God Does Something New

The LORD had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you.[i] (Genesis 12:1, NLT)

Through Abram the Lord begins to reveal His plan of Salvation.

People were multiplying on earth.  Henry Morris in his research states:

It seems reasonable to assume, for this 400-year period of history, say, 10 generations and an average family size of 8, with an average life-span of 5 of the 40-year generations, or 200 years. . . . The world population at the time of Abraham (neglecting any possible gaps in the genealogies of Genesis 11) is then calculated as 2,800,000, a figure that more than adequately explains the Biblical and archaeological population inferences for this period of earth history.[ii]

If we follow the Biblical chronology, Abram was born in the year 2161 BC or somewhere close to that. Or, if calculated in years after the flood Abraham was born in year 292 after the flood.

Following a chronology taken from the Bible, we assume with Dr. Mitchell that: “Mizraim, Noah’s grandson, founded Egypt around 2188 B.C., a date consistent with both biblical and secular records.”[iii] 

Fitting this into overall world history, Egypt was still a young nation at the time of Abram’s birth.

In our present day, when a difficulty arises in understanding world history the practice is to ignore the Bible and treat it as myth.  According to the article listed above, in the 3^rd century B.C. an Egyptian named Manetho compiled a list of Pharaohs and their reigns.  This is where we get the modern chronology of Egypt that puts Egypt as having been established in 3000 BC.  Manetho never intended to make a chronological account of Egyptian history.  The stones and monuments erected by the Pharaohs conflict with the chronology taken from Manetho’s list. Modern Egyptology bases its timeline on this list. In times of a divided kingdom there was more than one Pharaoh at the same time.  By listing their names sequentially on the list, the chronology is lengthened.  Because of problems like these, even non-Bible based historians have debunked the modern historical timeline. Anyone interested in knowing more can read the article listed.  I am not an expert in ancient Egyptian history. However, I am concerned that we understand that the Biblical account is reliable and is readily supported by the evidence.[iv]

I do not treat the Bible as myth. I believe that World history shows a rapid growth of population, and a rapid departure away from the knowledge of the one true God. The world before the flood moved away from God within the second generation.  After the flood, the same sort of departure took place. Within 100 years, men began building the tower of Babel. Before the flood Noah was the only righteous man of his day. After the flood, the situation was not much better.

God does something new at the time of Abram.  There is a transition in the narrative of Genesis in chapter 12 when God chooses a man, Abram. God has been working with all mankind.  From this point on the story will focus on God working through His chosen people. Abram is the physical father of that chosen people.

God promises Abram:

“²I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. ³I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.” (Genesis 12:2-3, NLT)

God is doing something new.  God has singled out a man and has made specific promises to him. 

Seven promises are mentioned.

I will make you into a great nation.

I will bless you. 

I will make you famous.

You will be a blessing to others.

I will bless those who bless you.

I will curse those who curse you.

All the families on earth will be blessed through you.

From these promises we see that God is going to bless the world through this man.  He is going to be the conduit of God’s blessing. This is new.  It is new to mankind, but not to God.  He planned it from the beginning.

When Adam and Eve sinned, God explained to them the consequences of their sin. In the midst of that explanation God predicts: “And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.” (Genesis 3:15, NLT)

 From the beginning God planned to save humanity. This transition in the Genesis story is the unfolding of this plan. Abram is chosen as the father of a people through whom salvation would come. The plan of salvation is behind the words, “All the families on earth will be blessed through you.” (Genesis 12:3, NLT)

At the time of the tower of Babel incident, the people said, “Come, let’s build a great city for ourselves with a tower that reaches into the sky. This will make us famous and keep us from being scattered all over the world.” (Genesis 11:4, NLT)  They were going to work out their own salvation by being famous and making a name that would never die. 

What these people were trying to do by their own effort, God did for Abram.

Egypt epitomizes the world’s system.  The world tries by its own efforts to get the very blessings that God promised as a gift to Abram. Egypt still exists.  They came closest to achieving what men had set out to do at the tower of Babel. Egypt is one of the great nations of history.  And yet with all of its history and monuments to human achievement, it has not won the blessings that God freely gave to Abram.

