Character of God

Intro

The central work of Jesus was making atonement for us all and His death on the Cross accomplished this. There are numerous facets to the work of Jesus that, although seeming to be separate works, all form the purpose of His coming to earth as a man. Consequently, destroying the works of the devil, Jesus provided the way for the restoration of the relationship between God and mankind. This is atonement.

Atonement via the Cross

Previously, in part I, we might have said Jesus reconciled us to God, reunited us. However, those words are too shallow. “To make atonement” comes from the Hebrew word that does mean “to make reconciliation” but it carries the stronger act of purging the initial problem. Much deeper than just reunite. In essence, ‘to atone’ means ‘to make at one’. Not just by making things better but by dealing with the problem permanently so the solution would be permanent. Hence, atonement is restoration forever.

So the work of Jesus on the Cross of Calvary is the most important event since creation. The animal sacrifices throughout the history of the Israelites pointed to the once for all sacrifice of Jesus. “Jesus gave his life for our sins, just as God our Father planned, in order to rescue us from this evil world in which we live” (Galatians 1:4 NLT)

“Under the old system year after year the high priest entered the most holy sanctuary with blood that was not his own. But the Messiah did not need to repeatedly offer himself year after year, for that would mean he must suffer repeatedly ever since the fall of the world. But now he has appeared at the fulfillment of the ages to abolish sin once and for all by the sacrifice of himself!”
(Hebrews 9:25-26 TPT)

Consider not just repetition of sacrifices but their meticulous nature (specific types) and fine detail. All that was foreshadowing Christ’s sacrifice. Again and again in the book of Leviticus we read of the need for cleansing because of sin and guilt. The requirement is for sacrifice (Leviticus 14:19). Atonement is necessary (Leviticus 14:18,19,31). The blood (Leviticus 14:14,25,28) of a lamb (Leviticus 14:10,12,23–24) without defect (Leviticus 14:10) that brings atonement and cleansing from sin (Leviticus 14:11,19,20,23,29,31).

Paul understood

The apostle Paul explained that “… no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin” (Romans 3:20). He also explained how all the detailed and careful sacrificing in the Old Testament points to Jesus, our only source of righteousness to which the Law and the Prophets testify (Romans 3:21). Everything we read about in Leviticus is designed to ‘testify’ about Jesus. Paul says, “This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe… by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:22–24).

To understand the Cross is to experience the effect of God’s power in our own life. It is to grasp the incredible concept that to save us, God sent His Son to die for us otherwise we were without hope. eternally.

Atonement means the Cross is Not an Ornament

To many people the Cross is not much more than a fashion accessory. Nice to dangle in one’s ear lobes or hang around the neck on a chain. Similarly, a model of the Cross ‘decorates’ many homes and churches. But sadly, few understand the real and eternal work of Jesus on the Cross of Calvary. Worse still, even some within the church have only a vague understanding.

Paul was not kidding when he wrote.. “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18). Curiously, we don’t hear much of Isaiah’s prophecy over 600 yrs beforehand.. “This is what the Lord says: ‘ … I offered my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard; I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting” (Isaiah 50:1a, 6).

The horror of the Cross offends humanity because it shows us the depravity of mankind. In fact, Jesus had to die for us in that manner to make full payment for our restoration from the evil one. It also clearly shows .. “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1John 4:10).

The Lamb of God

Throughout the Old testament the image of the Lamb of God was preparation for Christ’s awesome act of sacrifice. Sacrificial rituals slaughtered lambs daily in the Temple. On the annual Feast of the Passover, the Israelite’s sacrifice a lamb to commemorate their ancestor’s escape from slavery in Egypt by God’s provision.

Lamb of Substitution

In preparing to make the burnt offering as instructed, Abraham declared to Isaac “… “God himself will provide the lamb ….”. Read Genesis 22:1-18 for the account of Abraham’s obedience and God substituting a lamb for Abraham to sacrifice. This was a foretaste of the real event. In Jesus , God Himself provided a Lamb substitute for us. The choice was God’s to make not ours. We were in bondage and could do nothing and provide nothing towards our rescue.

Lamb of Sacrifice

The Feast of the Passover marks the night of the Israelites’ release from Egypt. On that night the Israelites prepared a lamb as instructed by God. They sprinkled the blood of the lamb on the doorposts and lintel of their home as a sign. The angel of death would pass by that home. See Exodus 12:1-31 for the account of this incredible event.

As awesome as it was, the original Passover was an image of the atoning work of Jesus on the Cross. Paul understood the imagery and said to the Corinthians, regarding their ‘bad’ behaviour.. “Get rid of the old yeast that you may be a new batch without yeast—as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Therefore let us keep the Festival, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness; but with bread without yeast, the bread of sincerity and truth” (1Corinthians 5:7-8 emphasis added).

Lamb of Suffering

Isaiah accurately described the innocent suffering of the Messiah chapter 53. He again chose the image of a lamb … “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter; and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth” (Isaiah 53:5-7).

David also described the suffering of the Messiah in Psalm 22.

No surprise then, the suffering of Jesus was no accident. It was necessary, he couldn’t just die in our place. He literally bore all our suffering and afflictions as well as our death. He took every emotional, physical and spiritual suffering of the human race to the Cross. Thus, Jesus’ death and resurrection broke their power.

Lamb of Sovereignty and Supremacy

Eventually, John’s Revelation we don’t see Jesus as the Lamb weakened, suffering and broken. He appears triumphant with power and authority to open the scroll and its seven seals. The Lamb was also the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David. Messianic titles of power and majesty.

“Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll … sealed with seven seals. And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice; ‘Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?’ But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it.

I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. Then one of the elders said to me, ‘Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals’. Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain; standing in the centre of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders…” (Revelation 5:1-6).

“And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead; so that in everything he might have the supremacy” (Colossians 1:18 emphasis added).

Why was Atonement Necessary?

The need for atonement is only clear against the backdrop of the relationships between i) the holiness of God; ii) His divine law; iii) the sinfulness of man (after the ‘fall’); and iv) divine wrath.

i) Holiness of God – Many Scripture verses speak of the holiness of God. It is absolute, and inherent. In fact, God is holiness personified. His purity has no tolerance of sin. It simply must be exposed, judged and dealt with. No choice.

ii) Divine Law – A fully Holy God designed and created the universe, all creatures and all beings (angelic and human). Naturally then the ‘blueprint’, the foundation of the whole of creation is divine law. Godly law ensures order rather than chaos.

iii) Sinfulness of Man – Adam disobeyed the one law God had given him and so became lawless, literally. As John wrote “Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness” (1John 3:4). God must deal with man’s sinfulness because it directly opposes God’s holiness and it “… built a barrier between you and your God. Your sins have made God turn his face from you so that he does not hear your prayers” (Isaiah 59:2 TPT).

iv) Divine Wrath – Divine wrath is a natural reaction of God’s perfect holiness to man’s sinfulness. It is no more than the righteous anger of a good and holy God against sin. Likened to the impact light has on darkness. Sinfulness cannot survive in the presence of holiness let alone prevail just as darkness cannot withstand a light. ‘Wrath’ is the best word to describe such reaction or impact that destroys sinfulness and darkness.

There’s a Delay

“The corruption that was in us from birth was expressed through the deeds and desires of our self-life. We lived by whatever natural cravings and thoughts our minds dictated, living as rebellious children subject to God’s wrath …” (Ephesians 2:3 TPT).

However, Scripture shows this divine wrath is not always executed immediately against sin. God restrains it to enable man to repent and return into relationship with Him. ^“Don’t you realize how patient he is being with you? Or don’t you care? Can’t you see that he has been waiting all this time without punishing you, to give you time to turn from your sin? His kindness is meant to lead you to repentance” (Romans 2:4 TLB).

Abraham pleading for Sodom is another Biblical example of God restraining the impact of His Holy wrath (Genesis 18:16-33)

God is more than fair

“God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he makes sinners right in his sight when they believe in Jesus” (Romans 3:25-26 NLT).

We’re alive today because of God’s restrained wrath. Peter described the Lord’s delay in wiping out sin … “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come …” (2Peter 3:9-10)

So then, the holiness of God against the sinfulness of man produces the reaction of divine wrath. In God’s perfect Justice (divine law) as explained back in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:17) the penalty for sin is death. Wrath needs to be appeased before a holy God and sinful man can possibly be reconciled. The Atonement is that appeasement.

The Nature of the Atonement

God’s attributes are extreme. Yet God’s attributes remain absolutely, perfectly balanced; (see “what’s with being balanced?”). God’s holiness and perfect justice must execute His wrath and judgement against man’s sin. At the same time, God’s love desires to save mankind for close relationship with Himself.

The atonement was the only way for God’s love and mercy to save each sinner without violating God’s holiness and justice against sin. God came in the form of His Son Jesus and took upon Himself all our sin. In fact, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). He became our sin and took it all to the Cross on our behalf.

The super amazing thing is, God foresaw and foreknew ‘for ages’ the entrance of sin into the human race by Adam’s ‘fall’ (Acts 15:18). God sorted the solution even before He created the world. Peter wrote “For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed …, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, …” (1Peter 1:18-20). Hebrews 13:20 refers to this solution as the eternal covenant, the covenant made in eternity.

Don’t be tempted to think God was caught by surprise when Adam rebelled. He knew and made him with free will anyway. Such is His love for mankind.

The success of the Atonement is clear in Scripture. For example, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him” (John 3:36).

So the Atonement Jesus made was eternal and eternally successful.

Conclusion

“… I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defence — Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1John 2:1-2 emphasis added).

The summary of the awesome work of Jesus there on the Cross is “The Divine Exchange”, as Derek Prince put it. That’s because …

Thank you Lord!

… just sayin’

Bibliography –

• The Holy Bible, New International Version®. Pradis CD-ROM Grand Rapids: The Zondervan Corporation, © 1973, 1978, 1984
• ICB – The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a division of Thomas Nelson.
• NLT – Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation
• TLB – The Living Bible, copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation
• TPT – The Passion Translation®. Copyright © 2017 by BroadStreet Publishing® Group, LLC
• Photo: Carrying the Cross by Wesley Tingey on Unsplash.com
• Image: The Divine Exchange, “The Divine Exchange”, page 6,
  Copyright © 1995; 2013 Derek Prince Ministries-International

Intro

The previous article, “God’s relationship with man”, identified the relentless, loving pursuit by God of His rebellious people. His desire was to re-establish His conversational relationship with man since the day Adam rebelled. He was keen to re-unite what sin had pulled apart. Before He created the world He had planned the solution,  …. the work of Jesus Christ, His Son who was the promised ‘seed of the woman’ (Genesis 3:15 NKJV). “… He was chosen before the creation of the world” (1Peter 1:20) as the solution.

The article concluded with the statement, “History demonstrates the truth of Psalm 110:5b ‘His faithfulness continues through all generations’ ”. Indeed, spanning 60 generations of mankind [Adam & Eve through to Joseph & Mary] God reaffirmed His Covenant with man a number of times. Also, He gave many reminders and warnings through prophecies, took subsequent measures of discipline and made numerous displays of miracle-working power, demonstrations of forgiveness and enduring love. But the people en masse remained obstinate throughout those 4 millenia and were not prepared for the messianic work of Jesus

Things to note:-

1. the family line from Adam & Eve to Jesus is recorded in three parts….: 
Adam → Shem (Genesis 5:3-32), [1558 yrs]
Shem → Abram (Genesis 11:10-26), [390 yrs]
Abraham → Jesus (Matthew 1:1-16), [~1945 yrs*]
Thus Adam → Jesus, [just under 4000 yrs]

* a continuous thread of numbered years joins Abraham to the birth of Jesus Christ. It includes 377 yrs of family details from Abraham to Joseph; Joseph’s life until age 30yrs when he became governor of Egypt; and his father and brothers joining him after the 7 yrs of harvest then 2yrs of famine

Jewish records show the Israelites left Egypt in 2448. Scripture tells us Solomon started to build the Temple 480yrs after the exodus (1 Kings 6:1), in the 4th year of his 40 yr reign (1Kings 11:42-43) when he died

Archaeology dates King Solomon’s death in 931BC. Altogether these events during the generations identified in Matthew 1 spanned approximately 1945 yrs

2. As this is all about Jesus and some of his accomplishments most of the content will be from Scripture. Unless otherwise noted, quotes are from the 1984 NIV on the Pradis medium – see Bibliography. All emphases within the quotes are mine.

Christ, the Eternal Word

Remember from Genesis when God spoke, things happened. His Word was awesome. So, inspired by Holy Spirit, the disciple John, introduces Jesus Christ as the Word of God.

“In the beginning the Word already existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He existed in the beginning with God. God created everything through him, and nothing was created except through him. The Word gave life to everything that was created, and his life brought light to everyone. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it” (John 1:1-5 NLT).

He Knew He Had Special Work

Jesus knew that He had a purpose to fulfil, a work to complete.

Even at the age of 12, Jesus knew … when his parents found him sitting with the teachers in the temple courts, Jesus responded to their wonderings with “Why did you have to look for me? You should have known that I must be where my Father’s work is!” (Luke 2:49 ICB).

John’s Gospel records Jesus talking about His work on three separate occasions …..

• In response to His disciples urging Him to eat “… Jesus explained: ‘My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work’ ” (John 4:34 NLT).
• While speaking to the Jews “Jesus said to them, ‘My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working’ ” (John 5:17) and further … “For the very work that the Father has given me to finish, and which I am doing, testifies that the Father has sent me” (John 5:36)
• Jesus praying to Father God before His arrest said “I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do” (John 17:4)

In fact, Jesus declared that “… the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.” (John 5:19).

So What was the Work of Jesus After His Birth?

Jesus was indeed the Messiah for whom God’s people had been waiting 60 generations, “the seed of Eve” that was going to crush the head of the serpent.

He accomplished many amazing things and none the least was creating a way for humankind to be restored in relationship with God. We could do nothing to save ourselves, to set ourselves free from the clutches of Satan and his kingdom of darkness. Satan had gained rights over us all when Adam submitted himself to Satan’s deception.

But thanks to God’s Loving Mercy and Grace, Jesus came to live as one of us. However, He was free of Satan’s claws because He was not a son of man! Similar to our rebirth available through Jesus, He was “… born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God” (John 1:13). He was never in Satan’s dominion. That meant He was able to set us free.

