A Bird's-eye View of the Bible - The theme of humiliation and why Jesus underwent humiliation for our sakes

Introduction:

    In our last post on our series "Bird's Eye View of the Bible", we looked at four reasons why Jesus, the Son of God, came to become also truly man for us: 

1. To provide righteousness by His 

    perfect obedience.

2. To provide redemption by His death 

    on the cross.

3. To raise from the dead.

4. To ascend and inaugurate His royal 

    reign in Heaven. 

    For anyone wanting to review the last post for this series, simply click here: http://www.growingchristianresources.com/2020/05/birds-eye-view-of-bible-why-incarnation.html

     The point of this series is to explore the Bible through major themes. As to our study through the New Testament, we've looked at what we identified as the first major theme of the New Testament: "incarnation". Today we continue onto a theme which describes what it was that the Son experienced in His descent from Heaven to Earth - "humiliation". 

        I'm sure none of us want humiliation. We all prefer people to like us. Almost everyone I know, including myself, avoids humiliation in preference to having a better view of themselves or having others look at them in a positive way. Yet, whenever we observe what Jesus did for us by humbling Himself, as truly God, to also be a true human 

being, what He did was humiliating. 

     Why did Holy God lower Himself not only to experience life as a man, but to live a human life in a sinful world that would mock Him, doubt Him and crucify Him? The journey of the Son of God from the glories of Heaven to the sinfulness of this world is worth a closer look. Let's consider some reasons for Jesus' humiliation, or, why He as God came to be man.

1. The humiliation of the Son of God 

    tells us how much He humbled 

    Himself to be our Savior.

    

       Philippians 2:5-11 is the key Bible chapter we look to when understanding the journey Jesus took in coming to be a true man while still remaining God. We call this journey of the incarnation the Son's "humiliation". The above depiction of this journey of "humiliation" was first viewed by me in the ESV Study Bible years ago. Other authors and Study Bibles have used similar illustrations to aid in grasping this overall experience of the Son of God from "humiliation" to what will be a later theme to explore in this study, namely "exaltation". 

        Philippians 2:5-6 tells us, in summary, that Jesus did not consider being equal with the Father as a privilege He ought to keep hold of in a selfish way, but instead, He humbled himself, being found as a man, as a lowly servant. In other words, the eternal Son willingly came to be the man, Jesus Christ, still remained truly God while withholding from Himself the advantages that come with being also God. A case in point is when Jesus states in Matthew 24:36 that no one knows the day nor the hour of His return - including Himself. If we understand that Jesus is speaking with reference to His own self-imposed limitation of access to that area of His omniscience as a man, we then can grasp how it was He yielded Himself to the Father's will (recalling all the while He never ceased being omniscient as truly God).

      Anytime someone lowers themselves to give help to those in need, we describe such an act as being "humble". I recall once seeing the pastor of a rather large church grabbing a mop to clean up a spill left by a child. The Pastor could had asked one of his assistants or a church member to do the mopping. Instead, the Pastor rolled up his sleeves and got the job done. He didn't stop being the Pastor of that church. In fact, he then went in to preach a great sermon before a crowd of many. Our Lord Jesus Christ came into this world saying these words: "I have come to do your will, God, as it is recorded of me in the Book" (Hebrews 10:4-5).

2. Jesus humbled Himself to be our  

    example.

       We read of Jesus humiliation once again in Philippians 2:7 - "but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men." Why did Jesus come to be a human being like you and me? Jesus came not only to save us from our sins, but also to restore back our humanity that was greatly harmed by our sins. Jesus is our example of what it looks like whenever any follower of His trusts God in faith, obedience and courage to the end. We read in 1 John 2:6 - "the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked." Elsewhere, the Apostle Peter reminds us that Jesus came as a sinless man to serve as our example, so that we could walk in the way he followed after God (1 Peter 2:21-22). The amazing truth about Jesus humbling Himself to experience what it was like to be a man was that He did so willingly (Hebrews 10:4-5).

3. Jesus humbled himself to be a 

    man to represent sinners on the 

    cross.

    

     When Jesus died on the cross, a number of results were acheived, among them: 

A. Removal of the curse.

B. Forgiveness of sins.

C. Reconciliation or bringing sinners to 

    God.

       Whenever Jesus came into this world, the experience of living life as a man would had more than demonstrated His humility. If all that was needed for Jesus to forgive sin was the bleeding of His blood, then He could had come on a weekend, pricked His finger with a needle, and went back to Heaven. The problem would had been of course that the curse of sin would still had remained, meaning no provision of salvation. Jesus' humbling of Himself as a man included going to the cross, since scripture tells us that His dying on the cross meant taking away the curse of sin (Deuteronomy 21:33; Galatians 3:10-13).

4. Jesus humbled Himself to become the second Adam to give access to the benefits of salvation.

  

     We have looked in past lessons at how the original Adam represented all human beings in the Garden of Eden. When Adam and Eve sinned, it resulted in all human beings being judged as sinners (see Romans 5:12-21). Jesus' humbling of himself to become a man functioned as a second type of Adam, a new Adam.  He lived such a perfect life as to fulfill the original covenant of works broken by the first Adam which we saw at the beginning of this study (see Romans 5:12-21; 1 Corinthians 15:45-47). The original Adam brought about death and a curse on all human beings. Jesus came to be cursed on the cross and make forgiveness available to all who receive Him by faith (Gal. 3:10-13). 

