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Tag: moses

  • The Glory of Christ Jesus

    The Glory of Christ Jesus

    Luke 2:7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. 8 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear.

    10 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord…

    18 And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. 20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them…

    25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law…

    Matthew 2: 13 Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you, for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.” 14 And he rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed to Egypt 15 and remained there until the death of Herod.

    Angels, messengers of God, do not suddenly appear to men, appear in dreams, and bring proclamations and warnings to certain chosen ones without intention to glorify God. The birth of Jesus was first evidence to some of the glory of this Christ child, a son of man, of the lowest of castes, born in a manger, then to become a refugee from the murders in the places of God and the palaces of kings.

    At a time when Jesus is baptized in the Jordan, God the Father makes His glory known.

    jordan riverMark 1: 9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven,

    “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

    Imagine the public scene of the faithful, being baptized by John. Jesus walks into the water of the Jordan. They have a brief conversation.  (Some heard it was about who should baptize and who should be baptized; for John did not feel worthy to baptize Jesus, the Messiah of God.)

    Then the VOICE of GOD ALMIGHTY, the LORD, speaks! The heavens open (this no man can explain) and the Holy Spirit of God descends to the earth and the glory of God rests on Christ Jesus, the Son being baptized.

    No picture can do justice to the glory of this scene at the river Jordan in this awesome moment in time. Suddenly there appeared the glory of LORD and those present for the purification of their sins, the baptism and permanent change of their hearts, hear of the VOICE of the LORD!

    Deuteronomy 5:

    22 “These words the Lord spoke to all your assembly at the mountain out of the midst of the fire, the cloud, and the thick darkness, with a loud voice; and he added no more. And he wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me. 23 And as soon as you heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, you came near to me, all the heads of your tribes, and your elders.

    24 And you said, ‘Behold, the Lord our God has shown us his glory and greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire. This day we have seen God speak with man, and man still live. 25 Now therefore why should we die? For this great fire will consume us.

    If we hear the voice of the Lord our God any more, we shall die. 26 For who is there of all flesh, that has heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of fire as we have, and has still lived? 27 Go near and hear all that the Lord our God will say, and speak to us all that the Lord our God will speak to you, and we will hear and do it.’

    Who, indeed, has heard the Voice of the Living God, chay ‘elohiym? 

    For our God is the Living God, He IS and He exists! He is no idol.

    And the Voice of the Person of the Father speaks as a Living One of His Son and sends down from the heavens (like a dove lighting upon a man) the form of the Very Spirit of the Living God!

    How awesome! is this sight for which words cannot illustrate the glory of the LORD!

     To be continued…

     

  • The Gospel of the Kingdom

    The Gospel of the Kingdom

    Matthew 9:35 And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction.

    What is the gospel?

    More specifically, what is the gospel of the kingdom which Jesus proclaimed?

    To begin, look back to the centuries and millennia at the role of kings in general.

    Kings do not rule a republic. Kings do not rule a democracy. The power of a king is absolute and those who rule in the king’s domain (territory, dominion, lands) tell the king’s people (subjects) what to do and because they are subjects of the king the people must do what their king demands.

    The message is NOT one from a common subject to other subjects of the king. No, a proclamation is written and spoken by the authority of the king and ruler of his subjects. This is true of the Kingship of God, as well as that of a mortal king.

    The ‘proclamation, qara‘ is spoken to the subjects of the king with the expectation of obedience by the king’s subjects. Someone (in the Bible, sometimes an angel or a Prophet) has met with the king (or with God our Heavenly King), heard the message or news to be heralded or proclaimed and by authority of the king, he tells everyone.

    Most are familiar with the first announcements of the gospel of the Kingdom of God.

    Luke 2:10-11 KJV  And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

    The announcement by an angel from God is that the King has been born, a King of the Jews, as Jesus will come to be known as He becomes the sacrifice for our sins on a Cross.

    God is NOT like any other mortal king and God has proclaimed Himself through Scripture.

    Exodus 19:7 So Moses came and called the elders of the people and set before them all these words that the Lord had commanded him.

    Moses is proclaiming the gospel of God. Moses has met with the King of Creation and proclaims the good news to the captives of Pharaoh.

    8 All the people answered together and said,

    “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.”

    The Hebrew slaves of Pharaoh might as well have said, “We accept the LORD as our King in the place of Pharaoh our king.”

    And Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord.

    9 And the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you forever.”

    Again, God! our King and Leader and Ruler and Sovereign, and Creator of all things, judge of all souls!

    Christ Jesus IS God incarnate; that is: Jesus Christ is GOD in the flesh!  He has set the captives of this world free from sin and the ruler of this world.

    What had happened earlier, when God our Heavenly King challenged the king of Egypt (Pharaoh) with plagues and curses on the lands Pharaoh ruled, a land where the Hebrew people had been subjects of the lowest caste as slaves below every man and woman of Egypt?

    Why had God chosen to take His own subjects, chosen by His covenant through Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph?

    (Here is God’s proclamation to Pharaoh, a mere mortal king of men, through Moses.)

    Exodus 9: ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of the Hebrews,

    “Let my people go, that they may serve me. 14 For this time I will send all my plagues on you yourself, and on your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is none like me in all the earth. 15 For by now I could have put out my hand and struck you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been cut off from the earth.

    16 But for this purpose I have raised you up, to show you my power, so that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.

    And from the days of Moses until this day the Name and Power of God is proclaimed in all the earth and the miracles the LORD did for His people of Israel in the desert at Sinai, as they were led from the slavery of Pharaoh to God’s promised land.

     Set Me Free – Castings Crows

    To be continued…

     

     

     

  • The Gospel: Preached by Stephen

    The Gospel: Preached by Stephen

    Acts 6: Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number…

    The multitudes were now part of the way and living as disciples of the risen Christ Jesus. The twelve Apostles (with Mathias appointed to replace Judas) need the help of others. They appointed deacons – seven more men fully filled with the Holy Spirit to serve as additional leaders.

    … and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit,

    and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. 6 These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them.

    7 And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.

    8 And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people.

    When God multiplies the numbers and faith of believers, without fail opposition to God will test the faith of believers. The truth of our witness by the Spirit will convert the enemies of Christ to trust in His overflowing love.

    9 Then some … rose up and disputed with Stephen. 10 But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking.

    11 Then they secretly instigated men…  12 And they stirred up the people and the elders and the scribes, and they came upon him and seized him and brought him before the council, 13 and they set up false witnesses…

    15 And gazing at him, all who sat in the council saw that his face was like the face of an angel.

    Filled with the Power of the Holy Spirit, Stephen now preaches to his false accusers the gospel of Christ Jesus.
     Acts 7

    ur to haran to caanan map “Brothers and fathers, hear me. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Haran, 3 and said to him, ‘Go out from your land and from your kindred and go into the land that I will show you.’ 4 Then he went out from the land of the Chaldeans and lived in Haran.

    And after his father died, God removed him from there into this land in which you are now living. 5 Yet he gave him no inheritance in it, not even a foot’s length, but promised to give it to him as a possession and to his offspring after him, though he had no child.

    goshen and egypt map6 And God spoke to this effect—that his offspring would be sojourners in a land belonging to others, who would enslave them and afflict them four hundred years.

    Israel, the Hebrew people, chosen by God, were proud of their heritage through Abraham.

    Again, remember that Joseph, son of Israel (Jacob) became a savior to his people by bringing them into Goshen of Egypt as sojourners.

    Stephen continues with Joseph’s story and their history in Egypt, which every Jew knew so well from scripture:

    17 “But as the time of the promise drew near, which God had granted to Abraham, the people increased and multiplied in Egypt 18 until there arose over Egypt another king who did not know Joseph. 19 He dealt shrewdly with our race and forced our fathers to expose their infants, so that they would not be kept alive.

    20 At this time Moses was born; and he was beautiful in God’s sight. And he was brought up for three months in his father’s house, 21 and when he was exposed, Pharaoh’s daughter adopted him and brought him up as her own son. 22 And Moses was instructed in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and he was mighty in his words and deeds.

    hebrew brick makers23 “When he was forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brothers, the children of Israel. 24 And seeing one of them being wronged, he defended the oppressed man and avenged him by striking down the Egyptian.

    God used Moses to save Israel. God gave the Hebrew people the Law through Moses. These are the first five book of Scripture.

    Moses, even more than David, is revered by the Jews. Yet hear what Stephen points out about the relationship of the Hebrews to Moses and scripture from Moses to point to this parallel to Christ Jesus.

    35 “This Moses, whom they rejected, saying, ‘Who made you a ruler and a judge?’—this man God sent as both ruler and redeemer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush. 36 This man led them out, performing wonders and signs in Egypt and at the Red Sea and in the wilderness for forty years.

    37 This is the Moses who said to the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers.’ 

    41 … And they made a calf in those days, and offered a sacrifice to the idol and were rejoicing in the works of their hands. 42 But God turned away and gave them over to worship the host of heaven…

    44 “Our fathers had the tent of witness in the wilderness… 45 Our fathers in turn brought it in with Joshua…

    … So it was until the days of David, 46 who found favor in the sight of God and asked to find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.

    solomon's temple47 But it was Solomon who built a house for him.

    48 Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands, as the prophet says,

    49 “‘Heaven is my throne,
    and the earth is my footstool.
    What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord,
    or what is the place of my rest?
    50 Did not my hand make all these things?’

     

    Yes, we are proud of our great houses of worship, aren’t we?

    So were the Jews of the first century proud of the Temple Herod built, the Temple where they worshiped Abraham and worshiped Moses and worshiped David and worshiped their long-established traditions…

    Are we so different?

    Yet Stephen, by the Power of the Holy Spirit, quotes scripture reminding us that GOD is the Creator and has no need of any house of other provision of man. (This is from the Prophet Isaiah.)

    Steven then reminds his accusers, who have rejected Christ Jesus, of their sordid history of opposing the will of God:

    51 “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit.

    As your fathers did, so do you.

    52 Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute?

    And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered, 53 you who received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it.”

    Are you so caught up in ‘church’ that you forget Jesus?

    Can you be so stiff-necked and uncircumcised in your heart and ears that you resist the gospel of the Holy Spirit being preached from the pulpit and written before you in a dust-covered Bible?

    Could you be just as one who stood by while Stephen preached the gospel?

    What must YOU do?

    REPENT! and be changed permanently by the Name of Jesus Christ.

    Do not resist the Holy Spirit.

    You with ears to hear and eyes to see Scripture, hear and see the Gospel.