He faithfully, obediently and successfully fulfilled that ‘mission’ so that now all we need do is accept (believe), repent (change our ways) and receive our freedom in Christ. As Paul wrote …. “ ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved’ ” …  see Romans 10:13. Paul was quoting what Peter had said to the crowd in Acts 2:21, when he was quoting Joel 2:32

We’ll look in some detail at the Work of Jesus that bought our freedom from Satan, redeemed us, saved us, – maybe in part II of this article. But first, we will note some of the other works of Jesus which included:-

• Bringing Light into the World

John recorded Jesus twice as saying He was light …. “When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life’ ” (John 8:12).

Again later he said, “I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness” (John 12:46).

When Jesus was only 8 days old, “… there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon. He was righteous and devout and was eagerly waiting for the Messiah to come and rescue Israel. The Holy Spirit was upon him and had revealed to him that he would not die until he had seen the Lord’s Messiah.

That day the Spirit led him to the Temple. So when Mary and Joseph came to present the baby Jesus to the Lord as the law required, Simeon was there. He took the child in his arms and praised God, saying, ‘Sovereign Lord, now let your servant die in peace, as you have promised. I have seen your salvation,  which you have prepared for all people. He is a light to reveal God to the nations, and he is the glory of your people Israel!’ ” (Luke 2:25-32)

• Revealing Father God

When Jesus was talking with the disciples in one of their confused moments He assured them …

“If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.” Philip said, ‘Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.’ Jesus answered: ‘Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?

Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves.’ ” (John 14:7-11)

Earlier on the Pharisees “… asked him, ‘Where is your father?’ ‘You do not know me or my Father,’ Jesus replied. ‘If you knew me, you would know my Father also.’ ” (John 8:19)

Prayerfully …

Regarding the disciples, Jesus prayed … “I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me”
(John 17:6-8).

Jesus continued … “I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. …. I have revealed you to them, and I will continue to do so. Then your love for me will be in them, and I will be in them”
(John 17:20-26 NLT).

What was the importance of Jesus’ work revealing the Father?

Common sense says that the nature of the relationship that we have with our earthly father will strongly affect, ‘colour’ our concept of a relationship with our heavenly Father. In order for Jesus to most effectively bring restoration to our relationship with God He had to show us a clear picture of what God is actually like. To help us overcome the deceptions of the enemy who works hard at convincing us we should distrust God and also to amend any possible misconceptions of fatherhood we may observe in family relationships.

The relationship between God and Adam and Eve (and all their descendants including us) was broken because of Adam’s sin. As we saw in Suffering Part I, God is Love (1John 4:16) and God is Holy (1Peter 1:16). In fact, God is holiness personified. His holiness and the sinfulness of man are complete opposite extremes of each other and cannot co-exist.

So it’s no surprise that Adam and Eve had to leave the Garden. Especially because of the risk of them also eating from the tree of life and living forever in this new state of rebellion, sinfulness. “… the LORD God said, ‘The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever’ ” (Genesis 3:22).

God’s Holiness is awesome

In as much as a light destroys darkness, God’s holiness destroys sinfulness. So much so that in our present condition, no one can even look at God’s face in all His fullness and not die.

There isn’t a clearer example than Moses. When “the Lord would speak to Moses face-to-face as a man speaks with his friend” (Exodus 33:11), Moses realised that God was taking on human form and not appearing in the fullness of His Glory. Moses became rather brazen and said to God “Now show me your glory” (Exodus 33:18). Pretty bold move I reckon.

Even so, God agreed “ ‘I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence … But,’ he said, ‘you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live’ ” (Exodus 33:19-20).

So Jesus was rekindling our knowledge and understanding of God, His character, His Compassion, His Holiness. He was about to restore our relationship with a God. Since we had been separated from God for over 60 generations it was necessary and vital for Jesus to rekindle our faith and trust in God.

• Showing us the Way to the Father

Thomas asked Jesus about where He was going because he didn’t understand that Jesus had been talking about His impending sacrifice. Jesus had told the disciples … “You know the way to the place where I am going.” (John 14:4). So Jesus answered Thomas… “… ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me’ ” (John 14:6).

• Laying Down His Life For Many

As Jesus said,  “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:11).

He emphasised the fact that He had full control of His life. He was not under the authority/dominion of Satan. “…… I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. …..” (John 10:17-18).

• Destroying the Works of the Devil

John makes this point clearly. “…. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil. Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life [seed, i.e. Jesus] is in them” (1 John 3:8b-9a NLT)

And Paul declared the victory of Christ over death and sin which Satan introduced back in the Garden of Eden. When Paul referred to the end of this age and our bodies being transformed he wrote  … “Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled:

‘Death is swallowed up in victory. (Isaiah 25:8);
O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?’ (Hosea 13:14)

For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:54-56).

In John’s Revelation Jesus proclaimed …“I am the living one. I died, but look—I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and the grave [hades, hell]” (Revelation 1:18 NLT).

• Saving us from the Kingdom of Darkness

As Paul declared, ultimately Jesus’ success meant God “… rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:13-14).

“For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross” (Colossians 1:19-20).

• Making Atonement for us all

Atonement is the formal word that best describes the main work of Jesus. It means to reconcile, reunite after a separation of two parties. However, those words are too “everydayish” for the kind of reconciliation that Jesus accomplished for us. They don’t even imply the magnitude and weight of Jesus’ actions.

Whereas, ‘atonement’, used extensively in the Old Testament, is a much more powerful word. It conveys the idea of it being a matter of life and death. That the current state of man was terrible (spiritually dead, scourged by the authority of the evil one). ‘Atonement’ came from the Hebrew word which meant to purge the problem. Not just make things better but to deal with the issue once and forever so the solution would be permanent. The restoration by an atonement was forever.

So how could Jesus ‘put things right’, restore the relationship between God and mankind within the bounds of pure Justice? Of course, from the onset He could have taken control and forcefully rescued humanity but that would not be just, would not be right. Satan had lured Adam and Eve ‘fair and square’ – Adam and Eve willingly rejected God and followed Satan’s lead – nothing illegal in any of it. The undoing of this had to be eternally legal, righteous (right) and Just. Holy God can’t act any other way.

This is the focal work of Jesus and was accomplished via the Cross. The Cross is the centre of history and our timeline, the central point of the Bible and the centre of our faith. So much so we will consider solely the work of the Cross in the next post.

• Providing us with Life, Real Life

After describing people as sheep and himself as the shepherd Jesus warned that thieves come to steal and destroy but he declared “… I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10).  In other words, “My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life” as the NLT records it.

• Setting Us An Example of How We Should Live

As Paul encourages the Ephesians, “… We will speak the truth with love. We will grow up in every way to be like Christ”
(Ephesians 4:15). Furthermore, he reminds them, “You were taught to leave your old self — to stop living the evil way you lived before. That old self becomes worse and worse because people are fooled by the evil things they want to do.  But you were taught to be made new in your hearts.  You were taught to become a new person. That new person is made to be like God—made to be truly good and holy” (Ephesians 4:22-24 NLT).

Paul provides us with eight verses of advice/instruction on how we should live and closes the section with … “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Be imitators of God….” (Ephesians 4:32-5:1).