        We can also see how the cross resulted in providing forgiveness of sins. He provided the right to be with God due to Himself being the perfect man, meaning, all humans who trust in Him by faith inherit salvation on forgiveness of sins (Romans 3:25-26). We understand from the Old Testament that only God can forgive sins (that is, grant salvation to all who trust in Him, Isaiah 43:10; Jonah 3:9). For God to forgive sinners, there must be payment given to God by the giving of an innocent life on behalf of the sinner. We've talked about this in a past lesson, calling Jesus' payment to provide forgiveness of sins "redemption". 

       Lastly, Jesus' humiliation on the cross meant that the ability for God and believing sinners to be together could really take place (1 Peter 3:18). One of the descriptions the New Testament gives of everyone born into this world is that they are "lost", meaning they are separated from God and His enemies (Ephesians 2:1-3, 12). The moment we trust in Jesus results in us being brought into a relationship with God - or what the Bible calls, "reconciled" (2 Corinthians 5:15-20).

       Jesus certainly went through a lot of stuff to accomplish our salvation. Thankfully, there is more beyond the state of humiliation, which is what we will look at in the next theme.

P3 Finding Answers to Life's Toughest Questions in Sunday School - Do the atrocities in today’s world negate a personal God?

1 Peter 3:15 “But Sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who as you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and respect.”

Introduction:
Today we continue on in a series we are entitling: “Life’s toughest questions answered in Sunday School.” As I mentioned in previous posts, our church recently had a combined Sunday School hour. Each teacher had been assigned a question the previous week and was instructed to research the answers and then lead whoever would be at their table in a “round-table” discussion. At the end of the prescribed time, each table would pick a spokes-person to give a three-minute summary of the group’s answers to the group at large. The exercise was extremely interesting to watch and be a part of, with the answers given even more rewarding. We noted two questions addressed in yesterday’s post:

1. Define the impact of Christian Liberty on a believer’s life?

2. Can I witness to a friend in a questionable location?

Today we deal with the problem of evil and suffering and how we can reconcile the abundance of evil in our world with the existence of an all-powerful, all good God. Such a question is a subject of much wrestling among believers and non-believers alike. In the Sunday School-hour the question of evil and suffering and God was posed in the following way:

3. Do the atrocities in today’s world negate a personal God?
The Sunday School teacher who summarized his group’s discussion began by offering a second related question: How can we say there is a personal God amidst life’s atrocities? The approach taken by the group entailed appealing to several key Christian doctrines. By the time the teacher had finished his summary, I counted six key doctrines brought out by the group. God had certainly illuminated their thinking that morning in regards to answering this very difficult question. The teacher began with two major truths revealed in scripture: reality of sin or evil itself and Christ’s incarnation.

A. Sin. The first great truth is the reality of sin and evil itself. In citing John 16:33, we as Christians expect evil and suffering in this world due to the fall of man.

B. Incarnation. The second truth relayed by the class had to do with the incarnation of the Son of God as Jesus Christ. Christ came in His incarnation to die on the cross and raise from the dead in order to do something about this issue. These two doctrines of the reality of evil and the incarnation uniquely equips Christianity to best address this tough issue.

As a side note, the problem of evil and suffering is more approachable when break it down into further parts. Theologians will refer to what is called the logical problem of evil (i.e how can we logical reconcile evil’s reality and God’s existence?).

The second way in which we discuss this issue is termed the so-called emotional problem of evil (i.e how can we emotional handle the brute harshness of it in our personal lives and still love God?) The emotional part of the problem of evil and suffering is usually the more difficult to deal with the logical version. The Sunday School teacher’s strategy of dealing with the emotional elements of this problem proved effective, since it paved the way for dealing with the logical version of this subject.

In so far as we deal with the emotional problem of evil on a daily basis, what about the other side of this thorny issue: namely the logical problem of evil and suffering. Now the class by this point had introduced the key doctrines of sin and Christ’s incarnation to demonstrate that God did indeed do something about evil. This dovetailed into what would be the remainder of their presentation.

The class enumerated two more key doctrines to address the logical problem of reconciling the existence of God with the evil in our world:

C. Creation. The teacher noted from Genesis 1:31 that God didn’t create evil but rather created a world that had been originally good. This point underscores the goodness of God.

D. Free will. God chose to create a world that included people who could exercise the freedom to choose and also to love. He created a world that includes free will desire for people to love. The results stemming from the creation of such a world included the real possibility of people rejecting God. This is where passages such as Romans 8:22 was brought in by the group, reminding everyone that evil came about the decisions of creatures (Satan and then human beings).

With these four key doctrines (sin, Christ’s incarnation, creation and free will) on the table, I could see how the class was putting together a Christian response to this difficult issue. As the teacher went on, he would end up bring out two final truths: God’s Sovereignty and God’s Glory.

E. God’s Sovereignty. In citing Romans 8:28, the group noted how God works out all things to achieve His will – including the use of the good and bad decisions of His creatures. When we think of Joseph in Genesis 50:20, we see this point underscored: “what you meant for evil, God meant for good.” God’s Sovereignty never excludes the secondary efforts of men’s free-choices, historic events nor natural laws. God’s Sovereignty and human decision-making are compatible truths in the scriptures.

