Redeemed - Pt. 9

 

From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” Then the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you. Pray to the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. And the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live. (Numbers 21:4-9 ESV).

 

A snake on a pole may seem a strange image to represent healing and blessing from God. But in the context of the story in our reading, that’s what happened. God made it so. And the people learned, as they often had done before, that they needed to trust in God.

 

We might not be surprised that the people grumbled against God and Moses in the desert. All around them was a trackless, howling wilderness, with searing heat and blinding sandstorms. Ahead of them were powerful enemies, barricaded in high, walled cities. But God had solved all of their crises before: bringing them through the Red Sea, giving them manna (bread), quail (meat), and water each day. With such a firm foundation for faith, was there any reason for the people not to trust God with their future?

 

The same question can apply today for God’s people who might grumble against him. And we have a lot more of God’s faithfulness in history to remind us of his care. We also have the good news of salvation through Jesus, who was lifted up on a cross for our sake. He took on himself all the punishment for sin and rebellion that was rightly ours to bear. Jesus even explained that the snake on a pole in Moses’ day pointed to his saving work on the cross. So everyone who looks to him and believes may now have eternal life.

 

Do you trust him?

 

Redeemed - Pt. 8

 

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:1-4 ESV).

 

I have been privileged to officiate many weddings in the last fifty years. However, of all of those, I can honestly say that the most beautiful bride I’ve ever seen was Mary! I’ve attached one of the wedding pictures from that day with this writing. Her hair was styled differently than I had ever seen and, of course, she was dressed differently than I had ever seen. We followed the traditional practice of not seeing each other until the actual wedding march of the bride down the aisle. The minster of our wedding, Bailey Stone, leaned near me and whispered just prior to her entering the sanctuary, “Get where you can see. You will never forget this moment.” He was absolutely correct! This is the picture of redemption we are given in our reading today.

 

The “bride and groom” theme resonates in human society as a picture of mutual delight, commitment, and faithfulness. The Bible even uses this image to describe the relationship between God and his people. The prophet Isaiah tells us, for example, “The Lord will take delight in you, and your land will be married. As a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you.” (Isaiah 62:4-5).

 

The New Testament speaks often about the church as the bride of Christ. And our reading we see a picture of the New Jerusalem, representing God’s people and the dwelling place of God, “prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.” In the new heaven and earth described here, all of God’s promises will be fulfilled, and we’ll be able to delight in full life with God forever. In the meantime, we may feel unworthy of God’s love, knowing we are sinners. Or, perhaps for some of us, the ideals of joy and delight in marriage may not be a reality. Even in times of doubt and struggle, though, God himself is with us. Hold on to Jesus in faith; he is watching over and holding on to you. He loves you and wants you to flourish and enjoy life to the full!

 

Redeemed - Pt. 7

 

And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” And some of the bystanders hearing it said, “Behold, he is calling Elijah.” And someone ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to take him down.” And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” (Mark 15:33-39 ESV).

 

The reading today describes one of my favorite pictures of our redemption. In the ancient temple of the Lord in Jerusalem, there was a curtain, embroidered with angels, which separated the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place. The Most Holy Place became the dwelling place of God among his people. Only the high priest could go behind the curtain and enter into that place. There he could offer atonement for the sins of the people, once a year. This taught the people that God is holy and that sinful people cannot stand in God’s presence. The curtain of the temple symbolized the separation between the holy God and sinful people. And if anyone violated this practice, they would die.

 

When Jesus died to atone for our sin, however, he cried out, “It is finished” (John 19:30); and, the curtain separating the people from God was torn in two. Jesus’ death on the cross accomplished everything necessary for our salvation. He became the ultimate High Priest for us, and his finished work reconciled us with God. Because of Jesus, the Spirit of God now comes to live in our hearts, making us his temple. So we who were once “without hope and without God in the world… who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ” (Ephesians 2:12-13). We have new life and the power of Christ by the Holy Spirit to live for God each day.

 

What I could never do, Jesus did. What I could never pay, Jesus paid. That which I deserved as a penalty for my sin, Jesus took on Himself. Perhaps best of all, Jesus’ sacrifice gives me access into the presence of God anytime and anywhere. I wonder if you are taking advantage of this great amazing gift? You are not in this struggle alone!

 

Redeemed - Pt. 6

 

[the Lord said] “And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall present the live goat. And Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the people of Israel, and all their transgressions, all their sins. And he shall put them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is in readiness. The goat shall bear all their iniquities on itself to a remote area, and he shall let the goat go free in the wilderness.” (Leviticus 16:20-22 ESV).

 

Our reading today is a part of a much longer passage that details the instructions of a part of the sacrificial system that was required for the atoning and forgiveness of sin on behalf of the nation of Israel. The slaughtering of animals to atone for people’s sins is a precursor to the work of Jesus on the cross. One such image is the scapegoat. The word scapegoat is still used in the English language today, meaning “someone who bears the blame for others.” Usually, though, when people today are looking for a scapegoat, they want to avoid admitting wrong.

 

The scapegoat image in Leviticus didn’t work that way. The people were called to repent and acknowledge their guilt as the priest laid his hands on the goat’s head and confessed over it all of the people’s sins. This was not some magical recitation; it was not God instructing them to say “abracadabra”. God, in his grace, was accepting a substitute for the people, taking away their sin, sending it out into the wilderness for destruction, and count­ing them righteous.

 

This is a picture that points to the Savior, Jesus, who came to take on himself the curse for all human sin. He became the scapegoat for us all. As the apostle Paul put it later, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21). This is a critical picture of our redemption as it gives us an understanding of the truth that there is nothing we can do for forgiveness; and, it shows how God has already done what needs to be done in His only begotten Son, Jesus. This is God’s amazing grace!

 

Redeemed - Pt. 5

Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy. For waters break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert; the burning sand shall become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of water; in the haunt of jackals, where they lie down, the grass shall become reeds and rushes. And a highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Way of Holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it. It shall belong to those who walk on the way; even if they are fools, they shall not go astray. No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it; they shall not be found there, but the redeemed shall walk there. (Isaiah 35:5-9 ESV).

 

It is early deer season in most counties in Texas. While it has been a few years since I have taken to the woods and fields in pursuit of this wonderful obsession, I can remember many times when I have seen a deer leaping over a fence as it made its way through the woods. I’ve also been in the field enough to have seen young fawns exercising their newborn legs merely leaping in the air at play. They are an incredibly beautiful sight.

 

It has been a long time since I’ve been able to run, much less leap! But this is the picture of our reading today. Part of this picture of joy in Isaiah 35 was fulfilled one day when Peter and John went to the temple to pray and saw a lame man begging for money. “Look at us!” said Peter, and the man turned toward them. Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” The man’s feet and ankles instantly became strong, and he jumped up and began to walk. Then he went along with them into the temple, “walking and jumping, and praising God” (Acts 3:4-8).

 

Imagine young deer leaping about in the open and bounding over brooks and fallen trees in their woodland playground. That’s like a picture of people celebrating with the sheer joy of redemption and new life in Jesus, who has come to restore all things. “Gladness and joy will overtake them,” for they will no longer bear the crushing effects of sin and disease or any guilt, because Jesus bore it all on the cross.

  

Redeemed - Pt. 4

[the Lord says] “My joy is gone; grief is upon me; my heart is sick within me. Behold, the cry of the daughter of my people from the length and breadth of the land: “Is the LORD not in Zion? Is her King not in her? Why have they provoked me to anger with their carved images and with their foreign idols? The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved. For the wound of the daughter of my people is my heart wounded; I mourn, and dismay has taken hold on me. Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then has the health of the daughter of my people not been restored?” (Jeremiah 8:18-22 ESV).

 

In this frightening passage, the prophet Jeremiah refers to Gilead, a region in Israel that was known for its medicinal balm, or healing salve. In the midst of destruction, there was no place of refuge, no place even for the wounded to find help or healing.

 

The prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah lived to see the destruction of Israel and Jerusalem by the invading powers from the north: Assyria and Babylon. The people were being punished for worshiping other gods since the days of Solomon. But they refused to repent. Isaiah says, “Woe to the sinful nation, a people whose guilt is great… They have forsaken the Lord; they have spurned the Holy One of Israel… Why should you be beaten anymore? Why do you persist in rebellion? Your whole head is injured, your whole heart afflicted. From the sole of your foot to the top of your head there is no soundness—only wounds and welts and open sores, not cleansed or bandaged or soothed with olive oil” (Isaiah 1:4-6). For Israel’s deep-seated rebellion, God allowed other nations to overtake them.

 

Later, when Jesus came, he did not come as the builder of an ark like Noah, or as a warrior like David. He came as the Great Physician, healing the lame, the sick, and the blind. Still today, our world persists in rebellion against God and is full of wounds and welts. Recently I received a call from a prospective client who wanted to make an appointment for counseling. He said, “I’m a mess. I need to swallow my pride and get some help.” He was partially correct. As he related his “mess,” that was certainly the case; however, the solution was not in anything he could or even needed to do. It is only in Christ that we may be saved, brought back to God, and healed. All the messes in our lives find healing and restoration in Jesus. He is “the balm in Gilead” that we so desperately need.

  

Redeemed - Pt. 3

 

It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and it shall be lifted up above the hills; and peoples shall flow to it, and many nations shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. He shall judge between many peoples, and shall decide disputes for strong nations far away; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore; but they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree, rand no one shall make them afraid, for the mouth of the LORD of hosts has spoken. (Micah 4:1-4 ESV).

 

I can only imagine what a peaceful experience it would be to sit under a grape arbor in Tuscany, Italy or Cefula, Sicily casually dining, whether an early brunch or late dinner. We did not have grape arbors when I grew up. There were many fig trees that grew as large as small trees and provided a wonderful experience to gather under their shade and pluck a ripe, juicy bit of fruit to snack on, but never grape arbors. They are common in Italy and Sicily. I can imagine walking through those neighborhoods where you might see folks sitting in the shade of a grape arbor in their tiny front yards, houses crowded around them, surrounded by the bustle of the city. There they would sit enjoying a pleasant conversation with old friends. This is the image of our next example of what our redemption is like.

 

The word pictures we find in our reading point us to the full life in the kingdom of God, which Jesus will fully establish on this earth when he comes again. Other Bible passages give us similar pictures of peace and joyful abundance (cf. Isaiah 25:1-9; 65:17-25; Revelation 21:1-5), and even now we can see signs and catch glimpses of God’s sustaining care and his work among us in this world.

 

The pressures and hectic pace of life are intensified by the dangers and deep-seated hatred among nations that we hear about in the daily news. But for all who are saved, “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard [our] hearts and [our] minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7). We know that although there is enmity between nations and we will face struggles in life, God is sovereign and his everlasting kingdom will prevail. What a great day that will be!