Exodus 27; Furniture in God’s Tent – The Grill and The Courtyard

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04/01 Exodus 27 Furniture in God’s Tent: The Grill and The Courtyard

God told his people to “make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst” (Ex.25:8). We have been studying God’s tent, the place where God taught his people what it means to have a holy God living with them. God started by describing the function and the inner beauty of his presence and worked backward, out away from the visible manifestation of his glory. The glory of his presence would be there above and between the golden cherubim, who served as his throne. These angelic creatures formed part of the lid that covered the documents of the covenant, which were contained in a box overlaid with gold. This cover is where sacrificial blood was applied once a year, on the Day of Atonement. This room was made by exquisitely decorated tapestry draped over a gold overlaid framework that provided the structure for the tent, and a curtain of the same tapestry separated this room from the rest of the tent. Outside the curtain, there was a gold table, piled high with an abundance of bread and wine, and there was a gold almond tree with seven olive oil lamps illuminating the room. Over the linen tapestry there were three more protective layers; goats hair, tanned ram’s skins, and the hides of the sea cow. There was another curtain, also ornate, but lacking the cherubim, that served to separate the tent itself from the outer courtyard. It is outside the main tent, to the altar and the courtyard that we turn our attention today. We will start by looking at the altar.

The Altar of Burnt Offering

Exodus 27:1 “You shall make the altar of acacia wood, five cubits long and five cubits broad. The altar shall be square, and its height shall be three cubits. 2 And you shall make horns for it on its four corners; its horns shall be of one piece with it, and you shall overlay it with bronze. 3 You shall make pots for it to receive its ashes, and shovels and basins and forks and fire pans. You shall make all its utensils of bronze. 4 You shall also make for it a grating, a network of bronze, and on the net you shall make four bronze rings at its four corners. 5 And you shall set it under the ledge of the altar so that the net extends halfway down the altar. 6 And you shall make poles for the altar, poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with bronze. 7 And the poles shall be put through the rings, so that the poles are on the two sides of the altar when it is carried. 8 You shall make it hollow, with boards. As it has been shown you on the mountain, so shall it be made.

And we read of the actual construction in chapter 38.

Exodus 38:1 He made the altar of burnt offering of acacia wood. Five cubits was its length, and five cubits its breadth. It was square, and three cubits was its height. 2 He made horns for it on its four corners. Its horns were of one piece with it, and he overlaid it with bronze. 3 And he made all the utensils of the altar, the pots, the shovels, the basins, the forks, and the fire pans. He made all its utensils of bronze. 4 And he made for the altar a grating, a network of bronze, under its ledge, extending halfway down. 5 He cast four rings on the four corners of the bronze grating as holders for the poles. 6 He made the poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with bronze. 7 And he put the poles through the rings on the sides of the altar to carry it with them. He made it hollow, with boards.

God gives us a glimpse into the glory of his presence, and then describes how it is that we, sinners, are to be restored to a right relationship with him. The sacrificial altar is central to the worship of God. Without the altar of sacrifice, there is no way for a sinner to stand in the presence of the holy God. Functionally, it might help to think of the altar as a large barbeque grill. It was 7.5′ square with bronze sides standing 4.5′ tall, an open top and bottom, and a bronze grating suspended halfway down the inside. For a comparison, most large backyard bbq grills have about 300 – 600 square inches of grilling surface area; room to grill 24 – 30 burgers. The bronze altar would have 8,100 square inches of grilling surface; enough room to grill over 500 burgers at once. Along with the altar, the bronze utensils that would be used with it are described; ash pots, shovels, sprinkling basins, meat forks, and fire pans.

God’s Just Judgment

Bronze is a metal that withstands high temperatures well, which is why it is associated with judgment in the bible. In Revelation 20, we see God seated as the final judge.

Revelation 20:11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. 13 And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. 14 Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15 And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

Notice in this passage that people are judged according to what they have done, and everyone who is judged based on performance is condemned. Only those whose names are in the book of life are exempted from judgment. All who are judged on the basis of their works are thrown into the lake of fire, because as Isaiah tells us “all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment” (64:6); and the author of Hebrews tell us we must repent of our dead works (6:1; 9:14). The Psalmist pleads for mercy rather than justice. In Psalm 143 he says:

Psalm 143:2 Enter not into judgment with your servant, for no one living is righteous before you.

And Paul tells us in Romans that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (3:23); and that the law “speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight” (3:19-20).

Provision of a Substitute

There is no escape for sinners from the just wrath of a holy God; rebels who refuse to respect their Creator, wretches who prefer to run after their own desires rather than worship their God. There is no escape, unless God provides the sacrifice of a substitute. And this is exactly what God did.

Leviticus 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life.

“The wages of sin is death” (Rom.6:23), and God allowed the death of an innocent substitute in place of the offending sinner to bring reconciliation. The use of this altar is described in Leviticus 1.

Leviticus 1:3 “If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he shall offer a male without blemish. He shall bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting, that he may be accepted before the LORD. 4 He shall lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him. 5 Then he shall kill the bull before the LORD, and Aaron’s sons the priests shall bring the blood and throw the blood against the sides of the altar that is at the entrance of the tent of meeting. 6 Then he shall flay the burnt offering and cut it into pieces, 7 and the sons of Aaron the priest shall put fire on the altar and arrange wood on the fire. 8 And Aaron’s sons the priests shall arrange the pieces, the head, and the fat, on the wood that is on the fire on the altar; 9 but its entrails and its legs he shall wash with water. And the priest shall burn all of it on the altar, as a burnt offering, a food offering with a pleasing aroma to the LORD.

This is a graphic bloody scene, because our sin is a gruesome offense against the honor of our good God who loves us. I must acknowledge that I have offended a holy God, and that my sin warrants the fire of eternal death. I must lay my guilty hands on the head of the innocent substitute, and God accepts that substitute in my place.

A Perpetual Offering

This was an ongoing, perpetual offering, because I am a repeat offender. Continually, I refuse to love and honor God above all else. Continually, I am guilty before him of breaking his greatest commandment.

Leviticus 6:9 “Command Aaron and his sons, saying, This is the law of the burnt offering. The burnt offering shall be on the hearth on the altar all night until the morning, and the fire of the altar shall be kept burning on it. …12 The fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it; it shall not go out. The priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and he shall arrange the burnt offering on it and shall burn on it the fat of the peace offerings. 13 Fire shall be kept burning on the altar continually; it shall not go out.

A Celebration

The whole burnt offering was the primary, foundational offering, the one that answered our sin problem. The whole animal went up in smoke to signify the severity of our sin and to satisfy God’s justice. But the whole burnt offering was not the only kind of offering to be placed on this altar. There was the gift offering – a gift of food, part of which was burnt on the altar to God, and the rest given as food to the priests. There was the fellowship offering, a response to the results of the burnt offering, celebrating peace with God. This fellowship offering could express a sacrifice of thanksgiving, a vow, or a freewill offering (Lev.7:11-21). These are some of the offerings listed in Deuteronomy 12.

Deuteronomy 12:6 and there you shall bring your burnt offerings and your sacrifices, your tithes and the contribution that you present, your vow offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herd and of your flock. 7 And there you shall eat before the LORD your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your households, in all that you undertake, in which the LORD your God has blessed you.

…11 then to the place that the LORD your God will choose, to make his name dwell there, there you shall bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings and your sacrifices, your tithes and the contribution that you present, and all your finest vow offerings that you vow to the LORD. 12 And you shall rejoice before the LORD your God, you and your sons and your daughters, your male servants and your female servants, and the Levite that is within your towns, since he has no portion or inheritance with you. (cf. Deut.14:26; 27:7)

These offerings were to be characterized by rejoicing, celebrating the goodness of God in providing salvation and his abundant blessing. A portion of the animal sacrificed was left on the altar as an offering for the Lord, but much of the meat was grilled there and then eaten by the worshipers in the courtyard. Let’s look at the courtyard.

The Courtyard

Exodus 27:9 “You shall make the court of the tabernacle. On the south side the court shall have hangings of fine twined linen a hundred cubits long for one side. 10 Its twenty pillars and their twenty bases shall be of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of silver. 11 And likewise for its length on the north side there shall be hangings a hundred cubits long, its pillars twenty and their bases twenty, of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets shall be of silver. 12 And for the breadth of the court on the west side there shall be hangings for fifty cubits, with ten pillars and ten bases. 13 The breadth of the court on the front to the east shall be fifty cubits. 14 The hangings for the one side of the gate shall be fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and three bases. 15 On the other side the hangings shall be fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and three bases. 16 For the gate of the court there shall be a screen twenty cubits long, of blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen, embroidered with needlework. It shall have four pillars and with them four bases. 17 All the pillars around the court shall be filleted with silver. Their hooks shall be of silver, and their bases of bronze. 18 The length of the court shall be a hundred cubits, the breadth fifty, and the height five cubits, with hangings of fine twined linen and bases of bronze. 19 All the utensils of the tabernacle for every use, and all its pegs and all the pegs of the court, shall be of bronze.

And we read of the actual construction in Exodus 38.

Exodus 38:9 And he made the court. For the south side the hangings of the court were of fine twined linen, a hundred cubits; 10 their twenty pillars and their twenty bases were of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets were of silver. 11 And for the north side there were hangings of a hundred cubits, their twenty pillars, their twenty bases were of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets were of silver. 12 And for the west side were hangings of fifty cubits, their ten pillars, and their ten bases; the hooks of the pillars and their fillets were of silver. 13 And for the front to the east, fifty cubits. 14 The hangings for one side of the gate were fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and three bases. 15 And so for the other side. On both sides of the gate of the court were hangings of fifteen cubits, with their three pillars and their three bases. 16 All the hangings around the court were of fine twined linen. 17 And the bases for the pillars were of bronze, but the hooks of the pillars and their fillets were of silver. The overlaying of their capitals was also of silver, and all the pillars of the court were filleted with silver. 18 And the screen for the gate of the court was embroidered with needlework in blue and purple and scarlet yarns and fine twined linen. It was twenty cubits long and five cubits high in its breadth, corresponding to the hangings of the court. 19 And their pillars were four in number. Their four bases were of bronze, their hooks of silver, and the overlaying of their capitals and their fillets of silver. 20 And all the pegs for the tabernacle and for the court all around were of bronze.

This courtyard was created around God’s tent by 7.5′ tall linen curtains hung on silver hooks from pillars set in bronze bases. The courtyard would be 150′ long and 75′ wide, with one 30′ entrance in the center of the east wall. The screen for the gate was made to match the colorful embroidery of the front covering of God’s tent. This was a large courtyard, providing over 10,000 square feet of space for worshipers to come sacrifice and celebrate and eat in God’s presence. All who would come on God’s terms were welcome. Hundreds if not a thousand could gather at one time in God’s courtyard to enjoy his goodness. Outdoor cooking and eating would be the social norm for a tent community; cooking and meals would not happen inside a tent, so God would be perceived as a generous and hospitable king, welcoming all to come and eat with him in his courts. We can see from this that God enjoys his people gathering together to worship him and to celebrate his forgiveness.

Jesus

The first thing a worshiper would see as they enter the courtyard through the gate on the east end was the continual fire burning on the large altar, reminding of their sin and need for sacrifice. Jesus may have had this in mind when he said

John 10:7 So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. … 9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. 11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

In 1 Corinthians 10, in warning us against participation in idolatry, Paul parallels Israel eating the Old Testament sacrifices with our taking the bread and the cup in communion.

1 Corinthians 10:16 The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? 17 Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread. 18 Consider the people of Israel: are not those who eat the sacrifices participants in the altar?

All of Israel was to come to the one altar. There was one means of dealing with sin. There was only one method of forgiveness that they all had in common. The people of Israel were unified in that they all participated in the one altar, and that altar pointed toward Jesus. We, as God’s new covenant people, are united in that there is only one sacrifice that is sufficient to deal with all our sin; the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. We who are many become one because we have one thing in common, we find full and free forgiveness in Jesus, the Lamb of God. We participate in the blood of Jesus as needy sinners who cling to nothing but the blood of Jesus for salvation. We participate in the broken body of Jesus as we feed on him and draw strength and sustenance from him.

The author of Hebrews points us to Jesus, who is so far superior to the Old Testament system, which was merely a shadow pointing us to him.

Hebrews 13:10 We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat.

Jesus is our altar.

