God’s Kingdom
Luke 1: John the Baptist
In the first chapter of Luke, we learn about the birth of Jesus and His cousin John the Baptist. Before we dive into the birth of Jesus, let’s talk about who John the Baptist was and what he did to prepare the way for Jesus. John came from a very distinct family. In fact, we read that both of John’s parents were righteous before God, following all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord without fault (Luke 1:6). What does this mean? These are the same words used to describe Abraham’s relationship with God. Abraham trusted God, had faith in His word, and followed after God in obedience. In fact, this is what God instructed Abraham: “I am Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless” (Genesis 17:1). Like Abraham, Zacharias and Elizabeth were also righteous and blameless. They were faithful to God and obedient in everything He asked of them. As we’ll soon see, John will also follow in the example of his parents.
John’s father is soon visited by an angel who informs him that God has heard his prayers and that his barren wife will now bear a child. Here is what the angel tells us about John.
Luke 1:15
“For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.”
Almost immediately, we discover that John is no ordinary child. He is destined to be great in the sight of the Lord, and because he will be great, God equips him with the Holy Spirit. His task will be monumental, and his entire life—from start to finish—will be dedicated to preparing the way for Messiah. Luke continues, giving us further insight into his future:
Luke 1:16-17
“And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. He will also go before Him in the Spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people ready for the Lord.’
There is a lot of description and context packed into this seemingly simple verse. When we read this passage, it ought to prompt a variety of questions, some of which we can discuss at a different time, but they are still worth considering.
What does this mean to turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God?
What does it mean when it says that he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children?
What does it mean to turn the disobedient to the wisdom of the just?
What does it mean to make ready a people prepared for the Lord?
There was a lot John was being called to do, and there is so much meaning packed into this verse. For our purposes, it’s important to know that his role was to prepare the people’s hearts for the coming Messiah. At this point in time, the people of Israel had become spiritually alienated from God. In fact, for many years, God continued to warn the people, through the prophets, that they would turn from and go after other gods, and over time they would become estranged from their God. The prophet Isaiah, whom Jesus references many times in His lessons, also foretells this about God’s people:
Isaiah 1:2-4
“Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth! For the Lord has spoken: I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against Me; The ox knows its owner and the donkey its masters’ crib; but Israel does not know, and My people do not consider… They have forsaken the Lord, they have provoked to anger the Holy One of Israel, They have turned away backward.”
God has been with His people from the beginning; He nourished them and guided them as children when He brought them up out of Egypt, yet despite all that He has done, they have rebelled against Him. Isaiah contrasts them with animals, saying that even the animals are familiar with their masters and know their home, but not God’s people. They do not know Him, nor do they even consider Him. Since the days of Abraham, God has sought to be with them, to be their God, to bless and multiply them, and so forth. They have not always shared the same desire. Instead, they have turned away backward. It doesn’t stop there, because their rebellion has deeply affected their spiritual well-being. Again, Isaiah tells us of their condition:
Isaiah 1:5-6
“The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faints. From the sole of the foot even to the head, there is no soundness in it, but wounds and bruises and putrefying sores; they have not been closed or bound up, or soothed with ointment.”
This is pretty descriptive of how spiritually sick God’s people had become, and this was a significant amount of time before Christ even came. It continued to get worse as the years passed. From head to toe, the entire nation was filled with sin, corruption, and sickness. Spiritually, they were like a man covered in sores, bruises, open wounds, and with no relief. This was the state of the people when the birth of John the Baptist was announced, and this was the diagnosis when Jesus came into this world, and this is why John the Baptist’s mission was to turn the children of Israel back to God and to make ready a people ready for the Lord. Jesus’ arrival meant healing, restoration, and life, but before the children of Israel could experience any of these things, it was necessary that they first recognize the condition they were in and why they were in that condition. John was being sent to help the people understand and see how much they had turned from God and His law. They were dying in their sins, and the first step for them, as well as us, is to recognize one’s sinfulness and turn in repentance.
At this point, it is worth noting that Luke tells us that one of John’s purposes was to “turn the hearts of the fathers to the children” (1:17). This is a significant passage, and it is important that we understand its origin because it will further help us understand John’s mission. Here, Luke is actually quoting from the book of Malachi, the last book of the Old Testament. Let us read the verse in its full context:
Malachi 4:4
“Remember the Law of Moses, My servant, which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel.”
First, the prophet reminds the people to remember the Law of Moses, which was given on Mount Sinai. One of John’s first tasks would be to get people to do this: remember the Law of Moses. Why? If John were to call to people to repent, it’s impossible to do so without the Law of Moses. The very definition of sin is breaking the Law God gave to Moses (1 John 3:4). We cannot repent of sin if we do not know what sin we have committed. The first step to repentance is understanding that we have rebelled against God by breaking His commandments. This is the message John came to preach. Forgiveness was on the horizon, but the people needed to first acknowledge and come to terms with their sin and their condition. Next, we read God say following through the prophet Malachi:
Malachi 4:5-6
“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.”
Who is Elijah the prophet and how is he connected to John? Elijah was remembered throughout history as the prophet who turned Israel back to God. His story, which is worth reading, is found in 1 Kings 17. Elijah was an incredible prophet, and John was said to be the one who would go before Jesus in the spirit of Elijah (Luke 1:17). This means that John would come with the same purpose and message as Elijah: to call Israel back to God. What does this look like? Both Malachi and Luke tell us that John’s purpose would be to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children and the hearts of the children back to the fathers. This probably has a variety of meanings, but essentially John’s calling was to reconnect the hearts of the people with the hearts of the fathers: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The call to repentance was not just for forgiveness of sins, but it was a call for the people to remember and return to the faith, the righteousness, the covenant, and the relationship that God established with the fathers. God made His covenant (promises) with the fathers, and He promised Abraham that “I will establish My covenant between Me and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant” (Genesis 17:7). Sin had not only separated the people from God, but it had separated them from their past, separated them from those whom God had chosen to be both the forerunners and examples of our relationship with God.
So what does all of this mean? God doesn’t just desire a people who repent of their sins, accept forgiveness, and then move on with their lives. He has come to redeem His people in order to fulfill the promises He delivered to the fathers—our fathers—long ago. He has come to turn our hearts back to the faith and the righteousness of the fathers. In order for this to happen—before we can truly receive the healing of Christ—we must heed the message of John: “Remember the Law of Moses which I commanded him in Horeb for ALL Israel, with the statutes and judgments.” In other words, repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Parashat Vayera: I Have Known Him
Parashat: Genesis 18:1 – 22:24
Haftarah: 2 Kings 4:1 – 37
Abraham possessed a deep understanding of God, which is why he knew what to say, how to respond, and how to approach God. This didn’t mean it was easy though. A short time before all this, Abraham witnessed the hand of God when He delivered Lot and the king of Sodom. Yet, in this situation, Abraham witnessed the difficult reality of justice. Instead of deliverance, he saw destruction. Through the good and the bad, the triumphs and the tragedies, God opens the door to learning. At the same time, we can prove ourselves to God as he experiences us in these moments. We may not all be called to the same testing grounds as Abraham, but each day we are given small opportunities to experience God, to learn from Him and to know Him. He allows us to be where we are, even when it is difficult, so that we can grow in the grace and the knowledge of Him. Even more, God presents these opportunities so that He can also experience us–to know our thoughts, our feelings, our hearts, and so forth. This is our desire: to stand before the God of the universe and hear Him say, “I have known you.” Continue Reading
Parashat Bereshith: He Saw It Was Good
Parashat: Genesis 1:1 -6:8
Haftarah: Isaiah 42:5 – 43:10
Genesis 1:31: “Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.”
In the first chapter of Genesis, God looked upon His creation six times, and each time it says that He saw that it was good. The seventh time He looked upon the entirety of His creation and declared that it was very good. Each of the the six days, God completed different aspects of creation, each part that would eventually fit into the grand scheme of creation. By the end of the sixth day, He saw the all of the parts fit and worked together in harmony and called it very good… PDF
God’s Enduring Word, Pt. 3
In the final chapter of Luke’s gospel, following Jesus’ resurrection, Luke tells us that Jesus appears to two disciples who were walking on the road to Emmaus. As Jesus draws near, Luke says that the eyes of the men “were restrained, so that they did not know Him” (Luke 24:16).
