Sabbath Before Passover - 2011
Fred R. Coulter—April 16, 2011
Greetings, brethren! Welcome to the Sabbath before the Passover, 2011. The
Passover is the most important thing to start off everything concerning the
Holy Days of God. It is a day that is so filled with meaning, so filled with
the fulfilling of prophecies, as we have seen. Everything in the Scriptures
point to this one day; this one day becomes the most important day in the
starting of the plan of God.
We’ve already covered many of the prophecies concerning the coming Jesus
Christ, the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, everything that He would go through, the
things that He would suffer. It’s really quite astonishing how much is in the
Old Testament which portrays what is coming in the New Testament, and then how
much in the New Testament reflects back to the foretelling of it, with the
fulfillment of it. It’s really quite an amazing thing, and it is really just
mind-boggling that so many people would say, ‘Well, the Old Testament has been
fulfilled and we don’t need to follow that; all we need is Christ.’ Well,
really the truth is
- if you don’t have the Old Testament and don’t
understand the prophecies that are there concerning Jesus Christ
- if you don’t understand who the children of
Israel are today and the Jews are today
- if you don’t understand the sacrifice of Jesus
Christ
- the fact of His death
- that He was in the grave three days and three
night and resurrected
- ascended to heaven and accepted of God the
Father so that we can become the children of God
you don’t know
anything! You may have a ‘religion’ that is called ‘Christian.’ People may
have certain principles and values that they extract out of the Bible as their
own, but they are not in the New Covenant with Jesus Christ and God the Father.
That is the whole key! That is the whole purpose of the Passover!
We need to understand the whole meaning of the New
Covenant—what it portrays, what we are to be, how we have our
relationship with God—and then that will help us understand
- how we need to lead our lives
- how we need to be led of the Spirit of God
- how we can understand the Word of God
- how we can draw close to God
because:
- God loves us
- God cares for us
- God sent His Son because He loves the world
And, as we know
with the outline of the plan of God—as outlined by the Holy Days and the
Sabbath—God’s plan is working; God’s plan is on time. Brethren, I want
you to understand we’re part of that plan. We’re an integral part of that which
God is doing and preparing for the return of Jesus Christ and the setting up of
the Kingdom of God. All these prophecies, foretelling all of this, are alive
and well and active and being carried out according to the will of God. We are
living in desperately more troubled times than ever before, and these things
will affect our lives. But, in the middle of it all—through the midst of
it all—we need to understand this: We need to:
- stay close to God
- understand why we are here
- know where we are going
- in faith
- in hope
- in love
in full confidence of
the meaning of the New Covenant. We’re just going to review one prophecy,
through Abraham—concerning Abraham and Isaac—which portrays very
much the whole meaning of the New Covenant.
Let’s come to Genesis 22. We know and it’s the same requirement for
us—I want you to think about this: What does God require of us for the
New Covenant? That we count the cost! That we love Jesus Christ more
than father, mother, brother, sister, wife, children, etc., and, yes, even our
own lives. Yes, we have to pick up our own cross and follow Him and obey
Him—don’t we? Yes! That’s exactly the type of what happened with
Abraham and Isaac.
Abraham was told to take Isaac, ‘your son and go to one of the mountains
of Moriah and offer him there for a sacrifice’—a burnt offering. So he
did by faith! He walked by faith and he came to one of the mountain of
Moriah and there they went through the whole thing—Isaac and Abraham
together. Isaac was the sacrifice. He tied him and laid him on the altar that
he had built, on the wood that was there, and was reaching down to pull the
knife to cut Isaac’s throat. He knew, beyond any shadow of doubt, that
since God gave him this son in a figure from his dead body, that God was
perfectly capable of resurrecting him from the dead.
Now, God wanted to test Abraham. God wanted to know if
he would love Him, obey Him. Would he follow through and do as God commanded
him? And Abraham did! So did Isaac! Just before he was ready to take the
knife and cut Isaac’s throat, a voice came out of heaven:
Genesis 22:11: “…‘Abraham! Abraham!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ And He said, ‘Do not
lay your hand upon the lad, nor do anything to him, for now I know that
you fear God…’” (vs 11-12). Let’s use this as an examination for
ourselves:
- Do we
fear God?
- Do we
love God?
- Are we
willing to do what He’s commanded us?
- Knowing in faith that whatever God commands us to do is
for our own good and eternal life.
What we need
to understand here is this: In this sacrifice—this very act by God, and
Abraham and Isaac—it is the foundational keystone laid upon Christ Who is
the Chief Cornerstone for the whole plan of God, and a type of the New
Covenant. “‘…for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have
not withheld your son, your only son, from Me’” (v 12).
God has not
asked us to do what He asked Abraham to do, but He has asked us to die the
death of the New Covenant in the watery grave with Christ. Then what is it that
He expects us to do? We have to walk by faith, believe in hope and
live in love! All of those things then will put into perspective every
trial, every difficulty, every circumstance that we will go through, because
God wants to know:
- Do you
love Him with all your mind, heart, soul and being?
- Are you
going to love Jesus Christ?
- Are you
going to trust in Your Savior?
- Are you
going to walk in the way of God?
- All of that is hinged upon what
we are seeing here in Gen. 22.
Then you know
that God provided a ram. They offered the ram, and Abraham named the place
“…The LORD Will Provide…” (v 14). I want you to mark that and I want you to understand
that. What are your circumstances? What are your difficulties? Remember, God
will provide, but you have to obey His voice! That’s what
it’s all about here.
Verse 15:
“And the angel of the LORD called to Abraham out of heaven the second time, and
said, ‘By Myself have I sworn,’ says the LORD…” (vs 15-16). God doesn’t need to
swear by Himself, but we will see why He did so.
- God
cannot lie!
- It’s
impossible for God to lie!
- Whatever
God says is true!
- Whatever
God says will happen will come to pass!
“…‘By Myself have I sworn,’ says
the LORD, ‘because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son,
your only son; that in blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying I will
multiply your seed like the stars of the heavens…” (vs 16-17). I want you to
see what is the first blessing of the descendants of Abraham that God is
looking for. These are the spiritual seed. When we’re resurrected from
the dead, as Jesus said, we’re going to ‘shine like the sun.’ And as Daniel
said, ‘like the stars of heaven.’ So this is talking about the spiritual seed. That’s why it goes back to Gen. 15 where God said to Abraham, ‘Come on
outside here and I want you to look up into the heavens and count the stars if
you’re able to do it.
“‘…and as the
sand which is upon the seashore…. [That’s the physical seed from Isaac
and Jacob and the twelve tribes of Israel.] …And your seed shall possess the
gate of his enemies. And in your seed shall all the nations of the earth be
blessed, because… [We need to ask ourselves this question: Do we
do this?] …you have obeyed My voice’” (vs 17-18).
Let’s think
about this, because Paul told Timothy to watch out for those who did not adhere
‘to the sound words of Jesus Christ.’ So, we add that into it. Do we obey the
voice of God the Father and Jesus Christ? Is that not the whole foundation of
our part in the New Covenant? That’s quite a thing for us to understand. God
has called us to be in a relationship with Him. God has not called us to come
to a church that has separated from this church or that church or the other
church or from Sunday-keeping churches. He has called us into a New Covenant
and a personal relationship with God the Father Whom Jesus revealed, and Jesus
Christ Who is our sacrifice for us.
Let’s come to the book of Hebrews. We’re going to spend a good deal of
time today in the book of Hebrews, because it’s important for us to understand
the functioning of the New Covenant, which is a superior covenant. We
can say the Old Covenant or the Old Testament, but in a sense—even though
that’s common knowledge and understanding of what we’re talking about—it
should be referred to as the covenant with Israel. You have the covenant
with Abraham, which is separate from the covenant with Israel, and that’s why
the Passover started with Abraham and not with Israel. The Passover that we
keep is nothing like the Passover that the Jews kept. We need to keep that in
mind. We need to understand it. Everything has been elevated to a higher
spiritual level through Jesus Christ.
Let’s come to
Hebrews, the sixth chapter, where Paul writes of the this very thing concerning
how God swore by Himself and how God made these promises irrevocable. Brethren,
we’re part of those irrevocable promises. Yes, we’re living in the end days. We
can see it all around us—can’t we? Yes, indeed! This is why we
need to focus and keep our minds on that New Covenant and what God has done,
and what Jesus Christ has done, and how He did it. We’ve covered many of these
prophecies and seen them fulfilled in the Gospels.
Paul refers
right back to Abraham in describing the New Covenant, which is superior! That alone should tell us that aside from the patriarchs, aside from certain kings of Judah, aside from certain major
priests—none in the Old Testament—we have the patriarchs all the
way through—none of the people received an offer for eternal life. So,
it’s a complete misnomer to believe what the world believes that they received
eternal life with law-keeping; or, ‘we receive eternal life with lawless grace;
we don’t have to keep law.’ I beg you, please, look at the world filled with
lawlessness—where did it come from? In the western civilization it came
right from the ‘religious’ leaders preaching a lawless grace and an inferior
covenant. They’re not teaching the New Covenant. So, as we come to this Sabbath
before the Passover I want us to know and understand about the New Covenant.
Hebrews 6:13:
“For God, after promising Abraham, swore by Himself, since He could
swear by none greater… [When God swears by Himself, you know it’s going
to happen! You know that it is true!] …saying, ‘Surely in blessing I
will bless you, and in multiplying I will multiply you.’” (vs 13-14). God has
done that.
What do you think
Abraham is going to think when he’s resurrected and God says, ‘Abraham, here
are all your children right here on the Sea of Glass’? And Jesus says to the
Father, ‘Behold, the brethren you have given Me.’ Then God says, ‘Abraham, come
over here to this side of the Sea of Glass and I want you to look down on the
world and I want you to also see that many of those who are fighting down there
are also your children, and I have a plan to save them in the final analysis.
Right now they are enemies, but those are all your children. I fulfilled My
promise to you, Abraham.’ I wonder what Abraham is going to say other than,
‘Oh, Lord God!’ Yes, indeed!
Verse 15: “Now after he had patiently endured, he
obtained the promise…. [Yes, he did! But not the fullness of the promise.] …For
indeed, men swear by the greater, and confirmation by an oath puts an
end to all disputes between them. In this way God, desiring more
abundantly to show the heirs of the promise… [That’s us! That’s why we study
the Bible, study the Word of God!] …to show the heirs of the promise… [the
stars of heaven—that’s us!] …the unchangeable nature of His own purpose,
confirmed it by an oath” (vs 15-17).
- God has His purpose!
- God has His plan!
- God has brought us into the knowledge of it!
- God has brought us into the understanding of it!
- He’s given us of His Spirit!
- He’s given us of His Truth!
- He’s given us understanding of His way!
- He wants us as His children!
- We are partakers of the sonship through the
Spirit of God!
And, yes, if you are Christ’s then ‘are you Abraham’s seed, and heirs
according to the promise.’ That’s New Covenant; that’s what we’re reading
about!
Verse 18: “So that by two immutable things, in which it
was impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might
have strong encouragement to lay hold on the hope that has been set
before us.” That’s why that was given on the mountain of Moriah, that
Abraham called ‘God Will Provide.’ Not only will God provide for you in
circumstances in your life, but He’s going to provide us with eternal life. He
is going to resurrect us from the dead. He’s going to give us glory and power
and honor to serve with Jesus Christ.
Verse 19: “Which hope we have as an anchor of
the soul, both secure and steadfast… [then the greatest privilege of all; this
is why our lives and our relationship and prayer and study and walking and
living by every Word of God and obeying the voice of God is so important]: …and
which enters into the sanctuary within the veil; where Jesus has entered
for us as a forerunner, having become a High Priest forever according to
the order of Melchisedec” (vs 19-20). Jesus is at the right hand of God the
Father.
- He is our Savior!
- He is our Mediator!
- He is our Intercessor!
- He is our Champion!
- He is our Hero!
- He the Head of the Church!
- He is the soon coming King to rule over the
world!
We have direct access to God the Father. Isn’t that something? Brethren,
I want you to understand, because of this it is a shame what has happened to
the Christian religion in the world and in the Churches of God, that too many
setup the same failed system of worshiping a man instead of teaching
people to yield to God and to understand the New Covenant. God put His Spirit
in every one of us. We are all brethren together. We need to keep that in mind
and understand that and realize that continually.
Now, let’s come to John, the tenth chapter, and let’s
see what Jesus said concerning the sacrifice that He knew that He was going to
have to give. He knew it before the foundation of the world—didn’t He? It
says there in Rev. 13, ‘the Lamb of God slain from the foundation of the
world.’ That was all set in the plan of God. This is why it is so great and we
need to understand concerning that the One of Elohim that became Jesus Christ,
willingly gave up His glory and His power to become a pinpoint of life and to
be impregnated in the womb of the virgin Mary, born a baby, live a human life
and lived that life in perfection, though, as we will see, He carried
human nature within Him. That is an astonishing thing to understand, and the
greatest grace of God to provide that for us.
Here’s what Christ said, John 10:14: “I am the good Shepherd, and I know those who are Mine, and am known of those who are Mine…. [We know Jesus Christ!
We know God the Father! We know the plan of God! Don’t we?] …Just
as the Father knows Me, I also know the Father; and I lay down My life for the
sheep” (vs 14-15). Remember what Jesus told Peter three times: ‘You love
Me—feed My sheep. You love Me—feed My lambs. You love
Me—shepherd My sheep.’ Yes! And He is the Chief Shepherd.
Verse 16:
“And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring those also, and
they shall hear My voice; and there shall be one flock and one Shepherd.
On account of this, the Father loves Me: because I lay down My life, that I
may receive it back again…. [Nothing was taken from Christ; He willingly
gave His life. God the Father willingly gave Him.[ …No one takes it from
Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have authority to lay it down and
authority to receive it back again. This commandment I received from My Father”
(vs 16-18). Isn’t that something? He willingly laid down His life! Everything
focuses on the Passover—Old Testament and New Testament—and comes
right down to the person of Jesus Christ.
Now, let’s
see what He said on that Passover night, Matthew 26. We will cover this during
the Passover ceremony and I want you to understand that all the words of the
New Covenant, when you go through John 14-17 on the Passover night, realize and
understand this: This is really the words of the New Covenant for us and in its
written form it is a love letter from God the Father and Jesus Christ to
each one of us! It starts out with where we are and our ultimate destiny of
being one with God the Father and Jesus Christ. That’s the whole
purpose! That’s they whole reason! That’s why the New Covenant is called a
‘superior’ covenant.
Matthew
26:26: “And as they were eating, Jesus took the bread and blessed it; then
He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, ‘Take,
eat; this is My body.’” This is symbolic, but we have to understand that
God—in the form of Jesus Christ—gave His whole being in the
sacrifice. We are to partake of this bread symbolizing His broken body and
symbolizing His shed blood when we drink the wine.
“…gave it to the disciples, and said, ‘Take, eat; this is My body.’…. [As it says in
1-Cor. 11, ‘which is broken for you.’ That’s personal, direct!] …And He took
the cup; and after giving thanks, He gave it to them, saying, ‘All of
you drink of it; for this is My blood, the blood of the New Covenant…’”
(vs 26-28). We have studied how that the covenant sacrifice must be given to
show the absolute ratification and the validity of the covenant, which God the
Father did with the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for us. The New Covenant being a
‘superior’ covenant is that which we cannot go back on. God will do everything
to see us through, that we complete it, because Christ gave His life for us. He
is the sacrifice!
“And He took
the cup; and after giving thanks, He gave it to them, saying, ‘All of
you drink of it; for this is My blood, the blood of the New Covenant
which is poured out for many for the remission of sins’” (v 28).
Let’s
understand something as we get to it. Let’s come back to Hebrews, the first
chapter, and let’s see some things concerning Jesus Christ:
- where
He is today
- what He
is doing
- the
power that He has
- why He
is the Savior
- how He
is operating as our Intercessor and our High Priest
Let’s see that there is nothing comparable to this under
the covenant that was with Israel. It could not have been, because it was at
the ‘set time’ that Jesus came. It was on the Passover that falls in the middle
of the week, so that He could be three days and three nights in the grave, then
resurrected, ascend into heaven, accepted of God the Father, came back and was,
for 40 days, teaching the disciples and showing His powers and wonders to them.
Hebrews is important in understanding
the difference in the covenant that was with Israel and the covenant with
Abraham and the covenant that we have—the New Covenant—unto eternal
life.
Hebrews 1:1:
“God, Who spoke to the fathers at different times in the past and in
many ways by the prophets, has spoken to us in these last days by His Son, Whom He has appointed heir of all things, by Whom also He made the worlds…
[That could also mean ages. Christ is heir of all things and we are
joint heirs with Christ. All things includes everything; the vastness of
the universe, because He created it.] (Notice what Jesus had to do): …Who,
being the brightness of His glory… [after His resurrection] …and the exact image of His person…” (vs 1-3). He has the character of the Father.
Remember what Jesus said in Matt. 5:48: ‘we are to be
perfect as our Father in heaven is perfect.’ And the whole New Covenant is to
perfect us spiritually! And that is the goal: to develop the character! The body is going to get old and wear out; we’re going to die. Some will
remain when Christ returns, and they will be changed ‘in a moment, in the
twinkling of an eye at the last trump.’ But we are all going to be receive
spiritual bodies just like Jesus.
“Who, being the brightness of His glory
and the exact image of His person, and upholding all things by the word
of His own power… [Remember what Jesus told the disciples there in Matt. 28:
‘all authority in heaven and in earth has been given to Me.’ That’s something!
Stop and think about it for just a minute! Even all the atheists are under the
authority of Jesus Christ. Isn’t that amazing?! Yes!] …when He had by
Himself…” (v 3).
Jesus said, ‘I lay down My life; no one takes it from
Me.’ The One Who was God and made all human beings. He is the life of all men
that come into the world. All human beings that have life is because of Christ.
Isn’t that something?
“…when He had by Himself purged our
sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high; having been
made so much greater than any of the angels… [Yet, there are some people
that call themselves ‘Christian’—which they are not—who believe
that Jesus was Michael the archangel. Or, in the case of Mormons, Moroni the
angel. NO! “by Himself… inasmuch as He has inherited a name exceedingly
superior to them. For to which of the angels did He ever say, ‘You are My Son;
this day I have begotten You’? And again, ‘I will be a Father to Him, and He
will be a Son to Me’?” (vs 3-5). Never happen! Didn’t take place!
Verse 6: “And again, when He brought the Firstborn
into the world, He said, ‘Let all the angels of God worship Him.’” What
happened on the night that he was born? What did the angels sing? They sang
Glory to God in the highest! Yes, they did worship the little baby Jesus.
But he grew to be a man! And for this very purpose and this destiny!
Verse 7: “Now on the one hand, of the angels He says,
‘Who makes His angels spirits, and His ministers a flame of fire.’ But on the
other hand, of the Son He says, ‘Your throne, O God… [He was God before
He came to the earth. He was the Son of God while He was on the earth; also
called the Son of man because He also had human nature.] …is into the
ages of eternity…’” (vs 7-8). That is the destiny of time in which we are going
to live. The ‘ages’ means that there are segments of eternity. Do we live in
eternity today? We live within an age that is part of eternity—is
that not correct? Yes! Are we eternal yet? No! We’re not! Will we
be? Yes! At the resurrection! That’s the whole purpose of the New
Covenant.
“‘…a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of
Your Kingdom. You loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; because of this,
God, even Your God… [What does this show? Two Who are God! Everywhere through the Bible it shows there are two—never three—who
are God! Right there!] …has anointed You with the oil of gladness above
Your companions’” (vs 8-9). We are the companions—yes, we are!
Let’s talk about the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and
let’s understand that His death is called the death! Why? Because
it was the only death that could pay for the sins of all mankind! That’s why! Now, when we are baptized it says in Rom. 6, we are baptized into the
death—the death of Jesus Christ. Then we are raised out of the watery
grave and we are dead to sin, but we are to walk in newness of life—is
that not true? Yes, indeed! That’s the whole beginning basis of the New
Covenant.
No one is in covenant with God the Father and Jesus
Christ until they have repented of their sins and have been baptized and
received the Holy Spirit with the laying on of hands. No one! And if you
are not repentant at the time, then, like many people—some few, not lots
and lots of people compared to a smaller number—have to be baptized
again, because those in the ministry were delinquent in teaching what they
should teach and helping people to come to repentance in preparation for the
baptism of the death of Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 2:6—this is quoting from the Greek of
the Septuagint: “But in a certain place one fully testified, saying, ‘What is
man, that You are mindful of him, or the son of man, that You visit him?
You did make him a little lower than the angels… [In Psa. 8[transcriber’s
correction] it says ‘little lower than God.’ We’re made in the image and
likeness of God—male and female. Yes, we’re lower than angels, that’s
true, because they’re spirit beings. Yes, Jesus was made a little lower than
angels when He came to be a human being. That is absolutely true! So, either
way it is correct.] …You did crown him with glory and honor, and You did set
him over the works of Your hands… [gave us the whole world] …You did put all
things in subjection under his feet.’ For in subjecting all things to him, He
left nothing that was not subjected to him. But now we do not yet see
all things subjected to him” (vs 6-8). Why? Because
we’re not yet spirit beings! That’s why! That’s quite a statement—isn’t it?
Jesus is
going to inherit all things—correct? Yes! We’re joint heirs
with Jesus Christ—are we not? Is that correct? Yes! That helps explain this subjection of all things. Since it has not yet
happened and the plan of God is still ongoing but not yet fulfilled:
Verse 9: “But we see Jesus, Who was made a little
lower than the angels, crowned with glory and honor on account of
suffering the death…” There it is, right there; just as it is in the
Greek—the death! The one sacrifice by the One Who was God
Who became a human being, and that death was the death. It was the death
that was prophesied all through the Prophets, the Law and the Writings and now
is fulfilled when Jesus was crucified—the death!
Notice for what
purpose, v 9: “…in order that by the grace of God He Himself might taste
death for everyone.” Isn’t that something! Jesus took upon Himself the wages of
sin, and His death pays for all the sins of mankind who repent—otherwise,
it doesn’t pay for them. That’s another whole story.
(go to the next track)
Let’s continue on the book of Hebrews concerning Jesus
Christ Who’s the focal point of the New Covenant. It is His sacrifice. It is
His life that He gave, willingly laid down for us and it’s being explained by
the Apostle Paul which is very important for us to realize; that we grasp and
understand the full meaning of the New Covenant and hence will improve our
understanding of taking the Passover and why that is so vital.
Let’s understand something very important: If you do not have the Spirit of God, and if you do not partake of
the Passover
- exactly the way that Jesus said
- at the time that He said
- in the manner that He said
- you
have no life in you!
There are many counterfeits out there. There are many
people claiming that they’re ministers of Jesus Christ. But when we read the
words of the New Testament and understand the meaning of them, it’s entirely
different than what most people think.
Let’s understand something, Hebrews 2:10: “Because it
was fitting for Him, for Whom all things were created, and by Whom all
things exist, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the Author of
their salvation perfect through sufferings.” Let’s stop and think about
this for just a minute.
God is perfect—is He not? Yes, indeed! But, He is perfected even more in humbling Himself, becoming a human being,
taking on human nature and suffering this death for the payment of sins for all
mankind. That perfected Christ. It also perfected His righteousness to this
extent: That He subjected Himself to the temptations of Satan the devil and
never once yielded to sinning to Satan or to any man. That made Christ even
more perfect. That is the perfection of the New Covenant that God wants us to
have, as well.
Verse 11: “For both He Who is sanctifying and those
who are sanctified are all of one; for which cause He is not ashamed to
call them brethren.” We are brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ and friends!
- Friends of God the Father
- Sons and daughters of God the Father
- Think of that! This is why we need to
- our lives
- our hearts
- our minds
- everything
lifted up toward God! Not be looking at ourselves; not be
looking at our difficulties. We’ll talk about difficulties a little later on.
Verse 12: “Saying, ‘I will declare Your name to My
brethren; in the midst of the Church I will sing praise to You.’
And again, ‘I will be trusting in Him.’ And again, ‘Behold, I and the children
whom God has given Me’” (vs 12-13).
In order for that
process to happen: it’s talking about us; it’s talking about the fulfillment of
the New Covenant at the resurrection when Jesus returns. Notice v 14, and this
is what we need to grasp. There are some people who say it was impossible for
Jesus to sin. NO! It was improbable that He would sin, but it was possible that
He could sin, if He had chosen to do so.
Verse 14:
“Therefore, since the children are partakers of flesh and blood, in like manner
He also took part in the same, in order that through death He might annul him who has the power of death—that is, the devil… [The King James says ‘destroy’—that means to annul everything that Satan has
done.] …and that He might deliver those who were subject to
bondage all through their lives by their fear of death” (vs 14-15).
That’s what it is today. That’s all human beings have gone through.
Verse 16—I want you to key on what this is
telling us: “For surely, He is not taking upon Himself to help the angels… [He’s not redeeming the angels who have sinned—no sir!] …but He
is taking upon Himself to help the seed of Abraham.” We are the seed
of Abraham; the spiritual seed. He took upon the same nature that we
have.
Verse 17: “For this reason, it was obligatory
[mandatory] for Him to be made like His brethren in everything…
[Does everything mean everything? Yes, indeed!] …that He might be
a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, in
order to make propitiation for the sins of the people…. [Christ is there
propitiating, forgiving, interceding. Everyday when we go to God, we pray: God
the Father, forgive us our sins—and we list them out, repent of
them—we’re forgiven! He’s making intercession for us.] …For because He Himself… [personally experienced
the suffering] …has suffered, having been tempted in like manner, He
is able to help those who are being tempted” (vs 17-18).
- Christ is our
Helper!
- Christ is our
Strength!
- Christ is our
Redeemer!
- Christ is our
Savior!
There it is, to help
those.
Now, let’s come to Romans, the eighth chapter, and
let’s see something very important concerning taking upon the nature of the
seed of Abraham—that is human nature! What kind of human nature? The
exact same human nature that we have!
Let’s understand something: Since God is going to
forgive sin. And if He’s going to forgive it, Who is the One Who gave us the law
of sin and death as punishment, through the sin of Adam? The One Who became Jesus Christ! Is that a curse to have that kind of
nature? Well, yes, it really is!
It’s carnal-mindedness! It takes
us away from God. If God is going to redeem us from this, then, as we read in
Heb. 2, it was obligatory that He
be made in the exact sameness and likeness with the same nature as we are. Otherwise, His sacrifice would not
forgive all sin, because the cause of sin is Satan the devil and the law of
sin and death within us. That’s why He first defeated Satan the
devil, and then defeated death having been tempted like we are.
So, God sent Him in the sameness, the likeness of
sinful flesh! Romans 8:3: “For what was impossible for the law to do…
[The Law cannot convert you. Only with the Spirit of God can that be
done. Yes, it says, ‘the law converts the soul.’ That is true, but the implied
meaning is that it must have the Holy Spirit to do so.] …in that it was weak
through the flesh… [Because the Law cannot make anyone do anything. The Law
only states thus and such and thou shalt not and thou shall, etc.] (here’s what
God did): …God, having sent His own Son in the likeness
[‘homoiote’—meaning the exact sameness] …of sinful flesh… [the
Greek there is very interesting: of flesh of sin] …of sinful flesh… [in
the exact sameness, likeness] …of sinful flesh and for sin… [In order for sin
to be condemned, Jesus had to live a perfect life although He had the law of
sin and death within Him, just
like all of us do.] …condemned sin in the flesh.”
We’ll see in a little bit that’s why He was tempted in
all points like we are, yet, He was without sin.’ This is the whole focus and
purpose of the New Covenant. This is why he said, ‘Take, eat, this is My body,
which is broken for you; and drink this, because this is My blood, the blood of
the New Covenant, which is shed for the remission of sins of many.’
“…in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh” (v 3). You can’t have any more perfect
sacrifice than that—can you? The Creator of all mankind taking upon
Himself the very curse that He gave mankind, through Adam and Eve, with the law
of sin and death and take it upon Himself, and to show that with the Spirit
of God He could overcome every temptation. He could never sin because He
chose not to sin! Likewise, that set the standard for us,
too—doesn’t it?
Let’s come to Hebrews, the fourth chapter, now; let’s
see what it says about this and how that it is for us and our coming to the
throne of God. Remember, Jesus was the forerunner Who came into the Holy of
Holies for us.
Hebrews 4:12: “For the Word of God is living
and powerful…” Let me tell you something very important here: When we read the
words that printed on the paper—some people like to read it on their
computer, that’s fine—nothing wrong with it—but I guarantee you,
you do not exactly have the same impact as when you read the printed word. And
with the Bible, you don’t need electricity, you don’t need a battery. Anyway,
we’ve provided digital copies for people who want them and need them, and that
will help them in their study. But we want, also, everyone to have a literal
Bible, The Holy Bible in Its Original Order, a Faithful Version—because
we have corrected all the mistakes of the King James Version of the
Bible. That’s another whole topic.
“For the Word of God is living… [Jesus said
that ‘they are spirit and they are life’ and they are understood spiritually,
and you must have the Spirit of God in you to fully grasp the Word of
God.] …and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the
dividing asunder of both soul and spirit, and of both the joints
and the marrow, and is able to discern the thoughts and
intents of the heart” (v 12). Isn’t that something?! It exposes human
nature like nothing that anyone else has written, not to be comparable with
anything!
- God knows our thoughts
- God knows our hearts
- God knows our intention
- And that’s why God is there with His Spirit
- to forgive us
- to lead us
- to correct us
- to up-build us
—because we are in a superior covenant! We’ll see this as we
go along. This is important to grasp as we come to the Passover on Sunday night
and take the Passover.
So, it “…is able to discern the thoughts
and intents of the heart. And there is not a created thing that is not
manifest in His sight; but all things are naked and laid bare before the
eyes of Him to Whom we must give account” (vs 12-13). Rather than be fearful,
rather than be trepidatious, rather than be worried and wrought with anxiety,
we need to come to God, trusting in Him
- in faith
- in hope
- in love
- in confidence
Verse 14: “Having therefore a great High Priest… [not like the
priests at the temple—NO!—but One who is our heavenly High Priest.]
…Who has passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, we should hold
fast the confession of our faith. For we do not have a high priest who
cannot empathize with our weaknesses…” (vs 14-15).
- He knows!
- He had the pulls of the flesh, but never gave
in!
- He had the temptations of Satan the devil, but
never gave in!
- He always chose what was right!
- He always did what was right!
- He always yielded to God!
- Though He was tempted in every single way!
“…but one Who was tempted in all things
according to the likeness of our own temptations; yet He was without sin. Therefore… [What should this do for us? Here it is right here, how
do we come to God? In thankfulness, gratefulness, in humility, in love!]:
…we should come with boldness to the throne of grace, so that we may
receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (vs 15-16).
That’s why it’s everyday! everyday! everyday! This is a fantastic covenant that we are in, brethren, which we are going to
see is called a ‘superior’ covenant—greater than the covenant that was
made with the children of Israel, a superior covenant. Isn’t that
something?!
Let’s see about Christ. Let’s see what these
temptations and things and suffering and being beaten and scourged—having
the flesh ripped right off of Him—what it did to Him.
Hebrews 5:5: “In this same manner also, Christ did not
glorify Himself to become a High Priest, but He Who said to Him, ‘You are My
Son; today I have begotten You.’ Even as He also says in another place,
‘You are a Priest forever according to the order of Melchisedec’” (vs
5-6). A never-ending priesthood; that is superior, because the covenant
with Israel had priests who died, subject to sin. They had to offer sacrifices
for their own sins, as well as the sins of others.
Notice how He responded; notice how Christ had reacted
with prayers and supplication and yielding to God to overcome the pulls of
human nature so that He would not sin, v 7: “Who, in the days of His flesh,
offered up both prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears to Him
Who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because He feared God.”
That’s quite a thing—isn’t it? That’s how we need to come to God! That’s
how we need to yield to Him! We need to understand that, yes!
Notice what it did, v 8: “Although He was a Son, yet He learned obedience from the things that He suffered…” Likewise for us.
Whatever things we suffer, those are so that we learn the spiritual obedience to God the Father and Jesus Christ in all things. That’s something for us to
really know and understand and remember.
“…He learned obedience from the things that He
suffered; and having been perfected… [That’s an amazing statement—isn’t
it? God was perfected through the process of becoming a human being, so that He
could become the perfect sacrifice. Amazing, isn’t it?] …having been perfected,
He became the Author of eternal salvation to all those who obey Him”
(vs 8-9). There it is! That’s the word that people don’t like to obey—obey
God! love Him and serve Him! That’s the reason that He came.
It is the perfection that God wants. Christ was
perfected! We are being perfected! Isn’t
that something? God is the Potter; we are the clay. He is molding us, helping
us grow and develop in character to have the mind of Christ.
