ESNG: 2015

Exodus 3:15-18 [15] God said moreover to Moses, “You shall tell the children of Israel this, ‘Yahweh, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and this is my memorial to all generations. [16] Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and tell them, ‘Yahweh, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, “I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt; [17] and I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt to the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, to a land flowing with milk and honey.”’ [18] They will listen to your voice, and you shall come, you and the elders of Israel, to the king of Egypt, and you shall tell him, ‘Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Now please let us go three days’ journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to Yahweh, our God.’

Exodus 4:29-31 [29] Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel. [30] Aaron spoke all the words which Yahweh had spoken to Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people. [31] The people believed, and when they heard that Yahweh had visited the children of Israel, and that he had seen their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshiped.

Exodus 12:21,28 [21] Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said to them, “Draw out, and take lambs according to your families, and kill the Passover. [28] The children of Israel went and did so; as Yahweh had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.

Moses spoke to the elders, and all the children of Israel went and did so.

Exodus 17:3-6 [3] The people were thirsty for water there; and the people murmured against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us, our children, and our livestock with thirst?” [4] Moses cried to Yahweh, saying, “What shall I do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me.” [5] Yahweh said to Moses, “Walk on before the people, and take the elders of Israel with you, and take the rod in your hand with which you struck the Nile, and go. [6] Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock in Horeb. You shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel.

Exodus 18:13-26 [13] On the next day, Moses sat to judge the people, and the people stood around Moses from the morning to the evening. [14] When Moses’ father-in-law saw all that he did to the people, he said, “What is this thing that you do for the people? Why do you sit alone, and all the people stand around you from morning to evening?” [15] Moses said to his father-in-law, “Because the people come to me to inquire of God. [16] When they have a matter, they come to me, and I judge between a man and his neighbor, and I make them know the statutes of God, and his laws.” [17] Moses’ father-in-law said to him, “The thing that you do is not good. [18] You will surely wear away, both you, and this people that is with you; for the thing is too heavy for you. You are not able to perform it yourself alone. [19] Listen now to my voice. I will give you counsel, and God be with you. You represent the people before God, and bring the causes to God. [20] You shall teach them the statutes and the laws, and shall show them the way in which they must walk, and the work that they must do. [21] Moreover you shall provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God: men of truth, hating unjust gain; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens. [22] Let them judge the people at all times. It shall be that every great matter they shall bring to you, but every small matter they shall judge themselves. So shall it be easier for you, and they shall share the load with you. [23] If you will do this thing, and God commands you so, then you will be able to endure, and all of these people also will go to their place in peace.” [24] So Moses listened to the voice of his father-in-law, and did all that he had said. [25] Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens. [26] They judged the people at all times. They brought the hard causes to Moses, but every small matter they judged themselves.

Deuteronomy 1:9-18 [9] I spoke to you at that time, saying, “I am not able to bear you myself alone. [10] Yahweh your God has multiplied you, and behold, you are this day as the stars of the sky for multitude. [11] Yahweh, the God of your fathers, make you a thousand times as many as you are, and bless you, as he has promised you! [12] How can I myself alone bear your problems, your burdens, and your strife? [13] Take wise men of understanding and well known according to your tribes, and I will make them heads over you.” [14] You answered me, and said, “The thing which you have spoken is good to do.” [15] So I took the heads of your tribes, wise men, and known, and made them heads over you, captains of thousands, and captains of hundreds, and captains of fifties, and captains of tens, and officers, according to your tribes. [16] I commanded your judges at that time, saying, “Hear cases between your brothers, and judge righteously between a man and his brother, and the foreigner who is living with him. [17] You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not be afraid of the face of man, for the judgment is God’s. The case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.” [18] I commanded you at that time all the things which you should do.

Choosing and appointing elders.

Exodus 19:7-8 [7] Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and set before them all these words which Yahweh commanded him. [8] All the people answered together, and said, “All that Yahweh has spoken we will do.” Moses reported the words of the people to Yahweh.

Exodus 24:1-2 [1] He said to Moses, “Come up to Yahweh, you, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship from a distance. [2] Moses alone shall come near to Yahweh, but they shall not come near, neither shall the people go up with him.”

Exodus 24:9-12 [9] Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up. [10] They saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was like a paved work of sapphire [] stone, like the skies for clearness. [11] He didn’t lay his hand on the nobles of the children of Israel. They saw God, and ate and drank. [12] Yahweh said to Moses, “Come up to me on the mountain, and stay here, and I will give you the stone tablets with the law and the commands that I have written, that you may teach them.”

Leviticus 4:13-15 [13] “‘If the whole congregation of Israel sins, and the thing is hidden from the eyes of the assembly, and they have done any of the things which Yahweh has commanded not to be done, and are guilty; [14] when the sin in which they have sinned is known, then the assembly shall offer a young bull for a sin offering, and bring it before the Tent of Meeting. [15] The elders of the congregation shall lay their hands on the head of the bull before Yahweh; and the bull shall be killed before Yahweh.

Numbers 11:16-17 [16] Yahweh said to Moses, “Gather to me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people, and officers over them; and bring them to the Tent of Meeting, that they may stand there with you. [17] I will come down and talk with you there. I will take of the Spirit which is on you, and will put it on them; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you not bear it yourself alone.

Numbers 16:23-26 [23] Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, [24] “Speak to the congregation, saying, ‘Get away from around the tent of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram!’” [25] Moses rose up and went to Dathan and Abiram; and the elders of Israel followed him. [26] He spoke to the congregation, saying, “Depart, please, from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest you be consumed in all their sins!”

Numbers 24:24-25 [24] Moses went out, and told the people Yahweh’s words; and he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people, and set them around the Tent. [25] Yahweh came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was on him, and put it on the seventy elders. When the Spirit rested on them, they prophesied, but they did so no more.

Deuteronomy 16:18 You shall make judges and officers in all your gates, which Yahweh your God gives you, according to your tribes; and they shall judge the people with righteous judgment.

Deuteronomy 19:11-12 [11] But if any man hates his neighbor, lies in wait for him, rises up against him, strikes him mortally so that he dies, and he flees into one of these cities; [12] then the elders of his city shall send and bring him there, and deliver him into the hand of the avenger of blood, that he may die.

Several places at the end of Deuteronomy, the people are told to go to the elders to resolves certain issues, or to witness to certain issues.

Deuteronomy 21:18-21 [18] If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son, who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and though they chasten him, will not listen to them; [19] then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his city, and to the gate of his place. [20] They shall tell the elders of his city, “This our son is stubborn and rebellious. He will not obey our voice. He is a glutton and a drunkard.” [21] All the men of his city shall stone him to death with stones. So you shall remove the evil from your midst. All Israel shall hear, and fear.

Deuteronomy 27:1 Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying, “Keep all the commandment which I command you this day.

Deuteronomy 31:28 Assemble to me all the elders of your tribes, and your officers, that I may speak these words in their ears, and call heaven and earth to witness against them.

Joshua 7:6 Joshua tore his clothes, and fell to the earth on his face before Yahweh’s ark until the evening, he and the elders of Israel; and they put dust on their heads.

Friday, May 8, 2015

Matthew 26:28 - The Blood of the Covenant

BLOOD OF THE COVENANT

Exodus 24:3-8 [3] Moses came and told the people all Yahweh’s words, and all the ordinances; and all the people answered with one voice, and said, “All the words which Yahweh has spoken will we do.” [4] Moses wrote all Yahweh’s words, and rose up early in the morning, and built an altar under the mountain, and twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel. [5] He sent young men of the children of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of cattle to Yahweh. [6] Moses took half of the blood and put it in basins, and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. [7] He took the book of the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people, and they said, “All that Yahweh has spoken will we do, and be obedient.” [8] Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, “Look, this is the blood of the covenant, which Yahweh has made with you concerning all these words.”

Matthew 26:26-29 [26] As they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks for it, and broke it. He gave to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” [27] He took the cup, gave thanks, and gave to them, saying, “All of you drink it, [28] for this is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the remission of sins. [29] But I tell you that I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on, until that day when I drink it anew with you in my Father’s Kingdom.”

Matthew 26:28 [GerNeUe] Das ist mein Blut, das Blut, das für viele zur Vergebung der Sünden vergossen wird und den Bund zwischen Gott und Menschen besiegelt.

This German translation expands the sentence in order to give what the translators see as the fuller meaning. It says: “This is my blood, the blood, that for many is poured out for the forgiveness of sins and to seal the covenant between God and men.”

The Blood of the [New] Covenant does three things:

It enacts/ratifies the covenant (at a high cost to God)
It is shed for the forgiveness of sins
1. First, that we may be cleanses to enter into the covenant
2. Second, that we may be cleansed while in the covenant to remain in it
It empowers the partakers to fulfill their responsibilities in the covenant (when partaken of rightly)

The Covenant stated most simply by scripture:

Here are some simple scriptural statements of the new covenant in its most basic form. Each of these verses says what is ultimately the same thing in different ways. If we turn from the world, self and sin to live instead for God, God will forgive us our sins and give us eternal life with him.

Matthew 16:24-25 [24] Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. [25] For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, and whoever will lose his life for my sake will find it.
1. If we are willing to lose our own life for Jesus' sake, he will give us our life in its greatest sense
Acts 3:19-21 [19] “Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, so that there may come times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord, [20] and that he may send Christ Jesus, who was ordained for you before, [21] whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God spoke long ago by the mouth of his holy prophets.
1. If we repent, God will blot out our sins, send refreshing, and send Jesus a second time to restore all things
Luke 24:47 and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
1. If we repent, if we turn from sin to live for God, God will grant forgiveness
2 Timothy 2:11-13 [11] This saying is faithful: “For if we died with him, we will also live with him. [12] If we endure, we will also reign with him. If we deny him, he also will deny us. [13] If we are faithless, he remains faithful. He can’t deny himself.”
1. If we die with him, and live not for self but for God, he will give us life with him.
2. If we endure in following him, he will cause us to reign with him.
2 Corinthians 5:15 He died for all, that those who live should no longer live to themselves, but to him who for their sakes died and rose again. 1 Corinthians 15:3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
1. We no longer live for ourselves but for him who died and rose again; He died for our sins
John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
1. If we believe in him, faithfully following him to the end (not believed but believes), he will give us eternal life.

Acts 5:30-32 [30] The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you killed, hanging him on a tree. [31] God exalted him with his right hand to be a Prince and a Savior, to give repentance to Israel, and remission of sins. [32] We are His witnesses of these things; and so also is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”

The Psalmist wrote (Psalm 130:3-4), If you, Lord, kept track of our sin, who could stand; but with you if found forgiveness, that you may be feared. When he writes, “with you is found forgiveness,” he is saying what the apostles spoke so long after. God has given/opened to men the possibility of repenting, of living a life of repentance, that those who do repent, who live such a repentant life, can receive forgiveness of sins. It is no small thing that God has done in working out all the details of opening to men the door of repentance and with it forgiveness of sins.

The New Covenant and the Covenant of Marriage

Married life is a life of covenant. Marriage begins when a man and woman make vows to each other. They vow to love one another faithfully until death. At its best, this covenant life, living in this marriage covenant, brings true joy and relationship that fulfills. When each spouse pursues loving the other as much as possible, the life in this marriage covenant is truly wonderful. When each spouse is committed to making the other spouse love them as much as possible, the life in this marriage covenant is not what it was intended to be.

Marriage, and so the marriage covenant, is an illustration of the covenant life with God into which a person enters when they vow to turn from sin and live faithfully for and with God. Daily living in this covenant, turning from sin and walking in joyful and humble obedience with God brings righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, and true and everlasting life. Just as in the marriage covenant life, so in this New Covenant: when we make it our aim and goal to love our God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength, we will find this New Covenant, and the God with whom we have made this covenant, to be eternal life. When we do otherwise, we will also find otherwise.

TO PUT THIS ALL TOGETHER:

The Blood of the Covenant Enacts/Ratifies the Covenant

When we partake of the bread and wine, we should remember that this is the blood of the new covenant. It should remind us that some time in the past we turned from the path of this world to the narrow path that leads to life, following Jesus. On one hand, we should remember that we have entered into this covenant with God and his Son Jesus Christ. We have made binding vows (Psalm 56:12), and should walk faithfully with our God in this covenant (which leads to life). On the other hand, as we partake of the wine, we should recall the high price paid by God in order to enact this covenant with us. It is the new covenant in his blood (Luke 22:20). Let us say with the Psalmist, “Your vows are on me, God. I will give thank offerings to you” (Psalm 56:12).

The Blood of the Covenant is shed for the forgiveness of sins

We may enter into this blessed New Covenant with God because the blood of Jesus was shed for our sins. God cannot just ignore our sins prior to our repentance and new life. When we partake of the bread and wine, we should call to mind our former manner of life (Titus 3:1-3; 1 Peter 4:1-3), and the price God paid to redeem us from that into this New Covenant with himself (1 Peter 1:18-19).

Further, as we partake, we should also remember that God has provided for us to remain with him in the New Covenant. We ought not to sin (1 John 2:1), and he has given us all we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3), but, if we do sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous (1 John 2:1-2), whose blood was shed for the forgiveness of sins. Let us take caution in this matter, for our God tells us that if we go on sinning willfully, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins (Hebrews 10:26). Let us live a life of humble and joyful repentance (for it is in such a life that we receive grace from our God). Or, let us walk in the light – As the apostle John wrote, “If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).

The Blood of the Covenant gives us power to those who partake of it to fulfill their vows to God in this covenant

Those who partake of the bread and wine in an unworthy manner find judgment and a curse. Those who partake worthily find grace. As we partake worthily, we should remember that the God with whom we have entered into this New Covenant has given us all things for life and godliness. He has given us real power to fulfill our vows to turn from the world, self and sin and to live faithfully for God. In some way, one of the ways we receive this grace, one of the ways we are strengthened to walk faithfully and rightly with God in this New Covenant, is through partaking of the bread and wine, the blood of the new covenant.

Here are a few portions that point to this portion of the blood of the new covenant:

Revelation 12:11 They overcame him because of the Lamb’s blood, and because of the word of their testimony. They didn’t love their life, even to death.

John 6:53-58 [53] Jesus therefore said to them, “Most certainly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you don’t have life in yourselves. [54] He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. [55] For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. [56] He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me, and I in him. [57] As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father; so he who feeds on me, he will also live because of me. [58] This is the bread which came down out of heaven—not as our fathers ate the manna, and died. He who eats this bread will live forever.”

Hebrews 9:13-14 [13] For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled, sanctify to the cleanness of the flesh: [14] how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without defect to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

Wednesday, May 6, 2015

#494 - The Saviour of Kurdistan

The Saviour of Kurdistan

Knee deep in the waters of the upper Tigris stood a poor Kurdish washerwoman plying her vocation. Although her pay was but a pittance, she wrought daily at her hard task for her own livelihood, for the education of her bright little boy, and for charity. In the winter, when blocks of ice from the streams in the Taurus Mountains came floating down the river, she still was there, laboring with strong arms and a stronger love.

The missionary from Kharput, making his annual visit, saw in his congregation a face that fascinated him. In it suffering and sorrow and hope and patience and passionate devotion seemed to have wrought their perfect work. At the close of the meeting he said to the native pastor: “Bring that woman to me.”

In mean attire and trembling, the woman stood before him, holding with one hand her little boy. The missionary spoke Armenian; she understood Kurdish. He addressed her through the native pastor.

“Mother, do you love Jesus?”

“I do,” she said, “I do.”

“How much would you give to Him?” asked the missionary.

“Oh, missionary,” she cried, “I have nothing! Yet all I earn I give, saving only enough for good for this little boy and myself.”

“Would you give your little boy?” he asked.

“He is my all – my life!” she cried.

“Think well of it to-night and pray,” said the missionary. “I return to Kharput to-morrow.”

And the widow went out, sobbing: “My only son, my Thomas!”

The remaining hours of the missionary's visit were very busy ones, and when the morning came and his horse was saddled, he had forgotten about Thomas. He reproached himself afterward, but it was true – he forgot. The journey was long. The mountain full of brigands. There was so much of preparation for the journey, so much of necessary adjustment of the work of the mission, so much of admonition, direction and advice, that Thomas and his mother, with the wonderful light in her eyes, passed wholly from his mind.

But just as he was about to start, the group of mission workers and converts who had assembled to bid him farewell divided to make room for her to approach him – and there was the mother and Thomas.

At the missionary's feet she laid the little bundle of clothing on which she had worked all night. She laid one hand on her boy's head, and with the other pointing upward, said two words: “Thomas – Christos.” Then she went back to her lonely home. But not to a narrowed or mournful life; hers was the joy of one who had made the supreme sacrifice.

Thomas developed all those powers which the missionary had discerned in promise on his face, and has seen in full development in the face of his mother. He led the class. He advanced by leaps and bounds. He was valedictorian at his graduation. He pushed straight on in his Bible study, and when he graduated he went back to his old home, where the mother waited for him, and then far beyond into the Kurdish mountains to a town which, for its Christian faith in early ages, had been named Martyropolis. There he began anew the preaching of a Gospel that once made its followers faithful unto death, and they call him “The Prophet of Kurdistan.”

The black year 1895 came round, and with it the awful massacres. Many thousand Christians gave their lives for their faith. Eight hundred of the members of the churches located close to him perished. Twenty-seven teachers and preachers died at their posts; Thomas was shot and cruelly cut, and left for dead. With bleeding wounds and borken bones and a fractured skull they bore him fifteen hours' journey – two long days – to where he could have the protection of a British consul and the care of a European surgeon. And Thomas, against all probabilities, recovered.

Back he went into the mountains where he had worked before. He gathered the scattered, frightened Christians and inspired them with new courage and hope. He protected the widows; he fed the orphans. He gave himself without fear or fatigue to a work that brought new life to crushed and broken hearts. The sacrifice of his own mother bore its abundant fruit in the comfort he brought to hundreds of widows and orphans, and the called him the saviour of Kurdistan.--Selected.

Illustrative Anecdotes for Preachers, Sunday School Teachers, and the Family Circle. Henry M. Tyndall. 1925. #494 (Pages 264-265).

[for information on “The black year 1895,” look up “Massacres of Diyarbakır (1895)” in Wikipedia or elsewhere.]

Friday, May 1, 2015

1 Corinthians 5:7 - The New Passover

The New Passover

1 Corinthians 5:7 Purge out the old yeast, that you may be a new lump, even as you are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, has been sacrificed in our place.

The Lord's Table is the new Passover.

The old Passover was observed each year to remind God's people that God had delivered them from the power and slavery of their enemy. (It is interesting to note that Jesus did not die on the Day of Atonement, but during Passover.)

In Numbers 14, Israel refused to enter the promised land, and made plans to return to Egypt. They were returning to slavery. God was angry with that generation of people, and swore than none (save Joshua and Caleb) would inherit the promised land. All that generation died in the wilderness because they would not enter and decided to return to Egypt.

Jesus established a new Passover. As often as we celebrate the Lord's table, we should be reminded that Christ delivered us from the power of sin to live holy lives. When we are unwilling to walk in his ways, and instead want to return to slavery in sin (return to Egypt), God will not be pleased with us.

The writer of Hebrews said that if we go on sinning willfully, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment. The apostle Paul wrote that God is not mocked. Whatever a man sows, that will he also reap. If we sow to the flesh, we will reap destruction.

God does his part of the covenant so that we can do our part, that is, that we can serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness all the days of our life. As we partake of the bread and wine in this new “Passover,” let us remember that God set us free from slavery to sin (Egypt), and let us commit to walking in the freedom of the children of God (walking in God's ways), asking for and expecting to receive grace to walk in this way as we partake of the bread and wine.

Luke 1:72-75 [72] to show mercy towards our fathers, to remember his holy covenant, [73] the oath which he spoke to Abraham, our father, [74] to grant to us that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies, should serve him without fear, [75] In holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life.

Hebrews 13:20-21; Matthew 16:24-25 - The Eternal Covenant

The Eternal Covenant

Hebrews 13:20-21 [20] Now may the God of peace, who brought again from the dead the great shepherd of the sheep with the blood of an eternal covenant, our Lord Jesus, [21] make you complete in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Matthew 16:24-25 [24] Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. [25] For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, and whoever will lose his life for my sake will find it.

In one sense, this is the covenant. This was always the covenant. God will give us eternal life, the blessed life after death, if we will in this life lose our lives for him. If we will die to ourselves, the world, to sin, and live for God, then God will forgive our sins and grant us the life everlasting.

Hebrews 11:24-26 [24] By faith, Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, [25] choosing rather to share ill treatment with God’s people, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a time; [26] accounting the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he looked to the reward.

When did Moses choose ill treatment with God's people instead of the pleasures of sin? He chose this before the covenant of Mount Sinai. Moses chose to lose his life for the God's sake, for the sake of Christ, because he desired the eternal life that God had promised to those who make this choice and live this life - “For he looked to the reward.”

Isaiah 24:5 The earth also is polluted under its inhabitants, because they have transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, and broken the everlasting covenant.

Jeremiah 31:31-34 - The New Covenant

The New Covenant

Jeremiah 31:31-34 [31] Behold, the days come, says Yahweh, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: [32] not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they broke, although I was a husband to them, says Yahweh. [33] But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says Yahweh: I will put my law in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people: [34] and they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know Yahweh; for they shall all know me, from their least to their greatest, says Yahweh: for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin will I remember no more.

The New Covenant. According to the words of Jeremiah, God will do four things as part of this new covenant he will make with his people:

1) He will write his laws in our minds and hearts. What does this really mean? Is his law written there simply because we hope it is?

Jesus said that the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart (Matthew 12:34; Luke 6:45). The words of our mouth, our daily conversation, the attitude connected with what we say reveals the law written in our minds and hearts. What law is shown to be in your heart and my heart?

In the same way, our actions, our behavior, the choices we make, the lives we choose to live, reveal what is written in our minds and hearts. What law is shown to be in your heart and my heart by the life you live?

2) A Close and Proper Relationship. God says, I will be their God and they will be my people. What does this really mean? Those who have entered into this new covenant with God will have a close and proper relationship with God, and God with them.

Who is our God? Jesus said that we cannot serve two masters. Which master are we serving? Do we serve the one true God as our first and only master, in loving obedience? Or, do we call him “Lord, Lord,” but actually serve another master, or have priorities different from God's priorities?

Are we his people? Do we live as God's people, a people set apart from the world and its ways, or do we live as people of the world live? Again, do we have earthly or heavenly goals? Do we spend more time and energy on pursuing earthly treasure or heavenly treasure? Whose people are we? The people who have entered into this new covenant made by God live as the people of God, seeking first his kingdom and his righteousness.

3) All Shall Know Me. The people of the new covenant will know God. This is not some secret or difficult knowledge that only a certain group of society can discover. Do we know God, his character and his will? These are not hidden things.

God is love. Those who know God will love. They will love God and will love their neighbor. He who does not love, does not know God, for God is love (1 John 4:7-8). What does this love consist of? God cares for the widow and orphan. Do we? God humbled himself to serve others. Do we? Do we know God in this way?

Jesus said that many will come to him at the judgment day expecting to be received. He will tell them, “Depart from me, I never knew you, you who practiced lawlessness” (Matthew 7:21-23). Such people told themselves they knew God, but they did not know God and were not known by him. They practiced sin. They thought that God would allow them to go on sinning willfully, but they did not know him who is not mocked (Galatians 6:7-10). How do we know the Lord? Do we really know him who called us to repentance and righteousness? The people of the new covenant know God in this way.

4) I Will Forgive Their Iniquity and Remember Their Sin No More. The people of the new covenant have been forgiven. Who is forgiven? Most Christians understand that not everyone in the world is forgiven. Then who is forgiven?

Jesus told his disciples to preach repentance for the forgiveness of sins (Luke 24:47). Those who repent of their sins, those who turn away from their sins and live for God in his ways instead, such people will be forgiven. That is what God has told us through his Son. Have you met someone living a life of repentance, someone who has turned from their sins and is living instead for God, walking in his ways, then you have met a person who has been forgiven his iniquities, you have met a person whose sin is remembered by God no more. You have met a person of the new covenant. What about you and me? Are we such people of the new covenant, in deed and in truth?

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

1 Corinthians 11:25 - the Lord's Table: the Covenant

NEW COVENANT IN MY BLOOD

May 3, 2015

1 Corinthians 11:25 In the same way he also took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink, in memory of me.”

As often as we partake of this, we should remember the covenant. That is, we should remember God's part and our part, and for our part, we should confirm our commitment to this covenant.

On God's part, he has sent his Son, his blood was shed, God gave us his Holy Spirit (Hebrews 10:29). He has given us all things for life and godliness that we may become partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 2:3-4).

Remembering all this, we should be thankful. We should also have fear and trembling as we consider “to whom much is given, much is required” (Luke 12:48).

On our part, we have turned from sin, self and the devil, to now live for God and the one who died and rose again on our behalf. We have covenanted with God, to add with all diligence to our faith virtue, and to virtue knowledge, and to knowledge self-control, etc. (2 Peter 1:2-11). Doing this, we make our calling and the entrance into eternal life sure.

Remembering this, we should judge ourselves rightly. If we have sinned, we should repent and confess our sins. We should commit ourselves once again to this covenant with God. We should humbly reaffirm that we want to still live no longer for ourselves but for him.

In our commitment, whether it is our initial commitment, or we are reaffirming it, we must do so with humility. It is only with God's help that we can fulfill our commitment faithfully to the end. Yet, it is not a stifling humility, an immobilizing humility that prevents us from making this commitment or reaffirming our commitment. We remember that God has given us all things for life and godliness. We remember that we may approach with boldness the throne of grace to find grace and mercy. Let us reaffirm our commitment, with humility and confidence, to no longer live for ourselves but for him who died and rose again on our behalf.

If we choose to go on in sin, if we sin willfully, not repenting (but hoping that it will not be a big deal on the judgment day), we are treading under our feet the Son of God, treating him as dirt to walk on; we are counting the blood of the covenant by which we were sanctified an unholy thing, spitting on the blood of Christ; we are insulting the Spirit of Grace, treating the Holy Spirit which God gave us to help us live pleasing to him as a thing of no value to us, as something that is useless and at best a waste of my time.

Considering this, is it safe to partake of the bread and the wine if we are holding onto any sin? Let us first repent and confess our sins. If we are unreconciled with others, especially because of our own sin, let us go first and be reconciled before we partake of the bread and the wine. The apostle Paul wrote of God's judgment coming upon those who partake of the bread and wine unworthily. Some were weak and sickly, and some had even died.

Jesus established this partaking of the bread and wine for our good. God is for us. His own son died for us. Yet, there is always that danger that we would take advantage of God's goodness, mercy, grace and kindness. Let us not forget that the kindness of God leads us to repentance (Romans 2:4).

Conclusion: When we partake of the bread and wine, one thing to consider is this covenant between God and us. Give thanks for God's part. Look forward to the promised inheritance, remembering and reaffirming our commitment to walk the path that leads to it, that is, that we would turn from sin, self and the devil, and live for God and his son, Jesus Christ.

*****

NOTES:

THE BLOOD OF THE COVENANT

Hebrews 9:13-20 [13] For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled, sanctify to the cleanness of the flesh: [14] how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without defect to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? [15] For this reason he is the mediator of a new covenant, since a death has occurred for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first covenant, that those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance. [16] For where a last will and testament is, there must of necessity be the death of him who made it. [17] For a will is in force where there has been death, for it is never in force while he who made it lives. [18] Therefore even the first covenant has not been dedicated without blood. [19] For when every commandment had been spoken by Moses to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of the calves and the goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, [20] saying, “This is the blood of the covenant which God has commanded you.”

Exodus 24:7-8 [7] He took the book of the covenant and read it in the hearing of the people, and they said, “All that Yahweh has spoken will we do, and be obedient.” [8] Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, “Look, this is the blood of the covenant, which Yahweh has made with you concerning all these words.”

Both the old and the new covenants were dedicated, or inaugurated, or initiated, with blood. The old covenant was dedicated with the blood of calves and goats. The new covenant was dedicated with the blood of the lamb of God, Jesus Christ. Jesus explicitly connects the wine of Eucharist (the Lord's Table) with the blood with which the new covenant was dedicated.

Deuteronomy 4:23 Be careful, lest you forget the covenant of Yahweh your God, which he made with you, and make yourselves an engraved image in the form of anything which Yahweh your God has forbidden you.

Moses warned the children of Israel to not forget the covenant. Forgetting the covenant included turning away from the God of the covenant and making other gods to worship and serve instead, or even along with.

Partaking of the bread and wine, we should call to mind the new covenant and our part in it. Just as the people of the old covenant should not forget the covenant and so make, worship and serve other gods, cannot and should not the same be said of the people of the new covenant? Do we really think it good, or even acceptable, for the people of the new covenant to make for themselves other gods to worship and serve? While we seldom build physical idols like a golden calf, we are tempted to worship and serve the god of mammon (money, possessions, earthly treasure), the god of pleasure (worldly entertainment), the god of sexual immorality, etc.

As we partake of the bread and wine, and so remember the new covenant, let us in that consider what it means that He is our God and we are his people. Let us be careful, lest we forget the covenant, and in that forgetting forsake our God and his ways to which he has called us. If the transgressors of the first covenant died without compassion, how much worse punishment can the transgressors of the new covenant expect (Hebrews 10:28-29), who have trodden under foot the Son of God, counted the blood of the covenant and unholy thing, and insulted the spirit of grace?

As we partake of the bread and wine, may God grant us grace to walk with him faithfully in this new covenant he has established through the blood of his own son.

“Blood in the Bible.” Orthodox Wiki.

http://orthodoxwiki.org/Blood_in_the_Bible

Use of Blood in Official Worship

The sacred character of blood calls, finally, for its diverse uses in official worship.

