No Other God

“In that day I will cause the horn of the house of Israel to spring forth, and I will open your mouth to speak in their midst. Then they shall know that I am the LORD.”
Ezekiel 29:21

Our verse today comes at the very end of the text we considered last week.  We saw in v. 17-20 that Ezekiel received word on New Year’s Day that God would reward Nebuchadnezzar and his army for their seemingly fruitless labor for 13 years against Tyre.  God said He would give them the land of Egypt because “they worked for Me”.  We compared this long warfare to the believers labor in service to God which is often unnoticed and may have very little evidence of visible fruit, but we were encouraged in Gal 6:9 to “not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart”!  That ultimate reward and fruit of our labor will be fully revealed at the coming of the Lord Jesus when the steadfast and obedient laborers are glorified and hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant…Enter into the joy of your lord.”

With those thoughts in mind, our text today may seem a little out of place.  What does Eze 29:21 have to do with the saints’ faithful service to their God?  Absolutely everything!  To see this more clearly, we need to understand what (or rather Who) the horn of the house of Israel is.  The Septuagint, the oldest Greek version of the Old Testament, uses the same Greek word for “horn” in our text as is used in Luk 1:69.  Here, there can be no mistake Who this Horn represents.  John the Baptist’s father, Zacharias, is full of the Holy Ghost and praises God that He “has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David.”  This Horn of salvation that descended from the natural lineage of David is none other than the Lord Jesus!  As our text in Ezekiel reveals, “In that day,” i.e. the day of the saints’ glorification, “I will cause the horn of the house of Israel to spring forth”.  To understand this springing forth, we again look at the Septuagint to find that the Greek word translated “to spring forth” is rendered “rises” in 2Pe 1:19.  eter is writing to believers in this letter–“those who have obtained like precious faith with us” in v. 1–so when he encourages them to be faithful and look toward that future time in v. 19 “until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts,” He is speaking of the day of the Lord’s second coming!

What will happen in that day when the horn of the house of Israel springs forth?  Our text continues, “I will open your mouth to speak in their midst.  Then they shall know that I am the LORD.”  In the day of the Lord’s return, though the saints will be rewarded, that will not be the focus.  Php 2:10-11 says “that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”  You see, the emphasis of the saints being crowned is not the crowns themselves any more than the emphasis of Nebuchadnezzar being rewarded for his labor is the reward.  Though the saints will receive a “crown of righteousness” (2Ti 4:8), only one head will remain crowned when the Lord is revealed.  In that day, the twenty-four elders (who represent the church throughout all ages) will “fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne”. (Rev 4:10) Though we labor in the Lord, the faithful servants testify “We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.” (Luk 17:10) The Lord receives all the glory even when we are rewarded for our labor!

May we never lose sight of that truth, dear Christian.  Paul acknowledged in 1Co 3:8 that he and Apollos had labored and would therefore be rewarded: “Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.”  But in the previous two verses, he reveals his heart in the matter: “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase.  So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.”  We say with the apostle–we are what we are by the grace of God! (1Co 15:10) In closing, I want to share a quote from Joe Stowell of which the founder of this Bible study group, Chuck Burleson, frequently reminded us:

“If Christianity is dull and boring, if it is a burden and not a blessing, then most likely we are involved in a project, not a Person – a system, not a Saviour, rules rather than relationship.  Followership is not a religious thing, a list of rules, a host of rituals, a philosophy of life, or the best choice among other possible lifestyle. Authentic followers do not live for liturgy or liberation. Following is not a celebration. It is not contemporary or traditional. It is not jubilant dance or compelling drama. It is not preaching. It is not praising. It is not obeying or conforming.  It is Christ, and Christ alone.  All the rest is because of Christ and for Christ.”

Love in Christ,
Jamie

And it came to pass in the twenty-seventh year, in the first month, on the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon caused his army to labor strenuously against Tyre; every head was made bald, and every shoulder rubbed raw; yet neither he nor his army received wages from Tyre, for the labor which they expended on it. Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Surely I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; he shall take away her wealth, carry off her spoil, and remove her pillage; and that will be the wages for his army. I have given him the land of Egypt for his labor, because they worked for Me,’ says the Lord GOD. ‘In that day I will cause the horn of the house of Israel to spring forth, and I will open your mouth to speak in their midst. Then they shall know that I am the LORD.’ “
Ezekiel 29:17-21

For a few weeks now we’ve been considering what the word of God has to say about the new year.  As we’ve examined these texts in the order they appear in scripture, it’s been interesting to see how these New Year’s Day passages have followed the path of the spiritual experience for the believer.  We first looked at two events that pointed us to “salvation in the new year” as the flood waters dried up and the tabernacle was first raised on New Year’s Day.  As we noted in the last post, our spiritual experience doesn’t stop at salvation.  Though justified before God now, we are still being continually conformed to the image of Christ through a process called sanctification.  We saw “sanctification in the new year” as King Hezekiah began to cleanse the temple on New Year’s Day.  Today, we see the final step in our spiritual journey, namely “glorification in the new year”!

In our text above, God gives revelation to His prophet Ezekiel on New Year’s Day concerning the lengthy warfare of Nebuchadnezzar and his army.  In Babylon’s battle against Tyre, the Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge has this to say:

“Nebuchadnezzar was thirteen years employed in the siege. During this long siege, the soldiers must have endured great hardships; their heads would become bald by constantly wearing their helmets; and their shoulders be peeled by carrying materials to and from the works.  St. Jerome asserts, on the authority of the Assyrian histories, that when the Tyrians saw their city must fall, they put their most valuable effects on board their ships, and fled with them to the islands, and their colonies, ‘so that, the city being taken, Nebuchadnezzar found nothing worthy of his labour.’”

After all that long labor, Nebuchadnezzar had nothing to show for his work!  Doesn’t it feel like that in our Christian battle often times, dear soul?  We labor and strive, yet we wonder if it does any good.  No one seems to notice and there appears to be no benefit though the effort we put forth was great.  No wonder Gal 6:9 encourages us to “not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.”  God wouldn’t put that in the Book unless we were often tempted to feel like our effort was in vain, but we must remember that when no one notices the labor, the Lord does!  In fact, Mat 6 instructs us to labor in a hidden fashion in charitable giving, prayer, and fasting because “your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly”. (v. 3-4, 6, 17-18) In contrast, those who labor in such things to be seen of men “have no reward from your Father in heaven”. (v. 1) That’s good reason to rejoice and not grow weary in seemingly fruitless and unnoticed service!

God certainly pulls back the curtain at times and gives us a glimpse of what he’s accomplishing through and for His children, but even if we never see the fruit of our labor in this life, we are assured in Rev 22:12 by our Lord, “behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.”  God said Nebuchadnezzar would be rewarded for his tireless warfare against Tyre “because they worked for Me”.  Likewise, all who serve for the Lord’s sake will realize the full reward for their labor in the day of glorification.  What is the expected reward?  Rom 2:3-11 says those who patiently continue in well doing, those who work good, will receive rewards of “glory, honor, and peace”.  Words like “immortality” and “eternal” in this passage show that these rewards will never fade away for these heirs of everlasting life!  So, remember believer, no matter how things look outwardly, God is at work and rewards the labor of those who serve for His glory.  In light of such glorious truths, “my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” (1Co 15:58)

Jamie

Then the priests went into the inner part of the house of the LORD to cleanse it, and brought out all the debris that they found in the temple of the LORD to the court of the house of the LORD. And the Levites took it out and carried it to the Brook Kidron. Now they began to sanctify on the first day of the first month, and on the eighth day of the month they came to the vestibule of the LORD. So they sanctified the house of the LORD in eight days, and on the sixteenth day of the first month they finished.
2 Chronicles 29:16-17

In our previous “New Year’s” studies, we saw a picture of salvation in the new year as the earth was fully dry after the flood (Gen 8:13) and the tabernacle was first raised (Exo 40:17) on the first day of the first month.  As glorious as both of those events were, sin was not done away with.  The flood waters had washed away the filth of the old world, and yet among those preserved on the ark was Ham, the son of Noah who sinned against his father bringing a curse upon his son Canaan. (Gen 9:22-25) In similar fashion, though worship was taken to a whole new level with the children of Israel when the tabernacle was established, it wouldn’t be long before the priests Nadab and Abihu would offer profane fire before the Lord and pay for that sin with their lives. (Lev 10:1-2) Even so, though old things have passed away and all things have become new when we are born again (2Co 5:17), the work is not yet done.  We are still looking for that day which 1Jo 3:2 describes “when He is revealed” and “we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is”.  Until that time, as the next verse explains, we have a job to do: “And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”

Our text above is a spiritual picture of this process of sanctification.  In 2Ch 29, the kingdom of Judah was in sad spiritual shape when King Hezekiah came to power after the death of his wicked father.  Hezekiah had a burning desire to set things in order and instructed the Levites to “sanctify yourselves, sanctify the house of the LORD God of your fathers, and carry out the rubbish from the holy place.” (2Ch 29:5) Guess when this cleansing of the temple, this sanctification process, began?  You got it–New Year’s Day! (v. 17) So again, we find that scripture takes our thoughts to matters of spiritual importance when the New Year is mentioned.   Even as Hezekiah was passionate about cleansing the temple in his day, we ought to be concerned this new year with seeking to remove any hindrances to worship in God’s present-day temple, namely those of us who make up the body of Christ!  “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1Co 3:16)

The Bible is ripe with passages that speak of this continual cleansing of the believer as we are conformed to the image of Christ.  Just like the water of the Brook Kidron carried away the debris in Hezekiah’s temple (2Ch 29:16), God has given us the “washing of water by the word” to aid us in the washing away of the filth of this flesh. (Eph 5:26) We are called to take an active role in this process of sanctification.  In 2Ti 2:20-21 we are to rid ourselves of those things in this spiritual house that do not bring honor to God: “But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified and useful for the Master, prepared for every good work.”  In Col 3:1-2, we are instructed to be heavenly-minded, seeking things above.  Such an attitude requires us to “put to death” and “put off” the long list of sinful works of the flesh in v. 5-9.  How do we know when we’re done with this sanctification process?  1Pe 1:14-15 sets forth the standard: “…as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct…”  The goal is to be as holy as God is!  Are you there yet?  Me neither!  So, “beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” (2Co 7:1)

The apostle Paul confessed in Php 3:12 that he had not already attained to sinless perfection.  He knew he still had work to do to rid himself of sin, but, he wasn’t discouraged.  He continued, “but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.  Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (v. 13-14) 2014 is in the past.  May the sins that hindered us then be a thing of the past as well.  May we, like the apostle, forget those things that are behind and reach forward toward the goal of perfection in Christ.  I love the next verse: “Therefore let us, as many as are mature, have this mind; and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal even this to you.” (v. 15) As we walk in obedience to God, cleansing ourselves from any error we do see, God will reveal more work to be done!  I want to be more like Jesus in 2015, don’t you?  I want it to be a year of plucking out and of cutting off all that is offensive to my God (Mat 5:29-30), a year of growing in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (2Pe 3:18) Let us pray for one another in this holy endeavor.

Jamie

And it came to pass in the first month of the second year, on the first day of the month, that the tabernacle was raised up. 
Exodus 40:17

Last week, we began an examination of the new year in the scripture with a desire to see what God would draw our attention to at this time of the year.  We continue our study of significant events in scripture on New Year’s Day by considering the passage above this week.  Here we discover that the tabernacle was raised in the wilderness for the first time on New Year’s Day!  We see again that this event, similar to last week, points to salvation, but we learn some additional truths concerning our new birth as we read through Exodus 40.

One thing that is highlighted in this portion of scripture over and over again is the absolute obedience of Moses to the word of God in raising the tabernacle.  Everything was set in order exactly as God had commanded.  Exodus 40 begins with God’s instruction to Moses on how to set up the tabernacle, and in v. 16 we read, “Thus Moses did; according to all that the LORD had commanded him, so he did.”  Moses didn’t step out of line even a fraction when putting the things of the tabernacle in their proper places.  This fact is further reiterated in the remaining verses as the actions of Moses were said to be done “as the LORD had commanded Moses.” (v. 19, 21, 23, 25, 27, 29, 32) Finally, v. 33 concludes that “Moses finished the work.”  Interestingly, though Moses would have undoubtedly had assistance when performing some of these tasks (such as in v. 18-19 when he raised up the tent of tabernacle by fastening the sockets, raising the pillars, and putting the covering on top), no one is credited with the work except Moses alone.

This emphasis on the work of Moses in Exodus 40 paints a glorious picture of the Lord Jesus Christ in accomplishing our salvation!  He completely obeyed the Father, walking in sinless perfection, and saw the work to its full completion at Calvary.  Just as the tabernacle was raised, the Lord has raised His church from her deadness in trespasses and sins, and He alone gets the credit for that spiritual resurrection. (Eph 2:1, 5) The song of the great multitude in Rev 19:1 declares this truth as they sing, “Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God!”  This comparison of Moses as a type of the Lord is clearly made for us in Heb 3:1-6 where we find that Christ Jesus “was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was faithful in all His house.”  Moses’ faithfulness points to Christ’s faithfulness!  That same passage also reveals the people of God, the church, to be the house of God: “…whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end”. (Heb 3:6) When we see then the tabernacle being raised on New Year’s Day due to the full obedience of Moses, we should see salvation for the Lord’s people due to the complete obedience of Jesus Christ Who, having offered Himself as the final sacrifice for sin “once for all” (Heb 9:12) upon the cross, exclaimed at the end of His work, “It is finished”! (Joh 19:30)

One final note about the resulting effect of Moses’ obedience in Exodus 40.  We see that upon the completion of the work, “the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle”.  Even so, when Christ completed His work and ascended to the Father, the result was God filling His spiritual house, the church.  Jesus promised when He returned to the Father: “I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.” (Joh 14:16-17) And we know that’s exactly what happened in Acts 2 and has been the case for everyone born of the Spirit since that time—God has filled this temple!  That truth prompted Paul to write to the believers in Corinth that, “your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God”. (1Co 6:19) Thank God for the complete obedience of Jesus Christ!  He did not stop short of the goal but fully accomplished our salvation.  And, as if that wasn’t enough, He then sent His Spirit to live inside and direct all who put their trust in Him!  Hallelujah, what a Savior!!  May our thoughts be toward our Redeemer as we enter this new year.

Jamie

As we entered the new year a couple of weeks ago, a question popped into my mind which I had never considered.  Does the word of God put any emphasis upon the New Year?  I know the type of things our society is concerned about this time of the year.  Everybody’s making their New Year’s resolutions which tend to center around being healthier physically or obtaining some financial goal.  But, is there any significance to New Year’s Day in the scripture?  I must say, I’ve been surprised to discover the incidents in the Bible which occurred on the first day of the first month!  These events instruct us concerning what the Lord would have our minds to be fixed upon as we start another year, so let’s consider the first of them.

Did you know that it was the first day of the first month when the flood waters dried up and Noah saw the new world?  Well, if you did, why didn’t you tell me?!! 🙂 Just listen to Gen 8:13: “And it came to pass in the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, that the waters were dried up from the earth; and Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and indeed the surface of the ground was dry.”  There was a new beginning, a whole new world!  The old had been done away with and everything was new.  Sound familiar?  “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” (2Co 5:17) This experience of Noah points to the new birth, salvation in Jesus Christ.  God had washed away all the filthiness of that old creation.  Noah and his family had been sheltered from the wrath of God being safe in the ark.  Their salvation was complete and the flood was no more on the first day of the first month!  On this day, it was clear they had been spared from the wrath of God, and they were safe.

Isn’t that what happened to you when the Lord saved you?  What a relief!  On that day, we were assured that we were forgiven, safe in the arms of Christ.  No more did future destruction loom over my head.  I was delivered!  Life was now an entirely new experience.  The world looked completely different.  I can remember as a young man sitting in church and daydreaming, thinking the service would never end; but, how my perspective changed when God gave me life!  All of a sudden, attending church wasn’t a labor.  It was a joy!  Hearing the gospel preached thrilled my soul!  And sin was no longer the attraction it had been before.  It was a grief, not a delight.  I hated to find it in me, and I ran from it instead of to it.  Everything was made new.

In our day, many deny the flood.  Even some professing Christians believe it to have been localized instead of worldwide.  But the word of God is clear.  God destroyed the world that then was, and on that New Year’s Day, Noah beheld a world that no man had ever seen.  We are warned in 2Pe 3:3-4 that “scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, and saying, ‘Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.'”  These individuals deny that Christ will return, claiming the world will continue as it always has.  But the next verses tell us that, in order to think that way, they must “willfully forget: that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water and in the water, by which the world that then existed perished, being flooded with water.” (v. 5, 6)  Man may deny the global flood, but that doesn’t eliminate the truth which that event declares.  After continually warning mankind of the coming judgment, God destroyed that wicked ancient world, delivering only those who believed His word and entered the ark.  In like manner, the present heavens and earth are destined to pass away.  For thousands of years, God in His great mercy has sent His minister’s to warn of this destruction.  Only those safe in Jesus Christ, our heavenly Ark, will be delivered to enjoy “new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.” (v. 13) May the New Year be a year of drawing closer to our Deliverer, rejoicing in His salvation!

Jamie