Hebrews 7:19: “Because the law brought nothing to
perfection; rather, perfection… [because it couldn’t change human
nature. It couldn’t give eternal life.] …rather, perfection is brought
about by a superior hope…” Not just land and a
kingdom, but an eternal kingdom and living in New Jerusalem forever! A superior
hope! That’s why all things on the earth we can count as nothing! We don’t look at them as anything for us. What glory is there in it? It’s all going to be changed! We’re looking for the eternal glory that
comes from God the Father and Jesus Christ.
“…superior hope, through
which we draw near to God. And according to this superior measure, it
was not without the swearing of an oath that He was made a
Priest. (For those who descend from Aaron are made priests without the swearing of an oath… [they just had to be born of the linage of Aaron] …but He was
made a Priest with the swearing of an oath by Him Who says
concerning Him…” (vs 19-21). Remember, God does not need to swear by an oath,
and when He does that is to absolutely know the immutability that it’s going to
happen. No variance at all that it is in doubt!
This is what He said, “…concerning Him, ‘The Lord swore and will not revoke His Word, “You are a Priest
forever according to the order of Melchisedec.”’). By such a greater measure
then, Jesus was made the Guarantor of a superior covenant” (vs
21-22). We have a study in the back of the Bible—A Comparison
Between the Old and New Covenant (appendix I)—and you will see the
covenant given to Israel was a covenant of physical blessings and physical promises to live in a physical land. All of them have been upgraded and
superceded by spiritual blessings:
- the Spirit of God
- the spiritual rewards
- resurrection from the dead
- eternal life living in the Kingdom of God
- that is a superior covenant
- that is a superior resurrection
Let’s come to Hebrews 8—it explains a little more concerning this,
brethren. In understanding this, in the way that we need to understand it,
gives us great hope and great anticipation, and with that it gives us faith,
love and spiritual strength. Through the Spirit of God and the Word of God and
the Way of God, we are strengthened for the days which are ahead of
us—which are going to be difficult indeed! But remember, God says
He will deliver us from all! We need that confidence and we need that hope and
we need that strength that comes from God, and it is through the superior New
Covenant!
After He compares
what was given to Moses and so forth, let’s come to Hebrews 8:1: “Now here
is a summary of the things being discussed: We have such a High Priest Who
sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;
a minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord set up,
and not man” (vs 1-2). Then he talks about Moses and the physical
representation of the heavenly things, etc.
Now, come down here to v 6: “But on the other hand, He
[Jesus] has obtained a supremely more excellent ministry, as much
greater as the superior covenant of which He is also Mediator, which was
established upon superior promises.” I want you to really grasp
and understand the word superior. There is nothing comparable to it.
That’s why we need to always look to Christ. as Paul wrote in Heb. 12, ‘keep
our eyes focused on Him.’ Not on the things around us; not on the difficulties
that are there.
Verse 7: “For if the first covenant had been
faultless, then no provision for a second covenant would have been
made.” But, as we have seen, there were the prophecies of the covenant to come.
And yet, the world has ignored it; the Jews have ignored it; the ‘Christians’
have rejected it; the Jews have rejected Christ. What a state of affairs that
is—isn’t it? Yes, indeed!
Verse 8: “But
since He found fault with them… [because of their sins and no Holy Spirit and
unwillingness to obey] …He says, ‘Behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord, ‘when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and the
house of Judah; not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took hold of their hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded
them,’ says the Lord” (vs 8-9).
So here is the solution to the problem: A New
Covenant which will change their hearts and their minds to yield to God! That’s what the New Covenant is all about. That’s why we keep the Passover!
That’s why we keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and Pentecost, Trumpets,
Atonement, Tabernacles and the Last Great Day. Brethren, those are the dividing
lines with the Spirit of God that separates us from the world; that puts us on
God’s side, rather than on the world’s side
- with a false Christianity
- with a false covenant
- with a false hope
We have the real spiritual covenant that comes from God!
Verse 10. “‘For
this is the covenant that I will establish with the house of Israel
after those days,’ says the Lord: ‘I will give My laws into their minds,
and I will inscribe them upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they
will be My people.’” That’s what it is.
- We are the
people of God!
- We are the
seed of Abraham!
- We are under
the New Covenant!
- We are under
the blood of Jesus Christ!
- We have been
given direct access to God the Father and Jesus Christ in heaven above.
That’s the whole
purpose of the New Covenant! That’s why Christ came and died, and died the
death that He did, because of the vileness and the viciousness of human nature.
And that’s why He had to take on human nature, so that He could overcome every
temptation that He would not sin, that He would be the perfect sacrifice for
us, and the sins of all mankind. That’s why, brethren, it’s so important to
grasp and understand the things concerning the Holy Days.
Every year, yes, we
go back through these things every year. Also, every year we learn more; we
understand more; we’re drawn closer to God because of it. And our lives are
then spiritually motivated where we cry out ‘Abba Father,’ because we have
the sonship of God! Go back over those sermons concerning the sonship
of God.
Let’s come to
Hebrews 9:11—Comparison; look at Appendix I: A Comparison Between the
Old and New Covenants. You’ll see the difference. “But Christ
Himself has become High Priest of the coming good things, through the
greater and more perfect tabernacle… [the Holy of Holies in heaven above] …not
made by human hands (that is, not of this present physical creation). Not by the blood of goats and calves, but by the means of His
own blood, He entered once for all into the Holiest… [where God the Father sits
on His throne in His glory] …having by Himself secured everlasting
redemption for us” (vs 11-12). That is something! That is
tremendous for us to understand!
