PASSOVER Part 3: To the Promised Land

We placed the blood on the doorposts of our hearts, were spared death, delivered from our slavery to sin and our captors were washed away. (See PASSOVER Part 1: Doorposts of Our Hearts)

Then we tried to worship the Almighty in the ways we had learned from the pagans.  (See PASSOVER Part 2: Into the Desert)

Now we are headed to check out the promised land.  The reports have come back that the Land has enormous fruit and is flowing with milk and honey!  So why don't we go in?  Our faith is so weak that we think that Father, who through his grace saved us from our captivity, can't empower us to overcome another enemy.  Only 2 people out of the saved multitude ultimately entered the promised land.  How sad and stubborn is that?

Unfortunately for us, we are in the same place!  Messiah has clearly stated that while our faith has saved us, we must obey Father's commandments to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.  However, whenever the multitudes hear this, they refuse!  They say it is impossible to obey and enter the Kingdom.  They have no more faith in their Creator than the children of Israel had in the desert.  The majority will fall in the wilderness. Only a couple will trust the Almighty to empower them to overcome their sinful nature allowing them to enter the Promised Kingdom of Heaven. 

How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.   Matthew 7:14

PASSOVER Part 2: Into the Desert

We placed the blood on the doorposts of our hearts, were spared death, delivered from our slavery to sin and our captors were washed away.  (See PASSOVER Part 1: Doorposts of Our Hearts)

We've left all we've ever known and find ourselves in the wilderness.  What's next?  Well, the purpose for leaving Egypt was to have a Festival to the Almighty in the desert:

Later, Moses and Aaron went in and said to Pharaoh, "This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Let My people go, so that they may hold a festival for Me in the wilderness."   Exodus 5:1

So naturally a festival to the Most High is what the children of Israel were expecting.

After their salvation from Egypt, the deliverer ascended to the Most High God to receive His instructions.  The Israelites didn't wait to hear the word via this mediator, Moses.  Instead, they took it upon themselves to have a festival to the Almighty, not in the way He would prescribe, but instead in a way they had learned from the pagans in Egypt.

When the people saw that Moses delayed in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said to him, "Come, make us a god who will go before us because this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt-we don't know what has happened to him!"    Exodus 32:1

I know we've been taught that the Israelites were so stiff-necked that they were worshiping some foreign deity.   Let the scriptures explain who they were worshiping albeit in a pagan way.

He took [the gold] from their hands, fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made it into an image of a calf. Then they said, "Israel, this is your God, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!"        When Aaron saw [this], he built an altar before it; then he made an announcement: "There will be a festival to the LORD tomorrow."   Exodus 32:4-5

We see that the calf was to represent the God that led them from Egypt.   With this image, they were planning to have a festival to the LORD.  This is because that was the whole reason for leaving Egypt from the beginning.  We know that this ended poorly for them.   

So, what does this mean for those of us who have been saved from our captivity to sin via the blood of the Passover Lamb?  

Unfortunately we have learned little from this example.  We did not receive our worship instruction from our mediator as to how to have festivals in His name.  Very little of our Christian festivals are the result of instruction from the Creator or His Messiah.  The biggest days on the Christian calendar (Christmas, Easter, Sundays) did not originate from any instruction from God.  Each one was used in pagan worship long before Messiah walked the earth.  You will find no instructions in the Bible to follow these practices. 

The golden calf is a foreshadow of these pagan Christian practices. 

I know it's hard to imagine a golden bovine statue being used to represent the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  Please consider this which I hope isn't over-simplified.  You've probably heard the title of Elohim, which means God in Hebrew.  It is sometimes used in the shortened form, El.   In ancient Hebrew the word El was represented by the head of an ox.  In other words, the word that represented the Creator was actually an ox. Its not hard to see how they might make a golden ox calf statue to represent our Almighty Father. 

On to to the Promised Land (PASSOVER Part 3: Into the Promised Land)

PASSOVER Part 1: Doorposts of Our Hearts

It's time for Passover!  What?  Not interested?  But did you know it's very much about Messiah?

