Exodus 20:26 says, “Neither shalt thou go up by steps unto mine altar, that thy nakedness be not discovered thereon.” This indicates that man’s nakedness is exposed through man’s way. According to Genesis 3:7, nakedness denotes the shame of fallen man. Before the fall, man was not clothed. However, even though he was unclothed, there was no nakedness because there was no shame. But immediately after the fall, Adam and Eve discovered that they were naked, and they tried to make a covering for themselves. Hence, in the Bible nakedness denotes the shame of fallen man.
Genesis 3:21 says, “Unto Adam also and to his wife did the Lord God make coats of skins, and clothed them.” These coats of skins typify Christ as our righteousness to cover our shame (1 Cor. 1:30; 2 Cor. 5:21; Phil. 3:9). Now we are under Christ as our full covering. According to Galatians 3:27, we have put on Christ; we have clothed ourselves with Him. This means that Christ is compared to a garment, a robe, we put on. Praise the Lord that we can boast before God that we are fully covered with Christ! God’s salvation in Christ covers us with Christ and leaves no part naked.
Although God’s salvation clothes us with Christ, man’s way uncovers the nakedness of his fallen nature. Climbing up steps to an altar exposes one’s nakedness. This indicates that man’s wisdom in building an altar with steps for the worship of God causes man’s nakedness to be exposed. The principle here is that man’s wisdom in building steps puts Christ aside. From our experience we know that whenever we exercise our own wisdom to plan something related to the worship of God, we actually put Christ aside. Furthermore, should the elders in a church exercise their wisdom to make plans or to build something elevated with steps, Christ will be set aside. Instead of exercising our wisdom to make our plans, we should fully trust in Christ. Then we shall remain under Christ as our covering.
During my years in the Lord’s ministry, I have learned that whenever I become aware of a certain need, I should bow down before the Lord and pray, “Lord, cover me. I don’t know what to say to the brothers. Lord, You be everything in this situation.” To pray in this way is to keep ourselves under Christ as our covering. But if we presume to advise others and tell them what to do, we shall expose our nakedness, the shame of our fallen nature.
If we remain under Christ as our covering when various situations come up or when problems arise and do not exercise our wisdom to deal with them, we shall be covered, and no one will see the shame of our fallen nature. But the more we exercise our wisdom to make plans and build “steps,” the more we shall be exposed. This exposure is shameful and condemned by God. God never allows those who worship Him to be naked. The priests in the Old Testament had to wear long robes so that God could see only the garment which covered them. The long robe worn by the priest typifies the Lord Jesus Christ. He is our long robe. As we worship God, we must remain in Christ and under Him as our covering. This requires that we refrain from bringing in our own wisdom or plans to build a high altar with steps.
Man’s way not only uncovers the nakedness of his fallen nature; it also promotes achievement by natural ability and creates different levels of attainment. In Catholicism there is a hierarchical system with many “steps,” many levels of human attainment. To be sure, man’s way promotes his own achievement by natural ability and creates different levels of attainment. But just as adding man’s work to the cross is abominable to God, so man’s way in the worship of God is also abominable to Him.
Whenever we come to worship God in a proper way, we must go to the altar. The altar will terminate us with all our works and ways. As fallen people, we must pass through the altar, the cross, if we are to worship God. As we have pointed out, the cross not only provides man with Christ’s redemption; it also terminates fallen man with his ability and wisdom. Fallen man cannot please God with his ability to work and his wisdom to plan. Therefore, we must identify ourselves with the sacrifice on the altar and be terminated. In the Old Testament one who offered a sacrifice placed his hand upon it when it was slain. This indicates that the one who offered the sacrifice identified himself with the sacrifice. When the sacrifice was terminated, the one who offered it was terminated in the sacrifice. Therefore, in the worship of God we must be identified with Christ as our sacrifice on the cross and be terminated.
Exodus 20:24 says, “An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen.” This verse mentions the burnt offering and the peace offering. After we have been terminated by identifying ourselves with the sacrifice on the altar, we shall worship God in the virtue of Christ as the burnt offering and the peace offering. On the one hand, a person terminated by the cross worships God in the virtue of Christ as the burnt offering for God’s satisfaction. On the other hand, such a person worships God in the virtue of Christ as the peace offering for a mutual satisfaction with God and with his fellow-worshippers. This is the worship God desires, the worship He has ordained, the worship that is acceptable to Him. Therefore, let us learn not to bring our work and our way, our power and our wisdom, our ability and our plans, into the worship of God. Instead, we must reject all these things. A true worshipper of God is one who is terminated on the cross with his power and wisdom and who worships God in the virtue of Christ.
In 20:22-26 we see that the worship God desires is worship through the cross and with Christ, through the altar and with the sacrifices. The altar, typifying the cross, terminates all those who would worship God, and the sacrifices, typifying Christ, satisfy God and give us mutual satisfaction with God and other worshippers. In this we see the vital essence of the worship which is acceptable to God. We must worship God through the cross which terminates us and with Christ who brings God and all the worshippers into a mutual satisfaction.