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(Blue entries in the meditation are links; clicking on them will take you to the verse(s) in the New International Version; to see the verse(s) in another translation, on that page under 'passage results' where the current entry is 'New International Version' click on the down arrow and select another English version; then click on 'update'. Occasionally links on my page are to another file of mine. On this page entries in reddish brown are the words of Scripture (NIV). If you wish to pursue your own study on issues (thoughts) raised or on the Scripture verses used try these links: The Goshen Bible Study Tools or Translate 2012 Bible Study Tools. An additional translation with many notes can be found at Net Bible.

                               

                                                                        (God's Purposes Become Clearer  Pt 2)                                                                                                        

By Cameron Paine

 

                                                                                     INTRODUCTION    

 

 

This is part II of the meditation “God’s Purposes Become Clearer”. The first part dealt with some of the roots of Christianity, when God first formed a people (Israel) for himself and gave them his laws. (Titus 2:14)

 

This 2nd part of the meditation deals with some of the different emphases and/or new dimensions found in what the ‘post-Christ’ recorders of God’s revelations wrote.

 

But there is necessarily a binding connection between God’s revelations in the Old Testament and in the New Testament.

 

It is humanly impossible for every statement of God recorded in the Old Testament to be considered as--and set forth as--the dominant idea. Some recorded statements through constant repetition/or practice of, in effect, ‘drowned out’ other teachings of God recorded in the Old Testament. This was especially evident in the Mosaic period prior to the coming of the Christ.

 

While nuggets of many of the great truths expressed in the New Testament Gospel are found in the Old Testament (e.g.,Psalm 143:2; 32:1-2; 103:10-12) that does not mean that what faithful people considered most important in the Old Testament and what is considered most important in the ‘post-Christ’ era are the same. 

 

It is the purpose of Pt. II of this meditation to point out some of these differences —the truths of God which were emphasized after the coming, the work, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

 

These different emphases are presented under 4 main headings—

      1) The two distinct phases in God’s history in time: the ‘pre-Christ’ era (especially from the time of the Exodus) and the ‘post-Christ’ era,

      2) ‘Salvation: What does It mean?’

      3) ‘Salvation: who are its recipients or beneficiaries

      4)  The new era which the Christ inaugurated was more than the fulfillment
            that the believers of Old Testament prophecies had conceived or
            imagined

 

 

(For the sake of comparing what is said in this meditation about the difference between the ‘pre-Christ’ era (beginning with the Exodus from Egypt) and everything later in God’s history some of the same material may be covered in articles or books dealing with the relationship of the New and Old Testaments.)

 

 

   THE TWO DISTINCT PHASES OF GOD’S HISTORY IN TIME: THE ‘PRE-CHRIST’
    ERA AND THE ERA BEGINNING WITH CHRIST AND THE
           FULFILLMENT OF HIS MISSION

 

                                                                                                    Introduction

 

 

The expression ‘pre-Christ era’ as used in this meditation is slightly misleading because it does not refer to all of God’s history prior to the coming of the Christ (etc.) but to the beliefs and practices of the Jewish people (Israelites) during a more limited time period: the period from the giving of the Law and the formation of the Israelite nation up until the coming of the Christ.

           

The contrast that this meditation focuses on is between 1) the emphases that distinguished the beliefs and practices of the Jewish people (Israelites) during that period and 2) the emphases that characterized God’s ‘post-Christ’ revelations which are recorded in the New Testament. Though the revelations of God (the truths of God) in each stage of God’s history are closely connected they are not identical. There are many statements in the New Testament that point to the enormous change that became apparent in God’s unfolding plan/history.

 

                                                              What God Did In The ‘Post-Christ’ Era Is More Glorious

 

 

The New Testament does not say or imply that God’s previous revelations recorded in the Old Testament were not from God or that they are now irrelevant; But it does say that the coming of Christ opened up a new dimension. In the period before the coming of the Christ (etc.) the law revealed God’s will; in the subsequent period of God’s history Christ did more than that—he delivered his people from the power and penalty of sin.

• "But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons." (Galatians 4:4-5)
  
  
• “He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant--not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? If the ministry that condemns men is glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness!  For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. And if what was fading away came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!” (2 Corinthians 3:6-11; see also Hebrews 8:7,13; 9:15)

 

                                                                                                The Law and Christ

 

 

In the ‘pre-Christ’ era God’s written Law was the teacher and ‘custodian’ of his people. But it was not a savior, a redeemer, an instrument of salvation as Christ was in the later stage of God’s plan.

 

The law was a teacher. Without it who would have known what sin was?

 

• The apostle Paul wrote, "Is the law sin? Certainly not! Indeed I would not have known what sin was except through the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “Do not covet.”" (Romans 7:7)

 

Before the coming of Jesus Christ the law was a guardian or custodian of God’s people. The Bible says “ the whole world is a prisoner of sin (Psalm 143:2;130.3;Job 15.14;Ecclesiastes 7:20), so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe. The apostle Paul (a Jew by birth and a highly trained religious leader in the Jewish religion) said this of the Old Testament--"Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.” (Galatians 3:22-25)

 

“The proper understanding of the phrase "before this faith came" is found in the fact that the definite article occurs before the word "faith." By "this faith" Paul means "the Christian faith," that faith he has just spoken of in v. 22--faith in Jesus Christ as Savior (cf. 1Ti 4:1 for a similar usage). This faith is like the faith exercised by Abraham, but it is different in that it relates to the explicit revelation of Christ in time and to the distinct Christian doctrines concerning him. Faith waited for this complete revelation. Paul's point is that the law was intended to function only during this 1,500-year period of anticipation.”    

“While the law was here, however, it did serve a purpose: to hold us prisoner, locking us up until Christ should be revealed (cf. v. 22). Paul is thinking here that the law, like a jailer, has kept people locked up and therefore out of trouble until Christ, the liberator, should come to set them free.” (Zondervan—NIV Bible Commentary on Gal.3.23 ff.)    

 

• “What, then, was the purpose of the law? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed (the Christ) to whom the promise referred had come.” (Galatians 3:19)
  
• "But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons." (Galatians 4:4-5)
  

While the Law of God was a teacher about, or ‘describer’ of, sin it was not a savior; the law did not rescue a sinner, the law did not rescue an individual being pulled under by the power of sin. It only revealed what God’s sinless standards were.

• "Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin." (Romans 3:20)
  

It is the apostle's own incomparable record of obedience to the regulations of God's law and dedication that makes the point.

 

• He said, "For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh-though I myself have reasons for such confidence. If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless. But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ-the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith." (Philippians 3:3-9; see also Galatians 1:14)

 

The truth is ‘total obedience by sinful creatures is not enough.’

 

• "I do not set aside the grace of God," (or the need for Christ) "for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!" (Galatians 2:21; see also Galatians 3:22; Psalm 14:1; 143:2)   

 

Could there be a stronger statement from the Jew (who had been a well trained leader of the Jewish faith) whom God chose to write most of the letters of the New Testament than this? Could there be a stronger statement about the insufficiency of being a Jew or the keeping of God's law to be holy and to be entitled to God's gift of salvation?

 

• "For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." (John 1:17)
  
• “What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith; but Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it. Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the “stumbling stone.” (Romans 9:30-32)

 

• The apostle Paul, a Jew and highly trained one, said, "Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. Since they did not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes. Moses describes in this way the righteousness that is by the law: “The man who does these things will live by them." (Romans 10:1-5; see also Deuteronomy 27:26; 28:15; Galatians 3:10-11; Romans 3:19-20)

 

• “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Mark my words! I, Paul, (the apostle) tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.  You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.” (Galatians 5:1-6)
  
  

Christ is the end of the law. The law promised benefits to the perfect law keeper. Under the law the sequence was first total obedience, then the reward of ‘life’. But in the Gospel proclaimed after the sacrificial work of Christ that sequence is reversed. As a great student of the Bible (H.Bonar) put it, the sequence is no longer “first obedience and then life, but rather -- “first life and then obedience.” (God’s Way of Holiness)  (Cf. John 5:24)

• “Through him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses.” (Acts 13:39)
  
  
• "It was not through law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith." (Romans 4:13)
  
  

What was the relation of Christ’s accomplishment to God’s law? His work “canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross." (Colossians 2:14)

 

• "Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes." (Romans 10:4)
  
  
• "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man, in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit." (Romans 8:1-4)

 

The sacrificial death of the Christ was a finished event, not an ongoing process. What the Law of God required was supplied by the Christ. Past tense!

 

                                                   The Perfect, Permanent, One-Time Sacrifice Of The Christ

 

 

In the ‘post-Christ’ era the perfect, permanent, one-time sacrifice of Jesus contrasts with the repeated sacrifices required in the Old Testament--even the once-a-year sacrifice of the high priest on Yom Kippur.

 

• "The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship." (Hebrews 10:1)
  
  
• "But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins, because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins." (Hebrews 10:3-4)
  
  
• "Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins." (Hebrews 10:11)

 

• "(for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God." (Hebrews 7:19)
  
  
• "Unlike the other high priests, he (Jesus) does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself." (Hebrews 7:27)
  
  
• "Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own." (Hebrews 9:25)

 

Jesus accomplished what no human being however great could accomplish. “For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive by the Spirit." (1 Peter 3:18) What does the inspired writer of the book of Hebrews tell believers? “We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” (Hebrews 10:10)

• And again, “By one sacrifice he (Jesus) has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” (Hebrews 10:14)

 

• "It was necessary, then, for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these." (Hebrews 9:23)
  
  
• "This is an illustration for the present time, indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper." (Hebrews 9:9)
  
  
• “How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!" (Hebrews 9:14)

 

What does the recorder of God’s words in the book of Hebrews say about Jesus? “Such a high priest meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens." (Hebrews 7:26)

 

The apostle Peter said this about Jesus: “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.”" (1 Peter 2:22)

 

 

                           That Jesus Was Someone, Even ‘Something’, Unique Had Been Recognized By                                                                       
                                               People Who Had Seen What His Words Accomplished

 

 

An illustration of this recognition is contained in Part 1 of this meditation. ‘He spoke with authority’, not as a mere interpreter
or repeater of previously declared truths. (Click here to go there) Jesus’ words not only described reality accurately; they created reality, they changed reality. It was the presence of the Son of God/God himself that inaugurated a new stage in God’s unfolding plan of salvation.

                                             Christ The Deliverer Is More Than A Human Being, More Than A Mighty Creature With
                                                            Extraordinary Powers—He Is The Eternal Son Of God, He Is God                                                                                              

                                                                                            (The Mystery Of The Trinity)

                                                                                 

• Jesus said, “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him." (Matthew 11:27)
  
  
• Using himself as an example of how his disciples should guide their lives Jesus said to them, “Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28)
  
  
• "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit," (Matthew 28:19)

 

• “ ‘I tell you the truth,’ Jesus answered, ‘before Abraham was born, I am!” " (John 8:58)
  
  
• “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”" (John 16:33)
  
  
• “Just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it.  Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him." (John 5:21-23)

 

• In Jesus’ own prayer to the Father on behalf of his disciples he prayed, "that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me." (John 17:21)
  
  
• "All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you." (John 16:15)

 

• In the apostle Paul’s letter to the believers in the church at Corinth we read "that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation." (2 Corinthians 5:19)

 

• "Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory." (1Timothy 3:16)

 

• "But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior," (Titus 3:4-6)
  
• In the apostle’s letter to Titus he speaks about what Christians should be doing "while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ," (Titus 2:13)

 

• After the apostle Peter had used a human weapon (a sword) to fend of the soldiers who came to arrest Jesus, Jesus rebuked Peter and said, “Put your sword back in its place for all who draw the sword will die by the sword.  Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels?“ (Matthew 26:52-53)  (A 'legion' was a unit in the Roman army consisting of 6000 soldiers)
  
  

It is no accident that in the New Testament the recorders of God’s word used the same terms to address Jesus or describe Jesus as were applied to God in the Old Testament. They recognized that Jesus the Christ was part of the Godhead. Nothing and nobody is worthy of greater recognition than Jesus the Christ. "If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living." (Romans 14:8-9)

 

 

                                                               SALVATION: WHAT DOES  IT MEAN?

 

 

This is another category in which the difference between the ‘pre-Christ’ era and all of God’s history afterwards shows up.

 

                                                          The Way Salvation Is Spoken Of In The Old Testament

 

As deliverance from ‘enemies’ of flesh and blood.

 

One of the big differences between the concept of salvation as it was so frequently portrayed in the Old Testament is the way the ‘enemies’ of God and of every faithful individual in Old Testament times were spoken of in the Old Testament and in the New Testament.

 

Salvation or what the Lord does for his people is expressed in the Old Testament over and over again (50+ times) as deliverance from mortal or ‘flesh and blood’ enemies. This is most often what ‘salvation’ means on the lips of Old Testament speakers—deliverance from flesh and blood enemies; sometimes it means deliverance from circumstances that cause distress in this life on earth.

 

• ”And blessed be God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand.” Then Abram (Abraham’s name before it was changed) gave him a tenth of everything." (Genesis 14:20)

 

• “If you listen carefully to what he says and do all that I say, I will be an enemy to your enemies and will oppose those who oppose you." (Exodus 23:22)

 

• “Rejoice, O nations, with his people, for he will avenge the blood of his servants; he will take vengeance on his enemies and make atonement for his land and people." (Deuteronomy 32:43)

 

• "When you go to war against your enemies and see horses and chariots and an army greater than yours, do not be afraid of them, because the LORD your God, who brought you up out of Egypt, will be with you….For the LORD your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.” (Deuteronomy 20:1, 4)

 

• "For the LORD your God moves about in your camp to protect you and to deliver your enemies to you. Your camp must be holy, so that he will not see among you anything indecent and turn away from you." (Deuteronomy 23:14)

 

• "Blessed are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD? He is your shield and helper and your glorious sword. Your enemies will cower before you, and you will trample down their high places.”" (Deuteronomy 33:29)

 

• "They cried out to the LORD and said, ‘We have sinned; we have forsaken the LORD and served the Baals and the Ashtoreths. But now deliver us from the hands of our enemies, and we will serve you.’" (1 Samuel 12:10)

 

• When King David was dying and passing on the kingship to his son Solomon, he said, "May the LORD give you discretion and understanding when he puts you in command over Israel, so that you may keep the law of the LORD your God. Then you will have success if you are careful to observe the decrees and laws that the LORD gave Moses for Israel." (1 Chronicles 22:12-13)

 

• "I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I will make your name great, like the names of the greatest men of the earth." (2 Samuel 7:9)

 

• "David sang to the LORD the words of this song when the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said: “The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation. He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior— from violent men you save me. I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies." (2 Samuel 22:1-4)

 

• "He is the God who avenges me, who puts the nations under me, who sets me free from my enemies. You exalted me above my foes; from violent men you rescued me. Therefore I will praise you, O LORD, among the nations; I will sing praises to your name. He gives his king great victories; he shows unfailing kindness to his anointed, to David and his descendants forever.”" (2 Samuel 22:48-51)

 

• "Show the wonder of your great love, you who save by your right hand those who take refuge in you from their foes. Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings from the wicked who assail me, from my mortal enemies who surround me." (Psalm 17:7-9)

 

• "For the director of music. Of David the servant of the LORD. He sang to the LORD the words of this song when the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said: I love you, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies. The cords of death entangled me; the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me. The cords of the grave coiled around me; the snares of death confronted me. In my distress I called to the LORD; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears." (Psalm 18:1-6)

 

• (The psalmist is speaking about his “God my savior” v.46) "who saves me from my enemies. You exalted me above my foes; from violent men you rescued me." (Psalm 18:48)

 

• “Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle.” (Psalm 24:8)  Where the term ‘Lord’ appears in the NIV translation in the American Standard translation the word is ‘Jehovah’.

 

• A psalm. A song. For the dedication of the temple. Of David. I will exalt you, O LORD, for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me." (Psalm 30:1)

 

• "Of David. A psalm. The LORD says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” The LORD will extend your mighty scepter from Zion; you will rule in the midst of your enemies." (Psalm 110:1-2)

 

Enemies, enemies. How many they are--creatures of flesh and blood!

 

                                      Salvation Or Deliverance Is Not Related To The Fact Of Sin

 

 

This is not to say that in Old Testament times God did not reveal that he was offended by sinful behavior. Many times he said that sinful behavior, unholy behavior, was displeasing to him.

·         "A psalm of David. LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill? He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from his heart and has no slander on his tongue, who does his neighbor no wrong and casts no slur on his fellowman, who despises a vile man but honors those who fear the LORD, who keeps his oath even when it hurts, who lends his money without usury and does not accept a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things will never be shaken." (Psalm 15)

However the verses in the Old Testament that reveal God’s attitude toward sinful behavior are not found in the books of Moses, the books of the Law, the 1^st five books of the Bible, which were held in highest regard by the leaders of the Jewish faith.  (To see additional verses click here) 

         While the terms ‘sin’ or ‘sinning’ occurs at least 95 times in the 1^st five books of the Bible, the books of Moses, the books of the law the idea of salvation is rarely (if ever) connected with the idea that it means (or even includes) deliverance from the dominion of sin, the power of sin or the penalty for sin. However, alongside this concept of salvation in the Old Testament which does not associate sin and salvation there are some verses which do state or imply this association. King David in the book of Psalms written centuries later recorded this prayer: “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin….Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight,….Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. Surely you desire truth in the inner parts…. Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. (Psalm 51:1-2, 4, 5-6, 9-10)

 

Not only is sin or sinning mentioned many, many, times in the Old Testament but it is also clearly stated that no human being totally avoids all behavior that is sinful and offensive to the Holy God. Yet the concept of salvation is still not connected with the idea of deliverance from the dominion or power of sin.

·         “Do not bring your servant into judgment, for no one living is righteous before you. (Psalm 143:2)

·         “There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins. (Ecclesiastes 7:20)

·         “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.” (Isaiah 64:6)

This truth is repeated in the New Testament—It is the apostle Paul, a former religious leader of the Jews who quotes the Old Testament, saying, “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…. for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:10-12, 23; see also Psalm 14:3)

 

                         What Salvation Means In The New Testament           

                                                   ‘Enemies’ in the New Testament

 

Who are our ‘enemies and why are they our enemies?  While in the Old Testament the ‘enemies’ were seen as beings of flesh and blood (beings whose interest was in having more of what this world has to offer) in the New Testament the enemies of God and of believers are specifically ‘identified’ as not being creatures of flesh and blood.

The Bible is very explicit about what believers are opposed by. It says, “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12)

Perhaps this fact becomes clearer when we think of ‘what it is about God, Christ, and his people that the ‘enemies’ of God’s people, of Christ/God do not like. The answer is--holiness. The enemies of Christians are enemies of Christians because we are not like them. Because of what God has done for them (1 Peter 2:9; Colossians 1:13; Isaiah 53:5; 2 Corinthians 5:21; Romans 8:3) believers are saints, holy beings whose presence is a constant reminder to unholy beings of their unacceptability (and its consequences).  For that reason the very presence of holy beings elicits the hostile response from the unholy.

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• Jesus said that the world “hates me because I testify that what it does is evil.” To his brothers who at that time were unbelievers Jesus said, “The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify that what it does is evil.” (John 7:7) .

 

• Jesus told his disciples (and all believers) that “If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.” (John 15:19)
  
  
• ;“By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.” (Hebrews 11:7)  
                       
• On another occasion Jesus said, “Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed.” (John 3:20)
  
  

The Bible identifies our enemies by name or title.

 

• "The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God." (2 Corinthians 4:4)
  
  
• "Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out." (John 12:31)
  
  
• "And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he (the Christ) made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross." (Colossians 2:15)
  
  
• An exhortation to believers: "Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." (James 4:7)
  
  
• "Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life." (Revelation 2:10; see also 2 Corinthians 2:11)
  
  
• "The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing." (2 Thessalonians 2:9-10)
  
  
• "Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." (1 Peter 5:8)
  
  
• When the apostle Paul was addressing a pagan sorcerer he said, "You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord?"  (Acts 13:10)
  
  
• Jesus addressed some Jews the same way, saying, “Jesus said to them, ‘If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and now am here. I have not come on my own; but he sent me….You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.’ ” (John 8:42, 44)

 

• What did Jesus say to his apostles when he sent them out on their missionary journey? "I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.” (Luke 10:19)
     
• "The last enemy to be destroyed is death.” (1 Corinthians 15:26; see also Hebrews 2:14-15)

Even Jesus’ work while living on earth involved dealing with the ‘enemy’. In the New Testament we read this description of Jesus’ activity on earth: “how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.” (Acts 10:38)

 

The purpose of God sending his Son into human history was to defeat the real enemies of his people. The apostle Paul described the former and the present state of believers resulting from the work of God, saying, ”When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross.  And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” (Colossians 2:13-15)

                                  The term ‘enemies’ as it appears in the New Testament

 

The term ‘enemy’ or ‘enemies’ appear in the New Testament only 36 times (compared with the number times it appears in the Old Testament--339 times). Of these 36 times in the New Testament at least 11 are speaking about the enemies of God or Christ. (Luke 20:43; Acts 2:35; Hebrews 1:13; 10:13, 27; 1 Corinthians 15:25; Luke 19:27; Colossians 1:21; Romans 5:10; James 4:4; Philippians 3:18) Of these few verses in the New Testament at least 5 are speaking about the new attitude the New Testament tells believers to have towards their ‘flesh and blood’ enemies (Matthew 5:43-44; Luke 6:26, 35; Romans 12:20)

 

Another difference between what was revealed in the two Testaments is in the attitude believers should have towards those people of ‘flesh and blood’ who act like enemies.

 

That the real ‘enemies’ of believers are not ‘flesh and blood’ is set forth indirectly by the fact that we ‘resist’ them by using weapons that are appropriate for resisting the kind of opponent that they are. Who fights elephants with a fly swatter? Who tries to get rid of swarms of bees with a baseball bat?  Who uses guns to overcome a spirit? Only the appropriate kind of ‘weapon and armor’ is of any use.

• “The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:4-5)
  
  
• Even forgiveness is a defense against Satan. The apostle Paul said in his letter to the believers in Corinth, “And what I have forgiven--if there was anything to forgive--I have forgiven in the sight of Christ for your sake, in order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.” (2 Corinthians 2:10-11)  
  
  

The Bible tells believers how to ‘fight the good fight’.

 

·         “Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6:10-17)   

 

In both portions of God’s word there is a battle between ‘good and evil’ going on. But in the Old Testament the battle is between God’s people and other ‘people’ whereas in the New Testament the battle is described as between believers and more invisible and supernatural entities even though human beings may be involved (like bit players in a play). (2 Corinthians 11:13-15)            

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Unlike in the Old Testament salvation does not consist in overcoming human enemies. Why? Because human enemies are pawns, pawns of higher powers. The ‘god’ of this world has blinded them. (2 Corinthians 4:4) Part of the mission God gave to the apostle Paul was to redirect such people-- “to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.' (Acts 26:18)

 

Because human enemies are pawns the attitude God’s people should have towards them should not be to be to beat them down, to overcome them, or even to be delivered from them.

 

• Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said, `Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'  But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.’ “  (Matthew 5:43-44)
   
• "But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you.” (Luke 6:27)

 

• And again, “But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.  (Luke 6:35)

 

• The Bible does not instruct believers to hate their enemies. “On the contrary: ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.’ " (Romans 12:20)

 

• “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:11-12)

 

• What was the apostle Paul’s attitude toward the enemies of the cross? “For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things.” (Philippians 3:18-19)

 

The attitude believers should have towards all people (including their human enemies) is part of a broader command—to show love. It is not the role of believers to condemn anyone  (James 4:11; Romans 12:19) that is God’s prerogative. It is God’s choice whether to demand perfect obedience to his Law or to show mercy. (Romans 9:18; Luke 18:13)

 

                                                        The Nature Of The Race, The Struggle, The War
                                                                     That Every Believer Is Involved In?

                                               The ‘Opponent’ In This Struggle Is Sin

 

However, it is not easy or perhaps even possible to always make a distinction between ‘sin’ and the Spirit-Enemy (Satan) that is the embodiment of sin.

 

In the New Testament salvation is unequivocally shown to mean deliverance from the power of sin which is universal. (Galations 3:22; 1 Peter 2:9; Colossians 1:13) 

 

·         “Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God…..In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.” (Hebrews 12:1-2, 4) This is what the Christian life is all about!

 

·         "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." (1 Corinthians 10:13)

 

·         The apostle Paul described the condition which everyone who is a believer now used to be in. "All of us (believers) also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath." (Ephesians 2:3)

·         “Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.” (1 Peter 2:11)

 

·         But now believers are told, "do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires." (Romans 6:12)

 

·         “So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want." (Galatians 5:16-17)  This is what the Christian life is all about!

 

·         "You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God." (James 4:4)

 

·         Believers are told--"if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live," (Romans 8:13)

 

·         The apostle Paul when he was an unbeliever was under the control of sin as much as anyone else was. When he became a believer the power of sin while it was no longer his master remained a force in his life. He said of himself, "I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members." (Romans 7:23)  The fact that the apostle was not, as it were, ‘pulled under’ by the power of sin was because--like all believers--he had been delivered out of the dominion of sin. (Colossians 1:13; Galatians 1:4)

 

·         "Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires." (Galatians 5:24)

 

·         Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature." (Romans 13:14)

 

Our enemy is not physical any more than desires, passions or temptations are

 

        What Does Winning The War Mean?

 

 

 For believers it means walking worthy of God’s calling. It means being like Jesus. That is the victory, the goal.
          

• The apostle exhorted the believers in or around Ephesus with these words, saying, "As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received." (Ephesians 4:1)

 

• In another letter to believers he put it this way: "Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ " (Philippians 1:27)
  
  
• "Encouraging, comforting and urging (believers) to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory"  was a big part of the mission God gave to the apostle Paul. (1 Thessalonians 2:12; see also Acts 20:20,27,31)
  
• "And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God." (Colossians 1:10)
  
  
• It was God’s intention that his people would be conformed to the image of the Son of God. “For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” (Romans 8:29)
  
  

It was God’s intention that his people would be holy and blameless.

 

Why did Christ do what he did? “…as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless." (Ephesians 5:25—27; see also 1 Peter 1:15-16; Ephesians 1:4; Jude 24)

 

What is the battle is over? What is the strategic ‘location’ that each side in the war wish to control and possess? The human heart. It is what comes from within or from the ‘heart’ that counts in God’s eyes; it is the condition of the heart that is decisive.

 

The ‘place’ where the battle for possession of the ‘heart’ takes place is inside the individual.

 

• The apostle Paul (who had grown up on God’s revelations recorded in the Old Testament, the Jew that God chose to write most of the letters that make up the New Testament) said this of himself, “”I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin. (Romans 7:25) And in the preceding verses, he said, “I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members…. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?  (Romans 7:23-24) His answer to that question was not to exert more effort to live up to God’s every standard.

 

• In the book of James believers are warned from whence the remaining sin comes: “Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? ….But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth….For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. (4:8) Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded." (James 3:10-11, 14, 16; 4:8)

 

• Though Jesus does not mention the ‘heart’ in the following quote it points out the gap between observable behavior and what is on the inside of a man. He says this: "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. ‘Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.’ " (Matthew 23:25-28)

 

• "The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!" (Hebrews 9:13-14)

 

• The writer of the book of James addresses these words to believers, saying, “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?" (James 4:1)  

 

• "For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world." (1 John 2:16)  

 

• "You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God." (James 4:4)
  
  
• What is decisively important to God is what is in the heart. To the leaders of the Jews Jesus said, "You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me,  yet you refuse to come to me to have life…. but I know you. I know that you do not have the love of God in your hearts." (John 5:39-40, 42)

 

• “The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)

 

• The following statement was made by the apostle Peter early in the period of history when many Jews were wrestling with the idea that God could treat non-Jews the same way he treats Jews. Peter, one of first Jews to associate with, and to speak of God’s blessings to, non-Jews spoke to the gathering of the leaders of the early church in Jerusalem (which consisted of almost all, if not all, Jews) about his experience with Gentiles. This is what he told them: “God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them (some Gentiles) by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. He made no distinction between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. (Acts 15:8-9) 

 

Why were the believers in Colossae exhorted to give thanks to God? Because the apostle reminds the believers that it was God himself  ”who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light.” (Colossians 1:12)

 

• "No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man’s praise is not from men, but from God." (Romans 2:29)

 

• ”In him (Christ) you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ.” (Colossians 2:11)

 

The New Testament makes it abundantly clear that what pleases God (holiness) or offends God (sinfulness) is what comes from the heart.

 

                                                            The ‘Big’ Sin

 

Non-acknowledgment of God. The New Testament emphasizes the fact that the non- acknowledgment of God is the ‘big’ sin, the big sin that underlies every specific sin.

 

No activity or behavior is approved of by God if it does not spring from faith. The Bible says very clearly that “without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6)  Obedient conformity to countless other requirements of the law doesn’t overcome the sin of non-acknowledgment of God or what the Bible also refers to as not having the ‘fear of God’. (James 2:10)  

 

There is no shortage of verses in the Old Testament which speak of the great value God puts on being acknowledged by his creatures.

 

• “Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the LORD is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other.  (Deuteronomy 4):3

 

• "Do not profane my holy name. I must be acknowledged as holy by the Israelites. I am the LORD, who makes you holy  (Leviticus 22:32)

 

• "For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings. (Hosea 6:6)

 

• "With what shall I come before the LORD and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (Micah 6:6-8)

 

• "You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. (Ps.51.16-17)

 

• "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.”  (Psalm 91:14)

 

• When King David was passing on the kingship to his son he said these words: "And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts.” (1 Chronicles 28:9) 

 

• “In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.“ (Proverbs 3:6)

 

There are many declarations of God in the Old Testament which indicate very clearly how God feels about being acknowledged by his creatures. However, in practice those statements of God were overshadowed by the repeated enforcement of the commands of God which spoke of physical (and visible) actions; actions which transgressed specific provisions of God’s law or were the remedies (the ‘sacrifices of atonement’) the law prescribed to ‘cleanse the person of the guilt or pollution which specific transgressions had brought upon the individual.

 

There is a massive number of verses in the Old Testament which set forth specific obligations or duties connected with defilement of the flesh, verses especially in the books of Moses dealing with specific sins and the ‘legal’ remedy for overcoming the guilt or pollution specific transgressions had producedh. Conforming to these requirements verses took so much effort In practice these verses ‘drowned out’ those verses of God in the Old Testament which spoke of the importance of acknowledging/fearing God.

 

While the term ‘sin’ is mentioned constantly in the first 5 books of the Bible (the books of Moses) in connection with specific activities that are considered transgressions of what God’s law requires the concept ‘sin’ is never mentioned in connection with the biggest sin against God—the non-acknowledgment of God. (A biblical equivalent of non-acknowledgment is ‘no fear of God’.)

 

                                                                What God Wants

 

In the New Testament what is the dividing line (not necessarily visible) that sets the individual who is a ‘holy one’ or ‘saint’ apart from everyone else who is by definition ‘unholy’? Or, to put the question in a different way, we could ask, What is the ‘behavior’ that means the most to God and which characterizes every saint (i.e., every true believer) – acknowledgement of God, fear of God, and purity of heart. Because these state-of-affairs cannot be observed they cannot be examined or evaluated or compared to God’s standards.

 

• “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship. 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.“ (Romans 12:1-2)

 

• ”Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven.“ (Matthew 10:32)

 

• “I tell you, whoever acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man will also acknowledge him before the angels of God.“ (Luke 12:8)

 

• “If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God.“ (1 John 4:15) 
  
  
• "This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God,“(1 John 4:2)

 

• “But every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world.“ (1 John 4:3)

 

• “He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels.“ (Revelation 3:5)

 

 

How does God exhort his people (believers) to ‘behave’ in holy ways? He informs them of the kind of behavior that holy people exhibit.

 

                                            ‘Behaviors’ to avoid and ‘behaviors’ to show

 

• The believer’s response to the gracious deliverance of God is to "put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry." (Colossians 3:5)

 

• "Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature." (Romans 13:13-14) This is what the Christian life is all about!

 

• “But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. “ (1 (Thessalonians 5:8)

 

• "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light" (Ephesians 5:8)

 

More instruction as to how to walk worthy of God’s calling is given in the New Testament. The apostle Peter sums up the way to please God in these words, saying, “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 1:3-8

 

What does the grace of God that brings salvation say to believers? "It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age," (Titus 2:12)

 

• The apostle Paul puts it this way, saying, "Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God." (2 Corinthians 7:1)

 

What is the Christian life taken up with? Putting on the new man. Believers are told "Put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." (Ephesians 4:24) “Put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator." (Colossians 3:10)

 

• "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.” (Colossians 3:12; see also 2 Peter 1:5-8,10-11)

 

• "The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light." (Romans 13:12)

 

Another way to describe nature of the Christian life and the objective of the Christian life is this: “continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling“ (Philippians 2:12) 

 

No wonder that we praise “him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy-" (Jude 24)

 

 

                                        The ‘Location’ or the 'When' of the Rewards or Blessings of Salvation                                                                                 

Where the rewards or blessings of salvation are enjoyed is different in the Old Testament and in the New Testament.. Another way of expressing this change is to say that in the New Testament the emphasis or focus is no longer on a better or more pleasurable life in this world but on what takes place in the eternal dimension.

 

·        “…the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men… But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives  as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.  But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.” (2 Peter 1:7-8,10-13; to see where the focus of God's enemies is see Philippians 3:19-20)

 

·         “I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable." (1 Corinthians 15:50)

 

·         On the very night when Jesus was arrested he said to the Roman official he had been brought to, "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place." (John 18:36)

 

·         When Jesus sent his apostles out on a missionary journey he said to them, “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matthew 10:28)

 

·         “Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Matthew 10:39)

 

·         "The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world." (Luke 4:5)

 

·         It was Jesus the Christ who came from a different dimension "who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father," (Galatians 1:4)

 

·         What did Jesus the Christ do for us that the Law of God could never do? "For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves," (Colossians 1:13) 

 

·         The apostle Paul said, “it is written: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him.’ " (1 Corinthians 2:9)

 

·         Speaking of people who live as enemies of the cross of Christ the apostle Paul says, "Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Philippians 3:19-20)
 

·         Speaking about his own destiny the apostle Paul said, "Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.  (2 Timothy 4:8)

·         "And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.”(Peter 5:4)

 

In the last book of the Bible we get a glimpse into the eternal dimension. “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away,…  ‘Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Revelation 21:1,3-4)

 

While it was the action of God which delivered us from the power and penalty of sin that accomplishment did not eliminate our need of God’s guidance, for revelations of his will. That action of God did not eliminate the need redeemed sinners (believers) have for revelations concerning the kind of behavior that pleases a holy God.

 

That sinners face condemnation is not because they have failed to keep the letter of the law. It is because they are sinners. It is because the state of their hearts is ungodly. Keeping the letter of the law does not indicate that the state of the heart is godly anymore than a beautiful paint job indicates that the wood underneath it is pure.

 

According to the revelation of the New Testament to have the thought that ‘because I have done what God says in the Old Testament I should do to atone for the specific sins I have committed I am now forgiven—acceptable in God’s eyes’--is to have in one’s mind or heart a belief that excludes the Gospel because it is totally incompatible with the Gospel. If my actions have atoned for my sins, if my actions have made me acceptable to God because they have cleansed me why do I need Christ? (Philippians 3:3-9; James 2:10)

 

The apostle Paul dealt with this specific issue, saying, "if righteousness could be gained through the law (the keeping of the law), Christ died for nothing!”" (Galatians 2:21; see also Galatians 3:21; Psalm 14:1; 143:2)

 

• Jesus’ teachings dealt with this specific issue, saying, “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean. "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness." (Matthew 23:25-28)

 

• “The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus and saw some of his disciples eating food with hands that were “unclean,” that is, unwashed. (The Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing, holding to the tradition of the elders. When they come from the marketplace they do not eat unless they wash. And they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of cups, pitchers and kettles.) 

 So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, “Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with ‘unclean’   

    hands? He replied, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: ’These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.                           They     worship  me   in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’ You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men.” (Mark 7:1-8)

 

Like germs that lodge in certain organs of the body sin ‘lodges in’ and grows in the heart. Unless the sin is removed from there--from the heart-- it will continue to multiply and gush forth

 

• Jesus made the point, saying, "Don't you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body?  But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man `unclean.' For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what make a man `unclean'; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him `unclean.' "  (Matthew 15:17-20; see also James 3:11,14,16; 4:8)

 

Keeping God’s written law is good but, according to God’s clear revelations in the New Testament, it is not enough to make one holy and entitled to God’s promise of salvation. “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; see also Psalm 14:3; Isaiah 64:6)

 

A book of the Old Testament which illustrates how law-keeping is not synonymous with `real' acknowledgment and recognition of who God is is the book of Job. (esp. Job 1:1; 42:5-6)

 

The reward or prize that the New Testament writers speak about over and over is the inheritance of Eternal Life. Such an end result or objective is vastly different from salvation from ‘flesh and blood’ enemies who live for but a moment or from fleeting circumstances like sickness, poverty or death which cease to have any meaning to the individual when his or her body has disintegrated.

 

                        The term ‘eternal’ in the Old Testament  and in the New Testament

In the New Testament the term ‘eternal’ is mentioned far more often that in the Old Testament even though the New Testament contains less than a third as many verses as the Old Testament. The term 'eternal' is mentioned 67 times in the New Testament but only 18 times in the Old Testament. And of these 18 occurrences 12 of them refer to God, his attributes or his word.  

•    .     "The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms. He will drive out your enemy before you, saying, ‘Destroy him!’" (Deuteronomy 33:27)

•              "Your throne was established long ago; you are from all eternity." (Psalm 93:2)

•        "Your word, O Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens." (Psalm 119:89)  
  

•          "He stood, and shook the earth; he looked, and made the nations tremble. The ancient mountains crumbled and the age-old hills collapsed. His ways are eternal." (Habakkuk 3:6)
  

•         "How great are his signs, how mighty his wonders! His kingdom is an eternal kingdom; his dominion endures from generation to generation." (Daniel 4:3)

•         "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise." (Psalm 111:10)
  

•         "He will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove the disgrace of his people from all the earth. The Lord has spoken."
          (Isaiah 25:8)

Only twice in the Old Testament is the term 'eternal' associated with the blessings or rewards an individual may enjoy in the future. Both of these verses are in the Psalms written centuries after God's delivering his people from their bondage in Egypt (the Exodus) and the giving of the Law and its subsequent repetition in the course of Israel's history.--  

•     .  "You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand." (Psalm 16:11 )
  

•        "Surely you have granted him eternal blessings and made him glad with the joy of your presence." (Psalm 21:6)

 

 

.       

                                                                                             WHO IS SAVED? 

 

The ‘What’ And The ‘Who’ Of Salvation

 

There is a very close connection between the meaning of salvation as being delivered from the power and penalty of sin, as having a new heart, and the matter of ‘who is saved’. The doctrine or truth about the meaning of salvation excludes the possibility that anyone could have a unique qualification or right to receive the blessing of salvation, (as if being a descendant of Abraham was a unique qualification). In the New Testament the very concept of salvation necessitates a universal or unrestricted application to all kinds of people-equally to Jews and to everybody else. And what is that standard that God holds in front of everybody (which by definition includes Jews)? Purity of the heart. In the New Testament God's apostles and writers make it clear that what concerns God the most is not the purity of our flesh but the purity of our hearts.

That God was concerned about the `purity of the heart' was not first revealed in the time of Christ but was present in the Old Testament. That God was concerned with the purity of the ‘heart’ is stated in the Old Testament numerous times. However, the verses (like Psalm 15 and 51) which revealed this supreme concern of God regarding the purity in the inner man were lost amid the many commands and the more easily enforceable commands in the Old Testament that have to do with the purity or ‘undefiledness’ of the visible body.

 

• Jesus said, ”But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man `unclean.' For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.  These are what make a man `unclean'; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him `unclean.' " (Matthew 15:18-20)

That purity of heart, acknowledgment or recognition of God was God's standard, that purity of heart, acknowledgment or recognition of God was the feature that sets God's people apart was in many ways a novel idea which led to a great deal of reflection and wrestling in the early church which consisted of Jews or associated God-fearers. Who the recipients or beneficiaries of God’s gifts are is no longer affected by the fact that people are descendants of Abraham but is now equated with ‘whoever believes’ When salvation is spoken of in the New Testament no special advantage or privilege is given to the descendants of Abraham; they are no longer special; Jews are saved from God’s judgment on sins in exactly the same way every non-Jew is saved: by believing in Jesus, that is, by acknowledging who he was\is and acknowledging the salvation he brought.

• “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.’ " (Romans 10:12-13)

 

Everybody who is not a believer is by definition an unbeliever. Since the coming of Christ and the fulfillment of his mission everybody on earth falls in one category or the other. The wall which for centuries had separated the population of the world into two categories--Jew or Gentiles (that is, everybody who was not a Jew)  is broken down by Jesus Christ. (Colossians 3:11; Ephesians 2:11-14)    

The population of the earth is now divided into believers and unbelievers. According to God’s revelations in the New Testament God’s promises include Jews who ‘qualify’ to be part of the people of God. But their physical ancestry or heritage is no longer a factor in determining whether they ‘qualify’; Whether a Jew or anyone else qualifies depends upon whether he or she believes in Jesus and what his sacrificial death accomplished. 

•      In the book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible this is the song that the elders sang to Jesus, “You are worthy…..because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.” (Revelation 5:9-10)
  

The Struggle in the Early Church 

 

One of the great struggles in the early church which in the beginning consisted of mostly of Jews (who had grown up on the Old Testament) was for the them to accept the fact that to be one of God’s people you did not have to become a Jew and did not have to keep the law of Moses. Many of the apostles (all Jews) came to understand this and became martyrs in non-Jewish lands before the New Testament existed (that is, before the gospels or the letters (‘epistles’) the apostles and other inspired writers addressed to young churches or new believers were written down.)

It was this issue of how God looks upon persons not born in and raised in the Jewish faith were to be viewed and treated that was the first big issue that the first church council in Jerusalem met to consider.

• "Some men came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the brothers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them.  So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question...Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses.”

• " The apostles and elders met to consider this question. After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: “Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. He made no distinction between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith.Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of the disciples a yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear? ....“It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. For Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.” (Acts 15:1-21)
  
  

The church council then sent the following letter to Gentile believers: 

• “It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the

             meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things.” (Acts 15:28-29)

In J.Gresham Machen’s book on the New Testament he wrote about the apostle Paul’s letter to the churches in Galatia, saying,’ the Epistle to the Galatians…has just one purpose—to prevent the Galation Christians from yielding to the demands of the Judaisers.

 

In the New Testament this subject is treated at some length. 

•  "Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (that done in the body by the hands of  men)—remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace,” (Ephesians 2:11-15)  

• ".. the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to men in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets. This mystery is that through     the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus." (Ephesians 3:4-6) 

 

• "“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 have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd." (John 10:14-16) 

 

• "No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man's praise is not from men, but from God. (Romans 2:29) 

 

• “For they are not all Israel, that are of Israel: neither, because they are Abraham’s seed, are they all children: but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called. That is, it is not the children of the flesh that are children of God; but the children of the promise are reckoned for a seed. For this is a word of promise, (Romans 9:6-8)  

 

• “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.’" (Romans 10:11-13)

 

How God’s People Are Described Before Christ And Since

Whereas throughout Old Testament times God referred almost exclusively to the Jews (the physical descendants of Abraham) as ‘his people’ now ‘his people’ is described as ‘those who are saved’, as the  ‘elect’, as ‘those in Christ’, as ‘those who belong to Christ’; God’s people are citizens of heaven. The Jews are not a category of people whose entitlement to salvation derives     from a bestowal God’s grace that is separate from God’s grace bestowed upon his ‘elect’, upon  those ‘in Christ’, those who belong to Christ, etc.

 

Note how the Bible identifies the people who know they are recipients of God’s gift of salvation—““Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.” (Hebrews 9:28) 

 

Because the very definition of sin includes every human being who ever lived both Jews--those specially privileged people to whom God had given his law and his guidance--as well as everybody else the line that separates the recipients or beneficiaries of salvation from those people who are left under the judgment of God is no longer between Jews and Gentiles but between believers and unbelievers.  

In the New Testament the term ‘elect’ or ‘chosen’ (not the term ‘Jew’) is the name of God’s people. What God’s people are called in the New Testament stage of God’s plan is: the ‘elect’ or the ’chosen’.

·         "Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.” (2 Timothy 2:10)

·         “For many are invited, but few are chosen."  (Matthew 22:14)

·         “If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.” (Matthew 22:24)

·         “And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.  (Matthew 24:31)

·          “And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off?”  (Luke 18:7)

·         “For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and miracles to deceive the elect-if that were possible.” (Mark 13:22) 

·         "If the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would survive. But for the sake of the elect, whom he has chosen, he has shortened them.  (Mark 13:20) 
 

·         "I am not referring to all of you; I know those I have chosen. But this is to fulfill the scripture: `He who shares my bread has lifted up his heel against me.' (John 13:18) 
  

·         "If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.  (John 15:19)
   

·         “But the Lord said to Ananias, "Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel.” (Acts 9:15)

·         “Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.“ (Romans 8:33)

·         "Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad-in order that God's purpose in election might stand” (Romans 9:11)

·         "What then? What Israel sought so earnestly it did not obtain, but the elect did. The others were hardened,  (Romans 11:7)  

·         "In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will.” (Ephesians 1:11)

·         "Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.” (Colossians 3:12)

·         "Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To God's elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus…, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father…“ (1 Peter 1:1-2) 
 

·         "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.“ (1 Peter 2:9)

·         "Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the faith of God's elect and the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness-  (Titus 1:1) 

·         "Listen, my dear brothers: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him?  (James 2:5)

·         "They will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will overcome them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings-and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers."  (Revelation 17:14)

Christ himself is spoken of as the ‘elect’ or ‘chosen’ 

• "Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the one I love, in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will
  proclaim justice to the nations.  (Matt 12:18) 
   

• "A voice came from the cloud, saying, "This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him."  (Luke 9:35) 
  

• The apostle Peter speaks to believers about Christ, saying, ""He (the Christ) was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.“ (1 Peter 1:20) 
  

• And again, "As you come to him, the living Stone-rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him-  (1 Peter 2:4) 
  

• And again, “For in Scripture it says: "See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame." (1 Peter 2:6)

The people for whom Jesus the Christ, the chosen one, died are called by names that relate to an act of God: 'Choosing' 

                                                                        Saints in the Old Testament 

While many individuals in Old Testament times were influenced by the apparent emphasis in the Old Testament on the purity of the body not everyone forgot what was most important--as the believers or saints of the Old Testament must have understood. Salvation did not begin with the coming of the Christ the completion of his mission. Believers existed in Old Testament times. Both some Jews and others were saved in Old Testament times for the same reason anybody is saved today--because they believed in God, because they feared God, because they acknowledged God. Such people were saints and God's people as much as believers are today. 

• Noah--“By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.” (Hebrews 11:7)

 

• Abraham. The 'father' of the faithful. The father of Jacob and the grandfather of Isaac. The man who was told to lay his son on the altar. The Bible tells us that he feared God (Genesis 22:12) In the Bible we read, “Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed.” (Romans 4:18) “He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed--the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.” (Romans 4:17) “Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God,…being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. This is why "it was credited to him as righteousness." (Romans 4:20, 21, 22)

 

• Moses--“He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.” (Hebrews 11:25-26)

 

Many other Old Testament saints, named and unnamed, are mentioned along with their exploits in the well known chapter in the New Testament known as the ‘Heroes of the Faith” chapter.

 

• “All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. And they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth.” (Hebrews 11:13) While ‘these people’ were probably Jews that fact is not mentioned or alluded to.
  
  
• “If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country-a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. (Hebrews 11:15-16)
  
  
• Job--“I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the earth.: And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God; I myself will see him with my own eyes--I, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!” (Job 19:25-27)
  
  
• The recorder of God's revelations in the book of Hebrews speaks about the life of believers in Old Testament times, saying, “I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, (leaders who are mentioned by name in Israel's history) who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated—the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.

       These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised.” (Hebrews 11:32-39)  

 

There are many statements in the Old Testament that speak of the same destiny, the same inheritance, and same hope that believers now have.

 

·         "In the way of righteousness there is life; along that path is immortality." (Proverbs 12:28)

 

·         "And I—in righteousness I will see your face; when I awake, I will be satisfied with seeing your likeness." (Psalm 17:15)

·         "The days of the blameless are known to the Lord, and their inheritance will endure forever." (Psalm 37:18)

·         "Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt." (Daniel 12:2)

•   “I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death. O Death, I will be your plagues! O Grave, I will be your destruction! Pity is hidden from  My              eyes.”  (Hosea 13:14, New King James Version)

Because nuggets of the Gospel are strewn throughout the pages of the Old Testament there is no reason to doubt the hope and vision that the saints of Old Testament times had. (To see a very brief list of these nuggets click here; currently is a separate file in this directory)

 

“For they are not all Israel, that are of Israel: neither, because they are Abraham’s seed, are they all children: but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called. That is, it is not the children of the flesh that are children of God; but the children of the promise are reckoned for a seed. For this is a word of promise.” (Romans 9:6-8)

 

       THE NEW ERA WHICH THE CHRIST INAUGURATED WAS MORE THAN THE FULFILLMENT THAT                       THE BELIEVERS OF OLD TESTAMENT PROPHECIES HAD CONCEIVED OR IMAGINED 

The Salvation That Jesus The Christ Brought Was More Thorough Going 

 

The salvation that the sacrificial death of Christ purchased for every believer (Acts 20:28)n was more thorough going than the deliverances of God described in the Old Testament. What Jesus the Christ accomplished-his sacrificial death on the cross and resurrection from the dead-now turned individuals who believed in Jesus the Christ into heirs of Christ, heirs to an eternal inheritance, citizens of heaven. (Romans 8:17; Philippians 3:20; 1 Peter 1:3-5)

• What did Jesus say? "I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he." (Matthew 11:11) 

 

• Jesus said, `My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.' " (John 18:36)  

 

• The truth that the apostle Paul reveals is breath-taking. He said to believers’ "All things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas (Peter) or the world or life or death or the present or the future-all are yours, and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God." (1 Corinthians 3:21-23; see also Romans 8:37-39)    

 

·         "Lift up your eyes to the heavens, look at the earth beneath; the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment and its inhabitants die like flies. But my salvation will last forever, my righteousness will never fail." (Isaiah 51:6)  

• "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." (Revelation 21:3-4)  

 

While the eternal destiny of believers as described above is expressly set forth in the New Testament that destiny is not limited to believers who lived at the same time as, or after the time that, the Christ came into history, died a sacrificial death on the Cross, and rose from the dead. (For a further discussion of believers in Old Testament times

 

The destiny of blessings in an eternal dimension which Jesus the Christ earned for God's people included those believers who lived in the ‘pre-Christ’ era. The salvation that Jesus the Christ brought is a lot more than than a momentary deliverance from contemporary `flesh and blood' enemies who only exist for a moment. The salvation that Jesus the Christ brought is a lot more than deliverance from distressing circumstances that will cease to have any meaning when life in this world ceases!     

 

That a new era had begun with the coming of the Christ, with his sacrificial death and with his resurrection from the dead was shown by the fact that God's will is no longer written on stone but on the hearts of the redeemed.

·         “This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time,” declares  the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds (KJV-“inward parts”) and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to  the greatest,” declares the Lord. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” (Jeremiah 31:33-34; quoted in Hebrews 8:10)

Another difference between the two eras is that what pleases God in each era appears to differ. In general in the ‘pre-Christ’ era what pleased God (or the ‘guardians of the Law) appeared to be the keeping of the physical (visible) body pure or undefiled by heeding every ‘negative’ commandment and doing what the Law required to ‘make atonement for’ each specific sin that had been committed. The form in which God’s will was revealed In the Old Testament was a list of discrete commands concerning the physical body.

 

In the ‘pre-Christ’ (Mosaic) era doing what was pleasing to God (or to the religious leaders trying to enforce conformity to God’s law) involved heeding all sorts of commands such as “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!” but in the New Testament being concerned about that kind of matter is specifically warned against. Why? Because as the apostle says such commands “are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence" (which is real sin which comes from the heart or the ‘inner man’) (Colossians 2:21-23)

 

The observance of days or the non-observance of days which was so important during Old Testament times is no longer the dividing line between holy and unholy behavior.   (Romans 14:2-3, 5-6,14-15,21)

·         The apostle Paul warns believers, saying, "do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day." (Colossians 2:16)

 

In the ‘post-Christ’ era, on the other hand, the emphasis was not on physical and visible conformity to every regulation in God’s Law but on the purity of the heart (conformity of the heart of the redeemed sinner to the heart of God) 

 

In the New Testament God’s instruction on how to ‘behave’ in order to please God does not consist of a vast list of ‘do’s and don’t’s’ to be complied with but rather of a single command to have a particular unchanging, pervasive ‘attitude-of-heart’. 

 

 

• “Jesus replied: " `Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the first and greatest commandment.39 And the second is like it: `Love your neighbor as yourself.'40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." (Matthew 22:37-40)
  
• "To love him (God) with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”" (Mark 12:33 )

 

• "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 7:12)

 

• "Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law." (Romans 13:8)

 

• "The entire law is summed up in a single command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”" (Galatians 5:14)

 

When more of God’s history has unfolded a clearer picture reveals a change of emphasis. In the New Testament God sets forth his will, his standards in a different way. . 

This change in approach is significant.  Why? Because the mental equating of “undefiledness” with holiness is misleading. And why is that? Because thinking this is so and consequently devoting time and effort to keeping the physical body pure by the keeping of the commandments which make up God’s law can undermine or thwart the Gospel (of God’s grace).

It brings about this result by focusing attention away from the real issue (the way a magician does or a doctor who announces the wrong diagnosis does). And what is the real gissue that such efforts can hide? The state of the heart.

A way that the importance of this issue reveals itself is that the former way God’s standards were set forth hid the ‘big’ sin which is by its nature 'invisible'. What the New Testament sets forth as the kind of ‘obedience’ that God most wants to see in his people is acknowledgement of God (the fear of God), not whether there has been perfect conformity to each and every command in his Law.  In Old Testament times for many people-not all-the most profound sin (the non-acknowledgment of God, the no fear of God ) is lost amid the multiplicity of commands dealing with specific behaviors.

 

The way the New Testament speaks about what is involved in walking ‘worthy’ of God’s calling differs so much from the way the Old Testament speaks of what pleases God. In the Old Testament the standard was conformity to a multiplicity of discreet commands. In the New Testament the emphasis is on general attitudes toward God; the emphasis is on a ‘unitary’ belief in the person of Jesus Christ.

 

• We read in the book of James, “Whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.” (James 2:10; see also Deuteronomy 27:26; Matthew 5:19; Galations 3:10)

 

‘Belief’. ‘Attitude’. ‘Heart’. Sometimes the New Testament emphasizes basic truths, such as, the truth that the only way to become beneficiaries of the salvation that the post-Christ messengers of God described is by believing in Jesus the Christ.

 

In many different verses the New Testament ‘unifies’ the many commands of the Law. "The entire law is summed up in a single command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”" (Galatians 5:14;see also Matthew 7:12; 22:37-40; Mark 12:33 ; Romans 13:8)

 

While, as mentioned before, in the New Testament the standard of how to ‘behave’ to please God is summed up in repeated statements about a single, unchanging, pervasive attitude of heart which is an internal change, the 'behavioral' evidence of this new attitude of heart may be very visible. The internal change which the Bible often describes as God's law written on the heart produces many different evidences of its presence. 

 

The apostle Peter illustrated this when after listing the virtues that believers should be exhibiting (faith, goodness, knowledge, self-control, perseverance, godliness, brotherly kindness, love), he concluded by saying, “if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ…For if you do these things, you will never fall, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (2 Peter 1:(5-7) 8,10-11)

 

‘New wine’ must not be made to fit into the confines of old wineskins 

 

 

In many places the gospel records record the difference in the outlook between the ‘teachers of the law’ (scribes), that of the Pharisees, and Jesus. On one of those many occasions Jesus used a parable to illustrate the difference. He said, “And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins” (Luke 5:37-38)  While nowhere is this statement specifically related to the different view points that were emphasized in the Old and New Testaments the context of the statement clearly deals with the different behavior of the Pharisees and the disciples of Jesus. The above quoted statement of Jesus was part of Jesus’ reply to the teachers of the Law and the Pharisee when they asked Jesus about the behavior of his disciples in comparison to the behavior of their own disciples. Their question was-- "John's disciples (the Baptist’s) often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking." (Luke 5:33) Jesus’ immediate answer indicated that his disciples recognized that Jesus was something unique, ‘in a class by himself’-- "Can you make the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them?”

“The incongruities mentioned in Lu 5:36–38 were intended to illustrate the difference between the genius of the old and new economies, and the danger of mixing up the one with the other. As in the one case supposed, “the rent is made worse,” (Luke 5:36) and in the other, “the new wine is spilled,” so by a mongrel mixture of the ascetic ritualism of the old with the spiritual freedom of the new economy, both are disfigured and destroyed. The additional parable in Lu 5:39, which is peculiar to Luke, has been variously interpreted. But the “new wine” seems plainly to be the evangelical freedom which Christ was introducing; and the old, the opposite spirit of Judaism: men long accustomed to the latter could not be expected “straightway”—all at once—to take a liking for the former…” (Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible 1871 by Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown)

 

CONCLUSION

 

 

With the coming of Christ and with his accomplishment on the Cross and his resurrection from the dead the new stage in the unfolding plan of God had arrived!  

 

While the teachings that are the fundamental or pre-eminent teachings of the Gospel or theme of salvation can be found in the Old Testament portion of God’s word it required the intervention of God to reveal which of God’s purposes and teachings expressed in the Old Testament were deserving of emphasis and greater glory. What in Old Testament times were relatively isolated ‘nuggets’ of truth when exposed by the greater light of the New Testament are seen to be the basic truths of salvation, the fundamental features of God’s history and plan of salvation.             In eternity when believers look at how God has been bringing about his purposes the goodness of God and intricacies of his plan will be even clearer.   

 

 

(If you appreciate what you read here please tell your friends about this URL and sign my guest book on the homepage. Also, if, as you read any of the meditations, you feel you know of a situation that beautifully illustrates any of the points made I would be delighted to learn of it. I might incorporate it.) mailto:camppp21355@comcast.net 

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