Father heard the cries of His children in bondage.  He asked nothing of them except that they place the blood of an unblemished lamb on the doorposts of their homes.  Those showing their faith in His blood promise were spared death.  They were freed from bondage.  They passed through the waters of the Red Sea that washed away their captors. 

So what does this have to do with Messiah?

Father has heard the cries of His children in bondage to sin.  For our freedom, He asks only that we place the blood of The Unblemished Lamb on the doorposts of our hearts.  Those having faith in this blood are spared eternal death.  They are freed from their bondage of slavery to sin.  They follow through the waters of mikveh (baptism) and the sin that held them captive is washed away. 

How awesome is that?  Did you notice that these people were SAVED by the blood with nothing else having been asked of them? 

Father's expression of Grace goes much farther back than just 2000 years.  It wasn't a foreign concept to the children of Israel. 

To be continued..........PASSOVER Part 2: Into the Desert

The Few

 How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.   Matthew 7:14

According to Messiah, FEW will find the gate that leads to life.  He goes on to teach that he will send away MANY who call him their Lord.  Let's examine why these Christians are sent away:

21 "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord!' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but [only] the one who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to Me, 'Lord, Lord, didn't we prophesy in Your name, drive out demons in Your name, and do many miracles in Your name?' 23 Then I will announce to them, 'I never knew you! Depart from Me, you lawbreakers! '    Matthew 7

Notice in vs 21 that to enter the Kingdom of heaven one must do the will of our Father in heaven.  What would Messiah's audience understand Father's will to be?  Didn't HE speak it and enter into an everlasting covenant with them at Sinai?  Father's will is a cuss word in most churches.  That's right.  Father's will is the LAW.  Don't believe me?  In vs 23 what does Messiah call those he sends away?   LAWbreakers!!  I realize your translation may render it as you who practice lawlessness or workers of iniquity or evildoers.  It comes from the Greek word anomia and is defined as: 

1. the condition of without law
   1. because ignorant of it
   2. because of violating it
2. contempt and violation of law, iniquity, wickedness

Be sure to notice that these Christians will have done miracles and other great things in the name of Jesus, but since they didn't do Father's will, they are sent away.  Imagine their dismay.    Remember, Messiah said FEW find the gate.  It stands to reason that he will send away MANY.  There will certainly be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
 

Greater Works? Where?

"I assure you: The one who believes in Me will also do the works that I do. And he will do even greater works than these, because I am going to the Father.    John 14:12

Messiah clearly states that those believing in him will do great works.......even greater than his. 

There are many churches filled with those who believe in 'Jesus'.  Where are the promised works?  Rarely do we hear of anything resembling the works of Messiah in our churches.  Are the works hidden?  Did Father's Messiah break his promise?  Or do we perhaps believe wrongly........in a wrong 'Jesus' perhaps?   

If we've received teachings about 'Jesus' that are in error and our 'Jesus' beliefs are built upon these errors, wouldn't we be believing in a different 'Jesus'?  Could this be why we are not doing 'greater works' as he himself promised?

Paul or Peter?

Messiah said:

And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.   Matthew 16:18

 

Peter warned:

 But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them--bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute.   2 Peter 2 : 1-2

 

Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.   2 Peter 3 : 15-18

 

That's a pretty serious warning.  Let's make sure we know who the church founder (Peter) is writing to by looking at the introduction of 2 Peter:

 

Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ  2 Peter 1 : 1

 

It's clear that Peter isn't writing to the masses, but instead to those calling Jesus their Savior. 

 

Earlier we saw Peter's warning that many would follow false teachers bringing the way of truth into disrepute.  We also saw that lawless men (those who don't keep the Law) would distort the meaning of Paul's writings. 

 

I believe this is important because the churches that I've been associated with are built on Paul, not Peter.  I say this because they always quote Paul to justify their lawlessness.  Time after time when one brings to the attention of a pastor or lay person that the church doesn't keep even the Ten Commandments they nearly always run to Paul to justify their wrongdoing.  This is done despite the warning from our church foundation, Peter, that false teachers would distort the truth and men who don't practice the Law would distort Paul's writings. 

 

I hope to post more on this later. 

 

-neal