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Storyline Biblical Theology #18: Exodus 25-40. "Touring the OT Tabernacle"

When Saddam Hussein rose to power in Iraq, he purposed to build himself a palace that would symbolize his absolute power and rule. He idolized the ancient king Nebuchadnezzar and his rule. So, he not only built a palace like his, but he also built it with the ruins of the ancient palace. Six hundred rooms, 60 million sand-colored bricks each inscribed with a tribute to his rule, overlooking the Euphrates river, architected like a ziggurat (ancient temple), as high as four stories, as long as five football fields, hundreds of thousands of feet of marble, and gold bathroom fixtures are just some of the intimidating tactics that Saddam had to playing a part in his palace. The funny thing is, Saddam rarely even lived in it.

In Exodus 25 – 40, we see God instructing Moses how to build a house for His dwelling: a Tabernacle. Every single detail that God gave to Moses was to reflect His glory, His holiness, and His Son. Even though the tabernacle was to illustrate God’s transcendent holiness, man’s rebellious sinfulness, and Christ’s incarnational coming; it wasn’t to be built as an intimidation factor. Rather, God’s house was to be built because He desired to dwell with His people. The more we understand the Tabernacle, the more we understand God’s presence through Jesus!

God’s Tabernacle was to be located in the center of Israel’s camp whenever they stopped. When looking at The Tent from all of the other Israelite tents, you would see a huge wood fence with cloth between the slats separating you from the holy presence of God. Israelites could go in the gate of the fence and enter into the Courtyard (27:9-19). The first item in the courtyard would be the Bronze Altar (27:1-8) where Israelites would bring animals for the priests to sacrifice as a substitute offering for their sin. This pictures Christ’s one and final sacrifice as a substitute for our sin in which we must believe (Heb 9:15). The next item in the courtyard would be the Bronze Basin (30:17-21) where priests would wash their hands and feet before sacrifices and before entering into the Tabernacle. In Scripture, water is usually a symbol of being washed and cleansed of sin through the Holy Spirit (Eph 5:26).

Within the courtyard was the Tent (Tabernacle) in which only Israelite priests could enter. They would pass through a curtain and enter into a magnificent room of beautifully woven fabric and gold-plated furniture. To the left, the priest would see the Golden Lampstand (25:31-40) which was the only source of light within the Tabernacle. It was to symbolize God watching over His people, and remember that Jesus called Himself the Light of the world (John 8:12). To the right, the priest would see the Table of the Bread of Presence (25:23-30). It had twelve loaves on it to represent the twelve tribes of God’s people. It was to symbolize how God would continually provide for His people. Jesus calls Himself the Bread of Life from which we must eat (John 6:35). Straight ahead in the back of this first room (the Holy Place), the priest would see the Altar of Incense (30:1-10) which would burn a fragrance within the Tabernacle. The smell was to remind the priest of God’s nearness, and to be a pleasing aroma to God since it was just on the other side of the veil behind the ark. The Apostle Paul says that we are the aroma of Christ to God (2 Cor 2:15).

Not just any priest, but only The High Priest (Exo 28-29) could pass from the Holy Pace into the next room: The Most Holy Place or Holy of Holies. Jesus Chrit is our final High Priest (Heb 4:14). The rooms were separated with a very thick cloth often called the Veil in Scripture separating God’s specific presence. Within the Holy of Holies, the High Priest would see the Ark of the Covenant (25:10-22). The ark was a box that contained some very important artifacts which served to be reminders of God’s provision in the life of Israel. It had a lid that was decorated with two cherubim whose wings spread to make a throne: the Mercy Seat. This is where the glory of the Lord would descend from heaven and rest to specially dwell among His people. After the Tabernacle was built, the glory of God did just that! Jesus fulfills the Holy of Holies. He is the specific presence of God in our lives (John 1:14 – Jesus “tabernacled” among us). Jesus is the bright radiance of God’s glory (Heb 1:3). Jesus is the final One who entered the veil, tore it from top to bottom, and brought us in by His blood so that we too can draw near this holy God with confidence (Heb 9:11-28).

In 2003 when the U.S. army invaded Iraq, a group of soldiers approached one of Saddam’s dozen palaces. As they inched closer, they expected an onslaught of attack as protection by the Iraqis. But the U.S. soldiers found that it was deserted. As a sign of victory, they ran in his palace, toured his rooms, sat on his furniture, and made it their homes. In a much different way, Jesus of Nazareth entered into the Tabernacle of God on our behalf. He didn’t have to storm nor invade it. Rather, the God-man tore the now-unnecessary veil, and walked into the presence of the Godhead of which He was a part. And for those of us who are in Christ, the author of Hebrews explains that Christ has brought us in with Him. This is something incredibly special as it was completely off limits for the Israelites and the non-High Priests. What are we supposed to do since we are able to enter into the specific presence of God? The author of Hebrews gives us three important instructions (10:19-21)…

Draw Near (10:22). We are to draw near unto God and realize His specific presence in our lives through the blood of Jesus. We are to pray to Him as those who are living in His Holy of Holies. We are to constantly practice nearness to Him.

Hold Fast (10:23). We are to firmly grasp and hang on to the truths of Christ that God has revealed to us. Not holding them lightly, but firmly within our grip for special care.

Stir Up (10:24). We are to lovingly encourage and serve each other by participating as the church (the presence of God and body of Christ): by sharing what we own with each other, by giving each other our time and love, and by holding each other accountable to meet together for regular worship of God through Christ with each other – the local church.

Let me encourage you as your brother. Be a regular participant of your local church. If we see the importance of the Tabernacle in the Old Testament and the body of Jesus Christ as the specific dwelling of God in the New Testament, then we must see that the gathering of our local church is equally important to the life and godliness of each and every Christian.

Storyline Biblical Theology #17: Exodus 25-40. "BE AWARE: God's presence in our lives through Christ"

Just the other night, I woke up to a loud noise which sounded like someone had gotten my front door open and they were trying to rip the chain lock off to get in. As soon as I woke up, the noise stopped. I laid very still in my bed for several minutes listening for footsteps all over my house. I turned sideways, and it looked like someone was standing outside my window looking in to watch my every move. I laid even more still. I finally got up the nerve to go look through my blinds and saw it was the shadows of the trees outside. I then army-crawled on my belly to look under my door to see any feet in my house. I saw nothing. I laid back in bed and fell back asleep after several more minutes. I woke up the next morning and found all my doors locked, nothing missing, and nothing wrong. I guess I totally dreamed-up the noise in my head!

When we sense the presence of someone or something greater than us, it changes our every move and consumes our thoughts. Are we fully aware of God’s awesome presence in our lives? God is omnipresent which means He is everywhere at all times, but God is especially present with His people in a very specific way. In Exodus 25 – 40, God commanded Moses to have His people build Him a tabernacle so that He could dwell among them and they would know He is their God (29:46). While God was commanding Moses this very thing, Israel was at the bottom of the mountain making an idol so that their “God” would be present among them. This infuriated God so much so that He told Moses He would not go with them to the Promise Land (33:3). This news devastated Israel. So Moses went outside the camp to the Tent of Meeting. God descended from heaven to the tent in the pillar of cloud, and all the people would watch from their own tents in worship. There Moses begged God to go with them and dwell among them. He didn’t want to go any farther without God’s presence (33:8-16).

Do you feel that way about God’s presence in your life? Do you refuse to go anywhere, to not do anything, to not make any decision without being aware of the presence of God Himself? Many Christians today do desire to have contact with God, but they leave the daily experience with God to the professionals. They go to church to hear from a pastor who has a real relationship with God, to pray for them, and to study God’s Word for them. All those are great things, but each Christian should personally be aware of God’s dwelling presence in their life. How is God present in our lives today if there is no Tabernacle or Tent of Meeting?

John, one of Jesus’ closest friends and disciples, wrote “And the Word (Jesus) became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Wow! John is saying that just as God dwelt among His people in the Old Testament by His glory, Jesus has dwelt among His people in the New Testament. The author of Hebrews says that whenever God’s glory is present, Jesus is present. How is God present in our lives today? He is present through our union with Jesus Christ in salvation.

My favorite basketball player of all time is Michael Jordan. I saw him play one time against the Hawks in Atlanta. But there was another time that I got to go to Jordan’s personal restaurant in Chicago. While we were eating, our waitress told us that Jordan was in the building that day doing a press conference. I got more excited than being at the game! He was supposed to be there, but this was being around Jordan in my every day life! When we learn to be aware of God’s presence in our daily lives, we change. Our relationship with Him is deepened because we realize how near He is. Our power over sin is strengthened because we do not want to bring Him shame in His presence. Our courage to witness is heightened because we want those around us to experience His personal presence just like we are. I pray that no one thinks they sense God’s presence, imagine Him watching over us, lay still to listen to Him, and even look around to see Him there…but wake up in eternity to find that it wasn’t God after all. It was our imagination. Is God present in your life by believing in the saving gospel of Jesus Christ?