F. God’s Glory. The sixth and final major doctrine the group seemed to bring forth in answer the difficult problem of evil was that of God’s glory. In citing Romans 8:18, the class concluded that the overflow of God’s glory gives perspective in dealing with evil.

This final thought on God’s glory reminds one of Paul’s remarks in 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 with regards to how the pain of this world is momentary and comparatively light in comparison to the weight of God’s glory being worked out in the Christian. The teacher ended his time by referring to tough issues like human disabilities in John 9:1-3. In that passage, Jesus reminds his audience that the blind man that he healed was permitted by God to be born blind so that through his healing by Jesus – people could behold the invisible power of God through Christ’s Person and ministry.

Closing thoughts:
Now it must be recalled, the Sunday School class only had about 30 minutes to deal with this subject of human atrocities and God’s existence. I was moved by how well the teacher communicated each point. Framing the problem of evil in suffering in the six great truths of the Gospel (sin, incarnation, creation, free-will, God’s sovereignty and God’s glory) is a great strategy for demonstrating the uniqueness of Christianity in dealing with this subject. Overall I was pleased with how this Sunday School class was able to present a compelling and thought provoking summary and response to this overall question: “Do the atrocities in our world negate a personal God?” 

From where I was sitting, they convincingly demonstrated that the reality of God’s existence is in no way negated by the painful reality of evil and suffering. This exercise underscores again how important it is to get plugged into a Sunday School and to get involved. The answers I heard people giving to these tough questions equipped me to better articulate the Gospel in our 21st century world.

P3 The Wedding you must not miss: The Presentations of the Bridegroom and His Bride

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life."

John 3:27-29 "John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven. 28 You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent ahead of Him.’ 29 He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. So this joy of mine has been made full."

Introduction and Review

For the past couple of days we have been exploring the Biblical theme of the Divine Wedding as used by God to portray His redemptive purposes in the Bible.  After overviewing the big picture in the first post of this series, we then looked yesterday at how God began to utilize this major theme in the Old Testament through the Gospels. In yesterday's post we discovered the following two major points:

1. Purposes of a Sovereign, Loving Savior

2. Presentation of the Son as a Bridegroom for the people

In today's post we want to develop further the second point and add one more to it as we aim to understand the wedding you cannot miss - a wedding that is concerned with the destiny and salvation of those who accept or reject it's invitation.

Presentation of the Bridegroom for the people

It is no accident that the most famous passage on salvation in the Bible - John 3:16, occurs in the same chapter with John the Baptist's declaration of Jesus as the Bridegroom for the people. If the reader will recall, God planned to marry Israel as His wife, only to experience the pain of divorce as a result of her unfaithfulness.  Through prophetic predictions of a new Covenant and coming Messiah, Yahweh planned to restore unto Himself His people, meaning that in His Sovereign purposes, His plan to restore His choice people was not going to fail.  The Old Testament tells us what Yahweh intended to do, and yet it does not reveal how.  

John the Baptist's remarks about Jesus being the "bridegroom" begins to unfold how it is God is going to restore unto Himself a people.  With a surprising twist - that God Himself in the Person of the Son was going to be incarnated as the Groom who would offer Himself to Israel as her Messiah.  Redemption is pictured among other things in the New Testament as God's desire to restore broken fellowship with a people who rejected Him!  As the reader journey's throughout the Gospels, we see the following thoughts developed regarding the presentation of the Son as the Groom for His people:

1. The Divine Groom rejoices in coming for His people. Matthew 9:15; John 2:1-12

2. The Divine Groom rejected by His people. Matthew 22:1-5

3. The Divine Groom renders His life on behalf of His people. Acts 20:28; Ephesians 5:25-27

The New Testament's unfolding of this amazing theme centers almost exclusively on the Groom - The Son.  However there is another twist, a surprise unforseen by the Old Testament and faintly unfolded in the Gospels - namely what would be the...

Presentation of the Bride for the Son - The church

The Son who rejoiced, was rejected, rendered His life and who will return, is now looking forward to coming to receive the bride that is being called forth, one choice person at a time, by the Holy Spirit, resulting in freely made decisions that say: "I do" to Jesus Christ.  Consider the following points about the bride: 

1. The bride is being prepared for her groom, (with Israel being set aside at this present time)

Romans 11

2. The Bride will be presented to the Son as His bride in heaven the rapture. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Revelation 19:6-7

3. The Bride will be presented here on earth at His second coming (at which point He will restore Israel). Matt 25:1-13; Rom 11:25-26; 1 Thess 4:13-16

4. The Groom will reign on earth with His Bride the church, along with Israel who will be folded into His bride to be at the end of His reign on earth. (Revelation 20)

5. The Groom and Bride will be married for all eternity, thus completing God's purposes in presenting a bride, composed of all of those whom He chose, called and were converted by faith to His Son. 

Appeal for you to become part of the Bride of Christ

The Bible closes will a final appeal to every person to become part of the bride by becoming converted by grace through faith in the Divine Groom - Jesus Christ. (Revelation 22:17)  Won't you come?

P2 The Wedding you must not miss: God purposes in presenting the Son as the Divine Bridegroom for His people

Jeremiah 31:31-34 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord. 33 “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people."

Introduction & Review:
The opening scripture above has God describing Himself as being a "husband" to Israel. In yesterday's post we did an overview of the theme of God's redemptive marriage to His people through all the major sections of the Bible. In today's post we will look more closely at this theme by seeing how it all begins in the Old Testament through God's Divine purposes and how those purposes aim in Presenting the Son who will be a Groom for the people.  But before we get to seeing how this theme begins to unfold, we first of all need to see how particular Bible passages in the Old Testament state God's redemptive agenda to be about the relationship between God as The Divine Groom/Husband and His people as being the bride/wife. 

The Biblical Foundation of the Divine Wedding Between God and His people 

The event of God's wedding to His people is defined as occurring in the sequence of events surrounding God's deliverance of the Jews out of Egypt, across the Red Sea and eventually to the place where they would encamp around the base of Mount Sinai in Exodus 12-20. The wedding of Yahweh to Israel required planning that incorporated God's eternal intentions, usage of history from Adam to Noah to Abraham, and of course His Covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. 

As the planning for this event by God led to the Presentation of Himself to His people, clearly the focus of the Divine wedding ceremony at Sinai was on the Groom. Per the ancient customs of Jewish and ancient Oriental weddings, the Bridegroom, rather than the bride, determined the day and focal point of the festivities. The goal was for the groom to be united to His bride and for them both to enter into married life. 

Passages such as Psalm 45; the entire book of Song of Solomon, and the prophecies of Hosea utilize the marriage customs and ceremonies of the Jews as picturing God's relationship to Israel. Other prophets by Divine inspiration of the Holy Ghost expound in the most eloquent way possible this theme of God as the groom or husband, and His people as the bride or His wife. Consider the following examples:

1. Psalm 45:6-9 "Your throne, O God, is forever and ever;A scepter of uprightness is the scepter of Your kingdom. 7 You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You
With the oil of joy above Your fellows.
8 All Your garments are fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia; Out of ivory palaces stringed instruments have made You glad.
9 Kings’ daughters are among Your noble ladies; At Your right hand stands the queen in gold from Ophir."

2. Isaiah 54:5 “For your husband is your Maker,Whose name is the Lord of hosts;
And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel,
Who is called the God of all the earth."

3. Ezekiel 16:9 “Then I passed by you and saw you, and behold, you were at the time for love; so I spread My skirt over you and covered your nakedness. I alsoswore to you and entered into a covenant with you so that you became Mine,” declares the Lord God."

4. Hosea 2:19-20 “I will betroth you to Me forever;Yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and in justice, In loving kindness and in compassion, 20 And I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness. Then you will know the Lord."

The theme of God's Marriage to His People as an outline of God's revelation of redemption from the Old Testament into the New Testament

Truly in order to get the vision for Systematic Theology, one first has to do the preliminary work of Biblical theology that traces God's progressive unfolding of major themes. With the key Old Testament Bible passages established for this theme of God's marriage to His people, we can now see how God takes this theme and develops it. The Divine marriage theme describes His main intentions for redeeming His people from their lost condition. God's redemptive dealings with Israel is a microscopic view of what His intentions are in wanting to redeem believers from every nation that He intends to save. As we begin to explore this incredible metaphor of God the groom and His people the bride, we discover the following:

Purposes of a Sovereign, Loving Savior

Entrance by God into covenant with His people

-God in the Old Testament revealed Himself as the Savior of His people by way of His Personal Covenant name Yahweh in Exodus 3:14. Later on passages such as Isaiah 43:10-11 reinforce the truth stated numerous times throughout the Old Testament: that Yahweh is God, and God alone, the only Savior. God planned to redeem for Himself a people was revealed in the Covenant of Grace with Eve, repeated to Noah and made a Promise to Abraham. Isaiah 54

Yahweh's purposes included "marrying" or entering in Covenant with His people at Sinai. The prophetic scriptures above reveal that the events of Sinai are likened unto a formal Jewish Wedding ceremony and festivities.

Jeremiah 31:31-32

Experience of Pain of a broken marriage 

-Yahweh's purposes included the pain of experiencing the unfaithfulness of Israel which would lead to a divorce. This surprising twist in the Divine marriage theme introduces an element of shock that will prompt prophecies about the restoration of the Divine marriage. As will be seen later, how God will bring about such a restoration is even more surprising from an Old Testament standpoint. Please compare Isaiah 50:1-2; Jeremiah 31:32

Emphasis of a restored marriage

-Yahweh reveals the promises of the New Covenant that contain His promise to restore His people unto Himself.  We can understand God's redemptive purposes as likened unto restoring a broken people.  Isaiah 62:4-5

As you arrive at the end of the Old Testament revelation, the promises of God to restore His people to Himself are affirmed in what Isaiah, Ezekiel and Jeremiah reveal to be "The New Covenant".  This revealed truth and the prophecies of the coming Messiah will be orchestrated by the Person of the Father in the sending forth of His Son into the world, Who shares co-equally in His fully Divine nature. (John 1:1-4; 3:16)  In the Old Testament the reader is told "what God will do" in restoring His wife and His people unto Himself, however God does not reveal the "how". It is not until the Four Gospels that we are told the ultimate aim of God the Father's purposes in the Old Testament, namely...

