2015-06-12
Good Morning Dear Ones,
Last week, I was led to write about how God keeps His promises. At first I took up His general promises, and then, I was led into discussing His Messianic promises. There is more to say on Messianic promises this week. We already know from 2 SAM 7: 12-13 that God has promised a Descendant [Seed-singular] of King David will eventually rule forever. GA 3: 16 reminds us of the singularity of the word “Seed” and that it clearly refers to Jesus Christ. We also know, from DN 7: 13-14, that God has given Christ the ultimate authority to judge. The description of the Lord Jesus, in IS 9:6, tells us “the government shall be upon His shoulders” and let’s us know of His connection to God. JER 23: 5 tells us God will raise “a righteous Branch of David’s” up to do what is just and right. He is God’s second personality and is fully God in every way [COL 1: 19]. As far as the Covenant of Grace is concerned, it was prophesied, in JER 31: 31-34. This was done in such a way as to differ from the OT Covenant of the Law in that being legalistic (which in this case means placing form over the content of God’s teaching) is no longer acceptable, and that the way of the Holy Spirit (God’s third personality) is the way to live [RO 7: 6]. As a part of the Godhead (Trinity), Jesus Christ was also wholly human, without human imperfections, and could be perceived by the people who lived during his ministry and Atonement on earth [HE 4: 15]. Sadly, those people didn’t know Who Christ really was.
We get a wonderful picture of the Lord’s heart, in JN 10: 14-15, “I am the Good Shepherd; I know My sheep, and My sheep know Me---just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father---and I lay down My life for the sheep.” I find it very intriguing that the name “David” [pronounced Dah-veed] דָבִד, in Hebrew] is used for a Ruler like David in the prophecy of EZK 34: 23-24 [God speaking], “I will place over them one Shepherd, My Servant David, and He will tend them; He will tend them and be their Shepherd. I the Lord will be their God, and My Servant David will be Prince among them.” It’s no coincidence that the name, David, means “Beloved of God” in Hebrew. Please read EZK 37: 24-28, and you will see God’s clear intentions and His loving heart. (25b-28) “And David, My Servant, will be their Prince forever. I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant. I will establish them and increase their numbers, and I will put My sanctuary among them forever. My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be My people. Then the nations will know that I the Lord make Israel holy, when My sanctuary is among them forever.” At this point one might ask, why David here refers to the Ruler forever. The answer lays in what God knew about this imperfect man who ruled Israel in the past [1011-971 BC]. David was described by God as “a man after My own heart” [1 SAM 13: 14; AC 13: 22].
Inheritance depends on the law, not on a promise. Let’s look at the information on the Lord’s true heart-attitude, found in GA 3 :17-18. “What I mean is this: The law introduced 430 years later does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus, do away with the promise. For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God in His grace gave it to Abraham through a promise.” What He gave to Abraham was justification, the act of being deemed acceptable by God [GN 15: 6]. What He made with Abraham was a great covenant that still applies today [GN 12: 1-3]. A covenant is a two-way promise. RO 4: 13 and 9: 4 help to explain this. “It was not through law that Abraham and his offspring [the Jews] received the promise that He [Jesus] would be Heir to the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith…the people of Israel. Theirs is the adoption as sons; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship, and the promises.” (Remember Abraham was also in Christ’s lineage). In his time, Moses acted as mediator between the Jewish people and God. Since God alone made the promises of the Abrahamic Covenant, no mediator was involved or was needed. The Lord Jesus didn’t come to put an end to the law, but instead to bring righteousness and be the fulfillment of the law [RO 10: 4]. True believers live with that righteousness and fulfillment in Christ. The law is not opposed to the covenant, because it helps reveal sin and thus, the need for covenant promises/salvation. Further illumination is found in GA 3: 19-21, “What , then, was the purpose of the law? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to Whom the promises referred had come. The law was put into effect through angels by a mediator. A mediator, however, does not represent just one party; but God is One. Is the law, therefore, opposed to the promise of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law.” A quick refresher would be to see GN 12: 2-3, 7; GN 15: 18-21 on the Sinaitic [Abrahamic] covenant (on land) and GN 17: 4-8 (on a people). If the reference to angels is bothersome, then see DT 33: 2, which clearly explains that they are the “holy ones.” [Also see AC 7: 38, 53; HE 2: 2, which help clarify this issue.] God’s promise of a people and land have already come true. There is no reason not to believe that in His perfect time, a King, the Lord Jesus will return to rule all forever. Our God is a true Promise-keeper!
PRAYER: O Lord, we come before Your mighty throne to acknowledge that You are our perfect Covenant Partner, Who always keeps Your promises. Since covenants are two-way promises, and we are partnered with You, it is up to us to keep our end. We are imperfect human beings, who often have trouble doing that. We love You dearly for Your patience with us [2 PET 3: 9] and for Your willingness to sanctify us in Your perfect time and way. By doing this, You have blessed us with Your intervention and Your teaching; we must cooperate with You, so that we can eventually return to Your side for eternity in heaven. We thank You for forgiving us eternally when we came to faith in Your Son and repented [1 JN 1: 9]. It is through the Lord Jesus that the heavenly Holy of Holies is now open to all who believe in Him [HE 9: 11-12]. We are forever grateful for the salvation our faith in Him and His great sacrifice in atonement for our sins on the cross has given us [JN 3: 16; RO 3: 24-25]. We are grateful that our Lord is the fulfillment of the law, so that Your righteousness can be our gift from Him. When we take the time to read Your word and pray often to You, You allow us to be confident and free to come to Your wisdom any time [EPH 3: 12]. When we think of all that You are still doing every day for us, we are deeply motivated to improve our expunging of sin from our lives. We seek You out as You described in JER 29: 11-13 with all our hearts, professing repeatedly and genuinely our faith in Jesus Christ. You, Dearest Abba, have circumcised our hearts, and we thank and praise You for it, in His holy/mighty name. Amen.
NEXT WEEK: I’m led to write about how law functioned in our lives and how God’s grace takes over for it. This discussion of law and grace helps us to better appreciate what God does every day in the process of our sanctification. We are looking at the “mechanics” of how He takes us by the hand and leads us through the “narrow gate and along the hard path” that leads to eternal life [MT 7: 13-14]. There are many Bible citations in today’s message, and I encourage you to read them if they are not already familiar to you. There are no better ways to know God and understand both His will and His ways than to read His word and pray. When we take time to pray, listening for God and to read/meditate on His word, He blesses us with understanding and even wisdom. For the latter, we must apply the lessons God has for us in our every day lives. I was asked once, “how do you avoid trouble in relationships?” The only thing I could say was that God teaches a person to think through situations before entering into them by revealing His own thinking on them. Truthfully, it takes courage and patience at times to express God’s will and apply it, because our emotions sometimes get in the way. He has not promised us lives without trouble or that things will go easily for us while we are dealing with challenges. But we can rely on the wisdom of His ways and obeying His will. Following the latter will indeed lead to blessings, and that makes our efforts worth it. Our God loves us dearly, and He deserves for us to rely on Him and love Him as we ourselves are loved. Remember: JN 13: 34-35 [Christ’s own words], “A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.” This goes right along with DT 6: 4-5, “Here, O Israel, the Lord your God, King of the universe, the Lord is One. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might.” Be blessed and know you are deeply loved! Praise be to the Lord!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn
JS 24: 15
© Lynn Johnson 2015. All Rights Reserved.
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