P1 - Top Bible Prophecy #5 Psalm 110 - Jesus' Ascension and Session

Psalm 110:1 "The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”

In weeks past I have periodically written some blogs on key passages in the Bible that I am deeming: "Top Bible Prophecies".  These texts are designated by this name due to their scope and range of use throughout the rest of the Bible.  Furthermore, a Top Bible Prophecy is deemed one because it brings into focus the ministry and work of the Lord Jesus Christ in both His first and second comings.  In this continuing study, we have considered four such passages or Top Bible Prophecies thus far.  I included the date on which they were blogged in case the reader may want to review them:

1. Genesis 3:15 - Blogged on April 12, 2013
2. Genesis 12:1-7 - Blogged on April 18 & 19 2013
3. Deuteronomy 30:1-10 - Blogged on May 1, 2013
4. 2 Samuel 7:8-16 - Blogged on May 2, 2013

Of all the Old Testament passages quoted in the New Testament, Psalm 110 tops the list as the most quoted (at least 18 times).  Furthermore, Psalm 110 enables us to connect the Davidic Covenant of 2 Samuel 7:8-16 (Top Prophecy #4) directly to the Kingly Career of the Lord Jesus Christ in the New Testament.  As you will see, the New Testament Authors quote Psalm 110 the most, since by Divine inspiration the Holy Spirit revealed to them that what Christ is doing in this present age and what He will do in the coming Millennial age.  In today's blog we will focus on those areas that Psalm 110 predicts concerning Christ's ascension and current activity in Heaven (what we call His session).

How Jesus connects Himself as the Fulfillment of Psalm 110
Before we outline Psalm 110, let the reader note how the Lord Jesus Himself connects His life and ministry to Psalm 110.  In Matthew 22:41-46 Jesus engages in the following discussion with His opponents, the Pharisees:

"Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question: ⁴² “What do you think about the Christ, whose son is He?” They said to Him, “The son of David.” ⁴³ He *said to them, “Then how does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying, ⁴⁴ ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Until I put Your enemies beneath Your feet”’? ⁴⁵ If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his son?” ⁴⁶ No one was able to answer Him a word, nor did anyone dare from that day on to ask Him another question."

What Jesus does is quote Psalm 110:1.  In the context of Matthew 22, Jesus discusses the nature of the Kingdom by beginning with a parable about a king and a wedding feast for his son.  Undoubtedly the parable's point is to illustrate that Christ is the Son Whom was to be rejected by those who refused to honor the invitation sent out by the Father.  He is the King who by right isKing over all kings, including Caesar.  Eventually the opponents of Jesus attempt to trap him in a series of questions.  In Matthew 22:42-46, Jesus turns the tables, using Psalm 110:1 to point to Himself as the fulfillment of God's Covenant with David.  Because of their unbelief, the Pharisees totally missed Jesus' point.  However the followers of Christ and the New Testament would, by the Spirit's work of Divine Inspiration of the New Testament, quickly connect the dots.  By the time you journey through Acts, 21 New Testament Epistles and the Book of Revelation, virtually every verse in Psalm 110 is quoted to reveal Jesus' Kingly Career following His ascension in to Heaven. 

The Kingly Career of Jesus Christ in Psalm 110 and the New Testament
So how does the New Testament use Psalm 110 to reveal the Kingly Career of the Lord Jesus Christ? Note the following outline of Psalm 110 and accompanying New Testament verses that unfold the following predictions of His Kingly Career:

1. The Ascension of King Jesus.  Psalm 110:1
In Acts 1:11-12 we see the Lord Jesus Christ ascend into heaven before the eyes of His disciples.  What happened following that event?  The remainder of the nearly twenty quotations of Psalm 110 in the New Testament endeavor to explain what took place after Jesus disappeared from His disciple's sight.  Below are some more notable examples in which I have underlined the portions of Psalm 110:1 that are quoted by the New Testament authors.  According to Acts 2:34-36 we read: "For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: ‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand,³⁵ Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”’ ³⁶ Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.”

Following the wording of Psalm 110:1, Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15:25-28 - For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. ²⁶ The last enemy that will be abolished is death. ²⁷ For He has put all things in subjection under His feet. But when He says, “All things are put in subjection,” it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in subjection to Him. ²⁸ When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, so that God may be all in all. In Ephesians 1:20-21 the Holy Ghost states - "which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹ far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come."  Jesus is seated at the Father's right hand, ruling spiritually in Heaven and waiting to bring the Kingdom to earth in order to subdue all his enemies and reign until everything is made the footstool of His feet.   What follows in the remainder of Psalm 110:2-7 is an unfolding and explanation of Psalm 110:1.

Clearly then Christ's ascension into Heaven was not merely His leaving this planet to go to heaven and wait until the Father tells Him to return to earth.  Jesus is right now very busy and active in Heaven at the Father's right hand, which leads us to the second predicted event of Jesus' kingly career, namely...
 
