The Heaton File

Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct. (Hebrews 13:7)

Following The Faith Of Teachers

The Hebrew Christians faced great persecution along with the discouragement of many who had given up their faith, returning to the teachings of the Law of Moses. It became a challenge to embrace the gospel of Christ in a world given over to paganism and the pressure of family to remain faithful to the Jewish teachings of the law. Wherever the faithful found themselves, they needed encouragement to stay true to the teachings of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. In his closing remarks to the Hebrews, the writer affirms the individual’s faith by admonishing him to follow the example of those who had guided him in the path of truth. It is uncertain in what context these leaders ruled over the people. Whatever place these people found themselves serving, their example would become the basis of helping others remain faithful to the Lord. The leaders had spoken the word to the people and left a legacy of faith well worth following.

Faith is an active example of daily living. Teachers are instructed to guide the hearts and minds of the students in the word of God. It is easy to teach the word of God, but it becomes a greater task to live the message taught. Teachers lead by example. The early church was filled with many whose task was to lead the people to understand the word of God. More than just teaching the word, those who instructed the church in the word of God lived a daily life of faith, showing how the word changed their lives. Those who spoke the word of God to others would receive the heavier judgment for the responsibilities placed upon them, and those who heard the word had a great responsibility to follow and obey the word of God. Learning the will of God was a vital part of the life of the Christian but following the example of those who taught was a very important part of the growth process. The teachers lived their lives as examples of what they taught, and the students needed to follow that faith. That was a great example.

Teaching the word of God changes lives not only for this life but recreates a soul to a view of eternity. The Hebrew writer wants his readers to consider the outcome of the lives of those who taught them the word of the Lord. John will later write in the Revelation of the works that follow the faithful. One of the great memories from childhood are the Bible teachers who impressed the stories of God into the minds of the children. These are lessons that are not easily forgotten. It is necessary to remind teachers of the impact they have on the lives of their students, and the eternal lessons taught in the classroom of holy writ have a far more reaching impetus than anything in the world. Teachers must instruct so that the students will follow their faith and seek to mold their lives after their example. That is a tall order. It is one that is eternal.

For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods. For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the Lord made the heavens. (Psalm 96:4-5)

He Made The Heavens

The ultimate irony of the wisdom and power of man compared to the knowledge and power of the Lord God is without question the greatest paradox in man’s existence. There is nothing that man has done compared to the magnificent glory of God’s creation. For untold thousands of years, the earth, sun, moon, and heavenly hosts of stars have remained constant in their designed purpose as civilizations of men come and go across the landscape of time. The Pharoah’s of ancient Egypt gazed upon the same moon that fills the night sky of today. Each day begins with the rising of the sun, and when the sun completes its heavenly path across the sky, it fades across the horizon as it has done since the day Adam and Eve first beheld the brilliance of the nearest star. The cluster of the Pleiades and the belt of Orion are known by men as old as Job, who also beheld the Mazzaroth and the Great Bear with its cubs in the blackness of the night sky. All that fills the heavens remain as a lasting testimony of the power of God.

Humanity has accomplished many great things. The pyramids of Egypt, the great wall of China, the Panama Canal, and the International Space Station stand out as engineering marvels. Man has gone to the moon, mastered flight, created medicines able to save millions, and opened the world with electronic devices. There is much the human mind has been able to accomplish in the many thousands of years it has sought to achieve a higher course of life. Ironically, the wisdom of men is solely dependent on the power of God to exist. The pyramids of Egypt are one of the world’s great wonders, but they are decaying to the point of ruin. There is no function of purpose to the pyramids today but museum pieces. The great wall of China is a structure with 13,000 miles of mortar and brick that is visible from space but has no purpose apart from a tourist attraction. As great an accomplishment as the International Space Station, it survives based upon exact mathematical and scientific principles keeping it in orbit above the circle of the earth. Like all things made by man, it has a shelf life that will see its destruction one day. Designed for fifteen years, it may continue for another few years, but one day, it will crash and burn through the earth’s atmosphere.

The psalmist describes how great the Lord is and that He should be greatly praised. Written nearly three thousand years ago, the writer did not have the advantages of the modern wisdom of man, but he knew enough about the knowledge of men to know that on his best day, man is nothing compared to God. Everything man does fails. In the world of the psalmist, men carved idols and formed their totems in the fashion of men and beasts. The gods of men have been multiplied in the thousands as the heart of the carnal mind worshipped everything from the heavenly hosts, the animals, mountains, forest, streams, and gods of wood, metal, and stone. There is nothing man has not formed into an idol. How does an idol of man’s creation compare to the Lord God who made the heavens? On a clear night, the International Space Station can be seen by the naked eye as a tiny light in the dark canopy of space. It represents the greatest accomplishment of human engineering, but it is only a microcosm at the atomic level of what surrounds it. When men gaze on the light of ISS passing through space, do they notice what surrounds it – created by the hand of God? And the remarkable lesson is that what God created has yet to be counted, and with all the advancements of technology, man has yet to find everything made by the Lord God.

Man makes an idol and brags. God created the heavens and shamed the knowledge of human wisdom. The Lord is great because there is nothing mankind will do that will come close to the creation of God. Only God can be greatly praised, and honor and majesty belong to the Lord God because He is the One who made the heavens and the earth by speaking the word, and they were formed. God created man. The marvel of the human body is a testimony to the power of God. All power and glory belong to God. There is none like Him. He is great, and He is to be feared. By His hand, He created man. Through the word of God, the world remains. One day all that is in the heavens and on the earth will end because God has spoken. Praise God. He is so great.

I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly. (John 10:9-10)

Jesus Is The Answer To Racism, Discrimination, And Inequality

Jesus did not kneel. He died. There is a lot of discussions today about racism, discrimination, and inequality. Sports figures have been duped into believing that kneeling in protest will change something that has been around since the beginning of time. The cries to end racism resound around the world. Discrimination is taunted as the greatest of tragedies. Equality is demanded for everything. Racism, discrimination, and inequality all drink from the same cup of poison: there is no such thing as absolute truth. The reason there is racism is because of something the serpent said to the woman in the garden of Eden. Discrimination came because of the deception of the devil on the woman. The Divine Creator established inequality at the beginning of the world. The only problem that mankind faces is the problem of sin, and everything else is a product of sinful action.

Racism comes from the belief that there is a difference in people. Jesus told Nicodemus the Son of God came to save the world. God so loved the world, including all the nations that came from the act of God when He confused the languages of humanity in the plain of Shinar. Every human being on the face of the earth came from Adam and Eve. The blood in one person is the same as the blood in another person. God did not send His Son to die for one nationality or color of skin.

Contrary to the lie of Satan, all lives matter because all lives need the blood of Jesus. Racism comes from sinful hearts who do not believe in the grace and mercy of a loving God. There is no distinction or partiality with God. Racism has existed since Adam and Eve took of the forbidden fruit. Protesting racism is a ridiculous act of ignorance for something that cannot be changed by kneeling but the power of the word of God in a life changed by God’s word. If a man wants to fight racism, obey the will of the Father.

Discrimination is a two-edged sword. It is related to inequality. The world uses a broad brush to define what discrimination and inequality are. Satan used the same tactic when he approached the woman. God had told Adam and Eve they could eat of every fruit of the garden but was not permitted to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The devil came along and convinced Eve that God’s word discriminated against her, and God’s law was unfair. When Eve saw the fruit was able to make her wise and become like God (equal with God), she rejected the word of the Lord and took the fruit. Satan’s view of God was that He was a racist, His law was discriminatory, and refusing to let Eve do whatever she wanted to do was inequality. The nature of sin remains the same.

The world denies the word of God and attacks the Bible as a book of myths. Everything man needs for life is found in the Bible. It tells him where he came from, why he is here, and what will happen when he dies. Jesus said He came to bring the abundant life. That life is found in keeping the word of God, and when men follow the will of the Father, racism, discrimination, and inequality will end. Kneeling has never accomplished anything. All those who think they have changed the world because they knelt in protest are doing nothing to change the world. Jesus changed the world. He died for every man and woman regardless of who they were. But there is a caveat to the sacrifice of Jesus. God does make a distinction about people. He demands righteousness, holiness, and obedience to His word. Jesus discriminated between the many that would be lost in hell and the few saved in eternal life. There is no equality with all men being saved. Most of humanity will not be saved. Jesus said most men would be lost.

The Lord made racist, discriminatory, and inequality speech when He condemned adultery, homosexuality, lying, drunkenness, and a host of other sins. At least, that is the way the world views the will of God. What they fail to recognize is there is one God, and He is the only Lawgiver. Kneeling to protest will not save a person. Rejecting the will of the Father will not bring happiness. Jesus is the only means to find the abundant life. He teaches His followers to love their enemies, do good to all men, honor the king, and seeking the salvation of lost souls. There is inequality in the mind of God because not everyone will be saved. He judges without partiality, and He condemns sin. Living a sinful life does not constitute the blessing of God. The amoral philosophy of the world is a rejection of the clear teachings of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. When the day of judgment comes, there will be discrimination and inequality. If a man is found outside the covenant of God, he will be lost. And that is the day when every man will kneel before the great throne of the Lord God – but it will not be in protest – it will be in subjection.

Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. (1 Peter 2:13-14)

Peter’s Essay On Submission

The act of submission is the acceptance to lower oneself or to yield to others. It becomes a form of servitude that is akin to being a servant or a slave. In the act of submission, a person willingly allows others to take control of their lives. There is a forced submission, but this is a cruel means to subject people to a totalitarian view. The Bible never teaches submission without the will and always presents it as a choice to make or refuse. As powerful as God is, He never forces His divine will on anyone, including His own Son. Submission to the Lord has always been a choice, realizing that failing to submit to God will bring consequences. The spirit of a man constantly fights the requirement of submission, choosing to follow his own will rather than submit to the word of God. Slavery is viewed as a distasteful and cruel act, yet the Lord demands all men become slaves to His will to be saved. Paul often called himself a bondservant of Christ or a slave of Christ. Peter writes that he is a bondservant of Jesus Christ. They recognized the need to submit themselves to Christ. Others like James and Jude refer to themselves as bondservants.

In Peter’s first epistle to the pilgrims of the Dispersion, he frequently commands the saints to be in submission. Peter addresses six areas of submission in his letter. He begins by showing the need for submission to the government for the Lord’s sake. The government Peter is speaking of is Nero, a man who ruled with unrestricted tyranny, extravagance, religious persecution, and debauchery. Peter had famously said to the Sanhedrin that obedience to God took precedence over obedience to men. However, if the will of government does not conflict with the will of God, the Christian must submit every ordinance. That was the will of God. The people were to be honored, and honor was to be given to the king. Failing to submit to government is sinful because it rebels against the will of God.

Servants were quite common in the days of the early church. The New Testament church never forbade slavery but commanded servants to be submissive to their masters (as faithful Christians), whether to a good master or a harsh one. Peter gives the example of Jesus as proof the servant could not revile against his master, threaten his master, or mistreat his master. The same rule of submission found towards government was found in the relationship of the slave to master. This is the will of God, and refusing to submit to the master was sinful and against the word of God.

Likewise, wives are to be in submission to their husbands. Submission to government and masters is a challenging course to follow, and many women find it hard to accept the headship of a man. The social norms of a freedom-loving world allowing women to take roles of leadership in the home have dulled the senses of the divine pattern given in the word of God. This is not a choice a woman can choose whether to submit to her husband or not. Refusing to submit to the husband is as sinful as refusing to submit to the government or slaves to masters. The wife of Abraham submitted herself to her husband as a godly woman of faith. Examples of women who have led their unbelieving husbands to Christ show the power of a submissive heart in the life of a courageous and faithful woman.

Peter encourages young people to submit to their elders. The so-called generation gap is an excuse to allow the spirit of youth to disrespect the older and the older to dishonor the spirit of the young person. God created young people and old people to learn from each other. Respect is a word seldom taught to young people when it comes to their elders. Submission, along with government, slave master relationship, and the home, is a vital part of the character of young people who respect the hoary head of wisdom and experience. Under the Law of Moses, rebellious and disrespectful children were stoned to death. While the law has changed, the mind of God has not. Young people who refuse to submit to their elders will find the wrath of God waiting for them. This is the will of God.

Finally, Peter admonishes that submission is something shared among brethren. He emphasizes submission by writing that everyone must submit to one another and be clothed with humility. The main ingredient to submission is humility. Refusing to submit is the sin of pride. God resists the proud, but the Lord will grant blessings upon the humble. Learning to submit to one another will teach the heart how to submit to government, roles of industry (slave-master), the home, and the aged. All of these roles show the unbelieving world the glory of God and the faithful character of His children. Refusing to submit in this life will not alter the submission of all men to the judgment of God. Learn to submit now before eternity begins.

These are wells without water, clouds carried by a tempest, for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever. For when they speak great swelling words of emptiness, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through lewdness, the ones who have actually escaped from those who live in error. While they promise them liberty, they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by whom a person is overcome, by him also he is brought into bondage. (2 Peter 2:17-19)

Great Swelling Words Of Emptiness

Albert Barnes writes, “Truth is simple, and delights in simple statements. It expects to make its way by its own intrinsic force and is willing to pass for what it is worth. Error is noisy and declamatory and hopes to succeed by substituting sound for sense, and by such tones and arts as shall induce men to believe that what is said is true when it is known by the speaker to be false.” The world does not believe there are false teachers. It is accepted that everyone has a right to their viewpoint, whether it is a fact or fiction. To condemn the philosophy or teaching of another by calling them a false teacher is unacceptable. The apostle Peter makes it abundantly clear that some have forsaken the right way and gone astray. False doctrine did not take long to creep in among the people of God. Satan immediately tries to destroy the creation of God by inducing hearts to challenge the word of God. The result is seen in the myriads of lost souls who never knew the truth and blindly followed a man because he spoke with such swelling words of emptiness like a well without water.

False doctrine has always been the downfall of man. Satan began attacking the creation of God when he came to Eve and asked whether God really said what He did. There were false prophets among the people of God who led them away from the will of the Lord. In the early church, men arose, demanding circumcision become necessary for salvation, which the Lord never required. Paul spoke of the great apostasy that would fill the earth with men speaking lies in hypocrisy, drawing souls away from the truth. The Roman Catholic Church became the fulfillment of those lies and spread false teaching for generations to come through the seeds of the Protestant Reformation. False doctrines and false teachers are a real and present danger to souls seeking the grace and mercy of God. With great swelling words of emptiness, false teachers convince the multitudes to believe words never found in the Bible. Truth has always been simple. God gave His word to men to read and understand His will. False teachers twist the word to fit their own agenda. They convince the unwary hearts with a great show of swelling words to believe a lie only to offer empty dreams. A man traveling in the desert dying of thirst is revived when he sees a well on the horizon. Immediately he goes to the well for salvation and tragically only finds a dry well. That is how Peter describes false teachers. They offer salvation, but there is none.

Thousands upon thousands of people have come to the altar call of false doctrine convinced they are children of God. For years, evangelists would hold great revivals throughout the country, drawing thousands to hear a noted preacher. After a powerful and moving sermon, an invitation was given for all those who need to accept Christ as their personal Savior to come to the stage and receive blessings. They are told to say the “sinners’ prayer” and to accept by faith alone the grace of God, and they will be saved. Feelings of euphoria flood their souls as they walk away convinced they have been born again and saved in the kingdom of the Lord. Sadly, they have found nothing more than an empty well. These are false teachers giving false hope. The saga continues today with faith healers, charlatans, mega-evangelists, men and women more concerned about their cars, jets, and mansions than the truth of Jesus Christ.

Everyone is accountable for their own soul. No man or woman will stand before God and blame their preacher, their parents, the government, society, or the author of this writing for their failure to obey the will of the Father. Just because a man calls on Jesus as Lord and lives a religious life will not mean he is saved. The only ones who are saved are those who do the will of the Father, which is a personal choice. When people refuse to follow the Bible and follow a man, they jeopardize their eternal life. Many will stand before the Lord and hear the word, “Depart.” Following a false teacher has eternal consequences. Do not be one of those who follow great swelling words of emptiness. Follow the Book. Live the Book. Know the Book. Truth is narrow but that narrow truth is all that will save you.

Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. (Genesis 6:5-6)

What God Sees

Watching the news can be an exhausting and depressing way to spend the day. The headlines are filled with political wrangling, fears over pandemics, murder, tragedy, natural disasters, wars, famine, and general paranoia. It can become overwhelming to witness all the chaos going on in the world. The television screen fills with images of death and destruction. In communities across the land, immorality is rampant, with marriages breaking up over infidelities, parents abandoning their children, open perversion of sexual promiscuity, and nearly naked men and women walking around. The gods of money and wealth drive the industry of materialism and covetousness to destroy lives. Children cry out in hunger. Women are tortured and raped. Criminal enterprises fill the streets with the carnage of a drug war that seems never to end. Innocent people are gunned down or murdered. The world is a dark place to look at. Sin abounds.

From the view of the individual, the news is a limited glimpse into what is happening all over the world. The news can’t translate into reality everything that is going on in the world. The stories that fill the world are at the atomic level of knowledge for finite man to see and hear and witness. That is not the case with the Creator of the world. The omniscience of the Lord God opens up every particle of the nearly eight billion souls living on planet earth. He knows what every person is saying, thinking, doing and where they are in the vast planet 25,000 miles wide. The Lord knows everything occurring on earth and has a memory bank that is so extensive it remembers all the billions upon billions of souls that have lived since Adam. He sees it all. His knowledge is updated every second. What He can see in America, He can see in China at the same time. If a man stands on the summit of Mount Everest, God sees him. God knows the ten astronauts circling the earth. All the crew of the deepest diving submarine is seen by the eyes of God. What happens in the darkest corner of the darkest place on earth is clearly visible to the mind of the Lord God.

In the days of Noah, God looked in the heart of every man and woman and saw wickedness, and everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil. Only eight souls would be saved from the wrath of God. Before the flood that killed everything with the breath of life, God saw their lives, heard their words, and witnessed their terrible deeds. The eyes of the Lord saw debased mind doing things ungodly, filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, and unmerciful toward others. And God sees the same thing today. Everything.

The earth is filled with violence and unrighteousness, and God sees it all. How it is possible for the wrath of God not to destroy the world today is difficult to understand. There is so much sadness, heartache, and tragedy on so many levels and the mind of God takes it all in. When Moses transcribed the story of the flood, he declared the omniscience of God to see all the evil that abounded on the earth. But Moses also wrote down what else the Lord saw. After the Lord decided to destroy all life on earth, it says that Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. With all the terrible things filling the earth, a righteous family stood out among the darkness. So today, the Lord sees all that He sees, but He also knows those who are righteous, and He smiles. It grieves His heart to see so much wickedness fill His creation. Jesus came to earth to bring light to a dark place. God sees the darkness, but He gazes upon the lights all over the world.

So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing. (Acts 8:38-39)

What Day Changed Your Life?

Many hallmark moments change the direction and course of life. The birth of a child, the first day of school, graduation, marriage, or a new job. Great events may mark a turning point in a person’s life, like surviving a catastrophe, becoming wealthy overnight, learning a dreaded disease is cured or in remission, or facing an uncertain future. Many factors lead to a time in life when a person can say with deep conviction that an event changed their lives for good. Getting married and bringing children into the world is at the top of the list of the most impactful decisions a person can make in life. Still, they pale compared to the single, most important, enduring, and consequential decision anyone can make. All men are created in the image of God, and no decision is of greater importance than becoming a child of God. This one decision has the greatest consequences of any decision made in life because it has to do with life after death.

