The LORD Our Righteous Savior

In Hebrew "The Lord Our Righteous Savior" is "YHWH Zedekenu". This is found in Jeremiah 23:6. According to David Garber's commentary this prophesy is about the coming of a new King who will be called by that name. This apparently is in reference to the current king Zedekiah, whose name means "the LORD is my righteousness". To quote Jeremiah's prophesy:
"“The days are coming,” declares the Lord,
    “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch,
a King who will reign wisely
    and do what is just and right in the land.
In his days Judah will be saved
    and Israel will live in safety.
This is the name by which he will be called:
    The Lord Our Righteous Savior." (Jeremiah 23:5-6)

I started my scripture reading this morning with a new attitude. Well it wasn't exactly new, more like a determined focus on an attitude of quiet obedience. God has something to say to me this morning. Even the Old Testament has something useful for me to learn which will make me a better disciple of Jesus. And I think God did speak to me through His Word (in print).

The reading for this morning (following the schedule to read through the entire bible in a year) was on Jeremiah 22-23 and Titus 1. Jeremiah 23 contained Jeremiah's ongoing criticism of the leaders of Judah. Good leaders were supposed to:
"Do what is just and right. Rescue from the hand of the oppressor the one who has been robbed. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place." (Jeremiah 23:3)
For if they disobey, they will lead the entire nation to disobedience. Jerusalem and the entire kingdom will become a wasteland. 
“People from many nations will pass by this city and will ask one another, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this great city?’ And the answer will be: ‘Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God and have worshiped and served other gods.’” (Jeremiah 23:8-9)

So the play on the names given to leaders is significant, according to Garber,
"With one phrase, the passage reminds the reader of Zedekiah's failed leadership while offering a vision for new leadership. The change in the pronoun in the name from first person singular to first person plural also seems significant. While Zedekiah's leadership may have been primarily self-serving, the new leader would extend God's righteousness to the entire community."

This reminder of the importance of good leadership of God's people is reiterated in Titus 1. Here Paul reminded Titus the important quality of picking leaders for the church.
"An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined. He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it." (Titus 1:6-9)

Paul must know that such person does not exist! The job qualification stated in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 is similarly impossible! Gotquestions.org takes a literal interpretation on these qualifications: "..should be a male, the husband of one wife, of sterling character and one who rules his own home in a biblical way.". I disagree! I think the New Covenant suggests a new kind of christian leader, not limited by gender or marital status. He/she "rules" among God's people by being their servant. Jesus is our Righteous Savior. He makes it possible that anyone who has faith in Him and who lives by the Holy Spirit by demonstrating the fruit of the Spirit (as agreed upon by other Jesus followers) should consider serving in these offices within the church. I remember the day when I was called to be an elder of our church by having other elders and the congregation to laid hand to pray for me. It was an emotional day. What a privilege to serve in God's household! What a responsibility! Without the work of Christ and His Spirit, it would have been impossible. But praise God, what is impossible with men is possible with God! (Luke 18:27)

As surely as the Lord lives

This phrase "As surely as the Lord lives" appeared 41 times (NIV translation) only in the Old Testament. It appeared twice in the scripture reading for today. The first appearance carried a promise:
“If you, Israel, will return,
    then return to me,”
declares the Lord.
“If you put your detestable idols out of my sight
    and no longer go astray,
and if in a truthful, just and righteous way
    you swear, ‘As surely as the Lord lives,’
then the nations will invoke blessings by him
    and in him they will boast.” (Jeremiah 4:1-2)

The second appearance carried a curse:
“Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem,
    look around and consider,
    search through her squares.
If you can find but one person
    who deals honestly and seeks the truth,
    I will forgive this city.
Although they say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives,’
    still they are swearing falsely.” (Jeremiah 5:1-2)

Our pastor Bruxy Cavey gave a sermon last week (part 2 of the series "Big Buts of the Bible") where he talked about how the New Testament/Covenant has replaced (or substituted/superseded) the Old Testament/Covenant. He summarized it this way:
"The OLD Covenant (way of living) is “old” not like an old person we enjoy being with, or an old sweater we enjoy wearing, or an old car we still enjoy driving, but “old” like old food past its due date, an old law that has since been changed, or an old prime minister, president, or queen that we no longer follow. The Old Covenant is part of our history, not our present. To say it is history is not an insult – we learn from our history, but we don’t try to duplicate it." (Sermon note)