Jesus is a descendant of Abraham according to the flesh. (Matthew 1:1-17)  This is the central and most important element in God’s promises to Abram. God chose Abram and set him apart from the rest of the world in order to bring salvation.  Jesus is the direct and most obvious fulfillment of the promise to bless all the families on earth through Abram.

There are promises to the nation of Israel that still stand.  In Romans 11 verse 1 the Apostle Paul says, “¹I ask, then, has God rejected his own people, the nation of Israel? Of course not! I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham and a member of the tribe of Benjamin.” (NLT)  The nation of Israel still has a role to play.  Prophecy concerning the end times contains much about Israel and the role she will play.

Israel as a nation has a role to play, but as I have said, the most direct fulfillment of the promises is found in the person of Jesus Christ. These seven promises to Abram are about blessing, and these promises find their fulfillment in Jesus Christ. When the political world was solidifying into nations and the major players were setting up their kingdoms, God chose one man to bless and through Him to shape the spiritual future of the world. Christianity, Judaism and Islam all point back to Abraham as their source. All three try to claim the blessings that God gave.

All people are invited to enjoy these blessings through Jesus Christ. 2 Corinthians 1:20 is speaking of this when it says, “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are "Yes" in Christ. And so through him the "Amen" is spoken by us to the glory of God.”[v] (NIV)

Judaism and Islam miss the blessings because they reject the One through whom the blessings are given. All efforts to earn, achieve or grab the blessings fail.  Like the tower of Babel and Egypt illustrate, these blessings are beyond human achievement.

The blessings were given to Abram so that the whole world could be blessed through him. The Apostle Paul explains how we are to enjoy the blessings for ourselves in his letter to the Romans.  In chapter 4 he says:

            ¹Abraham was, humanly speaking, the founder of our Jewish nation. What did he discover about being made right with God? ²If his good deeds [read human achievement] had made him acceptable to God, he would have had something to boast about. But that was not God’s way. ³For the Scriptures tell us, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.”

¹³Clearly, God’s promise to give the whole earth to Abraham and his descendants was based not on his obedience to God’s law, but on a right relationship with God that comes by faith. ¹⁴If God’s promise is only for those who obey the law, then faith is not necessary and the promise is pointless.

¹⁶So the promise is received by faith. It is given as a free gift. And we are all certain to receive it, whether or not we live according to the law of Moses, if we have faith like Abraham’s. For Abraham is the father of all who believe. ¹⁷That is what the Scriptures mean when God told him, “I have made you the father of many nations.” (NLT)

Let’s compare this to what the Apostle Paul says about the nation of Israel in Romans 9:30-32:

³⁰What does all this mean? Even though the Gentiles were not trying to follow God’s standards, they were made right with God. And it was by faith that this took place. ³¹But the people of Israel, who tried so hard to get right with God by keeping the law, never succeeded. ³²Why not? Because they were trying to get right with God by keeping the law instead of by trusting in him. They stumbled over the great rock in their path. (NLT)

Before the flood Noah believed God.  Noah’s faith saved his family.  We know Noah believed God because he built a boat.

Abram believed God.  We know he believed God because when God told him to leave his native land, his relatives and his father’s family, Abram did.  He left not knowing where he was going.  He left his brothers, their wives and children behind.

By choosing Abram, God was doing something new.  God had not changed.  He was revealing more about Himself.  There are things here that help us understand God’s unchanging character.  There is His desire to bless us.  In Exodus 20:6 He says, “I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands.” There is also His pleasure at displays of trust or faith.  These two things are consistent throughout Scripture.

Faith is a confused subject.  I hear, “You have to have faith.” I think what is meant is that we are to hope for the best.  Faith often seems to be another word for having a positive attitude.  This is not what is meant when we talk about the faith of Abraham that brings blessing.

How do we show our faith?  Is there anything in our lives that we do because God tells us to and only because God tells us to? Does our faith move us to tithe our resources?  Does our faith move us to say no to our favorite sin? How far are we willing to trust God?

When God chooses a man or woman, He calls him or her to leave everything and follow Him.  He did it with Abram. Jesus did it with the 12.  If God is calling you today, you know in your heart what it means for you.  It might mean changing friends. It might mean changing a job or lifestyle.  It might mean changing an attitude.  The question is: Are you willing to trust Him? No safety net, just step out in faith and trust Him.

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[i] Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Copyright 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.  All rights reserved.