As they continue walking, Jesus listens to the men explain all of the details surrounding His death. Despite spending time with Jesus, witnessing His crucifixion, and being told of His resurrection, the men are perplexed, for they say to Jesus, “But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel”(24:21). These men knew the narrative, or at least they were versed enough to know that God was going to send a redeemer to Israel, but knowing does not always equate to seeing. The Messiah these men were hoping for was walking alongside them, yet they failed to recognize Him. Upon hearing their doubts, Jesus begins to awaken their senses: “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter His glory.” Following this, we are told that “beginning with Moses and all the prophets, He expounded to them IN ALL the Scriptures the things concerning Himself” (Luke 24:15-27). Jesus then begins to fill in the context of His story, beginning with Moses and the Prophets.
This is just beginning.
As they continue along, the men urge Jesus to eat and stay with them. When they sit at the table for the evening meal, Jesus takes the bread and breaks it, and when He gives it to them and,“their eyes were opened and they knew Him.” Immediately, the men reply to one another: “Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us”(Luke 24:30-32). Following this encounter, the two men rush off to Jerusalem and share the news with the other disciples. As they are speaking, Jesus appears to all of them, echoing the same words:
Luke 24:44-45
“‘These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.’ And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the scriptures.”
Again, He takes them directly to the Scriptures, reminding them that all that has happened has been foretold–in Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms. These are the very scriptures that these men and women heard every week in the synagogues. Why, then, did they not recognize Him? Luke tells us again that He opened their understanding that they might comprehend the scriptures. Understanding the narrative and seeing it play out in front of us requires these two crucial elements: First, we must devote ourselves to reading the scriptures from beginning to end, from Genesis to Revelation. For in the scriptures we are given the details of what has happened, what is happening, and what is to come. Until Christ accomplishes all the work, not just on earth but in heaven as well, then the law will continue to bear witnesses of these coming events. To dismiss any of the scriptures–especially Moses, the Prophets, and the writings–because we believe them to be irrelevant, outdated, completely fulfilled, or too difficult to understand–could cause us to miss the story when it’s happening right in front of us. Every jot and tittle is important for us to know:
Matthew 5:18-19
“For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled… but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”
Second, we not only read the scriptures, but we diligently seek and ask God to open our eyes and our understanding to the scriptures. We pray that, like those whom Jesus conversed with on the road to Emmaus, God will continue to send His Spirit to open our understanding, and that our ears will be open to hear, our eyes open to see, and out hearts open to receive. This is understanding is what ties our knowledge together, helping us see how past, present, and future events are intertwined. Prior to teaching the crowds, Jesus told His disciples why it was that He spoke to them in parables: “Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given” (Matthew 13:11). Why, if many of these individuals knew the Torah–or at least possessed a very basic knowledge–did they not have a greater understanding of it? Because Jesus said it was not “given” to them. This tells us that we can possess the knowledge through our own seeking and pursuit, but it is God who unlocks the mysteries; it is God who opens the eyes and ears and helps us to see the beginning from end. It is God who grants the spiritual understanding.
This is why, in the Parable of the Sower, an individual’s ability to bear fruit is not only contingent upon whether he or she receives the word, but how he or she receives it. After sharing the parable, Jesus quotes the prophet Isaiah who provides a diagnosis for the people’s blindness, deafness, and lack of understanding: it is a heart issue. People are unable to see, hear, and understand because their hearts are dull. Dull, according to the Greek (bareos), seems to indicate that they have become heavy with difficulty, burdened. In Hebrew, the word dull (saman) means to become or grow fat. The people’s eyes and ears–our eyes and ears–remain impaired because our hearts have become dull and fat. In other words, they have become calloused and weighed down with sin, corruption, apathy, idleness, idolatry, contempt, pride, or anything that has produced an unwillingness and inability to understand the truth. Thus, the truth remains a mystery to many because of the dullness of their hearts.
Jesus shares an entire parable driving this point home. In three out of the four examples, the individual hears the word, but there were barriers in each of their hearts that prevented them from actually seeing, hearing, and understanding the word. These barriers are what caused their hearts to become dull, and they are the same conditions that keep our hearts in a similar state. The first individual hears the word, but he never receives it because he doesn’t have the capacity to understand it; there is no penetration into his heart. Thus it is easily snatched away by the evil one. The second individual hears the word and receives it with joy, but in time it is overcome by trouble and persecution on account of the word. Because this individual lacks depth, lacks a root (faith? continued knowledge? perseverance?), he is unable to move forward in his understanding. The third individual also hears the word, and perhaps receives it, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke any sort of understanding or desire for understanding. It is only the fourth who hears the word and is said to understand it. Why? Because the soil of his heart was good soil, soil that had been tilled, weeded, watered, and thoroughly prepared to not only receive the seed, but to understand it, and ensure its growth. In other words, the truth was received by a heart that was no longer dull, but had been tenderized.
