Opening the Gates of Heaven Perry Stone

(John 20:1) and when the disciples saw Christ later that same day (v. 19). This is why Christ told Mary not to touch Him, that He was ascending to the Father (v. 17). Just as the high priest sprinkled the sacrificial blood of chosen animals on the sacred furniture on the Day of Atonement, Christ made ascension to the temple in heaven and sanctified the holy furniture by His own blood! This process, mentioned in Hebrews, was the event that opened up heaven to mankind, giving us direct access to God! Under the first covenant, the mediator (the go-between) who stood between man and God was the high priest. Today, our High Priest is Christ alone, the mediator of the better covenant established on better promises (Heb. 8:6). When a sinner calls out to God for forgiveness of sin and uses the name of Christ, he or she immediately gains access through the “forgiveness gate” where the heavenly priest uses His own blood to remove the stains of sin and erase the sinner’s guilt. Because Christ is seated at the right hand of God, He can actually view the holy furniture and the bloodstained mercy seat of the ark of the covenant. When we confess Christ’s blood, we are not speaking vain and empty words from a spiritual imagination, but we are speaking a powerful statement that activates heaven itself on our behalf. In prayer, we must continually pray for our families and our children. Because the firstborn son would receive a double portion of the estate, we must