February 16, 2010

Genesis 49

It is the glory of the Lord that at the same time He has a sovereign plan for the ages, and yet, He permits the exercise of free will. Take, for example, this amazing blessing/prophecy of Jacob’s. The most pointed one is the prophecy concerning Judah. He speaks, “The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor a lawgiver from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes; And to Him shall be the obedience of the people.” In ancient times when a ruler or law giver took his seat in court, his staff or scepter would rest between feet. The reference then is not that His rule would end when Shiloh comes but rather it would begin in full force when He comes. Then the people will obey Him. The word Shiloh means “Him to whom it belongs.” Obviously the scepter belongs to the Messiah.

Messiah is the ‘seed’ of Abraham, the descendent of Abraham. He is the one through Whom all the ethnic groups would be blessed. Jesus is that Messiah. He is descended from the tribe of Judah. He is the Lion of Judah as mentioned in verse 9. He is worthy of all our obedience. One day He will receive it. Let us not hold back from Him the obedience that He deserves. Is it not amazing that through disobedient people like Jacob’s sons, He can produce His sovereign plan, yet our free will remains intact? Now that is glory! Indeed we serve a glorious King. Speak His glory to someone today!

--Pastor john

Matthew 27:51-66

Going to the airport is a different experience since 911. We used to be able to walk our loved ones right up to the gate to say goodbye or meet them right as they come off of the plane -- not so anymore. It is for our safety that the big posters are hung telling us that only ticketed passengers with boarding pass and photo I.D. are permitted past that point. It is for our safety that guards search our baggage and our bodies for dangerous weapons. It is for our safety that armed security guards stand ready to stop anyone who would violate the safety procedures. So too, the veil in the temple was hung for our safety.

Only the priests could enter the holy place of the temple. And only the High Priest could enter once a year into the Holy of Holies. The veil separated the holy place for the Holy of Holies. The Holy of Holies was in pre-crucifixion of Jesus times the place where the presence of the Almighty God dwelt. To enter beyond the veil without the pre-requisite holiness was to incur the wrath of God. The veil was there for our safety. Without holiness we would instantly be struck dead as we would come into the presence of the Holy God.

A dear friend of mine came into my office today wearing a shirt that said, "Grandpas are dads with no rules." Americans have a hard time grasping the utter holiness of God. We tend to picture Him as some old grandpa smiling at the misdeeds of his grandchildren. Turning His back on our sin saying, "Boys will be boys!" If that were the case, then the death of Jesus would have been absolutely meaningless. But it is not the case. Our God is chiefly, holy. He is holy in all of His attributes. Without holiness we cannot see Him and live. The veil is there for our safety.

When Jesus died, the veil in the temple was torn from top to bottom. The Gospel writers make a big deal about that. It is not just an interesting coincidence that they decided to put in here. It was a great symbolic act that God did to let us know the power of the death of His Son. At the point when the powers of darkness seemed to have triumphed, when the life of the Son came to an end, when it seemed that the situation could not be any worse, the payment for holiness was secured! The Father was communicating to us the value of His Son's death. The veil was ripped from the top-the Father's end- to the bottom-our end. He had made it possible for us to have holiness through His death. The payment of the penalty of sin had been paid! The rules that were broken were satisfied! The earth quaked! The graves opened! Some of the saints who had died came out of the graves after Jesus' resurrection (I wonder, what were they doing in their graves until Sunday morning?"

The writer of Hebrews 10:19-22 tells us,

Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.



I can enter the very presence of God with full assurance of safety because His body was ripped in two for me. His blood has sprinkled my heart cleansing me of evil, washing away my sin. His resurrection gives me His holiness. No longer are there any cherubim standing as armed guards, ready to strike me down lest I should transgress His holiness. My ticket is secured in Him. I have my boarding pass in Him. I have my positive I.D. in Him, and it identifies me as: Child of the King! Indeed we serve a glorious King! Speak His glory to someone today!

--Pastor John