Tag Archives: sacrifice

LUKE’S GOSPEL…THE COVENANT – 4a

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“When the time came for the purification rites required by the Law of Moses, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord”), and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: “a pair of doves or two young pigeons.”…When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭2‬:‭22‬-‭24‬, ‭39‬-‭40‬ ‭NIV‬‬

I could say a lot about the two old people, Simeon and Anna, who were the only ones to acknowledge Jesus’ birth when Joseph and Mary presented their newborn son to God at the temple. Old, devout, and faithful, they were privileged to be let into God’s secret. 

This bonny, beautiful baby boy was God’s final answer to all the wrongs and ills of the world. The two old “soldiers” in God’s spiritual army rejoiced as they looked into the tiny face, placid and peaceful, in His mother’s arms, and praised God for His faithfulness. They were willing to demobilise, ready to leave this world, content to know that, in this little life was locked up the destiny of humanity. 

Let’s turn our attention to Jesus’ parents. In their hands lay the task of raising this little boy in faithful observance to the terms of God’s covenant. 

Jesus was not exempt from living under the covenant because He was the Son of God. In fact, it was even more imperative that He, as representative of the human race, obey the law perfectly. In Him lay the task of fulfilling the law, both in the letter and spirit, of the Mosaic Covenant. 

Never, before Jesus came, had any person among God’s covenant people perfectly obeyed the law. Everyone was guilty of disobedience. Therefore, the law was in force for every person, and everyone came under judgment for breach of contract. The law had to be enforced until someone perfectly lived in obedience to all its terms and regulations so that it could be abolished and a new covenant take its place. 

Jesus’ parents started Him off on the right track by fulfilling all the regulations concerning childbirth, including the sacrifices required  and the circumcision of the child. All of these provisions guaranteed that He was a member of God’s covenant people. When they had fulfilled all the requirements, they returned to Nazareth to set about the task of raising Him as a true Jew. 

Remembering that Luke’s purpose was to highlight Jesus’ humanity, it is right that he record the story of this God-man from the beginning. From day one, then, before He could make decisions for Himself, Joseph and Mary faithfully instilled into Him the Word of God. 

Did they succeed? The outcome  was a resounding “Yes!” Luke affirmed the child’s progress in one profound observation. 

“When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭2‬:‭39‬-‭40‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Fast forward to the age of twelve. Jesus was ready for the next phase of His nurturing…His first participation in the major celebration of Israel, the feast of Passover, the miracle of redemption from slavery in Egypt. 

This was a milestone event…their firstborn son was to take His first big step into manhood. Did something begin to stir in Him? Passover…redemption…how did He fit into the story? What occupied His mind as He sat with the sages of Israel instead of returning home with His parents? 

“After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.” “Why were you searching for me?” he asked. “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭2‬:‭46‬-‭49‬ ‭NIV‬‬

His response to His mother’s rebuke speaks volumes about what preoccupied Him most…not the temple (His Father’s house, according to many translations) but His Father, (“pater”). At this early age, Jesus already recognised that His connection with the Father took precedence   over all human ties. However, as He continued on into adulthood, He expressed His obedience to His Heavenly Father even more clearly by His submission to His earthly parents. 

“Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart. And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭2‬:‭51‬-‭52‬ ‭NIV‬‬

To be continued…

DIARY OF THE FATHER OF FAITH – 7

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How do we know when we have finally graduated from the “University of hard knocks”? Does our faith continue to be tested to the end of our days? For some, I think the answer to the second question is “Yes” because they never learn the lesson of faith that trusts and obeys without question whatever the situation.

‭Genesis‬ ‭22:1‭-‬2‬ ‭NLT‬
[1] Some time later, God tested Abraham’s faith. “Abraham!” God called. “Yes,” he replied. “Here I am.” [2] “Take your son, your only son—yes, Isaac, whom you love so much—and go to the land of Moriah. Go and sacrifice him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.”

So, Abraham spent the night agonising over God’s instruction? Cutting off every male’s foreskin was bad enough. Now God was telling him to murder his son! This son, this precious young boy who was born through a miracle! Kill him! “God, you must be crazy!”

No, not one word of resistance, argument, or refusal. Abraham’s faith, years in the growing, must leap this final hurdle. God wanted his best. Would he give Isaac willingly without a moment’s hesitation?

‭Genesis‬ ‭22:3‬ ‭NLT‬
[3] “The next morning Abraham got up early. He saddled his donkey and took two of his servants with him, along with his son, Isaac. Then he chopped wood for a fire for a burnt offering and set out for the place God had told him about.”

How could Abraham comply without putting up a fight?

‭Romans‬ ‭4:17‬ ‭NLT‬
[17]”That is what the Scriptures mean when God told him, “I have made you the father of many nations.” This happened because Abraham believed in the God who brings the dead back to life and who creates new things out of nothing.”

The promise! Abraham’s faith was securely anchored in God’s promise.

‭Romans‬ ‭4:16‬ ‭NLT‬
[16]” So the promise is received by faith. It is given as a free gift. And we are all certain to receive it, whether or not we live according to the law of Moses, if we have faith like Abraham’s. For Abraham is the father of all who believe.”

No matter what God asked him to do, even to kill his son, the son of promise through whom God’s
nation would be born, it was okay with him. So strong was Abraham’s confidence in God’s promise, a covenant ratified by blood, that he would even kill Isaac because he believed that God would raise him from the dead.

Abraham’s implicit faith is expressed in his words to his servants and to his son…

‭Genesis‬ ‭22:4‭-‬8‬ ‭NLT‬
[4] “On the third day of their journey, Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. [5] “Stay here with the donkey,” Abraham told the servants. “The boy and I will travel a little farther. We will worship there, and then we will come right back.” [6] So Abraham placed the wood for the burnt offering on Isaac’s shoulders, while he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them walked on together, [7] Isaac turned to Abraham and said, “Father?” “Yes, my son?” Abraham replied. “We have the fire and the wood,” the boy said, “but where is the sheep for the burnt offering?” [8] “God will provide a sheep for the burnt offering, my son,” Abraham answered. And they both walked on together.”

No fuss, no resistance, no fury, just quiet confidence in the One who is utterly trustworthy. “We will go and worship, and we will come back…”

And so, when they arrived at the spot God had chosen, Abraham got on with the job of building a rough stone altar, tying up his son in case Isaac decided to make a run for it, and lifting the knife to plunge into Isaac’s heart, a quick and merciful end to the agony.

Why Mount Moriah? This was the very spot God had chosen, before the world began, for the sacrifice of His own Son whom He did not withhold from death, as He did Isaac. Isaac’s death could not save the world but, through Isaac would come the One who would save sinners from eternal death.

A voice from heaven calls out,

‭Genesis‬ ‭22:10‭-‬12‬ ‭NLT‬
[10] “Abraham! Abraham!” “Yes,” Abraham replied. “Here I am!” [12] “Don’t lay a hand on the boy!” the angel said. “Do not hurt him in any way, for now I know that you truly fear God. You have not withheld from me even your son, your only son.”

Now I know! Of course, God knew the details and depth of Abraham’s trust. He didn’t need a physical demonstration, but Abraham did. “Don’t tell me, show me!” This event would, forever, be etched on Abraham’s mind, God’s verbal approval of the greatest quality any believer can acquire, a trust so implicit that no adversity, no hardship, no trial, not even an instruction from God can overcome. No reasoning, no questions asked. Just simple, implicit, unhesitating obedience. That’s the fear of the Lord!

From this moment on, it’s all plain sailing for Abraham – no more tests, just a life of quiet confidence in a faithful God.

How can we acquire a faith like that, a trust in God that puts an end to the constant crises that God allows to see what we will do? Yes, we will have trouble in this world but… how do we handle trouble? Faith in God’s promises.

‭2 Peter‬ ‭1:3‭-‬4‬ ‭NLT‬
[3] “By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. [4] And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.”

When we can keep sailing, no matter how hard the wind blows, God will say of us, as He said of Abraham, “Now I know that you fear God…”

To be continued…

BE IMITATORS OF GOD

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BE IMITATORS OF GOD

Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God (Eph. 5:1-2).

Every word in these two verses is loaded with significance. In the earlier NIV versions, Paul’s words are translated as be imitators of God as dearly loved children. One of the requirements of a disciple in 1st century Israel was that he learn to imitate his rabbi. ‘Imitation’ in this context did not mean ‘a fake’ but rather a replica of his master. A disciple has to live in such close proximity to his rabbi that he learned to think, speak and act just like him.

A rabbi chose disciples in whom he had the confidence that they would become just like him. They were to walk behind him as he moved from place to place. He was essentially a roving teacher, instructing the people who gathered around him in the correct interpretation of the Torah – the 5 books of Moses. He also debated current issues in the light of what other rabbis taught whose authority to interpret and apply his interpretation of the Torah according to what he believed to be God’s original intention was recognised. This interpretation and application was called the rabbi’s ‘yoke’.

The concept of a yoke had special significance in Israel. The Israelites were agricultural people – they worked and lived off the land. Their word of God, made up of two letters, e and l, el, was derived from two pictures in the original paleo-Hebrew script. The ‘e’ was the picture of an ox head, meaning ‘strength’ and the ‘l’ was a picture of a shepherd’s staff, meaning ‘authority’. They understood God to be one who had strength and authority.

The same two letters, e and l appear in the word aleph meaning to learn by association. To a Hebrew person, a yoke was ‘a staff of the shoulder’. In order to train a young ox to plough a straight furrow, the farmer would place a yoke across its shoulder and yoke it with an older, experienced ox so that it became a replica of his ‘teacher’.

Now does not Jesus’ invitation have new meaning for you?

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light (Matt. 11:28-30).

Jesus, as a rabbi with authority from God, invited those who were tired of the demanding yoke of the religious leaders with its petty rules and rituals, to take His yoke. By learning to live the way He taught them, He would change their hearts and free them from the fear and guilt which drove them to seek God’s approval by obeying laws and rules.

In order to be imitators of God, we must live in close association with Jesus and learn from Him. Paul called this “putting on Christ”. God has freed us from bondage to Satan and to slavery to sin. However, change is not automatic. In close association with Jesus, we learn to think like Him and to behave like Him. It is a slow, life-long process which comes through practice. Let me illustrate.

Brick-makers use a mould into which they pour concrete which they must allow to dry before they take away the form. Once the concrete or clay is dry, the brick will retain its shape when they remove the form.

In a similar way, when we imitate Jesus by acting with humility and gentleness, even if we don’t feel it, we are creating a ‘form’ which will eventually become a way of life. Paul used another metaphor, that of getting dressed.

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience (Col. 3: 12).

The more we act like Jesus, the more we will become like Him. We are to ‘walk’ in the way of love. The Bible pictures life as a journey through a dangerous and unknown way. If we are to reach our destination, we must follow the one who knows the way lest we wander from the path and die in the desert. Jesus said, “I am the way.” He is the ‘light’ – He walks in the light of God’s Word and is, therefore, qualified to lead us to the Father.

I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life (John 8:12).

Jesus came to fulfil the Torah – God’s directions for reaching our destination. He insisted that He had not come to do away with God’s instructions but to ‘fulfil’ them – to show His people how to live as God intended. He wanted them to be examples to the surrounding pagan nations of His best way of living. He fulfilled and made the Old Covenant obsolete but the principle of the Old Covenant, the law of love, remains enshrined in the way He taught us to live in the New Covenant,

Our role as His disciples is to stick close to Him and to learn by association with Him, imitating Him in every detail of our lives until we become replicas of our Master in this world.

Scripture is taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Have you read my first book, Learning to be a Son – The Way to the Father’s Heart (Copyright © 2015, Partridge Publishing)? You’ll love it!

ISBN: Softcover – 978-1-4828-0512-3, eBook 978-4828-0511-6

Available on www.amazon.com in paperback, e-book or Kindle version, on www.takealot.com  or order directly from the publisher at www.partridgepublishing.com.

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No Enduring City

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NO ENDURING CITY

For we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come. Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise – the fruit of lips that openly profess His name. And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased (Heb. 13: 14-16).

There are some pretty bad things happening in the world around us. Apart from the things that irk us in our own country, what about what goes on in the rest of the world? It is easy for us to become despondent, to complain and to criticise, to judge and condemn and, worse still, to blame God for not doing anything about it.

Our writer says, “Don’t do that. You don’t belong here anyway. This present world with its greed, selfishness and injustice, is not your permanent home. This is your apprenticeship for the real life which is to come.” We forget that our citizenship is in heaven when life is tough and uncomfortable down here. When we keep our sights on where we belong – in the realm of God’s presence and rule, we can be optimistic and full of joy because what lies ahead for us is beyond our imagination.

This gives us reason to be a thankful people. It is not sacrifice in the sense of doing something painful when we offer God praise. It is an act of worship, continually remembering what He has done for us and raising our hearts to Him in gratitude and love for His mercy and goodness. This is the reason for our generosity towards others – God has been infinitely generous to us.

We no longer need to offer the sacrifices of animal flesh and blood to cover sin and to worship God since the blood of Jesus is sufficient for the forgiveness of our sin, once for all. However, that does not mean that we no longer need to offer sacrifices – tokens of our worship and gratitude to God. There are at least five different ways to express our love to Him which constitute our “spiritual” worship.

The writer to the Hebrews mentions two here:

Praise as an act of worship is an expression of our love to God, not only for who He is and what He has already done, but also as our way of trusting Him with our lives for the future. When we focus on God instead of on all the bad things that happen around us and in the world, we take our eyes off this world and fill our vision with the hope towards which we are moving.

Our gratitude to God spills over into acts of kindness towards others. It may not necessarily mean giving away material things. What about people’s need for acceptance and affirmation; expressions of gratitude and appreciation; support and comfort; or kind words instead of criticism? There are a thousand ways in which we can spread love and blessing in a heartless world. This is our way of showing our love to God.

Paul gives us at least two other ways in which we can worship God. In Romans 12:1 he urges us to respond to God’s mercy by giving Him our bodies. He is not talking about being literal sacrifices but “living sacrifices”, allowing Jesus to have complete ownership of everything we think, say and do. As he said elsewhere, “No I but Christ lives in me.”

Being generous with our money and possessions is another way of worshipping the Lord. Paul acknowledge the generosity of the Philippian church towards him for sending him money when he needed it. What was more important, however, was that they were worshipping the Lord by their giving.

I am amply supplied now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent.  They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God (Phil. 4: 18).

Jesus spoke more about money and things than He did about anything else. Why? Because He knew how big a part money plays in our lives. It either rules us or we rule it. Generosity is the way to break the power money has over us. We are to be generous with our money because God has been generous to us in every way. When He has control of what we own, we are truly free from the crippling love of money.

Above everything else, however, there is a gift God longs for us to give Him. David understood that God was not interested in animal blood. He wanted something far more valuable from us – our submissive and contrite hearts. In the midst of his guilt because of the terrible things he had done when he committed adultery with Bathsheba, he said this:

You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise (Psa. 51: 16-17).

What is the best offering of all? A heart that is submissive and obedient to God. Without it, all our worship is worthless.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Have you read my new book, Learning to be a Son – The Way to the Father’s Heart (copyright 2015, Partridge Publishing)? You’ll love it!

Available on www.amazon.com or www.kalahari.com in paperback, e-book or kindle format, or order directly from the publisher at www.partridgepublishing.com.

Check out my blogsite at www.learningtobeason.wordpress.com

 

A Drink Offering

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A DRINK OFFERING

“But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.

“I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one like him, who will show genuine concern for your welfare. For everyone looks out for their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But your know that Timothy has proved himself because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. I hope, therefore, to send him as soon as I know how things go with me. And I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon.” Philippians 2:17-24.

Did Paul’s readers understand what he was saying?

As a Jewish rabbi, he was steeped in the knowledge of the Torah and would have been familiar with the intricacies of the sacrificial system. As a believer in Jesus Christ, he would have understood the symbolic meaning of the sacrifices.

The daily offering of a lamb, morning and evening was to be accompanied by their grain, oil and drink offerings which were a food offering presented to the Lord.

“This is what you are to offer on the altar regularly each day: two lambs a year old. Offer one in the morning and the other at twilight. With the first lamb offer a tenth of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with a quarter of a hin of oil from pressed olives, and a quarter of a hin of wine as a drink offering… a pleasing aroma, a food offering presented to the Lord.” Exodus 29:38-41, 41b.

Obviously God did not need food – the sacrifice was what the people gave out of their resources to symbolise the Lamb of God, Jesus, whom the Father gave for the sin of the world. The drink offering symbolised the blood that was poured out for us just as the body of the lamb was a picture of the body of Jesus given for us.

Paul was expanding on his song about Jesus who had laid aside His deity and His privileges to become human, humbled Himself even further until He was nothing by becoming a slave and a sacrifice for our sin. Paul saw himself as the accompanying drink offering, pouring his own life out on the sacrifice of his Lord as a pleasing offering to God.

Why was Paul telling the Philippians this? Was he trying to tell them how good he was? Was he boasting about his humility? Not likely! As a rabbi, he had the right to call people to follow him and to imitate him. As a disciple of Jesus, he was following Him.

“Follow my example as I follow the example of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 11:1.

Since Jesus had poured His life out as an offering so that others mght live, Paul was acting as a true disciple by pouring out his life so that others would follow Jesus and live. He was not claiming to be the sacrifice – that was the role of Jesus alone. Paul was the drink offering that accompanied the sacrifice as a sweet aroma to God.

Like Jesus, Paul never called people to do what he was unwilling to do. He did not follow the tradition of the Pharisees, although he had been one, to say one thing and to do another. Even in his pre-Christian days, although he was wrong, he was sincere and fanatical in his obedience to the Law. Now he was equally zealous and fanatical in his obedience to Christ.

Paul was unstinting in his recommendation of Timothy. He had found him as a young believer and nurtured him in his faith like a loving father. Timothy had turned out to be one in a million. There will always be those who join the cause for whatever reason other than obedience to Jesus, as in Paul’s day, so today. But for Paul, Timothy was a joy because he had turned out to be a true son – serving the Lord as he served him as his father in the faith.

Paul knew that Timothy would do anything he asked because he was a true son, growing up under the guidance of his mentor until he, too, would father others in the faith.

“Even though you have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel.” 1 Corinthians 4:15.

How true that even today we have many leaders who dominate or milk the people but not many fathers – those who love and nurture their people and pour out their lives for them like a drink offering.

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.