He goes on to point us to the kind of sacrifices that we, who have been forgiven by Jesus, should offer.

Hebrews 13:15 Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. 16 Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God. 17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Exodus 25:10-22; Furniture in God’s Tent: The Throne Room

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3/4 Exodus 25:10-22 Furniture in God’s Tent: The Throne Room

We are in Exodus 25. We are entering now the holiest place. God has rescued and redeemed his people, brought them to himself, entered into a covenant relationship with them, and now he is giving them the gift of his presence. As King and Commander, he will pitch his tent in the middle of their camp. In God’s instructions for the building of his dwelling place, this replica of what is in heaven, he starts with the things that are closest to him, things that most immediately represent his presence. Today we enter the very throne room of God and look at the first two pieces of furniture; the container and its cover.

Exodus 25:10 “They shall make an ark of acacia wood. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. 11 You shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and outside shall you overlay it, and you shall make on it a molding of gold around it. 12 You shall cast four rings of gold for it and put them on its four feet, two rings on the one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it. 13 You shall make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. 14 And you shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry the ark by them. 15 The poles shall remain in the rings of the ark; they shall not be taken from it. 16 And you shall put into the ark the testimony that I shall give you. 17 “You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold. Two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth. 18 And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work shall you make them, on the two ends of the mercy seat. 19 Make one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on the other end. Of one piece with the mercy seat shall you make the cherubim on its two ends. 20 The cherubim shall spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat shall the faces of the cherubim be. 21 And you shall put the mercy seat on the top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony that I shall give you. 22 There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel.

And then in Exodus 37 we see these things built to specification.

Exodus 37:1 Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood. Two cubits and a half was its length, a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height. 2 And he overlaid it with pure gold inside and outside, and made a molding of gold around it. 3 And he cast for it four rings of gold for its four feet, two rings on its one side and two rings on its other side. 4 And he made poles of acacia wood and overlaid them with gold 5 and put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry the ark. 6 And he made a mercy seat of pure gold. Two cubits and a half was its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth. 7 And he made two cherubim of gold. He made them of hammered work on the two ends of the mercy seat, 8 one cherub on the one end, and one cherub on the other end. Of one piece with the mercy seat he made the cherubim on its two ends. 9 The cherubim spread out their wings above, overshadowing the mercy seat with their wings, with their faces one to another; toward the mercy seat were the faces of the cherubim.

The Chest

The most important piece of furniture in God’s tent was this box and its lid. The word translated ‘ark’ means simply a chest, a box or a container. In Genesis 50 this same Hebrew word is used to refer to the box or coffin that Joseph’s body was placed in.

This word is also used in 2 Kings 12 and 2 Chronicles 24 of a chest with a hole in its lid used as a collection box for money. The ‘ark’ in the tabernacle also serves as a container; God tells Moses in verse 16 to put into this box ‘the testimony that I shall give you.’ The box was to contain the two tablets of stone inscribed with the requirements of the covenant. It was a testimony or witness of the covenant relationship between God and his people. This chest is referred to as ‘the ark of the testimony’ or ‘the ark of the covenant’. We could think of it as the container or ‘safe’ holding the official documentation of the contract between God and his people laid up in the most holy place.

A ‘cubit’ is the distance from the tip of your fingers to your elbow; about 18” long, so this chest was to be about 3′ 9” long; 2′ 3” wide and 2′ 3” tall. The box was to be overlaid with gold inside and out. It was to have a gold molding around it, and it was to have gold feet with gold rings to receive the two gold covered poles. These would serve as handles by which to carry the box, so that no one would touch the box directly. This was King David’s mistake, when he first attempted to bring the ark into the city of Jerusalem, he put it on a cart pulled by oxen. This cost Uzzah his life; when the oxen stumbled and he touched the ark, God was angry and struck him down for his error (2Sam.6; 1Ch.13). This box was holy, set apart, not to be touched by human hands. Later, (Num.4:5-6) we find that the ark was rarely ever to be seen by human eyes; whenever the tabernacle was packed up and moved, the ark was to be wrapped with the veil, then goatskin, and then a blue cloth.

Numbers 4:5 When the camp is to set out, Aaron and his sons shall go in and take down the veil of the screen and cover the ark of the testimony with it. 6 Then they shall put on it a covering of goatskin and spread on top of that a cloth all of blue, and shall put in its poles.

This box, containing God’s commandments for his people was only part of this piece of furniture. The other part was its lid. Here it is called ‘the mercy seat’. This cover for the box was an elaborate thing, dimensioned to fit on top of the chest, but made of pure gold, with a winged angelic being formed at both ends.

The Cherubim

The angelic beings are called ‘cherubim’. We first meet the cherubs or cherubim in Genesis chapter 3. God had planted a garden, full of every good thing. There he placed the man and the woman he had created. He blessed them and entrusted the garden into their care. This was to be a place where God would manifest his presence, where God would fellowship with his very good creatures. This garden, if you will, was designed by God to be a temple where the man and woman could enjoy his presence, walking with them in the cool of the day. God gave them every good thing for their pleasure. He placed on them only one restriction; one tree was not to be eaten of under consequence of death. The man and the woman rejected God’s authority and chose to follow Satan’s lie rather than God’s truth. They severed their relationship with God. They could no longer enjoy his presence, but hid in fear. Their sin separated them from the holy God (Is.59:2). It says:

Genesis 3:24 He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.

Cherubim were awesome angelic guardians protecting the presence of God. We find the most detailed description of cherubim in Ezekiel.

Ezekiel 1:4 As I looked, behold, a stormy wind came out of the north, and a great cloud, with brightness around it, and fire flashing forth continually, and in the midst of the fire, as it were gleaming metal. 5 And from the midst of it came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: they had a human likeness, 6 but each had four faces, and each of them had four wings. 7 Their legs were straight, and the soles of their feet were like the sole of a calf’s foot. And they sparkled like burnished bronze. 8 Under their wings on their four sides they had human hands. And the four had their faces and their wings thus: 9 their wings touched one another. Each one of them went straight forward, without turning as they went. 10 As for the likeness of their faces, each had a human face. The four had the face of a lion on the right side, the four had the face of an ox on the left side, and the four had the face of an eagle. 11 Such were their faces. And their wings were spread out above. Each creature had two wings, each of which touched the wing of another, while two covered their bodies.

Ezekiel 10:20 These were the living creatures that I saw underneath the God of Israel by the Chebar canal; and I knew that they were cherubim. 21 Each had four faces, and each four wings, and underneath their wings the likeness of human hands. 22 And as for the likeness of their faces, they were the same faces whose appearance I had seen by the Chebar canal. Each one of them went straight forward.

Many scholars think these creatures resemble a sphinx-like composite creature. Depictions have been found from Egypt to Babylon to Israel dating back to the 12^th century B.C., giving ideas of how they might have been portrayed.

In several places in scripture God is seen as enthroned on or above the cherubim (2Ki.19:15; Ps.18:10; 80:1; 99:1; Is.37:16; Ezek.9:3; cf. 2Sam.22:11).

Psalm 99:1 The LORD reigns; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!

This is what we see reflected in the design of the cover for the ark.

Exodus 25:22 There I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you about all that I will give you in commandment for the people of Israel.

God is not represented by the cherubim; that would be prohibited by his second commandment. God makes his presence known above and between. The outstretched wings of the cherubim serve as God’s throne.

The Cover

These angelic figures are part of what is translated as the ‘mercy seat’ in the KJV and ESV. The NIV translates ‘atonement cover’; it was translated by Wycliffe as ‘propitiatory’. The Hebrew word כפרת[kapporeth] is derived from כפר[kaphar] which means to cover over, propitiate, or atone. The name comes from the function this cover will play on the Day of Atonement, as described in Leviticus 16.

Leviticus 16:2 and the LORD said to Moses, “Tell Aaron your brother not to come at any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat that is on the ark, so that he may not die. For I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat. 3 But in this way Aaron shall come into the Holy Place: with a bull from the herd for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. …11 “Aaron shall present the bull as a sin offering for himself, and shall make atonement for himself and for his house. He shall kill the bull as a sin offering for himself. 12 And he shall take a censer full of coals of fire from the altar before the LORD, and two handfuls of sweet incense beaten small, and he shall bring it inside the veil 13 and put the incense on the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is over the testimony, so that he does not die. 14 And he shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the front of the mercy seat on the east side, and in front of the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times. 15 “Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering that is for the people and bring its blood inside the veil and do with its blood as he did with the blood of the bull, sprinkling it over the mercy seat and in front of the mercy seat. 16 Thus he shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleannesses of the people of Israel and because of their transgressions, all their sins. And so he shall do for the tent of meeting, which dwells with them in the midst of their uncleannesses. …29 “And it shall be a statute to you forever that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict yourselves and shall do no work, either the native or the stranger who sojourns among you. 30 For on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be clean before the LORD from all your sins. 31 It is a Sabbath of solemn rest to you, and you shall afflict yourselves; it is a statute forever.

God made a covenant with his people. He knew they could not perfectly keep the terms of this covenant. So with the covenant, he provided a way for sins to be forgiven. God, enthroned above the cherubim, looks down on the covenant documents that his people promised to obey. They have transgressed his law. The wages of sin is death. Then sacrificial blood is applied to the lid that covers the law. A death has occurred to meet the just conditions of the covenant. God sees that the violated covenant has been covered by the blood and he is satisfied. Their sins are paid for and they are clean. The Hebrew word means to cover. Our English word ‘atonement’ points to the result of sins being covered. It comes from the phrase at – one – ment; harmony, unity, a reconciled relationship. Because our sins are covered, we can enjoy a favorable relationship with our covenant God.

The LXX, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament, used the word ιλαστηριον [hilasterion] to translate the Hebrew word for mercy seat or atonement. This is the Greek word the author of Hebrews uses for the mercy seat.

Hebrews 9:5 Above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Of these things we cannot now speak in detail. 6 These preparations having thus been made, the priests go regularly into the first section, performing their ritual duties, 7 but into the second only the high priest goes, and he but once a year, and not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the unintentional sins of the people.

This same word is translated ‘propitiation’ in Romans 3.

Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

A closely related word [ιλασμος] appears in 1 John

1 John 2:2 He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.

1 John 4:10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

Jesus is our atonement cover. His death satisfies God’s just wrath that our sins deserve. His sacrifice opens the way for God to be propitious or favorable toward us. He restores harmony and brings true reconciliation between God and man. This is what the author of Hebrews points us to when he contrasts the high priest of the Old Testament with Jesus, our greater High Priest.

Hebrews 9:11 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) 12 he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. … 24 For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. 25 Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, 26 for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

Jesus death on the cross was the final fulfillment that the sacrificial system was pointing toward. Jesus’ sacrifice of himself once for all covered the law that we violated from God’s sight. No longer do we need a human priest to go in to God’s presence for us. No longer are we excluded from God’s presence because of our sin. Our sin was finally and forever nailed to his cross. Jesus is our great and final High Priest. At his crucifixion, the curtain barring us from the holiest place was ripped from top to bottom.

Hebrews 4:16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

No longer is the law written on tablets of stone and laid up in a box in the heart of the sanctuary.

Jeremiah 31:33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

We are God’s temple, God’s people, his law is written on our hearts.

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Advent – Immanuel

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20111218_advent-immanuel.mp3

12/18 Advent – Immanuel – God With Us

Jesus is Immanuel – God With Us

Christmas is one week away! In this advent season, I want us to turn our eyes to Jesus. Today, I want to reflect on one of the names given to Jesus. That name is Immanuel. It comes from Isaiah 7:14

Isaiah 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

Matthew quotes this prophecy as being fulfilled in Jesus.

Matthew 1:18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20 But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).

Jesus’ conception was supernatural. Jesus had no human father. Mary was a virgin. “That which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.” And Matthew tells us that the Hebrew name Immanuel means God with us. Jesus is Immanuel; God with us.

The implications of this stagger the imagination! God with us. God the Creator of the universe, born of a virgin. God in human flesh. Luke puts it this way:

Luke 1:35 And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy––the Son of God.

Overshadowed by the power of the Most High – God the Father; and God the Holy Spirit – so that the child to be born will be the Son of God. John puts it this way:

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God.

John tells us that ‘the Word’ was in the beginning. ‘The Word’ existed before all creation. ‘The Word was with God’ – distinct from God the Father – a perfect companion of the Father. ‘The Word’ was with God, and ‘The Word’ was God – fully divine, sharing all the attributes and characteristics of God. ‘The Word’ was distinct from the Father, and yet fully divine. John continues by saying that ‘the Word’ became something he was not before.