2. The Session of King Jesus.  Psalm 110:2-4
When a judge comes into a courtroom, the Officer of the Court will say: "All rise, the court is now in session".  To be in session means that a supreme authority is presiding over a group of people. As Christ awaits to come to earth, He presently occupies Three Official positions as spelled out here in Psalm 110:2-4 and their corresponding New Testament fulfillments:

a. Jesus Christ is Ruling spiritually as King.  
When Jesus Christ ascended into Heaven, He became Legally and by right King on the Throne of David. Psalm 110:2 "The Lord will stretch forth Your strong scepter from Zion, saying,“Rule in the midst of Your enemies.”  According to Acts 2:34-36, Jesus began reigning spiritually at His ascension.  Revelation 1:5 calls Jesus right now the "Ruler over the kings of the earth".  As Spiritual Ruler over the world through His church, Jesus is awaiting to bring His Kingdom here to earth, wherin He will set up His earthly Kingdom and reign for 1,000 years. 

b. Jesus Christ is the Prophet who Reveals God through the scriptures
Psalm 110:3 predicts - "Your people will volunteer freely in the day of Your power; In holy array, from the womb of the dawn, Your youth are to You as the dew."  That phrase "Holy Array" in the original Hebrew speaks of a pure and unique display of Supernatural power. Hebrews 1:1-2 shows how Jesus fulfills this: "God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, ² in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world."  By being the "appointed heir of all things", Jesus Christ is fulfilling this aspect of Psalm 110 by revealing God since He Himself shares in the same nature as God and is God revealed in human flesh. (1 Timothy 3:16)

c. Jesus Christ is the Priest who mediates between believers and God. 
Psalm 110:4 -  "The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind,
“You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.”  Who is Melchizedek?  We first meet this mysterious figure way back in Genesis 14, following Abraham's defeat of 5 pagan kings.  Upon his return back from battle, Abraham is met by the King of Salem, Melechizedek.  Melchizedek blesses him, and Abraham in turn gives him a tithe of the spoils of victory.  Then without warning Melchizedek dissapears off the radar screen of Biblical history, only to be mentioned again in Psalm 110:4, a thousand years after Abraham!  Clearly Melchizedek is not just any human King or Priest, since He is depicted in eternity with Jehovah God.  Once again he dissapears, with ten more centuries of time passing until Hebrews 5-7.  It is in those chapters we discover the true identity of Melchizedek.  In short, He is Jesus Christ the High Priest of Heaven, whose priesthood exceeds the Levitical priesthood of the Old Testament.  Because Jesus is functioning as High Priest in Heaven right now, He is our advocate in prayer. (1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 4:14-16; 1 John 2:1-2)

In tomorrow's post we will feature the remainder of Psalm 110 and the appropriate New Testament passages that will unfold two more predicted events of Christ's Kingly Career: namely His Second Coming (Psalm 110:5) and Millennial Reign (Psalm 110:6-7). 

Jesus in Luke's Gospel P3 - The Savior's Supper

Luke 22:15 And He said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer

Introduction - The Savior of Luke
For the past several days we have been exploring the Gospel of Luke.  We first noted some major themes and an outline of the Book in Part 1, followed by a survey of how Luke portrays Jesus entering into humanity's plight and pain in Part 2.  In this final part of our series on Luke, we want to go to that scene on the night before Jesus' crucifixion.  Truly and significantly the Lord's Supper in Luke brings together everything that we have looked at over the past couple of days.  Luke uses the title "Savior" to describe Jesus more than any other Gospel writer, using it at least twice in his Gospel (Luke 1:47; 2:11) and at least twice again in his companion volume Acts (5:31; 13:23).1  Luke 19:10 is the chief verse of Luke's Gospel that describes the Saving work and effort of Jesus - "For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” 

As we consider the Lord's Supper scene in Luke, what kind of Savior do we meet?  Based off of those two key words in Luke 19:10 ("seek" and "save"), we encounter the Willing and Working Savior.  The Willingness of Jesus is scene throughout Luke's Gospel, finding its most tenderest expression in Luke 22.  Then the Work of the Savior is expressed in Luke 22 that will anticipate the work Christ would accomplish in Luke 23-24. 

Jesus the Willing Savior.  Luke 1-22
In Luke 22:15 Jesus says to His disciples - "And He said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer."  The underlined phrase "earnestly desired" is the NASB attempt to capture the tone and emphasis of Jesus.  As Luke was writing this Gospel in the original Greek, He undoubtedly would had written down what he gained from his interview with eyewitnesses who were there on that night.  The Greek text repeats the words translated "desire" twice, emphasizing how willing and eager Jesus really was to enter into this meal with his disciples.

