Christ's ministry of salvation as seen through the sanctuary in Daniel 7-9
The progression is in reverse:
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.
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)
Due to this awesome sacrifice, Christ ascended to anoint the Holy Places in the heavenly sanctuary and begin His ministry there.
"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.
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.
Daniel 7.9-11,13-14 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... and, behold, [one] like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion [is] an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom [that] which shall not be destroyed.
"One like the Son of Man" Jesus, the Son of Man, took upon Himself humanity to stand at the head of human race and reclaim the lost inheritance for mankind. He is the second Adam. The first Adam lost the dominion and brought death to all, the second Adam brings life and reclaims the lost dominion for mankind.
He is brought before the court to "stand for His people".
To understand let's look at the type in the earthly sanctuary.
No human being ever went into the Most Holy Place except once a year on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. This was the judgment day of the whole nation. But the whole nation did not go into the Most Holy Place to present their case. They had a proxy, their substitute -- the High Priest, go in on their behalf. He went in for all who had trusted in the provisions of the "daily" or tamid ministry for forgiveness of their sins.
The high priest having assumed the people's guilt, and having made the required sacrifice - with the blood of the atonement, went into the Most Holy Place to stand in their stand.
The verdict of the court "And there was given (to the Son of Man) dominion, and glory and a kingdom that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed"
Revelation 3 gives us a further picture: 3:5 He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.
The Son of Man, as high priest, is the stand in or proxy for His people in the judgment. In the ancient sanctuary all who trusted in the provisions of the sanctuary for forgiveness and cleansing were approved in the judgment. But those who did not repent and confess their sins were "cut off" and cast out.
And so in the heavenly court, Christ, the "Lamb of God" as well as the "Son of Man" has a book -- it's called the "Lamb's book of life", in it are names of all Who have come to Christ to be covered by the blood of His atoning sacrifice.
For these Christ's victory carries the wonderful verdict:
"The court will sit for judgent, and the horn's dominion will be taken away, annihilated and destroyed forever. Then the sovereignty, the dominion and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Most High; His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all the dominions will serve and obey Him:
