Tag Archives: Covenant

Day 30: The Ultimate Mediator

Exodus 22-24; Matthew 20:17-34

Key Verses

Exodus 24:17
Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel.

Matthew 20:26-28
But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.

Exodus 22-23 continues with laws that will form the Book of the Covenant. Exodus 24 gives us a picture of Moses, the Mediator.

Moses mediates symbolically as he sprinkles the blood on both the altar and the people. The sacrificial blood is necessary for the sinful people to approach a Holy God. Moses stands between the altar of God and the people as the mediator of the Covenant.

But we also see Moses physically mediating for the people as he goes before the Lord’s presence on the mountain to receive the rest of the covenant regulations…

Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. Moses entered the cloud and went up on the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights (Exodus 24:17-18).

Before Moses ascended the mountain to stand alone before God, there is an amazing scene. It’s breathtaking…

Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel went up, and they saw the God of Israel. There was under his feet as it were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heaven for clearness. And he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of Israel; they beheld God, and ate and drank (Exodus 24:9-11).

Can you imagine? Beholding God? And eating and drinking?

In today’s New Testament passage we see a different type of encounter with God… I wonder if the mother of John and James knew exactly who she was standing before when she made her bold request!

She said to him, “Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?” (Matthew 20:21-22)

The cup Jesus was referring to was His death. Jesus goes on to say…

“But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:26-28).

It is in this verse that Jesus gives (in my opinion) the clearest message of the gospel. He came to give his life as a ransom for many. He becomes both the sacrifice and the mediator between God and man. Now that’s breathtaking. That’s the gospel!

Day 344: Our Covenant-Keeping-God

Hosea 1-4; Revelation 1

[Israel] shall eat, but not be satisfied;
they shall play the whore, but not multiply,
because they have forsaken the Lord
to cherish whoredom, wine, and new wine,
which take away the understanding (Hosea 4:10-11).

The prophet Hosea lived when the kingdom was divided into Israel in the north and Judah to the south. Specifically, Hosea lived in the tumultuous decades preceding the Assyrian invasion and fall of the northern kingdom – when Israel was diluting her faith with the pagan worship of the fertility god, Baal.

God called Hosea to do something very unusual – to emulate His own broken relationship with Israel…specifically, to seek a whore for a wife (1:2-3), to name his illegitimate children “No Mercy” and “Not My People” (1:6-9), and then to rescue his runaway prostitute wife from the hands of slavery (3:1-3).

God called Hosea to love the unworthy in order to show Israel that their covenant God loved them. God promised the unfaithful Israel that he would one day forgive and restore…

“And in that day, declares the Lord, you will call me ‘My Husband,’ and no longer will you call me ‘My Baal.’ […] I will betroth you to me in righteousness and in justice, in steadfast love and in mercy. I will betroth you to me in faithfulness. And you shall know the Lord.

And I will have mercy on No Mercy,
and I will say to Not My People, ‘You are my people’;
and he shall say, ‘You are my God.’ (Hosea 2:16-20; 23)

This is the grace of our Covenant-Keeping-God…who died for us while we were still sinners (Rom. 5:8) and who has purposed to bring all things in heaven and on earth under the authority of Christ (Eph 1:10)!

We read of His power, majesty and absolute sovereignty in the opening chapter of Revelation (1:13-16). Revelation records the vision given to John to encourage the suffering church. It is a book which has great value for us today as we learn of God’s plan not only to judge the ungodly and redeem the righteous but most importantly, to exalt the risen Savior as King over all heaven and earth!

I pray our journey through the last pages of God’s redemptive story will encourage us to wait all the more faithfully for Jesus’ return. May our eyes be fixed on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith!

Disclaimer: I humbly and cautiously offer an interpretation of the book of Revelation based on my Reformed understanding of Scripture, an Amillennialist eschatology, and a heavy reliance on the book, Revelation, The Compassion and Protection  of Christ by Dr. Paul Gardner.

Day 327: A humble response to a gracious God

Psalms 105-106; James 4

Psalms 105 & 106 are historical Psalms. Psalm 105 focuses on God’s faithfulness while Psalm 106 highlights Israel’s faithlessness. Overarching both historical accounts is the fulfillment of God’s Covenant promises to Israel (105:7-11; 106:44-45).

These two Psalms paint a beautiful picture of God’s sovereignty and grace. Listen to the psalmist’s description of God’s dealings with the patriarchs…

When they were few in number,
of little account, and sojourners in it,
wandering from nation to nation,
from one kingdom to another people,
he allowed no one to oppress them;
he rebuked kings on their account,
saying, “Touch not my anointed ones,
do my prophets no harm!” (Psalm 105:12-15)

This is a God worthy of our praise…especially considering the sinfulness of humanity – so aptly described in Psalm 106 and James 4…

What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? (James 1:1-4)

Who is this God that stoops to have a relationship with sinners? Why would the creator of the universe desire to have a relationship with us? The answer is mysterious and should evoke a humble gratitude – a heart willing to submit to One so powerful AND so good!

But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you (James 4:6-8).

Day 319: Draw near!

Psalms 75-77; Hebrews 10:1-25
(Psalm 74 was read on Day 226)

The previous chapters of Hebrews have been building to a climax found in Chapter 10. Here we read the author’s final and convincing argument of why Jesus is superior to the Mosaic law in every way.

The bottom line: “it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins” (Hebrews 10:4).

The sacrificial system of the Old Testament paved the way for Jesus…

For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified (Hebrews 10:14).

Jesus, the sacrificial lamb, our High Priest and King – has opened the way through the curtain to the presence of God. He sits at God’s right hand to make intercession for us night and day!

Because of the great truths so systematically presented in the first 10 chapters of Hebrews, the author urges the young Jewish Christians to draw near to God!!

Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus […] let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith…Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful (Hebrews 10:19-23).

He is faithful. He is trustworthy…Even when the church suffers persecution, poverty and death – God is faithful. Therefore, the author encourages them to meet together for the purpose of encouragement and mutual strengthening.

Likewise, we cannot expect to persevere in the faith without the support and encouragement from other believers, especially through relationships in our local churches. This is God’s design – We are to draw near to God and to each other to find strength and help in our time of need. And as we lay aside our individual rights to come together to support one another, the world takes notice, and Christ is glorified!

We give thanks to you, O God;
we give thanks, for your name is near.
We recount your wondrous deeds (Psalm 75:1).

Day 318: A dim reflection

Psalms 71-73; Hebrews 9

Everything God has done from the beginning of time until now has been done with precision and purpose to prepare the hearts of men to receive his Son.

Consider Psalm 72…It was a royal Psalm, a prayer for the king of Israel – but it pointed forward to a day when the king would enjoy world-wide rule and bring about peace and social justice. It looked forward to a day when Jesus will rule the earth in peace and justice!

Hebrews 9 connects the symbols in the Old Covenant to their true heavenly counterparts. The temple…a temporal copy of God’s true home in heaven points to Jesus. The priesthood, instituted by God but fulfilled by imperfect men, points to Jesus. The sacrifices, offered day after day after day – were copies of the true sacrifice – offered once and for all, by Jesus!

For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God (Hebrews 9:13-14).

First, God established the law, the tabernacle and the priesthood – to point forward to Christ’s saving work on the cross. But there was more to be revealed!

Just as the temple and priesthood were copies of their true heavenly counterparts…I wonder how much of our world is also a dim reflection of what’s to come…

We look forward to a new heaven and a new earth – where the bride of Christ will be united with her husband. We look forward to the wedding feast of the lamb. Every wedding, celebration and feast is just a dim reflection of what’s to come. Every tree, stream and creature is just a dim reflection of God’s creation in the New Earth!

We live in the now and not yet, the time between Jesus’s two comings. We are the church age, and we look forward to the end of the age when all things will find their fulfillment in Christ!

Day 317: Where do we turn?

Psalms 68-70; Hebrews 8

But as for me, my prayer is to you, O Lord.
At an acceptable time, O God,
in the abundance of your steadfast love answer me in your saving faithfulness.
Deliver me
from sinking in the mire;
let me be delivered from my enemies
and from the deep waters.
Let not the flood sweep over me,
or the deep swallow me up,
or the pit close its mouth over me (Psalm 69:13-15).

Have you been here? Desperate? Overwhelmed? Psalm 69 is the lament of a man who has sinned against God – his sin alone could drive him to despair, but to make matters worse, his adversaries are heaping reproach upon him. He is surrounded by both the spiritual enemy of his own sin and the physical enemy of his adversaries. He needs help! Where does he turn in such a desperate situation?

I will praise the name of God with a song;
I will magnify him with thanksgiving.
This will please the Lord more than an ox
or a bull with horns and hoofs (Psalm 69:30).

Does he look to burnt offerings to satisfy his soul? No. He depends on the steadfast love of His heavenly Father…

Answer me, O Lord, for your steadfast love is good;
according to your abundant mercy, turn to me.
Hide not your face from your servant;
for I am in distress; make haste to answer me.
Draw near to my soul, redeem me;
ransom me because of my enemies! (Psalm 69:16-18).

This is the beauty of the New Covenant…it is a gracious covenant rooted in the promises of the gospel – That Jesus lived, died and rose again to intercede on our behalf to the Father.

