Clothed with the Fabric of Heaven
Zach Reeves
Have you ever failed so terribly that you were certain that God was done with you? Have you ever felt like damaged goods and useless in the hands of the King? Reading through the long list of details in Exodus 39 and trying to find some value for the people of God, the Spirit opened my eyes to something that before had gone unnoticed. Aaron, the man who led the people into terrible idolatry (Exod 32), is having clothes prepared especially for him to become the most prominent man in all of Israel. How did Aaron feel about still being this man, the High Priest of Israel, after such a monumental debacle? How did the nation of Israel feel about Aaron still being chosen by God for this position? What qualified Aaron to serve in this role after such a failure? Let’s note two things:
First, the garments are made of the same stuff as the tent of meeting (Exod 36:8–38). As you read Exodus 36, you discover that entrance into the tent of meeting and the Holy of Holies is intended to take you into another world, a heavenly world. The materials for the walls and the curtains were intended to make you think of God’s presence. From the cherubim that were woven into the curtain (which brings to mind Isaiah 6), to the colors of blue and purple and gold, when a priest walked into the tent of meeting, he was to sense that he was going into the very presence of God.
The clothes made for Aaron were made of the same stuff meant to picture heaven (Heb 8:5). The same heaven-depicting materials that comprised the tent of meeting now clothed Aaron. This is what qualified Aaron, the rebel, to serve God and the people: his rebellion was covered by a heavenly garment. Yet there is more.
Not only did Aaron serve God, but Aaron also carried the people on his shoulders every time he put on those garments and went into God’s presence (Exod 39:14). Aaron was not the only sinner in Israel who needed to be clothed with the apparel of heaven. Each and every Israelite needed those same divine garments if they were ever to enter God’s presence. For the time being, God used Aaron, clothed with the stuff of heaven, to cover the sins of his people. So Aaron sacrificed, prayed, washed, and poured blood on the mercy seat all while carrying the people of God, before the presence of God, into the Tent of God.
Second, Aaron was able to do this because the garments identified Aaron as “Holy to the Lord” (Exod 39:30, ESV). The term “holy” here means to be set apart to the Lord and thus free from sin. While we know that Aaron was a sinner (see chapter 32 as an example), when he put on the garments, they covered his guilt and his shame so that when God looked upon him, he saw one who was “holy to the Lord.” Aaron was not holy to the Lord in himself, but garments could be given to him that covered his unholiness, and thus when God looked at Aaron his sin was covered.
This story brings us such joy because in it we see echoes and shadows of the gospel. We see Aaron’s complete lack of worthiness for the task and position he was called to, and we can relate. Aaron had failed in a catastrophic manner and was spared by God’s grace so that he was not one of those who was killed (Exod 32:28). Many of us can relate to this. We can close our eyes and think back on massive failures and sin with far-reaching consequences, and we can consider ourselves unworthy to wear the garments of heaven. The great news of the gospel is that while we were still sinners Christ died for us (Rom 5:8). None of our sin surprises God, for he knows all about us (Ps 139:1–6). Even in light of all our sin, God made Jesus Christ become sin so that “in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor 5:21). To put this in Aaronic terms, Jesus took our sin so that we could be clothed with the divine garments of heaven and so that we could be seen as “Holy to the Lord.”
This brings us into the holy place where we behold our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and it is worth meditating upon him. For while Aaron was a sinner who needed to be covered with heavenly garments, Jesus Christ is the essence of God who put on humanity (John 1:14). “Veiled in flesh the Godhead see, hail the incarnate deity,” says the classic hymn. Where Aaron put on the garments to serve God and the people, Jesus put on flesh in order to serve God and his people. Where Aaron had to symbolically carry the people of Israel before God, Jesus lives before the Father to intercede and minister before God on our behalf (Heb 7:25–26). Where Aaron’s sin had to be covered so he would appear “Holy to the Lord,” Jesus actually was sinless in all his ways (2 Cor 5:21; Heb 4:15). Finally, Aaron would get tired, he would falter, and was limited in every way, but Jesus is the perfect High Priest for us.
So when you fail and wonder if you are damaged goods that can ever be useful to the king again, don’t focus on the magnitude of the sin, but focus on the glories of Christ and the sufficiency of his atonement. If we allow our sin to forever sideline us from being used, we are actually saying that our sin is bigger than the work of Jesus. We are claiming his life, death, and resurrection are not enough to take care of our sin.
As this year continues on, let’s be a kingdom of priests who exalt the sufficiency of Jesus Christ’s work as a sacrifice and as a priest. Let’s call others to run the race that is set before them, fixing their eyes on Jesus (Heb 12). Let’s seek the face of the King and ask him to place us where he wills to accomplish whatever task he wills. Let’s not profess to the world that our sin and failures are bigger than Jesus. Aaron didn’t, and neither should we.