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THE
CONTINUING
SACRIFICE
(The quotes are from the KJV unless otherwise noted, but with changes to the old-fashioned words.)
When Paul wrote to the Galatians explaining to them that a promise can only be altered by the originator of the promise, he also set out a very important principle for us.
"My brothers, let me give you an illustration", he said. "Even in ordinary life, when a man's will and testament has been duly executed, no one else can set it aside or add a codicil. Now the promises were pronounced to Abraham and to his 'issue'. It does not say 'issues' in the plural, but in the singular, 'and to your issue', and the 'issue' intended is Christ. What I am saying is this: a testament, or covenant, had already been validated by God; it cannot be invalidated, and its promises rendered ineffective, by a law made four hundred and thirty years later. If the inheritance is by legal right then it is not by promise; but it WAS by a promise that God bestowed it as a free gift on Abraham."
Galatians 3:15-18. New English Bible.
What was the promise which is being referred to here?
It can be found in the first book of the Bible.
"And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now your eyes, and look from the place where you are northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward; for all the land which you see, to you will I give it, and to your seed forever ... Arise, walk through the land in the length of it, and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto you." Genesis 13:14-17.
But much later it was written that,
"He gave him none inheritance in it, no, not so much as to set his foot on: yet He promised that He would give it to him for a possession, and to his Seed after him, when as yet he had no child." Acts 7:5.
Abraham did not receive any part of the land of Canaan as a gift although he walked up and down all of it, but had to purchase the only part he ever owned. Genesis 23:12-20. In like manner, his "Seed", Jesus Christ, never received any of the land during the time He walked upon it.
So what did God's word indicate?
What He meant by His assurance is explained in Paul's letter to the Roman Christians. Under Inspiration he wrote and told them, "For the promise, that he should be the heir of THE WORLD, was not to Abraham, or to his Seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith." Romans 4:13. The geographical land was only an object lesson, not the reality!
But when?
Abraham understood what God intended, and "By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country ... for he looked for a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God." Hebrews 11:9-11.
Paul's message to the Galatians was also evidently intended to carry their thoughts forward to the time when Abraham's "Seed" would inherit the earth, for he wrote, "Till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made." Galatians 3:19.
But when would this take place? Not at the first advent of Jesus Christ for that was already in the past. Nor at His second coming, because it is written that when He resurrects His own and takes them back with Him to His Father's house, He will not set His foot upon the earth.
"For the LORD Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the LORD in the air: and so shall we ever be with the LORD." 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17.
Not until His THIRD advent does Jesus touch His foot to the ground and claim it as His own, for He will then receive it as His earthly counterpart received it - by walking upon it.
"Now after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD it came to pass that the LORD spoke unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses minister, saying, Moses My servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses." Joshua 1:1-3.
This is another object lesson - added because of transgression!
When the heavenly Joshua arrives for the last time, we are told,
"His feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south ... and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with You ... and the LORD shall be King over all the earth; in that day there shall be one LORD, and His name one." Zechariah 14:4-9.
At this time in history all the other "seeds" of Abraham - all the meek ones who have followed in his steps - will also inherit the earth with Jesus just as He has promised. He told us, "To him that overcomes will I grant to sit with Me in My throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with My Father in His throne." Revelation 3:21.
Regarding the earthly throne in the earthly Canaan, God had said, "I will overturn, overturn, overturn it: and it shall be no more, until He come whose right it is; and I will give it Him." Ezekiel 21:27. Yet Jesus did not get this throne at His first advent either, for it also was only an object lesson and will have its real fulfilment at the end of time.
The Bible abounds with such object lessons, and the discerning child of God who uses "eyesalve" sees them for what they really are. The "blind" see only the objects, but not the realities behind them, and therefore "fall into the ditch." Revelation 3:18; Matthew 23:16-23.
Lessons in law
Paul referred to the great object lesson of the law given at Mount Sinai and asked regarding its purpose, then explained that it was, "Added because of transgressions." Galatians 3:19. As we have already seen, the law was added until, "The Seed should come to whom the promise was made"; therefore it will remain at least until the second coming.
This law is most easily recognised as the great moral code, the ten commandments written on tablets, which God gave to His followers at Mt. Sinai four hundred and thirty years after Abraham's time. It is called the law of God, and rightly so, for it is a written description of His character. But this was not all that was given then. There was another aspect of the law presented at the same time, the "glorious" aspect, but which is also called the "ministration of death"! 2 Corinthians 3:7.
This other "added" aspect of the law, sometimes called the law of Moses, or the ceremonial law, was written in a book to compliment the different angle of the law that was written on tables of stone. Thus the people could see more clearly and distinctly what they must do if they were to remain healthy and happy. Malachi 4:4. It included all the rituals of the law of ceremonies which were expanded at that time and written about in Exodus chapters 36-40.
These were not new laws, but only more distinct ways of presenting that which had existed from the very beginning of history, for Christ was the foundation of the whole Jewish system as well as the Christian one. In fact, He was "The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world", and therefore the object lesson of Adam's sacrifice. Revelation 13:8.
The law in both its bearings has always been a schoolmaster to bring sinful human beings to Jesus! Galatians 3:24. Bible Commentaries 6:1095
These two aspects of law are complimentary, and will stand side by side for ever. Even before the fall of our first parents, they had the word of God regarding moral obedience in His command not to eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Genesis 2:17. To do this would be to steal from their Maker, for He had reserved this tree for Himself.
Then when Abraham was asked by Isaac where the lamb for the burnt offering was, his reply showed his understanding of God's ways. He said, "My son, God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering." Genesis 22:8.
All this is in accord with the principle shown us by the apostle James.
He wrote,
"My brothers, what use is it for a man to say that he has faith when he does nothing to show it? Can that faith save him? Suppose a brother or a sister is in rags with not enough food for the day, and one of you says, 'Good luck to you, keep yourselves warm, and have plenty to eat', but does nothing to supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So with faith; if it does not lead to action, it is in itself a lifeless thing."
"But someone may object: 'Here is one who claims to have faith, and another who points to his deeds'. To which I reply, 'Prove to me that this faith you speak of is real though not accompanied by deeds, and by my deeds I will prove to you my faith."
"You have faith enough to believe that there is one God. Excellent! The devils have faith like that and it makes them tremble."
"But can you not see, you quibbler, that faith divorced from deeds is barren? Was it not by his action, in offering his son Isaac upon the altar, that our father Abraham was justified? Surely you can see that faith was at work in his actions, and that by these actions the integrity of his faith was fully proved." James 2:14-22. New English Bible.
Thus faith and works, the promise and the altar, must be combined to show our attitude towards our God.
"He that says, 'I know Him', and keeps not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him", is another comment on this point. 1 John 2:4.
After the fall, this saving faith "in action" is recorded for us by an early story in the Bible, for when Adam's two grown sons brought their individual offerings to God, they were fulfilling the law of ceremonies. In this also we may see the two aspects of the law, for God's people, whom He calls His peculiar treasure, were privileged with this two-fold system of law (the moral and the ceremonial) from the beginning at the gates of the garden of Eden. The first, pointing back to creation, was to keep in their remembrance the Living God who made the world, and the power in His promise. The other, was "added" or extended because of man's transgression of the moral law. Obedience to the ceremonial law consisted in making sacrifices and offerings which pointed to the offerer's present salvation and future redemption, as well as the death of Christ.
Each aspect of the law is clear and distinct from the other, yet at the same time they are really two sides of the same coin.
God gave a great promise to His people when He said that He would put "enmity" between the children of the devil and the children of the woman. Genesis 3:15. By this He meant that He, if we would permit Him to, would be able to remove the power of sin in each individual's life and thus separate His "church" from the world. But this promise would have to be accepted by each one personally through "faith" or "trust", and be shown in an acceptable manner, so that others would see it and perhaps be brought to salvation themselves. It is a deep underlying principle that Christian works should be performed on behalf of others. We must not only help them in their physical necessities, but also bring their attention to their spiritual needs as well.
Early sacrifices
It was in accordance with the request of God that the sons of Adam and Eve came and gave their offerings. Abel believed implicitly in his parents' teachings, and through the ministration of the Spirit of God, saw the deeper meaning behind his burnt offering. It not only illustrated the death of his Saviour, but also showed him his need to die with Him. That is, he saw the once-in-a-lifetime death of his "carnal nature" at his re-birth, and the daily death of his "self" in his continuing life. He realised the truth told to us later. "Knowing this, that our 'old man' is crucified with Him, that 'the body of sin' might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin." Romans 6:6.
"By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts." Hebrews 11:4. When God says a man is righteous he really is! Another translation reads thus: "Through faith his goodness was attested, for his offerings had God's approval; and through faith [that is, through the record of his actions] he continued to speak after his death." NEB
It is written that Abel offered "gifts", which is plural. By this we can see that his blood offering was accompanied by another offering, that of "first fruits." This offering later developed into the "meat" or "meal" offering of the Levitical system. It was always joined with the burnt offering and in this way, the offerer showed in picture form that his life and his possessions were together laid at God's feet. See Leviticus chapters 1 and 2 and Numbers 28:1-7.
These offerings had been "added" because of the transgressions of Adam and his children, and were intended as object lessons to show them their real inward condition by their reaction to them. Their hearts before re-birth, were "deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked", and without the grace of Jesus Christ, but this they were slow to recognise. Jeremiah 17:9.
In Abel's case the altar (his works) and the promise (his faith) stood side by side, and God accepted them. But Cain brought only "of the fruit of the ground" as an offering. He offered only half of what God needed in order to be able to save him! He had the works but he lacked the "faith", a belief in the sacrifice of Jesus and his own "death." He would not accept the promise of an atoning sacrifice into his life, like so many of the Israelites in the wilderness with Moses. "For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it", Paul wrote. Hebrews 4:2.
Cain's physical gift plainly showed the state of his mind, so God gave him another object lesson he could hardly miss. He showed His acceptance of Abel's intentions in a similar way to that in which He showed His acceptance of the Israelites offering after the exodus. Exodus 40:34-35; Leviticus 9:24. But this demonstration was spurned by Cain, therefore God came and reasoned with him. "If you do well, shall you not be accepted?" Then He gave him another promise. "Sin lies at the door [of your heart, but] ... you shall rule over him [if you will listen to Me and obey Me]." Genesis 4:7.
Although none of the sacrifices had any virtue in themselves, the way in which they were performed showed whether the offerer was accepting the blessing that God was extending. For this reason they were very important. Failure to comply exactly with God's instructions, leads to a lessening of His protection as the two sons of Aaron found out to their sorrow. By their use of "strange" or "common" fire, they forfeited His protection when they approached Him in His sanctuary and they paid for it with their lives. Leviticus 10:1-11.
Sadly, Cain rejected God's approach and later, when his brother endeavoured to do God's work for Him, Cain turned on him for he could not stand his younger brother offering him well-meant advice! Cain had angrily reproached his brother and drawn him into controversy concerning God's dealings with them, a course of action declined by Jesus at Moses' grave. Jude 9. But Abel, in meekness, fearlessly and firmly, yet foolishly because he did not have the direction of God, tried to defend the justice and goodness of his Saviour.
That which is right and proper in one situation can be so wrong in another!
Cain was enraged that one who before this had obeyed his counsel as an elder brother should now presume to disagree with him, and killed him. Genesis 4:8.
The murder of Abel portrays the end result of the enmity that has always existed between professed Christians and partially protected true followers of God.
Many offerings
Time went by and the actions of the people of the world and the actions of the Christians separated them all even further from the LORD's protection, thus making it impossible for Him to prevent the great flood. Isaiah 59:1-3. He was, however, able to save one man and his family. After it was all over the survivors made an offering to God in which "the LORD smelled a sweet savour." Genesis 8:20-21.
But ever since the creation God's adversary had caused men to believe that if the sacrifices were multiplied then God would be even more pleased! Therefore, in the place of the one offering, by one person, once in their lifetime, as God had originally intended, Noah offered "of every clean beast and of every clean fowl." Genesis 8:20-22. God accepted these in the spirit in which they were offered, as He has always done.
These many offerings really only represented the one perfect offering of Jesus Christ and therefore were a great waste and caused much unnecessary suffering. But God's people had departed so far in understanding and practice that He was obliged to travel on with them as they were and attempt to educate them. Only thus would He have a chance to bring them back to the true meaning of the great Offering.
Abraham's lesson
After Abram's call from the city of Ur he followed his LORD the best way he knew until one day he succumbed to despair. Then the LORD came near to him and repeated His promise that he would inherit the earth and the record states Abram "believed in the LORD; and He counted it to him for righteousness." Genesis 15:1-7. But when, in their conversation Abram asked Jesus to give him a sign of His 'good faith'(!) the LORD said unto him, "Take Me an heifer of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon. And he took unto him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another: but the birds divided he not." Verses 8-10.
This offering was made this way because the rituals followed by men had become so diversified and confusing that the LORD would leave nothing to Abram's imagination. He wanted Abram to see every possible aspect of the reality that he could. Later God had to reluctantly separate from His people, because of their turning away from the true meaning of this ritual. Jeremiah 34:18-20. But now He condescended to enter into a covenant of freedom with His servant, employing such forms as were customary among men at that time.
Abram reverently passed between the parts of the sacrifice, thereby making a solemn vow to the LORD of perpetual obedience. Then he kept watch over the pieces and prayed that God would be able to show him what they represented in His sight. After a long day in such an attitude, God was at last able to reach him in a vision and he was shown the experiences which his descendants would pass through in the land of Egypt and also in the land of Canaan. The thought of those long years of the captivities was bad enough, but when he saw the life and death of his "Seed" he was overwhelmed with "a horror of great darkness." Genesis 15:11-16.
Perceiving that his "children" would not understand the plan of God and would even hinder it at times, thus adding to the suffering of Jesus Christ, and realising that they would need extra information and guidance as time went on because of their transgressions, also caused him much agony of spirit. He began to understand more of the sacrifice of Jesus and of how the promise must eventually be fulfilled. Once he had reached this state of mind, the LORD sent a burning lamp and a smoking furnace through the animal parts to represent Himself and Abram. These passed through the pieces and consumed them. In this way He showed His blood-brotherhood with Abram and his descendants. This was a great symbolic gesture which should never have been lost by His people.
Another experience
Some time passed by and then Abram again frustrated God's plan by trying to take a short cut because he did not fully understand the word of God and again it was many years before the LORD could reveal his mistake to him. Genesis chapter 16.
Therefore he was nearly one hundred years old when he was asked to "Walk before Me and be you perfect." Genesis 17:1. The Lord again promised to make His covenant with him, but it was still to be in the future. The thought of any longer delay reached to Abram's heart and he fell on his face in anguish and sorrow, and prayed for immediate deliverance. He had at last understood that his "Seed" would have to come through his rightful wife and partner, and he accepted the terms although they seemed impossible.
"And being not weak in faith [now], he considered not his own body now [as good as] dead, when he was about one hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara's womb: he staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; and being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, He was able also to perform." Romans 4:19-21.
What a faith!
Living faith, which is so essential to successful prayer, had taken the place of doubt and uncertainty. He was saying, as Jacob was to say many years later, "I will not let You go, except You bless me." Genesis 32:26.
Because this was in accord with God's will, his prayer was answered at that very moment, for the LORD said, "As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you [right now], and you shall be the father of many nations. Neither shall your name any more be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I [now] made you." Genesis 17:3-5.
Circumcision
This faith needed to be shown by a ceremony for the benefit of others, therefore Abraham was instructed to call all the males of his establishment and ask them to join with him in the "added" rite of circumcision, which was "a seal [or symbol] of the righteousness of the faith which he [now] had yet being uncircumcised." Romans 4:11.
The rite was to be observed by the patriarch and his descendants as a token that they were devoted to the service of God, and thus separated from idolaters. This was the token or sign of the covenant to which both had agreed. Therefore it was written,
"I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your seed after you in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto you, and to your seed after you. And I will give unto you, and to your seed after you, the land wherein you are a stranger, all the land of [the heavenly] Canaan for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God." Genesis 17:7-8.
By this rite Abraham and his men pledged to fulfil the conditions of the covenant. Thus the ritual represented their faith. It was a particular lesson to suit certain circumstances brought about by Abram and Hagar's action. Moses later explained its significance again to the people who were with him. "Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart", he told them, "and be no more stiff-necked [or proud before God]." Deuteronomy 10:16.
This ritual was also added "because of transgression."
Not necessary
But if man had kept the law of God as given to Adam after his fall, preserved by Noah and observed by Abraham, there would have been no need for the ordinance of circumcision. If the descendants of Abraham had kept the covenant, of which circumcision was only a sign, they would never have been seduced into idolatry, nor would they have suffered a life of bondage in Egypt. If they had kept God's law in mind and body there would have been no necessity for it to be proclaimed from Sinai or engraved upon the tables of stone. Had the people practised the principles of the ten commandments, there would have been no need for the additional directions given to Moses.
The place of worship
However, while the Israelites were in Egypt they had embraced many of the religious ways of the Egyptians and when they left they took some of its systems and ideas with them. One of these was the desire to have a fixed place of worship for their God. Accordingly, they made a tent, a house like one of their own, and set it aside as the LORD's tent, but He later called it the "Tabernacle [or tent] of the congregation", in contradiction. Exodus 33:7. This idea was still very much a part of their religious life centuries later as Jesus explained to the Samaritan lady. She said,
"Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and you say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Jesus says unto her, Woman, believe Me, the hour comes, when you shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. You worship you know not what: we know what we worship: for [the knowledge of] salvation is of the Jews. But the hour comes, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeks such to worship Him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth." John 4:20-24.
However, when the people with Moses were determined to have such a place of worship God then gave them explicit instructions on how to build one, who should work in it, and how He was to be approached in it. Exodus chapters 25-30. He agreed to their demand when He said to Moses, "Let [or allow] them [to] make Me a sanctuary." Exodus 25:8. But this was not His desire as He announced through Jeremiah many years later.
"Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; put your burnt offerings unto your sacrifices, and eat [the] flesh [yourselves]! For I spoke not unto your fathers, nor commanded them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices: but this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people: and walk you in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto you. But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart [just like the folk before the flood Genesis 6:5], and went backward and not forward ... They hearkened not unto Me, nor inclined their ear, but hardened their neck; they did worse than their fathers." Jeremiah 7:21-27.
It was because of this hardening of the neck, a refusal to bow in meekness and learning, that God "added" the ten commandments, writing them with His finger on stone tablets, which was His way of presenting to them their hardness of heart. He also greatly expanded the ceremonies and rituals which had been given in earlier days to explain the gospel, because what should have been written in their hearts had now become only an outward show and needed to be explicitly stated. But He also told them that there would come a day when this situation would revert to normal. "I will put My laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts [again]" He said. See Hebrews 8:8-13.
More additions
At Mt. Sinai
to …..
1. the burnt offering of dedication of life,
and
2. the meal offering of the using of talents and
possessions;
God added
3. the peace offering of thanks and sharing,
4. the sin offering for ignorance,
5. the sin offering for trespass against a fellow human,
6. the sin offering for trespass against Him,
and
7. the sin offering for deliberate sin.
Leviticus chapters 1-7.
All these, and many more rituals, were to show to His people their deplorable ignorance. However, by twisting the minds of the people the devil eventually led them not only to exalt these ceremonies, but also to boast in them as evidence of their great standing with God!
What a lack of eyesalve!
All of them were also summed up in the one offering of a red heifer, an offering which bears a deep significance that has not lost its significance to the present time. Numbers 19:1-22. But what had been intended for their education and eternal good, was made a means to their downfall and needed to be altered.
A multitude of offerings
When Jesus looked upon the innocent victims of sacrifice at His first visit to the temple after His baptism, He saw how the Jews had made these great convocations into scenes of bloodshed and cruelty. John 2:13-17. In the place of humble repentance of sin, they had multiplied the sacrifice of beasts, as if God would be honoured by such a heartless service! The hearts of the priests and rulers were hardened through selfishness and greed. They had even made the very symbols pointing to the Lamb of God a means of making money. Thus in the eyes of the people the sacredness of the sacrificial services were in a great measure destroyed. The indignation of Jesus was stirred. He knew that His blood, so soon to be shed for the sins of the world, would be as little appreciated by the priests and elders as was the blood of the beasts which they kept incessantly flowing.
Christ had often spoken against these practices through His prophets. 1 Samuel 15:22; Isaiah 1:10-12, 16-17. Now He spoke and acted personally by cleansing the temple. He said, "Go you and learn what that means, 'I will have mercy and not sacrifice': for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." Matthew 9:13. And, "Take these things hence; make not My Father's house an house of merchandise." John 2:16.
In the glorious days of king David, God had given a message that He had never requested a building to dwell in. He said, "In all the places wherein I have walked with all the children of Israel spoke I a word with any of the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to feed My people Israel, saying, Why build you not Me an house of cedar?" 2 Samuel 7:7. At this time He was rebuking the prophet Nathan for presuming to know His will without inquiry.
He always desired to dwell in the hearts of His people, not outwardly and restricted, but inwardly and freely, and this could be shown most effectively by their caring for the poor who dwelt among them. Their profession must be followed by action. He did not want buildings, but acts of mercy and this Jesus illustrated. "And the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them." Matthew 21:14.
When Judas tried to pervert this principle at the time Mary anointed Jesus' head and feet, He pointed out to His followers that they would soon have many opportunities to help the poor in place of Him. John 12:1-8.
In the wilderness
During the wilderness wanderings, while His people dillied and dallied, the LORD continued to bless and guide them as best He could. But even this they did not understand, and eventually they came to a situation where His protection had to be partially withdrawn. Another object lesson had been missed!
Ever since Korah's well-planned rebellion and attempt to overthrow their visible leader, Moses, the Israelites had never fully recognised their invisible Leader, because He travelled with them in such a familiar pillar of cloud. Numbers 9:15-23. This would have to be rectified if they were to continue under His protection. It is hardly possible for men to offer a greater insult to God than to despise and reject the instrumentalities that He would use for their salvation. The Israelites had not only done this, but they had also purposed to put Moses and Aaron to death, when they claimed that Korah was God's man! "On the morrow all the congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron saying, 'You have killed the people of the LORD'." Numbers 16:41. Their intentions were over-ruled when "the glory of the LORD appeared", and they began to die in His presence for by their sin they had forfeited His protection. However, Moses pleaded for them, and was eventually able to lead them to repentance, but not before 14,700 had died. Verse 49.
But it was only a short time later that the survivors again complained, and this time asked to die! "And the people chode [were angry and physically abusive] with Moses, and spoke, saying, Would God that we had died when our brethren died before the LORD [meaning Korah and his followers]"!. Numbers 20:3. As they found fault with their blessings, they rejected God's saving grace, and He withdrew as they demanded. The result was imminent death - not punishment for their behaviour, but the result of it.
Because they had been shielded by divine power up to that point they had not realised the countless dangers by which they were continually surrounded. In their ingratitude and unbelief they had anticipated death, and now the LORD was forced to permit death to come on them, for this was now their stated choice. Numbers 21:4-6. The poisonous snakes that infested the wilderness and from which they had been shielded until now were called "fiery serpents", on account of the terrible effects produced by their bites, and these now caused violent inflammation and speedy death among them.
Terror and confusion spread throughout the camp. None were secure except those who completely obeyed God. In almost every tent there were dying or dead. Young and old alike suffered, male and female. Eventually, when the people finally humbled themselves enough to listen to God, Moses was told to erect another object lesson - a brass serpent on a pole. If the disobedient looked in faith upon this symbol, they were healed immediately. But it was symbol of their destroyer, "That old serpent, called the devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world"! Revelation 12:9. Nevertheless, if they were willing to have their eyes opened by the Spirit of God then they would be able to see even in a representation of their enemy the healing power of their Saviour.
What a faith this object lesson required!
Jesus told Nicodemus, "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up." John 3:14. Therefore it was as the "Son of man" that Jesus died on the cross. His was an ordinary human body which was nailed to the tree, containing ordinary human blood.
But there is no more virtue in the sacrifice of a human body than there is in the sacrifice of an animal body, or in looking at a brass snake!
However, those who can see the reality which is signified by these symbols may see the salvation of God in that body. We are clearly told,
"For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins. Wherefore, when He cometh into the world, He says, 'Sacrifice and offering You wouldst not, but a body hast You prepared Me: in burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You hast had no pleasure. Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the Book it is written of Me) to do Your will, O God'." Hebrews 10:4-7.
"For Christ also has once suffered for sins, the Just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh." 1 Peter 3:18.
John the revelator tells us that Jesus is the "Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." Revelation 13:8. This, as we have seen, was the underlying basis for the sacrifices offered by the Christians of old, from Adam onwards, for the "gospel" as an everlasting message was preached unto them, as well as unto us. Hebrews 4:2. The Old Testament Christians could all have understood the gospel principle of Jesus receiving from them their "old hearts", and His giving them a portion of His life as a replacement. He had told them,
"A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put My Spirit within you, and cause [or enable] you to walk in My statutes, and you shall keep My judgments and do them. And you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers [the new world]; and you shall be My people, and I will be your God." Ezekiel 36:26-28.
This exchange must take place during the lifetime of each receiver of salvation, for salvation comes "by faith" exercised by a rational, or responsible, living being. "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me", David prayed, "Restore unto me the joy of Your salvation." Psalm 51:10-12. Here is proof that salvation was received in the same way before the scene at Calvary as it has been since, for we are told God is "no respecter of persons." Acts 10:34.
"Who is wise, and he shall understand these things? Prudent, and he shall know them? For the ways of the LORD are right, and the just shall walk in them; but the transgressors shall fall therein." Hosea 14:9. The death of Christ on Calvary was to be the convincing, everlasting argument that the law of God is as unchangeable as His throne and that transgression of it leads to the death of the transgressor.
But Jesus began His sacrifice and His saving work with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden at the foundation of the world. Revelation 13:8. They were then both instructed to kill a lamb, and after that their Saviour wrapped each of them in its skin as an object lesson of their death and resurrection. Genesis 3:21; Isaiah 61:10.
Much later the important object lesson of the crucifixion was used to illustrate this same point. Crucifixion is normally a slow death, sometimes requiring days to accomplish - yet the death of the Son of man took only six hours and was commented on for its swiftness. Mark 15:44.
But that was because He did not die of crucifixion!
He plainly told us that "I lay down My life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again." John 10:17-18. When Pilate said that he had the power to crucify Him, Jesus denied it. John 19:10-11. It was sin that killed Him, not Roman soldiers, not Jewish religionists. "He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed." Isaiah 53:5.
The Son of man AND the Son of God were killed by sin!
He has saved countless millions since the beginning, but He does not "Offer Himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with the blood of others", for His is not a series of sacrifices, but an ever-continuing one.
Paul continued in the next verse and explained this, "But now, once in the end of the world has He appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself." Hebrews 9:25-26. From the foundation to the end of the world is the real length of His crucifixion.
An everlasting covenant
This was because the suffering of Christ did not begin or end with His manifestation in humanity, for the cross is a revelation to our dull senses of the pain, that from its very inception, sin has brought to the heart of God.
The cross is the ultimate in object lessons! It also was "added" because of the result of transgressions, and has replaced all the other symbols and ceremonies which ever existed before that time. They had become so polluted that no one could see their real meaning any more. Jesus, in His human body, has given us something that should never have been mis-understood. "When the fullness of time was come, God sent forth His Son ... to redeem them that were under [the confusion of] the law." Galatians 4:4-5.
But the enemy of souls is cunning, more subtle than any other creature, for he has not attempted to do away with the cross, instead he appears to exalt it! But without the understanding that should go with it! A half offering, no more! What a sad fate for such a costly effort.
In those six hours of human suffering we should also see six thousand years of divine suffering. It is not yet finished, and indeed, cannot be, until the last Christian gives up his or her last sin to their Saviour. Only then will Jesus be able to say with finality, "It is finished." As long as there is even one of His people requiring His help He has committed Himself to be available as Saviour and Mediator. What we do not seem to realise is what this is costing Him. We often sorrow because our evil deeds bring unpleasant consequences to ourselves, but this is not repentance. Real sorrow for sin is the result of the working of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit reveals the ingratitude of the heart that has slighted and grieved the Saviour, and brings us in contrition to the foot of the cross. By every sin Jesus is wounded afresh; and as we look upon Him whom we have pierced, we will mourn for the sins that have brought anguish upon Him. Such mourning will lead to the renunciation of sin.
In the day of final judgment, every lost soul will then understand the nature of his or her rejection of truth. The cross will be presented and its full meaning will finally be seen by every mind that has been blinded by transgression. Sinners will stand condemned before the vision of Calvary with its mysterious Victim. Every lying excuse will be swept away. Human apostasy will appear in its heinous character. Men and women will see what their choice has been. Even now in their attitude toward Christ and His cross, all show on which side they stand.
Thus every one passes judgment upon themselves.
Return to "Tabernacle Teachings"
Ever alive
It is written, "Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever lives to make intercession for them." Hebrews 7:25.
There appears to be a contradiction here for how can He be dying and at the same time ever living?
Jesus the Son of God and the Son of man is two persons fused into one. He is divine/human, and it was His humanity which died at Calvary, for of course, divinity does not die as we know death. However, death causes a separation from loved ones, and the Son of God has been separated from His Father because He has taken our sins and our deaths upon Himself and in this way His Divinity has "died" while He "ever lives."
Remember that the Son of God is not dying from crucifixion but from the weight of the sins of the world.
He became the curse for us and although He is to be relieved of the weight of the sins on the Day of Atonement, He will bear the result of them forever.
The separation
This has separated Him from His Father for evermore in a certain way which is not easy to explain, but the following story may help.
Imagine, if you will, two pensioners in an old folk's home. A widow and a widower. They fall in love and would like to marry, but their children think that they are foolish, and raise many objections. For the sake of the children they reluctantly agree not to marry and continue to live their separate lives in the home. They are physically together every day, but never together in the way represented by marriage. What an agony for them! The only thing that keeps them in this condition is the wish of their children, yet they must remain that way as long as they live.
Our Saviour had a unique position with His Father from the beginning of the creation of the universe, but after His resurrection as the only-begotten of God, He lost that original position and since then has been forever encumbered with humanity. "The promise which was made unto the fathers, God has fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that He has raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second Psalm; You are My Son, this day have I begotten You." Acts 13:32-33.
He still has physical access to His Father now, but not the close emotional tie that was once His. This is His eternal sacrifice.
But "For the joy that was set before Him", He is going through His agony, and "When you shall make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed ... He shall see the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied." Hebrews 12:2; Isaiah 53:10-11. Adam said that in entering into marriage the man must leave his father, and this is what Jesus has done by "marrying" His church. Genesis 2:24.
Six thousand years of suffering followed by an eternity of separation from His Son is what God would have us see in the object lesson of Calvary.
This is the way in which Jesus Christ is still dying for us today.
What amazing love!
It was not only for six hours on a tree;
nor for three days in a tomb;
nor for thirty-three years as a man;
nor yet for six thousand years as a sin-bearer;
that Christ has suffered on account of sin.
He will carry the horrible results of sin eternally. Not the sins, for they will be eventually be returned to their rightful originator, but the results of them will He bear.
The marks of the nails in His hands and the spear wound in His side, remain even today, as fresh as they were when He showed them to Thomas a week after the resurrection. John 20:26-31. He is the Lamb "as it had been slain", or freshly killed, seen at the end of the world. Revelation 5:6.
All that He endured - the blood drops that flowed from His head, His hands, His feet; the agony that racked His frame; and the unutterable anguish that filled His soul at the hiding of His Father's face - speaks to every child of humanity, declaring, "It is for you that I consent to bear this burden of guilt; for you I destroy the domain of death, and open the gates of paradise."
The sacrifice of Christ as an atonement for sin is the great truth around which all other truths cluster. In order to be rightly understood and appreciated, every truth in the word of God, from Genesis to Revelation, must be studied in the light which streams from the cross of Calvary, and in connection with the wondrous, central truth of the Saviour's atonement.
In an ancient vision an early prophet saw Jesus in the new world. He wrote, "God came from Teman, and the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of His praise. And His brightness was as the light [of the sun]; He had horns [i.e. power] coming out of His hands, [or, bright beams out of His side, margin]; and there was the hiding of His power [of love]." Habakkuk 3:3-4.
God will explain the meaning of these words to those who want to know. When "One shall say unto Him, What are these wounds in Thine hands?, then shall He answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of My friends." Zechariah 13:6. Love, as illustrated in this object lesson, will ensure that sin will never again enter the universe. Nahum 1:9.
This is the secret weapon of God.
New rituals
Through Christ the previously hidden glory of the holy of holies stands revealed. The mercy seat, upon which the glory of God rests in the holy of holies, is open to all who accept Christ as the propitiation for their sin, for only through its medium can they brought into fellowship with God. Through Christ the Holy Spirit sets the matter before the sinner in a new light, and the sinner realises that sin must be a tremendous evil to cost such a sacrifice to atone for it. Why was this done on behalf of man? It was because God loves us and is not willing that any should perish, but desires that all should come to repentance. He wants us to believe in Jesus as a present and personal Saviour, not just an historical One; and in this way receive life eternal.
But because of our fickleness, and the devil's cunning, our attention can still be quickly drawn away from reality and focussed on the object lesson. Thus God has had to give us other rituals to help us remember! The first of these was the one which Jesus initiated while He was having His last meal with His disciples. There He taught them, and us, to eat and drink in memory of His death. He also told us that He would eat this supper again with us in the new world where it will still be a remembrance of His death. Matthew 26:26-29.
Later, He repeated His instructions to His new apostle Paul. He wrote for us, "For I have received that which I also delivered unto you ... For as often as you eat this bread, and drink this cup, you do show the LORD's death till He come." 1 Corinthians 11:23-26.
We are intended to carry on this rite today and to remember the reality behind it. But, Paul warned, "He that eateth and drinketh unworthily eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the LORD's body." Verse 29.
Another translation puts it this way:-
"He who eats and drinks eats and drinks judgment upon himself if he does not discern the Body. That is why many of you are feeble and sick, and a number have died. But if we examined ourselves, we should not thus fall under judgment." Verses 29-31 New English Bible.
If we do not want to be feeble and sick or die, then we should prayerfully examine what this means.
However, we do not have to live in the shadow of the cross, but may be on its sunny side, where the "Sun of righteousness" may shine in our hearts. Malachi 4:2. Therefore, associated with the LORD's supper was another aspect of the ritual, the mini-baptism of feet washing. John 13:1-7. "If you know these things, happy are you if you do them", Jesus told us. This ceremony was intended, among other things, to show us our part in the plan of salvation. The burnt offering of Abel showed in picture form his death with the death of his Saviour. The washing of feet signifies our continuing death to self, as the bread and wine signify His. It is also the time to confess any sins that may have cause us to drag our feet since our baptism into His death. "Know you not, that so many of us as were baptised into Jesus Christ were baptised into His death? Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism into death." Romans 6:3-4. Having done this physically and spiritually we may go "clean" into His supper.
Therefore we should see that our attitude today towards these ceremonies, baptism, feet-washing, and the supper, will show our attitude towards our God, just as Cain and Abel showed theirs. If we think that half an offering will do then we will receive a terrible shock one day, like Cain.
Jesus has told us that he will drink the grape juice in the future with us, if we do exactly as He says.
In that great day, one reminder alone will remain.
Our Redeemer will ever bear the marks of His crucifixion. Upon His wounded head, upon His side, His hands and His feet, are the only physical traces of the ruin that sin has wrought. These tokens of His humiliation are also His highest honour. Through the eternal ages the wounds of Calvary will show forth His sacrifice and declare His power.
John's vision of heaven included, among many other things, a picture of this. "In the midst of the throne, and of the four beasts [living creatures RSV], and in the midst of the elders, stood a LAMB as it had been slain [i.e freshly killed] ..." Revelation 5:6.
oooOooo
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