John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

‘The Word’ became flesh. ‘The Word’ became tissue, bone and blood. He who existed from eternity with God and as God, now took on a human body. God became flesh. God dwelt among us, or literally ‘pitched his tent with us’. Immanuel – God with us. John goes on to say:

No One Has Ever Seen God

John 1:18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father‘s side, he has made him known.

This is an absolute statement. No one has ever seen God. Period. Paul tells us of the Father:

1 Timothy 6:15 …he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, 16 who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.

No one has ever seen or can see God, because he dwells in unapproachable light. No one can see God the Father, because, as Jesus tells us, “God is Spirit” (Jn.4:24; cf. Jn.5:37, 6:46). No one can see the Father because, as Paul tells us in Colossians, God is invisible. But he says of Jesus, God the Son, that:

Colossians 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

Jesus is the image of the invisible God. Jesus, the only God who is at the Father’s side has made know to us the Father. The word John uses is interesting. Jesus has made known or literally exegeted the Father. We usually use this word exegete in reference to a biblical text. It is a Greek word that means ‘to lead out’. You take a biblical passage and study it carefully so that you can lead out to make known or put on display the truth that is in it. Jesus exegetes the Father. He puts on display what the invisible God is like. The author of Hebrews says that God’s fullest revelation of himself is in his Son, who is “the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature” (Heb.1:3).

Jesus is God. He is fully God. He was with God and he was God. But Jesus is God with us. He became human so that he could make know to us what God is like. Jesus is “the radiance of the glory of God.” He is the shining forth of the excellencies of God. He puts his Father on display. He is the exact imprint of the nature of the Father. Jesus tells us as much in John:

John 5:19 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.

John 14:7 If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” …9 …Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father‘?

Jesus puts the Father’s nature on display so precisely that he can say “whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” To know Jesus is to know God.

So in the time we have left, let’s turn our eyes to our Jesus, Immanuel, God with us, to get a clearer picture of what God is like. Understand, that studying the gospels and the other New Testament documents to see Jesus, to get to know him, to deepen affection and admiration of him, to enjoy relationship with him, is a lifetime project. We will only be able barely to scratch the surface in a broad overview sort of way.

Triune

As we have seen in the verses we have looked at so far, Jesus reveals to us that God, in his very nature and essence, is triune. Jesus speaks of his Father, and the coming Holy Spirit. God is Father, Son, and Spirit, in eternal relationship and fellowship. Three distinct persons, each fully divine, constitute the one sovereign being we refer to as ‘God’.

Omnipotent

Mark 4:39 And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” 41 And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even wind and sea obey him?”

One thing we learn about God through Jesus is that he is omnipotent, or all-powerful. He is the one who has absolute control over all things. He is the sovereign supreme ruler. All created things must obey him.

Omnipresent

John 1:48 Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” 49 Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” 50 Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.”

Another thing Jesus teaches us about God is that he is omnipresent, or everywhere present. He is not confined to be only in one place at a time. God, who is spirit, fills time and space. There is nowhere that he is not. This is how Jesus can say to twelve men and their followers who would scatter across the globe:

Matthew 28:20 … And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Omniscient

John 6:64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray him.)

Jesus teaches us that God is omniscient. He knows everything. He knows what will happen in the distant future. He knows what is in the hearts of men.

Eternal

John 10:17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

Jesus teaches that God is the Living One. He is eternal. As we saw in the earlier verses, he eternally existed. He has no beginning and will have no end. He is. Jesus said “I AM” (Jn.8:24, 58).

Life Giver

John 5:21 For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will.

Not only is God the eternal Living One, he is the Life Giver. He gives life to whom he will. He is the fountain and source of life. All life comes from him.

John 11:25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

Holy

Mark 1:24 “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are––the Holy One of God.”

Jesus taught that God is holy, distinct, separate, set apart, totally other, one-of-a-kind. Even the demons recognized in Jesus a uniqueness – he is in a category by himself.

Perfect

Mark 7:37 And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

Jesus showed us that God is perfect. He lacks no good quality. He is not deficient in any way.

True

John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Jesus teaches us that God is truth. God is entirely trustworthy. He never lies. His word is true. He will keep his promises.

Jealous

John 2:15 And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money–changers and overturned their tables. 16 And he told those who sold the pigeons, “Take these things away; do not make my Father’s house a house of trade.” 17 His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for your house will consume me.”

Jesus demonstrates that God is passionate about his own glory. He zealously defends the honor of his own name. He will tolerate no rivals. For the good of his people, he will violently take action against those who misrepresent him.

Wrath

Mark 3:5 And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored.

Jesus teaches us that God is a God of anger and wrath. But God is not capricious or volatile. He is slow to anger, and his anger is righteous anger, mixed with compassionate sorrow over the effects of sin.

In the well known passage describing the love of God, Jesus also warns of the wrath of God.

John 3:36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

God intensely hates sin. God is to be feared, his wrath is terrifying, but his wrath can be escaped. He has provided a way.

Just

When the religious leaders brought a woman to Jesus for judgment,

John 8:7 And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.”

Jesus taught that God is just. He does not show favoritism. His judgments are true and righteous.

Mercy

But he also taught that God is merciful and compassionate, eager to forgive. To this woman who was clearly guilty, he said:

John 8:11 …And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”

Love

John 15:9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love.

Jesus taught us that God is love. Before the world was created, God, Father, Son and Spirit, lived in an eternal relationship of genuine love. Jesus also teaches us what love is.

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

God’s love is not a romantic feeling of attraction, but self-sacrificial action for the good of the one loved, regardless of how little they deserve it.

John 13:1 Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.

Jesus went to the cross to demonstrate God’s self-giving love.

Response:

We have merely scratched the surface of what God is like as revealed in the person of Jesus, or Immanuel, God with us. I invite you to make it your life-long pursuit to deepen your affection and devotion for God by becoming a disciple, a follower of Jesus

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Advent: Prepare To Meet Your God

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20111204_advent-prepare_to_meet_god.mp3

12/04 Advent – God comes in judgment; prepare to meet your God

We are in the season of Advent, traditionally the four weeks leading up to Christmas. Advent is a Latin word that means ‘coming.’ This is a time for reflection, reflection on the First Advent, or the coming of God into the world in the person of Jesus, the baby born of the virgin. It is also a time for us to anticipate and prepare for the Second Advent, the second coming of Christ in power and glory when he returns to rule in righteousness. Last week, Tyrone served you well by turning your eyes toward Jesus in worship. For the next few weeks, I would like to continue to focus our attention on Jesus by looking at different aspects of who he is.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German pastor and martyr under Hitler’s regime, wrote as Christmastime of what he called an un-Christmas-like idea:

“When the old Christendom spoke of the coming again of the Lord Jesus, it always thought first of all of a great day of judgment. And as un-Christmas-like as this idea may appear to us, it comes from early Christianity and must be taken with utter seriousness. The coming of God is truly not only a joyous message but is, first, frightful news for anyone who has a conscience. And only when we have felt the frightfulness of the matter can we know the incomparable favor. God comes in the midst of evil, in the midst of death, and judges the evil in us and in the world, and in judging it he loves us, he purifies us, he sanctifies us, he comes to us with his grace and love. He makes us happy as only children can be happy. We have become so accustomed to the idea of divine love and of God’s coming at Christmas that we no longer feel the shiver of fear that God’s coming should arouse in us. We are indifferent to the message, taking only the pleasant and agreeable out of it and forgetting the serious aspect: that the God of the world draws near to the people of our little earth and lays claim to us.” [Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Coming of Jesus in our Midst(from God is in the Manger, week 1 day 4; audiobook MP3 track 5)]

In preparation for Christmas, I want to look soberly at this aspect of God’s Advent; the issue of our sin in the light of God’s presence. Christmas is all about Jesus, and Jesus is Emmanuel – God with us, but we are sinners and God is just, so God’s presence with us is a terrifying prospect. If what Bonhoeffer said is true, and I believe it is, that ‘only when we have felt the frightfulness of the matter can we know the incomparable favor’, then a serious look at the terrifying prospect of God’s presence will actually serve to increase our real joy this holiday season.

John and Malachi: Prepare to Meet Your God

Let’s start by looking at the ministry of John. It was prophesied to John’s father Zechariah that:

Luke 1:16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, 17 and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”

John’s mission was to prepare people for the coming of the Lord. Our Lord Jesus pointed back to his cousin John as the fulfillment of this Old Testament prophecy:

Luke 7:27 This is he of whom it is written, “‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.’

John’s role is to prepare people for the coming of God. Jesus is quoting from Malachi 3, the last book of the Old Testament. Let’s look at that passage together to get the big picture:

Malachi 3:1 “Behold, I send my messenger and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts. 2 But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the LORD. 4 Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the LORD as in the days of old and as in former years. 5 “Then I will draw near to you for judgment. I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against those who swear falsely, against those who oppress the hired worker in his wages, the widow and the fatherless, against those who thrust aside the sojourner, and do not fear me, says the LORD of hosts. 6 “For I the LORD do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.

The God of the Old Testament is speaking in the first person. He says “I send my messenger and he will prepare the way before me.” God is coming to visit his people. His people must be prepared. And he asks the question “who can endure the day of his coming and who can stand when he appears?” Then he says “I will draw near to you for judgment. I will be a swift witness against… [those who] do not fear me, says the LORD of hosts.” John’s message was a message of repentance (Mt.3:2,8,11; Mr.1:4,15; Lk.3:3,8). ‘You are sinners and you need to turn away from your sin and turn back to the Lord.’ John said things like this:

Matthew 3:7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. 9 And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham. 10 Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 11 “I baptize you with water for repentance, but he who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into the barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”

Those harsh words are about Jesus!

Amos: Prepare to Meet Your God!

As I was reading in Amos, these words caught my attention: “Prepare to meet your God, O Israel!” I stopped to look back at the context, and I found God claiming to send famine and drought and blight and mildew with the repeated refrain “yet you did not return to me declares the LORD” He continues:

Amos 4:10 “I sent among you a pestilence after the manner of Egypt; I killed your young men with the sword, and carried away your horses, and I made the stench of your camp go up into your nostrils; yet you did not return to me,” declares the LORD. 11 “I overthrew some of you, as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and you were as a brand plucked out of the burning; yet you did not return to me,” declares the LORD. 12 “Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel; because I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God, O Israel!” 13 For behold, he who forms the mountains and creates the wind, and declares to man what is his thought, who makes the morning darkness, and treads on the heights of the earth–– the LORD, the God of hosts, is his name!

Because Israel refused to pay attention to all of God’s warnings and refused to return to him, God would come to them in judgment. This is a terrible prospect: meeting the God who created all things, who has repeatedly threatened and warned and invited, yet you did not return to me; meeting this God in judgment is a terrifying thought.

Making Good News Good

This is what makes the good news so good! Jesus said:

Luke 5:32 I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”

Jesus did not come for those who do not feel the weight of their sin. Those content with their own righteousness will meet the full force of God’s wrath against their arrogant self sufficient pride. Jesus came to bring hope to those who knew how desperately short they fall of God’s perfect standard. This is why the Bible talks about repentance as a gift (Acts 5:31; 11:18; 2Tim.2:25). It is a gift for me to recognize my own self justifying self sufficient pride in my own goodness as sin that I need to repent of (Heb.6:1). It is God the Holy Spirit that convicts me of my sin (Jn.16:8; 1Thess.1:5) and my need for a Savior. When I come like the tax collector in Jesus’ story and cry ‘God be merciful to me, a sinner!’ then I am accepted.

Luke 18:9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

The Beauty of the Cross – Justification

Justified. This sinner went down to his house justified. This is a legal declaration. God the judge declares this sinner not guilty. This is a problem – how can God justify the ungodly (Rom.4:5)? How can God justify by his grace as a gift (Rom.3:24); how can God justify apart from works of the law (Rom.3:28); how can God be just and the justifier of him who has faith in Jesus (Rom.3:26)? This is what makes the cross so beautiful! We can be ‘justified by his grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood … to show God’s righteousness’ (Rom.3:24-25). Jesus’ death on the cross is my redemption – he paid the debt I owe in full. Jesus’ death on the cross is propitiation – he absorbed and satisfied the just wrath of God against my sin. Jesus’ death on the cross is a staggering display of the righteousness of God. God, who is holy, righteous and just, can be forgiving, merciful and kind to a sinner without compromising his own righteous character because Jesus satisfied all the demands of justice by taking my sin and giving me his righteousness. The sinner who humbles himself, acknowledges his sin before God and throws himself on God’s mercy is fully absolved of all his sin and credited with all of Christ’s righteousness. “Only when we have felt the frightfulness of the matter can we know the incomparable favor.”

Sanctification

But this is not all. It does not end here. It cannot end here. God does not justify sinners and leave us in our sins. God does not declare us righteous and leave us as we are. No. God’s love for us is a transforming love.

Romans 6:22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life.

We who have been justified by grace are now being sanctified by God’s grace as a gift.

Philippians 1:6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

2 Corithians 3:18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

2 Corinthians 5:14 For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised. …17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

1 Thessalonians 5:23 Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Prepare to meet your God. Jesus has come. Jesus is coming again. Jesus told us to watch, to stay awake, to be ready (Mt.24:42-44; Lk.12:40; Rev.16:15), to invest what we have been given (Lk.19:23), to hold fast to the truth (Rev.3:11; 22:7). Prepare to meet your God!

1John 2:28 And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Exodus 22:18-31; Loving God and Neighbor

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20111030_exodus22_18-31.mp3

10/30 Exodus 22:18-31 Loving God and Neighbor

Jesus taught us that the entirety of the Old Testament can be summed up in two commands:

Matthew 22:37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” (cf. Mk.12:28-31)

All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands. Love God and love neighbor. This is foundational to all of what God says to his people, what God expects of his people. So as we look back at God’s law given to his people at Mount Sinai – and Paul tells us that all scripture (by which he primarily meant the Old Testament):

2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.

As we look back at God’s law, we should gain a deeper appreciation for who God is and how he is to be loved, and what it means to love neighbor as self.

Keeping the First Commandment

God started his ten words to his people by saying:

Exodus 20:2 “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 3 “You shall have no other gods before me. 4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.

God gives priority to worship. Keep first things first. Keep God first. Love God by giving him exclusive right to first place in your life. In the section of God’s law that we will look at today, God lays out for us how serious this is, and how our love for God should be reflected in how we treat others in our community.

Exodus 22:18 “You shall not permit a sorceress to live. 19 “Whoever lies with an animal shall be put to death. 20 “Whoever sacrifices to any god, other than the LORD alone, shall be devoted to destruction.

These three capital crimes are ways in which someone would blatantly reject God’s exclusive right to worship. They are capital crimes because of the danger they pose to the community at large. Just as a willful murderer is to be executed for the good and protection of the community because God values life, even more so someone who is involved in this type of activity endangers the community by introducing a cancer that robs those who are infected of eternal life. Sorcery, bestiality, and idolatry were expressions of spiritual unfaithfulness, treason toward God, leading people astray from placing their faith and trust in God alone.

Sorcery or witchcraft is the attempt to foresee or manipulate the future by summoning supernatural power outside of the one true God. One of the greatest privileges of being in relationship with Almighty God is that we have access to him through prayer. Sorcery or witchcraft is a blatant defection from God by employing the powers of the enemy to gain insight or control over situations and events. We as believers have the strong comfort that God works all things out for the good of those who love him. To seek answers or to attempt change circumstances through supernatural means is to demonstrate distrust of God and disbelief of his promises. We would find ourselves actually fighting against God and against his perfect purposes and plans.

Bestiality or intercourse with an animal blurs God’s created distinction between animals and man, and distorts God’s gift of covenant sexual intimacy. This was part of the pagan worship of some of the nations that Israel would come in contact with and, like sorcery, expressed a dissatisfaction with God and his ways. God made man distinct from animals, as ruler over them to reflect his character, and he designed human sexual intimacy within the context of the covenant faithfulness of marriage to reflect his covenant faithfulness and intimacy with his people. Deviant sexual practices like homosexuality (Lev.20:13) and bestiality, rejections of God’s purpose and design in creation, were rejections of God himself.

Idolatry, or sacrificing to any god other than YHWH alone, is an explicit restatement of the first and second commandments, and ties these three capital offenses together. Giving our affection or devotion to anyone but the one true God is treason, robbing God of the honor that is due to him, falling short of giving God the glory that he alone deserves.

protection for aliens, widows, and the fatherless

In the next verses, the subject moves seamlessly from unadulterated love for God to how we treat the weak and defenseless in society, because putting God first in our affections means caring for those he specially cares for.

21 “You shall not wrong a sojourner or oppress him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. 22 You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. 23 If you do mistreat them, and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry, 24 and my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless.

Special protection is given to the sojourner, the widow and the fatherless. Most of the consequences given in the Book of the Covenant are judicial consequences – spelling out how a judge is to deal justly, but this lays out a different kind of consequence, because these people are the kind of people that might be overlooked or neglected by the justice system. God himself will come to the defense of the defenseless. God promises to hear the cry of the oppressed, and will himself come to their aid. The threat God gives is terrifying. His wrath will burn. Our God is passionate about justice, and he gets rightly fired up when we mistreat the weak. When you watch the news or see a movie and your emotions are engaged and you want to see the bad guys caught and punished, that is the image of God in you – an imperfect reflection of the character of our justice loving God. God has righteous wrath against sin. God says if you wrong, if you oppress, if you mistreat the weak, I will kill you. I will mete out poetic justice, putting your wife and your children in the vulnerable shoes of those you have wronged, oppressed, and mistreated. God says, ‘You know better. You know what it’s like to be the underdog.’ He is speaking to his people whom he rescued out of oppressive slavery in Egypt. ‘I did not save you so that you could now be on top and take it out on those below you. I saved you so that you would have compassion and empathy toward those who are defenseless, so that you would extend the justice and care to others that was withheld from you in your oppression.’ As Jesus said

Matthew 7:12 “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets. (cf. Lk.6:31)

protection for the poor

God extends this protection also to the poor.

25 “If you lend money to any of my people with you who is poor, you shall not be like a moneylender to him, and you shall not exact interest from him. 26 If ever you take your neighbor’s cloak in pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down, 27 for that is his only covering, and it is his cloak for his body; in what else shall he sleep? And if he cries to me, I will hear, for I am compassionate.

Do you hear the character of God that lies behind this command? ‘For I am compassionate.’ This is the first of thirteen times this word is used in the bible, always of God. It is frequently translated ‘gracious’ and almost always found in connection with another adjective translated ‘merciful’, also used exclusively of God. Our God is merciful and gracious. God is moved to extend kindness to those that do not deserve it. Undeserved kindness – this is the essence of grace. We as his people are to reflect his character in how we deal with the poor. We, who have been shown mercy, are to genuinely care and extend love to those that are in real trouble. We are not to see those in need as an investment that we can profit from. We are not to prey on their need. We are to treat the poor as our own family and lend without charging interest. The desperate condition of the poor is seen in the situation where the only collateral they can offer is the one cloak that will keep them warm at night. To keep that overnight would be to oppress your poor. Jesus calls us to take this a step further.

Luke 6:27 “But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. 29 To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. 30 Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. 31 And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them. 32 “If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. 35 But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. 36 Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.

Jesus calls us not only to not charge interest, but to not even expect to get the principle back. In this way we reflect God, who gives generously to those who can never repay him.

This is a practical expression of our love for God and the right response to his love toward us. John tells us

1 John 3:16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 17 But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.

1 John 4:19 We love because he first loved us. 20 If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.

Jesus gives us additional incentive to care for society’s least.

Matthew 25:34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’

put God first through obedience

The next verses return us to our vertical relationship, putting God first in all things.

28 “You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

Reviling God means more than saying something bad about God or using his name in vain. It means to treat him with contempt or dishonor. We treat God, and we treat anyone in authority, with contempt when we ignore or neglect to do what they say. Love for God is not a mushy-gooshy emotional feeling in our heart. Moses defines love for God this way:

Deuteronomy 11:1 “You shall therefore love the LORD your God and keep his charge, his statutes, his rules, and his commandments always.

Jesus says the same thing:

John 14:15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. …21 Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. …23 “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, … 24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words.

John 15:10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, …14 You are my friends if you do what I command you.

John gives us a simple definition:

1 John 5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.

Love for God is expressed by obedience to God. Contempt for God is displayed by a disregard for what he says. Those who love God do not find his commands burdensome. In this passage he demands the first fruits and the firstborn.

29 “You shall not delay to offer from the fullness of your harvest and from the outflow of your presses. The firstborn of your sons you shall give to me. 30 You shall do the same with your oxen and with your sheep: seven days it shall be with its mother; on the eighth day you shall give it to me.

In Exodus 13, God required that all firstborn be given to him. The firstborn of animals fit for sacrifice must be sacrificed to him. The firstborn of unclean animals or people must be redeemed by a suitable substitute. Here he requires the firstfruits of the harvest – the fullness and outflow is to be given to him without delay. This indicates a joyful overflow of gratefulness for the abundance of God’s provision, rather than a token offering out of legalistic obligation. To those who are recipients of God’s grace, his commands are not burdensome. We have experienced God’s undeserved kindness. Our hearts should be moved to extravagant generosity. We are his. We have been bought with a price.

31 “You shall be consecrated to me. Therefore you shall not eat any flesh that is torn by beasts in the field; you shall throw it to the dogs.

We are consecrated, set apart, called to be his special people.

Exodus 19:5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; 6 and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”

This command to not eat meat that has not been properly killed – to abstain from eating blood – is found over and over again in the Law, starting with God’s instructions to Noah in Genesis 9, and it is even one of the few requirements given to Gentile believers in the New Testament (Acts 15:20,29; 21:25). The reason this is so important is given in Leviticus 17.

Leviticus 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life.

Blood poured out represents a life given in sacrifice. The blood of the sacrifice was given to make atonement or to cover our guilt before God. The author of Hebrews tells us

Hebrews 9:22 … without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.

He also tells us

Hebrews 10:4 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

And he points to Jesus, who

Hebrews 9:12 he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.

Jesus himself said:

Matthew 26:28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

Jesus is praised as the one who:

Revelation 1:5 …To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood 6 and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

We worship the Lamb, singing:

Revelation 5:9 And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, 10 and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.”

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Exodus 21:12-32; Capital Punishment – The Wages of Sin

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20111016_exodus21_12-32.mp3

10/16 Exodus 21:12-32 Capital Punishment; The Wages of Sin

How to Right the Wrong When You Fall Short

We are in Exodus 21, the Book of the Covenant, and today we come to a section of God’s laws where he addresses capital offenses. God has laid out his perfect standard in chapter 20, in his ten words spoken to his people. He said:

Exodus 20:12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.

13 “You shall not murder.

15 “You shall not steal.

These are absolute statements. They are commands. The assumption is ‘this is how people in relationship with the living God live. There is no ‘what if’ or ‘what about….’ God has spoken authoritatively to what life should look like in his kingdom.

And remember the response of his people. They were terrified at the presence of God and asked that he speak no more to them directly or they would die. They felt their guilt and inadequacy before God. They knew they didn’t live up to his perfect standards. They requested a mediator, a go-between to keep them safe. God is now speaking to Moses, who will write God’s words and communicate them to the people.

In this section, God tells his people what to do when they violate his perfect standard. He addresses the distinction in consequences between manslaughter and premeditated homicide, consequences for kidnapping, consequences for disrespect of parents, consequences for injuries and disabilities short of death, consequences for harming an innocent bystander, and consequences for negligent homicide.

We Have Wronged God

So God lays down his perfect standard. Then he tells them how to right the wrong when they fall short of his perfect standard. He starts, at the end of chapter 20, by addressing how to right the wrong done to him for violating his rules, because all sin is first of all sin against God the perfect lawgiver. And there is no restitution that can be made. There is nothing we can do to make it right with God. The wages of sin is death. We have dishonored God by not living according to his instructions. But God, in his mercy has allows for substitution. A sacrificial animal can take our place an die. Its blood in place of ours to satisfy justice. God gives us the sacrifice of a substitute to demonstrate the depth of our guilt and the greatness of his honor, and to bring reconciliation when we have wronged him. Through the death of a substitute, we can be brought back into a proper worship relationship with our Creator. This all points forward to Jesus, the perfect Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

God Values Human Life

Now God is addressing the secondary issue that when we violate God’s perfect standards, we not only wrong God, but we also wrong those around us. This section addresses how to right the wrongs we have done to our fellow man. God had told us all the way back in Genesis how much he values life. He told Noah:

Genesis 9:5 And for your lifeblood I will require a reckoning: from every beast I will require it and from man. From his fellow man I will require a reckoning for the life of man. 6 “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.