After mentioning some of the deeds of the disobedient, Paul then urges the Ephesians (and us) …. “Therefore do not be partners with them. For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them” (Ephesians 5:7-11).

Jesus himself, included us in His work, doing what He was doing. As He said to His disciples, “As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work” (John 9:4).

See the earlier post, “how then should we live?” for a more comprehensive look at this particular aspect of Christ’s work.

Reflection

In terms of re-establishing a relationship with mankind after we have wandered so far away from God the Father knew we needed to be reminded of just who He was and what He was like.

Our sinfulness could not withstand God revealing Himself in all His Holiness so Jesus came. “No one has ever seen God. But the unique One, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart. He has revealed God to us” (John 1:18 NLT).

The Heartlight Devotional for Nov 4, 2018 sums it up nicely …..

“Jesus is the one who reveals the Father to us. If we want to know what the Father is like, all we have to do is look at Jesus, if we want to know how the Father cares for people, we can look at how Jesus ministered to them.

If we want to know the Father’s will for our lives, we can listen to Jesus’ words and know they reveal the Father’s truth. Jesus revealed the nature of the Father in his actions and his words. And, Jesus continues to reveal the Father to us. He is the one through whom the fullest revelation of the Father comes. Let’s look to Jesus if we really want to know the Father”.

Conclusion – the impact of Jesus’ work

“For the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God, while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed. He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds” (Titus 2:11-14 NLT).

… just sayin’

Bibliography –

• The Holy Bible, New International Version®. Pradis CD-ROM Grand Rapids: The Zondervan Corporation, © 1973, 1978, 1984
• ICB – The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a division of Thomas Nelson.
• NLT – Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation
• TPT – The Passion Translation®. Copyright © 2017 by BroadStreet Publishing® Group, LLC
• Heartlight Devotional by Phil Ware: heartlight.org
• Image: “Light of the World”, Ministry-To-Children.com
• Photo: “Storm Clouds”, nicebynise.com

Intro

Whenever something brings suffering, there’s a tendency to blame God even if that doesn’t make sense. That is, contradicts what the Bible reveals about God’s character. Even some within the church can ask “If God is a Good God then how could He ….?”
(see “Suffering Part I”). Holding God accountable for every bad thing sure gives lots of opportunity to wonder about God’s relationship with man

You might think “as if we could ever understand God” … “God’s ways are higher than our ways” … “His thoughts are higher than our thoughts”

Fair enough. Sounds right …. but what is the point of that quote anyway? Does it justify our ignorance and lack of understanding of God’s ways as revealed in Scripture? Does it make us feel any better when things seem so wrong or unfair? In any case, who would like suffering if they thought they could see ‘rhyme or reason’ in it?

The Quote ….

The thing is, the quote about God’s ways and thoughts is from Isaiah’s prophesying …“Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the LORD, and He will have mercy on him, and to our God, for He will freely pardon. ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the LORD. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts’ ” (Isaiah 55:7-9)

God was saying to the people that the ways and thoughts of the wicked were way below His but if they turned back to Him and His Holiness this would change. He would have mercy on them, freely pardon them and their ways and thoughts could re-align with His. Like they were originally, in the likeness of God. He wanted to restore His relationship with man

Originally – a close Relationship with man

God created Adam and Eve in His own image. Not as equals but like Himself, giving each an eternal spirit so they could enjoy fellowship with Him. They could think, reason, love and make judgements. God could share the joy of His creations on Earth with them. They would glorify God and enjoy Him forever. Reciprocally, they could enjoy God’s relationship with man

God intended to have a loving parent-child relationship with each person (Deut 14:1, Jer 3:19, John 1:12). It was a great arrangement. God walked and talked with Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:8-11). The Hebrew word there for ‘walked’ means walked conversantly i.e. in conversation. It describes a close relationship with man not a distant onlooker-God. (see “How then should we Live”). Harmony between God and humans. It was so good. Such a close relationship with man and God in which they communicated freely

So much so, God wanted lots more of them … “God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.’ ” (Genesis 1:26-28) [emphasis added]

God basically gave them the whole of the planet as a gift for them to manage, take care of and fill with their own “family tree”. But “…. the LORD God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.’” (Genesis 2:16-17)

It was an unconditional gift, unearned and it was a permanent deal, for ever, like a covenant agreement

So what’s a Covenant Agreement?

Various authors have written much about Covenants between God and humanity. A Google search will reveal a lifetime of reading. Firstly, there are articles on types of covenant (Works, Grace and Redemption). Others discuss which covenants are conditional or obligatory. Some writers separate covenants based on the use of a sacrifice or a sign. Finally, there are articles that identify covenants by the name of the individual involved. For example Noah, Abraham or Moses etc. No matter what type or with whom, the covenant was an extraordinarily strong or binding promise, usually forever

Types of Biblical Covenants

The Hebrew word that landed into English Old Testament as covenant is:-
H1285 = berîyth (pronounced ber-eeth’) – covenant, confederacy, compact involving cutting and passing between pieces of flesh from a sacrificed animal. A confederacy is a strong union or league. [Covenant is synonymous with accord, alliance, pact, treaty ….]

Examples

There were personal covenants between individuals (e.g. David and Jonathan). “While David was … in the Desert of Ziph, he learned that Saul had come out to take his life. … Saul’s son Jonathan went to David … and helped him find strength in God. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “My father Saul will not lay a hand on you. You will be king over Israel, and I will be second to you. Even my father Saul knows this.” The two of them made a covenant before the LORD. ….”. (1Samuel 23:15-18). Jonathan renewed his pledge of friendship with David

Not all covenants were based on friendship. Laban proposed a covenant with Jacob which was based on distrust and a guilty conscience for the way he had treated Jacob. Instead of making restitution Laban instigated a covenant whereby Jacob should forgive and forget all the wrongs he had received. They agreed that no act of hostility should ever pass between them
(Genesis chpt 31)

There were political covenants [treaties] between kings or nations (e.g. Kings Solomon and Hiram). “The LORD gave Solomon wisdom, just as he had promised him. There were peaceful relations between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty” (1Kings 5:12)

Covenants were such a part of life. The word occurs nearly 300 times in the NIV, not the number of recorded covenants. However, in all cases, there were consequences for either party breaking the agreement, sometimes a matter of life and death

Change Came affecting the Relationship with man

So, God’s relationship with man was basically built on such a forever covenant with Adam and Eve. The agreement was that the whole planet and all of creation on it would be theirs but they should leave the specified tree alone. However, because of their close relationship, a formal covenant with animal sacrifice was unnecessary. None the less, the consequence of man breaking the covenant, was indeed, death

As we know, Adam took his eyes off God and followed Satan’s lure into distrusting God (see “Suffering Part II”). That sin of unbelief brought many changes, broke God’s perfect relationship with man (spiritual death was instantaneous) and saw Adam and Eve exiled from the Garden and from God’s presence

Suddenly aware of their nakedness, Adam and Eve started hiding from God in fear (Genesis 3:10). Guilt, shame and fear had entered the world. They had died in their spirits; no longer able to enjoy that pure loving relationship with God but becoming fearful of Him. Death was also now at work in their bodies though it would take a time to destroy what God had created. To make matters worse, they were now subject to Satan and his evil as he now had dominion over the earth. …“the whole world is under the control of the evil one”… (1John 5:19b). In subjecting himself to Satan’s lead Adam submitted his authority and dominion over earth to Satan

Such is God’s Love

However, God wasn’t caught off guard! Indicative of His Indescribably Great Love, God had created humanity fully aware that we would choose sin over Him. He even had a plan before Creation, for redeeming us from the talons of Satan. “… it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed …, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world (1Peter 1:18-20)

Motivated by Love, God sought out Adam & Eve when they were hiding. “… the LORD God called to the man, ‘Where are you?’ ” (Genesis 3:9). Further, toward restoring the relationship with Adam & Eve, God used an animal sacrifice to cover their nakedness and sense of shame.