Presentation of the Son as the Bridegroom for His people in the Gospels.

For now let the reader note that the wedding that must not be missed included Divine purposes revealed throughout the Old Testament that lead to the Presentation of the Son for His people in the Gospels. Tomorrow we will continue on through the scriptures regarding this theme of God's marriage to His people by noting how it is developed in the New Testament. 

P1 The Wedding you must not miss that is revealed in scripture

Jeremiah 31:31-34 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord. 33 “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people."

Introduction: Preparing for a wedding

Not long ago my mother gave letters written by my wife's late mother to my wife that contained information about preparations for our wedding. Debi's mother had written the letters with a detailed list of what needed to be done before our wedding day.  When Debi saw her mother's handwriting, it rekindled wonderful memories of a wonderful woman of God. We both were reminded about all the preparations that went into our wedding, and how hard Debi's mother had worked to make our wedding day so very special and unforgettable. The Lord has been good to us both in giving us nearly 18 years of wonderful marriage to one another.

The Theme of God's marriage to His people from Old to New Testament

When we turn to the Bible, we get to read in the Old and New Testaments all that God did in providing salvation for His people.  Whether the reader may realize it or not, there is a grand plan including a glorious wedding at the center of God's redemptive work in scripture. The idea of God being a Groom and His people being a bride is repeated throughout both Testaments. In the Old Testament we see Yahweh marrying Israel, only to see Israel break covenant with Him. Despite Israel's failure, Yahweh predicts through the prophets that His people will be restored to Him. The Old Testament ends with prophecies and promises stating that God will restore His people, without explaining exactly how he will accomplish the feat.

In the Gospels we discover the glorious and unexpected sequel to the Old Testament. God would use the people of God, Israel, to supply the means by which His Son could enter into time through the virgin birth. By way of the Fully Divine Son's incarnation, the restoration of the people of God would come about through the Groom - The Son. Old Testament scriptures abound in the prediction of the Messiah coming into history to redeem His people.  However the one detail not revealed in the Old Testament regarded the nature of the bride for the Messiah, the Son.

As one proceeds further into the Gospels, Acts and Epistles, God's glorious plan for a wedding is unfolded that includes His Son paying the price for His future bride, the Church. The church is the means by which God will gather His choice people from every tribe, nation and tongue to be the Bride for the Son. Passages such as Ephesians 5 connect the ongoing theme of Christ the Bridegroom and the church the bride. The idea of Jesus Christ being the Divine Bridegroom reveals Him to be equal and Divinely united in glory and honor to the Person of the Father, Yahweh in the Old Testament. 

The Jewish people, who would reject their Messiah in the Gospels, are not cast away, but are temporarily set aside by Yahweh in this age so that the full number of Gentiles may be gathered by the Spirit through missionary efforts. Why? As the New Testament reveals, God is in the business of gathering a bride composed of the least likely people of His chosen purposes who will bring about His glory - the church. 

Once we come to the Book of Revelation, the full picture of the wedding for the Son and His bride, the church, is made complete.  We discover that the church will be transformed in the rapture and Israel will be prepared and purified through the tribulation period to be converted by grace through faith the Son's second coming. Revelation also reveals that more people will be given saving grace by the Spirit to believe on Jesus Christ before being martyred. Upon His return, converted Israel will finally fulfill her role among the nations in Christ's Millennial reign in Revelation 20. Following the Millennium, the bride will be united to the Son in full radiant glory in Revelation 21-22, with the marriage lasting into eternity and God's redemptive plan fully complete.  

Truly this is a wedding that you must not miss, being that God has sent forth His Spirit to call forth sinners unto faith and repentance and thus be a part of the bride. This is the overall picture the Bible portrays regarding the Wedding you must no miss.  In tomorrow's post we will begin to look more closely at this amazing theme of God's desire to gather a bride for His Son. 

Meet the Old Testament

Hebrews 9:1 "Now even the first covenant had regulations of divine worship and the earthly sanctuary."

Review
Yesterday we did a flyover of the New Testament through the aid of the thoughts we gathered from Hebrews 9:14-28.  In that chapter we spring boarded into a survey of all the New Testament books by following the following thoughts and outline:

1. Foundation of the New Testament is the Gospels, which portray Christ.  Hebrews 9:11-12

2. History of the New Testament is in Acts which records the preaching about Christ.  Hebrews 9:13-14

3. Epistles of the New Testament serve to explain Christ.  Hebrews 9:15-26

4. Revelation, the last book of the New Testament, prioritizes Christ.  Hebrews 9:27-28

So in short, Christ is portrayed in the Gospels, preached in Acts, explained in the Epistles and Prioritized in Revelation.  In today's blog we are going to utilize the first half of Hebrews 9 to aid us in thinking through the first part of the Bible that is called "The Old Testament".  

Why the Old Testament is important
According to H.L Wilmington, the Old Testament contains 39 books, 929 chapters, 23,214 verses and 593,493 words.  If you were to compare the Old and New Testament by their lengths, you would discover that The Old Testament occupies over 75% of the Bible.  Sadly Christians by and large neglect the Old Testament.  Our lack of desire stems not from it being harder to understand than the New as it does with sheer lack of familiarity with its contents.  My prayer is that this blog post today will whet your appetite to study the Old Testament.  

