PART 2 PROPHETS MESSENGERS OF THE COVENANT

 

 



2 CHRONICLES 36:15-21 God’s pattern of chastisement is to send his messengers, the prophets, to warn His people to come back to the covenant He has made with them. It is not to condemn, but rather, to get His people to return to Him and His commandments. We should not take offense, but turn back and repent and restore our relationship to God. When we refuse God leaves us to our own devices and our lives often spin out of control. When we are not sure what He wants of us we should ask and then wait for him to show us what He desires.

In Old Testament times God sent His prophets to warn the people and exhort them to return to God’s law and established covenant. This is seen throughout the Old Testament. This is God’s method of operation then, and today in the affairs of men. When we turn away from God we loose a curse upon ourselves. Deut 28 This is God’s established spiritual law. Sin releases the curse of death. It makes our lives difficult. God desires we turn back to Him and receive blessing, but we are stiff necked and stubborn, just as the children of Israel were. There is nothing new under the sun--God still operates this way today. Ecc 1:9-10

1 Peter 1:3-13 We are obtaining an inheritance reserved for us in heaven. We are in the process of working out (walking out) our salvation so that it will become manifest in our lives. The full salvation of God is yet to be revealed in the last time. What is it? It is the revelation of Jesus Christ being revealed in us. This is the full salvation which we are in the process of attaining. We are saved now--but there is full salvation yet to be revealed at the end of the age.

The prophets of old searched out and understood this salvation was in Messiah and they understood the glories to be revealed. There is more to our faith than just being saved and going to heaven--there is an ongoing change that is transforming us into His image. This is the mystery that angels desire to understand. This is the message of the prophets throughout history. God has a plan and it is being revealed through Messiah and His people. This is what the entire Bible reveals--God’s eternal plan.

The Holy Spirit was given so that we can walk in the full salvation of God. The prophet is to call the people (church) back to the full covenant of God. We are to come into the full revelation of Jesus Christ. Rev 1 The revelation of eternity (Jesus Christ) is the message of the prophets. Rev10:7 The mystery of God is fulfilled. This is the day we are advancing toward.

God is dealing with His people who are walking in rebellion to His word. He is beginning to speak to our sin. This is not the devil--it is God speaking to our rebellion and sin and seeking our repentance and refreshing. Rev 2 and 3 God is speaking to the church--His elect--to turn back to Him. God wants our hearts to turn fully back to Him. This is the same message the prophets of old were giving. To live in God’s Kingdom is to embrace His commandments.


THE NEW COVENANTIn Jeremiah 31 thru 33 God says He is going to make a new covenant with His people. He is going to write His law upon their hearts and minds. God wants us to obey and do things according to His way (Torah). This is to make new, repair, renew. This is the new covenant. We are saved by grace and faith in the blood and blessed by walking out His commandments.

When Israel came out of Egypt they were saved by grace and faith in the Passover blood of the lamb. Later, God gave them the commandments and instructed them through Moses to walk it out. The commandments are not for salvation--the blood is--the commandments are how we are supposed to live after we receive salvation. The new covenant is about restoring God’s people.

God is going to show us how to walk (live)--just as he showed the children of Israel in the wilderness. They had an opportunity to become a nation of priests but they rejected the voice of God and told Moses to go talk to God for them. They rejected the full priesthood. They refused to advance and grow. God wants us to walk in/fulfill His total word.


COVENANTA covenant is cutting a compact--cut a deal. This implies the shedding of blood for the remission of sin in the Old Testament. It is, in effect, a renewal with God or in our case Jesus. We are saved by the shed blood--blood atonement, blood sacrifice. Leviticus 17:11 The blood makes atonement--the shedding of innocent blood of bulls, lambs, and goats. This is how they were “saved“--not by obeying the commandments. The commandments showed them how to live--how to walk out their salvation in a righteous manner. In Leviticus 5:6 we see another example of this. A sin offering for a trespass against your brother (neighbor). They were to bring a blood atonement. Lev 6:6 A blood sacrifice had to be brought for atonement. God was showing them who Jesus the Messiah was going to be.

The prophets continually called and reminded the people to come back to this simple blood atonement but they would incorporate pagan rites and customs into God’s way of salvation and God abhorred this. In Luke 11:49-52 Jesus reminded the religious leaders of how they were misleading the people and incorporating their traditions into the simple blood atonement of the lamb. Able was a prophet. He was killed by his brother for doing the correct thing--he brought a blood offering. Cain was jealous that Able was favored for his obedience! God told Cain to reconsider and not follow his sinful way. He did not listen and killed his righteous brother rather than yield and please God.

When Noah (he was a prophet) came off the ark he gave burnt offerings to the Lord. He knew God’s law. He gave blood sacrifice. Genesis 8:20 Noah had clean animals to sacrifice because he had taken seven of each of them. Gen 7:2-3 God told Noah to do this so he would have the correct number of animals to make the blood atonement with.

Abraham was also a prophet. Gen 20:7 He also understood God’s sacrificial laws. He knew God would provide a lamb for Isaac’s replacement because he knew God did not require human sacrifice. Abraham knew and obeyed.