Storyline Biblical Theology #16: Exodus 19-24. "Camping Out At Fear Mountain: Friendship, Obedience, and Worship"

As we turned the corner and heard the sound, we knew our lives were in danger. A couple friends and I decided to go hiking and camping in the Tennessee mountains over a July 4 weekend. We hiked up a 2 mile mountain, pitched our tent near the top, and came back down the mountain for a good meal that night with more friends in the area. Those friends warned us about going back up the mountain that night since many bear attacks were reported in the areas at night, so we decided to sleep in the car that night. When we couldn’t sleep, we started driving around. When we turned the corner on the road, we nearly hit a huge, 3-foot-long wild boar. Early that morning, we decided to hike back up the mountain quickly to get the tent. While hiking up and winding around the corner of the trail, we heard the snorting sound of a hog. I remember running like a gazelle down the mountain for the fear of getting eaten alive by Porky. We finally got up the courage to go back up the mountain, get the tent, and drive home.

In Exodus 19 – 24, Moses writes about an even more fearful camping trip. Israel had just recently left their bondage in Egypt, and they are traveling through the wilderness toward the land God had promised to provide for them. In Exodus 19:1-6, God is reminding them that if they continue to follow Him they will be His “treasured possession.” God is promising friendship with Him. Friendship with God is too often misunderstood. We can’t think of being God’s friends like a buddy, a pal, or an equal. Just like Jesus calls the disciples “His friends,” we are God’s friends in the way of Him sharing Himself with us. That is why we don’t call God our friend. That would be an insult. God is not our friend. He is our God, our King, our Lord!

Isn’t it interesting in Exodus 19 that Moses is the only one who God seems to be speaking to and who can speak back to God? God is showing him and Israel how Holy and unapproachable He is to sinners. Through Christ, we can speak with God in prayer. Moses isn’t our mediator, but Jesus is. Do we understand how awesome this is…that we can pray to the Almighty God? Are we guilty of rushing through our prayers and not speaking to Him in such a way that He is unapproachable apart from His Son’s mediation?

God is displaying Himself as holy, fearsome, and unapproachable through a blazing mountain. The mountain that Israel has come to is the Mountain of God. The mountain has thick smoke swirling around it, and deafening-thunderous blasts that shake the ground. Needless to say, the people trembled with fear seeing the fierce holiness of God. Not only were they prohibited from climbing the mountain, but they weren’t even allowed to touch it – or they would die. Moses reverently climbs the mountain, and God gives Him the 10 commandments there. We can’t fall into the trap of thinking God’s laws are just a list of do’s and don’ts. God’s laws are a way of revealing His character to His people. If they are to be His people, then they must live out His character. The first 4 commands speak directly to our relationship with God. The last 6 commands speak to our relationship with other people. When asked the greatest command, Jesus answered that the greatest commandment is to love God and the second greatest is to love others. He perfectly summed up the Law of God! In fact, Jesus didn’t just sum it up perfectly with His answer, but He also perfectly fulfilled the Law of God for us with His obedient life. God expects every believer to fulfill God’s Law. We cannot. So Christ has done it for us. That is why we believe salvation by grace through faith (Eph 2:8-9).

The last thing Moses did in this passage is something that I would get fired for as a youth pastor. Moses read the law to the people, and he sprinkled (covered) them all with the sacrificial blood of oxen (Exodus 24). God never wanted His people to forget that salvation will only come through blood. Hebrews 12 tells us that we have come to Mount Zion to worship God in reverence and awe through the blood of Jesus – an even better covenant of salvation. Is that what your weekly worship of God looks like – a complete reverential awe for who Christ is?

Framework Systematic Theology #10 - MACRO Theology - Doctrine of Revelation

Imagine living hundreds of years ago in a medieval kingdom, with a castle in the middle, and citizens living as servants to their sovereign king. Imagine your King making an appearance once a week to verbally address his kingdom from the castle’s third-floor balcony. Remember, whatever the King says is law for his kingdom and life for his citizens. All would listen intently!
Likewise, the Doctrine of Revelation is all about God revealing Himself, His character, and His purposes through the way in which He speaks to all people. Here are some true/false questions:
1. People can be saved by looking at the created universe and believing in God as creator.
2. People can be saved by listening to their conscience tell them that God really exists.
3. All people in all times and in all places have known that God really exists.
4. God wouldn’t send someone to hell who has never heard the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Divine Revelation is the one true God speaking to us in order to reveal Himself. What if God wrote a daily column in the newspaper? I’m sure everyone would read it daily! But do we believe that God speaks just as fresh, just as powerful, and just as daily through His revelation?
There are a few things we must understand about Divine Revelation. First, Divine Revelation was natural in the beginning between God, Adam, and Eve. There was no separation as God would speak and reveal Himself to them in the garden. Would they have needed a Bible? Secondly, Divine Revelation is now necessary because of sin. Sin is not only wrong, but it also separates us from the holy God. Therefore, God must speak to reveal Himself to sinners who do not naturally know Him. Third, the purpose of Divine Revelation is for us to know God through Jesus Christ. God’s goal is that we look to Him and know Him through His Son (John 17:3).

While Divine Revelation is the broad doctrine of God revealing Himself, General Revelation is the doctrine of God revealing Himself to all persons, at all times, and in all places through the creation and the conscience (Psalm 19:1, Rom 1-2). As a youth pastor, I get lots of questions from teenagers about the people in foreign lands like Africa who die without knowing the gospel. Do they go to heaven or hell? The Apostle Paul says that all people everywhere have always looked at the creation, perceived that God exists, but reject Him (Rom 1:18-21). Not only creation, but also all humanity’s conscience bear witness of God’s law and existence, yet they reject Him and His law (Rom 2:14-16). This means that all people, at all times, and in all places are guilty before God because of their need of Jesus Christ. It is both contrary to a sinner’s nature to come to God without Christ, and contrary to God’s purposeful plan in Christ. While General Revelation is true, it is never enough to lead a sinner to Christ (Rom 10:10-15).

Because General Revelation is insufficient for salvation, what we call Special Revelation is needed. Special Revelation is when God reveals Himself to specific people at specific times and in specific places for them to enter into a saving relationship with Him through Jesus.
Dreams, Visions, and Prophecies are Special Revelations from God used throughout Scripture to reveal His plan, His will, and His desire for the people within His covenant (Matt 1:20).
Direct Address is used by God to speak to people in specific events (Gen 3:16-19, Matt 3:17).
Scripture is said by the Apostle Peter to be an even more sure and confident revelation of God than His audible voice. This is because the written Word of God passed down throughout generations is more protected from alteration than “God told me…” (2 Peter 1:16-21). Jesus Christ is the fullest, most exact, and most special revelation of God (John 1:1, 14:9, Heb 1:1-4). Nothing reveals God better to humanity than His own Son – fully God and fully man.

Why does God reveal Himself to us? It is because God’s absolute best plan for our lives is that we are in relationship with Him. We know God best through His Son, Jesus Christ. And we know Jesus Christ best through His Word (Rom 10:17) and His church (Eph 1:22-23). We only know God as much as we know Jesus. We only know Jesus as much as we know His Word.

Storyline Biblical Theology #15: Exodus 16-18. "Drinking, Eating, and Fighting: Being Baptist in the Wilderness"

It was probably the most hungry I’ve ever been in my whole life. When I was a 9th grader growing up in my youth ministry in Alabama, my youth pastor took us on a 50 mile hiking trip over some of the toughest terrain in the Appalachian Mountains. After a week of hiking and struggling to eat the hiker’s diet of oatmeal, trail mix, and fig-newtons, this southern-bred boy was ready for some real food. Like an oasis in a desert, as we exited the trail we saw a Pizza Hut. From the feeling of starvation and the smell of the long-awaited greasy meat, I ordered a large pizza of my own. The rest is a blur, but what I barely remember is barely making it into my third piece before I had to make a run for... Well, you get the picture.

In Exodus 15:22 – 18:27, Israel has run into a serious problem: thirst and starvation. After creating the cosmos, humanity fell into sin and rebelled against God. He called a people to Himself to be His “treasured possession.” He delivered them from Egyptian oppressors, and now He is leading them to a land He has promised them. As they are trekking through the wilderness, something doesn’t seem right. They haven’t had water to drink in three days. Extreme thirst doesn’t make sense to them if they are the chosen people of God. Finally, they find water, but it is undrinkable. The people begin complaining because they are in extreme desert heat, and even their children are thirsting. God tells Moses to throw a log into the water. He did, and the water became sweet. God was teaching His people to depend upon Him for everything: water and the way of life (Exodus 15:22-27). Jesus tells us that He is the Living Water from which we will never thirst again. We are all so thirsty that we will be drinking from something else to quench our thirst if we’re not drinking from Jesus (John 4:14-14).

In Exodus 16, the people of God begin to complain to Moses again that they would have been better off staying in Egypt since they at least got to eat and feed meat to their children. God graciously hears their cries. But let me ask you, “Did Israel ever see their situation and humbly cry out to God in prayer to request their needs?” I can’t remember a time they did this in all of Exodus. It’s so easy to look down on them when we usually have more than what we need to live, yet we complain in life about what we don’t have -- whether it is better food, better stuff, or a better situation. How often do we humbly cry out to God in prayer with our requests? God answers by providing bread to fall on the ground fresh every morning. The people were instructed to only gather enough bread for that day, and the day before the Sabbath they were instructed to gather enough for two days since bread would not be provided on the Sabbath. In John 6:31-35, Jesus links Himself with Moses’ manna and calls Himself the Bread of Life. Feeding from Christ must be fresh every day, and special on every Sunday – the Lord’s Day.

Just when you’d think they had learned the lesson of prayer, Israel rebels farther -- past complaining -- and starts doubting God’s presence among them and goodness to them (17:1-7). They are thirsty again, and all they can see is huge Mount Horeb before them. God tells Moses to strike the rock (Mount Horeb), and He will provide water. Moses does, and water comes out. Did you know Paul tells us that the rock Moses struck was Christ (1 Cor 10:1-4)? Again, God was teaching His people to depend on Him by following and being nourished in His Son.

Lastly, we see why God was teaching them to rely on Him for nourishment, health, and safety. Israel runs into the Amalekites (17:8-16). God designs the battle so that as long as Moses’ arms are lifted in the air, Israel wins. If his arms are dropped, Israel gets defeated. Battles take a long time, and arms get tired. Moses ended up sitting down with Joshua and Aaron at his side to hold his arms up. Could this be a pattern for victory that God is setting into place? God has called us to fight as Christians, but the true victory comes through the out-stretched hands of Jesus Christ on the cross. The Old Testament truly is filled with historical truths written to show us how dependent we must be on Jesus – our Water, Bread, and Victory.

Framework Systematic Theology #9 - MACRO Theology - Doctrine of the Spirit

Who is the Holy Spirit? What is the Holy Spirit’s primary role in the universe? Has the Holy Spirit always existed? How are we supposed to relate to the Holy Spirit as Christians? Let’s begin with some true-false questions, and then we’ll answer them in the lesson.

When referring to the Holy Spirit, we should say “It” because that’s what the Bible says.
The Holy Spirit won’t be in eternity since we won’t be sinners and Jesus will be ruling.
The Holy Spirit’s primary role is to point the world to God the Son, Jesus Christ.
When thinking about these questions, I’m convinced that John 15:26-27 is one of the most important passages of Scripture in all the Bible teaching on the Holy Spirit. Jesus says, “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning.” This is the role of the Holy Spirit!
Before we get into all that, let’s first understand who the Holy Spirit is not.

The Holy Spirit is not an impersonal force or an “It.” The Holy Spirit is not merely the force or the arm of God. The Holy Spirit is a Person; therefore, we should refer to Him as “He.”
The Holy Spirit is not the Wal-Mart bouncing smiley face. Many people view the Holy Spirit’s role as to merely make God’s people happy and nice. But there is so much more to Him.
The Holy Spirit is not God’s energy drink in you. I’ve heard many accounts of so-called “Holy Spirit Revivals” where people are “slain in the Spirit,” filled with the Spirit for Holy laughter and vomiting (its true!), and crawling around on all fours wearing a dog collar to picture submission.
The Holy Spirit is not weak or selfish. If the Holy Spirit does indwell a person, that person’s life will be changed. The Holy Spirit doesn’t indwell a person’s life for His own glory, but for the glory of Jesus Christ! Notice how Jesus said He would send the Holy Spirit meaning the Spirit submits to the Son. And when the Holy Spirit came, He didn’t point to Himself, but the Spirit came to bear witness of Christ. That is the primary role of the Holy Spirit!

Let’s get into Who the Holy Spirit really is. The Holy Spirit is a member of the Triune God which means He is His own Person yet He is also a full part of the Divine Godhead. He has eternally existed, and he was involved in the beginning at the creation of the universe (Gen 1:2). The Holy Spirit was, is, and always will be the sign of the Kingdom of Christ. Let me explain. In the OT, He anointed the prophets, kings, and specifically chosen people of God to accomplish God’s specific will. His final anointing was on Jesus (Christ = Anointed One, Messiah) making Him the King of the cosmos. Through Christ, we too as the church are anointed with the Holy Spirit (filling the church together as the temple of God). The Holy Spirit does not seek to be worshipped, rather He leads everything into worship of the Son. The Holy Spirit fills everything. He also gives and sustains life in the eternal Kingdom of the New Creation (Ezekiel 47, Revelation 22). Therefore the Holy Spirit convicts to point the world to the Son of God (John 16:8-11), fills believers to transform them into Christ’s image (2 Cor 3:18), and assists us in bringing glory to the Father. That is why He is called the Spirit of Christ (Rom 8:9, 1 Pet 1:11).

So from saying all of that, how can we live in the Spirit. As Christians, we can live in the Spirit in three primary ways. First, the Holy Spirit gives the people of God wisdom. I’m afraid that Christian pop-culture today encourages us to “wait on God” rather than use wisdom. If God intended for us to pray and wait, He would not have needed to give us His Word so that we can study in order to gain wisdom and make wise, godly decisions. Second, the Holy Spirit gives the people of God power (not weakness). The Holy Spirit does not just enable us to live for Christ, but He also empowers us to want to live for Christ so that we live in righteousness (Phil 2:13). Lastly, the Holy Spirit gives the people of God the ability to be Christ-like. The Holy Spirit is constantly working to transform us into Christ’s glorious and perfect image (Rom 8:28-29).

Storyline Biblical Theology #14: Exodus 14-15. "The Great Escape: Sea the salvation of the Lord"

Glass was shattering, the roof came caving in, and the walls were crumbling to the floor. “It was like a bad dream. I just have to keep reminding myself it really happened,” one teen recounted. In February 2007, a massive tornado ripped through the Enterprise, AL area. School was in session, many teenagers were injured, and some were killed. Personally not having children, I can’t imagine being a parent who raised their child for over 15 years and having them taken away by such a disaster.

Please Read Exodus 14-15. Escaping Egypt by the desert, what are the Israelites thinking when God has them turn back to camp with the vast Red Sea before them and Egypt behind them? What is going through their minds when they look up and see what looks to be an approaching storm and what sounds like thunder? Instead it is the swirling dust of chariots racing through the desert and the galloping of horses. They are trapped, but did God set this trap purposefully? Yes, but this is not a trap for Israel to be slaughtered. Instead, it is a trap for God to get the glory from destroying His enemies, the persecutors of His people: the Egyptians.

God has only talked to Moses about what is going to happen at this point, so of course the Israelites are complaining, confused, and afraid for their lives. Moses speaks out and says something that we all must remember when our back is to the sea and we feel like there is no way out of our circumstance: “Watch the salvation of the Lord, you will never see your enemies again, and the Lord will fight for you (14:13-14).” As we place our faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ, we will be saved from our lives of suffering, our enemies will be destroyed, and it is all done by the grace and power of our God through the work of His Son! We must remember that God doesn’t get us out of every situational jam in this life, but His promise is to rescue us from the power of sin and death through resurrection. Our resurrection from the dead is the greatest way that we can see the salvation of the Lord, our enemies being slain, and God fighting for us. God getting us out of jams in this life is purely by His grace. It is the jams of life that grow us.

God fights for His people by moving in the form of the pillar of cloud and fire between Egypt and Israel. By the raising of Moses’ staff, God parts the Red Sea. Israel files through with watery walls on the left and right as Egypt follows close behind them and with God between them. When the last Israelite makes it to the other side on dry land, God closes the sea and drowns every single pursuing Egyptian. The Scripture specifically says that Israel then believed in the Lord and His servant Moses (14:31). Watch what Israel immediately does next!

Standing on the sea shore with wide eyes and hearts full of both fear and gratitude, Israel does something very godly but also very natural. They sing in worship to God! Singing to express emotion is part of God’s image in humanity. Although singing is not the only form of worship to God, it is a very primary part of worship. Some of my thoughts on worship from this:

1. Worship God because of your salvation. Exodus 13:17-15:21 give us such a powerful, physical picture of what has taken place in our spiritual salvation. We can see the salvation of the Lord, our enemies being crushed, and how God fights for us through the death and resurrection of Jesus. If we hardly ever respond in singing, we will continue to have a very weak faith.

2. Worship God by exalting Christ. Exodus 15:1-18 is the song of Israel recounting what God did to save them from the Egyptians. Our worship of God must be driven by the Spirit of God who points us to the Truth of God who is the Son of God (John 4:24). Worship Jesus for who He really is – not some beautifully sweet sissy, but a majestic, powerful, and worthy King!

3. Worship God by encouraging each other. Exodus 15:19-21 shows us the importance of singing the salvation story to one another. Singing together as a church is crucial! As we sing together, we are reminding each other what we believe, what God has done in Christ, and how God will save us in the future. Remember God’s Great Escape. “Sea” the salvation of Christ!

Framework Systematic Theology #8 - MACRO Theology - Doctrine of God

How many times have you been asked questions or have heard comments about people’s questions concerning God, such as: “How can anyone really know that Christianity is the only way? How do you truly believe that God exists? Can’t all the other religions be just as right since they believe just as strongly? Why are we here? What is our purpose? Where did everything come from?” These are the questions I actually get asked most in student ministry. They are asking to be able to answer them for their friends who come to them with questions.

When it comes to these questions, there are four major thoughts seeking to answer them.
1. Nihilism says there is no God or meaning to anything. These people would say that the universe and even our decisions as human beings are merely reactions to chemical explosions. So whatever we do is meaningless because another explosion will occur and destroy all this.
2. Naturalism says that there is no God, and all matter is eternal. These people would say that there is nothing supernatural since everything is merely natural. Time will continue on forever.
3. Deism says that God exists, but He’s not involved. These people would say that God created everything but “wound the watch” for it to continue on its own. Deism is an explanation for people who say that all religions can be right and point to the same God from different angles.
4. Christian Theism says that the triune God both exists and rules. As Christian Theists, we believe in one God who is three Persons, and He is actively ruling over every aspect of lives.

It took me quite a while to think, study, and search through a lot of the Scriptures for one of the most descriptive passages in the Bible about who God is. Can you imagine the task of teaching who God is to teenagers in a single 30-minute lesson? Yeah, it was quite a challenge. I ended up landing on Psalm 100. It is an interesting passage because it starts out with a command to praise God and then gives the reasons why to praise God. I’m going to switch them around…

It is urgent to understand who God is (Psalm 100:3). This is getting a glimpse of His make-up, or what His parts are. There is just one God, not many. The one true God consists of three Persons – Father, Son and Spirit. We don’t believe in three Gods, but in only one God who is three Persons. Each Person within the Trinity (three Persons of the one God) are all equally God. On the other hand, each Person within the Trinity is different in Personhood and role from each other. By different in Personhood, I mean that the Father is not the Son, and the Son is not the Spirit, and the Spirit is not the Father. By different in role, I mean that the Father serves authoritatively within the Trinity (1 Cor 11:2), the Son is the God-man Mediator who serves as eternal King of all the cosmos submitting to the Father (1 Cor 15:28), and the Spirit, in submission to the Son, fills all faithful humanity to point them to Christ and transform them into His image (John 15:28, Rom 8:29). Understanding who God is naturally causes us to serve and worship Him (Psalm 100:1-2). If we struggle with that, we need a clearer view of Him!

It is also urgent to understand what God is like (Psalm 100:5). God is knowable. We should not fall into the trap of trying to put God in a box because we do not know everything about Him since He is infinite and our finite minds are unable to know everything about the infinite God. On the other hand, Scripture is very clear that we can put boundaries around our knowledge of God in order that we do not wander into the abyss of what He is not (sinful, weak, wishy-washy, untrustworthy, etc.). We are separated from God because of our sin, but through Christ we can have this relationship of knowing Him and what He is like from His Word. God has told us about Himself in His perfect Word so that we can know what He is like and what He is not like. Understanding what God is like causes us to pray to Him with praise and thankfulness (Psalm 100:4-5). If we lack praise and thankfulness, we lack understanding of what God is like. Its amazing to think we can sit and make God out to be as great as possible in our finite minds, and for the rest of our lives we could still never imagine His greatness (Ps. 145:3)!

Storyline 13: Exodus 5 - 13. "Shock and Awe: The Judgment of Jesus"

Imagine living in a country where your national leader sees himself like a god. He rules in absolute power by brute force. In fact, even after just being inaugurated into office, he arrests and executes many of his political opponents. He even has the gall to ask his ministers for candid advice. When one tells him to step down to promote peace, that minister is delivered to his wife’s doorstep in dismembered pieces. When America attacked Iraq with the “Shock and Awe” military tactic, our ultimate purpose was to dethrone this cruel tyrant - Saddam Hussein. Exodus 5 – 13 describes a more powerful attack on a more evil ruler - Pharaoh of Egypt.

Several weeks ago, we left off the story with God raising up Moses as the leader to rescue His people from the world super-power - the Egyptian empire. When Moses approaches Pharaoh with God’s command to let His people go so that they can worship God in the wilderness, Pharaoh asks: “Who is the Lord that I should obey Him?” Well, God is about to show him who He is! Pharaoh is so insulted by the request that he turns up the heat on the Israelites by making them provide their own straw and make more bricks. When Moses gets back to the people, they are furious at him for causing life to get even worse. Our spiritual situation is similar to the one of Israel. Just like Israel, we can’t worship God fully while we’re enslaved, Satan turns up the heat of temptation when God is calling us into a deeper relationship with Him, and life often gets more difficult when we seek to follow God.

Moses is devastated at the response of Pharaoh (even though God had already warned him), but he was ultimately discouraged at the response of Israel. God encourages Moses. He will deliver His people from Pharaoh, and He will keep His covenant to take them to the Promise Land just like He did it with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. This whole story, as well as the entire Bible, is about God being faithful to keeping His covenant. Why? Because His covenant of salvation brings about His highest goal: the glory of Jesus Christ. God is continually keeping His covenant before His people’s eyes just like He does with us and the gospel. We need to be reminded of the gospel of Jesus Christ daily which empowers us to live it continually.

When the Pharaoh declines again to let God’s people go, God begins His war campaign which He calls “Signs and Wonders.” It makes “Shock and Awe” look like little bottle rockets. The 10 plagues were: Nile turned to blood along with all other sources of water which caused all marine life to die and all of Egypt to stink, frogs came up from the Nile and swarmed the people everywhere including their food, Aaron struck the dust of the ground and it became gnats covering people and animals, swarms of flies covered and ruined the land of Egypt, all of the livestock of Egypt died, Moses threw dust in the air which became boils breaking out on all people and animals, heavy hail with thunder and fire rained down upon Egypt killing everything left outside, a swarm of locusts filled Egypt making it dark and ate all remaining food crops, pitch darkness fell over the land of Egypt for three days so that no one could see each other or go anywhere, and lastly the death of the firstborn. This is significant as Pharaoh’s firstborn son was the future Pharaoh and was thought to be a god. God commanded each family of Israel to kill a lamb, and to spread its blood over the family’s doorposts. If lamb’s blood was on the doorposts, the Death Angel of the Lord would Passover in peace. If there was no lamb’s blood, the Death Angel would kill the firstborn – from Pharaoh to slave to animal. Pharaoh finally let Israel go!

Throughout this entire historical drama, God is repeatedly saying that through this the whole earth will know that “I am the Lord, that there is no other like Me.” He wants His people free to serve Him. We must know that God pours out His wrath on all sin. God’s greatest judgment: Jesus Christ, the Firstborn Son of God, hanging on the cross in agony plagued with the penalty of the sin for all humanity. For those who believe in His death for their sin, they will be spared from the judgment of Jesus that is coming with His return (2 Thess 1:5-12 – a must read).

Framework Systematic Theology - 02 - Doctrine of Jesus Christ - His Deity

(This video is not meant to be sacrireligious. It was created to show how people can stereotypically fall into thinking about Jesus. Do we forget He is fully God along with His full humanity?)

In the last lesson, we looked at the storyline of Jesus Christ. It was about how we can understand Him throughout Scripture - from before the beginning of time through the time of future eternity. Why are we starting out with Jesus when looking into doctrines, and why are we looking so deeply into who He is? As people who are all about glorifying our great God, we must understand that Jesus is the glory of God (Philippians 2:11). So who IS (not “was”) Jesus?

Let’s first look at what the Deity of Jesus Christ means: Jesus as fully God. We have to remember that everyone has a view on this. Right now, if you realize it or not, you have thoughts on whether or not Jesus has always been fully God, if Jesus is fully God today, and if Jesus will always be fully God. All throughout history people have had views on this, such as:
Ebionism – People who believe this say that Jesus was a regular man who was born but chosen by God to become His Son at His baptism. The Spirit of God left this man near His death. This might sound crazy that people would believe that, but there is a man named Jose Luis today who believes He is now the “Christ” as the Spirit has entered him to be God’s Son. YouTube him!
Aryanism – People who believe this say that Jesus is not God because he is God’s Son who He created to be His firstborn over all creation. Jehovah’s Witnesses do hold to this thought today. When I meet other “Christians” throughout life, I normally love to ask them their thoughts on who Jesus is. I’ve gotten many answers saying that there is no way that Jesus is fully God and that God would never want Jesus to be worshipped because only God should be worshipped. The view of Aryanism is all over the place in many different people from bad teaching!

Are we crazy for thinking that God has a Son fully divine as He is? Are we the only ones who think this? Actually, Jesus claimed Himself to be God (John 10:30). Of course any yahoo can claim that, so what did others say about Him? Those who walked, talked, and lived with Him claimed His Deity as well (John 1:1). Again, any lunatic can claim that for himself and brainwash his followers to do this same. Did He actually display divine attributes? Yes! In the New Testament, Jesus displayed the divine attributes we normally think of: omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient. But He also portrayed other important divine attributes: eternal existence, ability to forgive sins, faultless holiness, loving, just, etc.

Yet this article isn’t just to teach you that Jesus is fully God, but it is also to teach you that Jesus is the fullest physical revelation and fulfillment of who God was showing Himself to be all throughout the OT. God is creating and ruling by speaking in the OT. In John 1:1-14 Jesus is specifically called the Word of God. God is teaching and calling for living the way of wisdom in the OT such as in Proverbs. In the NT, Jesus is called both the Way (John 14:6), and the Wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:30). As God is claiming Himself to be LORD in the OT, Jesus is constantly referred to as Lord in the NT (Philippians 2:10-11). God reveals Himself to Moses and His people in the OT as the “I AM”, and Jesus makes the same claim for Himself (John 8:58). Lastly, the greatest promise God gave to His OT people is that He would bless them with His presence. In Matthew 1:23, the author says that the angels’ proclamation took place to fulfill the OT prophecy that Jesus would be called “Emmanuel” meaning: “God is with us.” God is speaking of Himself in the OT to point us to His glory in the NT – His Son Jesus Christ.

What I want to leave with you is that Jesus is the difference maker. As we speak with friends and family about bringing meaning into their lives, we must be faithful to share the person and work of Jesus Christ for God to make a difference in their lives. Churches aren’t making a difference when they don’t point their people to Jesus Christ. So many people want to say that all religions are worshipping the same God but just from different angles. No! The glory of God is Jesus Christ and anyone who doesn’t believe in Christ isn’t a child of God the Father, rather they are a child of the Devil (2 Corinthians 4:1-6, John 8:42). Jesus is fully God.

Storyline Biblical Theology 12 - Exodus 2-4 - "The Raising of a Leader: Moses, Jesus, and You"

That video of Michael Jackson proves that he’s been in a transformation of complete freakishness. Wow, my spell-check actually accepted that word! Isn’t it freaky to watch his face morph from child to adult knowing now that he’s fathering children? Apparently, he named his first son Prince Michael, his first daughter Paris, and his second son Prince Michael II, (calls him Blanket). What a weirdo. Let’s pray for him now! Okay I’m back…do you remember when Michael held out baby “Blanket” over the 3rd story hotel balcony? His fans were freaked out!

Read Exodus 2 – 4. This is exactly the opposite of what Moses’ mother was doing three months after his birth when she hid him in a basket and floated him along the Nile River. God had her hide Moses for protection. The daughter of the King of Egypt found Moses and ended up raising him as an Egyptian prince who was mighty in word and deed (Acts 7). God was raising Moses to lead His people. When Moses was 40, he really wanted to get to know his Hebrew relatives, so he went out among the slaves. He saw an Egyptian beating one of his fellow Israelites and became so enraged with anger that he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. When word got around and the Pharaoh found out, Moses ran away for the sake of his life.

Forty years later, while shepherding a flock, Moses looked over his shoulder and saw a bush in flames but it wasn’t being consumed. Then the bush started talking to him and calling his name? It could only be the desert heat getting to him or…God. After commanding Moses to take off his shoes because of His presence making the ground holy, God tells Moses His plan of using him to free the Israelites from Pharaoh and to escape Egypt. Moses comes back with five different excuses: “I’m not worthy. Who are you really? They won’t believe me. I’m not capable. Send someone else.” God responds with five direct promises: “I will be with you. ‘I am’ sending you. I will prove Myself. I will do it through you. I will send your brother, too.

Maybe you are reading this article and you have come up with so many excuses not to lead others to Christ because your family-life hasn’t been the “American dream” or because you feel your sinful past has you dragging too much “baggage” behind you. Wow, you may sound a lot like one of the greatest leaders of history! God is also promising you that He will give you both the passion and the ability to accomplish every good work through you (Philippians 2:13). God is calling all of us in this passage to follow Christ and to lead others to Him. Where? He tells Moses that Israel is His firstborn Son (Exodus 4:22-23). Calling someone “son” is sensitive language. I remember hearing my dad call my brother-in-law “son” for the first time. As a man, I don’t like to admit it, but it broke my heart. I grew up being my dad’s only son. Of course I understand now. But that’s not what God was doing. He was calling Israel His firstborn Son because that was His purpose for them…to bring about Christ through birth! This passage is filled with the hope of Christ, and it is pointing us to be followers of Christ and to lead others to Him. Check out the response when Moses returns to the Israelites after over 40 years of being away: they believed him, they bowed their heads, and they worshipped God (Exodus 4:29-31).

We must follow Christ toward The Promised Land just as the Israelites followed Moses to their promised land. When Jesus said to His disciples, “Come and follow Me,” they dropped what they were doing and followed Him. That is often how I picture my Christian life. I look at each decision I make and every action I take as either a step with or a step away from Christ. Thinking that really helps me visualize my walk with Jesus as a disciple. Are you reading this knowing that God has called you to both follow Christ and lead others to Him? You are called to be a leader! Reading this article right now may be many future pastors, teachers, missionaries, and ordinary people who lead others to Christ through every day conversations. Many of you who are reading are designed to be a follower. You must be careful about to Whom they are leading you. To sum it all up: Follow Christ first as you lead and follow others to Him!

Storyline Biblical Theology 11 - Exodus 1 - "Enslaved: Our need for coaching, community, and commission"

How many of y’all out there had the pleasure of having hamsters for pets when you were growing up? I see that show of hands. I remember loving to watch those little fur balls run around their cage, exercise in their wheel, and maneuver through all their tubes. I always dreamed of having a play-land that cool! Actually, I finally found something very similar to a hamster cage for adults…The St. Louis City Museum is amazing! But that’s beside the point. From what I remember, we had to get rid of our hamsters because we just couldn’t control them as they were popping new little hamster babies out at the rate of a salad shooter. If we didn’t act fast enough, they’d take over our home and eventually the world! Okay, that was a tad extreme.

Something strangely similar is playing out in Exodus 1. Remember, through a series of God-ordained events, Joseph was taken to Egypt and rose to power under the Pharaoh, so Jacob with his family moved to Egypt to avoid starving from the famine. In Exodus 1, we see how God is faithful to both His commands and His covenant (1:1-7). In Genesis 1, God commands Adam to be fruitful and multiply, and as early as Genesis 12 God makes a covenant with Abraham promising to make him into a great nation with a great land and bless him. Exodus 1 is a fulfillment of God being faithful to accomplish His command and fulfill His covenant promises. We must remember this: whatever God commands, we can accomplish through Him (Phil 2:13). Whatever God promises, He will be faithful to accomplish it!

Also strangely similar to the hamsters, the Israelites are getting so numerous from their fruitful multiplication that the Egyptians fear their strength. The new Pharaoh in power didn’t have the same relationship with Joseph as the last, so he decides to make all of Israel slaves to Egypt since he felt they were a threat if war came (1:8-14). Exodus is an accurate historical book with true stories. I believe that God ordained all of these events to bring about Christ through His people and to give us physical pictures of spiritual realities. Such as: just as Pharaoh enslaves Israel, Satan seeks to enslave God’s people in sin because he feels threatened. He is the evil power behind all of this. The Pharaoh then commands the Egyptian midwives to murder all the sons born to the Hebrew children, but out of their fear of God the midwives don’t obey the Pharaoh. So the Pharaoh steps it up a notch and commands all his people to cast every born Hebrew son into the Nile river (1:15-22). Isn’t this strangely familiar to the time of Christ’s birth when Herod ordered a similar command? Why? Behind the scenes you have Satan ultimately wanting to destroy Jesus, his greatest threat. Because we as Christians are in Christ, we must be prepared and expect Satan to seek to enslave and ultimately try to destroy our lives through sin because he desperately desires to steal the glory of Jesus Christ for himself.

