2004-12-03
Good Morning Faithful Ones,
The Holy Spirit directs me to write more on how Christ fulfills the law this morning. You’ll remember that Christ died the same day the Passover lamb was sacrificed for the nation, and thus, He became our Passover Lamb Who took away the world’s sins [1 COR 5: 6-8]. His birth was prophesied long before it happened in MICAH 5: 2, IS 7:14, and IS 9: 6 among other verses. There are too many prophecies that He alone fulfilled for this to be accidental. EX 12: 46b referring to the sacrificial lamb to be eaten says, “And do not break any of the animal’s bones.” That was part of the instructions God gave the Jews, through Moses, who were about to be protected from losing their first-born sons and to leave Egyptian slavery in the Passover. If we look at JN 19: 32-33, we see this come to pass with Jesus Christ. [While Christ was still on the cross], “So the soldiers went and broke the legs of the first man and then of the other man who had been crucified with Jesus. But when they came to Jesus, they saw that he was already dead, so the did not break His legs.”
Zechariah, whose ministry was in 520 – 490 BC, wrote God’s words in ZECH 12: 10, “I will fill the descendants of David and the other people of Jerusalem with a spirit of mercy and the spirit of prayer. They will look at the One Whom they have pierced, and they will mourn for Him like those who mourn for an only child. They will mourn bitterly, like those who have lost their first-born son.” Can we picture Christ’s followers in Jerusalem mourning His death before it becomes apparent that He has risen? Now, look at JN 19: 34, “One of the soldiers, however, plunged his spear into Jesus’ side, and at once blood and water poured out.” If you go back to the metaphor of the Passover lamb, it must be noted that in the Kosher method of preparing the lamb to be eaten, the blood is allowed to pour out of the meat first. The reason for that is found in LV 17: 11 and HE 9: 22, essentially the life is in the blood, and blood must be poured out for there to be forgiveness.
We’ve already looked carefully enough at the Law to know that God never intended that it alone would bring salvation. Until the Lord decided that it was time for Christ to die on the cross, it was His decision that the world wasn’t ready or able to do what was necessary to be saved. Our omniscient God is the only One Who could have possibly known when that time was right. Even then, mankind didn’t realize they were looking into the eyes of God when they looked into Christ’s eyes. That’s why they made the prophecies of IS 53 come true. IS 53: 4, 6, 11, “Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrow: yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted…We like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all…He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied: by His knowledge shall my righteous Servant justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities.” [This archaic language of the KJV is too beautiful for me to have shared a more modern translation]. It is verse 11 here coupled with 1 COR 11: 25, which illuminates our understanding of how Christ initiates the Covenant of Grace by “sealing it with His blood.” The Fulfillment of the Law doesn’t do away with the Law, but instead He opens the way to salvation by the believer’s willingness to repent of His sins and have heartfelt faith in Him.
Whenever I’m led to write about such rich and marvelous truths, I know that it is important that none of us lose touch with how they are meant by God to be applied to our lives. God directs me to recognize the relationship historically, culturally, morally, and spiritually that exists between the Covenant of the Law and the Covenant of Grace. Every day, we should thank God that He brings us to faith and enables us to humble ourselves before Him and confess our sins. We must remember that it is God Who invited us to come to faith while we were still His enemies [RO 5: 9-11]. It’s often scary and nerve-wracking to admit our weaknesses and make ourselves vulnerable. God knows this. And yet, He gives us this promise via David in PS 37: 11, “But all who humble themselves before the Lord shall be given every blessing, and shall have wonderful peace.” We must remember that the Law was given to us, so that we might know what is sin and what it isn’t [RO 7: 7, 13]. RO 8: 3-4, really helps us to understand how Christ fulfills the Law better. “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.” O how we do enrich our lives when we open ourselves to God, confess our sins in humility before Him, appreciate the tremendous sacrifice He and the Son have made for us, and thank and praise Him daily for the blessings of faith! We no longer have to live under the legalism of the Covenant of the Law, but instead, live under God’s grace which leads to eternal life.
PRAYER: O Lord, it is in keeping with what is said above that we come before Your mighty throne with the confidence and boldness You promised us in EPH 3: 12 and HE 4: 16 was acceptable to you. We openly and honestly confess our sins, knowing that our weaknesses are what You can use to further our spiritual maturity. When people live under the old covenant, they feel that rituals and legalism are the only way to come to You. When people live under the new Covenant of Grace, all that can be seen as useless, and we are commanded to make ourselves vulnerable to You. Dearest Abba, when we humble ourselves that way, You never take evil advantage of that. Instead, You bless us with gentleness, kindness, patience, provision, peace, and many other things. Our lives are not easy, and we wage the same battle between our flesh and Your Spirit that Paul describes in RO 7: 14-14. And yet, You have given us the hope that at some point, the Spirit will win in this internal war, and we will finally be perfect enough for You to take us home to a blissful, joyful, and close eternal fellowship with You in heaven. Through Christ’s statement of His purpose in JN 6: 39-40, we know that this is Your greatest desire for us. EPH 1: 4-5 makes firm Your intentions. “Even before the world was made, God had already chosen us to be Hi through our union with Christ, so that we would be holy and without fault before Him. Because of His love God had already decided that through Jesus Christ He would make us His sons-this was His pleasure and purpose.” Our desire is to bring You the pleasure for which You created us. Our hope is to spend eternity at Your side, serving You and being Your friends. You are a God Who keeps His promises, never lies, and is always righteous in everything You do. You are our I AM WHO I AM, and we love and praise You. We ask You this morning and every morning to be a constant Presence in our lives and to always love and guide as You have promised. Without You, we are worthless; with You we can be agents for spreading Your goodness on earth and for bringing others to where the Holy Spirit can give them life-giving faith. You are our God, and Your laws are written on our hearts. In Christ’s name, we pray. Amen.
As the Holy Spirit feeds me things to say to you, I am realizing that the issue of how Christ fulfills the Law is more important than I ever realized before. I’m not the Teacher, only the writer here. The Holy Spirit directs me to write one more message on how Christ fulfills the Law next week. Many people have asked: “Okay, Dear Lord, You’ve asked me to pray. How do I pray?” It’s an honest and important question. If you look at the citations I’ve included in today’s message, you will see some answers to that question. God wants us to recognize just how much Christ’s Atonement means to us. He wants us to acknowledge that, which is why I never write a message without some reference to it. He also wants us to be open and honest with Him about our weaknesses. He wants us to confess our sins too. We have been told that we can approach Him with boldness and confidence. His compassion and willingness to answer our prayers is all over the Scriptures. Those Whom He esteems can present their cases before Him, as Moses did after the Lord had said in EX 33: 5, “If I were to go with you even for a moment, I would completely destroy you,” in His anger after the golden bull incident. Moses prayed for the people to the Lord, and the Lord decided afterward in EX 33: 14, “I will go with you and give you victory.” Think about it; that victory is Christ’s victory over evil, and we who endure in our faith will enjoy it for eternity in heaven. What greater gift can a loving God give to His people? That is why God deserves our eternal thanks and praise in every prayer we say.
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn