Hey Maggot!

Maggots. Few things trigger revulsion like the sight of
maggots writhing through rotting food or decomposing road
kill. While they perform a need function in helping in the
decomposition of dead things, they still leave a negative
impression.

Why begin a Sabbath thought with something repulsive such
as maggots?

We find the answer in Job 25 in a comment to Job by Bildad
the Shuhite. Job in the chapter contends that he is righteous.
Bildad doesn’t accept Job’s contention. He says, “How then
can man be righteous before God? Or how can he be pure who
is born of a woman? If even the moon does not shine, and the
stars are not pure in His sight, how much less man, who is a
maggot, and a son of man, who is a worm?" (Job 25:4-6).

Bildad's view of God's dominion and majesty in the heavens
causes him to devalue mortal man as a maggot or a worm. His
conclusion is that man is so disgustingly sinful, like maggots,
in God’s sight there is no possibility of self-justification like
Job.

While Bildad is right in making the point that human beings of
themselves, corrupt and impure, are morally unworthy to have
anything to do with God, he is wrong in making it seem that
mankind is essentially worthless in God's eyes.

However, as we consider Passover, we are reminded that man
has great value in God’s sight. Mankind has value in God’s
sight not because they are righteous and deserving of God’s
positive valuation. God looks positively on men and women
because each one of them has the potential to become a part of
the family of God.

Men and women have the potential to become spirit beings,
living forever, through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ (1
Corinthians 5:7).

The Apostle John was inspired to express our value to God in
John 3:14-17, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the
wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that
whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal
life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only
begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish
but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into
the world to condemn the world, but that the world through
Him might be saved.”

It is true that by our sinful conduct we are no better than
maggots or worms. But through looking to the Lamb of God,
sacrificed for the sins of the world, we can be cleansed of all
unrighteousness and mature to the very stature of Jesus Christ.

Thank God for His grace and mercy in sending his Son to die
for our sins.

Have a most enjoyable Sabbath.

Gary Smith

Every Kingdom Divided Against Itself Is Brought To Desolation

Last week, the attempt by the Republican Party to overturn the
Affordable Care Act (aka: Obamacare) failed. Because of the
division in the majority party not enough votes could be
mustered in order to prevail. This failure to deliver on the
campaign promise made both by presidential candidate
Donald Trump and many congressional candidates as well is a
major setback.

The obvious conclusion is that our national government is
divided. The question that yet remains to be answered is, “Can
our government reach a level of unity where legislation can be
passed that will serve to move our country in a more positive
direction?”

Jesus Christ addressed the issue of a house divided in Matthew
12:22-26, “Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed,
blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the
blind and mute man both spoke and saw. And all the
multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of
David?" Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This
fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the
ruler of the demons." But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said
to them: "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to
desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will
not stand. If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against
himself. How then will his kingdom stand?”

Barnes’ Notes comments, “Their subtle and cunning device
was completely foiled, and Jesus made their argument recoil
on their own heads. A kingdom or a family can prosper only
by living in harmony. The different parts and members must
unite in promoting the same objects. If divided-if one part
UNDOES what the other DOES-it must fall. So with the
kingdom of Satan. It is your doctrine that Satan has
"possessed" these whom I have cured. It is also your doctrine
that he has helped me to cure them. If so, then he has helped
me to undo what he had done. He has aided me to cast himself
out-that is, to oppose and discomfit himself.

At this rate, how can there be any stability in his kingdom? It
must fall, and Satan must have less than human prudence.”
(from Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database Copyright © 1997,
2003, 2005, 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.)

The national leadership of the United States seems to be
hopelessly divided. Can we come together to achieve a
common purpose? I’m sure we all hope for that outcome.
However, we must realize that if we continue on the current
divided against itself it will not stand.

Living in a divided world is one of those things that is vexing
to a Christian. How do we change this situation? Sadly, we
cannot change this situation.

But we can know that when we come together on Passover
evening, to participate in the footwashing, the bread, and the
wine it symbolically points to unity.

Unity begins with humility and service of others as
symbolized by the footwashing.