[ii] http://www.ldolphin.org/morris.html

[iii]  https://answersingenesis.org/archaeology/ancient-egypt/doesnt-egyptian-chronology-prove-bible-unreliable

[iv] Ibid.

[v] Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

Let's Make a Name for Ourselves

At one time all the people of the world spoke the same language and used the same words.[i] (Genesis 11:1, NLT)

After the flood, Noah’s family grew quickly. Genesis 10 says, “This is the account of the families of Shem, Ham, and Japheth, the three sons of Noah. Many children were born to them after the great flood.” (Genesis 10:1, NLT)

They were all one family, and they all stayed together.  They had gone from a world with an immense population to being the only 8. 

As the family grew, they moved together as a unit.  Genesis 11:2 says, “As the people migrated to the east, they found a plain in the land of Babylonia and settled there.” (NLT)

Noah lived 350 years after the flood (Genesis 9:28). He was able to see a few generations of his family.  Two years after the flood Shem had Arphaxad (Genesis 11:10). When Arphaxad was 35 years old he had Shelah.  Thus, Shelah was born in year 37 after the flood.   When Shelah was 30 years old he had Eber.  So, we can put Eber’s birth at year 67 after the flood. No one has died yet that we are aware of.  Noah is still alive. Shem, Ham and Japheth are still alive. When Eber is 34 years old his son Peleg is born.  This puts Peleg’s birth at 101 years after the flood.  Although there might have been deaths by this time, the Bible does not report any. The family is still intact.

Calculating the population of the world at the time of Peleg is a guessing game.  How many children were born to each family? If you would like to get deeper into the population question, read an article by Henry Morris on the web at http://www.ldolphin.org/morris.html.  He goes into the subject in depth.  I am just going to say that at the birth of Peleg at 101 years after the flood the world population could have been anywhere from 700 to 1,200 people.

 

Imagine that family.  They were all living together in the area of Babylonia, and just starting to develop what seemed like a significant population. Approximately 1,000 strong, they all spoke the same language.  Noah, Shem, Ham, Japheth and their wives were all still there.

Peleg has a significant name.  Genesis 10:25 tells us, “Eber had two sons. The first was named Peleg (which means “division”), for during his lifetime the people of the world were divided into different language groups. His brother’s name was Joktan.” (NLT) 

From this, we are able to put a time on the tower of Babel incident told of in Genesis 11. As Eber watched the family break up, divide and scatter, his son was born. So, he gave him the name Peleg. It was 101 years since the flood. 

The family set out to build a tower to keep them all together.  This is what the Bible says:

⁴Then they said, “Come, let’s build a great city for ourselves with a tower that reaches into the sky. This will make us famous and keep us from being scattered all over the world.”

⁵But the LORD came down to look at the city and the tower the people were building. ⁶“Look!” he said. “The people are united, and they all speak the same language. After this, nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them! ⁷Come, let’s go down and confuse the people with different languages. Then they won’t be able to understand each other.” (Genesis 11:4-7, NLT)

What is the big deal? 

Why does God care that the family wants to stay together? 

Let’s try to answer these questions.

In verse 4, the New Living Translation says, “This will make us famous.” The Hebrew from which this is translated says, “And let us make to us a name.” Many translations translate this, “Let us make a name for ourselves.”

Digging a little deeper, let’s consider what is meant by making a “name.”  Here we find the New Living Translation on track.  The word used here means “fame” or “renown”.  As part of its meaning it carries the idea of giving one a posthumous life.  Thus, it means a name never to be forgotten.[ii]

This is the big deal. 

This big deal has always been a big deal.  It will always be a big deal.

The human heart has always been drawn to the same sin.

Examine the Scriptures and see if this is not true.

The sin that Adam and Eve committed is the sin that each succeeding generation has committed.  It is the same sin that knocks at the door of our hearts.  It is the sin that happened at the tower of Babel.

Let’s go back and look at what sin tempted Adam and Eve. 

In Genesis 3:5 the serpent tells Eve, “God knows that your eyes will be opened as soon as you eat it, and you will be like God, knowing both good and evil.” (NLT) 

I am suggesting that the core of the temptation was and is “you will be like God.”