Briefly comparing Old and New Testament
Much like the New Testament, the Old Testament in our English Bibles can be subdivided into the same four categories that we used yesterday.  Below I have included a comparison of both Testaments to illustrate what I am saying:

Old Testament        
Foundations: Pentateuch or Torah or Law                
Genesis-Deuteronomy  (5 books)                            

New Testament
Foundations: The Gospels
Matthew-Luke (4 books)

Old Testament History: Joshua through Esther (12 books)              

New Testament
History: Acts

Old Testament Writings: Poetic Books or Books of Poetry               
Job-Song of Solomon (5 books)  

New Testament
Writings: Epistles
Romans-Jude (21 books)

Old Testament Prophecy: Isaiah - Malachi (17 books)                    
New Testament
Prophecy: Revelation

Encountering the Old Testament through Hebrews 9:1-10

1. Foundations: Genesis - Deuteronomy illustrated in Hebrews 9:1-5
Christ Pictured
Hebrews 9:1 reads - "Now even the first covenant had regulations of divine worship and the earthly sanctuary."  The focal point of Hebrews 9 is the worship center of Israel called "The Tabernacle".  God's promise of salvation began back in Genesis 3 with the institution of the Covenant of Grace to Adam and Eve in the Garden.  Ten generations from Adam, God would reveal to Noah the Ark of salvation wherein he would save he and his family from the world-wide flood. (Genesis 6-9; 1 Peter 3:18-20).  Another ten generations from Noah's son Shem would lead to Abraham, to whom God would call to be saved and become the first patriarch of the Israelite nation in Genesis 12.  From Abraham's day to Moses would span yet another 10 generations and 430 years period of time, connecting the ongoing redemptive plan and promise of God.  To Moses God revealed the law on Sinai and His grace through the tabernacle.   

Contrary to what many people may think, salvation in the Old Testament was based upon grace alone through faith alone in the promise God revealed to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as well as their forbears.  The Tabernacle system served to illustrate the promise and functioned together with the law to remind the people that salvation was unattainable apart from the grace of God and their reception of it by faith.  

These truths are why the first five books of the Bible in the Hebrew Bible are  called "Torah", since the word derives from a verb meaning "guidance".  The Apostle Paul spells out the purpose of the Torah or Law in Galatians 3:24 - "Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith."  

The tabernacle system spoken of in Hebrews 9:1-5 served to picture the Person and work of Jesus Christ.  For example, the seven main furnishings of the tabernacle functioned together as a unit, detailing the journey that the worshipper would make from the world of sin to the throne of God.  If we had more time we would go through each of those, but the point of Hebrews and the foundation of the Old Testament: The Torah or Pentateuch (the five books) is to picture and point the way to Jesus.  

2. History: Joshua to Esther serve to Anticipate Christ. Hebrews 9:6-7
Hebrews 9:6-7 states - "Now when these things have been so prepared, the priests are continually entering the outer tabernacle performing the divine worship, 7 but into the second, only the high priest enters once a year, not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the sins of the people committed in ignorance." As the writer of Hebrews underscores the preparation that would had went into the Tabernacle, we see the key theme of the remaining historical section of the Old Testament.  The people had been prepared under Moses, and now they were going to be led by Joshua in to the promised land.  The people would carry with them the tabernacle through Joshua and Judges and Ruth.  

By the time you reach 1 Samuel, the Tabernacle is currently at a town called Shiloh, with the system of worship and great decline.  God had in mind to call forth a prophet Samuel, who would end up anointing two kings: Saul and David in 1 Samuel.  In 2 Samuel you see David anointed twice more to become the greatest king of the United Kingdom of Israel.  In the books of 1 &2 Kings and 1 &2 Chronicles we see the kingdom led by Solomon, David's Son, who would build the temple.  According to 1 Kings 6, we are now 480 years after the days of Moses.  

Following Solomon's death, the United Kingdom divided and roughly 20 kings reigned in both the Northern and Southern Kingdoms.  God warned the people time and time again that if they did not listen, He would send them into exile.  Sadly they ignored God's prophets, and so Israel in the Northern kingdom was exiled by Assyria and the Southern Kingdom would be later exiled into Babylon.  The Northern Kingdom would never be reformed, however after 70 years in Babylon, the people of Jerusalem to the South would return.  The books of Ezra and Nehemiah details the lives of God's people after the Babylonian exile.  It is in Esther that we historically reach the end of the Old Testament historical section.

Throughout that section of 12 books, we hear the growing cry for a redeemer.  Undoubtedly God continued to reveal things about Him, such as the promise of Him being the Ultimate King who would sit on David's throne in 2 Samuel 7:8-16.  Nonetheless you can hear the groans of history through the historical books as Christ is anticipated.  

3. Writings: Christ Prayed for and Praised.  Hebrews 9:8-9
Hebrews 9:8-9 states - "The Holy Spirit is signifying this, that the way into the holy place has not yet been disclosed while the outer tabernacle is still standing, 9 which is a symbol for the present time. Accordingly both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make the worshiper perfect in conscience."  As the writer of Hebrews continues, he tells us that the Holy Spirit was signifying that the way into the holy place remained off limits to the people.  

In the writings of Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon, we see God's people praying and responding on a personal level to the increasing darkness of the world and the urgent need for the Redeemer to come.  Job prays for it in Job 9:33 and David writes about it in Psalms such as 2 and 110.  Solomon and the other writers of Proverbs urge us to trust in the Lord with all our heart in passages such as Proverbs 3:5-6 and Proverbs 30:4-5.  Solomon warns us about how this world can destroy a person in Ecclesiastes and then we see Christ pictured beautifully in Song of Solomon.  All the while we are gaining the leverage needed to pray for the coming of the Lord, predicted in the final section of the Old Testament: the Prophets.  

4. Prophets focus on Christ predicted.  Hebrews 9:10-11
Hebrews 9:10 states - "since they relate only to food and drink and various washings, regulations for the body imposed until a time of reformation."  Just as we see in The New Testament, the Old Testament section of our Bibles in English ends with a prophetic tone.  Seventeen prophets occupy this last part of the Old Testament, with Isaiah leading off the pack.  It is in Isaiah 7:14 and 9:6-7 that we see Christ's virgin birth and Kingdom predicted, along with His death and resurrection predicted in Isaiah 53.  

Jeremiah and Lamentations portray the grief of our Savior as well as the New Covenant age that He would institute at His coming. (Jeremiah 31)  Ezekiel reaffirms Jeremiah's message by speaking further on the New Covenant age that will eventually lead into the Millennial reign of Christ.  Daniel starts out his prophecy as a 15 year old boy some 800 miles from home, in Exile, in Babylon.  For 70 years Daniel would live in the courts of Nebuchadnezzar and later on Darius of Persia.  To Daniel God would send far reaching visions about his own day and ours.  By the time he is 85, Daniel composes the most detailed prophecies you will find in Daniel 9,10,11 and 12.  

Hosea to Malachi are termed the "Minor Prophets", not because of their rank in the scriptures but mainly their relative size.  In the original Hebrew Old Testament they constituted one scroll, reminding us that though different men in different stations of life, yet they had one unified message: salvation, and one unified focus: God's glory.  Hosea portrays Christ the faithful spouse, Joel the sending of the Spirit and Amos pictures Christ the Plumb line of truth.  

Obadiah's prophecy gives an outline of the events of Christ's future coming and Jonah is used by Christ to picture what would be His death, burial and resurrection.  Micah tells us there is no God like Him and Nahum reminds us that He is an ever present comfort.  Habakkuk tells us that He answers prayer and Zephaniah tells us details about the day of His return.  Haggai asserts that Christ is the Desired treasure and Zechariah has him on the cross, raised and returning to earth to redeem His people.  Malachi finishes out by paving the way for what will be John the Baptist's ministry of preparing for the coming of the One whose sandals he would be unworthy to untie.  

Conclusion
In short, The Law as the foundation of the Old Testament pictures Christ, the History books anticipate Christ, the writings pray for and praise Christ and the Prophets predict Christ.  

To God be the glory!

Meet the New Testament

Hebrews 9:11  "But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation." 

Introduction:
We will begin today's post with a quiz: What has 7,959 verses; 181,253 words and has been in existence for nearly 2,000 years.  Answer: The New Testament.   The purpose of today's post is to introduce you to the New Testament.  What is it's message, contents and chief point?  All of these questions will be answered in this fast-fly over of that glorious section of our Bibles that we call the New Testament.  Hebrews 9:11-28 will be our vehicle of choice, so strap in, buckle up, because its going to be a fast ride!

The Message, contents and chief point of the New Testament

1. The Foundation of the New Testament - The Gospels: Portray Jesus
Hebrews 9:11-12 states - "But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation;12 and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption." Where in the New Testament do we go to find out when and where Jesus appeared and what He did? The foundational books of the New Testament, the four Gospels, give us four portraits of what Jesus did.

Matthew presents the Majestic Christ, Christ our King.  In Matthew 1 we see the opening genealogy demonstrating His legal right to Israel's throne.  By the time you reach Matthew 27:37, you find our Lord on the cross with a sign above Him reading: "This is Jesus the King of the Jews." Following His resurrection from the dead, Jesus asserts in Matthew 28:18 that all power has been given to Him on Heaven and on earth.  Mark comes next, with his emphasis being upon the Mission of Jesus - the Suffering Servant.  Mark 10:45 has Jesus coming to serve and give His life a ransom for many.  Luke's account is the most historical, connecting us to Jesus the Perfect man, the New Adam.  In Luke 3:23-38 we see Jesus' genealogy differently from Matthew's.  Matthew traced Jesus bloodline through Joseph as being legally related to David, since Joseph was not his biological father according to the flesh.  However Luke traces Jesus' bloodline through Mary to demonstrate him to be be the biological heir of David, the biological fulfillment of Abraham's promise and biologically included in the bloodline of humanity.  As the New Adam, Jesus states in Luke 19:10 how He came to seek and save that which was lost.  

Those first three portraits together present Jesus in his humanity, with glimpses of His Deity.  In John's Gospel we see the emphasis being upon Jesus Christ as God in human flesh.  By the time you get through all four Gospels, you get the full picture of what Jesus Christ had done.   

2. Historical Section: The Book of Acts is about Jesus being Preached 
Hebrews 9:14-15a states - "how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? (15) For this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant..."  The Gospels view Jesus in the past tense: what He did.  With the Book of Acts and the Epistles, we are seeing Jesus in the present tense: Who He is.  The Book of Acts is really a companion volume to the Gospel of Luke.  Together with Luke, both occupy nearly 30% of the New Testament's length!  The point of Acts is to show what happened following Jesus' resurrection.  In Acts 1 we see Jesus giving final instructions to His disciples before His ascension into Heaven.  Acts 1:8 is really the key to the whole book: "but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” The reception of the power of the Holy Spirit occurs in Acts 2, with the early church going forth to proclaim the Gospel first in Jerusalem. (Acts 1-8)  Then we see the second stage of the church's mission going forth into all Judea and Samaria under the leadership of Peter and John in Acts 9-12.  Then the third stage of the church's mission occurs when Saul is converted and as Paul, spreads the Gospel to the remotest reaches of the Gentile world - northward and Westward. (Acts 13-28)  

The Book of Acts is undoubtedly a book of missions, but it is also a book of preaching.  Nearly 20 sermons are recorded in part or in full length, giving the reader first hand information on what was preached about Jesus in the 30 or so years of time recorded in Acts. Then finally, Acts is a book of the Holy Spirit, wherein He is mentioned some 40 times.  

The Book of Acts' relationship to the remaining section of the New Testament (Epistles) is to provide the historical backdrop and occasions for the writing of most of Paul's letters.  

3. The Writings or Epistles Explain Jesus Christ
Hebrews 9:15 tells us - "For this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant, so that, since a death has taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance."  From Hebrews 9:15-26 we see a full explanation of what Jesus did and is doing, a function that describes the main point of the 21 New Testament Epistles.  In the Gospels we see 30% of the material being devoted to the final week of Jesus life, crucifixion, burial and resurrection.  In those six hours that He hung on the cross, all four Gospels reveal what happened.  However in order to understand the meaning of the cross and resurrection, we need to hear the preaching of Acts and the explanation of the Epistles.  What is an epistle?  An epistle is a 1st century form of what we would call a handwritten letter.  Normally there was an introductory section (salutation), a doctrinal section, a practical section and then a closing section (epilogue or conclusion).  Thus in Galatians we see Christ our curse bearer, Ephesians depicts Him as the Ascended King, Philippians details Him as God who humbled himself into full humanity and Colossians reveals His Full Deity revealed in full humanity.  1 and 2 Thessalonians unfold the truth of His snatching away of the church prior to His touching down upon this world in His return.  1 and 2 Timothy and Titus unfold Christ as the Chief Shepherd over his church, with under shepherds doing His bidding through the preaching of the word and loving of the people.  Philemon is devoted entirely to the theme of forgiveness and Hebrews explains the relationship of Christ's accomplished work to the predictions of the Old Testament. 

With Paul's letters being 13 or 14 in number (depending upon your view of Hebrews' authorship), the remaining epistles cover the entire range of the composition of the New Testament.  James is the earliest of all the Epistles, connecting the preaching and teaching of the Early church back to Jesus.  As half-brother of Jesus according to the flesh, he would have unique insight along with the other half-brother of Jesus who authors the book of Jude.  1 and 2 Peter came from the hand of the Apostle Peter who was the leading spokesman in the first 12 chapters of Acts.  1,2,3 John represents the end of the Apostolic period, with the Apostle John being the author who wrote them in 90 A.D.  Then the book of Jude, being composed by Jesus half-brother Jude, closes out the section of the New Testament sometimes called "The General Letters or Epistles". Paul's letters explain Christ's accomplishment and Christian salvation to the end of time.  The General Epistles take this same theme and show how Christ's work give power to endure suffering and to overcome the increasing encroachment of the world upon the Christian.  


4. The Book of Revelation Prioritizes Jesus Christ
Hebrews 9:28 states - "so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him."  We have seen how the Gospels provide the foundation of the New Testament in their portrayal of Christ.  Acts provides the material necessary for the preaching of Christ, with the Epistles serving to Explain Christ.  This passage in Hebrews 9:28 illustrates a summary statement about the New Testament's final book - The Book of Revelation.  Revelation is all about revealing to the reader Jesus Christ. (Revelation 1:1).  In Revelation 1-3 we see Christ and His church.  By reading Revelation 4-5 you see Christ worshipped and in the section of 6-18 you see Christ Sovereign over history.  In the fourth major section of Revelation 19-20, you see revealed Christ and His coming reign, with the final two chapters devoted to Christ in eternity with His bride.  

Like the book of Acts, the book of Revelation has a key verse, 1:19 - "Therefore write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after these things."  Therefore "the things which you have seen" covers the main bulk of chapters 1-3.  Then "the things which are" could overlap into Revelation 4-5.  Finally, "the things which will take place" could include the overlap of 4-5 as well as chapters 6-22.  Whether looking at the book thematically as we did in the previous paragraph, or structurally from the standpoint of 1:19, Jesus Christ still retains His central Priority.

In tomorrow's blog we will use Hebrews 9:1-14 to do a fly-over view of the Old Testament.  I hope you will be back to see what God has to say in that section of His Word.  Until then, God bless!