The Carpenter's Apprentice Archives

Volume 6, Number 12                                                                                                                     December 2005

Nuni De

And for this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant, in order that since a death has taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance. (Hebrews 9:15)

As we continue our brief overview of imminency in the Book of Hebrews, we can see the urgency begin to mount. The phrase Afor this reason@ compels us to remember what is immediately preceding, A. . . whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear@. Because the old covenant was passing away, Jesus had become Athe mediator of a new covenant@. Because the Christ had died for redemption (and pay special attention to this) of Athe transgressions that were committed under the first covenant@ so that those who God was calling could receive the promised inheritance. There is a great deal to discuss in those few words, but it should be abundantly clear that only Hebrews (and proselytes provided for by the old covenant) would have been in a position to violate that covenant - no one else had standing under it.

Consequently, only the covenant people were in a position to violate the covenant and lose the promises of God. The rest of humankind was dead in their sin. God had arbitrarily chosen a physical people to bless but, for the most part, they rejected Him. Of course, His plan had always been to bless the true children of Abraham, people of faith, in every nation. Although we can certainly apply the redemption theme to the non-Hebrew world of old, and to everyone since the passing of the old covenant, we need to realize that the redemption that is talked about in this passage has special significance to physical Israel. Thus, our understanding of Aredemption@ as it applies to us must be grounded in a proper interpretation of what it meant to its first century recipients.

The old covenant saints were the firstfruits. It is through their redemption in Christ that the rest of the world finds life. The promises were to them, but the blessings proceeding from the promises are to all the faithful in all times. With 20/20 hindsight, we should understand that, as this was being written, the old covenant Aworld@ was collapsing. Only the true children of Abraham would be saved; and their escape from death was predicated on the substitutionary death of Messiah.

Both those outside the old covenant and under it were already dead Ain Adam@, but only the outsider had Ano hope@ in the promises of the old covenant. I don=t have the space to develop it here in this study, but my understanding of this portion of 1 Corinthians 15 is that the sacrifice of the Christ reversed the curse of Adam so that all mankind was Amade alive@ - that is to say, returned to Adam=s initial state of being able to choose or reject God=s will. This is a centuries-old debate and I=ll leave you to study for yourself and draw your own conclusions. As always, mine is subject to change as God grants greater light. I welcome your thoughts on this subject, and would be happy to share different views here.

For where a covenant is, there must of necessity be the death of the one who made it. For a covenant is valid only when men are dead, for it is never in force while the one who made it lives. Therefore even the first covenant was not inaugurated without blood. For when every commandment had been spoken by Moses to all the people according to the Law, he took the blood of the calves and the goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, saying, "THIS IS THE BLOOD OF THE COVENANT WHICH GOD COMMANDED YOU." And in the same way he sprinkled both the tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry with the blood. And according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. Therefore it was necessary for the copies of the things in the heavens to be cleansed with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ did not enter a holy place made with hands, a mere copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us; nor was it that He should offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the holy place year by year with blood not his own. (Hebrews 9:16-25)

We are familiar with the practice of writing a will to control what will happen with our possessions when we die. Until we die, we can change that document as many times as we like to reflect our wishes. Only at our death does our will become effective. The old covenant was based on blood/death because Awithout the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.@ Of course, the blood of animals was never sufficient to permanently deal with the problem of sin-death. The new covenant God had promised (Jeremiah 31) was to overcome the problem of the old (human weakness) because its power was found in the blood of the sinless Lamb of God; and that completely removed the failures of mankind and replaced them with the absolute righteousness of the Son of God. Those whose hearts were turned to faith in that substitution would shortly be redeemed from the Alaw of sin and death@ - those whose hearts were hardened to God=s gift would perish.

The dividing line was drawn and God was then about to separate the two groups in a judgment/deliverance that is unparalleled in the history of the world since; the biblical authors rightly compared it to the destruction of the fallen Adamic world by the great flood. They knew their world was about to be destroyed and were eagerly awaiting Aa new heaven and a new earth@ (1 Peter 3) but they had no imagination that physical planet was about to be destroyed. Time was short, but they could rejoice because they knew the tribulation they were enduring was about to climax in their deliverance - if they remained faithful to the end.

Otherwise, He would have needed to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now once at the consummation of the ages He has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment, so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, shall appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him. (Hebrews 9:26-28)

The author draws the logical conclusion that if Jesus=s sacrifice was no better than those of the old covenant, He would have been led to the slaughter annually. However, His sacrifice was better and marked a new day in redemptive history.

It is at this point in the text we encounter two of the most pivotal words: nuni de (but now). DO NOT miss the importance of this phrase in the Greek! Having demonstrated the inferiority of the old covenant system, the writer is emphatic in pointing out that the appearing of The Christ in the flesh marked a unique time in history - the time in which the culmination of all redemptive history would be played out for all the world to see. The events were happening in that generation, a time which the text clearly describes as Athe consummation of the ages@. Let=s spend some time examining these verses.

Nuni de appears 18 times in the new testament and 11 of those uses is in the context of the time of the consummation. At the risk of being tedious, I=m going to list the immediate text of each of those passages so we can demonstrate the significance of these words:

Romans 3:21-22a: But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe;

Romans 6:22: But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life.

Romans 7:6: But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.

1 Corinthians 12:18-20: But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired. If they were all one member, where would the body be? But now there are many members, but one body.

1 Corinthians 13:13: But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians 15:20: But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.

Ephesians 2:13: But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

Colossians 1:21-23a: And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach C if indeed you continue in the faith firmly established and steadfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel that you have heard . . . .

Hebrews 8:6: But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, by as much as He is also the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted on better promises.

And, of course, Hebrews 9:26b with which we began this discussion: . . . but now once at the consummation of the ages He has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself

In dealing with this phrase, Greg Herrick, Th.M., Phd. comments on the Romans 3:21 passage by noting: AThe phrase But now (nuni de) is extremely significant in Romans and marks off the Apost-Christ=s coming@ eraCincluding the ministry of the SpiritCas a new development in the salvation historical plan of God. Now, Paul says, is the eschatological time of fulfillment in Christ (7:6). So then, nuni de is not simply a logical connector, as if Paul were saying, Asince no one will be declared righteous through works of the law (3:20-21), therefore, righteousness must come by faith@ (3:21-26). Rather, nuni de indicates that Paul is thinking in salvation-historical terms, i.e., the time before Christ's coming and the Anow time@ (3:26) after his coming and the inauguration of the reign of grace in the kingdom (cf. 5:20-21; 14:17).@ [emphasis mine]

It may surprise you to know that Greg Herrick is a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary and a dispensational pre-millennialist! Nevertheless, his grasp of the fulfilment language used here is evident. The significance of this phrase is compelling and undeniable to any honest student of God=s word with an open mind.

As those words were penned, they were still awaiting the Aappearing@ of Christ in power and glory which would demonstrate to all the world that He, not the Judaizers, was faithful and true, and which would reveal the true children of Abraham. History records that appearing in the fall and destruction of Jerusalem and old covenant Judaism in A.D. 70. The time was truly Aat hand@.

For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never by the same sacrifices year by year, which they offer continually, make perfect those who draw near. Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, because the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have had consciousness of sins? But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year by year. For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, "SACRIFICE AND OFFERING THOU HAST NOT DESIRED, BUT A BODY THOU HAST PREPARED FOR ME; IN WHOLE BURNT OFFERINGS AND sacrifices FOR SIN THOU HAST TAKEN NO PLEASURE. "THEN I SAID, 'BEHOLD, I HAVE COME (IN THE ROLL OF THE BOOK IT IS WRITTEN OF ME) TO DO THY WILL, O GOD.'" After saying above, "SACRIFICES AND OFFERINGS AND WHOLE BURNT OFFERINGS AND sacrifices FOR SIN THOU HAST NOT DESIRED, NOR HAST THOU TAKEN PLEASURE in them" (which are offered according to the Law), then He said, "BEHOLD, I HAVE COME TO DO THY WILL." He takes away the first in order to establish the second. (Hebrews 10:1-9)

The writer leaves no doubt that the old system was not the real deal. It was Aonly a shadow@ of what God had established in the heavenly realm. Do not forget, God never wanted His people to have a physical king; He would be their King. His kingdom was not about the physical but the spiritual. The old system with its trappings had become a hindrance to many who benefitted from their abuses of it. In turn, they had oppressed the people. God removed the old order that it might no longer enslave and oppress those whom He was calling.

The message is clear, if Jesus has not come in eschatological fulfillment, the old system still stands between God and man and we are still waiting for salvation. Yet, many insist fulfillment is future to us. That is untenable for me, and it is untenable for the unbelieving world. The expectation of believers and the understanding of unbelievers is that scripture teaches Christ=s appearing in that first century generation. Postponing it thousands of years in order to fit a personal agenda is a disservice to the gospel message.

Next time we=ll see another place Hebrews demands the imminent return of Christ. Stay tuned.

Do We Believe What We Sing?

>Tis the season as Athey@ say and Christians the world over will join in the singing of carols and hymns. The question to be answered is this, do they sing as a matter of tradition or as a matter of deep personal conviction? I suspect your experiences around singing AJoy To The World@ are similar to mine; when this final verse is sung, we kick it up a notch - either in volume or pitch or both.

We do that because we our hearts are thrilled to acknowledge Christ as Lord and King. However, it is rare to find Christians who believe that the Lord has come to rule the world and compel the nations to declare His righteous reign as AKing of Kings and Lord of Lords@. Christmas carols tell the story of redemption from the fallenness and hopelessness of mankind, to the hopefulness and expectancy of those early believers based on the promises of their Master who walked with them. How wonderful our daily celebration would be if we simply acknowledge that God kept His word.

It goes without saying that this question has occupied the minds of many thinking people for much of Christian history. Most folks who have studied the subject at all quickly understand that Christ was not likely born on December 25^th. Personally, I would like to think we celebrate His life and ministry daily, but if the world wants to take the time to stop and say a collective APraise God!@, I have no trouble joining the chorus. Nevertheless, God does not operate by chance and when Christ was born may have symbolic significance which would help paint the picture of redemption in more glorious colors.

While we don=t have precise records, we do have clues, and David Curtis (Berean Bible Church, Chesapeake, VA) offers an interesting take on this subject. I don=t have the space to go into all the details, but hopefully an outline of his observations will provide you with something to chew on for awhile.

His reasoning begins with the timing of the announcement of coming birth of John the Baptist. In Luke 1:9, we read, A... according to the custom of the priestly office, he [Zacharias] was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense.@ Using what is known about the order in which the priests served in the temple, Curtis notes that a priest could only be selected to do this service once in his lifetime.

Scripture records Zacharias= family and the order in which his family served in the temple. Based on this information, Curtis concludes that Gabriel=s announcement to Zacharias took place at Shavout (Pentecost) and that John would have been born nine months later in the Passover season. Curtis speculates that Nisan 15^th (the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread) would have been a fitting day.

It is impossible for me to consider this thought without recalling one of the opening thoughts of the Gospel of John, AAnd the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.@

Tabernacles is about dwelling in the presence of God and it is difficult to imagine a more fitting time for the Savior to enter this world. From this point, Curtis continues develop parallels between the life of Christ and the Feast of Tabernacles. It is an edifying story. You=ll find the messages on the feasts at www.bereanbiblechurch.org under Eschatology. Listen to them all. You won=t be disappointed!

The Apprentice=s Journal

All the flap about cities banning AChristmas@ has not escaped my attention. Of course, I think it is ridiculous that in a culture in which everything is accepted in the name of tolerance and diversity, there is no room for Christian expression in a public venue. Indeed, it is a sign of a sick society. But, what is the affliction we suffer?

In my estimation, the sad truth is that what we are witnessing is a symptom of the spiritual illness of God=s people. He intends that we have dominion through the power of the gospel of grace and yet many Christians cower in the corner and argue that we should not get involved in the affairs of this world. We are living with the consequences of that mentality. Whether it is born of ignorance, complacency, or cowardice, failure to engage the world in which we live is a failure to walk in the footsteps of our Master. More than that, it is the abdication of a sacred trust. 

Realizing that Christ was not born on December 25^th, the tradition in which I was raised did not officially mark this season as the time of Christ=s birth. Instead, we spent significant effort pointing out it was His death and resurrection that were important. But, we didn=t officially celebrate Easter either because we understood that His death and resurrection were to be celebrated weekly.  So, instead of joining the rest of the Christian world in heralding Christ=s birth and death, we were busy about pointing out how other Christians (if we dared to call them that) were Aworshiping in error@ and calling for their repentance. Such attitudes are only the tip of the iceberg if one would understand why the people of God have lost their influence in our time. Sectarian thinking certainly was not, and is not, limited to my former tradition.

Those first disciples didn=t understand everything perfectly and, even as the glory of God=s revelation to us in Christ continues to unfold in our time, we still have questions. Consequently, it is counter-productive for the kingdom of God for us to diminish one another because of our differences. So, as we join the believing world in remembering the advent of the new covenant age, I pray our lives will be lived out in the kind of victorious living which citizenship in the heavenly kingdom demands.

It is time to quit lamenting the consequences of our failure to be salt, leaven and light in our culture and begin advancing the kingdom with faith which is what scripture tells us will overcome the world. It is way past time to abandon the popular idea that the world cannot be taken captive to Christ. It is to our shame that we allow evil men to have their way in our society, especially when the means of squelching their Godless agenda is at our disposal. It is not enough to sit in the bleachers and cry foul. We must enter the arena even as our Savior did before us. The kingdom of God is not spread by physical force. Let us not make that mistake again. At the same time, it is not spread by complacency and apathy; most of us have more of those qualities than we=d like to admit. God grant us the humility and courage to submit to His rule as faithful subjects who need not be ashamed.

©Copyright 2005 ~ Permission to reprint for personal, non-profit use is hereby granted, providing that the context of the quote is maintained and credit is given to The Carpenter's Apprentice.

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