Old Testament Difficulties, Part 2, The Law

Posted on February 17, 2013 by JohnJ


“For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement.”
Leviticus 17:11

It must be noted that that sacrificing animals was not a part of the original Garden of Eden master plan. But ever since we in our collective descendants have willfully parted ways from our Creator there needed to be a bridge back. Why by death is such a veritable bottomless topic. But God promised Adam if he ate of the forbidden fraught he would die. So die he did. Since then his descendants continued on a highway marking greater and greater separation from the presence of God. Even today, in all our intellectual wisdom and genius and technological brilliance we see little use for Him since we “know” that all that exists is what we see with our senses; We are rather focused on our smart phones our computers, our blogs, our 3-D HD widescreen TVs, our laptops and tablets, our GPS equipped cars and cameras, our Tweets and Facebook, is there really any need for an invisible, untouchable entity from the dark ages to chain us to the past when our technology is propelling us so quickly to glorious heights of the future? This sadly dilutes many an Evangelical Christian’s spiritual fervor since in our modern times does it really make sense that God would intimately intervene daily in our lives? So many of us have bought into the secular world view that He surely would not!

This is the world view that scoffs at the disgusting depiction of a primordial God who demands such wholesale slaughter of animals as a delightful pleasantly appeasing device. And, of course, they say that any understanding of God’s wisdom by such puny mortal beings such as ourselves is a base cop out is a typical Christian argument. But it is the Biblical statement, without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin. (see Hebrew 9:22 which refers back to Lev. 17:11 above.)

So it must be stated that is is by the grace of God that He gave all of mankind a way out of this horrible predicament, that we are all dead in our sins. Without a way of redemption death would be the only answer – eternal separation from God. No hope in this life, nor after! But with the plan of redemption that was spelled out in the Law, the plan that was a tutor that was to foreshadow the once for all and final sacrifice that the prophets revealed later in Israel’s history that would come by God’s Son Jesus Christ mankind would have the way back to fellowship with God. Mankind would be able to see with a new heart and new eyes that this reality only visible by our five senses is only a small part of the ultimate reality. The ultimate reality of God’s entire creation that He wants us to share in.

The blood of man and even beast is precious. It is not to be spilled lightly. But we have so desperately and depravedly lost our way that we kill each other indiscriminately. We have “fun” video games glorifying massacres, we buy weapons on the street almost without even trying, we can wear them openly even into churches, we slaughter each other in so many ways each day around the world we are almost completely desensitized to the shedding of blood. If, like in the Old Testament Law, we had to bring an animal to an alter and slaughter it when we sinned do you think that would have an impact on your behavior? I think it was supposed to in the Old Testament times. But it didn’t seem to. It probably wouldn’t today either.

To the Christians out there, when you are born again and the Holy Spirit dwells within you and transforms your life, does that have an impact on your behavior? Does that help you resist temptation? Are you able to resist the sins that so easily beset you in the past? I have to confront myself with the answers to these questions. But the Spirit dwells within. We have the power. He can help us employ that power. That is the power of the blood. That is one of the reasons the blood of the Lamb was shed. We can do it. By His grace.

[Scriptures taken from the New American Standard Bible © 1995]

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Old Testament Difficulties

Posted on February 13, 2013 by JohnJ


Then Moses assembled all the congregation of the sons of Israel, and said to them, “These are the things that the LORD has commanded you to do:
“For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a holy day, a sabbath of complete rest to the LORD; whoever does any work on it shall be put to death.
“You shall not kindle a fire in any of your dwellings on the sabbath day.”
Exodus 35:1-3

I’ll be the first to admit, I don’t understand a lot about the Old Testament. I’m back at the beginning, started Genesis again on January 16 and nearing the end of Exodus where God gives Moses and Israel the Law. And there are a lot of laws that God hands down to His people. And a much of it involves a lot of blood. Some of these laws I understand have to do with the social order and the need for people to protect each other from themselves and each other and the consequences when they fail to behave responsibly. In my thinking concerning the blood and the killing of the animals is that if you have to personally take a knife and kill an animal just because you misbehaved and if you understand the revulsion of that act, it should hopefully force you to think more seriously about further character failures so you wouldn’t have to repeat the killing. On the other hand if you were the kind of person who enjoys taking an animal’s life and blood-letting perhaps it should be your life that should be taken, and maybe at some future point it shall have been.

But having so many laws to have to remember and live up to must have been a tremendous weight to bear. Even the verse above, on the day of rest, you could do no work, not even to light a fire. And the punishment for doing some work? The punishment is death. That is a pretty final and extreme punishment for making a fire if your light in the stove went out on a Sunday morning while breakfast was cooking. I don’t understand why death would be a punishment for this, I’m just certainly glad I wasn’t born under the Law. I have had enough problems keeping God’s other laws that are written on every person’s heart!

At times I envy the Israel of the Old Testament because they saw plenty of the phenomenal power of God in extraordinary ways; as He prepared the Egyptians to expel the nation from the land using His plagues, as He led them through the Red Sea parting the water, leading them through the wilderness sustaining them with His powerful miracles, as He drove aside the many nations of the Promised Land with His strong arm in His glory. They got to see His pillar of fire by night and pillar of smoke by day in the Wilderness. They got to see and eat the Manna He gave them daily in their wanderings until the very day they walked into the Promised Land. So many wonderful things their eyes saw and ears heard, like the terrors on Mount Sinai when He came down to talk with them. ( Exodus 19:16-19) How I wish I could have been there to witness all that!

But then I read about all the minutia of the Law I’d have to maintain and think “how in the world could anyone have every kept all that?” And the answer, of course, is “no one.” Which is why we needed someone outside of ourselves to come and take away our sin since we were incapable of doing that ourselves. Thank God for His Son our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. And not only that, but because of that selfless act of Jesus I am now considered to have fulfilled all the requirements of the Law. ( Romans 8:4)

So I am quite happy to be who I am, a gentile who has been “grafted contrary to nature into a cultivated olive tree” ( Romans 11:24) as Paul would say. Besides, I have something they didn’t have back then except on extraordinary occasions. And that is the indwelling Holy Spirit. Granted, far too often I don’t, and probably most of us don’t, comprehend this reality as fully and deeply as we truly should. Otherwise we would no doubt have a much larger impact on our social surroundings than we seem to be having, for the better and for the gospel, I mean. The power of God indwelling us, empowering us, to resist sin, to choose good, to glorify Him in our behavior. This Israel did not have in the Old Testament. Which is no doubt why they failed so often as individuals and as a nation. And failing so miserably and so utterly that the nation had to be exiled to Babylon and elsewhere and the Temple destroyed and the precious Ark of the Covenant destroyed. Israel knew God in their history but they did not know God in their hearts. But He promised that one day they would. And we are now living that promise. I must say I’d rather be living this promise than living the old promises.

Continued . . . .

[Scriptures taken from the New American Standard Bible © 1995]

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Thoughts on The Curse

Posted on January 17, 2013 by JohnJ

When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.
Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings.
They heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.
Then the LORD God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?”
He said, “I heard the sound of You in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid myself.”
And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”
The man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me from the tree, and I ate.”
Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” And the woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”
Genesis 3:6-13

The first great human story in the Bible is man’s rejoicing at meeting the woman. The second great human story directly following is man being deceived by the woman and getting evicted from the Garden. It was all a big misunderstanding sure, but I’m just saying.

The crafty serpent appears, and this attribute is not a detriment. But the devil takes advantage of this and the fact the woman was not around when Adam received the instructions about which tree’s fruit could not be consumed (the Good and Evil tree). Somehow Eve got the impression that you couldn’t even touch it. Maybe Adam’s communication skills were still in the primitive stage or perhaps he led Eve to believe that touching it was not good just to insure a measure of safety to keep her well away from the tree. Who knows. We do know that the Devil took advantage of this ambiguity to drive a wedge in her doubt about whether it was really a good idea to keep the two of them from any proscriptions in the Garden. And she made the mistake of actually thinking about it instead of rejecting the thought outright. And as we all know, once you start giving an idea some credence it is all too easy to convince yourself that the worst possible idea is actually the best course of action.

And so she not only succumbed to temptation but she compelled her husband to follow her down, he apparently complied without so much as a “what the?” And the rest is the repulsive history we are vomiting up to this day; with a few glorious exceptions of course.

Following God’s examination of Adam and Eve’s so called confession, “the serpent made me do it,” “the woman You gave me,” God hands down summary judgement in order of appearance, to the serpent, the woman, and lastly Adam.

Interestingly, in the curse to Eve He mentions “I will greatly multiply Your pain in childbirth, In pain you will bring forth children; yet your desire will be for your husband . . . .” I always wondered what this “desire for your husband” was all about until I realized that since the bearing of children was always going to be accompanied with great pain – in spite of that fact the woman was still going to want to desire to have children with her husband, she still very much wanted to have his children. It was going to be hard-wired into her to desire his children in spite of the fact that it would be a painful experience.

And then when God added the phrase “And he will rule over you” she would have to submit to some hierarchy of authority since she was the cause of the temptation of Adam. Until that time they were equals on equal footing. And that part of the curse, just like every other element of the curse, would be fought over and would be attempted to be eradicated before its time of completion, just like we are trying to eradicate all the effects of the curse God laid on the man:

“Cursed is the ground because of you; In toil you will eat of it All the days of your life.
Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; And you will eat the plants of the field;
By the sweat of your face You will eat bread, Till you return to the ground” Gen. 3:17-19

So God evicted man after making some clothes for the two of them and then barred the gates. The next big story, the third in the series, after a couple kids are born, is a murder. The world is progressing. We have a young family with kids eking out a living off the land, involved in a homicide and a runaway. Pretty much like what we have today. Only between that event and today salvation history has unfolded, without which all of this, from the first to the last would be completely pointless, meaningless. But including this makes the only sense possible.

Which is why you can’t stop reading at Genesis chapter 3. You have to read completely through to Revelation chapter 22 because we see the final victory that has been promised without which there is no hope. But we of all people have the most hope.

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Taking Things Too Far

Posted on January 6, 2013 by JohnJ


Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son.
2 John 1:9

Wow, sure does make you wonder what “going too” far mean back in the first few decades of Christianity to brings such a harsh condemnation from the Apostle John. Today society is all about “tolerance” and this kind of talk itself would be condemned!

But in the verse prior to this John mentions those who deny that Jesus had come in the flesh, and there were those who thought that the spirit of Christ only rested upon the man Jesus and then left him after the crucifixion, so that’s who he was referring to. In the subsequent centuries “going too far” could certainly be applied to many more teachings that are insidious, that undermine the gospel, that Paul says, are another gospel which is really not the gospel (Gal. 1:7), and are to be condemned.

I was brought up in a very devout Roman Catholic family, church on Sunday, Catholic schools, Alter Boy. My parents were the authentic devout kind, not like some I observed who, away from church, drank to excess, abused their spouses and children, spoke with foul mouths in public, exhibiting un Jesus-like behavior. My folks taught us to be kind to all and peaceful. No, my folks were adults I could look up to and emulate. And in the years before my Dad’s death I saw evidence that he had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

They adhered to the Roman Catholic line that is maintained today, that one is saved by grace, a grace that was made “possible” by the death and resurrection of Jesus on the cross, but only made “available” through partaking in the sacraments of the Roman Catholic church. Thus when I was visiting my brother and enjoying discussing with him the wonderful things of Christ in Scripture and a stranger walked by and he became aware that my brother was a Catholic and I wasn’t he jovially but seriously chided me that he hoped for me that I’d come back to the church. I knew it would be futile to try to tell him that since I was a born again christian and thus a child of God that I was a bona fide member of the church already. But it is typical of the confusion of many Roman Catholics not familiar with the things of the Scriptures.

It is this great misunderstanding of what makes someone a member of the church that is so heartbreaking. They know that Christ is God’s Son. They know that He died on the cross for the sins of the world. They know that He rose from the grave to bring new life. They just don’t understand how to acquire it! They don’t realize that the free gift is just free. You get it by accepting, taking. You take it once and it is yours. You accept it and keep it and it belongs to you and it’s yours. You don’t keep accepting it over and over and over again. You accept a gift once. You don’t accept a free gift every day, every week. Just once. Someone gives you a birthday gift, you take it from them with thanks, take it home and that is that. They don’t keep giving it to you repeatedly.

Here’s why it is accepted once for all. Because before you accept Christ you are dead, dead in your sins. But after Christ, He makes you alive, you are alive in Christ, as the Holy Spirit then indwells you and gives you life. That is where the term “born again” comes from. “Again” because you were walking around in the world like the walking dead but now your spirit is alive in Christ. So you don’t do this over and over again. In fact Paul expressly says you can’t do this multiple times. It is a one time thing. But the Catholics were celebrating this bloodless sacrifice daily. A virtual death on the cross, where a host and wine became the actual body and blood of Christ. Where you can accept the gift over and over again. This is a major part of taking things too far.

The Roman Church is patterned on the Jewish religion from all the ceremonies and vestments and riches and mysteries and incantations and hierarchies and rules and regulations and holidays. But especially holding the peasantry in check by not telling them how they can really gain entry into the kingdom of heaven. This was a major complaint Jesus had with the rulers and lawyers in His day. But because the Roman Church has been patterned after Judaism everything about Christianity has been taken too far in their system. This is not at all surprising because Judaism itself has taken everything God has given Moses way too far, which, not surprisingly, is a major complaint of the prophets.

And this has continued today, in spite of the fact that the truth is spelled out very clearly in the Scriptures in the book that is used daily in their Masses. But the priest and rulers warn their people that they should be very careful to follow the Scriptural interpretations of the Catholic rulers and not deviate from that or they will get confused and wander from the “faith.” And this is quite possible. As there are those who are Roman Catholics who really are born again Christians who choose to remain inside that church. And they can read their Bibles and understand the work of Christ and the of the Spirit Hopefully the Lord will use them to show others the truth. Just like the prophets indicated that not all Israel were really of Israel but only a remnant would be saved, this shows the concept is not new.

But the scary part is this, just because one understands the gift does not mean one has accepted the gift. It is crucial that you see this gift and reach out and take it. Grasp it with your heart, embrace it with every fiber of your being and don’t let go. It is truly a matter of life and death. Choose life.

As with Israel, the church belongs to God. He is at work to save souls. He is trying to use whatever and whoever is at hand as instruments for His purposes. We all have to be ready, to hear Him and be available. Anything can happen.

[Scriptures taken from the New American Standard Bible © 1995]

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Merry Christmas?

Posted on December 25, 2012 by JohnJ


And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.
Luke 2:4-7

Considering the packed malls and stores and all the on-line sales it surely was a merry Christmas for millions of children and parents all over the place. On the other hand with the recent disasters making headlines an awful lot of people had less than a delightful Christmas time this year. It is encouraging to know that generous hearts tried to make this better by sending presents and gifts to those in hard hit areas around the country and the world.

It made me wonder how merry a first Christmas it was for those Holy Parents two thousand years ago. Not that they were celebrating it at the end of December probably. But since Joseph and Mary were by necessity present at the birth of Jesus, which is after all the reason we celebrate Christmas, this counts as the first Christmas day. Was it a merry Christmas for them?

Well, they were forced to join a mass movement from their home back to their place of birth thanks to the Emperor ( Luke 2:1-3). I suppose the roads were pretty clogged from Nazareth all the way down to Bethlehem. No one likes traffic jams, I’m sure they hated them even way back then, especially with live animal transportation backed up for miles. Being about nine months pregnant would not make such a trip the optimal time to go. So that would be headache number one.

They also didn’t seem to have made any reservations. No Travelocity to find the best deal and empty beds in the area. When they finally got to their destination in the middle of the night all the local rooms were gone. They had to improvise and find a garage, called a stable back then, and when Mary came to deliver they put some hay in a manger and let nature take its course.

All in all this doesn’t sound like they were having a grand ‘ol time, does it? Being humble and devout souls they probably didn’t bicker about all the problems they encountered on their trip and their lodgings. But they probably weren’t high fiving each other either. They were probably just rolling with the punches.

Then strange things started happening. Shepherds started showing up with pretty strange tales. They told Mary and Joseph that they were out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” Luke 2:8-15 This is just the kind of thing that will turn a bad evening right around. Luke says “Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.” v2:19 You can bet she did! You and me, if we heard someone telling us this kind of information we’d probably freak out or call the police or local mental health facilities. But Mary had better insight and she treasured all these things mulling them over in her heart.

And some time later as Matthew records some wise men from the East visited Mary, “And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.” Matt. 2:11 It isn’t explicitly stated but I’m pretty sure she also treasured these things too in her heart, this too being a little out of the ordinary in the new baby visitor department.

So I’ll bet after all it was indeed a merry Christmas after all.

[Scriptures taken from the New American Standard Bible © 1995]

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