God values human life because human life uniquely carries his image. It’s as if you see someone’s reflection in a mirror, and you hate that person so much and want to do them harm that you throw a stone at the reflection of their face and shatter the mirror. God takes that personally, because it really is an attack on him. God made man to reflect his own character. To assault a human being is to assault the character of God. The dignity and worth of man as an image-bearer of God is so great that it requires the ultimate protection. To take the life of another is to forfeit your own. That is what he says in Exodus 12:12.

Exodus 21:12 “Whoever strikes a man so that he dies shall be put to death.

Manslaughter

Death is the consequence for violating the sixth command, ‘you shall not murder’. But he goes on to qualify that there are exceptions to the general rule.

13 But if he did not lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then I will appoint for you a place to which he may flee. 14 But if a man willfully attacks another to kill him by cunning, you shall take him from my altar, that he may die.

God cares about the intent of your heart. If you intended to kill, if it was a willful or cunning premeditated attack, you are to be granted no sanctuary. Even the most sacred place is no place of refuge for the murderer. This is not to say that all murderers go to hell. A murderer could trust in God’s provision of a substitute to deal with his guilt before God. He would not escape the immediate consequences of his sin against his fellow man, but in God’s mercy he would escape the eternal consequences of his sin against God. An example of this would be the thief – likely a murderer – on the cross, who acknowledged his own guilt and looked to the Lamb of God for mercy. He did not escape the immediate consequences of his sin, but Jesus promised him a place with him after death. King David, a murderer, said:

Psalm 32:1 Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. 2 Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity…

The exception listed here is when a death occurs that was not premeditated, not willful, not by cunning. There was no intent to kill. We have a word for this that the bible does not use. We would call it an accident. Our word comes from the Latin meaning to fall – it simply fell out this way, it happened, a chance occurrence, the idea of fortune, fate, destiny, or luck. There are no accidents in God’s universe. Nothing just happens. The phrase the bible uses here is a bit startling: “God let him fall into his hand.” The example given in Deuteronomy 19:5 is neighbors cutting wood and an axe head slips from the handle and kills a man. This is not murder. And this is not senseless fate. God let him fall into his hand.

Proverbs 16:33 The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD.

God says:

Isaiah 46:9 …I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, 10 declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose,’

This is a recognition of the sovereign providence of God, who orders all things. There is protection for the one who killed without malicious intent. We see in Numbers 35 the establishment of cities of refuge where the manslayer can flee and find protection for his life.

Kidnapping

In verse 16 we see that kidnapping is a capital offense.

16 “Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found in possession of him, shall be put to death.

Anyone taking away the freedom of another person is in effect taking away their life, and for that offense, they forfeit their own life.

Dishonoring Parents

In verses 15 and 17 we see that breaking the 5^th command was also a capital crime

15 “Whoever strikes his father or his mother shall be put to death. … 17 “Whoever curses his father or his mother shall be put to death.

In the 5^th command, God told us to “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long…” And here we see just how short your days would be if you didn’t take this command seriously! The role of parent is to be held with such high honor and respect that hitting father or mother would be unthinkable. This drills down to the heart attitude when even cursing is included – to say something like ‘I hate you and I wish you were dead’; this kind of disrespect warrants the death penalty, because it disregards the most basic representation of God’s authority on this earth.

Disability Benefits

Next, God addresses how to make it right on issues that fall short of the death penalty, but where there is injury.

18 “When men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or with his fist and the man does not die but takes to his bed, 19 then if the man rises again and walks outdoors with his staff, he who struck him shall be clear; only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall have him thoroughly healed. 20 “When a man strikes his slave, male or female, with a rod and the slave dies under his hand, he shall be avenged. 21 But if the slave survives a day or two, he is not to be avenged, for the slave is his money.

The weapons listed would be those available spontaneously in the heat of the moment. A stone or fist demonstrate a different level of premeditation from a knife or a sword. If the fist does cause death, this would fall under the previous category of a willful attack. Here he addresses the issue of a disabling injury caused by another person. The person who inflicted the injury is responsible to pay for the loss of time and any medical needs. This would be the equivalent of disability and health care coverage. ‘He shall be clear’ means that the death penalty is not to be applied when death does not result. The death penalty is to be inflicted if a master beats his slave to death. As we saw last time, biblical slavery is a very different thing from the slavery we are familiar with. Here, the human rights of the slave are protected just as the free man. This does affirm that a master has the right to inflict discipline to correct an unruly slave. But if he causes his servant to temporarily miss work, the loss of work is a loss to him, so he doesn’t have to compensate himself.

Innocent Bystander and the Life of the Unborn

The next section addresses the wrong done to the ultimate innocent bystander, a woman and her unborn child.

22 “When men strive together and hit a pregnant woman, so that her children come out, but there is no harm, the one who hit her shall surely be fined, as the woman’s husband shall impose on him, and he shall pay as the judges determine. 23 But if there is harm, then you shall pay life for life, 24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 burn for burn, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

Again we see God’s concern and care for the weakest and most vulnerable members of society. Even when there is no harm, a fine is to be imposed on the careless individual. There is some debate among bible scholars if the harm includes only the woman or also the child, but common sense would make it clear that the miscarriage of a baby to an expecting couple would certainly be considered harm. If there is no harm would indicate that both premature baby and mother are uninjured. If there is harm to mother or child, the one who caused the injury will pay, even the death penalty if he caused death.

Injury to Slaves

The next verses protect slaves from abusive masters.

26 “When a man strikes the eye of his slave, male or female, and destroys it, he shall let the slave go free because of his eye. 27 If he knocks out the tooth of his slave, male or female, he shall let the slave go free because of his tooth.

A master had the right to discipline his servant, but not to abuse. Any abuse – evidenced by a permanent injury – allowed the slave to go free and cost the master his investment.

Dangerous Animals

The final section addresses justice in the situation of dangerous animals

28 “When an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox shall be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten, but the owner of the ox shall not be liable. 29 But if the ox has been accustomed to gore in the past, and its owner has been warned but has not kept it in, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned, and its owner also shall be put to death. 30 If a ransom is imposed on him, then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is imposed on him. 31 If it gores a man’s son or daughter, he shall be dealt with according to this same rule. 32 If the ox gores a slave, male or female, the owner shall give to their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned.

This in today’s world would be considered negligent homicide. If your brakes unexpectedly go out and you run someone over, you are not considered a murderer, but your car gets impounded. But if you knew your brakes didn’t work and you drove anyway, you have knowingly endangered human life and are held responsible. And here we see the concept of redemption. In differing circumstances, the judges could impose penalties that seemed fair, up to the death penalty. A ransom could be imposed, not a fine, but a ransom to redeem your life. In this case, you acknowledged that you are guilty and deserve to die, but you redeem or purchase your life back.

Conclusion

What can we learn from all of this? First, we learn that sin is serious. All sin is first against God and also wrongs other people. The wages of sin is death. God takes sin seriously. Jesus taught:

Matthew 18:8 And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire.

God never lets sin slide, but he has provided a way for us to be reconciled to him through the death of a substitute. The author of Hebrews tells us that the blood of bulls and goats could never take away sin; this all pointed forward to the God-man Jesus Christ, who became sin for us.

We also learn that God values human life. The life of every human being, whether slave or free, rich or poor, male or female, young, old, or unborn, all are precious to him.

Lex Talionis

God values justice and equity. The lex talionis (or law retaliation) found in this passage is restrictive; it prevents the human inclination to escalate the consequences due to others that have wronged us. If you knock out my tooth, I’d feel justified in knocking you into kingdom come. Here’s what Jesus has to say about this:

Matthew 5:38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’39 But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. 40 And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. 41 And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. 42 Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you. 43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven….

Jesus is not negating the strict justice of ‘lex talionis’. God loves justice. The punishment is to fit the crime. You are not allowed to demand greater punishment than what has been done to you. But if you have been wronged you are not required to extract punishment. You can forgive. Jesus calls us to a higher standard – a standard of love. Love your enemies. Be image-bearers; be imitators of God, who is just and righteous, merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin.

Romans 5:6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person––though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die–– 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.

Christ Jesus demonstrated the ultimate love for his enemies; he laid down his life for us to redeem us and make us his friends

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Exodus 20:1-2; Freedom! The Place of the Law for the Christian

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20110703_exodus20_1-2.mp3

07/03 Exodus 20:1-2 Prologue – Place of the Law for the Christian

We are about to enter a section in Exodus that is Law. Exodus 20 contains what we know as the Ten Commandments. The rest of Exodus, then Leviticus and much of Numbers and Deuteronomy contain laws given by God to govern his people. So before we choose either to study this out and see what we can learn from it or to set it aside and skip it entirely, we need to understand where we as New Testament believers in Jesus stand in relation to God’s law. We are quick to answer ‘We are free! We are not under law! We are under grace!” and we quote verses like:

Galatians 5:1 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

Romans 6:14 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

Romans 7:6 But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve not under the old written code but in the new life of the Spirit.

Romans 8:2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.

Galatians 5:18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

We are free in Jesus! We are set free from the law! We are not under law; we are under grace. We are released from the captivity of the law. That is what the bible says. But what exactly does that mean? Does freedom from the law, not being under the law mean that we have no moral standard and are free to do as we please? Let’s look back at the text for the answer.

Romans 6:14 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace. 15 What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! 16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed,18 and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.

Romans 6:22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life.

We are set free from the law, not so that we can enjoy sinning, but so that we are set free from bondage to sin. We are out from under the rule of law so that we can have a heart kind of obedience. We are now free to be slaves to righteousness, slaves to God. We have been set free from the obligation so that we can obey God from the heart.

1 Corinthians 6:19 …You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

Here’s a test. Can you pray Psalm 119? Just listen and see if your soul resonates with the Psalmist. (and don’t worry, I won’t read the whole thing!)

Psalm 119:1 Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD! 2 Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart, 3 who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways! 4 You have commanded your precepts to be kept diligently. 5 Oh that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes! 6 Then I shall not be put to shame, having my eyes fixed on all your commandments. 7 I will praise you with an upright heart, when I learn your righteous rules. 8 I will keep your statutes; do not utterly forsake me! 9 How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. 10 With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! 11 I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. 12 Blessed are you, O LORD; teach me your statutes! 13 With my lips I declare all the rules of your mouth. 14 In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches. 15 I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. 16 I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word. 17 Deal bountifully with your servant, that I may live and keep your word. 18 Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. 19 I am a sojourner on the earth; hide not your commandments from me! 20 My soul is consumed with longing for your rules at all times.

97 Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day. 98 Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me.

113 … but I love your law.

163 … but I love your law.

165 Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble.

174 I long for your salvation, O LORD, and your law is my delight. 175 Let my soul live and praise you, and let your rules help me. 176 I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek your servant, for I do not forget your commandments.

Or what about Psalm 19?

Psalm 19:7 The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple; 8 the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; 9 the fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the LORD are true, and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. 11 Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward. 12 Who can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults. 13 Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me! Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression. 14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.

Is that how you feel about God’s law, his commandments, his rules? Are they sweet and desirable to you? Can you sing psalms in praise of the law of God? Should we feel that way? Or is that just an Old Testament thing. Look at what the Apostle says:

Romans 7:12 So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.

Romans 7:16 Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good.

1Timothy 1:8 Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it lawfully,

He also says:

Romans 15:4 For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

2Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.

Listen to what Jesus says about the law:

Matthew 5:17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them .18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.

So Jesus did not abolish the law and Paul claims that all scripture is profitable and the commandment is holy and righteous and good. But he also says we are set free and no longer under the law. How does this all fit together? I think the passage in 1 Timothy holds a clue:

1Timothy 1:8 Now we know that the law is good, if one uses it lawfully,

Paul is warning against false teachers who teach the law without understanding what it is really about. He says there is a lawful use of the law, and there is a way to use the law unlawfully. So we need to understand the purpose of the law. He clarifies in the following verses:

1 Timothy 1:9 understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners…

The law was given for sinners, not righteous people. People that drive slow don’t need the speed limit sign. The guy in the tractor doing 12 does not sweat when he sees the state trooper posted behind the 65 mile an hour sign. The sign is posted for those who like to drive fast. Paul further clarifies the purpose of the law in Romans:

Romans 3:19 Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God.

