2002-01-01
Good Morning Faithful Readers,
As we have been examining citations that reveal God as Jehovah Mekaddishkem, the Lord Who sanctifies us, the issue of being called to faithfulness and a life of holiness must be discussed. 1 COR 1: 9, “God is to be trusted, the God Who calls you to fellowship with His Son Jesus Christ, our Lord.” MT 22: 1-14, which I hope you will read, tells the Parable of the Wedding Feast. In this story much preparation was done by a king for his son’s wedding. But the invited guests ignored this invitation and went about their normal business, sadly evil business. A man showed up to the wedding without wedding clothes. The king’s response to this was to have his servants tie him up and cast him out in the dark to cry and gnash his teeth. What does all of this symbolize? If we stop and think, Jehovah Mekaddishkem is the King, and Christ, the Lamb, is the king’s son. The wedding itself represents the wedding feast of the Lamb described in REV 19: 5-10, that final union between Christ, the Bridegroom and the church, the bride. JN 14: 2, “There are many rooms in My Father’s house, and I am going to prepare a place for you. I would not tell you this if it were not so…” [Christ’s words]. The significance of the man without wedding clothes goes to the heart of the problem. Wedding clothes would be white linen, the symbol of righteousness so often used in the Scriptures. Being cast out in the darkness to cry and gnash one’s teeth symbolizes spiritual death, the direct result of unrighteousness.
Our Lord and Savior wants us to know that this work is being done for us. The question is raised: Are we going to ignore the invitation to the wedding feast of the Lamb? MT 22: 14 is the rather sad conclusion to this Parable. “And Jesus concluded, ‘Many are called, but few are chosen.’” Those of us who live “in Christ” would rather see it as many are called and accepted God’s invitation. Paul expresses it 1 THESS 2: 12, “We encouraged you, we comforted you, and we kept urging you to live the kind of life that pleases God, Who calls you to share in His own Kingdom and glory.” Peter also deals with this issue in 2 PET 1: 10-11. “So then, my brothers, try even harder to make God’s call and His choice of you a permanent experience; if you do so, you will never abandon your faith. In this way you will be given the full right to enter the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
We must now look at the question: What does this reveal about Jehovah Mekaddishkem? There would be no Son Who gave His life on the cross, no Holy Spirit sent to indwell in the hearts of believers, word given for study, prayer, or congregations to uplift and encourage us along the path of sanctification if Jehovah Mekaddishkem didn’t love us beyond measure. Think about it, there would be no process of sanctification without His love for His children! RO 6: 4, “By our baptism, then, we were buried with Him and share His death, in order that just as Christ was raised from death by the glorious power of the Father, so also we might live a new life.” Without the shedding of His blood, there would be no forgiveness [LV 17: 11 & HE 9: 22].
We know that the Law was given by Jehovah Mekaddishkem to the Jews, so that mankind would know the difference between right and wrong [RO 7:7]. A harder concept of paramount importance for us to understand is that Christ is the fulfillment of the Law. RO 10: 4 states it this way: “For Christ has brought the Law to an end, so that everyone who believes is put right with God.” No one, except Jesus Christ, could keep all 613 laws that the Jews were supposed to obey, and thus, trying to do this became a curse for them. The grace of God through Christ relieves all believers of this burden. It doesn’t mean its okay for us to be lawless. What it means is that Christ’s Atonement opened the way through God’s grace for us to choose to be righteous and work through temptations and challenges to our faith in the sanctification process-to become perfected enough so as to be able to enjoy eternal joy and fellowship with the Lord. RO 8: 2-4, “For the law of the Spirit, which brings us life in union with Christ Jesus, has set me free from the law of sin and death. What the Law could not do, because human nature was weak, God did. He condemned sin in human nature by sending His own Son, Who came with a nature like man’s sinful nature, to do away with sin. God did this so that the righteous demands of the Law might be fully satisfied in us who live according to the Spirit, and not according to human nature.” The very essence of sanctification is captured in Jehovah Mekaddishkem’s words [through Moses] in LV 20: 26. “You shall be holy and belong only to Me, because I am the Lord and I am holy. I have set you apart from other nations so that you would belong to Me alone.” While He directed this to the Jews at the time, it applies to all of us who believe including the Gentiles who were grafted on to the olive tree [see RO 11: 16-25].
PRAYER: O Lord, You call us to faith and challenge us to examine the nature of the commitment we make to You. This is not to annoy us or make us angry; it is a manifestation of Your love for us. We needed to study the issues raised in the citations of today’s discussion, because You wanted us to understand the consequences of procrastinating or ignoring Your commands to us. You also wanted us to understand the mechanism by which You equip us to make the lifestyle and attitude changes we need to conform to Your will and advance our sanctification. In doing all of this, You accomplish something wonderful for us that no other entity can do. You also give us new understanding of even more levels to which Your love goes for us. What a compassionate, wise, and patient Lord You are, Dearest Jehovah Mekaddishkem! We stand in praise, humility, and gratitude before You. We pledge You our adoration, loyalty, worship, honor, and glory. We commit to trusting and obeying You forever. Day after day, we offer You these promises from the depth of our hearts, because we acknowledge that You so richly deserve them. In Christ’s name, amen.
Tomorrow, the Lord leads me to discuss citations that reveal Him as Jehovah Shalom, the Lord is peace. Please believe that I’m not smart enough to write a series of message like this “Who Is God?” series on my own. I am having a lot of supernatural help. Each day, He is standing by me, leading me to what He wants all of us to know about Him. After 59 messages, we are not through! He is taking us on a spiritual adventure that still hasn’t bored or tired me, and it is my hope that you feel the same way. When I said that His love is so great for us that it cannot be measured, I was telling the truth. I have never felt so loved in my life, and I hope you are feeling the same way. Peter and I send you our love too.
race Be With You Always,
Lynn