Prophets understand that blood sacrifice is atonement for sin and that a prophet was coming (Jesus) to fully atone for man’s sin. Eph 1:7

In Deut 4:13-14 we see that God wants us to practice His commandments and live. This is a biblical definition of a covenant. The 1^st aspect: is the shedding of blood--grace through faith. The 2^nd aspect: is walking it out in righteousness. This is the practical application of our faith. This is the way of life in God’s Kingdom. We don’t lie, cheat, steal, covet, murder, etc.

Most of the laws in the USA and other civilized countries are based on biblical law. If you break the law you don’t lose your citizenship (Salvation in our case) but you go to jail. You are in bondage. If you break one of God’s commandments you don’t lose your salvation--you have the blood atonement--you repent and move forward in the grace of that atonement. You break the law you go to jail (bondage). You break God’s commandments you are in bondage to sin and are robbed of blessings.

God expects us to obey his commandments and to walk righteously. Breaking God’s commandments is sin. A curse is released through sin. The curse of death. A curse of cursing and not blessing. Our salvation in Jesus gives us the grace to overcome sin in our lives--if we want to. We repent and turn back to God. Hosea 6:6-7 God delights in faithfulness to Him and to His word. When we transgress God’s laws we sin. When we obey we are changed into His image.

This concept is what the Old Testament is about and what the prophets continually spoke of. This is also a New Testament concept. In 1 John 3:4-6 and 1 John 2:3-5 we see that sin is the transgression of God’s law. Adam was the first to disobey. We reap what we sow. Sow to the flesh and receive the reward of the flesh--sow to the spirit and receive eternity. If we walk in sin our lives will be chaotic and confusing. If we walk in His way we receive blessing and prosper.

Transgression of the law (Torah) is lawlessness. Without Torah we are lawless. Yes, Jesus has saved us from the curse of the law--but we are still to walk accordingly. Think about what Jesus said in John 15:9-10. He kept the commandments. Think also about Jesus’ great commission to us in Matt 28:16-20.

The foundational job of the prophet is to teach and exhort the church to come back to God and walk in His law. We are to obey the commands--to walk it out. This is what I call walking in the spirit. As we obey we become like Him, changed from glory to glory. If you refuse to walk in God’s commandments than you do not love Him. 1 John 5:1-3

It is that simple! Love God first and then your neighbor and the yoke is easy, the burden is light.


TRUE PROPHETS MINISTER GOD’S FULL SALVATIONGod’s full salvation is to be manifest in us. We are saved by grace and faith Eph 2:8-9 This is not a church program it is us being changed. Philippians 2:12-16 We are working out our salvation with fear and trembling (seriousness) through our obedience to God’s commands. We are then conformed into His image. Romans 8:29 Jesus showed us what God looked like--how God operates and what He expects of us.

We are being called to walk like He walked. We want to walk it out according to His Spirit and grace. We are to become willing to give up the deeds (works) of the flesh in our lives. This is where we need to have our heart’s desire. With His grace we will become over comers and it will all be very worth it. 1 John 2:3-6 tells us that we will gladly keep His commandments if we know Him.

Prophecy is the testimony of Jesus. Rev 1 The testimony of Jesus is walking in God’s way. The love of God when it is perfected in us causes us to walk in His commandments. Don’t lose your first love. Rev 2:4 If we love the Lord we love to please Him.

The word and the spirit will renew our mind. The word is the early rain and the spirit is the latter rain. Hosea 6:1-3

God will come to us in this way. If we are living in sin we do not have the mind of Christ and blessing is withheld. You can be saved yet still be living in sin! The manifestation of Christ in us is understanding the commandments and walking it out. We need to apply the whole word of God in our lives

In 2 Peter 1:4 we are told we are partakers of the divine nature of God--that is walking in obedience to His law just as Jesus did. God wants to restore His glory in us! As we walk it out and become conformed to His image everything begins to fall into place in our lives.

In Nehemiah 1:8-9 we see God, through the prophet, exhorting His people to return to Him. This is the pattern throughout scripture--both old and new. Turn unto me and live! When we turn to God and walk in His commandments we are blessed. Neh 9:29-36, Isaiah 58:1-2 God constantly has His hands stretched out toward us in mercy. The message of repentance is for the church--for all of us. Isaiah 44:21 Once saved a person can receive God’s blessings because they have turned/repented and are desirous of walking righteously. Our walk is joyous because we now can move forward in His grace and forgiveness--the curse of the law is broken in our lives, but the blessing is still to be worked out. In Joel 2 we see constant renewal in life if we come to God humbly and turn to His ways. There should be constant revival in our daily walk. This is what repentance is--it is revival! In order to have revival we must turn/repent and walk God’s way!

Malachi 3:1-7 is not just talking about John the Baptist--he is talking about the end of the age--the 2^nd coming of Messiah. The world is going to see His glory manifested in the church--in our lives--then He is going to appear. This is the spirit of Elijah--prepare ye the way of the Lord--the forerunner anointing. He is refining us like gold and silver. Our salvation is in spirit, soul, and body. God will be a witness against those who refuse to obey His laws. Malachi 4:5-6 The forerunner message is repent--turn back--to God. This is the day of the Lord. The spirit and power of Elijah preparing the way for the return of our King.

Next: Part Three - False Prophets