Holiness and Sacred Things?

As a child, I remember getting in trouble for playing a game in the church sanctuary. If my memory serves me correctly, it was a hide-and-seek game. I was hiding under the pews in the sanctuary. When the person would come looking for me, I would then roll back and forth under the pews so they could not find me. Not only was it a good hiding spot, but I was also hiding while being mobile. When I was discovered for my brilliant hiding tactics, I got in trouble with the youth leaders, “Matthew, we don't play games in the sanctuary!”  But why? They never bothered to tell me why.  Perhaps one reason they did not explain why we were not allowed to play games in the sanctuary is that it is a complicated answer.

To help answer this question and several more, it is best to start with the church’s architecture. What are its different parts, and why is it designed the way it is?

Church Architecture

To understand the architecture of a church, one must go back to the Old Testament Tabernacle. The Old Testament Tabernacle was a portable sanctuary used by the Israelites for worship. Around the tent was a large fence made of linen curtains with an entrance. And so, everything inside of the fence was considered the courtyard.  Inside the fence and before the main tent was a bronze altar and a bronze basin for the priests to wash themselves before entering the main tent. The main tent had two rooms: the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place. Within the Most Holy Place was the Ark of the Covenant. Only the high priest could enter this room once a year on the Day of Atonement. It was there, in the Most Holy Place, that blood was splattered on top of the Ark of the Covenant so that God would atone for the sins of the people. And so, briefly stated, everything inside the fence within the courtyard was considered holy.  However, it is important to keep in mind that holiness increased as they entered into the tent towards the presence of God in the Most Holy Place - where the Ark of the Covenant was. (See Exodus 25-31)

And so, just as the Tabernacle had a courtyard entrance, courtyard, basin, Holy Place, and Most Holy Place, churches have the same layout.  Consider the helpful chart below to compare the Tabernacle to the New Testament Church.

Tabernacle	Church
Courtyard Entrance	Narthex (Entrance Area of Sanctuary)
Courtyard	Nave (Pews)
Bronze Water Basin	Baptismal Font
Holy Place	Chancel Area
Most Holy Place	Altar Area

To help strengthen the correlation between the church sanctuary and the Old Testament Tabernacle, consider the following a bit more: the courtyard of the Old Testament Tabernacle is where God’s people would worship.  It is where the people of Israel brought their offering.  It is where the priests washed themselves in the basin before entering the Holy Place.  While the courtyard was not as sacred as the Holy Place or the Most Holy Place, the courtyard was still a consecrated space where God’s people would worship the Lord God.  Likewise, the nave (where the pews are located) is equivalent to the courtyard.  It is where the people of God gather to worship.  However, unlike the Old Testament times, when the Israelites would remain in the courtyard, and only the priests would wash in the basin to enter the Main Tent of the Tabernacle, Christians in the nave enter the Chancel for communion.  Indeed, Christians – who are washed not in a bronze basin but in the baptismal font – enter into the Holy Place called the “Chancel” to receive the body and blood of Christ.  This point cannot be underemphasized!  In the Old Testament, the priests would wash themselves in the basin and bring the blood of a sacrifice ‘into’ the Main Tent to present it before God almighty.  However, in the Christian Church, parishioners enter into the Chancel area – being washed by the font – not to present the blood of a sacrifice but to receive the body and blood of Christ.  Again, the Tabernacle and church have the same layout; however, the Christian gets to approach the Chancel (i.e., the Holy Place), whereas the average Israelite could not enter the Holy Place of the Tabernacle. 

What Is Holiness?

A necessary point to consider, though, is whether the Christian sanctuary and the Old Testament Tabernacle are the same regarding holiness.  Yes, they are.  And here is why: holiness in the Christian Church is understood similarly to holiness in the Old Testament Tabernacle because holiness is not an inherent human quality.  (See Hebrews 10:10) Instead, holiness comes from God’s presence and from God’s gifts. (See Exodus 3:5) And so, just as the movement from the outer courtyard to the Most Holy Place in the Main Tent encountered greater degrees of holiness, it is the same in the church. As believers move from the nave (where the pews are located) toward the altar (where Christ’s body and blood are given in the Lord’s Supper), they move closer to a greater degree of holiness.  This is true because, in the Lord’s Supper, the Lord is truly present in, with, and under the element.  And so, the Altar area is holy because that is where God’s Holy Sacrament is distributed.  The Chancel area is holy because that is where God’s Holy Word is proclaimed.  The Nave is holy because that is where God’s Holy People sit, receive, and worship.    

Set Apart?

This brings us back to the opening dilemma.  Why did I get in trouble as a child playing underneath the pews in the Sanctuary? We could answer this by asking a similar question: would it have been appropriate to play tag in the temple courtyard of the Old Testament Tabernacle? The answer is no; it would not have been proper. But then again, this begs the question, why?

