Numbers (Part 3) (BST 1-27-08)

Numbers (Part 3)
Bible Study Time 1-27-08
(From James Roberts 2-7-99)

Last week in our journey through the scripture, we looked at the book of Number, Chapters 9 and 10. We saw two means by which God directed the children of Israel as they traveled through the wilderness from Mt. Sinai to the Promised Land. The first was with the pillar of cloud by day. The cloud gave them their orders as to when they should move and when they should rest in the camp.

When the cloud rested upon the tabernacle, they were to remain in the camp. They were not to strike out on their own, but they were to rest in the camp as they waited upon the Lord. When the cloud lifted up, they knew it was time for them to resume their wilderness journey.

The second way that God gave direction to the children of Israel was by the sounding of the silver trumpet. It’s interesting to notice that silver is a picture of redemption, and only those who have realized the redemption that’s in Christ Jesus can hear clearly the sound of the silver trumpet.

When it was time for the children of Israel to move out, the cloud would lift up off the tabernacle, and the people would assemble in their assigned marching positions. Then, when the trumpet sounded, the first group would begin to march. When the trumpet sounded the second time, the second group would begin to move, and so forth, until the whole nation was marching, following the cloud as it moved through the wilderness. The silver trumpet was also used to sound an alarm in the camp and to call the people together for a holy convocation.

Now, this morning I’d like for us to look at the book of Numbers, Chapter 11, where we see that almost immediately after the children of Israel left Mt. Sinai, the people began to murmur and complain. This reminds us of the book of I Corinthians, Chapter 10, where the Apostle Paul tells us that these Old Testament events happened as examples unto us so that we might learn not to murmur and complain.

Since these Old Testament events were written as examples for our learning, we’re going to look this morning at some applications that we can draw from these illustrations. Notice as we began in verse one:

Numbers 11:1 (KJ2000)
1 And when the people complained, it displeased the LORD: and the LORD heard it; and his anger was kindled; and the fire of the LORD burned among them, and consumed some that were in the outlying parts of the camp.

Now, why is it that this fire started in the outlying parts of the camp? As it turns out, that is where the mixed multitude lived. The mixed multitude included the Egyptians who had left Egypt with the children of Israel. This probably included Egyptians who had married into Jewish families, but it may well have also included some Egyptians who had simply wanted to leave Egypt having seeing the judgments of God.

Whatever the case, we see further on in this chapter that it was the mixed multitude that first began to murmur and complain about their wilderness experience. Therefore, the fire broke out first in the outlying parts of the camp where the mixed multitude lived. Now, verse two:

Numbers 11:2-4 (KJ2000)
2 And the people cried unto Moses; and when Moses prayed unto the LORD, the fire was quenched.
3 And he called the name of the place Taberah: because the fire of the LORD burned among them.
4 And the mixed multitude that was among them had a strong craving: and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat?

Notice that it was the mixed multitude that began to have intense cravings for the things that they had left in Egypt. And what happened then? This desire soon began to infect all of the children of Israel so that the whole camp began to murmur and complain as they remembered the things that they had left in Egypt. They remembered all of the good things, but they forgot about all of the hardships they had experienced there.

At this point, let me say that the mixed multitude speaks of the world among believers. So often it is the people of the world who influence the children of God rather than the children of God exerting an influence over the world. This is not according to God’s will. The Apostle Paul says in Romans 12:

Romans 12:1,2 (KJ2000)
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
2 And be not conformed to this world: but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

In Exodus 11, we find the children of Israel being conformed to the mixed multitude. Oh, so many times Christian people will accept the standards of the world rather than accepting the perfect standard that is set by the word of God. It is God’s will for us to reveal to the world the righteousness of God so that they too can be taken out of the world and added to the family of God. Now, verse 4:

Numbers 11:4,5 (KJ2000)
4 . . . the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat?
5 We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlic:

You see, they remembered all of those things that gave flavor to their food back in Egypt, but as we all know, many times the aftertaste of things such as onions and garlic can leave a foul taste in your mouth long after they have been eaten. Well, that’s the way it is with the world. It provides a passing pleasure, but it leaves a bitter taste after that moment of pleasure is gone. Now notice verse six:

Numbers 11:6-9 (KJ2000)
6 But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, besides this manna, before our eyes.
7 And the manna was as coriander seed, and the color thereof as the color of bdellium.
8 And the people went about, and gathered it, and ground it in mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it in pans, and made cakes of it: and the taste of it was as the taste of fresh oil.
9 And when the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell upon it.