Jesus' willingness to be the Savior is certainly captured by Luke throughout his gospel.  From beginning to end Jesus exhibited an absolute willingness to be the Savior and to do His Father's Will as a brief survey of key passages will demonstrate:

-Jesus' entry into time by way of the virgin birth.  Luke 1:31-34
-Jesus entry into the bloodline of humanity as the New Adam.  Lk 3:23-38
-Jesus' willing identity with his people in His baptism.  Lk 3:21-22
-Jesus willingness to minister to the hurting.  Lk 4:18-19
-Jesus willingness to press onward to the cross.  Lk 9:51 and 19:28
-Jesus willingness to eat with his disciples.  Lk 22:41-44
-Jesus' willingness to do His Father's will.  Lk 22:41-44 

With the willingness of Jesus our Savior revealed at Luke's scene of the Lord's Supper, we see a second aspect of the Savior in this scene, namely...

Jesus the Working Savior.  Luke 22:19-38
As you go down through the text of the Lord's Supper Scene, as well as the scene wherein Jesus is praying in Gethsemene, you find out statements about Jesus' work.  What kind of work was Jesus aiming to accomplish as the willing and working Savior? 

1. Redemptive Work.  22:19-20
His institution of the Lord's Supper, with the bread and fruit of the vine, points to the redemption He would accomplish.  The fact He says "this is my body" and "this is my blood" treats His redemptive work as an already done deal, even though He had not yet done it.

2. Great Work.  22:29-30
His words to His disciples not only dealt with the work He was looking to accomplish on the cross, but also what He aimed to do in the future when He would come again.  What He accomplished in His First coming would pave the way for Him to return and exercise Judgment and Rulership as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

3. Preserving Work.  22:31-32
His prayer for Peter's faith not to fail reminds us that Jesus' Work as Savior preserves His saints.

4. Finished work.  22:37-38
Not by sword nor by force would the Kingdom of God and Christ's work be accomplished.  Rather He alone could finish it, which is why He told the dsiciples to put away their swords.

It is these two themes of Jesus as a Willing Savior and a Working Savior that we meet at the Lord's Supper in Luke's Gospel.

Endnotes_______________

1. These counts are based upon the amount of times the title "Savior" occurs in the original text of Luke and Acts.  English translations may have the title listed in more places, since other phrases in the original language in other spots can easily translate "Savior" in English.

Jesus in Luke's Gospel P2: His Entry into Humanity's Pain & Plight

Luke 19:10 "For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost."

Yesterday we considered Jesus Christ in Luke's Gospel in terms of how He is presented, as well as key themes and outline of the Book.  Today I want the reader to consider Luke a little bit further.  Matthew presents the Majesty of Jesus as King and Mark's Gospel focuses upon the Mission of Jesus Christ.  In Luke we see Jesus in His full humanity as the Perfect Mediator.  He alone can represent sinful man before Holy God and mediates between God and people who by grace through faith have believed on Him. (1 Timothy 2:5; 1 John 1:9-2:2)  Throughout Luke's Gospel we see Jesus accomplishing His role as Mediator in how He willingly enters into huamnity's pain and plight.  Though we won't be able to cover all the verses in Luke that unfold this truth, we can sketch out some exceptional passages in Luke narrative that reveal how Jesus entered into humanity's pain.

1. His entry point was by the virgin birth.  Luke 1:31-34
Luke 1:31-34 states - "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; ³³ and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.” ³⁴ Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?”  Jesus in Eternity willingly agreed with God the Father to journey from Eternity into time by way of the virgin conception and birth. (Hebrews 10:4-7) Such a journey meant Jesus humbling Himself and stooping into the depths of human limitations and frailty, yet without sin. (Philippians 2:5-11) 

2. His inclusion in huamnity's bloodline reveals His further efforts to enter into humanity's pain.  Luke 3:23-38
When you read Luke's geneaology of Jesus, you get a list of 72 generations stretching over 4,000 years from Jesus back to Adam.  Mankind is a rusted chain of rotted links that, when pulled up from the depths of history, suddenly has one perfect golden link - Jesus Christ.  Luke's purpose in the geneaology is to show Jesus the New Adam in contrast to the Old Adam, a theme spoken elsewhere in the New Testament. (Romans 5:11-21; 1 Corinthians 15:42-49)  Jesus came to be the perfect human representative who would willingly identify Himself with sinners. 

3. Jesus publicly entered into humanity's plight by way of His baptism and privately communicated His entryway to His disciples by way of celebrating His final meal with them
In Luke 3:21 states - "Now when all the people were baptized, Jesus was also baptized, and while He was praying, heaven was opened."  Jesus' baptism in Luke is presented as Him entering further and further into the stream of human experience.  The other Gospels indicate He got baptized in order to demonstrate His ability to be the standard of righteousness needed to be received by faith.  Later on at the end of Luke's account in Luke 22, we see Jesus expressing in Luke 22:15 "And He said to them, “'I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer."  In both His baptism and institution of the Lord's table, Jesus is expressing His identification with the pain and plight of those whom He came to redeem.

4. Jesus came to minister healing and deliverance to those in need.  Luke 4:18-19
At the onset of His public ministry, Jesus said these words in Luke 4:18-19 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor.
He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives,
And recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are oppressed, ¹⁹ To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”  Undoubtedly Jesus' chief aim was to provide salvation by His death on the cross, burial and resurrection.  But Jesus also came for a secondary purpose, to deal with the effects of sin - namely in healing diseases and setting free those captive to the forces of darkness.  35 miracles were recorded in the four Gospels, 20 of which we see in Luke's narrative.  Jesus not only entered into humanity's pain, but He also chose to confront it head-on.

5. Jesus did the ultimate act of entering into our pain by going to the cross .  Luke 9:51 and 19:28
Jesus had an unflinching resolve in Luke as He made the journey to Jerusalem where He would be sentenced to die on the cross.  In Luke 9:51 we read - "When the days were approaching for His ascension, He as determined to go to Jerusalem."  Then later on in Luke 19:28 we read these words - "After He had said these things, He was going on ahead, going up to Jerusalem."  From Luke 19-24 we see Jesus final week, going to cross to die, be buried and then raised three days later. 

My hope is that these passages will minister encouragement to the reader today.  Look to Jesus, who came to enter into humanity's pain. 

Jesus in Luke's Gospel: Purpose, Themes, Outline

Luke 19:10 "For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost."

Purpose and Significance of Luke's Gospel
In today's post I am interested in having the reader explore the major themes that weave their way throughout the Gospel of Luke.  The main emphasis of Luke is to present Jesus Christ as the Perfect and only fit human representative of sinners before Holy God.  We get this master theme from the 72 names of Jesus' geneaology in Luke 3:23-38 that begins with Jesus, the New Adam, who in his humanity is traced through Mary's side all the way back to the First Adam, as well as the theme verse of Luke 19:10, quoted above.  According to H.L Wilmington, Luke's Gospel is the largest book in terms of content that we can find in the New Testament, and tenth longest of the all the Bible books.1 The fact that Luke's companion volume, Acts of the Apostles, may had been originally part of Luke, would make Luke/Acts comprise nearly 30% of the New Testament!  Now the reason why we mention such statistics is to underscore how much Jesus Christ and His representative ministry on behalf of sinners and saints dominates the New Testament.  Merrill C. Tenney in his New Testament Survey summarizes Luke's purpose among the four Gospels: "The Material of Luke is organized around the central concept of Jesus as a member of humanity who lived a perfect and representative life of the Son of Man through the Holy Spirit." 1

Main themes that weave their way throughout Luke
With those introductory thoughts, we can offer some major doctrinal, spiritual and practical themes that run their way through Luke's Gospel.  My prayer is that you will find such themes to be uplifting and edifying to your own Christian faith, or perhaps too, some of these themes may be of interest to readers who are not yet converted to faith in Christ.

1. Theme #1: Nourishment.  In this theme, Christ Himself or His teachings are viewed as sources of spiritual nourishment whether we speak of salvation or life following salvation.  Usages of food or food related topics characterize Luke's references as follows: Luke 1:53; 2:47-51; 4:24-27; 5:5-7, 27-39; 6:1-5;7:36-50; 9:10-17; 10:38-42; 11:37-54; 12:22-34; 13:6-9; 14:1-24; ch 15; ch 16; 17:28; 19:1-10; 20:9-18; 21:29-36; 24:30-31; 24:40-46

2. Theme #2: The Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Trinity, is found in the following passages of Luke's Gospel. Luke 1:15,17,35,41; 2:25, 26,27; 3:16, 22; 4:1,18; 10:21; 12:10,12

3. Theme #3: Joy of Salvation.
This theme, according to the Bible Knowledge Commentary, is found in the following passages: Luke 1:14; 8:13; 10:17; 13:17; 15:5,9,32; 19:6,37

4. Theme #4: Forgiveness.
Again the Bible Knowledge Commentary lists the following passages that mention this incredible truth about forgiveness: Luke 3:3; 5:18-26; 6:37; 7:36-50; 11:4; 12:10; 17:3-4; 23:34; 24:47

5. Theme # 5: Discipleship.
This theme emphasizes believing on Jesus Christ as Savior to follow Him as Lord so as to become more like Him in thought, word and deed.  Among the over 20 places discipleship is found in Luke, 16 of them are found in chapters 10-18, material that is not recorded in the other three Gospels.  Luke's Gospel gives us the fullest picture of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ.

6. Theme #6: Salvation
The need to by grace through faith to believe on Jesus Christ and repent of one's sin is huge in Luke.  In 24 places we find the word "save" or "salvation", with over 12 examples being given of those who individually were called to faith and repentance. 

