Sat, 31 December, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.

Malachi 4

¹ “For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. ² But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. ³ And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the LORD of hosts.

⁴ “Remember the law of my servant Moses, the statutes and rules that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel.

⁵ “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. ⁶ And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”

We have come to the last day of the year, and as we conclude reading through the Bible for the year, our meditation today comes from the final chapter of the final book of the Old Testament.

Malachi warns of the day of God’s judgment, and promises healing for those who fear Him. He tell us to remember the ten commandments, given to Moses at Mount Horeb. And finally, Malachi closes the book with the promise of Elijah coming before the day of the LORD.

What do we learn from this?

The New Testament makes it clear what Malachi is talking about here when he promises the coming of Elijah. Malachi is prophesying about the coming of John the Baptist. John is both the messenger Malachi mentions in the previous chapter, and Elijah in this chapter. John the Baptist prepares the way for the coming of the Messiah. He preaches repentance, and in the people’s turning to God, the broken relationships in families will be restored. (This is not a promise that every broken relationship will be healed if a person turns from sin, but our problems between family members are all rooted in sin. If both family members repent of their sins, their relationship will be restored.)

There is much hope for us in repentance. But there is also a threat if we do not repent. All those who do not turn to God, repenting of their sins, and trusting in Him alone for their salvation, are under God’s curse.

The Old Testament ends with this dire warning. God is sending John to prepare the way for the Messiah. People will have a choice to make. Either repent, or remain under God’s curse. Malachi looked forward to John’s call for the people to repent. We look back upon it. But we are faced with the same choice: Repent or remain under God’s curse. Which is it to be, dear friends?

Where is Christ in this passage?

John the Baptist was Elijah and the Messenger who prepared the way for Jesus Christ. Everything John did was to point others to Jesus. He was preparing people to meet Jesus. As such, John realized that he was not important. He was just a mouthpiece, a messenger. The one who was important was coming after him. John asked his hearers, and us, to not look to him, but to look to Jesus Christ. As we read of Malachi foretelling the coming of John, consider how John calls for us to Behold the Lamb of God!. Jesus Christ is presented for us here in these final verses of the Old Testament.

Fri, 30 December, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.

Revelation 21:9-27

⁹ Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” ¹⁰ And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, ¹¹ having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. ¹² It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed– ¹³ on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. ¹⁴ And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

¹⁵ And the one who spoke with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. ¹⁶ The city lies foursquare; its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia. Its length and width and height are equal. ¹⁷ He also measured its wall, 144 cubits by human measurement, which is also an angel’s measurement. ¹⁸ The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, clear as glass. ¹⁹ The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, ²⁰ the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. ²¹ And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, transparent as glass.

²² And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. ²³ And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. ²⁴ By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, ²⁵ and its gates will never be shut by day–and there will be no night there. ²⁶ They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. ²⁷ But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

I’ve always been amazed at how creative some people are in interpreting portions of the Bible. I’ve heard people come to this passage and use it to calculate how many people will be in heaven. The angel measures the dimensions of New Jerusalem. It is now simple to calculate its cubic volume. Assuming a certain volume required for each person, we now know how many people can fit into the heaven that God has prepared.

One problem: That has nothing to do with the passage. The intent of the passage isn’t to give us the number of people in heaven. When we spend so much effort in drawing out of the passage what isn’t there in the first place, we miss what really is there. It is vitally important that we read the scriptures looking for what is there rather than using scriptures as a launch point for our flights of fancy. What is the intent of the passage?

So, again instead of trying to find obscure things from the text, I’ll stick with the very obvious. There is enough in this passage that the obvious things could keep us busy for quite some time if we chose.

What do we learn from this?

This passage speaks of the New Jerusalem as the bride of Christ. What is this? The Church is the bride of Christ. So this passage is speaking about the Church. This passage talks about the beauty of New Jerusalem. Why is she beautiful? Not because of any intrinsic beauty in her. Instead, the Church is beautiful because God has chosen her and He indwells her. He has adorned her with beautiful stones, but more than that, His glory radiates the Church like a most rare jewel. There is no temple or sun or moon in the Church. God is the temple, and His people dwell in His light.