It’s vital for us to understand that it is not enough to just receive the word. Unless we ask God, give ourselves over to Him, and work with Him to prepare and continuously cultivate our hearts, then the word stands very little chance of surviving, and we risk shutting ourselves to receiving the mysteries of the kingdom. We must start with the acceptance that our hearts, in one way or another, have become dull. Yes, both Jesus and the prophet Isaiah are addressing us when they say that our hearts have become dull. Much of this dullness is a consequence of our decisions, but the prophet Isaiah also informs us that our state of dullness is also on account of God. Prior to being sent to the people, Isaiah is instructed by God to “make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes…”(6:10). By this time, Israel had already allowed the process to begin. Thus, God told Isaiah to go out and complete what was already happening. So, in Isaiah we read “make the heart of this people…,” and in Matthew, Jesus says, “the hearts of this people have grown dull.” From Isaiah to Christ, the people’s hearts had progressively become heavier, more calloused, and increasingly dull, so much so, that they were spiritually blind and deaf. From the time of Christ until now, the same process continues.
The central issue is our hearts… they have grown dull. The condition of our hearts determines our receptiveness to the word; even more, it affects the spiritual receptiveness of our eyes and ears. The more we allow our hearts to become dull (heavy with difficulty), the more we prevent ourselves from seeing and hearing the mysteries. It is when our hearts are softened that Isaiah says that our eyes become conditioned to see, our ears to hear, so that God can open our understanding. This is also why the Psalmist commands us: “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts” (95:7). This is our prayer as we pursue the knowledge of His word, that we would be those who “receive the seed the good ground, who hears the word and understands it, and who bears fruit and produces” (Matthew 13:23).
Understanding God’s plan with Israel, with humanity, and with all creation begins with the knowledge of His word. Jesus didn’t make up His own ideas when he walked and talked with the disciples. He went directly to the scriptures. He used all of them to make sense of what had just happened. Likewise, if we are to understand what will happen, then we, too, must turn to Moses, to the prophets, and to all of God’s word. Many today have dismissed large segments of the scriptures. In doing so, they have disregarded key details within God’s story, details that have yet to be fulfilled. There is no understanding God outside of diving into the entirety of His scriptures. With this knowledge, it’s imperative that we also seek the Spirit of God to unlock the mysteries of His story. As we continue to grow in the knowledge of His word–transitioning from milk to meat–we ask God to open our eyes, our ears, and our understanding. While being carried through this process, we grow in faith. This means that all we cling to and trust in all that He grants us. As the scales fall from our eyes, and as our understanding becomes more clear, we will begin to see the grand scheme of God’s work from beginning to end. For our purposes here, we will see God’s redemptive power through His people, His beloved, His chosen people Israel.
God’s Enduring Word, Pt. 2
“It is written, ‘Man shall not LIVE by bread alone, but by EVERY WORD that proceeds from the mouth of God.” -Matthew 4:4
The struggle, then, that challenges the restoration of the natural world and humankind with it is not that God is failing or will fail to bring about His word, rather it is mankind’s struggle to trust or have faith that His word will prevail. It is also our failure to understand every word’s future implication. This has been, hands down, our struggle from the beginning; in fact, mankind’s plunge into the world of corruption, sin, and spiritual isolation is on account of our failure to take God at His word. With the help of Satan, we have been overrun by doubt, skepticism, and faithlessness. It all started in the garden, where we witness the fall of mankind due to one of our greatest weaknesses: doubt.
Genesis 3:1-6
“Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And He said to the woman, ‘Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?’ And the woman said to the serpent, ‘We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, “You shall not eat of it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.” ‘ Then the serpent said to the woman, ‘You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.’ So the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.”
The fall of humanity was conceived from the seed of doubt. The words, “Did God really say?” have plagued humanity throughout history, even the most devout followers. Adam and Eve are called the father and mother of humanity and we, like them, bear within our genetic makeup their propensity to doubt and to question God at His word. We, too, have attuned our ear to the sweet words of the enemy. With very little effort, Satan continues to cultivate corruption and sin by sowing the seeds of doubt and deceit. Thus the Bible calls him the deceiver of the whole world. He appears as light and as truth, but His words sow destruction. Many believe that Satan’s primary goal is to introduce the most vilest sins into the lives of men and women, but as we will see, this is not always the case. Satan’s easiest and most cunning weapon against humanity are these words: Did God really say? Once he plants this seed, man inevitably leads himself down the path of vile sin.
It was through these words that Satan even tried to snare the Son of God Himself, for in the wilderness he used God’s own words in an attempt to entrap Jesus (Matthew 4) in the same manner as Adam and Eve:
Did God really say that He would sustain you? Sustain yourself by using your power to turn these stones into bread.
Didn’t God promise to protect you no matter what? Then throw yourself from the temple and see if He means it.
Will God really give you an inheritance? If you truly desire to rule, worship me and I will give to you all the kingdoms of this world…without suffering.
Jesus’ responses to each of Satan’s temptations sets the stage for how we encounter and defeat the voice of deception. To the enemy He stated, “It is written, ‘Man shall not LIVE by bread alone, but by EVERY WORD that proceeds from the mouth of God.”
As we set forth on this journey to understand the mind and will of God concerning His people Israel–and all of humanity for that matter– then we must do so with a hunger for His truth, for it is only in His word and His word alone that the true promises are revealed, the hope for which we strive. It is through His word that we are given a clear, unadulterated vision of His story, past, present and future. Ultimately, like our Master, we ought to hunger for every word that proceeds from the mouth of God because these words are our life, our hope, and our defense against the schemes of the enemy. He is cunning, which is why he, and those who do his work, have been able to keep the world entranced in deception and will continue to do so until he is finally removed. In the book of Second Thessalonians, Paul warns us that the time is coming–and may already be–in which there will be a great falling away because the man of sin will set Himself up in the temple of God, showing Himself as God. Many will be deceived, in large part, because the mystery of lawlessness is already at work, according to Paul. It is already spreading confusion, doubt, and discord. This is visible in the fact that people’s lives are governed by lawlessness. Our society feeds off lewdness, violence, and perversion. This, in large part, is because we have lost our sense of truth, or because we are wandering from and rejecting the truth. Paul goes onto tell us that,
“the coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness“(2 Thessalonians 2:9-12).
It is the truth that will save us; it is the truth, Jesus tells us, that will set us free. One would believe that humanity would be running toward this freedom. But the prophets spoke rightly, even of us: “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”(Isaiah 5:20-21). Why did Isaiah speak this of his own people? Why do these words still ring true among God’s people today? Isaiah tells us a few verses later: “Because they have rejected the law of the Lord of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel” (5:24). Our senses have been dulled, and our discernment has been flipped inside out. Therefore, Satan will continue to do to us what he attempted to do with Jesus: lull us asleep and destroy us through deception, lawlessness, and unrighteousness. Twice in Thessalonians, Paul emphasizes that those who do not love the truth will be deceived through lying wonders, signs, and power. Yes, these individuals will believe that he who sets himself up to be God is God. Because they do not live by every word spoken by the true God, they will fall for the lies of the lawless one. It is a love for God’s word, His law, that will protect us in these times. Those who know, understand, and who have received the truth will have a greater chance of identifying the lies of the lawless one, and will recognize the deception in his narrative; they will know that his signs and wonders are not of God. Why? Because they will know the story. They will have trained senses, and they will understand that the enemy comes cloaked in light and works of wonder, and that his lies are coated in honey. The only way to see through them is with truth. Their defense is the love of the truth.
Thus, Paul later encourages the Thessalonians–and all believers–that the only defense is through “sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth”(2 Thessalonians 2:13). These are what will help us stand against the schemes of the lawless one. Jesus confirms this. In His prayer for His followers, Jesus asks the Father “to keep them from the evil one and to sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth”(John 17:15-16). To sanctify means to separate from profane things, to cleanse, and to purify internally. It is God’s word that not only reveals to us the nature of who He is and what He is doing, but it is His word that cleanses us, sets us apart, removes from us all deception and lawlessness, so we can see clearly. As the author of Hebrews states, solid food [the truth] belongs to those “who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good ad evil”(Hebrews 5:14). This is why it is vital that we not only believe every word, but that live by every word. Th enemy is cunning, and from the beginning, he has set out to disrupt and destroy the story of God. He knows that Israel are God chosen people, which is why He tried to destroy them through Balak, but then eventually tripped them up through the counsel of Balam. Israel’s success is God’s victory, and God’s victory is the enemy’s defeat. Thus, Satan’s greatest tool deception, because deception taints our view and our acceptance of God’s plan. This is why we must diligently seek the truth.