7. Theme #7: Prayer
Luke is fond of recording the instances in which Jesus taught about prayer or prayed.  The Bible Knowledge Commentary lists the following verses: Luke 3:21; 5:16; 6:12; 9:18,29; 22:32, 40-41

8. Theme #8: Miracles
Over the 35 miracles mentioned in the Four Gospels, 20 occur in Luke and six are unique to him. 

9. Theme #9: Jesus Himself
All the preceeding themes aim to point to the central Person of Luke: Jesus Himself.  His incarnation and virgin birth fulfilled all Old Testament expectation in Luke 1-3.  His miracles and healing demonstrate Him to be the Messiah in Luke 4-9.  His association with sinners and further ministry, as well as His death demonstrate Him to be the Perfect Saving Representative of sinners before Holy God in Luke 9-23.  Then His Resurrection from the dead proves Him to be God in human flesh, and that all He did and said was true - both historically and supernaturally.  He is the Son of Man Who came to seek and save that which was lost. (Luke 19:10)

A Suggested Outline of Luke's Gospel
I close today with a brief outline of Luke's Gospel.  My prayer is that today's blog has whetted your appetite to take a closer look at this wonderful Book of the Bible.

I. Introduction.  Luke 1:1-4
II. Jesus' Birth and Childhood. 1:5-4:13
III. Jesus' Ministry and Popularity. 4:14-9:50
IV. Jesus' Ministry on the way to the cross. 9:51-23:32
V. Jesus' death, burial and Resurrection. 23:33-24:53


EndNotes____________
1. H.L Wilmington.  The Complete Book of Bible Lists.  Page 35

2.Merrill C. Tenney.  A Survey of the New Testament.  Page 180

7 reasons to trust the Bible

1 John 5:13 "These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God."

Why is scripture so foundational to the Christian life?  Why does it matter that the Apostle John "writes" the things he wrote? The reason being is because the writings of the Old and New Testament are none other than the words of God. (Exodus 24:4; 2 Timothy 3:15-17).  In today's blog I want to spell out for you in short order seven reasons why you can have confidence in the Bible as God's Word. 

1. The Bible is inerrant (without error)
Psalm 19:7 "The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul;The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple."  The Bible's inerrancy is foundational to Biblical preaching, Christian living and Gospel witnessing.  To be anything less would mean that the Bible could not be trusted nor relied upon. 

2. The Bible is infallible (incapable of leading astray)
In John 10:35 Jesus says that the scripture cannot be broken.  According to Psalm 119:130, whenever we read the scriptures, they bring light to our understanding.  If we say the Bible is without error in terms of its contents, then it only follows that the Bible is without error in how it leads me into all truth. 

3. The Bible is inspired (God's Word)
2 Timothy 3:16 starts out: "All scripture is given by inspiration of God".  That word translated "inspiration" comes from a compound Greek word "theo-pnuestos" meaning "God-breathed".  Quite literally God exhaled His words through the writing styles and lives of the prophets and apostles, producing a unified book composed of 66 individual books.  No other book in the world is Divinely inspired - only the Bible.  2 Peter 1:21 tells us that no prophecy arose by the will of man, but rather came about through men who were born along by the Holy Spirit. 

4. The Bible is clear
Is the Bible incapable of being rightly interpreted?  Can we really make the Bible says what we want to say?  If you take the words out of context you can make it say whatever you want.  Furthermore if you ignore the context, then you won't be able to arrive at the right meaning.  The key word in both those answers is the word "context".  If you and I dear reader don't like people taking our words out of context, then why would we treat God's words any different? It is not only vital to consier the context of a given passage in the surrounding verses, chapters or books, but also to consider how the Old and New Testaments relate to one another.  According to Jesus in Luke 24:44, all scripture points to Himself.  Romans 15:4 states that all the scriptures were written "for our instruction".  1 Corinthians 2:12 tells us that the Spirit revealed scripture so as to enable understanding of all of God's things.  So the Bible, with the Spirit's help, context and Jesus Christ can be rightly inteperpreted.  Does this mean that the Bible is always going to be easy to understand? Not always.  The Apostle Peter writes in 2 Peter 3:16 that there were somethings in Paul's writings that even he found difficult to understand.  Studying the Bible is equated in 2 Timothy 2:15 as being the labor of a workman.  Though the labor may be hard, the results far outweigh the effort.  Furthermore, as one studies the scriptures, the labor quickly turns into delight.

5. The Bible is sufficient
I personally feel this is currently where the battleground for the Bible is being waged.  Is the Bible sufficient to lead and guide? Is it sufficient to be used by the Spirit in bring about salvation in the heart of a believing sinner? 2 Timothy 3:17 tells us that the scripture "thoroughly equips you for every good work".  2 Peter 1:3-11 reveals that God has given us all things, through His great and precious promises, that pertain to life and godliness.  Scripture is not only sufficient in bringing about salvation, but also in guiding you and I in our post-conversion life or sanctification.  Truly then, the Bible is sufficient, and all other lesser authorities (like doctrinal statements and church polity documents) must yield to scripture in all matters.

