

The book of Hebrews makes it plain that we no longer need earthly priests, or daily sacrifices (note the word sacrifice is supplied each and every time in Daniel 8. The word sacrifice IS NOT in the original writings of Daniel 8) for Christ does not die a daily sacrifice, He died once and for all, and in the holy place He was ministering in the DAILY ministrations for His people. People are to confess their sins directly to Christ, who justifies them, not through penance but through His shed blood.

Yet upon earth, that Roman “princely” power sets up it’s counterfeit. Yes, it set itself up to be as great as even the Prince of the host. Listen to these claims found in the Catholic book :”Dignity and Duties of the Priest or Selva” by St. Alphonsus De Liguari

Priests are the dispensers of the divine graces …’they are’, says ST. Prosper, ‘the glory … of the church, they are the doors of the eternal city; through them all reach Christ … the Lord has confided (to them) the keys of the kingdom of heaven’. … Were the Redeemer to sit in a confessional to administer the sacrament of penance, and a priest to sit in another confessional … the penitents of each would be equally absolved.” p. 28 The priest holds the place of the Savior himself, when he absolves from sin. P.34 St. Clement. Then, had reason to say that the priest is, as it were, a god on earth …” p.36. So did they take away Christ’s daily ministry in the heavenly sanctuary? Not in reality, no, for no human being can actually reach into heaven and pull Christ from His work. However, in the minds and hearts of the people they did take away Christ’s heavenly priestly ministry. They did exactly that!

They substituted Christ’s once and for all sacrifice, with a daily sacrifice in which the priest claims to have the power to create the Creator and of Christ anew in a bloodless sacrifice.

The book of Hebrews tells us:

Hebrews 7:25-28

“Wherefore he (Christ our High Priest) is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever lives to make intercession for them. For we have such a High Priest, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; Who needs not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people’s: for this he did once, when he offered up himself.”

 

Yet, the counterfeit system attempts to take away Christ’s daily intercession ministry, and sets up an earthly daily sacrifice system in which they claim for themselves the power to create the Creator and sacrifice Him daily for the sins of the people.

Daniel 8 says they received power over the people because of transgressions. There power came by instilling in the minds and hearts of the people who desired to be saved, that salvation lay in coming to their counterfeit system. Thereby, with threats of excommunication and dictates of penance and the buying of indulgences and absolutions they gained control and made big money, making merchandise of the grace of Christ.

Yes, the sanctuary must be cleansed just like the earthly during Christ’s time when Jesus cried.

John 2:1

Take these things hence; make not my Father’s house an house of merchandise. When will the sanctuary be cleansed? Daniel 8 tells us it will be cleansed at the end of the 2300 years. Other website pages go into the 2300 day period, for now we will tell the conclusion of the matter — The 2300 years ended in 1844. And right on God’s time schedule, the sanctuary truth began to really shine forth in 1844. The truth of Christ’s sanctuary was buried and is still almost unknown because of the intense war the enemy of truth has fought all through earth’s history against the ministry of God and His righteous ways of dealing with sin and sinners. But for all who would seek, the truth is revealed! Yet many will deny it, as well as the whole message of salvation FROM sin, and continue to substitute man made traditions and ideas in the place of God’s truth. For without the sanctuary, (in all three of it’s stages) the whole concepts of justification, sanctification and glorification get totally confused. In the sanctuary the relationship of the law with justification in Christ alone and sanctification in Christ alone are plain. Only when this understanding is reached can the claims of the law and the judgment be understood.

And, as we see in Daniel 7, the false PRINCE, depicted as beasts and horn, will be judged, and all who follow him in counterfeiting the work and laws of God will be destroyed with him.

DANIEL 7, CHRIST IN THE MOST HOLY PLACE

Daniel 7:8, 25, 26

Behold, there came up among them another little horn, different from all the rest. Behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things… And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time. But the judgment shall sit,

Daniel 7:9-11

I beheld till the thrones were set down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened. I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.

This judgment scene takes place BEFORE the executive judgment. It takes place sometime after the 1260 years in which the horns power flourished. And when the executive judgment is handed out, the horn’s power is seen as again strong.

How often have I heard it said, “but that is the judgment of the little horn, not the judgment of God’s people.” Yes, this is the judgment of those who claim to be God’s people! For the little horn is none other but the counterfeit, human devised substitutes of Christianity. The judgment will sit and show to the entire universe who it is that walked through the sanctuary with Christ— accepted His atoning sacrifice for their sins, walked with Him in righteousness, submitted to His Holy Spirit, allowing His law to written upon their hearts.