If there is one day that should change the course of life, it is the day a man becomes a child of God. Realizing the hopelessness of living without God moves men to seek His will. Conversion is not an intellectual transference of a righteous soul to the glory of God. Obeying the gospel of Jesus Christ begins with the knowledge that a man is an enemy of God, a curse, a vile and sinful creature worthy of the wrath of God. The psalmist aptly calls the state of man to be that of a worm. That is the highest a soul can seek with any honor about being a created thing before the Almighty Creator of the universe. A man does not become a Christian because he is a good person or a man doing very well in his state of existence. The only thing a man can grasp for standing before the mercy seat of the Lord is to beg for mercy and kindness in the face of an angry God. Every man deserves to go to Hell, and this is without exception because every man has sinned and fallen from the grace of God.

Grace has allowed man’s feeble frame to approach God’s holy throne and beg for mercy and forgiveness. Jesus did not die because all men deserved His righteousness. The putridity of sin permeates every fiber of man, making him a loathsome and unworthy creature. Yet, God, in his rich mercy, gave His only begotten Son to die for all men. The Son of God came to earth, and His creation tortured and killed Him. Jesus prayed for the Father to forgive those at the cross, and no one deserved it. The Father gave hope to mankind when He brought Jesus from the dead. For two thousand years, the gospel of salvation has been ringing all over the world calling for believing souls to accept the mercy of God. The love of the Father for rebellious man was found in the love of the Son of God, who died for all men.

The greatest day in the history of humanity was early on the first day when Jesus rose from the dead. This would become the hallmark of remembrance for believers in Christ who gather each first day of the week to honor God in worship. For the life of the individual, the most incredible day is the day they became a Christian. The man from Ethiopia had been searching for answers, and God sent Philip to teach the story of Jesus to him. As Philip opened the scroll of Isaiah and preached Jesus to the Ethiopian, a change took place. The Ethiopian realized that Jesus had died for him and that joy and hope were found in obedience to the gospel. He demanded the chariot to stop and for Philip to baptize him for the remission of his sins. The two men went down into the water where Philip immersed the Ethiopian, washing away his sins. What happens next changed the life of the Ethiopian. He went on his way rejoicing. His life would never be the same. The Holy Spirit says nothing more about the man from Ethiopia, but what is known is that his life was changed. It marked a turning point and a change of life.

Has obedience to the gospel changed your life? Do you know the day you became a Christian? Has that day marked a significant transformation in how you think, how you talk, and how you live? When someone asks what day is your birthday, can you remember when you became a child of God? Knowing what day a person is born into the world is not that important because next to a date of birth is a date of death. Remembering the day a person is born again in Christ is the most important because living a faithful life of obedience will usher in eternal life. No day is as important as the day a man rises from the waters of baptism with his sins washed away. That is the moment of birth, and that is a day to remember.

Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young Child to destroy Him.” When he arose, he took the young Child and His mother by night and departed for Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt I called my Son.” (Matthew 2:13-15)

Jesus Came Out Of Egypt

The first few years of the life of Jesus were remarkable. He was conceived in the womb of a virgin living in Nazareth. Prophecies were given that Jesus would be born of the house of David in the small town of Bethlehem, near Jerusalem. Because of a decree from Caesar Augustus that all in the Roman Empire should be registered, Joseph and Mary returned to the city of their birth. It must have been a difficult journey as Mary neared the end of her pregnancy. Arriving in Bethlehem, the time for the birth of God’s Son arrived. It was not a grand palace, or a wealthy home, or a place of notable significance where Jesus would be born. There will be no dignitaries to herald His birth. Mary delivered her Firstborn Son with only Joseph as her helper. Joseph cut the umbilical cord, wrapped Jesus tightly, and presented Him to Mary. The place of Jesus’ birth was in a barn and where Mary laid the Son of God in a manger.