How interesting that throughout history men became kings and reigned as gods.  Pharaoh was supposed to be a god.  The Emperor of Rome was supposed to be a god.  The emperor of China was supposed to be a god.

In January 1989, Jeretta and I were in Japan.  We watched on television as a long funeral procession drove down a major expressway in the Tokyo area.  The emperor Hirohito had died. He was the 124^th emperor of Japan. We saw on the screen of our television a picture of a shrine where a ceremony was taking place. The 125^th emperor of Japan was going through a special ceremony where he was becoming a god. It is a strange thought to be watching the funeral of a god. It is stranger still to think of the graves of 124 gods.  

Are gods supposed to die?

There are many teachers who say that we all must get in touch with the divine in each of us. These ways of thinking appeal to that part of ourselves that the tempter appealed to in the garden.  We all try at some point to be the god of our own little world.   We try to extend our godlike control over those around us.  Or, at least I should say, I catch myself trying to extend my control over circumstances and people around me.

In Genesis 11 we see God responding to what the people were planning to do.  In verse 6 it says, “Look!” he said. “The people are united, and they all speak the same language. After this, nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them!” (NLT)

Here again, let’s look at what the Hebrew actually says.  The word translated “impossible” is a word that means barricaded or fortified.  The old King James Version is probably the closest translation when it says, “now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.” It is talking about the restraint of the imagination.

In Genesis 6:5 we learn about man, “The LORD observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil.” (NLT)

 

Within 100 years of the flood, while Noah was still alive, the problem of the imaginations of the heart of men was back.

Genesis 12 introduces us to a contrasting attitude.  We find it in the person of Abraham.  Abraham believed God and it was counted to Him as righteousness. 

We learn in Hebrews 11:6, “And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.” (NLT)

When Noah and his family left the boat they were told, “Now be fruitful and multiply, and repopulate the earth.” (Genesis 9:7, NLT) This was all that was required of them.

Why did they think they needed to be famous? Did they ask who they were being famous for?  Who were they trying to impress?

We can ask ourselves.  Who are we trying to impress?  Who are we trying to be famous for? 

Jesus taught us to pray, “Thy will be done.”

God wanted to bless the earth of Noah’s day.  Consider how he blessed Abraham.  The difference was in the attitude toward God. 

Micah 6:8 says it this way, “He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”[iii] (ESV)

God wants to bless us.  He says so in His Word (Jeremiah 31:3, Psalm 81:10, Matthew 23:37).  He has created each person for a purpose.  He has gifted each one and positioned each one where He wants each one to be fruitful. What He does not want is for us to try and take His place.  He wants us to trust Him, believe in Him, to walk with Him.

Another proof of what I am saying is contained in John 3:16. “For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” (NLT)

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[i] Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Copyright 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.  All rights reserved.

[ii] Word studies for this article were done at: http://biblehub.com/hebrew

[iii] Scripture quotations marked ESV are from The ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version) copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

A Covenant God

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.[i]  (Genesis 1:1, NLT)  This phrase starts the Bible, and it forms the foundation for all of our understanding of the world. 

In the first chapter of Genesis we learn that God created a man and a woman to whom he gave the earth He had created.  In chapter 2, we learn more specifics about the man and the woman and their circumstances. 

The serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild animals the LORD God had made . . .” (Genesis 3:1, NLT) This phrase starts the third chapter.  In chapter 3 we are introduced to our enemy, Satan, and to sin, the curse and to grace.

These are all beginnings.

Genesis is a book of beginnings.

Until chapter 4 of Genesis there are only two people, Adam and Eve. These two people are all that exists of the human race.  There are no ethnic groups.  There are no borders, divisions, schisms or factions. This changes very quickly as Adam and Eve’s first born son kills their second born.

Chapters 4 and 5 list genealogies and give names and ages for people.  We see how mankind is instantly divided as Cain’s family is marked by violence and division. 

We also see the ages of people and are given the names of the line of Seth.  If we stick just to the dates, names and individuals given, we can calculate the flood started in year 1656 after creation.

This next thing is speculation, but it helps us to understand the setting at the time of Noah.  If we calculate the generations and the child bearing ages and 3 to 5 children per family; as well as the longevity indicated, we can calculate the population at the time of the flood was anywhere from 1 to 40 billion people.[ii]  We do not know actual mortality rates, birth rates and such so fixing a number on the population is wildly speculative. However, my point is that extremely large numbers are possible mathematically.