It is important to understand, at this point, the essence of holiness. As already stated, holiness is not an inherent human quality; instead, holiness is tied to God alone. That is to say, Holiness is being set apart. People, places, and things become holy, not by their nature, but because God claims them for Himself. Remember 1 Peter 2:9?

“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”

And so, to be holy is to be set apart.  (See Leviticus 20:26) To be holy is to be claimed and used for God’s purposes.  Therefore, this understanding explains why we bless things like communion chalices, altars, baptismal fonts, banners, etc.  These objects are set apart for God’s use in the Divine Services. 

Blessing of Church Buildings and Furniture?

Though many people may not be aware of it, everything in the church sanctuary has been blessed.  That is to say, when the church Sanctuary was first built, when a new chalice was first purchased, or when an altar was newly built, a church rite was conducted during a Sunday morning Divine Service to bless these objects for use in Christ’s church. Indeed, in the pastor’s Lutheran Agenda Book, there is a large section that is used to bless things such as church buildings, baptismal fonts, organs, lecterns, lectionary bibles, banners, altar linens, pulpits, altars, communion vessels, and linens – to name a few.  These liturgical rites intend to bless and set these things apart to serve God's people.

“Since the Lord has taught us in His Holy Word that all things are holy when sanctified by the Word of God and prayer, it is fitting that we bless and sanctify _________ for use at Your Church that all who receive from these _______ may rejoice in Your goodness.”

Keep in mind, though, that the blessing of these objects does not change their nature. The silver in the chalice does not become inherently holy. Instead, these things are set apart as holy for the specific use of serving God's people. They are holy because they are used by God to serve His Holy People with Holy Things - His Word and Sacraments. Again, we must understand that holiness is not only tied to the presence of God, but it is also the ‘setting apart of people, places, and things’ for God’s use.  And so, the chalice is set apart to serve the blood of Christ to His Holy People.  The lectern and pulpit are set apart to speak God’s Holy Word to His Holy People, and the pew is set apart for people to hear God’s Word and give thanks and praise.  To the point, drinking a beer out of a chalice while watching the Super Bowl, making silly announcements from the lectern in the sanctuary, putting a trap set in the altar area, or playing hide-and-seek under the pews are using these blessed objects and furnishings in ways that they were not initially set apart for.  Bluntly stated, when these objects and furnishings are not used in the way they were initially blessed, it is as if a person is taking these Holy Things away from God and making them common.  Please note that once these places and things are blessed, they are not ‘our’ objects and furnishings to do what we want with them.  No, once they are blessed by prayer and the Word of God, they are set apart for God’s use toward His people.  

Common vs. Sacred?

So, back to my childhood dilemma!  Was hide-and-seek evil?  No, it was not.  Instead, it was not holy; therefore, it did not belong in the sanctuary. 

This brings up one final thought.  If something is not holy, it is essential to understand that it might not necessarily be evil.  Instead, it might just be just common (i.e., ordinary).  That is to say; there is a division between sacred (holy) and ordinary (common), and there is a further division between clean and unclean ordinary things (i.e., good and evil).  (See Leviticus 10:10, 11:47, and 20:24-26) Consider the following diagram to help explain this a bit more.

For further clarity, let’s flesh this out with the following scenarios listed below.  The scenario is listed on the left; then, it will be diagnosed based on ordinary and sacred and then based on unclean vs. clean. This will then determine the location of the scenario.

Scenario	Ordinary - Sacred	Unclean (evil) - Clean (good)	Location
Trivia Game	Ordinary	Clean (good)	Fellowship Hall
Gossip Session	Ordinary	Unclean (evil)	Neither
Divine Service	Sacred	Clean (good)	Sanctuary
Potluck	Ordinary	Clean (good)	Fellowship Hall
Drinking Game	Ordinary	Unclean (evil)	Neither
Funeral	Sacred	Clean (good)	Sanctuary
Hide-and-Seek	Ordinary	Clean (good)	Fellowship Hall
Baptism	Sacred	Clean (good)	Sanctuary

The diagram above raises one last question: when baptism and communion are administered at the hospital, isn’t the hospital room an ordinary space and not sacred?  Indeed, the hospital room is ordinary.  However, when baptism and communion are 

administered in a hospital room under extenuating circumstances, that hospital room becomes a sacred space, as the Lord is present in His Word and Sacraments.  And so, the concern for the Christian is not in boxing up God’s Sacred Word and Sacraments, as if they cannot escape sacred spaces. No, the Word and Sacraments will be ‘salt’ to the world. (See Matthew 5:13) Instead, the concern is always to guard harmful ‘yeast’ from leavening the whole lump - not allowing the ordinary (clean and unclean) to mix and potentially pollute what has been set apart as sacred. (See Matt 16:6, 11-12; 1 Cor. 5:6-8) In a word, hide-and-seek, potlucks, and trivia are not evil, but as ordinary things; they are not meant to mingle with God’s Holy Things, for God’s Word, Sacraments, and Furnishings are set apart – holy – for God’s Holy People. 

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