As we are pressed in from every side by our enemies…whether from our own sin or the sin of others, we must remember that we have a Great High Priest, Jesus the Son of God!

…we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, a minister in the holy places, in the true tent that the Lord set up, not man (Hebrews 8:1-2).

Day 316: Our Great High Priest

Psalms 65-67; Hebrews 7

In order to fully comprehend the ramifications of Jesus being our High Priest, we must look back at the Old Testament duties of the High Priest. What was his role? He was God’s representative to the people. He made atonement for the people’s sins by offering the sacrificial blood in God’s presence behind the curtain in the Holy of Holies.

Hebrews 7 begins to make the argument for the weakness of the Old Covenant. The High Priest of the Old Covenant had to be a descendant of Levi. He was limited by human weakness and mortality. He was temporary.

Jesus is our High Priest, but he could not be a priest in the order of Levi – no, he would be a High Priest in the order of Melchizedek.

If you remember the story from Genesis… Lot was captured by a foreign king and Abraham led a war effort to save Lot and all of the people (Gen. 14:14-16). As Abraham was returning home from battle, he met a mysterious king. He was called priest of God most High (Gen. 14:18). Abraham instantly recognized him as one with authority as he bowed and offered the priestly king a tenth of all the spoils.

This is how the author of Hebrews describes Melchizedek:

He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace. He is without father or mother or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest forever (Hebrews 7:2-3).

Jesus is our High Priest – not as a Levite – but in the order of Melchizedek. He is not temporary – but eternal. He doesn’t offer the blood of bulls and goats – which are insufficient to atone for sin – he offers his own blood – once and for all.

He is the mediator of a better covenant – a New Covenant written in his blood. His priesthood predates Abraham and encompasses and fulfills all of the regulations of the Old Covenant – but makes possible what was formerly impossible – the salvation of sinners. His sacrifice. His blood. His promise. His intercession. He is our Great High Priest. Draw near and find mercy for your souls!!!

Blessed is the one you choose and bring near,
to dwell in your courts!
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house,
the holiness of your temple! (Psalm 65:4).

Day 310: The Supremacy of Christ

Psalms 38-40; Hebrews 1

Every person on earth, whether rich or poor, Eastern or Western, male or female, red, yellow, black or white… shares the same problem: sin.

There is no soundness in my flesh
because of your indignation;
there is no health in my bones
because of my sin.
For my iniquities have gone over my head;
like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me.

Likewise, there is one solution to this worldwide epidemic…Christ.

Which brings us to my favorite book in the New Testament (apart from the Gospels), Hebrews. Hebrews was written before the destruction of the temple in A.D. 70 to Jewish Christians who were suffering persecution. The author of the book remains a mystery to this day. His purpose for writing was to exhort Christians to persevere in their faith despite persecution. He argues eloquently for the Supremacy of Christ above the Mosaic law and old sacrificial system. I love Hebrews!

The author of Hebrews begins his letter by using Old Testament Psalms to prove the divinity of Christ and his supremacy over the angels.

He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs (Hebrews 1:3-4).

Our Jesus, the one who died so we could live, upholds the universe by the word of his power! The thought is too wonderful to fully grasp.

I look forward to the next two weeks of reading through Hebrews as the author teaches so skillfully… that Christ is the final fulfillment and reigns supreme over ALL the Old Testament law and sacrificial system…

In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted,
but you have given me an open ear.
Burnt offering and sin offering
you have not required.

I delight to do your will, O my God;
your law is within my heart (Psalm 40:6; 8).

Day 262: Our eternal home

Ezra 5-6; Haggai 1-2; 2 Corinthians 5

The book of Haggai serves as a rich commentary to these chapters in Ezra. Haggai (along with Zechariah – which we’ll read through in December) was the local prophet who encouraged the people to restart building the temple. Evidently, all the earlier opposition pushed the people into complacency. They were content to live in their own houses while the house of the Lord lay in ruins. God had something to say about this!

He had sent drought and hail in the hopes that the people would turn to him for help, but they continued in their self-sufficiency. In spite of this, God was merciful and intervened through the prophet Haggai.

There are so many rich layers woven throughout these passages.

First, we see that the Jews’ responded to Haggai’s message in obedience – so that the temple was completed! The temple represented God’s continued presence with his people and his faithfulness to keep his promises.

But glaringly obvious to everyone was the fact that the temple did not compare to Solomon’s former temple. God addressed this in Haggai:

Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in your eyes? Yet now be strong, [and] work, for I am with you, declares the Lord of hosts, according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not (Haggai 2:3-5).

God asserted that the temple’s outward grandeur was of secondary importance to His presence. This second temple served as a stepping stone to the day when the temple would no longer be a physical building – but rather God would manifest His presence within His people.