That use of a sacrifice was a “picture” of the promised redeemer coming from amidst their offspring (Genesis 3:15). Jesus Christ was that promised seed of the woman and His sacrifice would cover their sin and indeed, the sum total sin of all mankind. Paul reminds us that … “For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:17)

“You Will Surely Die”

Remember, “And the LORD God commanded the man, ‘You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die’.” (Genesis 2:16-17)

Satan lied (Genesis 3:4) and of course, death and decay did enter the world just as God had said. Spiritual death was instant – out of oneness/fellowship with God. Physical decay ending in death “took its toll” after a much longer lifetime than we experience. See the table [right] of comparative lifespans for Adam and his descendants through to Shem, Noah’s firstborn

The cumulative effect of man turning away from God, choosing to not listen to or trust Him explicitly, was disastrous. Not only did it impact God’s relationship with man but man’s wickedness continued to worsen as the cultural norm

It became so bad that by the 10^th generation after Adam, within 1,656 years of creation, God’s “patience” ended

God was Grieved

“The LORD saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. The LORD was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain. So the LORD said, ‘I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth—men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air—for I am grieved that I have made them.’ But Noah found favour in the eyes of the LORD” (Genesis 6:5-8)

“Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God.” (Genesis 6:9b). But “God said to Noah, ‘I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth…..’” (Genesis 6:13)

Consequently He did just that, saving only Noah, his immediate family and pairs of all the animals. See Genesis chpts 7 & 8

Same Plan, Fresh Start, Re-establishing Relationship with man

Then God launched a fresh start “… ‘Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, …’ ” (Genesis 8:21). Except that Adam had forfeited man’s dominion over Earth to Satan, God’s plan for Noah was the same one; “…saying to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth. The fear and dread of you will fall upon all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air, upon every creature that moves along the ground, and upon all the fish of the sea; they are given into your hands’ ” (Genesis 9:1b-2, 9:7)

Two modifications:-
i) God expanded their diet …  “Everything that lives and moves will be food for you. Just as I gave you the green plants, I now give you everything. But you must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it.” (Genesis 9:3-4)
ii) God formalised this version of the agreement as a declared covenant with a sign

The Rainbow

“….‘I now establish my covenant with you and with your descendants after you ….., Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth.’ …, ‘This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth.’” (Genesis 9:9-13)

Notice it was still for all generations to come, a permanent agreement. No change in God’s desire to have a relationship with man

Hereditary Problem

Even though God created Adam in His own likeness Adam became a sinner, separated from God. Adam then had a son in his own likeness, a sinner (Genesis 5:1,3) and from then on so too was every person born of man

Noah obviously chose to resist the urges to sin to the best of his ability (Genesis 6:9b) but alas, his son Ham, did not. So soon after God’s ‘washing of the planet’, sin surfaced again; in the time taken for Noah’s new vineyard to produce its first wine. Ham disrespected Noah as he lay asleep naked. His two brothers, Shem and Japheth, did not but rather chose to honour Noah

Genesis 9:20-27

²⁰ Noah, a man of the soil, proceeded to plant a vineyard.
²¹ When he drank some of its wine, he became drunk and lay uncovered inside his tent.
²² Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father’s nakedness and told his two brothers outside.
²³ But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it across their shoulders; then they walked in backward and covered their father’s nakedness. Their faces were turned the other way so that they would not see their father’s nakedness.

²⁴ When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him,
²⁵ he said, “Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers.”
²⁶ He also said, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the slave of Shem.
²⁷ May God extend the territory of Japheth; may Japheth live in the tents of Shem, and may Canaan be his slave.”

After Noah awoke and became aware of what had occurred, he pronounced a curse on Canaan, Ham’s son (vs 25). The particular curse was that Canaan would be the lowest of slaves to his brothers (vs 24). “A servant of servants” (vs 24 NKJV) to his brothers – in Hebrew this expression meant the meanest and most despicable servant. Then Noah blessed Shem and Japheth

Noah prophesied what lay ahead for his sons and their descendants. The descendants of Shem birthed the nation of Israel which eventually received the land of Canaan from God. “Canaan was the father of Sidon his firstborn, and of the Hittites, Jebusites, Amorites, Girgashites, Hivites, Arkites, Sinites, Arvadites, Zemarites and Hamathites.”
(Genesis 10:15-18). These nations were on the list that God instructed the Israelites to destroy when they moved into the land (Deuteronomy 7:1-2)

More Disobedience

In Genesis chpt 10 we read of the numerous tribes which grew from Noah’s three sons. Following in chpt 11 we see the tribes started spreading East. However, instead of filling the earth as God had said, they decided they knew better saying “… let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth.” (vs 4).  The city they started “… was called Babel—because there the LORD confused the language of the whole world. [and] scattered them over the face of the whole earth” (vs 19)

As Noah’s family tree grew and spread during the next four centuries the nations they formed also drifted further and further away from God. They started doing evil and worshipping false gods putting more strain on God’s relationship with man – God’s holiness can’t abide evil

Still the Same Plan, New Tactic

Abram came 10 generations from Noah. Death started to come earlier. This second 10 generations spanned only 565 years (from the birth of Shem (Noah’s first) to Abraham’s death). Whereas the previous 10 generations spanned 2006 years from Adam’s creation to Noah’s death. No more 900yr-olds. Abram (Abraham) died at the early age of 175yrs
[see the lifespans of this next 10 generations: Adam to Abram] compared to Adam to Noah

Even though Abram had no recorded accomplishments or status, God chose Him, made a covenant with him. Abram was childless and already past child-bearing age but God promised he would father a great nation. (Abram’s name was later changed to Abraham – ‘father of a multitudes’). Acting by faith, the 75yr old left as the LORD had said and headed for the land of Canaan where he received God’s promise of that land. It is worth reading the text just to see how simple the plan sounded and how easy it should be to make real:-

Genesis 12:1-7

¹ The LORD had said to Abram, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you.
²  “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing.
³  I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
⁴  So Abram left, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Haran.

⁵  He took his wife Sarai, his nephew Lot, all the possessions they had accumulated and the people they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived there.
⁶  Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land.
⁷  The LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” …
Abraham was going to be the catalyst to the restoration of God’s relationship with man

When God formalised the Covenant with Abram (Genesis 15) He warned him about the coming enslavement of the Israelites in Egypt (Genesis 15:13)

Remember, while in Egypt “The LORD had said to Moses, ‘Pharaoh will refuse to listen to you—so that my wonders may be multiplied in Egypt’ ” (Exodus 11:9). However, He promised that “afterward they will come out with great possessions” (Genesis 15:14). As it turned out, after all the plagues etc, “The LORD had made the Egyptians favourably disposed toward the people [Israelites], and they gave them what they asked for; so they plundered the Egyptians” (Exodus 12:36)

Abraham’s Offspring to Demonstrate God

The plan was for God to build a nation (to be called Israel) from Abraham. God would bless the nation and Abraham so much as to draw the attention of the rest of the world. Abraham’s name would become great “and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me” (Genesis 22:18).