This is not enough though. We must pray that God gives us the eyes to see, the ears to hear, the hearts to understand, and a faith to follow after this word. The enemy is cunning, and as we see in his encounter with Jesus, he is familiar with the words of God, and he uses this familiarity to twist whatever lies into this word that is necessary to deceive us. He does not want us to know the story; he does not want us to discover who we are and the power we wield through Christ and through the word of God. He will stop at nothing to turn us against the Author of truth, and that is why our pursuit of truth is of utmost importance. To simply have knowledge, though, is only part of our defense. We must also be given the wisdom and discernment to properly handle the word of truth. There are many who know the scriptures, but as we will see, our understanding must be opened in order to see the continuity of God’s story.
Christ: The End of the Law
Romans 10:4-6
“For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”
Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash
Prior to entering the Promised Land, Moses reminds the people that it is not on account of their own righteousness or their accomplishments that they are entering the land. In fact, it was just the opposite. They were an obstinate people who continuously refused to obey; thus, Moses made it clear that it was solely God’s goodness, His grace, and His promise to their fathers that He was bringing them into the land: “understand that the Lord your God is not giving you this good land to possess because of your righteousness, for you are a stiff-necked people” (Deuteronomy 9:6). Similarly, God has delivered us and has granted us passage through the narrow gate and along the narrow path, not by our own merit or righteousness, but by the mercy and grace bestowed upon us through Jesus Christ. It is through Christ that we are deemed righteous (right before God) or justified before Him in order to travel the narrow path, the path of life. When we stand at the trailhead of life, we understand that there is no other way to begin the journey but through Christ. How does one arrive at this realization? He looks intently into the royal law and realizes that because of his transgression against the law, there is no righteousness in him to appeal to, only sin and condemnation. In this sense, the law leads us to Christ, for His sacrifice is the only means of finding forgiveness and reconciliation. Once we have been granted these through faith, then our journey down the narrow path begins.
Many have fallen into error believing that once we begin this journey, that the law is no longer of use. In fact, many take Paul’s words in Romans 10 (and elsewhere) to mean that the law is not only obsolete but is now a curse to anyone who attempts to live by it. Is this what Paul meant when he said that Christ is the end of the law? Is this what Moses, the prophets, or even Christ taught us? Moses tells Israel that “the Lord commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always, that He might preserve us alive, as it is this day. Then it will be righteousness for us, if we are careful to observe these commandments before the Lord our God, as He commanded us” (Deuteronomy 6:24-25). Though Israel possessed no righteousness in and of themselves when God brought them out of Egypt and into the promised land, God brought them out of Egypt and into the wilderness for this reason–to train them up in righteousness. The same holds true today. God delivers us by His mercy, then leads us into the training grounds of the wilderness for this purpose: “And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not” (Deuteronomy 8:2). Even Jesus, who was righteous, had to undergo this process–being baptized and tested in the wilderness– in order to fulfill all manner of righteousness (Matthew 3:15). God wants to know what is in our hearts, to know if our resolve is to live righteously and be holy as He is holy. This is all part of our journey down the narrow path; this is what it means to be born into and grow up in the family of God.
1 John 2:29
“If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him.”
Romans 6:19
“For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness for holiness.”