Shepherds from the field outside of Bethlehem came to see the baby Jesus and marveled at Joseph and Mary as Jesus slept in the manger crib. Angels had told only some shepherds of the birth of Jesus. Soon, Joseph would find a house for the family to live in, and Jesus began to grow. When eight days were completed, in accordance with the Law of Moses, Jesus was circumcised. When Jesus was 40 days old, Joseph and Mary took the infant to the Temple in Jerusalem less than five miles away. The first two years of Jesus’ life were in Bethlehem. One day some men from the East came to visit Jesus and His family, leaving gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Shortly after the men left, an angel of the Lord warned Joseph to take Mary and the child and flee to Egypt. He was not told to return to Nazareth but to go to Egypt, a two-hundred-mile journey. The gifts from the wise men enabled the travel and stay in Egypt. It is not clear how long the family remained in Egypt, but after the death of Herod, the family returned to Nazareth. Jesus would grow up to be a Nazarene

Egypt always had a place in the story of the people of God. Abraham journeyed to Egypt when there was a famine in the land. Joseph was sold into slavery at the age of eighteen and would spend the rest of his life there. After his family moved to Egypt, the generations of sons of Jacob would become a mighty people among the Egyptians. When a Pharaoh arose that did not honor Joseph, he enslaved the Hebrews out of fear. The oppression became heavy upon the children of Abraham, and they cried out to God for deliverance. There was nothing in their power that could deliver them until the Lord sent Moses and, through many mighty works, saved the people from the bondage of slavery.

The final act of God upon the Egyptians was the death of the firstborn. Only the Jews were saved who put the blood of a lamb on the doorpost and lintel of their homes. God passed over the house when He saw the blood. Pharaoh relented and permitted the Hebrews to leave. Trapped by the Red Sea, the Israelites were fearful of being destroyed by the approaching Egyptian army after Pharaoh had a change of heart. Again, the Lord delivered the people as the Red Sea parted and the people walked across on dry land. What saved the Hebrews also destroyed the Egyptians when they entered the sea. Salvation came by the hand of God.

Jesus journeyed to Egypt and fulfilled prophecy. God would call His Son from Egypt and become a pattern of deliverance for all men. The bondage of Egypt is the bondage of sin. Nothing in the power of man can save him apart from the grace of God. Jesus went down into Egypt as a child to show the Father’s redemption of all men. Herod wanted to kill Jesus, but the Lord would not allow it. Jesus was called from Egypt to remind the Jews of how God had saved them. The Son of God lived in a world of His ancestors to show His place in the redemptive plan of the Father. Like the blood of the lamb on the doorposts and lintel, the blood of Jesus will cause God to pass over sin. Only through the waters of baptism (the Red Sea) is deliverance granted to those who obey the word of the Lord and present the blood of Jesus to the Father. Jesus became the means of salvation as one called from Egypt.

Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse. (Malachi 4:5-6)

What A Difference A Covenant Makes

The Old Testament is called by Paul the Old Covenant, signifying the books of the Jews. All thirty-nine books of the Old Testament were completed in the time of Jesus and had been translated into Greek more than two hundred years before His birth. The Jewish version of the Old Testament was not divided as it appears in the modern Bible, although it contains the same books. In the time of Jesus, the old covenant was called the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms. The Hebrew arrangement consisted of the Torah, Former Prophets, Latter Prophets, and the Writings (Hagiographa). What is striking about the Old Testament is the abrupt ending found in the book of Malachi.

Moses records the first five books of the Old Testament with the beginning of the world, people, and nations. From the lineage of Abram, the nation of Israel rose to power by the grace of God. Delivered from the bondage of Egypt, the Hebrews became the dominant power in the world. For a brief period, the nation was united under three kings but then fell into civil war. Nearly all of the tribes were destroyed by the Assyrians, and what was left was consumed by the Babylonians. Returning from seventy years of bondage, the remnant tried to rebuild Jerusalem and its temple. The former days of glory would never be achieved again.

Prophets like Malachi came to the people exhorting them to turn to the Lord. During the days of the divided kingdom, myriads of prophets preached repentance to deaf ears. After the people returned from Babylon, the prophets continued their message of repentance. Devotion to God waned in the post years of captivity. And then the Lord did a remarkable thing. He created a famine of the word of God for four hundred years. When Malachi finished his burden of the word of the Lord to Israel, the pens of the prophets ceased for four centuries. There was no word, no revelation, and no communication from God. The final words of Malachi are sprinkled with doom and yet tinged with hope. A prophet like Elijah would come before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord and turn the hearts of the people. Malachi spoke of the day coming burning like an oven, which will devour root and branch. And then the Lord went silent.

