Purity: The Condition for Sustained Fellowship

“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, of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children of Israel.” — Exodus 25:22

We have already established that the first purpose revealed in Eden was fellowship between God and man. The sanctuary later revealed that this same purpose had not changed. God instructed Moses to build Him a sanctuary because He desired to dwell among His people. At the center of that sanctuary stood the Ark of the Covenant, and upon the ark rested the mercy seat. It was there that God said, “I will meet with thee, and I will commune with thee.” The first purpose revealed at the mercy seat was therefore communion. Before there were ministries performed by priests, before Israel received commandments for national life, and before the daily administration of worship was established, God first appointed a place where He would meet with man.

This order is significant because it reveals the divine pattern of fellowship. God did not first establish activity and then communion. He established communion, and from communion came instruction, service, worship, and obedience. Everything that proceeded from the sanctuary began at the place where God met with man. The mercy seat therefore becomes the theological center of the tabernacle because it reveals the order of God’s relationship with His people.

The name itself deserves consideration. It was not called the judgment seat but the mercy seat. God certainly is Judge, and His holiness cannot tolerate sin. Yet when He appointed the place where He would commune with His covenant people, He chose to identify it by mercy. This does not diminish His justice; it reveals the means by which sinful man may approach a holy God. Every revelation given from the sanctuary proceeded from above the mercy seat. Every commandment spoken to Moses came from the place where mercy had already been established.

This explains why the mercy seat occupied such a central position in Israel’s worship. Once each year, on the Day of Atonement, the high priest entered the Most Holy Place with blood and sprinkled it upon and before the mercy seat. The blood did not sanctify God; it sanctified the approach of man. God had always been holy. It was man who required cleansing before communion could continue. The mercy seat therefore testified that fellowship with God could never be sustained apart from atonement.

The entire sacrificial system pointed toward this reality. Every burnt offering, sin offering, trespass offering, peace offering, and offering of thanksgiving ultimately found its fulfillment in Christ. Although each offering addressed a different aspect of covenant life, they all moved toward one end: preserving communion between God and His people according to His holiness. The altar, the priesthood, the blood, and the mercy seat all testified that access into God’s presence required divine provision. Man could never create his own way into fellowship.

The writer of Hebrews shows that these things were shadows pointing toward a greater reality. What the mercy seat represented under the Old Covenant is fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Therefore Hebrews 4:16 declares,

“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”

The order of this verse deserves careful attention. Mercy precedes grace. Before grace strengthens, mercy restores. Before grace empowers, mercy reconciles. Before grace equips for service, mercy grants access into the presence of God. This is consistent throughout Scripture. God never entrusts His work to men who have first bypassed His mercy. Every covenant begins with reconciliation before responsibility. Every calling begins with cleansing before commission. Even Isaiah, before receiving his prophetic assignment, first had his lips cleansed by the coal from the altar. The pattern remains unchanged because God’s holiness remains unchanged.

This also explains why the effectiveness of prayer is never grounded in human righteousness. Prayer does not stand upon eloquence, discipline, or spiritual achievement. Our confidence rests entirely upon the finished work of Jesus Christ. The blood of Christ has accomplished what the blood of bulls and goats could only anticipate. Through Him we now have access into the true Holy of Holies. Our confidence therefore does not arise from personal worthiness but from covenant mercy. Every time the believer enters the presence of God, he enters because mercy has already spoken.

This brings us to an essential truth concerning purity. If the mercy seat was the place of communion, then everything approaching it had to be sanctified. The priests underwent consecration. Their garments were sanctified. The altar was sanctified. The vessels were sanctified. Even the anointing oil and incense were prepared according to divine prescription. Nothing common could minister before a holy God This was never ceremonial detail without meaning. It revealed God’s own nature. The God who communes with man is holy. Therefore those who approach Him must also be sanctified.

The New Testament does not abolish this principle, it fulfills it. Paul declares that the believer is now the temple of the Holy Spirit. The dwelling place has changed, but the holiness of the One who dwells has not. Just as every vessel of the sanctuary belonged exclusively to God, so the believer has been purchased by the blood of Christ and separated unto Him. Salvation is therefore more than forgiveness. It is the cleansing and consecration of God’s dwelling place.

This is why purity becomes indispensable to a life of prayer. Prayer is the fellowship of God’s dwelling place with the God who dwells within it. Communion cannot flourish where consecration is continually resisted. Sin does not remove God’s holiness, it interrupts man’s fellowship with Him. Throughout Scripture, whenever communion is restored, repentance has always preceded renewed intimacy because holiness and fellowship are inseparable.

Further Reading: Exodus 25:17–22; Leviticus 16:14–16; Psalm 24:3–6; Isaiah 6:1–8; Hebrews 4:14–16, 9:11–15, 10:19–22; 1 Cor 6:19–20; 1 Peter 1:15–16