A) The Covenant

The covenant between Yahweh and His people was sealed by a blood-rite: half the blood of the victims was poured on the altar which represented God, half on the people. Moses explained the rite: "this is the blood of the covenant Yahweh has made with you...".[18] Thus an indissoluble bond was established between God and His people.[19]

RENEWING THE COVENANT

“The Covenant Renewed.” W. Strong D.D.

http://biblehub.com/sermons/auth/strong/the_covenant_renewed.htm

III. WHAT ARE THE TIMES AND SEASONS THAT THE PEOPLE OF GOD HAVE SPECIALLY OBSERVED IN RENEWING OF THEIR COVENANT WITH THE LORD?

6. When a man doth receive the sacraments, any of the seals of the covenant, it is his duty to renew the covenant, as often as we set to the seal anew, we shall read over the obligation anew.

“Eucharist.” Orthodox Wiki.

http://orthodoxwiki.org/Eucharist

Before the reception of Holy Communion the following prayer is generally recited by all. It is each person's act of personal commitment to Christ, their promise of faith in Him and the Sacred Mysteries of His Church.

Renew the Covenant (Google search)

https://www.google.com/search?client=ubuntu&channel=fs&q=renew+the+covenant&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8

*****

WE COVENANT WITH HAND AND HEART

http://www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/w/e/c/wecovenant.htm

We covenant with hand and heart,
To follow Christ, our Lord;
With world, and sin, and self to part,
And to obey His Word;
To love each other heartily,
In truth and in sincerity,
And under cross, reproach and shame,
To glorify His name.

*****

Hebrews 8:6-13 [6] But now he has obtained a more excellent ministry, by so much as he is also the mediator of a better covenant, which on better promises has been given as law. [7] For if that first covenant had been faultless, then no place would have been sought for a second. [8] For finding fault with them, he said, “Behold, the days come”, says the Lord, “that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; [9] not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers, in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; for they didn’t continue in my covenant, and I disregarded them,” says the Lord. [10] “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel. After those days,” says the Lord; “I will put my laws into their mind, I will also write them on their heart. I will be their God, and they will be my people. [11] They will not teach every man his fellow citizen, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for all will know me, from their least to their greatest. [12] For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness. I will remember their sins and lawless deeds no more.” [] [13] In that he says, “A new covenant”, he has made the first old. But that which is becoming old and grows aged is near to vanishing away.

Hebrews 10:26-31 [26] For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more a sacrifice for sins, [27] but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a fierceness of fire which will devour the adversaries. [28] A man who disregards Moses’ law dies without compassion on the word of two or three witnesses. [29] How much worse punishment, do you think, will he be judged worthy of, who has trodden under foot the Son of God, and has counted the blood of the covenant with which he was sanctified an unholy thing, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? [30] For we know him who said, “Vengeance belongs to me,” says the Lord, “I will repay.” [] Again, “The Lord will judge his people.” [] [31] It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Hebrews 12:22-29 [22] But you have come to Mount Zion, and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable multitudes of angels, [23] to the general assembly and assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, [24] to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, [] and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better than that of Abel. [25] See that you don’t refuse him who speaks. For if they didn’t escape when they refused him who warned on the earth, how much more will we not escape who turn away from him who warns from heaven, [26] whose voice shook the earth then, but now he has promised, saying, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also the heavens.” [] [27] This phrase, “Yet once more”, signifies the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that have been made, that those things which are not shaken may remain. [28] Therefore, receiving a Kingdom that can’t be shaken, let us have grace, through which we serve God acceptably, with reverence and awe, [29] for our God is a consuming fire.

2 Peter 2:1-11 [2] Grace to you and peace be multiplied in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, [3] seeing that his divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and virtue; [4] by which he has granted to us his precious and exceedingly great promises; that through these you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world by lust. [5] Yes, and for this very cause adding on your part all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence; and in moral excellence, knowledge; [6] and in knowledge, self-control; and in self-control patience; and in patience godliness; [7] and in godliness brotherly affection; and in brotherly affection, love. [8] For if these things are yours and abound, they make you to be not idle nor unfruitful to the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. [9] For he who lacks these things is blind, seeing only what is near, having forgotten the cleansing from his old sins. [10] Therefore, brothers, [] be more diligent to make your calling and election sure. For if you do these things, you will never stumble. [11] For thus you will be richly supplied with the entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

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