The fulfilment in the short-term happened towards the end of their time in Egypt. God chastised Pharoah …“I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth” (Romans 9:17 quoting Exodus 9:16). The long-term fulfilment came through the family lineage, as Jesus declared, “… salvation is from the Jews” (John 4:22)

God would take care of His nation, provide for them miraculously, win battles for them and through them show His Glory to the world. Regarding the laws and decrees, Moses said to the Israelites …

“Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the LORD our God is near us whenever we pray to him? And what other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and laws as this body of laws I am setting before you today?” (Deuteronomy 4:6-8)

The Relationship with man Would Shed Light

So the nation of God’s people was to be a light attracting and directing the rest of the world back from their wickedness to God. “… I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6).

“See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the LORD rises upon you and his glory appears over you. Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn” (Isaiah 60:2-3). Through Israel came the Word of God – the inspired Scriptures of Old and New Testaments. As Paul wrote “What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew … ? Much in every way! First of all, they have been entrusted with the very words of God” (Romans 3:1-2)

Israel, a frustratingly rebellious nation, highlighted the depth of God’s Love and Grace. Their history is recorded in the Old Testament books of Law and History and emphasised by the work of the prophets. It is one continual cycle of sin, punishment (including desolation and exile), repentance, forgiveness, restoration, sin, … etc.

All ‘in the face of’ God’s wooing, blessing, reminding, warning, disciplining, calling them back to Himself, pursuing His desire for a relationship with man. His people had seen the one true God work powerfully so many times in so many ways. Yet they always seemed to want to turn away and follow the false gods of the world. As Paul quotes Isaiah’s prophecy … “But concerning Israel he says, ‘All day long I have held out my hands to a disobedient and obstinate people’ ” (Romans 10:21, Isaiah 65:2)

Even just from a read of Genesis this ‘cycle’ might look like ……

Still the Same Plan for Relationship with Man – next Phase

Near the end of Moses’ leadership of Israel he summoned all the elders and officials and prophesied. “For I know that after my death you are sure to become utterly corrupt and to turn from the way I have commanded you. In days to come, disaster will fall upon you because you will do evil in the sight of the LORD …” (Deuteronomy 31:28-29)

He recited the words now known as “The Song of Moses”. See Deuteronomy 31:30-32:44. It started with a testimonial reminder of the Lord’s Goodness to His people and the magnificent care and provision He had given them. He then reminded them they had made God “jealous with their foreign gods and angered him with their detestable idols. They sacrificed to demons, … gods your fathers did not fear” (vs 16-17)

Then he prophesied God’s message …“They made me jealous by what is no god and angered me with their worthless idols. I will make them envious by those who are not a people; I will make them angry by a nation that has no understanding” (vs 21) [emphasis added]

But, there was hope …

“When Moses finished reciting … , he said to them, ‘Take to heart all the words I have solemnly declared to you this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words of this law. They are not just idle words for you—they are your life. By them you will live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess’ ” (Deuteronomy 32:45-47). All that the people needed was to repent (turn back) and live according to the words of the law; the agreement that God had given in more detail when they left Egypt. Love God and thereby stay under His covering, provision and protection for a long life

Continued Rebellion and the Final Phase

Sadly, as Moses foretold, eventually the Israelites fell from grace. Damaged God’s relationship with man again. Salvation went out to the Gentiles (those who are not a people ie all the non-Jewish nations). The Gentiles would then deliver the Gospel back to the Jews. The redemption of mankind from the clutches of the evil one. This came about in the culmination of so many prophecies detailing the who, where, when and under what circumstances….

Advent, Christmas, Emmanuel – the restoration of the relationship with man

The promised ‘seed of the woman’ from Genesis 3:15 was born, Jesus Christ. Not the seed of the man so he was wholly holy, without sin. He showed us Father God (John 14:9); gave His unblemished life as the sacrifice for all sin; and was raised to life to vanquish the power of death; for all of humanity

As Paul wrote to the church in Rome, “… if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. As the Scripture says, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile — the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved’ [Paul was quoting Joel (2:32)]” (Romans 10:9-13)

The final, ultimate restoration of God’s relationship with man, for eternity

Thinking through the implications of this phase …

Paul wrote … “Again I ask: Did they [Israelites] stumble so as to fall beyond recovery? Not at all! Rather, because of their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel envious. But if their transgression means riches for the world, and their loss means riches for the Gentiles, how much greater riches will their fullness bring! I am talking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch as I am the apostle to the Gentiles, I make much of my ministry in the hope that I may somehow arouse my own people to envy and save some of them. For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead?” (Romans 11:11-15)

Sin must be dealt with because after all the special treatment, expressions of God’s persistent Love, Paul wrote “What shall we conclude then? Are we any better ? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin. As it is written: ‘There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one’ ” (Romans 3:9-12) [quoting Psalm 14:1-3]

Reflection

In his speech to the Sanhedrin, Stephen provides a summary of the process of the fulfilment of God’s promises to Abram. God’s Covenant promise to rebuild His relationship with man. The miracle of Isaac’s birth, the twist with his son Jacob supplanting Esau and then the 12 patriarchs (tribes). You should at least read the account of Stephen’s speech in Acts 7:2-52. Therein you will see some of the twists and turns in the path of the nation of Israel. And then on to the eventual sacrificing of God’s promised redeemer, seed of the woman, the Righteous One

God’s primary desire remained unchanged – the world filled with people with whom He could enjoy a close loving, conversational relationship. People who would delight in His Glory. Who would explicitly trust Him. Obey Him, not turn away from Him

Of course, in his full-on despise of God and all who remind him of God, Satan would do anything and everything to try and thwart such a plan. He successfully started with Adam, and followed on through his descendants. Satan has historically been relentless in trying to lure mankind’s allegiance away from God. To break the Lord’s relationship with man

Although millions have resisted Satan or accepted Jesus’ redemption from Satan, so many more have chosen to follow after the false gods that Satan has provided. The many recurring expressions of God’s heartfelt calls for His people to return to Him show God’s Faithfulness and enduring Love. His many reminders of His Covenant reflect His everlasting commitment to His original plan for a close relationship with man. God’s expression, “they will be my people” and “I will be their God” occurs 17 times in the NIV translation. There are also many more times where God says the same thing but not the exact expression

On the flip side, from our perspective, being in the Kingdom of God means being in relationship with Him. As Jesus described “… the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant on the lookout for choice pearls. When he discovered a pearl of great value, he sold everything he owned and bought it!” (Matthew 13:45-46 NLT).