So what is the point? I think we’re wasting our time if we try to find the significance of each type of stone. Instead, the point is that the beauty of the Church isn’t that it is filled with us beautiful people. No. It is God who makes the Church beautiful by His presence. God’s glory adorns the Church and makes it beautiful.

This isn’t something we look forward to. We don’t have to wait until we gather in heaven to be in God’s presence. It is true that we will experience God in a more direct, unmediated way when we are in heaven. But when we gather together to worship God, we are gathering in God’s very presence. This isn’t a future event. This is our experience every Lord’s Day as we meet with God’s people in our local congregations to praise and worship God, and hear His word expounded.

Where is Christ in this passage?

John tells us that nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life. But if we are honest, we know we all have done what is detestable and false. Does this mean that heaven is closed to all of us? Are we not able to enter into true worship of God in the Church today, or in heaven in the future?

No. Heaven is only closed to those whose names are not written in the Lamb’s book of life. For all those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life are counted as righteous in God’s sight. He declares them to be in right standing with Him, not because they have never done anything detestable or false, but because Jesus Christ has paid the penalty for the detestable and false things they have done. Their sins are paid for in full in Jesus Christ on the cross, and the guilt no longer remains. Therefore they stand justified before God, and can enter into the true worship of God. They can enter God’s presence and offer worship that is pleasing to God, because of the work of Jesus Christ on their behalf.

Thu, 29 December, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.

2 Chronicles 34:14-21

¹⁴ While they were bringing out the money that had been brought into the house of the LORD, Hilkiah the priest found the Book of the Law of the LORD given through Moses. ¹⁵ Then Hilkiah answered and said to Shaphan the secretary, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the LORD.” And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan. ¹⁶ Shaphan brought the book to the king, and further reported to the king, “All that was committed to your servants they are doing. ¹⁷ They have emptied out the money that was found in the house of the LORD and have given it into the hand of the overseers and the workmen.” ¹⁸ Then Shaphan the secretary told the king, “Hilkiah the priest has given me a book.” And Shaphan read from it before the king.

¹⁹ And when the king heard the words of the Law, he tore his clothes. ²⁰ And the king commanded Hilkiah, Ahikam the son of Shaphan, Abdon the son of Micah, Shaphan the secretary, and Asaiah the king’s servant, saying, ²¹ “Go, inquire of the LORD for me and for those who are left in Israel and in Judah, concerning the words of the book that has been found. For great is the wrath of the LORD that is poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the LORD, to do according to all that is written in this book.”

Young king Josiah ascended to the throne of Judah when he was eight years old. Our chapter tells us that when he was sixteen he began to seek God, and when he was twenty, he began to purge the land of the false worship. When he was twenty-six, he begins repairs on the temple. In the process of the repairs, the priests make an amazing discovery. They find the Book of the Law of the LORD given through Moses. This is most likely the book of Deuteronomy, and as they read it to Josiah, he is struck to the heart and is convicted of the way they have been violating God’s law.

What do we learn from this?

First we see that God preserves His word. There have been times and places when people have dedicated themselves to the goal of destroying God’s word. It is hard to imagine now in our modern electronic Internet world, but it used to be quite possible to destroy all the copies of a book. At times, people have tried to do just that with the Bible. But God did not allow that to happen. He preserved His word, and He will continue to preserve it. Sometimes God’s word might drop from prominence. It might be lost, suppressed, or forgotten. But it will never be destroyed. God will preserve His word, and it will come back to its position of prominence at His appointed time. After everyone has forgotten about it, someone will find it and restore it to the world.

Secondly, we see the power of God’s word at work in Josiah. Josiah has been seeking God. He has tried to follow God as best he could. But he didn’t have God’s word, and so he was doing the best he could. He was shooting at the target of obedience to God while being blindfolded. Josiah cleaned up the idol worship and was trying to restore true temple worship. But he didn’t have God’s word. He didn’t know everything God required.

