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Monday, December 20, 2010
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Rightly Understanding the Old Testament
Luke 24:44-45 Jesus opened their minds that they could understand the scriptures. Are you dependent on Christ to help you understand the scriptures? He is The Word in flesh (John 1:1-5). It's his word. Understanding his word is a gift that only he can give.
Jesus gave his apostles the keys to understanding the scriptures (the Old Testament) but many teachers today say we can't use these keys because that's reading the New Testament into the Old Testament and it can't be rightly understood that way. So whom should we believe?
Here are a few things to consider:
Key #1- Galatians 3:16 Jesus is THE SEED of Abraham to whom the everlasting promises pertain. (Read the promises in Genesis 12-18) If you trust him by faith they're yours through him (Romans 4:16-17; Galatians 3-4).
Key #2- Hebrews 1:2; Colosians 1:16; Matthew 21:38,43 Jesus is the heir of all things. (We are coheirs with Christ.)
Key #3- Colosians 1:12-14; Revelation 5:9-10 Jesus qualified the gentiles to share in Christ's kingdom. (The kingdom was already promised to [believing] Israel in the Davidic covenant.)
Key #4- Romans 11:17; Matthew 21:43-45 Israel was never rejected or set aside. Only the unbelievers were rejected and the gentile believers have been grafted in AMONG the believing Israelites. (Ephesians 3:6 ...the gentiles are heirs together with Israel.)
Key #5- John 11:49-52; Jesus would die for the nation (Israel)...and would gather together in one the children of God. Ephesians 1:9-10 God is bringing all things together under one head, even Christ.
Jesus gave his apostles the keys to understanding the scriptures (the Old Testament) but many teachers today say we can't use these keys because that's reading the New Testament into the Old Testament and it can't be rightly understood that way. So whom should we believe?
Here are a few things to consider:
Key #1- Galatians 3:16 Jesus is THE SEED of Abraham to whom the everlasting promises pertain. (Read the promises in Genesis 12-18) If you trust him by faith they're yours through him (Romans 4:16-17; Galatians 3-4).
Key #2- Hebrews 1:2; Colosians 1:16; Matthew 21:38,43 Jesus is the heir of all things. (We are coheirs with Christ.)
Key #3- Colosians 1:12-14; Revelation 5:9-10 Jesus qualified the gentiles to share in Christ's kingdom. (The kingdom was already promised to [believing] Israel in the Davidic covenant.)
Key #4- Romans 11:17; Matthew 21:43-45 Israel was never rejected or set aside. Only the unbelievers were rejected and the gentile believers have been grafted in AMONG the believing Israelites. (Ephesians 3:6 ...the gentiles are heirs together with Israel.)
Key #5- John 11:49-52; Jesus would die for the nation (Israel)...and would gather together in one the children of God. Ephesians 1:9-10 God is bringing all things together under one head, even Christ.
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Jesus the True Vine
Why is it that Jesus calls himself the true vine in John 15:1 rather than just a vine or the vine? Why is it necessary for him to say he is the "TRUE VINE"? He must be comparing himself to a vine that is mentioned in scripture somewhere else. So is there a point to what he's saying? Obviously Jesus is not wasting words. There is an important message in Jesus' words for those who are willing to hear. So who or what is this other vine? Hint -Psalm 80:8; Isa. 5:1-7; Jer. 2:21 Israel. Israel is repeatedly called a vine in the Old Testament.
If Israel is a vine and Jesus is the "True Vine" then Jesus wants us to know he is the faithful Israel who perfectly fulfilled God's righteous requirements where national Israel always failed. Some will say this is reading too much into what Jesus has said here but there is more. In Matthew 2:15 a much ignored passage, Jesus fulfills a prophecy that is thought to be refering to national Israel (Hosea 11:1). Then there's the obvious John 3:16, Jesus is God's one and only begotten son while Israel is God's firstborn son (Exodus 4:22). This is not a contradiction. It's prophetic of Jesus. There is a point to be made that Jesus puts himself in the place of national Israel. The True Vine therefore indicates not a change in the promises of God but rather a clarification as to how those promises are fulfilled to God's chosen people who live/lived by faith. The important point is the faith not the ethnic origin of God's chosen people since Jesus is the true Israel. The "everlasting" promises made to Israel are really made to Jesus the true Israel who is the heir of all things (Heb 1:2; Col 1:16 [He is the only one deserving anything])and given through him to all those who are in/clothed with Him through faith (Galations 3:16,26-27). This includes all believers of all time including those associated with ancient Israel as well as those believers in New Testament times. They are all saved by the blood of the New Covenant Christ (Matthew 26:26-28)and have all been made into the one body, Christ-Israel-the church.
When we understand what it means that Jesus is the true vine- the true Israel, we realize this truth becomes a key to understanding the scriptures. It doesn't threaten the promises made to the BELIEVERS of ancient Israel it clarifies how they as well as we who are grafted in among them (Romans 11:17)obtain those promises. It makes us realize that the Old Testament promises do have relevance for us today because they are given to Jesus who we are united to. We are one with him and what is his. Think of the undeserved honor he has given us.
If Israel is a vine and Jesus is the "True Vine" then Jesus wants us to know he is the faithful Israel who perfectly fulfilled God's righteous requirements where national Israel always failed. Some will say this is reading too much into what Jesus has said here but there is more. In Matthew 2:15 a much ignored passage, Jesus fulfills a prophecy that is thought to be refering to national Israel (Hosea 11:1). Then there's the obvious John 3:16, Jesus is God's one and only begotten son while Israel is God's firstborn son (Exodus 4:22). This is not a contradiction. It's prophetic of Jesus. There is a point to be made that Jesus puts himself in the place of national Israel. The True Vine therefore indicates not a change in the promises of God but rather a clarification as to how those promises are fulfilled to God's chosen people who live/lived by faith. The important point is the faith not the ethnic origin of God's chosen people since Jesus is the true Israel. The "everlasting" promises made to Israel are really made to Jesus the true Israel who is the heir of all things (Heb 1:2; Col 1:16 [He is the only one deserving anything])and given through him to all those who are in/clothed with Him through faith (Galations 3:16,26-27). This includes all believers of all time including those associated with ancient Israel as well as those believers in New Testament times. They are all saved by the blood of the New Covenant Christ (Matthew 26:26-28)and have all been made into the one body, Christ-Israel-the church.
When we understand what it means that Jesus is the true vine- the true Israel, we realize this truth becomes a key to understanding the scriptures. It doesn't threaten the promises made to the BELIEVERS of ancient Israel it clarifies how they as well as we who are grafted in among them (Romans 11:17)obtain those promises. It makes us realize that the Old Testament promises do have relevance for us today because they are given to Jesus who we are united to. We are one with him and what is his. Think of the undeserved honor he has given us.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Jesus is True Israel
Jesus is True Israel
June 7, 2010 by Timothy Matters
Yesterday in my sermon, I stressed that we need to understand who Christ is to fullest extent possible since He is the image of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15). If we want to know about God, we must know Jesus for He and the Father are One. To see Jesus is to see the Father (John 14:1-11). One of the subtle identities of Christ is that He is true Israel. This became evident to me several years ago studying while reading David Holwerda’s book, Jesus and Israel: One Covenant or Two? He made the point that in Matthew 2:15, that God called true Israel out of Egypt. Matthew quotes Hosea 11:1 “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”
The shocker is that when you look back to Hosea 11, you find that God called the people out of Egypt and they immediately turn to worshiping idols. They essentially rebel against the loving Father. Where the people failed, the head did not. Jesus is also called out of Egypt to be the obedient Son that the people failed to be. In every realm of testing that the people went through, Jesus did as well, only in His case He was obedient to the Father.
This is why He is the true Israel. When I read the Old Testament, I want so badly for the people to do what is right and stay true to the LORD. But they only do so for a while, and then they drift off. Even the most devout OT saints drift as well. This is because the OT saints, at best, merely point to Christ, the true Israel. Where they failed, He succeeds. Where they rebel, He remains obedient. Where they drift off into idolatry, He is the only one that loves the LORD with His heart, mind, soul and spirit. He is everything that they were not, and that we are not.
I think this truth is vital when it comes to understanding the Old Testament. All that is found there, is pointing towards Christ. It puts the real meat on verses like Isaiah 49:3
“And He said to me,
‘You are my servant, O Israel,
In whom I will be glorfied.’”
Isaiah is not talking about the people, but the Messiah. He is pointing to the suffering servant who will be the Redeemer of Israel, their Holy One (v. 7), who will also be a light to the Gentiles, that You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth’” (v. 6).
Who is true Israel? True Israel is Christ and all those who are in Him. This is why I believe that the promises made to national Israel, are also made to us. Where there is a covenant with God’s people in the OT, the promises there are made to the believer in the New Testament. The specifics have changed under the New Covenant, but the promises are still to us as well.
For instance, I know that God made the promises to the people about the land. A lot of people put a lot of stock in the land promises. But Jesus told us the truth about the land in the Sermon on the Mount, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” The land seen as Israel was merely a down payment to the real inheritance for the people of God. The entire earth is given to all those who believe because it all belongs to true Israel, that is Jesus, and we are partakers of His inheritance (Ephesians 1:11, 5:5).
The specifics of the promises have changed, but the essence of them is still there, Paul confirms this in 2 Corinthians.
2 Corinthians 1:19-21 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us—by me, Silvanus, and Timothy—was not Yes and No, but in Him was Yes. 20 For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us. 21 Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God.
This is why I believe a passage like 2 Chronicles 7:14 still applies to us today. It is a call for His people to humble themselves, repent and seek forgiveness. The promise is to heal the land. In the context, it does have a specific application to those who were returning from the Babylonian captivity. But it also has a spiritual promise to all of His people, therefore it a applies to all His believers. Does it apply to the United States? Probably not. God may or may not heal our country. But He will bring spiritual healing to His people, which is far more important than the economic, political or moral healing that many are hoping for. Let the people of God humble themselves and pray that His Spirit brings true and meaningful healing to the land.
June 7, 2010 by Timothy Matters
Yesterday in my sermon, I stressed that we need to understand who Christ is to fullest extent possible since He is the image of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15). If we want to know about God, we must know Jesus for He and the Father are One. To see Jesus is to see the Father (John 14:1-11). One of the subtle identities of Christ is that He is true Israel. This became evident to me several years ago studying while reading David Holwerda’s book, Jesus and Israel: One Covenant or Two? He made the point that in Matthew 2:15, that God called true Israel out of Egypt. Matthew quotes Hosea 11:1 “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”
The shocker is that when you look back to Hosea 11, you find that God called the people out of Egypt and they immediately turn to worshiping idols. They essentially rebel against the loving Father. Where the people failed, the head did not. Jesus is also called out of Egypt to be the obedient Son that the people failed to be. In every realm of testing that the people went through, Jesus did as well, only in His case He was obedient to the Father.
This is why He is the true Israel. When I read the Old Testament, I want so badly for the people to do what is right and stay true to the LORD. But they only do so for a while, and then they drift off. Even the most devout OT saints drift as well. This is because the OT saints, at best, merely point to Christ, the true Israel. Where they failed, He succeeds. Where they rebel, He remains obedient. Where they drift off into idolatry, He is the only one that loves the LORD with His heart, mind, soul and spirit. He is everything that they were not, and that we are not.
I think this truth is vital when it comes to understanding the Old Testament. All that is found there, is pointing towards Christ. It puts the real meat on verses like Isaiah 49:3
“And He said to me,
‘You are my servant, O Israel,
In whom I will be glorfied.’”
Isaiah is not talking about the people, but the Messiah. He is pointing to the suffering servant who will be the Redeemer of Israel, their Holy One (v. 7), who will also be a light to the Gentiles, that You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth’” (v. 6).
Who is true Israel? True Israel is Christ and all those who are in Him. This is why I believe that the promises made to national Israel, are also made to us. Where there is a covenant with God’s people in the OT, the promises there are made to the believer in the New Testament. The specifics have changed under the New Covenant, but the promises are still to us as well.
For instance, I know that God made the promises to the people about the land. A lot of people put a lot of stock in the land promises. But Jesus told us the truth about the land in the Sermon on the Mount, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” The land seen as Israel was merely a down payment to the real inheritance for the people of God. The entire earth is given to all those who believe because it all belongs to true Israel, that is Jesus, and we are partakers of His inheritance (Ephesians 1:11, 5:5).
The specifics of the promises have changed, but the essence of them is still there, Paul confirms this in 2 Corinthians.
2 Corinthians 1:19-21 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us—by me, Silvanus, and Timothy—was not Yes and No, but in Him was Yes. 20 For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us. 21 Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God.
This is why I believe a passage like 2 Chronicles 7:14 still applies to us today. It is a call for His people to humble themselves, repent and seek forgiveness. The promise is to heal the land. In the context, it does have a specific application to those who were returning from the Babylonian captivity. But it also has a spiritual promise to all of His people, therefore it a applies to all His believers. Does it apply to the United States? Probably not. God may or may not heal our country. But He will bring spiritual healing to His people, which is far more important than the economic, political or moral healing that many are hoping for. Let the people of God humble themselves and pray that His Spirit brings true and meaningful healing to the land.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Jesus- The True Israel
http://exiledpreacher.blogspot.com/2009/11/jesus-as-true-israel-in-gospel.html
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