This is a very special message in a special service for our student ministry because we are unveiling our new website (www.cbsm.net) which explains why we do what we do. In all of Exodus we will see God using Moses to lead and teach the Israelites, forming the Israelites into a covenant-community with each other, and charging them to be on a mission…His mission. Likewise, our new pastor has given our church a focused direction of coaching, community, and commission which our student ministry has also adopted. These three essential elements of every Christian’s involvement in church protect him from the slavery and destruction of sin. “Coaching”: Our Wednesday night worship service is designed to coach students to worship Christ through our student-led praise band and preaching through the stories of the Bible. “Community”: Our Sunday school is designed to grow students in their faith of Jesus Christ through the teaching of biblical truths and small group discussions with other students. “Commission”: Our Sunday night ministry teams are designed to give opportunities and train students to better serve their church, their community, and the world just as Jesus has called us to do. I pray that our churches will grow like the unstoppable and fruitful force of... hamsters!

Storyline Biblical Theology 10 - Genesis 35-50 - "Now and Later: How Suffering Brings Glory"

Have you ever seen an episode of “Veggie Tales”? I heard one of my favorite preachers tell about an episode designed to teach children about Christian suffering. He explained the one where the deliriously-happy veggies come up against the gruesome garlic demon, Beelze-bulb and his henchmen, the Ginsu Warriors. When asked to renounce their faith in Jesus, the vegetables shook their heads and sang together “No, We are His Cheeseburgers.” Then the Ginsu Warriors sliced and diced the vegetables, as the episode ended with a cold-stiff-dead Larry the Cucumber lying lifelessly in a jar of vinegar reeking with the stench of the pickling process and Bob the Tomato splattered against a wall with only the remains of his seeds and ketchup. You’re right; you’ve never heard of this episode because Christian shows for children don’t deal with real suffering. They merely deal with moral truths such as how to have faith that God will work everything out to be good and how to be nice to everyone. Suffering is the silent subject.

In Genesis 35 – 50, God records the life of Joseph as it was filled with unjust suffering. Joseph, the great grandson of Abraham, is the favorite son (out of 11 others) of Jacob from his favorite wife Rachel. In a deep sleep, God gave Joseph dreams that his family would bow down to him someday. The burning jealousy of his older brothers led them to throw him in a hole with no water, to fake his death, and to sell him to a traveling band of Midianites for 20 pieces of silver. The nomads turned around and sold Joseph to Egypt where he served in the household of Potiphar who was one of the Egyptian empire’s most powerful men. God blessed Joseph with success, and that caught the wandering eye of Potiphar’s wife. She wanted a piece of the hot-Hebrew-hunk, but all she came away with was his coat as Joseph ran from her advances. He was punished by being thrown behind bars for sin he did not commit. In prison, God used him to interpret dreams of fellow inmates which God sovereignly used as his ticket out. Pharaoh woke up in a cold-sweat from a troubling dream, and Joseph was the only one around who could interpret it correctly. Pharaoh was so appreciative of Joseph saving the future of Egypt from the coming famine (theme of his dream) that he exalted Joseph as the highest ruler in the land, just under himself of course. This is a story of not only suffering to glory, but of suffering for glory.

The Spirit of God has recorded Joseph’s story to prepare His OT people for Jesus and to point His NT people (us) to Jesus. Like Joseph, but even more so, Jesus is hated by one of His own “brothers” who sells Him out for pieces of silver. He then is severely punished for sin that He did not commit, but His willingness to go through the suffering ordained by God was rewarded with a position of ruling over a kingdom. This time not merely the Egyptian Empire, but the entire created order: the cosmos. As we are in Christ, our story is the same. Peter says that Christians will suffer for doing right (1 Peter 3:14). This Christian life will be filled with suffering more so than glory. But our suffering now will bring glory later. If we are willing to suffer for the name of Jesus now, we will rule and reign with him for all eternity (2 Tim 2:12).

I want a heart like Paul who said that his ultimate desire is to, “know [Christ] and the power of His resurrection, and share in His sufferings.” We hear a lot of talk about relationship with Jesus today, but doesn’t it normally just sound like another friendship? Shouldn’t our relationship with Christ be one as a faithful patriot to a Kingdom, a servant to a King? The more we are willing to live for Christ with a willingness to suffer for Him, the more we deeply fellowship with Him. Because we are living in a sin-cursed, Satan-ruled world, Christians will especially endure suffering because we are the threat. In our suffering, we can’t forget Joseph’s words of faith saying that whatever is meant for our harm, God will use for His good (Gen 50:20). Whatever happens in the life of a believer works towards his or her good, and the good of God is that we might fellowship with Christ by being transformed into His glorious likeness as He was through faithful suffering. So even if you never turn into ketchup for Christ, be willing!

Storyline Biblical Theology 09 - Genesis 25-35 - "Wrastlin' with God: Hang on for your life!"

I felt like I was hanging on for my life as I was being thrown around like a rag doll! A few summers ago, I had the opportunity to go tubing behind a very large boat on the waters of Lake Huron. Unlike normal lakes, this Great Lake is very choppy and wavy. With the boat pulling me and another rider on a tube at ridiculously high speeds, we were literally hitting the waves and being thrown at least 5 feet into the air. I wasn’t just hanging on to the tube to have more fun, but I was hanging on for the sake of my life. I knew that hitting the water tubeless could mean an injured body, severe eye damage, or the risk of being eaten by a sea creature!

In Genesis 32:22-32 (please read), Jacob is doing the very same thing: hanging on for his very life. Jacob’s life is found between the pages of Genesis chapters 25-35, and it is characterized by wrestling. In the womb of Rebekah, Jacob was struggling with his brother Esau (25:22). In the midst of his birth, Jacob hung on to the heel of his older brother (25:26). Some years later, Jacob struggled with Esau to gain his blessing and birthright (25:33). Jacob wrestled with Laban to marry the woman of his dreams (ch. 29). Jacob’s wives grappled with each other over who Jacob would love most (chs. 29-30). Also, Jacob struggled with his father-in-law once again for his wife, children, and due possessions (Gen 30-31). Now, Jacob fears that he is about to enter the most fierce wrestling match of his life as he draws near to Esau after many years, but Jacob is wrong. His greatest wrestling match will be with God Himself (Gen 32:22-32).

Because he fears Esau’s grudging wrath from decades before, Jacob divides up his family and possessions into different groups while they travel closer to where Esau lives. Jacob didn’t want to lose everything. Gen 32:22-24 tells us that Jacob stays the night alone away from his family and begins wrestling with a man all night long. This man is obviously stronger than him as he even dislocates Jacob’s hip by merely his touch. Jacob’s wrestling quickly turns into clinging. Jacob hangs on to the man with everything in him for one reason: he desperately wants the blessing of God! The covenant blessing of God has been driving Jacob his whole life. His opponent pleads Jacob to let go since daybreak is approaching. Who is Jacob wrestling, and why does the unknown figure not want to be seen? The man is no other than God Himself, and Jacob could not look upon His face or He would die (32:30). Jacob clinches his fist and fights back his painful tears to hold onto God as tight as possible because He knows God’s covenant blessing is his only hope for his life to amount to anything good, worthy, and purposeful.

In the life of Christ we also see struggle and wrestling. In the wilderness, Christ wrestles the Tempter, and He walks away pure in every way. During His ministry, Christ wrestles with the Jews over His “Messiah-ship,” and continues to preach the Gospel concerning Himself. But Jesus’ greatest wrestling match came in the garden with His own Father as He begged God to go about things another way (Matt 26:36-46). We know that Jesus went willingly to the cross in full submission to His Father as He passionately hung onto God’s promise for His own exaltation.

Just like Jacob here is going through a transition into which he is owning his faith in God, so must we. He may not even remember, but I had a close friend (Jason Wood) who challenged me when I was 19 to believe and think for myself rather than to just repeat answers and verses that I had been spoon fed by my pastor, teachers, and parents. God used that night to change my life as I personally pursued His Son by His Spirit through His Word! You see, Jacob had come to terms that not only was the covenant his grandfather’s (Abraham), and his father’s (Isaac), but it was now passed onto him as prophesied (Gen 25:23). We too must be willing to take on Christ as our personal Lord and Savior, believe the Truth, defend the Truth, think according to the Truth, live the Truth, struggle for the cause of the Truth, study the Truth, and discuss the Truth. By hanging on to the covenant for his very life, Jacob was clinging to Christ. We too must hang on to the Person of Jesus Christ for our very lives!