Here we see that the people began to despise the manna even though the manna was an all-purpose food. The people could prepare that manna in so many different ways, but as they began to yearn for the things of Egypt, they grew dissatisfied with the manna that God had provided even though this manna was pleasant to the taste and profitable for nourishment. In John, Chapter 6, we see that the manna was a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ who is the true bread from heaven.

The manna in the wilderness was pleasant food; it was nutritious food. It was an all-purpose food which supplied the daily needs of the people, and it was free for the taking. But sadly enough, the people in the wilderness began to lose their taste for the manna.

This is a picture for us today of the fact that many Christians, as they begin to be conformed to this world system and the things of the world, they will begin to value the things of the world more than they value Jesus Christ, the true manna from heaven. Now let’s read verse ten:

Numbers 11:10-15 (KJ2000)
10 Then Moses heard the people weep throughout their families, every man in the door of his tent: and the anger of the LORD was kindled greatly; Moses also was displeased.
11 And Moses said unto the LORD, Why have you afflicted your servant? and why have I not found favor in your sight, that you lay the burden of all this people upon me?
12 Have I conceived all this people? have I begotten them, that you should say unto me, Carry them in your bosom, as a nurse bears the nursing child, unto the land which you swore to give unto their fathers?
13 From where should I have flesh to give unto all this people? for they weep unto me, saying, Give us flesh, that we may eat.
14 I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me.
15 And if you deal thus with me, kill me, I pray you, out of hand, if I have found favor in your sight; and let me not see my wretchedness.

Here we see Moses, the great leader of the children of Israel, confessing his inability to lead the people, and he complained to the Lord, saying, why have you given me these people to lead?

In the book of I Corinthians, Chapter 10, we find that the children of Israel were baptized into Moses as they followed the cloud and went through the Red Sea. In other words, God identified the children of Israel with Moses so that they became His people, but Moses freely admitted his inadequacies.

Moses is a picture of the insufficiency of the Law. Many people today look to the Law to supply their spiritual needs, but the Law is insufficient even as Moses was insufficient. Moses said, who am I to give these people meat?

The children of Israel were baptized into Moses, but according to Romans 6, believers today are baptized into Jesus Christ. This is not something that man can do. It is something that can be done only by the Holy Spirit. When we believe, the Holy Spirit baptizes us into Jesus Christ and identifies us with Him.

If you’re a believer today, you can say, I died with Jesus Christ. I was buried with Him, I was raised with Him, I am now ascended with Him and seated with Him in the heavens. You can say with the Apostle Paul, I am accepted in the beloved; when God wants to see me, He just looks over at His Son and He sees me in the Son.

In John, Chapter 1, John compares the ministry of Jesus Christ to that of Moses and says:

John 1:17 (KJ2000)
17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

The Law was insufficient to meet the needs of the children of Israel, but the work of Christ upon the cross supplies our every need. Romans 8 says:

Romans 8:3,4 (KJ2000)
3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
4 That the (righteous requirements) of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

The Lord Jesus Christ, into whom we have been baptized, will never complain to the Father, saying, I am not able to bear them; why have you done this to me? No, Jesus Christ gladly owns us as His own, and He serves as our intercessor in the heavens today. If we sin, He pleads our case before the Father. We have an advocate with the Father in the Lord Jesus Christ, Himself.

How thankful we should be today for that which we have in the Lord Jesus Christ. Do you know Him today as your Savior? Have you trusted Him? If you have, you have been baptized into Him. You have been accepted in Christ, and He will supply every need that you have. He will be the manna from heaven that supplies your every need.

I see that our time it gone. Thank you for listening to Bible Study Time this morning.

Church links:

http://www.peacechurch-ok.org/

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http://gracebiblechurch-fw.com/

Numbers (Part 2) (BST 1-20-08)

Numbers (Part 2)
Bible Study Time 1-20-08
(James Roberts from 1-31-99)

In our last lesson, we looked at the first eight chapters of the book of Numbers, and we’re going to continue in our survey of the book of Numbers in our journey through the scriptures this morning. Before we look at chapter 9, however, let me remind you that the book of Numbers gets its title from the fact that it starts with a numbering of the people, and it ends with a numbering of the people.

At the close of the book, the people were numbered to determine the number of people that would be going into the Promised Land. However, at the beginning of the book, the people were numbered to determine the number of fighting men in each of the tribes.

All the tribes except the tribe of Levi were numbered for battle. Levi was not numbered for battle because it had been set apart and numbered for the work of the tabernacle. It’s very interesting to see also that this first numbering determined the position and order of the tribes around the tabernacle as they camped as they marched through the wilderness.

The first eight chapters of the book of Numbers give us the details of the first census, but then in Chapter 9 we see that it was time for the people to leave Mt. Sinai, but first God told them to observe the Passover. It had been a year since their departure from Egypt, and it was, therefore, time to observe the Passover once again.

The children of Israel had observed the very first Passover in Egypt before they left in their glorious exodus, and they were told at that time to observe the Passover on that very day every year as a memorial to the Lord. Now, a year later at the foot of Mt. Sinai, it was time to observe the Passover once again.

However, according to the Law, if a person was ceremonial unclean, he was prohibited from participating in the ceremonies and festivals of the Law. As it turned out, there were several men who were ceremonially unclean because they had touched a dead body. When they explained their situation to Moses, Moses said that he would go and inquire of the Lord.

What a wonderful thing to do. Moses didn’t just make up a declaration or an ordinance off the top of his head, but he said that he would go and inquire of the Lord. When we have problems or questions that arise in our lives, we need to go and talk to the Lord. He will give us guidance and direction through His word. The Psalmist said:

Psalms 119:105 (KJV)
105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

When Moses inquired of the Lord, the Lord said that if a person was ceremonially unclean or if they happened to be on a journey during the set time of the Passover, they should keep the Passover in the following month.

After the Passover, it was time for the children of Israel to set out for the Promised Land, but how were they to know when and where to go? When Moses set up the tabernacle, a cloud formed over it to indicate the presence of the Lord, and God told Moses that He would use this cloud to give the children of Israel guidance in their travels through the wilderness.

When the cloud lifted off the tabernacle, the people were to pack up and then follow the cloud wherever it went. When the cloud moved, they were to move. When the cloud rested, they were to rest. God said, when the clouds rest, you rest, whether it’s two days, a month or a year.

This is a great lesson for us today. Sometimes God simply wants us to wait and rest in the Lord. However, there are other times when God wants us to move out and take action. Well, how can we know when it’s time to wait and when it’s time to move?

When we trust the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior, the Holy Spirit comes to dwell within our lives, and the cloud in the wilderness is a picture of the Holy Spirit. As we look to the word of God, the Holy Spirit gives us direction. Again, we refer to the thoughts of the Psalmist, who said:

Psalms 119:105 (KJV)
105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

On their wilderness journey, the cloud gave the children of Israel direction, but that was not their only means of direction. The Bible says that God told Aaron’s sons to blow silver trumpets to signify different commands.

When the cloud lifted off the tabernacle, the people would get ready to move, but when the cloud started moving, Aaron’s sons would blow the silver trumpets and the first group of tribes would start to march. When Aaron’s sons blew the trumpets the second time, the second group of tribes would start to march. After the third trumpet blast, the third group of tribes would start to move.

The trumpets told the people exactly when it was time to move. However, the trumpets were also used to signal the people for the various feasts and for the tribal councils. They were also used as an alarm to signal danger and as a call to battle. Obviously, they used different trumpet sounds to signal the people for the different occasions and situations.

In the New Testament, we see in the book of I Corinthians that some of the people had the gift of speaking in tongues, but their misuse of this gift had created confusion within the church. So when Paul wrote to them in his first letter, he gave them a prescribed order in which they were to use their gift. He said that they should not just randomly use their gift. To illustrate his point, he turned to the trumpet sounds that were used in the Old Testament by the children of Israel. He said:

1 Corinthians 14:7-9 (KJ2000)
7 And even things without life which give sound, whether flute or harp, except they give a distinction in the sounds, how shall it be known what is played?
8 For if the trumpet gives an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself for the battle?
9 So likewise you, except you utter by the tongue words easy to be understood, how shall it be known what is spoken? . . .

Paul was reminding the Jews in particular there in Corinth of the trumpet sounds in the Old Testament, and of the fact that the children of Israel depended upon their understanding of the distinctive sounds of the trumpet to know what they were to do when the trumpet sounded.

From this we can also conclude that God has given us distinctive marching orders in the scriptures. However, He has given different marching orders for different groups of people in different ages, and God expects us to be so familiar with His word that we will know exactly what God is directing us to do today. God told Timothy:

2 Timothy 2:15 (KJ2000)
15 Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

So in the book of Numbers, God used the cloud over the tabernacle and the sound of the trumpets to give specific direction to the children of Israel. It’s worthy of mention that when Solomon finished the work of building the temple in Jerusalem, he held a great service to dedicate the temple to the Lord. As they worshiped the Lord, the presence of the Lord in the form of a cloud filled the entire courtyard. But then, as the service continued the cloud slowly moved from the courtyard into the temple and then into the Holy of Holies within the temple.

The cloud in the Holy of Holies signified that this was the very dwelling place of God upon the earth. The cloud remained there in the Holy of Holies for the next five hundred years, but then the children of Israel were carried away into captivity because of their sin. At that time Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed, and Ezekiel wrote from Babylon that he saw in a vision the cloud of glory as it was leaving the temple. The glory of the presence of the Lord had departed from Israel.

We can praise the Lord, the glory of the Lord did return to the earth. The nation of Israel once again beheld the glory of the Lord when Jesus Christ lived and ministered on the earth. John said:

John 1:14 (KJ2000)
14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

On the mount of transfiguration, Peter, James and John saw the glory of the Lord, and someday the Lord Jesus will come back in His glory to establish His kingdom on the earth. Today, we have the glory of God dwelling within us in the form of the Holy Spirit.

In Numbers, Chapter 10, we read that:

Numbers 10:35-36 (KJ2000)
35 . . . when the ark moved forward, that Moses said, Rise up, LORD, and let your enemies be scattered; and let them that hate you flee before you.
36 And when it rested, he said, Return, O LORD, unto the many thousands of Israel.

Well, today, believers have the ever-present glory of the Lord within them, but we never have to ask the Lord to return to us. God has promised that He will never leave us or forsake us.

Do you know Him today as your Savior? If you don’t, you can accept Him today and then you too can have the ever-present glory of the Lord living within you.

Numbers (Part 1) (BST 1-13-08)

Numbers (Part 1)
Bible Study Time 1-13-08
(James Roberts from 1-17-99)

In our previous lessons in our journey through the scriptures, we have been looking at a survey of the books of Genesis, Exodus and Leviticus, and we’re ready now for our study on the book of Numbers. These books are so very vital to our understanding of the Old Testament that I think it’s good for us today to take a short break and review some of those very important things that we have seen in those first three books of the Bible.

All of the things that we see in the Old Testament really have their foundation right here in these first five books of the Bible. In the book of Genesis, we find the book of beginnings. In the very first statement, we find a very simple and concise statement of how God created the heavens and the earth. It says:

Genesis 1:1 (KJ2000)
1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

Man might have his speculations and theories of the big bang and all of those other kinds of things, but here in Genesis 1:1, we have a firsthand account of One who was there, who has revealed how He did it.

Genesis 1:1 (KJ2000)
1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

This is a very simple statement that must be believed.

We also find in Genesis that God created the first man. Again, man has all kinds of speculations about the origin of man and the origin of the various families, and these theories of evolution have such a tremendous effect on our lives and on our psychology today.

According to the evolutionary theory, man started out as a one-celled amoeba in a slimy, primeval ocean, but then somehow that little one-celled amoeba evolved to the point that it could climb out onto the dry land and then evolved into the magnificent moral creature that man is today. Well, that’s all just the speculation of man.

In the book of Genesis, we find the beginning of the human family. God said:

Genesis 1:26 (KJ2000)
26 . . . Let us make man in our image . . .

So He:

Genesis 2:7 (KJ2000)
7 . . . formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

He saw that it was not good for man to live alone, so He created a woman to be a helper for him. That woman was called Eve because she was the mother of all living. So here we have the first parents, and we see clearly that they both came from the very creative hand of God.

If we’re going to believe in the second man, the Lord from heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, God’s own Son, who came into this world to die for our sins, it’s very important that we believe also in the Genesis account of the creation and the origin of man. After all, the very same book that tells us about Jesus Christ also tells us about the true origin of man and of the universe.

In I Corinthians 15, Paul refers back to Adam and says:

1 Corinthians 15:47 (KJ2000)
47 The first man is of the earth, made of dust . . .

Now if Adam was in fact the first man then there is no room for men who were prehistoric. If there were men before Adam, then Adam was not the first man. But Paul confirms the Genesis account of creation by calling Adam the first man. There were no men on the earth before Adam.

Adam was created by God, and Eve was created by God, and they were the first parents. Therefore, all of us can trace or genealogy back to Adam, himself. And just as God created Adam in His image and in His likeness, so all of us are born with Adam’s likeness.

The book of Genesis tells us that Adam introduced sin into the human race when he and his wife were beguiled by Satan. They rebelled against God, and they ate of the forbidden fruit. God had said:

Genesis 2:17 (KJ2000)
17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it: for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die.

When they ate, they died spiritually. According to Romans, Chapter 6:

Romans 6:23 (KJ2000)
23 . . . the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 5 tells us that:

Romans 5:12 (KJ2000)
12 . . . by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men . . .

One of the reasons that man wants to get rid of the historic Adam is that it would do away with the origin of sin in the human family. If you can do away with the truth concerning the original sin of Adam and Eve, then you can also do away with John 3:16. John says:

John 3:16 (KJ2000)
16 . . . God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

In Genesis, however, we not only see the origin of the sin problem, but we also see God’s promise of the Redeemer. God said to the serpent:

Genesis 3:15 (KJ2000)
15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.

The Lord Jesus Christ came as the Seed of the woman with no earthly father. Though He was born of a woman, God was His Father. When Jesus died on the cross and was raised from the dead, He wounded Satan with a deadly wound which provides deliverance from the dominion of Satan for all who put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ.

As we move on through Genesis, we see the first catastrophe on the earth. During the time of Noah, God destroyed with a great flood the heavens and the earth that had existed from the time of the creation. The heavens and the earth that we see today are the result of that great flood.

After the flood, God dealt with Noah and his descendants, but once again sin became so prevalent that God chose to deal exclusively with one man and his descendants. That man, of course, was Abraham.

God gave Abraham certain promises that form the basis for God’s dealings with man throughout the rest of the Old Testament. All of the promises that were made to Abraham will someday be fulfilled when Jesus Christ returns to the earth at His second coming.

At the close of the book of Genesis, we find Abraham’s descendants down in Egypt where they were known as the children of Israel. They had grown into a very large ethnic group, and the Egyptians had made them their slaves. In Exodus, we see God sending Moses back to Egypt to deliver the children of Israel.

God demonstrated His mighty power to the Egyptians and to the nation of Israel through various judgments. The greatest of these judgments was the last, and it was a judgment in which God killed all of the firstborn sons throughout the land. Only those families who had the blood of the Passover lamb applied to the doorpost were spared.

This stands as a great illustration to us of what the Lord Jesus Christ did for us when He shed His blood on the cross. He was the Lamb of God without spot and without blemish who went to the cross to die for our sins. He did this so that we might become the children of God, so that we might find rest, and safety and security under the blood of the cross.

After the blood of the Passover lamb was applied and the lamb was eaten, God brought the children of Israel up out of Egypt. They crossed the Red Sea on dry land, and then God took them to Mt. Sinai where He gave them the Law. And so it was that the children of Israel became the nation of Israel.

The Law Covenant which was given to the nation of Israel at Mt. Sinai was in effect until the Lord Jesus Christ came to the earth. The book of Hebrews shows us clearly that when Christ came and shed His blood, He established a new and better covenant with Israel.

When God gave the Law, He gave instructions for the building of the tabernacle and for the ceremonies which would be conducted in the tabernacle. God also gave instructions for the ordination of Aaron and his sons as the priests of Israel who would perform the ceremonies of the tabernacle.

The book of Leviticus tells about the different sacrifices that the people were to bring as an offering to the Lord. All of those sacrifices, of course, pointed to the work of Christ upon the cross. Jesus Christ was and is God’s perfect sacrifice for sin.

In Leviticus, we see the various ordinances or laws by which the children of Israel were to live. These laws and ordinances revealed the perfect righteousness of God, and they were given to teach the people how to live and walk in the righteousness of God.

Also in Leviticus, we see the feast days which were for the most part to be great celebrations of joy. However, one of those feasts days was to be a very solemn occasion. The Day of Atonement was a day in which the people would inspect their lives and repent of their sins. On this day the High Priest was to go into the Holy of Holies in the innermost part of the tabernacle to sprinkle the blood of the sacrifice on the altar. This blood would cover his own sins as well as the sins of the entire nation of Israel. This was God’s method of dealing with Israel’s sin until the time that the Lord Jesus came to shed His own blood as the atonement for the sins of the whole world.

The last part of the book of Leviticus tells us about the Sabbath days and the Sabbath years. It also tells of the year of the jubilee in which God would proclaim liberty throughout the whole land of Israel. Then there were also some Laws concerning any vows that the people would make before the Lord.

This brings us up to the book of Numbers which is so named because of the numbering of the people which took place at the beginning of the book and at the end of the book. We’ll be looking at that book in the weeks to come, but at this point, I’d like to ask if you have ever really trusted this One who loved you enough to come into the world to die for your sins? How wonderful it is to see God’s plan for the ages and how He has dealt with people in times past, but God wants you to know that He loves you and that He loved you enough to die in order that you might have eternal life.

Thank you for listening to Bible Study Time this morning.

Matthew (Part 16) (BST 1-6-08)

Matthew (Part 16)
Bible Study Time 1-6-08

In Matthew, Chapter 26, we read that Jesus was arrested and falsely accused of blasphemy. In Chapter 27, Pilate consented to the death of Jesus, and we read that:

Matthew 27:27-29
27 . . . the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the common hall, and gathered unto him the whole band of soldiers.
28 . . . they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe.
29 And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: . . . they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews!

Jesus had been announced as the Promised Messiah. He had done many miracles to prove that He was the Hope of Israel, but rather than a crown of royal jewels, He was given a crown of thorns. Rather than glory, honor and praise, He was mocked and humiliated.

A thousand years before Christ, the Psalmist recognized the glory of the Messiah and said:

Psalms 96:1-13 (KJ2000)
1 O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth.
2 Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; show forth his salvation from day to day.
3 Declare his glory among the nations, his wonders among all people.
4 For the LORD is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods.
5 For all the gods of the nations are idols: but the LORD made the heavens.
6 Honor and majesty are before him: strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.
7 Give unto the LORD, O you families of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength.
8 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts.
9 O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth.
10 Say among the nations that the LORD reigns: the world also shall be established that it shall not be moved: he shall judge the people righteously.
11 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof.
12 Let the field be joyful, and all that is in it: then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice
13 Before the LORD: for he comes, for he comes to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth.

The Psalmist knew the glory which would emanate from the throne of the Messiah, and the Jews of Jesus’ day knew this as well, but they found it impossible to believe that this Jesus of Nazareth was really the One for whom they longed. The writer of the book of Hebrews said that Jesus despised the shame but still endured the cross for the joy that was set before Him.

Matthew says that the soldiers:

Matthew 27:30-32
30 . . . spit upon him, and took the reed, and struck him on the head.
31 And after . . . they had mocked him, they . . . put his own clothes on him, and led him away to crucify him.
32 . . . as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name: him they compelled to bear his cross.

The Apostle John tells us that Jesus actually carried His own cross for at least part of the way before Simon the Cyrenian was compelled to help. Jesus had come to offer Himself as the King of the Jews, but He was willing to bear the cross which would bring salvation to all who believe.

At this point in time, the salvation that Jesus was offering to the Jews was both spiritual and political. If accepted by the Jews, it would bring spiritual salvation to the soul as well as a political kingdom.

Matthew says that:

Matthew 27:33-35
33 . . . when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull,
34 They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink.
35 And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and for my clothing did they cast lots.

King David knew about the coming glory of the kingdom, but He also saw the agony and the suffering of the Messiah. In Psalm 22, he said:

Psalms 22:1 (KJ2000)
1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? why are you so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning?

Psalms 22:6-8 (KJ2000)
6 . . . I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people.
7 All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,
8 He trusted in the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him.

Psalms 22:16-18 (KJ2000)
16 For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have enclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.
17 I can count all my bones: they look and stare upon me.
18 They part my garments among them, and cast lots for my clothing.

David wrote about the glory and the humiliation of the Messiah, and these prophesies were used extensively by Matthew and the other Apostles after the resurrection and ascension of the Lord to prove that Jesus had fulfilled all of the Old Testament prophecies. We see this in Matthew 27 as Matthew reminds the Jews that:

Matthew 27:45,46 (KJ2000)
45 . . . from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour.
46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

Matthew 27:50-54 (KJ2000)
50 (Then) Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up his spirit.
51 And, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks were split;
52 And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints that slept arose,
53 And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.
54 Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God.

This centurion was one of the few who were able to see with spiritual eyes the truth of who Jesus really was, but for the most part, the rest of the Jews continued in their spiritual blindness, rejecting any notion that Jesus had come from God to be their Savior and King.

In Acts, Chapter 2, Peter plainly declared to the Jews that when they killed Jesus, they killed their Messiah. He said:

Acts 2:22,23 (KJ2000)
22 You men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as you yourselves also know
23 Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain:

Acts 2:32,33 (KJ2000)
32 This Jesus has God raised up, of which we all are witnesses.
33 Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured forth this, which you now see and hear.

Acts 2:36 (KJ2000)
36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God has made that same Jesus, whom you have crucified, both Lord and Christ.

Peter said that it was not by accident that Jesus was killed, but that Jesus was actually delivered up by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God. You see, Jesus had agreed before the creation of the universe to submit to the death of the cross.

God’s love is eternal even as God is eternal, but who was the object of His love prior to the creation. Throughout the ages of eternity past, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit loved one another. As Jesus said:

John 5:20 (KJ2000)
20 . . . the Father loves the Son, and shows him all things that he himself does . . .

According to Peter, it was the Father, Son and Holy Spirit who established a Covenant of Redemption before the creation. The plan included the creation of man with human intelligence and the capacity to make decisions according to his free will.

With this free will, they knew that man would sin and that he would need a Savior if he was to avoid the wages of sin. Since the wages of sin is death, it was decided that God the Son would enter into the human race so that He could shed the innocent blood for sin’s atonement. In so doing, He would also reveal to man the righteousness of God.

God’s purpose in giving the Bible to us today is that we might be made aware of God’s plan of redemption. Of course, God doesn’t just lay the plan out all at once in the Genesis, Chapter 1. No, but we do see hints of this plan all through the Old Testament.

However, once the death, burial and resurrection of Christ was accomplished, God started revealing through the Apostles what God had been planning since before the beginning.

John said:

John 1:1 (KJ2000)
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:18 (KJ2000)
18 No man has seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has declared him.

John the Baptist said:

John 3:34, 35 (KJ2000)
34 For he whom God has sent speaks the words of God: for God gives not the Spirit by measure unto him.
35 The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into his hand.

The Father had committed this work of redemption to the Son, and the Son was committed to accomplishing this mission so as to bring glory to the Father. This kind of love the world knows nothing of. It is a divine love which is pure and eternal. When the people marveled at the miracles of Jesus, Jesus said:

John 5:20-24 (KJ2000)
20 . . . the Father loves the Son, and shows him all things that he himself does: and he will show him greater works than these, that you may marvel.
21 For as the Father raises up the dead, and gives them life; even so the Son gives life to whom he will.
22 For the Father judges no man, but has committed all judgment unto the Son:
23 That all men should honor the Son, even as they honor the Father. He that honors not the Son honors not the Father who has sent him.
24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that hears my word, and believes on him that sent me, has everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

In these words we sense that Jesus is offering to these lost sinners the opportunity to enter into the realm of God with all of the spiritual blessings that are to be found in that realm. These blessings go far beyond our material world. Only these spiritual blessings can satisfy the longing soul of man.

Jesus Christ offered Himself to the Jews as their Messiah and King, but He knew that before He could rule as the Son of David, He would have to die as the Son of God. Jesus Christ loved the Father and made a covenant with the Father that He would accomplish this task. Jesus said:

John 10:17,18 (KJ2000)
17 Therefore does my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.
18 No man takes it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.

Jesus Christ came to the earth in accordance with His covenant with the Father. Jesus agreed to lay down His life so that all who believe might pass from the realm of death into the realm of life where the members of the Godhead fellowship together.

This answers the question of why Jesus would agree to die for sinful men who would hate Him and spit upon Him and kill Him. He agreed to do this because He and the other members of the Godhead experience the kind of love that man knows nothing about. It’s the kind of love that brings salvation to sinners and then transports sinners into the realm of God’s righteousness.

Paul said that when we put our faith in Christ, we are baptized into Christ and that because of our position in Christ, we become Sons of God as well. In Romans 8, Paul said:

Romans 8:1 (KJ2000)
1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

Romans 8:14-17 (KJ2000)
14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
15 For you have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but you have received the Spirit of adoption, by which we cry, Abba, Father.
16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:
17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, so that we may be also glorified together.

When we were baptized into Christ, we were baptized into the fellowship of the Godhead. We became joint-heirs with Christ of all that Christ enjoys as the Son of God. Then, Paul follows up this thought with the realization that we are also called to suffer with Christ.

If Jesus was willing to face the death of the cross in order to accomplish the will of the Father, how can we do less than dedicate ourselves to the will of God? Paul said in Romans 12:

Romans 12:1-2 (KJ2000)
1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
2 And be not conformed to this world: but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Well, it certainly has been a pleasure studying with you this morning, and I’ll look forward to studying with you again next week at this same time.

Church links:

http://www.peacechurch-ok.org/

http://www.eleventhavenuechurch.com/

http://gracebiblechurch-fw.com/