Genesis 6 starts with the statement that men began to multiply on the face of the earth. We know from chapters 4 and 5 that cities were established.  With cities established and population multiplying, I tend to think of a significant worldwide population.

From chapter 4 verse 22 we know that iron and bronze were being forged.  We are given little information about the world prior to the flood. We do not know what kind of technology they developed, and how they lived their daily lives. However, we are told that the sons of God saw the beautiful women and took any they wanted as their wives.  These unions produced children who became giants, heroes and famous warriors. In this pre-flood world, there were cities.  There were iron tools.  There were wars and fighting.

In chapter 6 verse 3 God says, “My Spirit will not put up with humans for such a long time, for they are only mortal flesh. In the future, their normal lifespan will be no more than 120 years.” (NLT)

In this pre-flood world, it was possible to have a direct relationship with God. We are told in chapter 5 verse 24 that Enoch walked with God.  The Law of Moses was not yet given.  God’s relationship with man was still based on the Garden of Eden standard where God walked with Adam and Eve in the cool of the day. They also had the advantage of extremely long lives in which to learn and perhaps find God.

In Acts 17:26-27, the Apostle Paul gives an interesting perspective.  He says:

From one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth. He decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined their boundaries. His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him—though he is not far from any one of us. (NLT)

After less than two thousand years of men living long lives without law but with direct access to God, the conclusion was:

The LORD observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil. So the LORD was sorry he had ever made them and put them on the earth. It broke his heart. (Genesis 6:5-6, NLT)

I would like to believe that at least some people were good.  But, the truth of the matter is: “Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living on earth at the time, and he walked in close fellowship with God.” (Genesis 6:9, NLT)

Did you catch that: “The only blameless person living on the earth at the time?”

This is the beginning of the story of God’s dealings with humanity.  The age from creation to the flood represents his first administration.  It involved no rules and an open invitation to walk with God. 

From the flood to Abraham was the second administration.  The rules were no meat with blood still in it and no murder.  And, God promised never again to flood the entire earth. The open invitation to walk with God was still there.

From Abraham to Moses was the next administration.

We see a pattern in the Bible of which the story of the flood is just the beginning. 

For example, God sent Moses to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt.  When they left Egypt they numbered anywhere from 1 to 2 million people.  How many of them were able to enter the land of promise? Two people were allowed to enter, Caleb and Joshua.  Everyone else died in the wilderness because of their wickedness. 2 out of a million are at least better numbers than the 1 out of a billion of Noah’s day.

Each administration shows that no matter how God deals with humanity: “everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil.” It broke God’s heart at the time of the flood.  It breaks God’s heart today. 

At the time of the flood, there was only one godly man.  We are not to that point in this, the Church age. There are many who love the Lord Jesus and who walk in close fellowship with God. However, the days are evil.  In many places in the world, Christ followers are persecuted for their faith, and compared to the total population of the world true followers of Christ are not in the majority.

The story of Noah gives us a picture of how God dealt with the world when it was at its worst.

First, given that in such a short time after creation there was only one godly person, why would God spare anybody or even start over?  However, God is not willing to destroy the godly along with the ungodly.  

Genesis says, “Noah found favor with the Lord.” (Genesis 6:8, NLT)

This is remarkable to me. The word translated “favor” here in Genesis 6:8 is used in other places to describe ladies who are outstanding because of their beauty and grace.  It carries the idea of being pleasing to the eye.  We know that God looks on the heart.  David was pleasing to God because of his heart. We know that neither David nor Noah was sinless.  But because of their heart toward God, they found favor in the eyes of the Lord.  They were attractive to God. 

This is something that begins here in Genesis and is consistent throughout human history.  In a word, “. . . he offers his friendship to the godly.” (Proverbs 3:32, NLT)

The world was at its worst, but God would not destroy this one godly man.

Second, God tells his plans to Noah, and tells him how to escape the coming judgment. 

This also is a consistent part of God’s character.  Psalm 25:14 says, “The LORD confides in those who fear him.”[iii] (NIV) 

What is more, we know from 2 Peter 2:5 that Noah was a preacher.  Over the 100 years he spent building the ark, Noah was telling the people of his day of the coming judgment. 