. The one for which we were created and so, worth giving up everything in order to pursue it, the ‘pearl of great value’. How blessed is he who stays close in under the covering of Jesus so he can experience the Lord’s relationship with man

Conclusion – a Relationship with Man is God’s desire

“From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us

‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ … ‘We are his offspring.’ “Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by man’s design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead” (Acts 17:26-31)
This was Paul’s summary of life with God to the Areopagus in Athens

Quoting several of David’s Psalms the book of 1st Chronicles proclaims …. “Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face [presence] always. Remember the wonders he has done, his miracles, ….
                see more of this exhortation …. [1 Chronicles 16:11-34]
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever” (1 Chronicles 16:11-34). History demonstrates the truth of Psalm 110:5b “His faithfulness continues through all generations”

Our response? Worship turns our eyes to the Lord and disturbs our self-centredness, making us God-centred. We were created to live in the Lord’s relationship with man. That should be our number one priority. As He promised, all kinds of blessings follow – see Deuteronomy 28:1-14

Samuel even told King Saul, “… To obey is better than sacrifice…” (1 Samuel 15:22) since obedience is an expression of love – pointed out by Jesus, “If you love me, keep my commands” (John 14:15)

Love is the foundational basis of God’s relationship with man and through it flows His Grace and Mercy

… just sayin’

Bibliography

• The Holy Bible, New International Version®. Pradis CD-ROM Grand Rapids: The Zondervan Corporation, © 1973, 1978, 1984.
• Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.
  https://www.biblegateway.com/
• NLT – Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation
• Strong’s concordance
• Photo: ark of the covenant by Igor Rodrigues on unsplash.com

Intro

Someone being balanced in life would travel life’s journey something like this ……

… or so we might think

In general, society does think better of people who present as being balanced in their lifestyle. The unspoken goal is a well-rounded approach to life (family, work, sport, social etc). That is, no extremes of anything but a more middle-of-the-road sense of balance, to everything. Consequently, working too hard, training excessively for sport or making extraordinary amounts of money are not necessarily acceptably “good things” to do. Rather, those are more ‘unbalanced’ which carries negative connotations

How does this being balanced relate to living the Christian life?

Funnily enough, to a somewhat greater extent, society applies this mentality to being a Christian. Maybe the most imposed expectation on Christians is that they should aim for being balanced as depicted above. All the time. Lest they get ‘carried away’ with church stuff, ‘take it too far’

Of course, the world doesn’t have a clue because Christianity isn’t just adding another component into the mix that we need to keep in balance. It’s not a matter of trying to balance (some say juggle) church things with everything else at all

When we become Christians, quite often our secular family or friends worry we will lose our sense of balance. Especially if we take Jesus too seriously – going to church regularly, handing over tithes and offerings. These are all foreign concepts – over the top, excessive. Let alone going to weekly Bible study and prayer meetings as well – definitely unhinged!

A new perspective on being balanced

Unknown to the ill-informed, accepting Christ brings us a completely renewed life, lifestyle and renewed way of thinking that totally transforms us. Above all, it doesn’t just add on to family, work, sport, social etc and compete with them. It provides a completely new, meaningfully firm foundation for all of these. So much so that living the way God intended provides the thread that ties them all together in a much healthier (and productive) way

Sadly, within the Body (the church) words like ‘fundamentalist’ and ‘extremist’ indicate that some brethren think others are ‘out of balance’. ‘Taking some part of Christian living too seriously’. But is that even possible? Can we take anything of the Kingdom too far? I do mean, thing OF the Kingdom. History records many examples of extreme things done in the name of the Kingdom but actually not OF the Kingdom

Some parts of the Body have criticised other parts for ‘taking things too far’ or ‘not far enough’ even to the extent of describing them as ‘whack’. Often it is simply because the disapprover is trying to impose the world’s sense of being balanced onto church life

To some extent denominations exist because of an emphasis on one or more particular aspect or perspective/s of the Christian Life. Anglicans, Baptists, Church of Christ, Pentecostals, Presbyterians, Reformists, Orthodox, Salvation Army, charismatics within the non-pentecostals and the list goes on

A essential side note …

….. different parts of the Body working together in the community must show tolerance. In other words, they must take a ‘middle-of-the-road’ (balanced) approach that creates unity. Vitally, love and kindness must be forefront instead of differences in doctrine. Fear and or pride should never manifest in criticism in the Body of Christ

Let me explain. For example, I served overseas with a non-denominational mission. The mission’s charter included “we work within the mainstream of undisputed truth”. It was OK to be a pre or post millennialists or an enthusiastic Pentecostal or very liturgical or whatever, personally. But, ‘on the field’, working within the team, one couldn’t allow points of difference to affect the team in any way. The differences must not overshadow the basic undisputed tenets of the Gospel

That’s definitely correct in such circumstances and worked really well in that mission. It was a clear and powerful witness to the growing church planted in that province

However, is that what I should aim for in my personal walk with the Lord? Should my Kingdom living present as being balanced? Or should I even try to make it so?

Was the Lord being balanced in everything He said and did, the way the world thinks of balance?

Bible extremes

There are many ‘extreme’ statements in the Scriptures.

[Just a reminder from the home page, if you don’t have a Bible there’s plenty online. Here’s a copy of the New International Version In fact there are many different versions/translations available in the dropdown search on that site]

• “I am the LORD your God; consecrate yourselves and BE HOLY, because I am holy” (Lev 11:44 & 45 & 19:2) and this ‘command’ is repeated many times: Lev 20:7 & 20:26 & 21:6; 1Cor 1:2; Eph 1:4; Heb 12:14, 1Pe 1:15, and then 1Pe 1:16 quotes Leviticus
• “BE PERFECT, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mat 5:48)
• “DO NOT WORRY about your life, what you will eat, or drink ….. [or] wear” (Matt 6: 25)
• “He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters” (Mat 12:30) [there is nowhere in between!]
• “If your hand or your foot causes you to sin cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire” (Mt 18:8)
• “And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell” (Mt 18:9)
• “Have faith in God,” ….. I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours”
  (Mark 11:22-24) [after Jesus cursed a fig tree & it withered]
• “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:26)

Really?

These are just a small sample but from a large variety of life circumstances. I can’t help but ask …. was the Lord serious when He said these things? Clearly, the calls to Be Holy and Be Perfect are just that, calls to Be Holy and Perfect. Consequently, non-negotiable. In fact, difficult to rationalise away. They can’t be in balance with anything else. They are absolutes

BUT we need to be sure what Jesus meant by being ‘perfect’. Looking up the Greek word that landed as perfect in Matthew 5:48 we find the same word used in Ephesians 4:13 by Paul. Rather than meaning faultless, the word refers to completeness as in, mature – in mental growth and moral character.
The context of Ephesians 4:13 also provides another sense of perfect when Paul used the phrase “the perfecting of the saints” (Ephesians 4:12 KJV). The Greek verb for perfecting means “to integrate” or “to fit together.”

Hence, the Greek word carries three ideas — maturity, completeness, and proper integration — fitting together in such a way that the whole [Body of Christ (in Ephesians 4:11-13)] functions harmoniously. That is the idea/objective that Jesus set before us as believers

Not worrying about food, drink and clothes may be contentious for some parts of the Body. We must act ‘responsibly’. This thinking is very common. The contention – do we hold to the saying “God helps those who help themselves” or, do we take Jesus at His Word, literally?