Part of me wants to agree with him but part of me still wants to hold on to every word in the Old Testament. It has been the Word of God for me: the absolute, inerrant, and authoritative truth that has shown me how to live and which has given me strength and promises (Psalms 23 and 103 came to mind). I know there is always a danger of letting the bible becoming the "idol" or a replacement of the true "Word" which is Jesus Incarnate (John 1:1).

When I read through the Old Testament, especially through the difficult passages where God (or the various names used for God - Elohim, El Shaddai, Jehovah-Jireh etc) seemed to have a character quite different from the person of Jesus. God who was harsh, jealous, vindictive and cruel is now replaced by the glorious Jesus, who was full of grace and truth (John 1:14). I have been taught not to pick and choose which part of the bible I should read or ignore. I have even found it useful to adopt the discipline that if the part of the bible is "difficult" then all the more I should study it. Well it has not always been easy but the discipline of reading through the entire bible each year has been very helpful.

So "as surely as the Lord lives" speaks of a life long faith that God exists through time; Jesus showed us what God was like at one point in human history; and the Holy Spirit continues to reveal Jesus and our heavenly Father in our hearts what can not be seen or heard. So learning from the people of faith in the Old Testament, as surely as the Lord lives...

"Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for." (Hebrews 11:1-2)

How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news

When I read these familiar words again in Isaiah 52:7 I was thinking once again that the verse encouraged the believers to evangelize - to tell the good news of Jesus to the unsaved world, because it is a beautiful thing to do. I was thinking (somewhat erroneously) of the verse the apostle Paul quoted in Romans 10:15 which was:
"And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!"

There is a subtle difference of course. The verse in Romans is missing "on the mountains" from the verse in Isaiah. Did Paul misquote the verse in Isaiah? So I decided to dig a little deeper.

Biblehub.com has a number of commentaries on Isaiah 52:7. I like Barnes' notes the best:
"The idea in the mind of the prophet is not, that the messenger is so near that the sordid appearance of his feet could be seen. The beholder is supposed to be standing amidst the ruins of the desolated city, and the messenger is seen running on the distant hills. The long anticipated herald announcing that these ruins are to rise, at length appears. Seen on the distant hills, running rapidly, he is a beautiful object. It is his feet, his running, his haste, that attracts attention; an indication that he bears a message of joy, and that the nation is about to be restored. Nahum, who is supposed to have lived after Isaiah, has evidently copied from him this beautiful image:
Behold, on the mountains
The feet of him who brings good tidings,
Who proclaims peace!
O Judah, keep your appointed feasts,
Perform your vows.
For the wicked one shall no more pass through you;
He is utterly cut off. (Nahum 1:15)"

So the apostle Paul correctly interpreted the original verse from Isaiah and applied it to his time. He spoke of the feet as in the gospel messenger running in haste, thus showing his feet. The mountain - most certainly alluded to Mount Zion, which is a symbol of God's reign and protection of Jerusalem, is not as important to his listeners in Rome. The verse is about the urgency and the beauty of being a bearer of the good news of salvation.

Unlike the Jews sitting among the ruins of Jerusalem waiting for liberation from the Babylonian oppressors, our world facing the many difficulties - poverty and wars, Ebola outbreak, global warming etc, are waiting for protection and solutions from the impending disasters. Now the good news is that Jesus has provided salvation for the real problem of mankind - our sinful nature. Jesus Christ has the power to correct all the problems of this world:
"The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together." (Colossians 1:15-17)
But he chooses to do it through us. Those who are believers are renewed to take up the work of renewing the world.
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!" (2 Corinthians 5:17)
We are to be His agent to work towards bringing solutions to the world's problems. We may not be able to do it alone or within our life time but through the universal church of Christ and God's zealousness it will be done!
"Of the greatness of his government and peace
    there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
    and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
    with justice and righteousness
    from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the Lord Almighty
    will accomplish this." (Isaiah 9:7)

For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form

The book of Colossians brought back great memories! My faith journey took a major leap forward when I attended a discipleship camp at the Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario. Among the Chinese Christian Fellowship (CCF) students this was their favorite annual event which was fondly called "Camp Trent". I was actually a working engineer then but I had found wonderful fellowship among these "serious" christian students. I think the year was 1977. I had only been a christian for about a year.