In the days of Jonah, God warned Nineveh of his intention to judge them.  They repented and were spared. I believe if the people of Noah’s day would have repented, they too would have been spared. 

It is the same today.  Romans 10:13 tells us, “Everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.” (NLT)  God makes His appeal through us.  We plead with men on behalf of God to be reconciled to God.  We tell of His love.  We tell how Jesus died to pay for our sins.  We tell of God’s willingness to forgive all of our sins and even to adopt us as His own children.  And yet, those who would spread this message are often persecuted and even killed for sharing such good news.

There are those who believe and are saved.  In the days of Noah, it was not so.  For one hundred years he preached without a single convert, not even one.

Third, God confirmed His covenant with Noah. 

This shows once again a consistent part of God’s character. 

Genesis 6:17 & 18 say:

Look! I am about to cover the earth with a flood that will destroy every living thing that breathes. Everything on earth will die. But I will confirm my covenant with you. (NLT)

God is a covenant God.  He makes promises that He never breaks.  His promises are so sure that even if the mountains move and the stars disappear from the sky, His promises will never fail.

One morning this week I was driving west after having dropped Jonathan off at school.  The rising sun was behind me, and a grey sky of clouds and rain was in front of me.  As the sun shone against the clouds before me, a beautiful rainbow arched its way across the whole sky.  It was stunning, and I was reminded of the promise that God made to Noah so many years ago.

God made a covenant with Abraham, and there is still a nation called Israel these thousands of years later.

God made a covenant with David, and Jesus Christ is the eternal descendant of David with the right to sit on David’s throne.

Do you know that God offers His covenant promises to you? 2 Corinthians 1:20 says, “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.” (NIV)

There is a promise of rest for the people of God.  There is a promise of freedom.  There is a promise of forgiveness. There is a promise of eternal life.  There is a promise of a home in heaven, a place in paradise. All these promises are there for the person who will but call on the name of the Lord.  We do not earn these. We receive them by asking for them.

God has promised to judge the world again.  We know it is coming.  We know it will come suddenly.  Just like in the days of Noah, Noah went into the boat he had built and the floods came.  People were living in cities, forging bronze and iron, marrying and having children until the day the flood came.  It will be the same when Jesus returns with one difference.  There will be a seven year pause, known as the tribulation, in which mankind will have one more chance to call upon the name of the Lord to be saved.

Why wait?

Call on Him today.

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[i] Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Copyright 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.  All rights reserved.

[ii] http://www.ldolphin.org/pickett.html

[iii] Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version, Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

Can we be free from the past?

I have a good friend who fought in the Vietnam War. I love this man.  It warms my heart to think of him.

 

He is a story teller. I could sit and listen to his stories for hours and never get bored.  The war is not something he talks about much, but some of the stories he has shared are nothing short of amazing. 

This friend struggles with depression.  He told me of a few times when another person took his place on a patrol or guard duty and died.  He said, “It should have been me.” This is his struggle.  Someone died in his place.  This kind of regret goes far beyond my experience.  I am out of my depth and am humbled by the pain this friend carries.

Do you have pain that you hide? Some of us have things we would like to go back and undo.  We would like a chance to undo some decisions or at least do some things differently.

Today, I was looking at Zechariah 3, not a frequently visited part of the Bible, but it in I saw how God deals with the past.

 

Zechariah wrote at a time in Israel’s history when they were not an independent nation.  Under King David and King Solomon the nation had seen its glory days.  It was a great and powerful nation.  But, over the course of a few hundred years the people had ignored God’s messengers.  They had ignored justice.  They had knowingly practiced many things that violated every moral standard.  They had given themselves over to practice evil to the point that God finally had had enough.  

For many years, the prophets warned the people that God’s patience would wear out.  They preached that God would judge the nation and send them into captivity for 70 years.  That is exactly what happened.

Zechariah was a prophet and priest that lived at the end of those promised 70 years. He preached to the people who returned from the exile.

 

The 70 years of captivity started with millions being led away from the land of Israel. The people who returned from exile numbered less than 50,000.  They were still subjects of a pagan king and under the rule of Darius, King of Persia.

Their past haunted them.  The warnings of the prior prophets were still there to be read. We have accounts in both Ezra and Nehemiah of those who returned from exile doing the very things that had led to the exile in the first place. They were still imprisoned by their past.