Unity is further accomplished as we continue to yield to Jesus
Christ continuing His work in us as symbolized by the eating
the bread and drinking of the wine.

We may live in a divided world, but we by our humility,
service, repentance, and growth in righteousness can be
unified as the body of Christ. In the Passover service, we are
renewing our commitment to be one with God and one
another.

I think Paul summarizes the concept of unity conveyed in the
Passover well in 1 Corinthians 10:16-18, “The cup of blessing
which we bless, is it not a very sharing in the blood of Christ?
When we break the bread do we not actually share in the body
of Christ? The very fact that we all share one bread makes us
all one body. Look at the Jews of our own day. Isn't there a
fellowship between all those who eat the altar sacrifices? (The
New Testament in Modern English, J. B. PHILLIPS)

Enjoy the Sabbath rest,

Gary Smith

God's Law Never Takes A Holiday

As the Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread get closer, we
seek to examine ourselves in preparation for reconfirming our
commitment to God’s working in us.

God’s law is fundamental to self-examination, but what is the
state of law in America today? Writer Victor Davis Hanson
addresses this question in article published in National Review
Online (http://www.nationalreview.com/article/446014/).

In the article, he points out:

•A federal law states that the president can by
proclamation “suspend the entry of all aliens or any
class of aliens as immigrants or nonimmigrants, or
impose on the entry of aliens any restrictions he may
deem to be appropriate.” Yet a federal judge ruled
that President Trump cannot do what the law allows
in temporarily suspending immigration from
countries previously singled out by the Obama
administration for their laxity in vetting their
emigrants.

• Some 500 “sanctuary” cities and counties have
decided for political reasons that federal immigration
law does not fully apply within their jurisdictions.
They have done so with impunity, believing that
illegal immigration is a winning political issue given
changing demography. In a way, they have already
legally seceded from the union and provided other
cities with a model of how to ignore any federal law
they do not like.

• There is a federal law that forbids the IRS from
unfairly targeting private groups or individuals on the
basis of their politics. Lois Lerner, an IRS director,
did just that but faced no legal consequences.

• There are statutes that prevent federal intelligence
and investigatory agencies from leaking classified
documents. No matter. For the last six months, the
media have trafficked in reports that Trump is under
some sort of investigation by government agencies
for allegedly colluding with the Russians. That
narrative is usually based on information from
“unnamed sources” affiliated with the FBI, NSA, or
CIA. No one has been punished for such leaking.

• The logic seems also to be that we need only follow
the laws that we like — and assume that law
enforcement must make the necessary adjustments.

In light of this pattern should we be surprised that Christ said,
“And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will
grow cold” (Matthew 24:12).

Mr. Hanson lays out for us the outcome of lawlessness. “The
same thing happens when the law goes on a vacation. Rules
are unenforced or politicized. Citizens quickly lose faith in the
legal system. Anarchy follows — ensuring that there can be
neither prosperity nor security. The United States is
descending into such an abyss, as politics now seem to govern
whether existing laws are enforced.”

The bottom line for us as Christians is that God’s law always
has and always will apply. In fact, it is the standard by which
must evaluate ourselves.

We made a commitment at baptism to live by every word that
proceeds from the mouth of God (Matthew 4:4). It doesn’t
matter whether we like the law or not. All of God’s laws are
always applicable.

As we prepare to participate in Passover and the Days of
Unleavened Bread, we renew our dedication to keeping God’s
law. For God’s people, law never takes a holiday.

Have a pleasant Sabbath,

Gary Smith

If God’s Word Is Not True, We Have No Hope

This year I decided to go back through a class on Ancient Israel. The class was a wonderful reminder of why I enjoyed the class in my college days.

The final portion of the class went through the arrest and trial of Jesus Christ which is an excellent study prior to the Passover. As this portion of the class began, several books on the subject of the arrest and trial were recommended by the professor. In light of the recommendations made, I ordered three books on the subject. I am currently in the process of reading one of the recommended books.

You would hope that the scholars would be able to give us deep insight into a subject that every Christian would like to know more about. However, the scholars writing the three books come at the subject from the same vantage point. Not one of the learned scholars believes that the Bible is the truth and every word of it is “God breathed” or as we might also say “inspired”.

