The Carpenter's Apprentice Archives

Volume 6, Number 6                                                                                                                     June 2005

God HAS Spoken

Heb 1:1 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, 2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world.

Before the fall, God spoke to Adam & Eve Aface to face@ so to speak. He spoke to Moses from a burning bush. Balaam got the message from a donkey. Israel heard Him thunder at Sinai. Jacob wrestled with Him at the Jabbok. At Jesus= baptism and transfiguration, He spoke from heaven. He spoke through the prophets continually. The point is simply that God used a variety of ways to communicate His message but, as in the parable of the vineyard, the people simply would not listen. His final means of communication before exercising the judgment foretold, was through AHis Son.@

Time had run out. God would have His due from His vineyard (Old Covenant Israel) one way or another. Sending His Son to gather the harvest was clear evidence to the faithful the Alast days@ had arrived. Not the last days of planet earth but, as we shall see the end of the old covenant age. We will also see that Aend@ should not be taken to mean termination, but fulfillment. While it is not incorrect to say the old covenant ended, it is more accurate to say it was fulfilled in Christ and made Aobsolete@ (Heb. 8:13). Like a cocoon, it was no longer necessary and cast off at the consummation of the ages (Heb. 9:26). More on that later.

Some will object saying that the last days here refers only to the destruction of Jerusalem and not the eschaton (or, as they would have it Alast, last days@ or Athird [or fourth] coming@ depending on the view held). A careful look at the story of the life and ministry of Jesus, simply doesn=t leave room for that view. Let=s consider a few points in this regard.

First, in the larger context of Jewish thought, there was the expectation and growing anticipation of the arrival of Messiah when Jesus appeared physically. There had been a revival, so to speak, in the land and Joseph and Mary were almost certainly among those who had a fervent zeal for Athe hope of Israel.@ It is imperative to note that Jewish thought had no concept of the end of the planet or the end of covenant Israel. Even as many argue today, their promises were Aforever.@

By the time John the Baptist arrived on the scene, the people had waited 400 years for a prophet of God. They had been duped by a number of false prophets in the past and it is easy to imagine that many would be disenchanted and suspicious of another in a long line pretenders. However, they saw John=s ministry differently and responded in large numbers. A clear sign that the day of the Lord was imminent. He was the Elijah for whom they looked to herald the Agreat and terrible day of the Lord.@ They so longed for his coming that a place was (and still is) set for him at the Passover table. Even today, part of that celebration is to have one family member look out on the street so that AElijah@ can join them, should he appear.

Getting back to the point at hand; the time of Jesus= was earthly ministry was ripe with anticipation. It was not, as it is today, a misplaced sense of anticipation. From the heralding of His birth to shepherds and wise men, to the proclamations of Simeon and Anna at His dedication, to the voice of God from heaven at His baptism and His transfiguration on the mountain, His ministry demonstrated again and again that the time in which God would fulfill His promises to Abraham had arrived. These were Athe last days@ Jacob had foretold (Genesis 49:10).

While many today still look to the future for those promises to be fulfilled, the scripture simply says otherwise. One of the frequently quoted passages is Joel 2, AYour old men will dream dreams ....@ etc. But Peter at Pentecost (Acts 2) tells those confused about what is happening, A... but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel: 'AND IT SHALL BE IN THE LAST DAYS,' God says, 'THAT I WILL POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT UPON ALL MANKIND...@ (vs. 16-17). He goes on to remind them that these things are what would happen to herald A...the great and notable day of the Lord...@ (vs. 20).

The people were overcome with concern. The day of the Lord was upon them and they had killed the very One God had sent to save them. Is it any wonder they cry out, AMen and brethren what shall we do?@(vs. 37) ? We must not miss the significance of this. They understood the signs Peter was talking about and they knew the significance of them. Most of all, they knew they were ruined and in their hopelessness, they were given a real hope in the one whom they crucified. The time was right.

In Matthew 24 and the parallel passages, Christ gave His followers signs to alert them to the events which would herald the consummation His kingdom. By the time Hebrews is written, those signs are happening before their eyes. The most rabid futurist preacher on TV today with the most elaborate charts imaginable would have never been able to convince them that what they were seeing was an illusion and what Jesus prophesied wouldn=t happen for thousands of years to come. They were told to ignore false prophets then, and that is good advice for today as well.

There is much more to be said on the simple phrase Athese last days@ but we need to move on through chapter one.

We won=t spend much time here, but pay special attention to the text I=ve put in bold. This is the first reference in Hebrews to the role of Jesus as High Priest and we need to note carefully the language. At this juncture, we are told Apurification for sins@ had been made. We tend to see that as meaning that salvation was complete but, as we will see elsewhere, that was not the case at this point in covenantal history. Stay tuned!

6 And when He again brings the first-born into the world, He says, "AND LET ALL THE ANGELS OF GOD WORSHIP HIM." 7 And of the angels He says, "WHO MAKES HIS ANGELS WINDS, AND HIS MINISTERS A FLAME OF FIRE." 8 But of the Son He says, "THY THRONE, O GOD, IS FOREVER AND EVER, AND THE RIGHTEOUS SCEPTER IS THE SCEPTER OF HIS KINGDOM. 9 "THOU HAST LOVED RIGHTEOUSNESS AND HATED LAWLESSNESS; THEREFORE GOD, THY GOD, HATH ANOINTED THEE WITH THE OIL OF GLADNESS ABOVE THY COMPANIONS."