There was a huge problem in the hearts and minds of this small and struggling people.  Their fathers had failed.  They had failed. They were tasked with rebuilding the temple, and the work was stalled.  Years went by with no progress.  Zechariah was sent with a message to get them back on task, and the first thing to be dealt with was the past.

Zechariah chapter 3 starts out: “Then the angel showed me Jeshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord.”[i] (Zechariah 3:1, NLT) 

Zechariah would have been especially sensitive to this image.  He was a priest, and the vision was of the High Priest. 

Hebrews 5:1 tells us, “Every high priest is a man chosen to represent other people in their dealings with God.” (NLT)  Seeing the high priest standing before God, Zechariah knew Jeshua was representing his people before God.  Since Jeshua is standing, we know that judgment is taking place.  Who is standing on the right hand side with Jeshua?  “The Accuser, Satan, was there at the angel’s right hand, making accusations against Jeshua.  (Zechariah 3:1, NLT)

This is so typical.  Whenever God has called us to do something, Satan is there to remind us how unworthy we are.  He calls up the past. He calls up our failures.  He calls up anything he can to keep us tied to the past.

God called this small group of people to build him a temple, and Satan was there to stop it from happening if he could.

Look at how God responds.  “And the Lord said to Satan, “I, the Lord, reject your accusations, Satan. Yes, the Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebukes you. This man is like a burning stick that has been snatched from the fire.”” (Zechariah 3:2, NLT)

God does not accept accusations against His chosen ones.  The rest of the chapter will show how He is able to remain holy, just and true and yet forgive the past.

God said, “This man is like a burning stick that has been snatched from the fire.” (Zechariah 3:2, NLT)  Those who came back from exile were few and they were saved as if from the brink of extinction.  The ten tribes of the northern kingdom are still lost to this day.  Fire burns and consumes everything.  These people were all but consumed and God snatched them from the very brink of destruction.

This is what God does.  If someone thinks he is a good person and does not need to be snatched from the fire, he is in danger.  His self-righteousness could destroy him.  If someone thinks he is so bad that none could ever save him, he is close.  No one can ever save himself.  Only God can save us. Only God can deal with the past.

The rest of Zechariah 3 is about how He does that.

We see in verse 3 that Jeshua was dressed in filthy clothes.  This is a picture of all of us.  The priests were the most holy, the best of the best. And here Jeshua is unfit to stand before God. 

When God gives Jeshua clean clothes he says, “See, I have taken away your sins, and now I am giving you these fine new clothes.” (Zechariah 3:4, NLT)  This is what happens. When a person accepts Christ, God places his sin on Jesus.  Jesus paid for those sins on the cross. Next, God puts Jesus’ perfect righteousness on the forgiven sinner like a fine set of priestly garments.   

The next detail given in Zechariah 3 is astounding.  It says, “Then I said, “They should also place a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean priestly turban on his head and dressed him in new clothes while the angel of the Lord stood by.” (Zechariah 3:5, NLT)  This priestly turban was very significant.  There was a gold plate attached to the front of it that said, “Holy to the Lord.” (Exodus 39:30)  Holy means set apart, or special. 

This is what God does for those who accept Christ.  1 Peter 2:9 puts it this way: “you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.” (NLT)

When one accepts Christ, not only does God cloth him in the righteousness of Christ and take his sins away, but He puts a special crown on his head that says, “This is my son, this is my daughter, she is special and precious to me.”

God says this to Jeshua:

“Listen to me, O Jeshua the high priest, and all you other priests. You are symbols of things to come. Soon I am going to bring my servant, the Branch. Now look at the jewel I have set before Jeshua, a single stone with seven facets. I will engrave an inscription on it, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, and I will remove the sins of this land in a single day.” (Zechariah 3:8-9, NLT)

They were symbols of things to come.  The Branch is Jesus.  The single day was the day on Calvary.  We can stop worrying about the past.  We can leave the shame and guilt behind like the dirty clothes taken from Jeshua.  If we accept Jesus, He will tell us, “I have taken your sins away, and you are precious to me.”

Jesus is calling each of us to follow Him.  Is there anything holding us back?

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[i] Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Copyright 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188.  All rights reserved.