Our acceptance into life begins with Christ, and our journey down the narrow path ends with Christ. In other words, the purpose of our journey is to look and be like Christ. This has always been the end or the goal, and it is for this reason that Christ even traveled among Israel in the wilderness (1 Corinthians 10:3). This is what is meant by “Christ is the end of the Law.” Now the “end” itself has a sense of termination like, “we have reached the end of the road.” Or, when we speak of the end, we take it it to mean that something has ceased to exist. But is this what this means? Let us also consider that the Greek word also means the end in terms of a goal. In that sense, Christ is our goal, and He is the goal to which the Torah–and all instruction–leads. He is what God will produce in us through each and every one of His words and commands. This is why Christ said in both Deuteronomy and Matthew that man should live by EVERY word that comes from the mouth of God. It is for this purpose that, on path of life, God feeds us His Torah, so we become like Christ. Likewise, when we gaze into the mirror, or the “perfect law of liberty” as James calls it, the reflection we see is Christ. He is the image of righteousness that the Torah leads to and ought to produce. Why? Because He lived it perfectly, and now through God’s word and Spirit, He trains us up to do and be the same:
2 Timothy 3:16-17
“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
The Torah of God is not done away with, rather, it is fulfilling that for which it was designed: instruction in righteousness. Paul says that this instruction will make us complete, and what does complete look like? Like Christ. So, not only does the the law lead us to repentance in Christ and the outset of our journey, but it is further used by God to help us reach our goal which, according to Paul, is for us to “attain the unity of faith, and of the knowledge of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:12-13). The end of the law is when we reach the mature man and, and through His guidance, obtain the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. Finally, it is for this reason that Jesus said that the law and the prophets are not destroyed or annulled, but have been fulfilled. Jesus came to fulfill the aspects of the law that have led to our redemption and reconciliation, but He has also come to model for us what a Torah-centered life looks like so it, through His grace and help, can be fulfilled in us–both physically and spiritually. The life of Jesus demonstrates how to go about completing the righteous training God requires, and that is to live by every word. It was Jesus who said, “Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:19). Why every commandment, even the least of them? Because every jot and tittle was given to us to fulfill God’s end in us: to be exactly like Christ.
1 John 2:6
“He who says He abides in Him ought also Himself to walk as He walked.”
God’s Enduring Word pt. 1
For many people, the centrality of the good tidings or “gospel” is the life and atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. There is no doubt that this sacrifice is the central piece in the Master’s plan to redeem and reconcile the world back to the order He intended. But to truly understand the full scope and sequence of Jesus’ sacrifice, we must diligently seek—within the scriptures—to know the mind, heart, and intentions of God.
There is no doubt that this sacrifice is the central piece in the Master’s plan to redeem and reconcile the world back to the order He intended. But to truly understand the full scope and sequence of Jesus’ sacrifice, we must diligently seek—within the scriptures—to know the mind, heart, and intentions of God.
When one zooms out and views the word and plan of God in its entirety—from Genesis to Revelation—there seems to be a deeper, more intricate myriad of themes within which the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus play a central role. Obviously, we know that Jesus came for the redemption of all humanity and creation. Yet, a subtler, yet centralized, theme is the rise, fall, and restoration of Israel and their role in this redemptive process. In fact, this theme takes up a prominent part of the scriptures from Genesis to Revelation. All Israel hold a special place in God’s heart. Though many might agree with this statement, they may not readily admit that Israel still has a central role to play in the redemption of humanity and the restoration of all things. Israel are still God’s chosen people, and this is difficult for many to not only grasp but accept. In fact, this claim is often met with strong resistance, even among those who profess an unadulterated belief in God’s word. Despite what we may or may not feel about Israel, the important question is this: what does God have to say about Israel? What does He think and feel about Israel?
Before we can set out to answer this question, we must first examine our own stance and disposition concerning the word of God, whether we believe it to be inerrant in this matter or not. Our journey through the scriptures will be a struggle if we do not hold God’s word, in its entirety, to be true. We must start and be guided by the premise that it is God’s word, not man’s, that establishes the truth—past, present, and future. It is for this reason that our study of Israel, as with any Biblical endeavor, must set off with this question in mind: Is God’s word true, eternal, and will it accomplish what it says He will do? Is His word true and reliable, even if it does not align with our logic, our culture, our feelings, and our assumptions? We need to contend with this because God’s word, at some point, will challenge our conventional wisdom, our notions of what is right and wrong, good and evil. So the question stands: Do we take God His word… His ENTIRE word?
Through His messages to the prophets, God made clear that His word would accomplish what it was set out to do, and it is this word that He calls His people to live by through faith, despite our surrounding circumstances and contexts. It is this word that is the foundation, the very substance of our faith. As Paul states in Romans 10, “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (10:17). Outside of the word of God, there is no faith, for it is the word of God that paints the picture of the realities that have been, that are, and more importantly, that have yet to be. In fact, it is the realities of what has and what is that continue to direct our attention to what will be. This is why there is so much repetition in the scripture, so much remembering because what has been is a shadow of what will be. Thus, if we ignore even one jot or tittle of the word, if we dismiss any of the events in God’s story–be they relevant to us or not–then we erase details within the picture, within this future spiritual reality on which our faith is set. Thus, we must start with the premise, as Abraham did, that God’s word is true and that it is worth acting upon whether we see its fulfillment in our lifetime or not.
Before starting our journey, let us reassure ourselves of the reliability of God’s word. There are a few examples that are worth taking note of to establish or re-establish our bearings.
In the book of Numbers, we find a powerful example through the false prophet Balaam. Balaam was called by Balak, the king of Moab, to pronounce a curse upon Israel, hoping this might lead to victory over Israel:
Numbers 22:5-6
“See, they cover the face of the earth, and are settling next to me! Therefore please come at once, curse this people for me, for they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land…”
Inside, we sense that Balaam knew that he could not contradict the word of God, so in his response to Balak’s request, we find the unshakeable truth that God’s word cannot and will not be tainted:
“Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of the Lord my God, to do less or more” (Numbers 22:18).
Balaam shares this with Balak, but Balak insists that he come anyway, convinced he would find a way to circumvent God’s word. At the request of Balak, Balaam makes several attempts to curse Israel but only blessings are allowed to come forth from his mouth. In his second attempt, God utters, through the mouth of Balaam, the following prophecy:
Numbers 23:19-20
“God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that he should repent. Has He said and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Behold, I have received a command to bless; He has blessed and I cannot reverse it.”
No matter how many attempts he makes, Balaam cannot contradict what God has declared, thus confirming the following truths:
God cannot lie.
He does not need to repent for what He has spoken.
What He has said, He will do.
What He has spoken, He will make good.
What He has blessed (concerning His people) CAN NOT be reversed.
Despite man’s futile attempts to contradict God’s words and promises, His words will carry out what He sends them to do. The prophet Isaiah confirms this truth, likening God’s words to rain which is sent to the earth for the purpose of producing fruit. Just as the rain falls from the heavens and returns when its purpose is accomplished, so is the word of God:
Isaiah 55:10-11
“For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, and do not return there, but water the earth, but make it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent.”
Again Isaiah states,
Isaiah 40:8
“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.”
In the gospel of Matthew, Jesus verifies these words, stating,
Matthew 24:35
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.”
Even beyond this present heaven and earth, God’s words endure. They have to because even when the current heavens and earth pass, God’s word will continue working out His eternal purposes. This is why His word endures and, according to Peter, is incorruptible:
1 Peter 1:23
“…having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever.“
It is this incorruptible seed by which we are born and by which we live. It is for this reason that Deuteronomy commands–and Jesus echoes this command– that, “man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord”(Deuteronomy 8:3; Matthew 4:4).
With this in mind, we know that one of the central promises God made in the Bible was to His servant Abraham. The book of Hebrews beautifully restates this promise:
Hebrews 6:13-18
“For when God made a promise to Abraham because He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, saying, ’Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you.’ And so after he patiently endured, he obtained the promise. For men indeed swear by the greater, and an oath for confirmation is for them an end of all dispute. Thus God, determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of His counsel, confirmed it by an oath, that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us.“
The words of Hebrews echo the words of Balaam, namely that it is impossible for God to lie. God’s words, His promises are immutable. To solidify His word to Abraham (as if He needed to), God even swore by Himself and confirmed it with an oath, and it is impossible for God to break His oath. The apostle Paul assures us that even when it appears that His word has faltered, “Indeed, let God be true and every man a liar” (Romans 3:4). Certainly, from our limited perspective, history seems to suggest errancy in God’s word, but what do we believe? When we consider the state of Israel and her so-called “failed history” God’s word seems to have fallen short but is this true? Could it be possible that, despite what we judge with our own eyes, our ears, and our understanding, God’s word is accomplishing exactly what He said it would?
Again we set off on this journey, we must do so constantly reading the scriptures through this lens: what God said, He will bring to pass. This is the faith that God asks us to cling to–the faith that clings to the assurance of His word. This is the faith that God uses to open our eyes, revealing the substance behind the shadows we are looking at. It is faith that gives us the confidence that what He promised He is able to perform.
Torah Discovery 