Israel, although a mixed company of both faith and infidelity, were the people of God—outwardly, they were redeemed and sanctified (Exod. 15:13; Lev. 20:24). Jehovah God established a covenant relationship with Israel. And yet, for all these privileges, Jehovah’s dwelling place was in thick darkness (Exod. 20:21; 1 Kings 8:12). God is Holy and cannot countenance evil. The priests alone could approach God—and only the high priest could go into the Holiest of Holies and that just once a year (Lev. 16:2, 34). It was there that God dwelt among His people (1 Sam. 4:4; 2 Kings 19:15, etc.). The remainder of the people (the laity) were kept at a distance. They could only approach God through the priests. God was faithful and merciful, and they approached Him on this ground. They could not, however, speak of the forgiveness of sins; and when an Israelite spoke of salvation it was outward—a deliverance from enemies and adverse circumstances. The sacrifices provided an atonement (a covering), but they never perfected those who offered, and they had to be repeated year after year (Heb. 10:1). It was a relationship that involved a degree of uncertainty and fear. This is evident throughout the Psalms. Israel’s form of worship, ordered by God, was suited to such a company; it was ritualistic and ceremonial.
In Christianity the flock of God is not a mixed company of believers and unbelievers (John 10:27-28). Only those who are born of God are the children of God, and only those who, by the Spirit of God, cry Abba Father are in the conscious good of it (Rom. 8:15). It is no longer with a spirit of fear that we approach God. We know sins forgiven and we come now as purged worshippers, having no longer any conscience of sins (Heb. 10:2). In Christianity the believer’s position is based on that perfect and complete work of Christ—dead, risen, and now glorified by the will of God. Our sins are no longer covered, but, rather, we can say: “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). It brings the believer into a living relationship with God, not now as Jehovah, but as the Father, revealed by the Son (Matt. 11:27). “That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ” (1 John 1:1).
True and full worship supposes that we can draw near to God without fear. It is impossible, therefore, for a lost sinner to worship God. One may view God with awe and even acknowledge His activity, for example, as Creator, but that is not worship. The child of God can say and do what Israel never could: “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, His flesh; and having an high priest over the house of God; let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water” (Heb. 10:19-22). It is not simply that we have been set free from a condemning conscience, but our bodies have also been set apart from every defiling practice. We now stand before God as those who delight in His holiness; His love has free course, and the natural response of our heart will be worship.
There is, nevertheless, a walk which corresponds to this position. If we do not enjoy practical holiness in our lives, our hearts will condemn us and there will be no liberty to worship. “Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, we have boldness towards God” (1 John 3:21). “Pursue peace with all, and holiness, without which no one shall see the Lord” (Heb. 12:14 JND). Nonetheless, we again emphasize that we do not come as the trembling sinner, fearful that God can never forget. If communion is lost through our carelessness, there is a clear path for restoration: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).