The three writers view the Gospels as books based on a variety traditions and basically the “fantasies” of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. In the scholars view, the four Gospels are not an accurate recounting of the life and death of Jesus Christ.

Here are a few quotes that emphasize the author’s vantage point.

“Thus the Gospels contain no less than seven different descriptions of a scene of a judicial or quasi-judicial character, together with five descriptions of a scene of the maltreatment and mockery of Jesus….Each evangelist retained what he himself had found, and enlarged it by his specific contribution. In this way a discrepancy came about between the various evangelical accounts….The sequence of events now recorded in the four Gospels could not possibly have taken place within the space of six or seven hours, actual time-lag between Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion” (Paul Winter, “On The Trial of Jesus”, pp. 7-8).

“It is now no longer seriously disputed that there was not available to the authors of the Gospels any testimony of eyewitnesses who were present at any of the stages of the arrest, trial, or crucifixion of Jesus and gave a direct account of it” (Haim Cohn, The Trial and Death of Jesus, p. xiii).

“In short, the Gospel traditions are “messages of faith and not historiography”; any historical material in their hands the authors used “to add detail and graphic quality,” but on the whole, they freely exercised their fantasy “in presenting, and in meaning to present, not history but theology” (Cohn, p. xv).

These quotes do not promote faith in God and in His word. If God’s word is unreliable, how can we have confidence in God or His plan of salvation? If God’s word is not true, we have no hope beyond the physical world, so we better be about the business of enjoying the physical life to the hilt.

However, we are reassured by God’s word.

First of all we learn in John 10:35 that, “…the Scripture cannot be broken)….” The point Christ is making concerning the scriptures, as accurately translated, is they are not in error. If we find error or contradiction in the word of God, then how can we believe in the scriptures at all? Thankfully, the scriptures are reliable and without error. If we find a seeming contradiction, we can be assured that if we dig into the scriptures we can find a reliable explanation.

The writers of the gospels sought to truthfully recount for God’s people the truths they witnessed. Their writings were not flights of fantasy made up in order to sell the public on Jesus Christ. Note what the Apostle John relates about his personal experience, “And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe” (John 19:35).

John made a similar point in 1 John 1:1-4, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life — the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us — that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these things we write to you that your joy may be full.”

The writers of the Gospels and the rest of the New Testament sought to record the truth to serve as a reliable record for the generations to come. The New Testament harmonizes perfectly with Old Testament to give us a complete record in order to follow a path pleasing to God.

In summary, the Gospel accounts are true and accurate and serve to give us insight into our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Sadly, so-called experts cannot see the picture clearly and they present a picture that only causes doubt and uncertainty.

Thankfully, God gives us the opportunity every Sabbath to come together as a congregation to delve into God’s word for “doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

Have a pleasant Sabbath,

Gary Smith

The Christian Passover: One Bread and One Body

As the Sabbath of April 16 approaches, we are only a few days away from the Passover. In light of our observance of the Passover, I thought it would be timely to consider a first century problem that is still most important to us today. It is a problem that relates to the Passover.

In the world in which Jesus Christ carried out his ministry, Jewish culture predominated in Judea. It was a culture that impacted all of the Apostles and many Christians with a Jewish heritage. Jewish culture greatly impacting the church should not be surprising because the church was almost exclusively Jewish until God added Cornelius and his household in Acts 10.

Although Peter and those who accompanied him to the house of Cornelius could clearly see that God had added Gentiles to the church just as he had the Jews gathered at the temple on Pentecost in 31 AD, it was hard for them to fully grasp the meaning of this dramatic shift. The first century Jewish Christians, including the Apostles, were “cultural captives”, meaning they operated based upon their cultural heritage which was not God’s perspective in regard to the church.

The impact of Jewish culture on the Apostles is illustrated in the book of Galatians. There in Paul’s epistle, we find that Peter and other Jews had no problem eating meals with the non-Jewish Christians.