Four hundred years will pass before John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea. His message was the same as the final message of the Old Covenant: repent! The work of John would usher in the kingdom of Christ as the Son of God fulfilled His mission to bring grace to all men through His death. On Pentecost, the apostle Peter opened the doors of the kingdom to the Jews and later would open the door for the Gentiles. Churches began to grow in every part of the Roman Empire as men like Paul, Silas, Barnabas, and Peter went everywhere preaching the gospel. The New Testament consists of the four books detailing the short life of Jesus. Luke would tell Theophilus how the church began and spread throughout the world. Paul, Peter, James, Jude, and John would write letters or epistles that would become the foundation of the New Covenant. John’s Revelation would close the Bible in its entirety with the fully revealed word of God.

What is striking about the ending of the Revelation is the difference from the writing of Malachi. Instead of uncertainty, fear, and looking for one to come that would turn the hearts of the people to God, John declares the mystery of the Lord Jesus Christ. There will be no four-hundred-year silence but language that says, “Surely I am coming quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.” Dread has turned to eternal life. Uncertainty becomes a promised hope through the blood of Jesus. Instead of a four-hundred-year famine of the word, the abundance of God’s divine revelation is given to all men to come to the glory of the risen Christ. Jesus came in the flesh and offered salvation through His death so that everyone could be part of the kingdom of God. The Old Testament ends with uncertainty. The New Testament ends with eternal hope.

For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. (Romans 10:12)

Everyone Matters Before God

There is a lot of individualism in the world where distinct groups of people try to identify to one certain cause or purpose. Nations were founded upon the division of tongues, identifying them as unique cultures. Environments often determined the character of peoples who lived in harsh places or lush gardens of Eden. Diet impacted much of the characteristics of people on how long they lived and their physical development. Skin colors separated races from one another, facial features distinguished areas of the world and cultural history determined the identity for generations.

The reality of humanity is that all peoples come from one man and one woman. God created Adam from the dust of the ground and then formed Eve from the side of man. It was Adam who called the Woman “Eve” because she was the mother of all living. His name for his wife was a declaration that every human being born on the planet earth came from the same womb. There are many distinctions made in the human genus, but the physical DNA of every man, woman, and child lends itself to the procreation of Adam and Eve. There is no escaping the truth that all men are related to one another. After the worldwide flood that killed every human on earth except Noah and his family, the present-day population of earth is nearly eight billion souls who came from the three sons of Noah. There is no distinction of men in the world who can say they are not from the same womb as another.

God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son to save every human being without any distinction. Everyone in the world: all that have lived, are living, and will live on earth are found under the umbrella of God’s grace for redemption. Jesus did not die for one group of people, one race of people, or one nation above another. Jesus died for everyone because everyone mattered. Paul reminded the Roman Christians that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Red and yellow, black and white; they are precious in the sight of God because Jesus died for all men regardless of the color of their skin, the features of their face, the nation to which they belong, and whether they are male or female. Paul said there is no distinction between Jews and Greeks (Gentiles) because Jesus died for all.

Any man who understands that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, can be saved. When the crowd asked Peter what to do to be saved on the Day of Pentecost, the apostle did not limit who could come to Christ. He told everyone gathered that day to repent and be baptized for the remission of sins. Luke records the story of men and women becoming Christians, a man from Ethiopia gladly accepting the teaching of Jesus Christ, a sorcerer converted to the truth, unlikely candidates for the gospel like the Philippian jailor, and even Christians were found in the household of Caesar. There is no distinction in salvation. The same Lord is rich toward anyone who seeks the will of the Father regardless of black or white, short and tall, rich and poor, slave or free, Republican or Democrat, young and old – for God so loved the world.

Everyone matters to God. Jesus died because everyone matters to Him. The Holy Spirit gave the word of God to the world because everyone mattered to Him. Heaven is a place where everyone can go because there is no distinction in the eyes of God. Peace will only come when men begin to look through the eyes of God without distinction. You matter regardless of who you are. Come to the grace of God. He will cleanse you and purify you. You matter.