Framework Systematic Theology 07 - Doctrine of Jesus Christ - His Resurrection

Imagine you’re a missionary sharing the gospel with a village who has never heard about Jesus. You begin with creation, move through the sinful fall of man, and continue to the gospel of Christ. Just as you have finished teaching them about the death of Jesus that paid the penalty for their sin, a villager stands up, draws back his bow, and pierces an arrow through your heart, which leaves you dead on the ground. If this village never sees a Bible or hears the gospel again, can they be saved without knowing that Jesus rose from the dead? Hmmmm?

Is the resurrection of Jesus Christ important? “Resurrection” is the act of coming back to life from the dead. I fear that many Christians don’t see the importance of resurrection in their Bibles, in the way they witness, or in their own daily living. Paul says that a person must believe that God raised Christ from the dead in order to be saved (Romans 10:9-10). He also says that Jesus’ resurrection is of “first importance” concerning the gospel (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). Wow!

All of the promises God made throughout the Old Testament hinged on a resurrection to new life. After Adam and Eve were cast out of the garden, God said He did that so that they could not eat of the Tree of Life and live forever in their sin (Gen 3:22). He had a better eternal life planned! Abraham was willing to stab and burn his promised son to death because he believed that God would raise Isaac from the dead to keep His promises (Heb 11:17-19). Ezekiel watched God reconnect bones to make skeletons and add muscle, tissue, and skin to make an army (Ezekiel 37). God said this was a sign of His promise to bring His people back to life from their sin. God started this promise with one Israelite, Jesus Christ, when He raised Him from the dead. The truthfulness and fulfillment of all the Bible is based on the resurrection of Jesus!

If that is true, what does the resurrection of Jesus really prove? It proves everything we have talked about in the Doctrine of Jesus Christ up to this point!
Jesus’ Deity – God raised Jesus from the dead because He found Him guiltless of His sin. Jesus’ Humanity – Jesus really is a man, not just a spirit. His human body was raised (Luke 24). Jesus’ Offices – He is the true Prophet. His Priestly sacrifice was accepted. He rules as King. The Covenants – All of the OT covenants were eternal promises fulfilled in Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus’ Atonement – Jesus truly paid the debt of sin by His death, and He was raised in glory.
The resurrection proves that all the Bible is true and everything Jesus claimed of Himself is right.

Jesus’ resurrection is important. His resurrection is the climax to the storyline of Scripture. His resurrection proved the truthfulness of God and Himself. If we say we believe something because it is true, the way we know we truly believe is the way we live by it. True belief always results in a changed life. So, how can we apply the resurrection to our lives?
1. The resurrection gives us power over sin and death. I know teenagers who are scared to death to die. I also know many who think they can’t overcome their sins of pride, lust, anger, etc. We have a more powerful resurrected Savior than any entangling sin with which we may struggle.
2. The resurrection gives us peace over guilt and shame. I remember sitting across from someone who was pounding their fists into the table wishing that “this sin” just wasn’t true of them. God’s forgiveness is total and absolute as all of our sin was paid for by Jesus’ blood.
3. The resurrection gives us purpose for our bodies. Our body isn’t just our shell that will waste away. We await our resurrection at the return of Christ when our present bodies will be glorified and rejoined with our souls. It matters what we do with our bodies. Cremation is neither respectable to the human body, nor does it picture the hope of that body rising from its grave.
4. The resurrection gives us perspective for eternal life. Jesus’ resurrection assures us that He will make all things new again. Our best life isn’t now. Our best life is later. Eternity isn’t the afterlife, but it’s the after-death. Live sacrificially now for your glory in Jesus to come.

Look down. There is no arrow piercing you. Share the gospel with His resurrection now.

Framework Systematic Theology 06 - Doctrine of Jesus Christ - His Atonement

Think back to when Jesus said: “You’re all evil. There’s no hope. That’s it. Thank you.” Well of course you don’t remember Him saying that in the Bible, but if you watched the video above this article you heard “Him” say it. Isn’t it amazing how many Christians don’t spread the gospel? Not sharing is just saying, “You’re all evil and there is no hope for you.” Many believe that Jesus just lists off sins to condemn the world rather than giving His life to save the world. How deeply do we believe in the Father’s forgiveness through Christ’s sacrifice?

All throughout the Bible, there is a storyline told that drips with bloody deaths. After eating the fruit of the tree, God’s words pierce into Adam’s soul as He tells him, “You will surely die.” Also in Genesis, Able’s sacrifice of blood and death was accepted by God while Cain’s plant sacrifice was rejected. As soon as Noah steps off the ark, he sacrifices a life to God. Abraham believes and obeys God even to the point of being willing to sacrifice his son, his only son to God. Through the rest of the OT, God instructs Israel to make daily and annual animal sacrifices to Him as His treasured people. In the prophets, one writes of the Servant of God who was wounded and killed for the sin of humanity which He bore in Himself (Isaiah 53).

The Scriptures are constantly interwoven with stories of sacrifice because God is continuously pointing us to the need for the sacrifice of Jesus. When thinking on the sacrifice of Jesus, we must ask the question, “Why did God have Jesus die?” You may be amazed to know that there have been many different answers to this question throughout history. Some say that God sent Jesus to free sinners from Satan. Others hold that God sent Jesus to show sinners His love. God sent Jesus to show sinners how to love is the view of a few. Some others believe that God sent Jesus to show sinners His law. Many say that God sent Jesus to show sinners who He loves. And several believe that God sent Jesus to pay the penalty for sinners. Which statement out of the six would you say is the most true? In fact, if you take out the one, it makes all the rest false. The answer is the last one: “God sent Jesus to pay the penalty for sinner.” This is called the Penalty-Substitution View. The main purpose for the sacrifice of Jesus Christ was both for God and for man. The sacrifice of Jesus paid for the penalty of sin which satisfied the wrath of God over sinners. Therefore, Jesus died as a substitute (in the place of) for sinners. A sinner must believe in the penalty-substitution sacrifice of Jesus Christ in order to be saved. To reject the penalty would be denying sinfulness, and rejecting substitution would be denying His perfection. After centralizing the penalty-substitution death of Christ, there is truth in the others.

The next question that begs to be answered throughout history is, “For whom did Jesus die?” Those holding to “Universalism” would say that Jesus died for the whole world, the whole world is forgiven by His death, and the whole world WILL be saved in Him. Others holding to “Limited Atonement” would say that Jesus died only for the elect, only the elect will be forgiven by His death, and only the elect will be saved in Him. Those holding to “Unlimited Atonement” would say that Jesus died for the world, only those who believe will be forgiven, and only those who believe will be saved in Him. Personally, I hold to “Unlimited Atonement” since 1 John 2:2-3 says that Jesus died for the sins of the whole world, but only those who follow Him are saved. Therefore, Jesus died for everyone, but His death is only applied to genuine believers.

Lastly, how do we bring all of this into our daily lives now? First, make sure that you have placed your faith into the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and turn away from your sin to receive salvation. Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, and in Christ alone. As a Christian, keep believing that! Secondly, practice forgiveness based on the death of Christ. Forgiving someone isn’t saying, “That’s okay.” Forgiving someone is saying, “Your sin has been freed from the wrath of God by Christ’s sacrifice.” Therefore we should always say, “I forgive you.” Praise God for the hope we have in the sacrifice of Christ even when we’re evil!

Storyline Biblical Theology 08 - Genesis 17-27 - "What's So Funny?: The Story of the Son of the Covenant"

Talk about a laughing stock! As I was snow skiing in California this past weekend, I got onto the lift with my buddy, Justin. I felt some pressure on my feet, looked down, and my skis got caught and snapped off as we were going up. So, the operator stopped the lift as we were about 100 feet away going up the mountain. Everyone turned to see as to why the lift had stopped. He climbs up the the icy mountain to us with my skis, reaches up, and pops both of them into my boots. Everyone clapped as he was the hero and laughed at me as the idiot. Haha!

As we look at the story of Isaac, it is amazing to catch how much God recorded laughter. The story begins with God reaffirming and further explaining His covenant to Abraham as God was going to make Abraham’s name great, cause a great nation to come from him, and give them a place to dwell as His people (Gen 17:1-8). Abraham’s response was falling on his face in worship (17:3). Then God explained that these promises would come from Abraham’s 90-year-old wife, Sarah. Abraham’s response to that was falling on his face again, but not in worship this time…instead, in laughter (17:17). Abraham suggests to God that his son Ishmael by Hagar should be the son of the covenant since there is no way that Sarah could have a baby in her old age. God promises to bless Ishmael as well, but the son of Sarah would be the son through which His covenant continues (17:15-21). God’s covenant cannot be stopped!

