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  IN PSALM 43, WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO GO TO THE ALTAR OF GOD？
  by John Piper
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Summary: This sermon focuses on the journey towards God's holy dwelling,
specifically the altar of God, where sacrifices were made for sinners.
The speaker emphasizes the significance of the cross in Christianity,
where Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice and high priest for our sins,
highlighting the need for forgiveness and closeness to God.

Topics: "Sacrifice", "Closeness to God"
Scripture References: Psalm 43:3, Hebrews 13:10, John 14:6, Ephesians 1:7, 1 John 1:9, Romans 5:8, Hebrews 4:16

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DESCRIPTION
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This sermon focuses on the journey towards God's holy dwelling,
specifically the altar of God, where sacrifices were made for sinners.
The speaker emphasizes the significance of the cross in Christianity,
where Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice and high priest for our sins,
highlighting the need for forgiveness and closeness to God.

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CONTENT
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He goes or he asks God to bring him to God's holy dwelling. That light
and that truth that comes is going to lead him to God's holy dwelling,
the sanctuary, the altar of God. Let's read that.

Middle of verse 3, this is light and truth, "'Let them bring me to your
holy hill and to your dwelling. Then I will go to the altar of God.'"
Amazing. He knows where he needs to go, and he's praying for light and
truth to dawn so that he gets there, namely, first in general the
sanctuary, and then very specifically one part of the sanctuary, the
altar.

Altar. What happens at the altar? Animals are killed at the altar and
offered to God for sinners who come to the altar. And so from our
standpoint, on this side of the cross, you cannot not read this psalm
without as a Christian saying, "'Take me to the cross, lead me to the
cross, let your light and your truth come, and may they lead me to the
sanctuary, to the cross, to the high priest, to the sacrifice, Jesus,
because there my sins will be covered.'" It's not a good thing to feel
distant from God when He's not distant from you.

We need forgiveness for that and many other things in our lives. So this
side of the cross, we know what that kind of prayer means. Hebrews
13.10, we have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no
right to eat.

In other words, Christians now know that Jesus Christ has become the
altar, He's become the high priest, He's become the sacrifice, so that
when we read, "'I will go to the altar of God,' that means, "'I will go
to Christ, my altar, my sacrifice, my high priest, and I will find there
forgiveness.'"

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Video: https://sermonindex2.b-cdn.net/HVCD6m7neU4.mp4
Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/john-piper/in-psalm-43-what-does-it-mean-to-go-to-the-altar-of-god/
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