6. The Bible is true
In John 17:17 Jesus states that the word of God is true. 

7. The Bible changes the human heart
According to Psalm 19:7, the Law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul.  According to James 1:18, by God's Divine will He begets the child of God by faith "through the living and enduring Word". 

Happy Pentecost Sunday - 9 significant truths about Pentecost

Leviticus 23:15-16 "And you shall count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering: seven Sabbaths shall be completed. ¹⁶ Count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall offer a new grain offering to the Lord."

Acts 2:1-2 "When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. ² And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting."

Happy Pentecost Sunday! The New Testament records in Acts 2 that the Holy Spirit came in power and presence, birthing forth the early church some 50 days after Jesus Christ's resurrection.  Pentecost Sunday occurs 50 days after Easter (hence the reason for the name "pentecost", "penta" = "50"), and is the focus of today's blog.  Let the reader note that Pentecost, though pointing primarily to the day in which the Holy Spirit came in power and glory to empower Christ's church, was not originally a New Testament holiday.  Back in the Old Testament, during the days of Moses, God revealed to the Jews seven festivals or "feasts".  The middle one on the Jewish Calendar was referred to by various names: "Shavu'ot", "Feast of Weeks",  and of course "Pentecost".  As you will see in a moment, Pentecost has great significance for the Christian in understand the wider scope of redemption revealed in the Bible.  Below I am going to list reasons why Pentecost is so important for you as a Christian as we see in both the Old and New Testament Scriptures.

1. Pentecost's Purpose: Harvest
It was to occur 50 days after the bringing forth of the first fruit of the barley harvest, the day which would become Jesus' resurrection of the dead.  The Jews had two harvest seasons: spring harvest for Barley and Summer Harvest for the Wheat crop.  Among other images, wheat symbolizes the harvest of souls in salvation.  (Matthew 3, 12 and 13)  We know from Acts 2 that 3,000 souls were saved on the day the Holy Spirit came - a mighty harvest indeed! (Acts 2:41)

2. Priority of God's Word
The very first festival revealed to the Jews was that of Passover, commemorating God's deliverance of them out of Egypt. (Exodus 12-15)  Fifty days after their crossing the Red Sea, God delivered the Law or Torah on Mount Sinai in Exodus 19-20.  Through the centuries the Jews came to connect their celebration of that fiftieth day not only for the purpose of God's revealed festival of Pentecost, but also the revelation of His Law or Torah to them.  This commemoration came to be called "Shavu'ot" or the bringing forth of the Law.   A significant parallel connects the very first Pentecost with the one in Acts: namely at the time of the Law's revelation, 3,000 souls died (compare Exodus 32:28).  However in the New Testament Pentecost in Acts 2, 3,000 souls were saved! 

3. Prophecy is fulfilled
Peter preached on the day of Pentecost the explanation behind the Spirit's arrival.  In Acts 2:17-21 Peter quotes verbatim Joel 2:28-31, a prophecy written almost 800 years before the events in Acts. 

4. Promise fulfilled
Jesus had promised His disciples in John 14 and 16 that He would not leave them comfortless once He ascended in to Heaven, but that the Father and He would send the Holy Spirit in His name.  Jesus kept His promise to both His disciples and us, thus another significant truth about Pentecost.

5. Person of the Holy Spirit
Lets not forget of course the chief purpose and goal of Pentecost: The coming of the Holy Spirit as a Permanent and Abiding Person in Christ's church Who is at work in this world.  He is God the Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Trinity.  In the Old Testament the Holy Spirit worked on the outside and would come upon people at periodic times.  In this New Covenant age, the Holy Spirit works from the inside out in Christians and is the Permanant resident of the church and individual saints. (1 Corinthians 2:12; 3:6)  In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit pointed saints forward to God's Promise of salvation yet to come.  In this Present age the Holy Spirit since Pentecost points people back to the Person of salvation - Jesus Christ, and by the scriptures explains and applies Christ's finished work to all who convicted by Him believes.

6. Proof that Jesus raised from the dead and is Ascended
Pentecost, as John Piper notes, is the reason we know anything about Easter.  The fact that the Holy Spirit came is proof that Jesus did indeed raise from the dead and that He made it to heaven to be at the Father's right hand. Pentecost and it's outcome is proof positive that Christ is ascended and that the Gospel is undoubtedly true.

7. Preview of things to come
The seventh significant purpose or reason for Pentecost in the scripture lies in the fact that the Spirit came to give His people a preview.  Throughout the 224 prophecies that pertain to Christ's return and the coming Kingdom, we are told about a New Heavens and new Earth where there will be no curse.  In Acts 2, we see evidence of God reversing, on a local level, the curse of the languages He pronounced originally in Genesis 11:1-10 at Babel.  Throughout Acts 10 and 19, this miracle would be repeated.  Pentecost tongues was a miracle insofar as 17 different language groups got to hear the Gospel all at once from men who had never been trained in them.1  For a brief span of hours, the Spirit so gifted the Apostles to share Christ with nationalities gathered at Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost.  Another curse that was reversed and gave a foretaste of things to come is the fact that the Spirit returned to the Lord's temple.  Ezekiel the Prophet saw the Spirit of God leave the temple in Ezekiel 9-10.  However the Spirit came back to inhabit a new temple of flesh and blood, the church.  We know that when Christ comes back, Israel will be restored and she will be indwelt by the Spirit of God. (Zechariah 12-14; Romans 11:25-26) Previews such as these are granted to us as a result of Pentecost.

8. Person of Christ
Jesus Christ in His pre-pentecost state concerning His humanity was limited to being in one place and at one time.  Whenever the Spirit came, though Christ was in Heaven, still retaining a glorified humanity, yet by His Divine nature shared together with the Spirit, we can on an experiental level be ministered to by Jesus through the Holy Spirit.  To illustrate, I can watch and experience events half-way around the world by way of television.  Though those events and people are localized from the origin of the signal, yet by way of the signal beamed to my satellite dish, I can experience them.  Likewise the Holy Spirit, sharing in the same Divine nature with the Divine Son of God, brings the Person of Christ to us, Who touching His humanity is localized in Heaven at the Father's right hand.  This post-pentecost Jesus is thus able to minister globally and universally to each of his people by the Holy Spirit's ministry. 

9. Partition between Old and New Testaments
When did the Old Testament or Covenant come to an end, and when did the New Testament era or Covenant begin?  Acts 2 is the international dateline of the Bible.  Though from a literary standpoint our New Testaments begin at Matthew, yet from a Chronological standpoint, Pentecost in Acts 2 is the official beginning of the church age.  Now mind you, it would take 30 years on either side of Pentecost before the transition from Old to New Covenant was complete.  Jesus' entry into time by His virgin birth 30 years before Pentecost signalled the beginning of the end of the Old Testament economy.  Likewise by the end of Acts 2, some 30 years after Pentecost, the New Testament church age was well underway and in full swing. 

May you dear friend have a wonderful Lord's day and remember: fifty days after Easter is Pentecost Sunday.  My hope is that through these thoughts from scripture, we can gain an ever richer view of all the Lord has done for us by the sending of His Holy Spirit, Who points us to Jesus.    

Endnotes________________________

1. I don't believe the gift of tongues spoken of in the Bible has anything to do with a private prayer language or estatic utterance.  Rather the gift of tongues was given at Pentecost for the purpose of evangelizing people groups whose language had not been previously learned, rather than for private edification.  I have some dear friends who will advocate the prayer language position from passages such as 1 Corinthians 12 and 14.  However the context of those two chapters actually undercuts the private prayer language position, since the Apostle Paul is urging his readers to seek the greater gifts that will "edify the body".  Oftentimes, modern tongue speakers will claim that their abilities bring personal edification, an outcome that is opposite of what Paul was teaching in the Corinthian letters.  Whatever may be claimed about the modern day phenomenon called tongues, I don't personally think the phenomena called "tongues" matches the gift of tongues recorded here in the New Testament. 

The Gospel's Swansong

Deuteronomy 31:1-3,30 "So Moses went and spoke these words to all Israel. (2) And he said to them, “I am a hundred and twenty years old today; I am no longer able to come and go, and the Lord has said to me, ‘You shall not cross this Jordan.’ (3) It is the Lord your God who will cross ahead of you; He will destroy these nations before you, and you shall dispossess them. Joshua is the one who will cross ahead of you, just as the Lord has spoken." (30) Then Moses spoke in the hearing of all the assembly of Israel the words of this song, until they were complete."


Deuteronomy 34:4-5 (4) "Then the Lord said to him, “This is the land which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants’; I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not go over there.” (5) So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord."


A Historical Gospel Swansong
In the two verses quoted above we see the conclusion and farewell of Moses to His people.  After forty years of leading them through the wilderness, Moses' prophetic ministry - which began with a song celebrating God's salvation in Exodus 15, would now end with a final song in Deuteronomy 32.  Deuteronomy 31 records Moses final instructions; Deuteronomy 32 - which will be of interest to us today, records Moses' final song to the nation.  In Deuteronomy 33 we see Moses in the fashion of the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob delivering one final blessing to the nation, with Deuteoronomy 34 recording His death.  Presumably Joshua may had picked up the divinely inspired quill so-to-speak and finished out Deuteronomy. 