The dominion of God is everlasting because it is based on righteousness. We don=t have the space to elaborate here, but do a study on everlasting righteousness and it will be easy to see the connection. Worldly governments come and go because men are flawed. Even those, like ours, which arose from the best intentions to honor God, tend to devolve into Godlessness.

We noted Genesis 49 above. Its text needs to be revisited here: "The scepter shall not depart from Judah, Nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, Until Shiloh comes, And to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.@ (vs. 10). The priests came from Levi; the kings came from Judah. As Jacob tells his sons of the future and why Judah, though not the firstborn, will have preeminence over the others. Even so, Jacob saw a day coming when the scepter would pass to Shiloh: the Once scripture refers to as The Lion of Judah.

Early on in the biblical text we find evidence of a transition of dominion from that of flawed mankind to the perfect reign of righteousness - or, if you will, from earthly dominion to heavenly, or physical to spiritual. God is righteous and so demands righteousness. From the beginning it has been so. What was lost when mankind died to God in Adam was Amade alive@ in the second Adam. It was a day which God=s people looked with longing anticipation and expectancy.

10 And, "THOU, LORD, IN THE BEGINNING DIDST LAY THE FOUNDATION OF THE EARTH, AND THE HEAVENS ARE THE WORKS OF THY HANDS; 11 THEY WILL PERISH, BUT THOU REMAINEST; AND THEY ALL WILL BECOME OLD AS A GARMENT, 12 AND AS A MANTLE THOU WILT ROLL THEM UP; AS A GARMENT THEY WILL ALSO BE CHANGED. BUT THOU ART THE SAME, AND THY YEARS WILL NOT COME TO AN END."

Approaching this scripture from a futurist view of the last days, it is easy to see how one could understand this passage to be talking about the physical planet. >In the beginning...@ certainly resonates with Genesis 1:1 but there are other matters to consider before rushing to such a conclusion. We=ve said it a number of times before, context is king. If we want to understand what beginning is under consideration, we have to do our homework to answer the question, in the beginning of what?

If the epistle to the Hebrews is about anything it is about covenant. Specifically it is a contrast between the old covenant and the new, and how the announcement of the new covenant made the old obsolete. Indeed the author declares, "... whatever is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to disappear." (Hebrews 8:13).

From this, we readily understand 1) the old covenant had not completely passed from view at this point, and 2) the time of its passing was very near. I know this challenges the popular views that the old covenant passed at the cross, the resurrection, Pentecost (the major contenders) but the text here plainly tells us the old covenant, though obsolete and growing old, had not yet passed. We don=t have the space to develop the idea here, but realize that it was left in place as a matter of judgment against those Jews who rejected The Christ. Christ had told the Pharisees they would kill him and those He sent, thereby filling up the measure of their fathers= sins (Matthew 23). Do your own digging and I think you=ll begin to see the picture.

Much more could be said regarding the context of the verses above, but I hope you understand the context tells us we need to interpret them covenantally. We=ve talked before about how the idea of founding heaven and earth is used in scripture to refer to the establishment of the old covenant (Isaiah 51:16 for example) so we won=t develop that further here. The author is simply stating that the old is being done away with and the new will abide. It is a theme we will see repeatedly in our study.

13 But to which of the angels has He ever said, "SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I MAKE THINE ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR THY FEET"?

Here the writer begins to sharpen the contrast between God=s previous messengers and His last Word, His Son. The compelling question is, when would Jesus= enemies be defeated? The futurist view insists that the victory is yet to come; in other words, Jesus didn=t finish what He came to do. How does that show forth God=s glory? Let=s briefly look at a few scriptures which tell us otherwise.

Who were Jesus= enemies? Right, old covenant Jews who persecuted Him and His disciples. To be sure, they were the children of their father, the Devil; both he and they were being eliminated through the life and ministry of Messiah. A final day of reckoning was coming and the recipients of this letter are warned repeatedly to stay the course because it is just around the corner.

We don=t have the space to develop this theme much at all but realize it is one of growing urgency as we pass chronologically through the text of the new testament. Paul told the Romans that AThe God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet@ (Romans 16:20) and Peter told his readers AIt is the appointed time for the judgment to begin with the household of God ..." (1 Peter 5:17). If these things are yet future to us, then

Peter and Paul got it wrong. If that is the case, we can=t trust anything they wrote. Let=s not go there!

The last text we'll mention on this subject is 1 Corinthians 15:26 where Paul writes, "The last enemy that will be abolished is death. For He has put all things in subjection under His feet." Well, not exactly; the translators here, guided by their futurist view, have inserted a bias which colors our understanding. The Greek has the present participial form here and reads, "The last enemy being abolished is death." You must grasp the importance of this.