Who are the Daniels who chose to serve God rather than man? For yes, we must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ, each to give an account of himself. It is Christ who will enable us to stand if we are IN HIM. Only those IN CHRIST will have eternal life. Is Christ our MASTER? Each to his own master must stand or fall. If Christ is our MASTER, he will enable us to stand, and if we are in HIM, there will come no condemnation upon us.

However, those who follow the rudiments and commandments of men and accept the counterfeit systems and counterfeit traditions of this world will be condemned.

Here, in the investigative judgment, the false will set up it’s counterfeit as well. During it’s period of power the Catholic Church had it’s counterfeit investigative judgment where it consigned people to torture and hell and eternal death as well as physical death. It was called the inquisition and even now upon the Catholic website, it claims Biblical grounds for “investigating” doctrinal heresy and heretics and putting them to death.

The office of the inquisition has been re-established under a different name. The false investigative judgment is already in place. The push to legislate Sunday is being promoted in the Papal letter. The ecumenical movement has received clear words from the Papacy that the Pope must have primacy in this union. And don’t think counterfeit investigative judgments are just a Catholic thing– for the Protestant world is lobbying to knock down separation of church and state so they can gain power to judge and condemn upon eternal issues from earthly courts.

On page 389 in the Catholic book “Thunder of Justice:” we read: “The commandment forbidding false idols has so many shapes and forms in our daily lives. . .This is where we see many of the root causes of our problems: it is in the commandment of “KEEPING THE SABBATH HOLY”. In the Old Testament, not honoring this day was punishable by death. . . There is widespread abuse all throughout the Christian culture concerning the Sabbath. . .we have lost God”

However it is clear in the passage that the Sabbath they are talking about is SUNDAY!

Yes, the pretension of upholding God’s ten commandments is there, but the obvious breaking by the Roman church of both the commandments referred to in the above passage are glaring!

Turning again to the Pope’s recent writings we find his “Dies Domini on Keeping the Lord’s day Holy”. In it he makes this completely erroneous statement in section 14 “In the first place, Sunday is the day of rest because it is the day “blessed” by God and “made holy” by him set apart from the other days to be among all of them. “The Lord’s Day.” In section 29 “Sunday appears as the supreme day of faith, it is the day when, by the power of the Holy Spirit……. Given it’s many meanings and aspects, and its link to the very foundations of the faith, the celebration of the Christ Sunday remains, on the threshold of the third millennium, an indispensable element of our Christian identity.”

Interesting isn’t it that the Roman Catholic church should call SUNDAY the indispensable element of Christian IDENTITY. The day above all days that honors Christ, they say. But again, it’s not just the Catholic’s lobbying to elevate Sunday, here too, the Protestant world is joining hands with Catholism to elevate Sunday. Now they are seeking to elevate it, next will come the enforcement.
Yet the Bible calls the 7th Day Sabbath a sign between God and His people throughout the generations; that we may know that God is the LORD that does sanctify us. (Ex. 31:31, Ezekiel 20:12)

Keep My Sabbaths Holy for they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the LORD your God. Ezekiel 20:20

 

Colossians 2 warns us

Let no one judge you in regards to a man made sabbath thereby robbing you of your inheritance! “Let no one judge you”…according to HUMAN TRADITION according to the elemental spirits of the universe AND NOT ACCORDING TO CHRIST (2:8) He, Christ, disarmed the principalities and powers and …triumphed over them. Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a sabbath. Let no one disqualify you insisting on self-abasement (acts of penance) and worship of spirit beings, (praying to saints and venerating Mary) taking their stand on their own senses…

 

Matthew 15:3, 6, 9

“In vain they do worship me,” Jesus says, “setting aside the COMMANDMENTS OF GOD and following their traditions.”

God is our judge— to Him be true.

Here is the patience of the saints, here are they that keep the commandments of God and have the faith of Jesus. Rev. 14:12

Daniel 7:26-28

For the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his (the counterfeit system) dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end. And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.

Yes, the beasts and the horns and all the counterfeit powers, war against Christ the Lamb and seek to destroy His ministry — the whole ministry of the sanctuary — The whole book of Revelation is set in sanctuary background, and it declares that:

They will make war with the Lamb, but the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings and they that are with him are the called, and chosen and faithful ones.

Which Prince will we follow?

The Messiah the Prince Who stands for the people. (See Dan. 12:1)

Or the prince that sets himself up to be as great as God, who causes desolation and will be destroyed. The counterfeit power who reaches to heaven in his attempt to cast down the ministry of Christ in the heavenly temple.

Thessalonians 2:3-4

“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day (of the Lord) shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.”

Hebrews 4:14

Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.