The theme of the conference that year was "Christ in You, the Hope of Glory". The scripture passage was taken from:
"Now I rejoice in what I am suffering for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church. I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness— the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the Lord’s people. To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory." (Colossians 1:24-27)

I don't remember a whole lot what I actually learned from that conference. I remember lots of great hymn sing by hundreds of students. The bible studies were serious but equally lighthearted when most of us were sharing what the scripture meant to our lives. In a strange sort of way the "glorious riches of this mystery" was received with gratitude, to this very day.

I was reading the second chapter of Colossians today. What jumped off the page was this:
"See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ." (Colossians 2:8) I don't think the apostle Paul was telling me not to study philosophy and human cultures. He was reinforcing the truth that these had to be studied in light of what could be learned from my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is very easy to be a slave of the spiritual forces of this world. By focusing on Christ we can stand against these forces:
"We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ." (2 Corinthians 10:5).

"For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head over every power and authority." (Colossians 2:9,10)

It's not a popular thing to say but there are real spiritual forces in play in the world today. Being aware of their existence is the first step to recognizing their influences on the culture and philosophical underpinning of how the world comes to be.

Pastor Bill Versteeg has a wonderful blog on this theme.

So in practice, I should in most situation get into a habit of asking "what would Jesus do (WWJD)?". During most discussion (usually in a christian gathering context) I have been practicing to think "is there a scripture verse for this?". This calls for more scripture memorization and a regular discipline of deeper study of scripture. I thank the Lord that I have committed to writing this blog. This is a very good way to find out what this "fullness of Deity" is in Christ. Praise God!

For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain

This blog came out a bit late because of a trip to Ottawa this weekend to attend a memorial service of someone I never met. David Drysdale Stewart was the father of my wife's good friend from university. The service was very moving. This 83 year old Christian man had lived a very good life. This is an extract of what was written about him:
"David lived a life of discovery, exploring the character of God and the beauty of His creation. He practiced hospitality and concern for the poor and needy. David's life's work was delivered in the lecture theater, pulpit, public debate and written word. His hallmark was to deliver the truth with quality, humor, economy of words and carefully constructed purpose. He has left his mark on countless students, colleagues, friends, and especially his children."

I was particularly touched by the last hymn "Love divine, all loves excelling" by Charles Wesley. The last stanza drew tears to my eyes:
"Finish, then, Thy new creation;
Pure and spotless let us be.
Let us see Thy great salvation
Perfectly restored in Thee;
Changed from glory into glory,
Till in heaven we take our place,
Till we cast our crowns before Thee,
Lost in wonder, love, and praise."

Lost in wonder, love, and praise! It is indeed the chief end of any man (Westminster Shorter Catechism)!

The minister Grant Wilson gave a brief sermon from 1 Corinthians 15:51-57. The key verse was:
"But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."
 How befitting was this message that even though the man died but his life still lives on (John 11:25)! His life was a life of victory! The victory was more than all the degrees and accomplishments he had, and trophies from winning all the athletic tournaments. His most significant victory was victory over death and sin!
“Where, O death, is your victory?
  Where, O death, is your sting?”
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:55-57)
Jesus had risen from the dead. Through Him we too shall rise from the dead. Our sins have been taken away by His sacrificial death on the cross! How can we not praise Him!

It is not a coincident that this is my scripture reading for today:
"I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, so that through my being with you again your boasting in Christ Jesus will abound on account of me." (Philippians 1:20-26)

I felt like this weekend had been a feast of warm and encouraging fellowship, not only with brothers and sisters in Christ, but with the Lord Himself! I pray that my life will always reflect the victory that I have in Christ, that death and sin no longer cast fear and hopelessness but the opposite!