Paul touches on these themes in today’s reading from 2 Corinthians. He teaches that we are not at “home” in our physical bodies – rather we long for “a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens” (2 Cor. 5:1). Paul says that while we are on earth, we “groan” for our heavenly tent – for “mortality to be swallowed up by life” (2 Cor. 5:4).

So, in many ways, this second temple’s lack of grandeur is a physical picture of our life on earth. We long for more… We long for our eternal home.

Lastly, we see a hint of the fulfillment of all God’s promises in the last verse of Haggai. The hint isn’t obvious, but it’s there!

On that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will take you, O Zerubbabel my servant, the son of Shealtiel, declares the Lord, and make you like a signet ring, for I have chosen you, declares the Lord of hosts (Haggai 2:23).

Zerubbabel was the current governor of Judah, but he was also a descendant of the last king of Judah, Jehoiachin (1 Chron. 3:16–19, where Jehoiachin is called Jeconiah). And if Zerubbabel was descended from the last king of Judah, that meant he was also descended from King David. And who was prophesied to come from the line of David to establish his Kingdom on earth? Yes. Jesus.

“On that day” (Haggai 2:23), looks forward to the end of the age, when the temple is replaced by the Lord himself!

…for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb … and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it (Rev. 21:22, 24).

Yes, one day, this man, who knew no sin – but became sin, so that we might become His righteousness (2 Cor. 5:21)…this man will take his place as the final temple. And then, and only then, will we be home.

The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts (Haggai 2:9).

Day 261: Look to the unseen

Ezra 3-4; 2 Corinthians 4

Today we continue the story of the exiles working together to rebuild their lives in Israel. Here is the historical context for Ezra (adapted from: Introduction to Ezra, ESV Study Bible, Crossway)

  • Cyrus king of Persia captures Babylon: 539 BC (Dan. 5:30–31)
  • First year of King Cyrus; issues proclamation freeing Jewish exiles to return: 538–537 (Ezra 1:1–4)
  • Jewish exiles return from Babylon to Jerusalem: 537? (Ezra 1:11)
  • The Altar is rebuilt and the people celebrate the Feast of booths: 537 (Ezra 3:1–2)
  • Temple rebuilding begins: 536 (Ezra 3:8)
  • Adversaries oppose the rebuilding: 536–530 (Ezra 4:1–5)
  • Temple rebuilding ceases: 530–520 (Ezra 4:24)

In Ezra 3, we read of the people laying the foundation of the temple. As they completed the foundation, many praised God and celebrated with great shouts of joy. But mixed in with the celebration were men of old who remembered the grandeur of Solomon’s temple, and they wept in bitter grief at what had been lost (3:13).

Later in Ezra 4, we read of the beginnings of opposition to the rebuilding of the temple, and this opposition continued for approximately 20 years (Ezra 4:4-5) – even resulting in the cessation of rebuilding altogether (4:24).

(Note: Ezra 4:6-23 is a tangent from the historical narrative which looks forward to other historical examples of opposition to the Jewish nation).

The Jewish people lived in this constant tension… Between celebration and grief (3:13) and rebuilding and opposition (4:24). This tension existed because they expected God to fulfill His promises physically… by restoring the world’s power and resources back into their grasp – to return them to the glory days of Solomon – when Israel was the most powerful nation on earth.

Their eyes were blind to God’s plan to restore them spiritually. This is what Ezekiel referred to when he said that God would replace their heart of stone with a heart of flesh (Eze. 36:26). Ezekiel looked forward to the new covenant – when God’s people would live by the Spirit instead of the law.

This is what Paul refers to when he says, “We have this treasure in jars of clay” (2 Cor. 4:1). It is a beautiful picture of our physical brokenness alongside the treasure of our spiritual renewal.

This is the key to not losing hope during trial and suffering. Consider the Jews from our passage today… They had to endure 20 years of opposition to the rebuilding of the temple. How do you endure patiently during suffering? By taking your eyes off of what is seen, and putting them on what is unseen.

In order for the Jewish people to not lose faith, they had to fix their eyes on their covenant-keeping God. If he had bent the will of the mighty Persian king, surely he could handle a little opposition from the local officials! Their faith was being tested. Where would they rest their eyes? On the physical? Or the eternal?

We, too, live in a time of waiting for God to ultimately and finally fulfill His covenant promises to His people. We will endure affliction as we wait. So how do we not lose hope? How do we persevere in the faith? How can Paul so confidently say?

We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair… (2 Cor. 4:8).

Paul has fixed his eyes on the Savior. He knows the eternal treasure is hidden inside the temporal jar of clay.

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal (2 Cor. 4:16-18).