As for cutting off a hand or foot or gouging out an eye, there is an argument that this was not literal. However, the strength of Jesus’ language indicates the seriousness of the matter, especially with the call to Holiness and Perfection. Either way, is being balanced about these matters possible?

The whole ‘Faith in God and believing what you say will happen’ segment is definitely a contentious matter, in possibly a majority of the Body of Christ. Did Jesus mean it or is there ‘rational’ wriggle room to not hold onto this as is?

God is a God of extremes being balanced

We know that all of God’s characteristics are complete and built on His total Holiness. His wrath is a righteous, pure wrath not half-hearted. His Justice is complete and flawless. He is extremely Just. His Righteousness is extreme (pure), as is His Mercy, His Love etc etc. Everything about God is awesome. He is in fact the God of extremes – extreme Justice, extreme Holiness, ultimate Power, fully Sovereign, extreme wrath, yet extremely Loving. Consequently, God is a perfect balance of opposite extremes. That is, not a ‘middle-of-the-road’ approach but ………

The extremes of the Lord affect changes in us as we relate to Him

For example, as depicted in the diagram below, we see, on the left side a set of daunting extremes. God’s Sovereign Holiness prevents us from approaching Him, leaving us prostrate, condemned to His Wrath because of His perfect Justice. On the opposite side, a set of wonderful extremes administered through Jesus. The incredible joy of knowing He wants to be our Heavenly Father (Abba). And that he Loves us as His children. This inspires us to praise Him. [singing, making music, rejoicing, shouting – see the earlier post what’s the Bible mean praise?]

God being a balance of extremes might therefore look like this ….

Black – God’s characteristics in balance, a mind hurting concept for us humans
Blue – in Christ our lives are MOVED from the left through His Glorious Redemption to the right

Please Note! This ‘diagram’ is an incredibly oversimplified picture of God’s characteristics. The intention is purely to give us some idea of God’s awesomeness when in fact we are fully incapable of understanding. Existing as a mix of extreme, pure characteristics induces a sense of ‘opposing’ characteristics in our finite minds. However, there is no intention to imply in any shape or form any contradictions within Creator God. Secondly, His Sovereignty is supreme over all His characteristics. It is depicted opposite Father because of the connotations for us. The nature of a loving Father ‘contrasts’ the nature of an ultimate ruler, being balanced. Nothing more, nothing less

Far and near …

The ‘formal speak’ describing the contrast between the Sovereign and Father extremes of God (as depicted in the diag. above) makes the contrast much more, well, extreme. Theologians have discussed the ‘transcendence and immanence’ of God. No it doesn’t hurt! It simply refers to the fact that God exists apart from, is far above and beyond, surpassing and excelling, greatly superior to any thing or any being (transcendent). While at the same time the immanence of God means we can enjoy an intimate friendship with God as Job described it (Job 29:4)

…. see a later post “God’s Relationship with man” which will show how much His Love impels Him to pursue us for that relationship. [We should pause here and remember, there is a time when this age will end. Jesus will return and gather all who have accepted God’s invitation and deal with those who choose to reject His offer and remain in the realms of sin]

Only Creator God could hold such extremes in perfect balance because He is Holy, He is Perfect and He is Love. He does nothing out of self-interest, malice or any other sin-tainted emotion. Recall His character from Suffering part I. In Him, there is no darkness at all (1John 1:5)

For the disciples …

… the resurrection of Jesus transformed their lives dramatically. They changed extremes as opposed to balanced them. They moved from fear to faith, from alarm to action and from despair to hope. Consequently, from hiding they moved out boldly into world mission. Similarly, the power of the Blood of Jesus and active faith in His Word brings extreme changes to our lives but hardly in any sense of balance!

Finally, how extreme should we be?

It depends on how much we are willing to become more like Jesus. How much are we willing to walk with God (Micah 6:8)? How much are we willing to trust Him even against the flow of worldly thinking?

Matthew recorded Jesus teaching many lessons that are extreme by worldly standards and possibly some Christians might also think so. In the gospel of Matthew alone we see Jesus taught:-

• the beatitudes (5:3-12)
• let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds (5:16)
• anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgement (5:22)
• settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court (5:25)
• if your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out (5:29)
• if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off (5:30)
• do not swear by anything …. Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’ (5:34-37)
• turn the other cheek (5:39)
• …. let him have your cloak as well (5:40)
• go the extra mile (5:42)
• Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you (5:44)
          – after all these lessons He closes out the section with :-
• “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (5:48)
          – then Matthew recorded more what some might consider ‘hard to swallow’ teachings:-
• “do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear” (6:25)
• Jesus sent the 12 out with these instructions .. “Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts; take no bag for the journey, or extra tunic, or sandals or a staff” (10:9-10)
• “for me or against me” (12:30)

More Extreme …

Mark, Luke and John record many examples of Jesus’ extreme teaching none the least in John 14:12-14 “I tell you the truth, anyONE who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. HE will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” [capitalisation emphasis mine]

God’s economy working undetected by the world provides amazingly for our needs whilst we do something with Him. That’s why Jesus confidently said “DO NOT WORRY about your life, what you will eat or drink  ….. or wear” in Matthew 6:25 but spend more energy on the priority – seeking the Kingdom of God. He didn’t say walk away from work, He just said don’t Worry. Put work in its rightful place (less important than the Kingdom) but still done to the best of your ability, as if unto God

Because Paul urges us to follow him as he followed the example of Christ (1 Cor 11:1) [the Greek word for follow in this context is “imitate”] and again in Ephesians 5 verse 1 Paul calls us to “Be imitators of God”. We get an idea of what our life should look like.
[Imitating God, even trying to imitate God, would hardly be seen as being balanced]

Also, John says ….…. “Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did” (1 John 2:6)
[emphasis mine, again, hardly thought of as acting responsibly let alone balanced!]

Reflection on being balanced

Paul tied it all together …  “So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness. See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, [rationalism, intellectualism] which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ. For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority” (Col 2:6-10)
[emphasis & insert mine]

Does it make sense to explicitly trust Jesus for our every need?
     To the world – of course not!
     To the Kingdom – why on earth wouldn’t we?
Paul hits the nail right on the head when he wrote to the church in Rome and included the advice/warning …. “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Rom 12:2)

Jesus has the last say …

Not surprisingly, Jesus warns us not to try to keep Him in balance (with anything). Not be ‘middle-of-the-road’ toward Him.  He said, we should know that we are for him and live that way OR we should be against Him and live that way. He called it being Hot or Cold, saved or damned, extreme.

According to the Encyclopaedic World Dictionary the antonym of extreme is lukewarm. Jesus said … “So, because you are lukewarm —neither hot nor cold — I am about to spit you out of my mouth” (Revelation 3:15-16). Lukewarm of course is the pretenders who aren’t really for Him but not really against Him (indecisively in the middle in their hearts and minds). He said the lukewarm make him sick!

In similar fashion, Christ had spoken like this before. In Luke 11:23 Jesus taught that “He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me, scatters”

Conclusion

So, what’s with being balanced in the Kingdom?
Lay down the world’s concept of living a balanced life and single-mindedly dare to live the extremes in Christ and walk with God

… just sayin’

Bibliography –

• The Holy Bible, New International Version®. Pradis CD-ROM Grand Rapids: The Zondervan Corporation, © 1973, 1978, 1984.