However, when leading Jewish Christians came to Antioch and saw Peter and the other Jews in Antioch eating with the Gentiles they created a fuss over this. From the perspective of these visitors from Jerusalem Paul and the other Jews were being made ritually unclean by eating with the Gentiles. Peter, Barnabas and other Jewish Christians stopped eating with the Gentiles feeling uncomfortable and maybe confused about what to do. So they separated themselves for meals from the Gentiles.

Paul seeing this take place could not let this hypocrisy pass. We find him addressing this, “But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter before them all, "If you, being a Jew, live in the manner of Gentiles and not as the Jews, why do you compel Gentiles to live as Jews?”” (Galatians 2:14).

Paul addressed this because this division between Jew and Gentile was going to create a huge rift in the Church of God if not properly dealt with. Paul intervened in the matter strongly because of the potential for splitting the church into Jewish and Gentile factions. Such division was not God’s intention as illustrated most emphatically in Acts 10 and Acts 15, as well as, in the epistles of Paul.

We might ask, “How does this situation relate to the Passover?”

Consider the footwashing.

We have a separation for the footwashing between men and women for modesty and decorum in a groups setting.

However, should we seek to separate based on whether we are Jewish or Gentile? I am an Israelite and will not wash the feet of a Gentile. If we went down such a path of segregation, we would be back to the same situation as the first century. We would be divided which is not what any part of the Passover service symbolizes.

Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 12:12-13, “For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body — whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free — and have all been made to drink into one Spirit.” In other words, we are one body, bound together through the Spirit of God dwelling in each member.

Our being one body is emphasized by each member partaking of the bread and the wine. Every member of the body of Christ partakes of the Passover symbols. Paul points out what this symbolizes in 1 Corinthians 10:16-17, “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread.” As we partake of the Passover symbols we are unified.

The word communion in this passage causes some confusion because it is used by some as a title for the taking of the bread and wine. However, the word used by Paul indicates unity of the body of Christ in partaking of it. The word “communion” is translated as “share a fellowship” in Amplified; “a sharing” in the New Century Version; and the Wuest Expanded New Testament translates the Greek as “our joint-participation”. Paul uses the word “communion” to indicate we are together as one body as observe the Passover.

So as we come together to observe the Passover, we are neither Jew nor Gentile, slave or free, male or female. We are all heirs of salvation.

Enjoy a most pleasant Sabbath.

Gary Smith

Prophetic Geopolitics Crucial to Christ's Crucifixion

The Passover is less than a month away. On that date, we gather in order to remember the sacrifice made by Jesus Christ to redeem us from our sins.

At Passover, we are reminded of Christ’s body that was broken by scourging and His crucifixion which led to his death at the point of a Roman spear.

The question we might ask: What does the death of a Jewish man by crucifixion in a backwater Roman province have to do with geopolitics? The answer is that without the necessary geopolitical alignment Christ would never have been crucified.

Going back to the time of Alexander the Great and the generals who succeeded him, the land of Judea was a geopolitical football. Judea was a first dominated by the Ptolemies of Egypt. Next it came under the dominion of the Seleucid Empire. In the time of Antiochus Epiphanes, Judea gained some degree of independence.

In time a third power, the Romans, entered the power struggle for the land of Judea. In the time when Augustus Caesar was gaining control over the Roman Empire, a man we known historically as Herod the Great rose to power. He through his own financing and military prowess took possession of the province of Judea and was able to rule that territory as a client king from 37 BC to approximately 4 BC. During this time, Jewish law governed and death sentences were carried out according the Jewish regulations. If one were condemned to death, the sentence would not have been crucifixion.

With Herod’s death around 4 BC, he was succeeded by his son, Herod Archelaus. He was approved as ruler by the Romans, but they did not rule directly. They gave Archelaus the lion’s share of the Herod the Great’s territory. They gave him Judea, Samaria, and Idumea. They also allowed him to enjoy the title of ethnarch of Judea with the idea if he proved his capabilities and loyalty they would allow him to be called king of Judea later.

Unfortunately for Archelaus, he did not do well and the Romans removed him from power and exiled him to Lyon in what we know today as France.

With the removal of Archelaus the area that Archelaus had ruled became a Roman province. It was known as the Roman province of Judea. The only part of Herod the Great’s territory that came under Roman rule was the part ruled by Archelaus.