Then God graciously brings to light a copy of Deuteronomy, and Josiah is cut to the heart. God’s word convicts him of his sin and the sin of the people. God’s word will show us our sin, and drive us to repent before God.

Today in America, unlike some parts of the world, there is no shortage of God’s word. No one is trying to destroy or confiscate the Bible, yet most people completely ignore it. God has given us a rich gift: we should take full advantage of His word. God will speak to us in His word to convict us of sin and drive us come to Him in faith.

Where is Christ in this passage?

Josiah repented of his sin and the sin of the people as he read God’s word. It drove him to repent and throw himself upon God’s mercy. As he read in the law, he saw that God provided a way for people to be forgiven of their sins by way of a blood sacrifice. They would confess their sins over an animal, symbolically transferring their sin onto the animal, and then they would kill the animal, shedding the animal’s blood as an atonement for their sin. It was in this substitute that they found salvation.

Josiah probably didn’t understood all of this as we can looking back, but we know from the futher revelation of the New Testament that this blood sacrifice of an animal didn’t save anyone. It was only to point the people to the coming substitute who would truly bear the sins of all His people through all time. Jesus Christ is the substitute for our sins. On the cross He bore the punishment for the sins of all who come to Him in faith. As Josiah trusted in God’s substitute for his sins, he found salvation in Jesus Christ. It is no different for us today. As we read God’s word and are convicted of our sins, we are driven to repent and come to God in faith, trusting in His provision for our salvation: Jesus Christ.

Wed, 28 December, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.

John 18:1-9

¹ When Jesus had spoken these words, he went out with his disciples across the Kidron Valley, where there was a garden, which he and his disciples entered. ² Now Judas, who betrayed him, also knew the place, for Jesus often met there with his disciples. ³ So Judas, having procured a band of soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, went there with lanterns and torches and weapons. ⁴ Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, “Whom do you seek?” ⁵ They answered him, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus said to them, “I am he.” Judas, who betrayed him, was standing with them. ⁶ When Jesus said to them, “I am he,” they drew back and fell to the ground. ⁷ So he asked them again, “Whom do you seek?” And they said, “Jesus of Nazareth.” ⁸ Jesus answered, “I told you that I am he. So, if you seek me, let these men go.” ⁹ This was to fulfill the word that he had spoken: “Of those whom you gave me I have lost not one.”

The time has come for Jesus’ arrest and trial, and so He heads to the garden of Gesthsemane, knowing this is where Judas will lead the party to capture Him. None of this took Jesus by surprise. Even in this moment of His arrest, He is completely in control of the situation. Judas and the arrest party think that they are in control of the situation, but Jesus makes it clear they are not.

What do we learn from this?

Jesus knew what was going to happen. Had it not been His intention to be arrested, He could have avoided going where Judas would lead them. Or He could have walked through the crowd and no one would lay a hand on Him, as He had done numerous times before. It was Jesus’ choice to allow them to arrest Him. He was in control.

And even in this moment of His arrest, He acts to protect His disciples. Peter attempts to protect Jesus by attacking, and he cuts off the high priest’s servant’s ear. But Jesus restrains Peter, and heals the servant’s ear. As John tells us, Jesus arranges it so that none of the disciples are arrested with Him. He protects them from the punishment that is about to come. He will bear it alone, and He spares His disciples from suffering at this time.

All of this is in fulfillment of prophecy: Jesus is in control at the moment of His arrest.

Once again, we have great comfort in this. At the moment of the greatest crime of all time: the only innocent Man is arrested and executed, Jesus is in control and is working everything for God’s glory and our good. If He is in control of that situation and makes it to work for good, He is also in control of the difficult times we face, and He works them for good also.

Where is Christ in this passage?

Jesus is God incarnate, and here at His arrest, He gives just a tiny glimpse of His divinity. When He says that He is Jesus of Nazareth, He uses the name of God (Greek: εγω ειμι — Literally: “I am”), and the party that came with their weapons to overpower Jesus and His disciples are thrown to the ground. The people cannot stand in His presence when He reveals the smallest amount of His glory.

Tue, 27 December, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.

Zechariah 14:6-9

⁶ On that day there shall be no light, cold, or frost. ⁷ And there shall be a unique day, which is known to the LORD, neither day nor night, but at evening time there shall be light.

⁸ On that day living waters shall flow out from Jerusalem, half of them to the eastern sea and half of them to the western sea. It shall continue in summer as in winter.

⁹ And the LORD will be king over all the earth. On that day the LORD will be one and his name one.

We have come to the end of the book of Zechariah. He begins this final chapter talking about the day of the LORD, and the judgment that is coming, and Zechariah ends the chapter talking about the nations coming to worship the Lord. All shall be dedicated to Him, as once only the high priests were.

What do we learn from this?

We look forward to the day when this passage is fully realized. We already see some of it. The living water are flowing from Jerusalem out into the world. This is happening all around us as the Church preaches the gospel. Missionaries are taking the gospel to nations where it has never been before. Christians are bringing the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ to their friends. The Church is proclaiming the Word of God. The living water is flowing to the world.

We don’t yet see the world flowing into the Church to worship to the extent of this chapter. There are some from every nation, but in many cases it is only a very small number. Someday, there will be a great influx. We long for that day. We pray for that day. And we bring the gospel to people around us knowing that God will, in His providence and at His time, bring a mighty response to the gospel.

Where is Christ in this passage?

Jesus Christ has told us that He gives living water to those who ask. The Church dispenses these living waters as she spreads the gospel of Jesus Christ. And as people come to Him in faith, confessing their sins and trusting in Him for their salvation, these waters spring up unto eternal life in his people.

Mon, 26 December, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.

Revelation 17

¹ Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, ² with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.” ³ And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. ⁴ The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. ⁵ And on her forehead was written a name of mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.” ⁶ And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.

When I saw her, I marveled greatly. ⁷ But the angel said to me, “Why do you marvel? I will tell you the mystery of the woman, and of the beast with seven heads and ten horns that carries her. ⁸ The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to rise from the bottomless pit and go to destruction. And the dwellers on earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel to see the beast, because it was and is not and is to come. ⁹ This calls for a mind with wisdom: the seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is seated; ¹⁰ they are also seven kings, five of whom have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come, and when he does come he must remain only a little while. ¹¹ As for the beast that was and is not, it is an eighth but it belongs to the seven, and it goes to destruction. ¹² And the ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received royal power, but they are to receive authority as kings for one hour, together with the beast. ¹³ These are of one mind and hand over their power and authority to the beast. ¹⁴ They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.”

¹⁵ And the angel said to me, “The waters that you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages. ¹⁶ And the ten horns that you saw, they and the beast will hate the prostitute. They will make her desolate and naked, and devour her flesh and burn her up with fire, ¹⁷ for God has put it into their hearts to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. ¹⁸ And the woman that you saw is the great city that has dominion over the kings of the earth.”

Today’s passage in the Revelation of Jesus Christ is another popular passage for speculation. Who is this woman on the scarlet beast? Where are the seven mountains? Who are the seven kings, five of whom are fallen, one is and the other not yet come? Who are the ten kings that haven’t received their kingdoms yet?

There is much material here for a fertile imagination, and some people have a very good time indulging their flights of fancy. But as with other chapters in the Revelation of Jesus Christ, I won’t spend much time speculating. Instead, notice verse 17. All that happens comes about because it is God’s purpose.

What do we learn from this?

In the midst of the war and persecution, with all the powers of earth and hell in open rebellion against God and seeking to destroy God’s people, God is still in control. The circumstances might make us think that God either doesn’t care, or that He doesn’t have the power to deal with the rebellion. Maybe there isn’t a God, because if He exists, why would He allow such things? But our thinking is wrong. God does care, He does have the power to deal with the situation, and He does exist. Even in this situation, God is still in control.

What a comfort to know that despite how bad things can be, our loving Father is still in control. Whatever happens, comes about to further God’s purpose. We don’t understand why God does what He does, but we know that He does all for His glory and our ultimate good. And in the end, we know He will right all wrongs. As we see in verse 14, He will conquer all those who are in rebellion against Him. He is in control.