Death was being abolished in Paul=s day and the text clearly says it was the last enemy. One of these days, we will explore this chapter further to show the relationship between the old covenant law (i.e. the ministry of death) but for now just realize that as Paul penned 1 Corinthians the enemies of God were being made subject to Christ and death (the old covenant Law) was being destroyed. The author of Hebrews makes it clear death is about to be forever defeated and the eternal kingdom consummated (more on this when we get to Chapter 9.

14 Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation? 2:1 For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. 2 For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense, 3 how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? After it was at the first spoken through the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard, 4 God also bearing witness with them, both by signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.

In establishing the superiority of Jesus, he observes that those who neglected the lesser instruments suffered God=s wrath and therefore rejecting His Son will be utterly disastrous. Jesus was God=s last Word. If they failed to hear Him, they had no future hope. This flies in the face of the dispensationalist view which says those calling themselves Jews will only be saved by rebuilding the temple, establishing the old covenant sacrifices and surviving a coming tribulation unlike any the world has ever seen. If that is true, then the atoning work of Christ was insufficient to save them! The scripture does not teach two separate paths to God. It cannot be Christ plus anything but Christ alone!

5 For He did not subject to angels the world to come, concerning which we are speaking. 6 But one has testified somewhere, saying, "WHAT IS MAN, THAT THOU REMEMBEREST HIM? OR THE SON OF MAN, THAT THOU ART CONCERNED ABOUT HIM? 7 "THOU HAST MADE HIM FOR A LITTLE WHILE LOWER THAN THE ANGELS; THOU HAST CROWNED HIM WITH GLORY AND HONOR, AND HAST APPOINTED HIM OVER THE WORKS OF THY HANDS; 8 THOU HAST PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET." For in subjecting all things to him, He left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we do not yet see all things subjected to him. 9 But we do see Him who has been made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.

A... the world to come ...@ is a bad translation. The Greek here is the root words oikoumene and mello. The first has the idea of land, inhabited earth, etc. That=s a big topic which well avoid for the moment. The second word means Aabout to@ or Aabout to be.@ It is normally a word of imminence, but yes there are possible exceptions so we need to spend a little time here.

The KJV and others render the word in a way that is non-specific in the future. We could do a Greek study to demonstrate that is improper in this case, but instead lets just use proper interpretive techniques. If I told you I was going to Dallas next week, and I told my mother I was going to be there Friday, would you argue that she was wrong because I didn=t give you the more specific information?

That=s exactly what many do in attempting to counter the mello issue. They argue that the passages which could be interpreted as less specific about the timing of the Parousia should control those which are more specific. In their view, those which clearly demonstrate imminence must yield to those which allow for fulfillment perhaps thousands of years in our future. I hope you can see how silly that is and realize that proper hermeneutics insists that the more specific controls the less specific. So, verse 5 should open with, AFor he did not subject to angels the world about to come ....@ If it still has not come, it wasn=t about to come when Hebrews was written.

The writer observes that Anow@ (then, at that point in time) they did not see all things subjected to Christ. They understand He was temporarily made Alower than the angels@ but they are anticipating victory in Aa little while.@ Pay special attention to that phrase. We=ll see it again in our study.

The message is clear, God HAS spoken. His last Word is The Christ in the flesh to reveal His glory. His earthly ministry had been completed and the stage was set for the consummation of all things. As the Hebrews coming out of Egypt had required 40 years to purge them of unbelief, so spiritual Israel would be purified and refined in the fiery ordeal of persecution prior to inheriting the Acity whose builder and maker is God.@

Again and again, the scripture proclaims, AThe time is at hand.@ Join us next time as we see the promises of God unfold in this glorious message of fulfillment.

(In the coming months we=ll work our way through Hebrews to see its message of imminence. This is not intended to be an extensive expository treatment of the text but do use it as a launching pad for your own study in depth)

The Apprentice=s Journal

I=m writing this on my 35^th Father=s Day. Each one has been a blessing because our daughter was due on Father=s Day 1971 but arrived a day early on June 19th. Still, every few years we get to celebrate both days together when her birthday falls on Father=s day. That always makes it particularly special.

By the grace of God, extended through good medical care, the dawn of my first Father=s Day pushed back the darkness which overshadowed those first hours. As time has passed, those days have grown all the more marvelous. It boggles my mind that our total out of pocket cost for the hospital stay was $65 (it would have been $0 but we had to pay for the administration of the blood Sharon needed).

It was something of a challenge but I told the doctor I would be in the delivery room or he would be delivering the baby in our apartment. He must have believed I meant it because he got the necessary approvals. Still, folks weren=t sure what to think of us. Their amazement grew when they realized Sharon was going to breast-feed Laura. Once again, by going Abackward@ we were ahead of the curve. What is relatively common now was almost unheard of then.

It isn=t always fun being near the forefront of change, but someone has to be there! It has been something of a hallmark of our life together that we question things, study and draw our own conclusions. Though we sometimes seem out of step with the masses, we have lived long enough to see what was once unusual gain wider acceptance in time. It=s not that we seek to be different, its just a matter of following our convictions even when they run counter to popular conventions.

©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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