This change in the political situation was crucial. It was crucial because the change was necessary to fulfill prophecy. Without Archelaus losing control of Samaria, Judea, and Idumea, prophecy could not have been fulfilled. Judea remained a Roman province from 6 AD to 41 AD

We might ask, “Why is it important that Judea was a Roman province between 6 AD and 41 AD? In what way did it pave the way for prophecy to be fulfilled?”

If Archelaus had been an independent ruler of Judea, then Christ would not have been crucified. He would have died in some other way: either by stoning, beheading, or some other fashion favored by the Jews. The most likely form of execution would have been stoning.

What’s the problem with stoning? Stoning would have violated the prophetic word found in Psalms 34:20, “He guards all his bones; not one of them is broken.” The Apostle John refers to Psalm 34 to buttress the fact that Jesus was the Messiah in John 19:35-36, “And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe. For these things were done that the Scripture should be fulfilled, "Not one of His bones shall be broken."

If Judea had been under rule by any of the descendants of Herod, he would have been most probably executed by stoning. The problem with stoning is that during the execution Christ would have suffered multiple broken bones. If executed by decapitation, bones would have been broken.

It was necessary to fulfill prophecy for Jesus to be crucified. A crucifixion would only have taken place if Judea had been a Roman province at the time of the Messiah’s death.

Geopolitical events insured that at the time when the death of the Messiah became necessary he would die by the uniquely Roman form of execution, crucifixion.

We can rejoice that Christ died on our behalf and we can be reassured that Christ’s crucifixion fulfilled the prophetic word.

Have a most enjoyable Sabbath.

Gary Smith

The Days of Unleavened Bread Are Over But Our Battle with Sin is Not

As the weekly Sabbath begins, the annual Sabbath, the Seventh Day of Unleavened Bread, has come to a close.

In hearkening back to two significant historical events that occurred on the Last Day of Unleavened Bread, we are reminded of a most important realization.

The first event that occurred on the Last Day of Unleavened Bread is Israel passing through the Red Sea. God opened the way for Israel to pass through an impassible physical barrier. They were under great pressure as the army of Pharaoh chomped at the bit to recapture the slave nation and return them to slavery. They had no time to come up with their own solution. They had to trust God to make a way for them to escape.

God did make a way for Israel to pass through the Red Sea, but was their journey complete? No, Israel had to continue to follow God on to the Promised Land.

We have renewed our covenant with God and have completed the Days of Unleavened Bread. But we like Israel have not reached the Promised Land. We must continue to follow Jesus Christ.

A second historical event occurring at the close of Unleavened Bread was the fall of Jericho. Israel had entered the land as God miraculously parted the waters of the Jordan. Israel encamped at Gilgal and it was there that all the males were circumcised as part of the covenant with God. They kept the Passover and then began the conquest of Jericho throughout the Days of Unleavened Bread. It was on the Seventh Day of Unleavened Bread that the walls collapsed and Israel conquered the city.

One city in the land of Canaan had fallen, but the conquest was far from complete. There were many more cities to conquer. We must realize that the conquest of sin is not complete in our lives either. As human beings, we are going to continually be battling sin. As Israel submitted to and followed God’s instructions in marching around Jericho, so we must continue to follow Christ until the conquest of sin is complete.

Our need to continue to follow Christ to the land of promise and to conquer sin is summarized beautifully by Paul in Philippians 3:12-14, “Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

As the Sabbath begins, it is good for us to reflect on the fact that we have not yet attained and our need to continue to reach “forward to those things which are ahead.” We press on toward the conquest of sin and maturity of Jesus Christ. As God completes His work in us through Jesus Christ, we will receive the eternal inheritance.

Enjoy the Sabbath,

Gary Smith

Our World Needs Servants Who Will Follow Christ’s Example, Not More Lords

On Tuesday evening of Nisan 14, 31 A.D., Jesus sat down with His disciples to observe the Passover. “When the hour had come, He sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him. Then He said to them, "With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God” (Luke 22:14-16).

One part of the Passover service is found in John 13. There we find a most meaningful ceremony established. “And supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray Him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God, rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded. . . . Jesus answered and said to him, "What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this."