Where is Christ in this passage?

The forces of the world gather together to make war against the Lamb, but they will fail. The Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings. The Lamb is Jesus Christ. He is also King of kings and Lord of lords.

Sun, 25 December, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.

2 Chronicles 30:1-12

¹ Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and wrote letters also to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should come to the house of the LORD at Jerusalem to keep the Passover to the LORD, the God of Israel. ² For the king and his princes and all the assembly in Jerusalem had taken counsel to keep the Passover in the second month– ³ for they could not keep it at that time because the priests had not consecrated themselves in sufficient number, nor had the people assembled in Jerusalem– ⁴ and the plan seemed right to the king and all the assembly. ⁵ So they decreed to make a proclamation throughout all Israel, from Beersheba to Dan, that the people should come and keep the Passover to the LORD, the God of Israel, at Jerusalem, for they had not kept it as often as prescribed. ⁶ So couriers went throughout all Israel and Judah with letters from the king and his princes, as the king had commanded, saying, “O people of Israel, return to the LORD, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, that he may turn again to the remnant of you who have escaped from the hand of the kings of Assyria. ⁷ Do not be like your fathers and your brothers, who were faithless to the LORD God of their fathers, so that he made them a desolation, as you see. ⁸ Do not now be stiff-necked as your fathers were, but yield yourselves to the LORD and come to his sanctuary, which he has consecrated forever, and serve the LORD your God, that his fierce anger may turn away from you. ⁹ For if you return to the LORD, your brothers and your children will find compassion with their captors and return to this land. For the LORD your God is gracious and merciful and will not turn away his face from you, if you return to him.”

¹⁰ So the couriers went from city to city through the country of Ephraim and Manasseh, and as far as Zebulun, but they laughed them to scorn and mocked them. ¹¹ However, some men of Asher, of Manasseh, and of Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem. ¹² The hand of God was also on Judah to give them one heart to do what the king and the princes commanded by the word of the LORD.

In the previous chapter we saw king Hezekiah come to the throne to replace his wicked father, Ahaz. He cleansed the temple and has restored temple worship. It is just prior to Assyria destroying the northern kingdom, and Hezekiah invites people from the northern tribes to join Judah in celebrating the Passover. Yet despite the dire straits in which the northern tribes find themselves, they reject the call to come worship the true God, and instead mock those who bring the invitation to come worship.

What do we learn from this?

When unregenerate people are at the limits of their abilities, facing their own destruction, and they are presented with a clear call to come to God, they will reject it. They are dead in their trespasses and sins, and they cannot come to God in faith. The Gospel is foolishness to them, and no matter how reasonably the call is presented, they will not listen. Just as the people of Israel mocked the messengers from Judah, so too will these mock people who bring them the Gospel. The messangers come out of concern for the ones who desperately need to hear what they have to say. Yet those who need the message, reject that which is the only thing that will save them, and mock those who come only out of concern for them.

Yet in the midst of the rejection, there are some who, by God’s grace operating in their lives, will respond. It happens now just as it happened in Hezekiah’s day. We don’t know who will reject or who will respond to the Gospel message, and so we must bring the message to everyone. Yet we know that some will mock, and some will humble themselves and come to God in faith. God is at work, and He will save His people.

Where is Christ in this passage?

Hezekiah called the people of Israel to turn to God that His fierce anger may turn away from them. As they came to Jerusalem and offered the commanded sacrifices, trusting in God’s provision for their salvation, they were looking forward to Jesus Christ who would be their perfect substitute. It is important to understand that it is Jesus Christ who saved them from their sins, not the animal they sacrificed. Those who rejected the call to come bring their sacrifices to Jerusalem were rejecting God’s provision for their salvation. They were rejecting Jesus Christ.

And when people today reject the Gospel message, refusing to come to God through faith in Jesus Christ, they are rejecting the only way they can be right with God. They are rejecting Jesus Christ.

Sat, 24 December, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.

John 14:1-7

¹ “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. ² In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. ⁴ And you know the way to where I am going.” ⁵ Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” ⁶ Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. ⁷ If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”

What a great promise we have here from our Savior. Not only does He promise that He is preparing a place for us with Him in heaven, but He also promises to take us there.

Thomas then asks the way to the Father, and Jesus says that He alone is the way to the Father.

What do we learn from this?

Pluralism is rampant in the American culture. Pretty much anything goes except to say that someone is wrong in their moral behavior or their religion. We are told that all religions are equal, and therefore they are not to be criticized, unless they say that they hold the truth. But if anyone claims that their religion is right and others are wrong, such a person is ridiculed, because of this false idea that all religions are equal.

Well, the only way all religions can be equally valid is if all religions are equally wrong. They cannot all be right, since they make contradictory claims. And here we have a huge claim of exclusivity from the mouth of Jesus Christ. This cannot be reconciled with the claims of other religions. Either Jesus is preparing a home for His people in heaven, and He alone will faithfully bring them there, or He is not. He Himself eliminates the possibility that He is one of many ways to God, for He says that He is the only way to God. If He is right, then there is no other way to God. Pluralism is false, since Christianity is the only way. But if Jesus is wrong, then we have no reason to believe anything He says at all. Why believe anything else Jesus says if He is wrong about this fundamental issue of how we can be accepted by God? In this case, pluralism is also wrong, because Christianity itself is false if Jesus isn’t the only way to God.

Jesus isn’t a pluralist. He simply will not allow us to hold Christianity as the equal of other religions. He doesn’t claim to be one among many ways to God. No. He is the only way or He is not a way at all.

Where is Christ in this passage?

Jesus is the only way to God because He is the one who provides what is needed to be right with God. We need to have the guilt of our sins paid. Jesus did that on Calvary when He died on the cross to pay for the sins of all those who come to Him in faith. But we need more than just to have the guilt of our sins paid. We also need to be perfectly obedient to God’s laws. Jesus Christ was perfectly obedient, and He gives us His righteousness, satisfying God’s requirement, and making us acceptable before God. It is by His double work of taking our sins and giving us His righteousness that we have access to heaven. Without the work of Jesus Christ applied to us, we can not be right with God. There is no other way to the Father than by faith in His only Son, Jesus Christ.

Fri, 23 December, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.

Zechariah 10:1-3

¹ “Ask rain from the LORD
in the season of the spring rain,
from the LORD who makes the storm clouds,
and he will give them showers of rain,
to everyone the vegetation in the field.
² For the household gods utter nonsense,
and the diviners see lies;
they tell false dreams
and give empty consolation.
Therefore the people wander like sheep;
they are afflicted for lack of a shepherd.

³ “My anger is hot against the shepherds,
and I will punish the leaders;
for the LORD of hosts cares for his flock, the house of Judah,
and will make them like his majestic steed in battle.”

In this passage, God confronts the people of Judah for their reliance upon idols when they should come to Him. The people should bring their needs to God. He tells this agriculturally based society that they should come to Him asking for the rain they need. But instead, the people reject the true God and consult their household idols.

As a result, the people wander like sheep. They have rejected the Good Shepherd, and God promises punishment to the leaders of the people who have presided over this widespread apostasy and rejection of God.

What do we learn from this?

First, we see again that God calls for us to pray to Him about our needs. If there is something that concerns us, we should pray about it. People who lived on the produce of the land needed the rains. If it doesn’t rain, they starve. Rain is something they need to survive. God commands them to pray to Him asking for the rain.

If there is some need that we lack, we should pray about it. We are not to be like the people of Judah and seek to find the fulfillment of our needs in every place except from God. To do so is to be setting up idols we are placing before God.

When we choose not to come to God in prayer, we are disobeying Him. But we are also offending Him. God cares for us. Like a father, He wants us to tell Him what we are thinking and feeling. He wants us to tell Him what we need. So bring your cares and concerns to Him in prayer.

Second, we see that when people depart from God, the leaders are responsible and will bear the guilt. When a church wanders from its Biblical rooting, God holds the leaders responsible.