The law shuts every mouth that would try to excuse itself. We are all accountable before God as lawbreakers. James is on the same page with Paul when he says:

James 2:10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.

If you are perfect except for just one thing, you are a lawbreaker and you are guilty. Paul sums it up in Galatians:

Galatians 3:10 For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.”

To misuse the law is to rely on it to establish your righteousness before God. If you rely on the law then you have to abide by all of it perfectly. No one ever has, so that makes us all lawbreakers and places us under the just punishment for lawbreakers. The law was not intended to make anyone righteous. By nature it cannot make anyone righteous any more than a speed limit sign can make your car stay within the posted limit. It simply points out where you are in violation of the standard.

How is that sweeter than honey and more desirable than riches? That’s bad news for all of us. But it is an objective standard to tell us where we stand. And it tells us that there is a God who is absolutely holy and has righteous standards that don’t bend. There is a God and he doesn’t leave us guessing whether we are in or out. That’s important to know. Have you ever been driving along minding your own business, when the patrol car catches your eye, and you realize you haven’t been paying attention and have no idea what the speed limit is? You instinctively hit the brakes and check the speedometer and look around for a sign to tell you if you’re in or out. Is it 65 here? 75? 35? God’s perfect law reveals his perfect standard and shows us right where we stand. So we know where we stand, but this is still bad news for all of us, because all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. None is righteous, no not one. Our only hope at this point is that the one who is supposed to uphold the law is either not paying attention or is just too lazy to actually enforce the standard. Absolute justice would demand that he give every speeder a ticket every time. We can hope that he is not absolutely just or he is too busy with somebody else. But if we understand who God is, none of those hopes will give the least bit of comfort. He knows everything, he sees everything, he is infinitely capable to enforce his perfect law perfectly, and he is absolutely just with everyone all the time. So where is the hope? Listen to Romans 3:

Romans 3:19 Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. 20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. 21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it–– 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

This is the gospel! This is good news for lawbreaker! God the lawmaker declares us just because God put his own Son forward as a propitiation – satisfying his just wrath against sin by punishing a perfect and willing substitute. This allows a just God to fully deal with sin and yet declare the sinner who runs to Jesus as not guilty. God remains just and justifies sinners who trust in his Son Jesus. The law is sweet because it shows us our need and drives us to Jesus!

But is this all? Once I know I am a lawbreaker in need of a substitute, can’t I be done with the law? What use is there in going back again to look at the law? If I see the law is impotent to do anything but condemn me, then once it has brought me to the cross, isn’t its function complete? Yes, its primary function is complete, but God’s law has a secondary function, a new-covenant function. Remember, 2 Timothy 3 told us that all Old Testament scripture, including the law, is profitable …for training in righteousness, that the man of God, (the one who already has his sins forgiven by God’s grace through the cross) may be competent, equipped for every good work.

So God’s law has a training and equipping function for the one who has been saved by grace from the consequences of the law.

If we are paying attention, we can see this back in the giving of the law in Exodus. In introducing his law, God gave it as a rule for his already saved people to know how to be his ambassadors in the world.

Exodus 19:3 while Moses went up to God. The LORD called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: 4 You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. 5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; 6 and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”

God was not giving it as a means to earn points with him. He had already brought them out of bondage and into his presence. Now he was giving instruction on how to respond to his grace. He says at the beginning of chapter 20:

20:1 And God spoke all these words, saying, 2 “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

God had already brought them out of Egypt. God had already given himself in covenant relationship to his people – I am YHWH your God. The One who Is; the Self-Existent one, is personally your

God, your authority. Now that I have rescued you and you are in a relationship with me, here is how you should respond to my grace. Listen to Exodus 20 with that gracious purpose and the worshipful response of the Psalmist in mind.

Psalm 119: 10 With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! 18 Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. 20 My soul is consumed with longing for your rules at all times. 174 I long for your salvation, O LORD, and your law is my delight. 176 I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek your servant, for I do not forget your commandments.

Exodus 20

20:1 And God spoke all these words, saying, 2 “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 3 “You shall have no other gods before me. 4 “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5 You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments. 7 “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain. 8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. 12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. 13 “You shall not murder. 14 “You shall not commit adultery. 15 “You shall not steal. 16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. 17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Exodus 19:9-15; Prepare to Meet Your God

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20110619_exodus19_9-15.mp3

06/19 Exodus 19:9-15 Prepare to Meet Your God

Saved to Worship

God has saved his people. With a strong hand he brought them out from under their bondage to the Egyptians. His purpose was ‘Let my people go that they may serve me’ or ‘worship me.’ God’s people were saved to worship. God has brought them now to Mount Sinai, and he is about to formally introduce himself to his people. This is a hugely significant event and sets the stage for the giving of his law in the following chapters. The LORD instructs Moses to remind his people first of his grace toward them, and then of his purposes for them.

19:3 while Moses went up to God. The LORD called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: 4 You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.

Remind the people what I did. God is saying ‘Remember, I saved you all by myself. You didn’t deserve this. You were panicking – fearful and unbelieving. You stood by and watched. You saw what I did to your enemies. Remember I carried you when you were helpless. I brought you to myself. This is all God’s actions to save his undeserving people. Now that they have been saved, he reminds them of his purposes for them.

5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; 6 and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”

God’s people have been delivered for a purpose. They were set free from bondage in order to worship and serve the one true God. They are God’s most prized possession among all that he owns. The whole nation is to be a kingdom, those who are under the authority of the King. And the whole nation is to be a kingdom of priests among the nations – they are to serve the nations by proclaiming the truth about God to them and bringing them into relationship with God. That is the role of a priest. They are to facilitate worship of the one true God. Through this one chosen nation, God intends to bless all the nations of the earth. They are to be set apart, distinct, different from all other nations, to serve as an example to the nations of what it looks like to obey God’s voice and keep his covenant.

7 So Moses came and called the elders of the people and set before them all these words that the LORD had commanded him. 8 All the people answered together and said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do.” And Moses reported the words of the people to the LORD.

The people embraced God’s purposes for them. They formally agreed to his terms. Now God announces that the people are to prepare themselves to meet their God.

9 And the LORD said to Moses, “Behold, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you forever.” When Moses told the words of the people to the LORD, 10 the LORD said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments 11 and be ready for the third day. For on the third day the LORD will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. 12 And you shall set limits for the people all around, saying, ‘Take care not to go up into the mountain or touch the edge of it. Whoever touches the mountain shall be put to death. 13 No hand shall touch him, but he shall be stoned or shot; whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the trumpet sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.” 14 So Moses went down from the mountain to the people and consecrated the people; and they washed their garments. 15 And he said to the people, “Be ready for the third day; do not go near a woman.”

Part of God’s purpose in this was to establish Moses’ leadership over his people. They had grumbled and complained against Moses, and this event is designed to remove any reason to question whether Moses is indeed called by God. But the language is much bigger than just to the Israelites way back then. Moses is to be believed forever. Moses has something to say to us today too.

Prepare to Meet Your God

God instructs Moses to prepare the people to meet their God. The LORD will come down in the sight of all the people. This is a visible manifestation of the invisible God, as we will see. Meeting with God is no light matter. God takes himself very seriously. The Hebrew word for the glory of God is a word that means weighty or heavy. This is serious. For a sinful human being to come into the presence of the all-holy God means death. When we are confronted with the holiness of God, we are made painfully aware of our own sinfulness. God in his justice must punish all sin. God cannot let any sin slide or he would cease to be just and righteous. The wages of sin is death. This is why when God makes his presence known to mortals, they say things like “Alas, O LORD God! For now I have seen the angel of the LORD” (Jud.6:22); and “Woe to me! For I am lost …for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” (Isa.6:5); or “The glory of the LORD stood there… and I fell on my face” (Eze.3:23). Deuteronomy 5 looks back on this event in amazement and says:

Deuteronomy 5:24 And you said, ‘Behold, the LORD our God has shown us his glory and greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire. This day we have seen God speak with man and man still live.

Boundaries are to be established around the mountain for the protection of the people. When God called to Moses on this same mountain from the burning bush, he said:

Exodus 3:5 Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.”

The people are to be kept from approaching God uninvited on pain of death. God is dangerous. This is important for us to hear. We do not come to God on our own terms. If we are to come before God and survive the experience, we must come on his terms and his terms alone. We must be invited. God is to be feared and respected. He is not to be treated casually. Two young men in Leviticus chapter 10 learned this the hard way.

Leviticus 10:1 Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the LORD, which he had not commanded them. 2 And fire came out from before the LORD and consumed them, and they died before the LORD. 3 Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the LORD has said, ‘Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.”’ And Aaron held his peace.

Our God is not safe. He is not to be trifled with. Our God is a consuming fire, awesome and terrible. He is King of kings. Over and over the scriptures tell us that the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom. He is just and will by no means let the guilty go unpunished. This is not just an Old Testament thing. Jesus taught:

Matthew 10:28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

Jesus is teaching his followers to fear his Father. Fear God and God alone, who can destroy both soul and body in hell. God is to be taken seriously. It is a weighty thing to come into the presence of the living God.

Consecration

Even for those who are to be kept at a safe distance, they must prepare. God sent Moses down to consecrate the people. This is a two day process. They are to be set apart to the LORD. As part of this preparation, they were to abstain from normal sexual relations. Intimacy with your spouse was to be postponed for a short time in order to focus attention on intimacy with God. This is also taught in the New Testament:

1Corinthians 7:5 Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self–control.

Did you know that God is pro-sex? He is for it! He came up with the idea. He intends it to be a beautiful, pleasurable expression of intimacy within the context of the covenant faithfulness of marriage. Marital abstinence is to be the exception, not the rule, and only for a very specific purpose.

His people are also instructed to wash their clothes. Remember, again, they are not being told to clean themselves up in order to make themselves acceptable to God. We cannot make ourselves acceptable to God.

James 2:10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.

We are all lawbreakers, and stand condemned before God. Nothing we do can cover our guilt before God.

Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.

Our only hope is mercy – not getting what we so justly deserve. Our only hope is a generous gift freely given to undeserving sinners. God has already taken decisive action to save his people. Now he is commanding that they prepare to meet him.

They are told to wash their clothes. They are not told to take a bath. According to 1 Corinthians 10:2, they had already been baptized in the cloud and in the sea. Now they are being told simply to wash their clothes. We are not told how or where they do this, but if we have been following the story, when the people came to the mountain, there was no water, and God provided water by commanding that the rock be struck with his staff. This is the last water mentioned. If this is the case, then this scene is rich with symbolism. We are told in 1 Corinthians 10:4 that the Rock was Christ. In preparation to meet God, his people are to wash their clothes in the water which flows from the Rock who was smitten for them.

What a beautiful picture. Although God is to be feared, man’s greatest good is to be in the presence of this fearsome God. To be separated from God forever is quite literally hell. And yet for a sinner to be in the presence of a holy God means justice and punishment and death. What are we to do with this dilemma? There is nothing we can do.

Ephesians 2:4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ––by grace you have been saved–– … 12 remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated … strangers…, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

Hopeless sinners brought near to a holy God – how? By the blood of Christ.

1John 4:9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. …14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.

When we were not loving God, God sent his only Son to satisfy his own wrath against our hatred of him. O what love! Amazing love!

1 Peter 3:18 For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God,

Brought into the presence of absolute purity by the sacrifice of the perfect substitute, Jesus Christ the Righteous, suffering for the sins of the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God.

Jude :24 Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, 25 to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Exodus 14:1-31; God Alone Saves

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20110313_exodus14_1-31.mp3

03/13 Exodus 14:1-31 God Alone Saves

Intro:

God’s purpose in the exodus is that he be known. God shows up to make himself known. He sets out to get glory for himself. God says ‘I will be known. I will be feared. I will be admired. I will act in such a way as to inspire awe and holy respect. I will get fame and honor and renown. I will not be slighted. I will be treated as weighty. I will be seen for who I am. I will get glory’.This is God’s purpose in the world.

Habakkuk 2:14 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.

Even when God’s leading does not seem to make sense, we can be confident that he is at work for his glory and for our good. Even when he leads us into a corner with no way out and then incites our enemy to rise up against us, we must trust that his ways are perfect. He is acting for our good and for his glory.

In this passage, we will see the primary way God gets glory for himself. Our God is a God who saves. Here we are given such a clear picture of God our Savior – he alone saves his people.