The story continues as the Lord appeared to Abraham somehow in the form of three men. I’m not even going to pretend I know how to explain this…I just believe it! Abraham starts running around from the excitement of this visitation. He frantically tells Sarah to get some food together for their guests. While Sarah was at the door of the tent, Abraham was under the shade of the oaks with the three men. She heard them tell Abraham that she would have a son this time in the next year. Have you ever had a 90-year-old woman in your church stand up and say, “Please pray for me because I’m pregnant”? Well, if you have, you surely took her to the hospital. Not to the birthing wing, but to the mental ward! Even in the time of Abraham, that was impossible. After hearing the prophecy, Sarah laughs to herself thinking this has gone far enough. How am I supposed to have a baby at 90? My ability to give birth is long gone! Even though Abraham didn’t hear her, God heard her. He asks why she laughed. Then another pointed question comes straight from God, “Is anything too impossible for Me to do?” God affirms that Sarah will surely give birth by this time. Overhearing the whole conversation and trying to cover her skepticism, Sarah denies her doubtful laughing. There was no doubt on God’s part as He directly says to her, “No Sarah, but you did laugh” (Genesis 18:1-15).

Isaac is the chosen son through which God’s covenant will continue with God’s people. But remember, all Scripture points to Christ. Through the story of Isaac, God is preparing His people for the true Son of the covenant. The unity between the stories is remarkable. When the angel, Gabriel, comes to Mary to announce the birth of Jesus, Mary doesn’t laugh. Instead, she mutters in bewilderment, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” Gabriel gives her a familiar answer, “Nothing is impossible with God” (Luke 1:34-38). Like Mary, Sarah is filled with amazement when Isaac is born. She laughs again, but this time in faithful joy (Genesis 21:6-7).

We cannot escape from the theme of laughter in this story. Are you one who may think the ways and people of God are silly, and so you laugh? Please know, nothing is impossible with God! Could you be reading this and you lack laughter in your life because you are void of joy from focusing on life’s troubles over God’s works? Find your joy in Christ once again! It is possible that you are reading this and your greatest fear as a Christian is people laughing at you for your faith, so you live avoiding humiliation. Even if it brings laughter, live in such a way that you are serving Christ to bring Him joy even though it may seem silly to an unbelieving world. The glory of Jesus, the Son of the Covenant, will spread through our joyful faithfulness!

Storyline Biblical Theology 07 - Genesis 12-25 - "You Must Be Trippin: Calling, Blessing, and Struggling

I often like to think back on the journey God has taken me through to get to where I am now. I grew up in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. From there I spent time in Pensacola for college, back in Tuscaloosa for more college, northeast Pennsylvania to graduate college, northwest Michigan for three summers of camps, Detroit for a year long youth ministry internship, Louisville for the masters degree, southeast Indiana for my first full-time youth pastorate, and now I live in the Huntsville area of Alabama for my dream job. God certainly did not tell me at the beginning that I would end up here, and I’m glad He didn’t. If He had, I may have been tempted to skip a few stops along the way which would mean I wouldn’t have met all the wonderful people in my life. Ultimately, I would have not grown from every experience He took me through.

As we study the life of Abraham, we see that God did tell him the future. He would bless Abraham by making his name great and giving him a great nation of descendants, but God didn’t tell Abraham where He would be taking him (Gen 12:1-3). Abraham is said to be the second most important man in all the Bible. Throughout all the Scriptures, God constantly refers back to Abraham, his faith, and His covenant-promises to Abraham. Abraham (called Abram at this time), is approached by God whom he did not know. Many say that Abram was worshipping false gods at this time. When God calls Abram to leave for a land He’ll show him later, Abram went (Gen 12:4). What was God promising this 75 year old man? Everything! Just as God had promised Adam and later Noah rulership over the earth and fruitfulness of children, He is continuing this covenant thru Abram. God is telling Abram that if he will trust Him, He is going to make him a great nation through which He’ll bless all other believing nations, give Abram land for his nation to live, and make Abram’s name great throughout all the earth and all history. God is bringing the blessing of salvation through this one man.

This means we have to understand what blessing means as well. We are often told to live right so that God will grant us blessings. When we think about this passage, we aren’t to connect with Abraham but with his descendants. The reason his descendants are blessed is because God had promised Abraham these covenant-blessings. God’s blessing comes through one man. Abraham isn’t the ultimate receiver of God’s blessing. Everything God promised to Abraham was just a small picture of how God would bless an entire universe through the final Man, Jesus Christ (Eph 1:3). God is giving to Jesus an earth full of followers, an entire planet for a land to rule, and a name that is above every name (Philippians 2:9-11). Does God bless us for the good things we do? I think it is safe to say that He does, as long as we understand that the good we do is Christ’s righteousness being worked out in our lives and not our own. Therefore, God always blesses through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ and not our own.

Isn’t it frustrating how faithless our lives for Christ can be? Our struggle of faith can often leave us in seasons of doubting our salvation. “How can I be a Christian and do this and think that,” we ask ourselves. It is comforting to see how God repeatedly brings up the name of Abraham in the Bible when referring to faithfulness. It is comforting because we see that Abraham’s faith goes up and down more than a Six Flags rollercoaster. He follows God, then he calls his gorgeous wife his sister! He believes God, then has a baby by another woman! The life of faith is no picture of perfection, but rather it is a repetition of always coming back to God in belief of His covenant-promises. When Abraham asks God how he can know for sure if He is going to be faithful to His promises, God made a blood-covenant by having many animals torn in two and walking in the midst of them which signifies, “If I break My covenant, may this be done to Me.” God of course never breaks His covenant, but there was a greater final covenant to come. The sacrifice of His own Son was to seal the deal for eternity. As we struggle with doubt, we must remember our assurance isn’t found within us, but in the work of Christ (Prov. 24:16).

Storyline Biblical Theology 06 - Genesis 10-11 - Tearing the Tower Down...Brick by Brick

Dubai is one of the most amazing cities ever designed on our planet. They have developed islands that are shaped like the 7 continents of the world and islands that are shaped like a palm tree. Dubai has the tallest hotel in the world, an indoor ski slope (since they are in the desert), and much more. They are also in the process of building the tallest building in the world. It is unfinished, but apparently it will be over a half-mile high when they are done.

Why does it seem throughout history that nations want to build the largest and greatest cities in existence? It is because every nation is looking to make a name for itself – greatness! In Genesis 11, mankind is on the move out of direct orders from God to spread throughout the earth. It seems they stop and decide to develop a city with a tower in order to “make a name” for themselves. It’s amazing how many people have been taught that the tower was built to somehow reach heaven and get to God. But that is not what the passage says! The passage is saying that the people built the tower because they want to stop migrating, build a city, and make a name for themselves in rebellion to God. Their tower was to be a monument to themselves and a sign of their unmovable preservation. They even coated the tower with the same substance that made Noah’s ark waterproof. They were planning to withstand another flood of judgment from God. They were saying, “God, we ain’t going nowhere!”

As tall as their tower was supposed to be…in the heavens…Moses makes a little joke by saying, “And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower” (11:5). God’s greatness is so lofty that He has to come down in order to be present for our tallest of endeavors! The text says that God shows His grace to the people by halting their wicked efforts so that they wouldn’t continue to ruin themselves with their rebellion. He also judges them by confusing their one known language and somehow spreads them throughout the earth. God judges us out of His grace so that we will not stay in our sinful lifestyles. His commands are always for our good.

It’s interesting to think a little about God confusing their languages. Their rebellious unity was motivated by making a name for themselves and resulted in a confusion of languages. In Acts 2 right after the ascension of Jesus to the right hand of the Father (when He gives Jesus the name that is above every name), the Holy Spirit indwells the apostles and enables them to speak other languages so that foreigners can be united in the Gospel of Christ. Pentecost is a reversal of the judgment at Babel! That reversal will continue for all eternity. John’s vision from God of the eternal throne of Christ is filled with images of multitudes of people from every tribe, peoples, and languages (Rev 7:9-11). God seems to glorify Himself now in the difference of languages that are all used to exalt the name of Jesus!

Moses tells us that they left the city before it was finished (11:8), but I’m afraid that we help build on to this tower daily. We add to the tower brick by brick every time we seek to make a name for ourselves rather than Christ. We all live in temptation to do this. When I was a teenager, I can remember shooting half-court shots after basketball practice. Chanting “3 – 2 – 1” and then shooting an imaginary game winning shot in order for the crowd to go wild.

Could we be guilty of building a kingdom for ourselves by not praying to God and asking Him what He would like for us to do and where He would like for us to go? Would it be possible that God could be calling us to do something different or more useful with our lives but we never ask Him? Could it be that God may even be calling some of us to spread throughout the earth for the purpose of missions and telling the world of the great name of Jesus Christ? So often we just keep thinking of a comfortable life for ourselves, what will make us happy, and whatever may give us the most money. I want to challenge us for the remainder of February to physically submit ourselves to the Kingdom of Christ by literally bowing our knee at the name of Jesus and confessing that He is Lord to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:9-11).