The leaders of a church are acting on God’s behalf. They are His representatives. They are shepherds of the people, acting for the Good Shepherd. Their failure to properly lead the people is a failure that He will not overlook or treat lightly. God does not take the mistreatment of His people lightly. His anger is hot against those who lead the people away from Him. Church leadership is not something to take lightly, for with the great authority comes great responsibility before God.

The leaders of the church are God’s representatives to the people, and should be doing all the duties of Christ to the congregation. They act on His behalf, and they should seek to be Christlike in what they do for the people.

Where is Christ in this passage?

Here we see that the LORD of hosts cares for his flock. Yahweh cares for His sheep. In other words, God is the good shepherd. He leads and cares for His people.

Jesus Christ Himself told us that he is the good shepherd. He is the one who leads His people into safe pastures. Like a shepherd, He feeds, cares for, and disciplines those who are His sheep. He seeks for them when they are lost, and nurses them back to health when they are injured or sick. And He tells us that ultimately, He gave up His life for His sheep. When He died on Calvary, He died for the sins of His people. He is the good shepherd.

Thu, 22 December, 2005: Today’s Bible readings.

Revelation 13:1-8

¹ And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. ² And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. ³ One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast. ⁴ And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?”

⁵ And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. ⁶ It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. ⁷ Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation, ⁸ and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb that was slain.

Today’s passage in the Revelation of Jesus Christ is a favorite for people who like to speculate about the future. Many an hour has been spent discussing the exact meaning of the land and sea beast, and to discern to whom the mysterious number 666 refers. As entertaining as it might be to look into our newspapers and try to find a name that fits the number 666, when we do that we are missing the point of the passage.

John in his vision sees a beast like the beasts of Daniel’s visions of the world powers. John sees this beast demanding people worship it, and persecuting the Christians who fail to do so. By the context and in light of similar Old Testament passages, it appears the beast is a governmental power that is persecuting the church. This certainly would be understandable by John’s original readers as they lived under Roman persecution.

What do we learn from this?

God allows the beast to conquer the saints. He allows the evil government to wage war on the Church, persecuting and killing the professing Christians. That is exactly what we see happend as Rome went through successive waves of persecution against His church. For His purposes, God will sometimes allow these things to happen. Evil appears to triumph over good, as the beast demands and receives worship from the world, destroying all those who oppose it.

But notice that even as the beast appears to triumph, not everyone will worship it. Those who worship are those whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb that was slain. Those who are in the book of life do not worship the beast. The will suffer persecution and even martyrdom for their stand, but they will not worship.

Notice that God has written the names of all His people in this book of life of the Lamb that was slain before the foundation of the world. He has always known and loved His people. In fact, it is because He has known and loved them from the foundation of the world that He will work in their lives to bring them to saving faith. He has written their names in His book because He knows what He will do for them. In essence, He guarantees that they will come to faith. And all those in whom He is working to infallibly bring to saving faith, He will also work so that they will not worship the pagan state. It might costs them everything to make their stand, but they will do so because God is working in them so the will perserver to the end.

In modern day America, we don’t face government persecution of Christians. The worst thing we see is when the government bans nativity scenes and non-denominational prayers. We think that because saying “Merry Christmas” is frowned upon that we are being persecuted. But these things are trivial. In other parts of the world right now, people face torture and death because of their faith. Those who really face persecution can relate to this passage before us. They understand a persecuting government. But in the face of their suffering, they also understand better than I the comfort in seeing that God has known them and loved them from before the foundation of the world. Make no mistake. What they face is terrible. But their names are written in the book of the life of the Lamb that was slain for them, and nothing can erase their names. There is great comfort in knowing this as they take their stand against a persecuting government.

Where is Christ in this passage?

Jesus Christ is the Lamb that was slain so that all those written in the book of the life of the Lamb that was slain could have eternal life. Their salvation is based upon His substitution on their behalf. Because of Jesus Christ’s work of atonement, they can be forgiven of their sins and be declared righteous in God’s sight. Jesus Christ knew everyone of His people from before the foundations of the world, and He went to Calvary for each and every one of them.