14:1 Then the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Tell the people of Israel to turn back and encamp in front of Pi–hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, in front of Baal–zephon; you shall encamp facing it, by the sea. 3 For Pharaoh will say of the people of Israel, ‘They are wandering in the land; the wilderness has shut them in.’ 4 And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD.” And they did so. 5 When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the mind of Pharaoh and his servants was changed toward the people, and they said, “What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?” 6 So he made ready his chariot and took his army with him, 7 and took six hundred chosen chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over all of them. 8 And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued the people of Israel while the people of Israel were going out defiantly. 9 The Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and his horsemen and his army, and overtook them encamped at the sea, by Pi–hahiroth, in front of Baal–zephon.

Tracing Israel’s Faith

Last time we looked at the progression of Pharaoh and the Egyptians as they were brought to recognize YHWH (or Jehovah – the LORD), God of the Hebrews. God said ‘the Egyptians shall know that I am YHWH’, and Pharaoh said ‘who is YHWH that I should obey his voice. I do not know YHWH’. After only the second plague, Pharaoh was asking Moses to ‘plead with YHWH for me’. By chapter 14, the Egyptians were crying out ‘let us flee …YHWH fights for them against the Egyptians’. Let’s look at how the faith of God’s people progressed as he revealed himself to them.

In chapter 1, we are introduced to some Hebrew midwives who feared God. Because they feared God, they disobeyed the Pharaoh’s orders, and God dealt well with them. By the end of chapter 2, the people are groaning because of their slavery and crying out for help. The text doesn’t tell us that they addressed their cry for help to anyone, but we are told that ‘their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant … God saw the people of Israel – and God knew’. God revealed himself to Moses in the wilderness in chapter 3, and called him into relationship with himself, sent him to bring the people out of Egypt and into his service. Moses is reluctant but eventually surrenders and goes and tells the people everything that God had told him.

Exodus 4:31 And the people believed; and when they heard that the LORD had visited the people of Israel and that he had seen their affliction, they bowed their heads and worshiped.

But after Pharaoh rejects the initial demand of the LORD to release his slaves, and instead increases their workload to the impossible, the people run to Pharaoh and cry out to him for help. When Pharaoh refuses to listen to their plea, they curse Moses in the name of the LORD for stirring things up (5:21). In chapter 6, God gives Moses the good news of his promises to preach to his people, but, it says ‘they did not listen to Moses, because of their broken spirit and harsh slavery’ (6:9). From this point on, God steps in and acts on behalf of his people. He unleashes his mighty acts of judgment against Egypt, and he makes a distinction between Egypt and his people, exempting his people from the full force of the blows. He claims to do it:

Exodus 10:2 and that you may tell in the hearing of your son and of your grandson how I have dealt harshly with the Egyptians and what signs I have done among them, that you may know that I am the LORD.”

God is working so that his people will know who he is. Not only is he working so that the Egyptians know that he is YHWH, but even his own people need to be taught his nature and character. God gives his people favor with the Egyptians so they are given whatever they need for preparation for their journey. God gave his people instructions for a feast that was to shelter them from his wrath and point them to Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. The people here respond by bowing their heads in worship and obeying what the LORD had commanded (12:27-28). The Egyptians were brought to acknowledge YHWH and flee from him. The Hebrews worship and obey YHWH. Now they are following the visible manifestation of God as he leads them with cloud and with fire. Let’s see how they fare:

14:10 When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the LORD. 11 They said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? 12 Is not this what we said to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.”

Faithless People and their Faithful God

Notice how faithless God’s chosen people are. They set their eyes on their circumstances and they fear. To their credit, this time they cry out to the LORD instead of Pharaoh, but then they start complaining. They accuse him of leading them to the wilderness to die. They act as if their rescue from slavery was a horrible thing. They say ‘I told you so’ – we told you to leave us alone to serve our old slave-master. And they look back to the good old days slaving over bricks and mortar in Egypt. You took us away from all we had ever known. It would have been better for us to stay. Better to have our children killed. Better to be beaten. Better to be crushed under the oppressive slave-master. Better to be afflicted with heavy burdens, oppressed by the cruel taskmasters. Better to be ruthlessly made to work as slaves. The bitter life of hard service in Egypt was better than this. They have the pillar of fire and cloud right in front of them, and they say slavery in Egypt was better! They have no faith in God’s promises. All they can see is the bad part of what they can see, and that most certainly means death. They leave God out of the equation, focus on their circumstances, and are consumed with fear and speak against God’s deliverance.

Can you believe this? After God’s ten mighty acts of power over Egypt and all their gods, leaving the land and the people ruined and devastated, after God clearly established his supremacy over all things, humiliated Pharaoh and emasculated his gods, after he has demonstrated his compassion and care for his people, making a distinction, fighting on their behalf, after Pharaoh had consistently demonstrated that he was a cruel and pitiless slave-master, God’s people still want to return to Egypt? This makes no sense. They cannot see beyond their immediate circumstances, they cannot trust in the promises of their faithful God, they turn everything upside down and make God and his chosen deliverer out to be cruel and their slavery to a godless tyrant out to be paradise. This is incomprehensibly stupid! Can you believe it?

I can. I can, because this is what I do every day. This is where I live. This is the battle I fight. Will I trust God who has proven himself faithful and wise and awesome and loving? Will I believe that he has good in store for me? Or do I think that God is keeping some good thing away from me? Do I fondle in my heart the fleeting pleasures of sin that I know only bring me back into bondage and will never satisfy but instead create greater emptiness and craving? I have tasted the sweetness of intimacy with God. I have seen evidence of his relentless love. And my heart is still prone to wander. Prone to doubt. Prone to disbelieve. This is who we are. This is the battle we fight. What should we do? We cry out with the Apostle “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?” (Rom.7:24).

But praise God he does not give us what we deserve. Praise God it does not depend on me! Praise God that salvation is by grace alone! Praise God that, as Paul says:

2 Timothy 2:13 if we are faithless, he remains faithful–– for he cannot deny himself.

God would have been just to say ‘you liked Egypt so much? Back to Egypt you go!’ Praise God his faithfulness is not based on our fickleness but on his own reputation. God will remain true to himself.

Call to Stop Fearing and Stand Firm

14:13 And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. 14 The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

This is an amazing call to worship. First we are told to stop being afraid. In verse 10, when the Egyptian military was drawing near, it says the people feared greatly. They had an awesome respect for the skill and power and deadly force of the Egyptian army. By now, they should have had an even greater awesome fear and respect for their God, who decimated the Egyptians with blow after blow of his strong right hand. This massive horde of former slaves were no military match for the special forces of Egypt, but they should have seen that Pharaoh’s puny army was no match for the sovereign power of their Creator God. Jesus said:

Matthew 10:28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (cf. Luke 12:5)

We are told to stand firm. Stand still. Stand your ground. Paul told the Galatian believers to stand firm in their blood-bought freedom.

Galatians 5:1 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

In the passage on spiritual warfare in Ephesians 6, we are told repeatedly to stand firm.

Ephesians 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. …13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore…

Peter warns against the adversary and tells us to resist, firm in faith.

1 Peter 5:8 Be sober–minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. 10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. 11 To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen. 12 … I have written briefly to you, exhorting and declaring that this is the true grace of God. Stand firm in it.

We are not to be afraid. We are to stand firm – not in our own strength, but strong in the Lord and the strength of his might, firm in the faith – the belief that he loves us and is fighting for us, that he himself will by grace restore, confirm, strengthen and establish us. Stand firm in the true grace of God – standing, not on our rights or what we have earned, but standing firmly on the word of a God who gives good gifts to sinners at great cost to himself.

Call to Be a Spectator

“Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today.

Have you ever thought about your salvation this way? We are spectators in our salvation. We are utterly incapable of even helping God out in our salvation. God works alone in salvation. We watch. We are the ones being fought over. We do not do the fighting. We do not do the work. He will work for you today. The LORD will accomplish your salvation.

Titus 3:4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy,

God is the one who saves. Subject, verb, object. God is the subject of the sentence. We are the object of his salvation. We are the recipient. God performs the action. We are described as ‘dead in the trespasses and sins’ (Eph.2:1); ‘slaves of sin’ (Rom.6:17); ‘foolish, disobedient, led astray, salves to various passions and pleasures’ (Tit.3:3). We are told to stand still and watch, because if we start scurrying around trying to help God out, we will only raise a dust cloud that will obscure his glory. We can contribute nothing of worth to our salvation. We are even told to repent of our righteous deeds:

Isaiah 64:6 We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment…

The author of Hebrews tells us that the elementary doctrine of Christ, the foundation that everything else stands on starts with repentance from dead works.

Hebrews 6:1 Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God…

If you are attempting to play a part in your salvation, if you are trying to help God out, STOP! Stop stirring up dust! Stop creating more dead works that you will have to repent of! Salvation belongs to the LORD (Ps.3:8; Jonah 2:9; Rev.7:10; 19:1) Take your place as a spectator to God’s salvation. Stop and look. Watch. ‘See the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you’

14 The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

Hear what God is saying to you. You are loved. You are wanted. You are being fought over. Do you know how good it is to have someone who will fight for you? In college, I was being accused of something I did not do. I was being threatened with legal action. I was scared. Then I was called in to the office of the president of the college. He looked me in the eye across his big desk and asked me if I had done what I was being accused of. He believed I was innocent. He said ‘Rodney, if you get any more harassing phone calls, you let me know. I will go to bat for you.’

13 And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. 14 The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

Triumph Over their Enemies

They were looking at the situation all wrong. God had said he would harden the hearts of the Egyptians and cause them to pursue his people. God had promised to get glory over the Egyptians. If the Egyptian army had not shown up, if they were left alone in the desert, then the people should have wailed and cried out because God had not kept his word. Had the Egyptian army not come after them, they could be sure they would see them again. But because the Egyptians pursued them, as God had promised they would, they will never be seen again. God’s people will be free. Decisively free. Finally free. Free forever.

15 The LORD said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. 16 Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. 17 And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they shall go in after them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen. 18 And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.” 19 Then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, 20 coming between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness. And it lit up the night without one coming near the other all night. 21 Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. 22 And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. 23 The Egyptians pursued and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. 24 And in the morning watch the LORD in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down on the Egyptian forces and threw the Egyptian forces into a panic, 25 clogging their chariot wheels so that they drove heavily. And the Egyptians said, “Let us flee from before Israel, for the LORD fights for them against the Egyptians.” 26 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.” 27 So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal course when the morning appeared. And as the Egyptians fled into it, the LORD threw the Egyptians into the midst of the sea. 28 The waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen; of all the host of Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea, not one of them remained. 29 But the people of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. 30 Thus the LORD saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. 31 Israel saw the great power that the LORD used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the LORD, and they believed in the LORD and in his servant Moses.

The LORD saved Israel that day. They saw. They were spectators. They saw their enemies dead on the seashore. They saw the great power that the LORD used against the Egyptians. They did not lift a finger against their enemies. The LORD saved them by himself!

Salvation by Grace Alone Resulting in Faith

Here we see the response of the people to the great salvation that the LORD accomplished for them. They saw, they feared, and they believed. This is a beautiful example of salvation by grace alone. Grace is God’s goodness given to undeserving sinners.

Romans 5:8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

God’s people were complaining against God, wishing for a return to slavery when God intervened on their behalf. They were totally undeserving. God saved them anyway. That is salvation by grace alone. God’s salvation by grace resulted in their faith. They responded to God’s grace with fear and belief. His people were beginning in the path of wisdom. They were beginning to fear the LORD. They were beginning to see how awesome he is and it rightly terrified them. And they saw that he is on their side, fighting for them, and they began to trust him. They began to believe. God’s gracious salvation resulted in faith. God fought for them when they were ready to defect. God won back the hearts of his people.

Romans 5:10 …while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son…

Jesus is Salvation

13 And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. 14 The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

The Hebrew word translated salvation is [ hewvy] yeshuah. This is linked to the Greek name [Ihsouv ] Iesous given in the New Testament. It comes into the English as Jesus

Matthew 1:21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

Disciple-Making Disciples; Jesus Preached the Good News!

http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20110130_teach_about_good_news.mp3

01/30 What did Jesus teach – about the good news that he brought?

Intro:

We’ve been looking at Jesus’ final command to his followers before he returned to the glory of his Father. He commanded that we all be disciple-making disciples.

Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

We are to be followers of Jesus, and we are to make others into followers of Jesus by immersing into the one name of the triune God and teaching them to obey everything Jesus commanded. We are taking some time to equip ourselves with what it is that Jesus commanded so that we can effectively obey him in carrying out his final command. We looked at what Jesus taught about God; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We looked at what he taught about the Bible, Old and New Testaments. We looked at what he taught about the origin, character, nature, and destiny of humanity. So far, these are big sweeping world-view shaping questions. What is God like? What is the source of truth and authority? Where did we come from, what is our nature, and where are we headed?

Summary

We have seen the belief that there is only one God, eternally existent in the three persons of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit comes from the teaching of Jesus. We found that Jesus looked to the Scriptures of the Old Testament as his final authority on issues of faith and life. He himself followed the Scriptures carefully, and he promised that not even the least stroke of a pen would pass away until all was fulfilled. He claimed that his own teaching carried the same authority – he he spoke what he received from his Father. He paved the way for his followers to write the New Testament, promising them the presence of the Holy Spirit as their Teacher who would ensure they remembered everything he had said. We saw Jesus teach that mankind, male and female, are the greatest expression of God’s creative genius, made in his very image, given authority over the rest of creation, but because we rebelled against God, we have become evil and corrupt to our very core, and we have earned the holy and righteous wrath of God. Jesus graphically describes what awaits us in the most horrific terms, as worse than non-existence, worse than maiming, worse than drowning, as unquenchable fire, outer darkness, a place where there is incessant weeping and gnashing of teeth, as torment, anguish and unquenchable thirst. And he makes it very clear that there will be no end to the punishment.

So this is the world-view of Jesus. He took the Scriptures to be absolutely true and trustworthy, breathed out by the Spirit of God. He believed in one good and sovereign, just and loving God, who sent his only Son, who was himself God in the flesh, into this world to rescue a humanity that had rebelliously chosen to destroy itself and was running headlong into the pit of a horrific hell.

Jesus holds out to us hopeless and helpless sinners the hope of life, eternal life. This he describes as entering into the joy of our Master, satisfaction of our deepest longings, life and life abundant, intimacy of relationship with him, being in his presence to enjoy his glory. This is good news indeed for hopeless sinful man.

Today I want to look at this good news message of hope for sinners that Jesus preached.

Jesus Preached The Gospel

Jesus saw preaching as primary in his own ministry. At the very beginning of the Gospel of Mark, the first words of Jesus are introduced this way:

Mark 1:14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

Jesus proclaims the gospel of God. The word ‘proclaim’ or ‘preach’ (khrussw) means to publish, announce, or herald. This is an official public proclamation. The word ‘gospel’ (euaggelion) simply means good news, glad tidings, a good message. What Jesus preached is described simply as ‘the gospel of God’ or ‘the good news of God’. This phrase ‘of God’ could be understood in different ways. It could be descriptive, as in ‘a cup of water’ – in that case ‘God’ would describe the contents of the good news message – it is good news about God. Or it could be possessive, as in ‘the front door of the building’ – in that case, ‘God’ would be the owner and source of the good news message – it is God’s good news. So Jesus comes heralding good news from God or good news about God.

Do you often think of Jesus primarily as a preacher? When we think of Jesus, we often think of a man of action, healing the sick, feeding the hungry, calming the storm, cleansing the temple, engaging the religious hypocrites, delivering the oppressed. But Jesus thought of himself primarily as a messenger with a message to proclaim.

Just a few verses down in this first chapter of Mark, Jesus was teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum when he was interrupted by a man with an unclean spirit. He delivered the man and his reputation spread so that the whole city brought him their sick and those who were oppressed by demons, and he healed and delivered many. The next morning he got up very early and went out alone to pray. When his disciples found him and told him that everyone was looking for him, this is what he said:

Mark 1:38 And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.” (cf. Lk.4:43)

Jesus saw his role primarily as a messenger – one who is sent with an official proclamation to declare to all people.

What was the content of Jesus’ message? We already saw that it was good news from God or good news about God. Let’s look at the words Jesus spoke in Mark 1:15:

Mark 1:14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, 15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

There are two main parts to this declaration. Something momentous has happened, and there is an appropriate response that is demanded.

Something Momentous

Jesus tells us in two ways that something momentous has happened. He says ‘the time is fulfilled’ and ‘the kingdom of God is at hand’. ‘The time is fulfilled’ means time is filled up, the time is complete, the fulfillment of the ages has come. The climax of all history is upon us. ‘The kingdom of God is at hand’ means that God’s rule and reign is right here, namely because the coming King has come indeed. Jesus saw himself as both the fulfillment of all prophetic Scriptures and as the coming King, God in the flesh. Jesus heralded the good news about himself, the fulfillment of the promises, God with us, God come near.

Demanded Response

The King is here! This demands a response from us. There are two parts of our required response that are described here. ‘Repent and believe in the gospel’. Repent (metanoew) is a compound word made up of the words (meta) movement or change and (noew) the mind with its perception, thoughts and purposes. It points to an internal change of mind and heart. Jesus commanded that we:

Mark 12:30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ (cf. Luke 10:27)

And Jesus says we think evil in our hearts (Mt.9:4, 15:9; Mk.7:21; Lk.1:51); we speak evil out of the abundance of our hearts (Mt.12:34; 15:18; Lk.6:45); our hearts have grown dull (Mt.13:15); our hearts follow what we treasure (Mt.6:21; Lk.12:34); our hearts become weighed down (Lk.21:34); and are troubled (Jn.14:1, 27); we have hard hearts (Mt.19:8; Mk.3:5; 6:52; 8:17; 10:5; Jn.12:40); we have slow hearts (Lk.24:25); we question in our hearts (Mk.2:8; Lk.5:22); we doubt in our hearts (Mk.11:23; Lk.24:38); we reason in our hearts (Lk.9:47); our hearts are far from him (Mt.15:8; Mk.7:6); but God knows our hearts (Lk.16:15)

Repentance is a call for heart transformation. The other part of our required response is to ‘believe the gospel’. Believe (pisteuw) means to have strong conviction, to put your trust or confidence in. It is the verb form of the root (pistiv) faith.

So the good news that Jesus preached was that something momentous has happened, the King himself has come to fulfill all prophetic Scripture. He demands that we respond with heart transformation and place our trust and confidence in the good news that he brings.

Mark 1:15 …“The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

We are to ‘make disciples of all nations’, Jesus said ‘teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you’ (Mt.28:19-20). What Jesus commands is that we repent and believe in the gospel.

This is filled out when we look at how Luke records our commission to the nations. Luke’s account of Jesus’ final command to his followers reads like this:

Luke 24:45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

So, where Matthew has ‘repent and believe in the gospel’, Luke tells us to proclaim ‘repentance and forgiveness of sins in his name’. Jesus claimed to have authority to forgive sins:

Matthew 9:6 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”––he then said to the paralytic––“Rise, pick up your bed and go home.” (Mk.2:10; Lk.5:24, 7:48)

Jesus connected the source of this forgiveness to his own blood poured out:

Matthew 26:28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

So Jesus in Luke points us to the promise in the Scriptures that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead as a basis for the proclamation of the good news of forgiveness of sins in his name. When we put this together we have what Paul summarizes as the gospel he preached:

1 Corinthians 15:3 … that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,

Something momentous has happened. God came in the flesh. Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures. A response is demanded from us. Repent and believe the good news. The good news is that forgiveness of sins is found in the name of Jesus.

Gospel in Action: a tax collector

To help us get the implications of this, let’s look at repentance and the good news of forgiveness in action in the evangelism of Jesus. We’ll start in Luke 5 with the story of a tax collector named Levi. To feel the force of this encounter, we need to understand the social and political backdrop. Israel is under Roman occupation. Rome brought along their many gods, their idolatrous emperor worship, their materialism and immorality. Jewish zealots thought they were doing God a service by stabbing a Roman official in the back. Tax collectors would buy franchises from Rome giving them the right to collect taxes in a certain town or district. Tax collectors were despised as the lowest scum of human refuse imaginable. They were allowed by Rome to charge exorbitant taxes of their own countrymen to line their own pockets. These were traitors, liars and cheats, consumed with greed. They were considered as swine, on the level with murderers. They were viewed as unclean and beyond repentance. They were excluded from the synagogues. Enter Jesus.

Luke 5:27 After this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth. And he said to him, “Follow me.”

Jesus stuns everyone, including his first three disciples, Simon, James and John, local fishermen who had certainly been ripped off repeatedly by this Levi. I wonder if they were excited as Jesus approached the tax booth, thinking he would surely overturn this tax collector’s tables. Jesus, the great teacher, walks right up to the tax booth and says to this filthy human swine who is beyond hope of repentance ‘follow me’. Let’s imagine what is going on in the heart of this man. He was aware of the amazing things going on in the area. Jesus was healing the sick and the lame and freeing men from demonic oppression. Jesus said:

Luke 4:18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

I am a captive. I am a slave to my greed. I am riddled with guilt. I am despised. I am the worst of the worst. There is no hope for me. But this teacher Jesus is bringing hope to many we viewed as beyond hope. I wonder… could it be…? Imagine the guilty conscience when this man’s eyes met the penetrating gaze of the Master. And then he spoke. Two simple words. ‘Follow me.’ That was all it took. He abandoned everything and went after Jesus. He threw a feast and invited the only people who were willing to associate with him. Other tax collectors and sinners.

28 And leaving everything, he rose and followed him. 29 And Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them. 30 And the Pharisees and their scribes grumbled at his disciples, saying, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” 31 And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.”

The religious elite were disgusted that this great teacher would associate with such scum. Jesus answer is powerful. “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.” Levi was a sinner. Everyone knew it. He knew it. The religious leaders were sinners too, but they refused to admit it. In their self-righteousness, it was impossible for them to repent.

A parable

Jesus did not come for the righteous. Later, Jesus told a parable about a Pharisee and a tax collector to confront the self-righteous.

Luke 18:9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

The difference lie in what they trusted in. Jesus said they ‘trusted in themselves that they were righteous’. The so-called prayer of the Pharisee is filled with the first person pronoun. I, I, I, I, I. The tax collector, in his distance, in his posture, in his desperation, and in his words, demonstrated that he was genuinely broken and repentant. He has nothing to trust in but throws himself on the mercy of God. In humble helpless dependence, he cries out ‘God be merciful to me, the sinner’. It is to him Jesus says ‘Yes!’

Receive Like a Child

The next thing Luke records is this:

Luke 18:15 Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. 16 But Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. 17 Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”

Jesus uses this opportunity to illustrate what is required for entry of his kingdom. He says we must receive the kingdom like a child. It must be received. It cannot be earned. Receive like a child – in simple trust, helpless dependence, shameless asking, eager delight.

What good must I do?

One more ilustration. Luke continues.

Luke 18:18 And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 19 And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. 20 You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.”’ 21 And he said, “All these I have kept from my youth.” 22 When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” 23 But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich.

When Jesus called Levi at the tax booth, he didn’t demand that he leave everything. That’s what Levi (or Matthew) was already eager to do. When this eager seeker comes and wants to know what he can do to get eternal life, Jesus points him to the character of God and to the commandments. God alone is good. You are not. But this man was righteous in his own opinion. “All these I have kept from my youth.” So Jesus confronts the treasure of his life and extends the invitation. Let go of what you are trusting in and follow me. He came asking for eternal life, and Jesus turned him away because he came with his hands full. He was unwilling to empty them, acknowledge his sinfulness and need, and receive like a child.

Luke 18:24 Jesus, looking at him with sadness, said, “How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! 25 For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” 27 But he said, “What is impossible with men is possible with God.”

Jesus, with sadness, tells us that it is impossible for someone with their hands full to repent and believe the gospel. His followers ask with incredulity “Then who can be saved?” They are right. It is impossible. We all have our hands full. But Jesus points us to the true source. “What is impossible with men is possible with God.” Salvation comes from the Lord. Only God can birth new life in the heart of a Levi so that he sees following Jesus as greater worth than the piles of money he is wallowing in. Only God can birth in the heart of a Pharisee like Nicodemus that his righteous deeds are like filthy rags in the sight of God and that he needs to repent of his righteous deeds and turn and look to the Son of Man lifted up on a cross, bearing sin and purchasing forgiveness, to put his trust in him and receive like a child the gift of eternal life. “What is impossible with men is possible with God.”

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org