A swansong is officially defined by the New Oxford American Dictionary as - "a final public performance or professional activity before retirement".  Moses' sawsong to this generation of Israelites is highlighted in Deuteronomy 32.  This final song of Moses, as well as the first song which He composed 40 years earlier in Exodus 15, represents bookends to a remarkable ministry.  Moses is regarded by Hebrews 3:5 as "faithful in all his house as a servant" who pointed the way to Jesus.  The reason for focusing attention on this swansong of Moses to his generation will be apparent in a moment.  But first off, let the reader see the main outline of Deuteronomy 32 to understand the profound Gospel content of Moses' final song before moving onto why the song is so hugely important.

1. Righteousness of God.  Deuteronomy 32:1-4
Deuteronomy 32:4 notes for example - “The Rock! His work is perfect,
For all His ways are just; A God of faithfulness and without injustice,
Righteous and upright is He.

2. Rebellion of Sinful Man. Deuteronomy 32:5-35
Deuteronomy 32:5 for instance - "They have acted corruptly toward Him, They are not His children, because of their defect; But are a perverse and crooked generation."

3. Receive the Gospel by Faith.  Deuteronomy 32:36-52
Deuteronomy 32:46 has Moses saying - "he said to them, “Take to your heart all the words with which I am warning you today, which you shall command your sons to observe carefully, even all the words of this law."

The Final Prophetic Gospel Swansong
As I mentioned a moment ago, Moses' song has huge significance - and here is why:  The Song of Moses is mentioned in Revelation 15:3 in a sequence of events at the end of history before Christ's second coming! 1 In Revelation 14 and 15 we see depicted the Great Tribulation, where in the final seven years of world history all cosmic and spiritual forces will be unleashed as God pours out His wrath before Christ's Visible and Bodily Return. 

From the dawn of history, God ordained ministry in song to be hitched alongside the ministry of the Word.2  As the Gospel is proclaimed one final time, the Swansong included with it is a combination of Moses' music and the Song of the Lamb.  This Swansong of the Gospel includes the three same major truths we saw revealed earlier, only in reverse order:
1. Receive the Gospel by Faith.  Revelation 14:6-7


The word "Gospel" is mentioned over 100 times in the New
Testament, with its final mention found in Revelation 14:6-7 "And I saw another angel flying in midheaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; ⁷ and he said with a loud voice, “Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters.”





                                                                                                                       In  a sequence of events following that final proclamation of the Gospel before Christ's parousia or Second Coming, we find the reason for such urgency....

2. Rebellion of Sinful Man.  Revelation 14:8

Revelation 14:8 tells us - "And another angel, a second one, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who has made all the nations drink of the wine of the passion of her immorality.” After that final proclamation of the Gospel, if anyone rejects that final appeal, no other Gospel appeal will be given.  Mankind by the droves will had already bought into the world system of Babylon the Great and will be mesmerized by Satan's world dictator over that system - The Anti- Christ.  For those who persist in unbelief - Revelation 14-15 reveals where such unbelief will leave you - condemned, with no hope and no second chance.  Time will had run out by that point.  What is it that mankind is ultimately in rebellion against...

3. The Righteousness of God.  Revelation 15:3-4
We these words in Revelation 15:3-4 "And they *sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, “Great and marvelous are Your works, O Lord God, the Almighty; Righteous and true are Your ways, King of the nations! “Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy; For all the nations will come and worship before You, For Your righteous acts have been revealed.”  God's righteousness includes His fairness in all judgment and His ability to aquit sinners who by His grace believe and receive Christ's Person and Work as their ability to be right in His sight.  God has been more than fair in revealing His acts of redemption through the cross as revealed in His Word.  Romans 1:18 tells us the wrath of God is being revealed from Heaven against all unlawfulness of wicked men.  People who refuse to believe the Gospel do so of their own choosing.  Would it be that they would have it in their heart by God's grace to repent, turn to Christ, believe and be saved. (John 1:12-13; Ephesians 2:8-9; 2 Timothy 2:24-26)


What if today is your Gospel Swansong?
We have talked about a Gospel Swan song at the end of Moses' ministry.  We have also talked about the Ultimate Gospel Swan song yet to come at the end of history before Christ returns.  However, what if you reading today, who have never received God's graceful offer of salvation? What if this is your final chance? Whenever you attempt to gamble with time - you will be guaranteed a loss because you don't know what the next moment brings.   Believe what the Bible says about your sinful rebellion and God's righteousness in stating how your rebellion has been treason against His Holy character.  God has been so good and yet how often have you ignored His pleading? My prayer is that if you do know Christ as Savior, Lord and Treasure, that you would make it a point to share the truth of the Gospel - for we never know when the final time of hearing the Gospel may be.   

End Notes:______________________

1. The first song ever recorded in the Bible is the one we see by Moses in Exodus 15. Coupled with the one we just overviewed in Deuteronomy 32 is a representation of the entirety of Moses' ministry in song to God's people. 

2. Moses' illustrated that in his life, David in His and even Jesus is described as singing in the midst of His church amidst the proclamation of His Father's name in the Word by His preachers and teachers. (Hebrews 2:12-13)