Verse 24: “For Christ has not entered into the Holy
places made by human hands… [that is, the temple on the earth] …which
are mere copies of the true; rather, He has entered into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us… [On our
behalf. Look, we need to understand this: in spite of any difficulty we go
through; in spite of whatever burden that we bear—God loves us and
is for us. Don’t think because you’re going through a test or
difficulty that God is against you. He is not!
- He is perfecting you!
- He wants you to be perfected!
- He wants you to be ready for the
resurrection to eternal life!
- He wants you to fulfill the New Covenant
through Jesus Christ!
That’s what we need to understand as we come to take the Passover Sunday
night. It is the greatest, most important, most profound thing that we do in
our calling and our lives, and that God has called us out of this world and
- given us of His Holy Spirit
- given us of His love
- given us of His work
- given to us understanding through His Holy
Spirit
—then to have that access direct to God the Father
and Jesus Christ. Brethren, that is so absolutely marvelous and tremendous! We
need to really grasp on that and think about it. We’ve got one more day before
the Passover. So, let’s dwell on these things.
Let’s finish off by coming to
Hebrews 10:4—after saying, “Because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins…. [They were justified to the
temple—that another whole topic.] …For this reason, when He [Christ]
comes into the world, He says… [to God the Father] …‘Sacrifice and offering You
did not desire, but You have prepared a body for Me. You did not delight in
burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin. Then said I, “Lo, I come (as it is written of Me in the scroll of the book)… [that’s the book
of the covenant between God the Father and Jesus Christ (see Hebrews series
#27).] …to do Your will, O God.”’” (vs 4-7). That’s what God wants! He doesn’t
want the animal sacrifices. He doesn’t want the physical things. He wants
you to do His will
Verse 8: “In the saying above, He said, ‘Sacrifice and offering
and burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin (which are offered according
to the law) You did not desire nor delight in.’” That was only temporary. What
He wants is a broken heart and a contrite spirit. What he wants is a repentant
heart and crying out to God for:
- His love
- His spirit
- His hope
- His Truth
Verse 9: “Then He said, ‘Lo, I come to do Your will, O God.’ He takes
away the first covenant in order that He may establish the second covenant;
by Whose will we are sanctified… [Think of that! You are here because of the
will of God! I am here because of the will of God! All the people that belong
to God the Father and Jesus Christ are His because of His will and His desire and
the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and His shed blood. That’s something! Yes!] …by
Whose will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once
for all” (vs 9-10). That’s something we need to understand and realize,
brethren.
Verse 14: “For by one offering
He has obtained eternal perfection for those who are sanctified.” We
have that sacrifice applied to us everyday. We’re being perfected everyday,
every Passover, every Feast of Unleavened Bread, every Pentecost, every
Trumpets, every Atonement, every prayer—we are being perfected. And, as
we have seen by the sermon series: By the
Washing of the Water by the Word to sanctify us; to make us Holy.
Isn’t that fantastic, brethren! Yes, this physical body is going to get
old, shrivel up and die. We’re going to yield up the spirit; that goes back to
God to be preserved for the resurrection and we go back to the
ground—dust we are and dust we shall return—and in the next waking
moment we’ll be resurrected! Think of that!
That’s why He
did it, but here’s what He wants to happen for us, v 15: “And the Holy
Spirit also bears witness to us; for after He had previously said, ‘“This is the covenant that I will establish with them after those days,” says the Lord: “I will give My laws into their hearts, and I will inscribe them in
their minds; and their sins and lawlessness I will not remember ever again.”’”
(vs 15-17). Think of that! All of it wiped away! Perfected!
Verse 18: “Now
where remission of these is, it is no longer necessary to
offer sacrifices for sin. Therefore, brethren, having confidence to
enter into the true Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living
way… [The New Covenant! The bread and the wine of the New Covenant] …which He
consecrated for us through the veil (that is, His flesh), and having a
great High Priest over the house of God, let us approach God with a true
heart, with full conviction of faith, our hearts having been purified from a
wicked conscience, and our bodies having been washed with pure water [baptism].
Let us hold fast without wavering to the hope that we profess,
for He Who promised is faithful” (vs 18-23).
Brethren, as we go to the Passover tomorrow night,
let’s keep this in mind, and let’s keep in mind
- the faith
- the hope
- the love
- the mercy
- the kindness
- the goodness
of God, and that we have entered into a relationship of sonship with God
unto eternal life. That’s why He said, ‘Take, eat, this is My body, which is
broken for you; and take, drink, this is My blood, the blood of the New
Covenant, which is shed for the remission of sins of many.
Have a wonderful
Passover, meaningful and spiritual!
Scriptural References:
1)
Genesis 22:11-12. 14-18
2)
Hebrews 6:13-20
3)
John 10:14-18
4)
Matthew 26:26-28
5)
Hebrews 1:1-9
6)
Hebrews 2:6-18
7)
Romans 8:3
8)
Hebrews 4:12-16
9)
Hebrews 5:5-9
10)
Hebrews 7:19-22
11)
Hebrews 8:1-2, 6-10
12)
Hebrews 9:11-12, 24
13)
Hebrews 10:4-10, 14-23
Scriptures referenced, not quoted:
Genesis 15
Revelation 13
1 Corinthians 11
Matthew 5:48; 28
Romans 6
Psalm 8
Hebrews 12
Also referenced:
Sermon Series:
Hebrews (#27 specifically)
Washing of the Water by the Word
Appendix I—A Comparison Between the Old and New Covenants (from The
Holy Bible in Its Original Order)
FRC:bo
Transcribed:
3-17-11
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