So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again, He said to them, "Do you know what I have done to you? You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them” (John 13:2-7, 12-17).

We might ask, “Why did Jesus wash the feet of His disciples on Passover evening? Why did He take the opportunity to give them an example of service?”

Luke recounts an incident of human nature on display even at the Passover itself. “Now there was also a dispute among them, as to which of them should be considered the greatest. And He said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called 'benefactors.' But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves. For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? Yet I am among you as the One who serves” (Luke 22:24-27).

Christ settled the question of who is the greatest by showing them what a servant is all about. Surely those who were to become the Apostles of Christ were mortified when Christ, their teacher and master, washed their feet and explained that the greatest in the kingdom of God will be the one who serves.

We, who are members, participated in the footwashing ceremony on Thursday evening, and one of the great reminders of that ceremony is that we are to follow Christ’s example of service to all. Christ’s example of service reminds us we don’t need more lords who exercise authority over others. Our world needs servants who will follow Christ’s example and show what true greatness is all about.

Have most pleasant Sabbath, the first day of Unleavened Bread,

Gary Smith

The Lamb of God

As the Sabbath comes upon this week, we are a little less than a week from the Passover. It is a time for us to consider our Savior, Jesus Christ. The Bible reveals a great deal about the one who became God in the flesh and died on behalf of all mankind.

One description of Jesus Christ is given to us by John the Baptist. In John 1:29, we see John clearly recognized who Jesus was, “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”” A day later as they were walking along, he makes the same point to two of his own disciples, “Behold the Lamb of God!”

John was not making an idle statement. He was declaring something of great significance for the people of his time. The Apostle John recorded this declaration because it is still a most significant point for all of us living two thousand years later.

Declaring that Jesus was the Lamb of God points to the promises that had been made from the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8). The significance of the Lamb of God continues to be emphasized in the New Testament especially in the book of Revelation.

It is significant that Christ came as a lamb and not a lion, leopard, bear or other wild predator. He came into the world as a lamb, an animal whose only defense is to flee in the face of attack. Jesus knew from early on in His life that He was the Lamb of God who was to be the ultimate offering for sin. He knew He was to die for the sins of all mankind. We all know that at some point we are to die, but none of us carry the weight knowing for certain we will die a humiliating and excruciating death.

The church deacon, Philip was inspired by God’s Spirit to travel down the road leading from Jerusalem southward toward Gaza. As Philip traveled along, an Ethiopian eunuch was traveling along in a chariot, returning home from worshiping in Jerusalem. Philip encountered this man as he was reading in the book of Isaiah.

This encounter is addressed in the book of Acts, “So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, "Do you understand what you are reading?" And he said, "How can I, unless someone guides me?" And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him. The place in the Scripture which he read was this:

"He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and as a lamb before its shearer is silent, so He opened not His mouth. In His humiliation His justice was taken away, and who will declare His generation? For His life is taken from the earth."

So the eunuch answered Philip and said, "I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?" Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him” (Acts 8:30-35).

The quote above is found in Isaiah 53 and in the whole context of the Messiah to come it speaks of him as a “sheep” or “lamb” who is to be slaughtered. It’s hard not to see a correlation between the “sheep” of Isaiah, the declaration concerning “the Lamb of God” and Jesus Christ.

I would like to bring this Sabbath thought to a close by considering two passages recorded for us by the Apostle Peter. In both quotes, we can see that Peter ties Jesus Christ in with “the Lamb of God.”

1 Peter 1:17-21 And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

Clearly, Christ was our Passover sacrificed for us (1 Corinthians 5:7).

1 Peter 2:21-25 For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: "Who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth"; who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness — by whose stripes you were healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.”

Without a doubt, Peter ties Jesus to Isaiah 53 which is a prophecy concerning the coming of the Lamb of God.

Jesus was “the Lamb of God.” He came as a lamb and died as “the” Passover lamb for our sins.

What is especially beautiful is that He lived as a lamb and died on our behalf. From that experience, Christ now serves as “the Shepherd and Overseer” of our souls. Who could be more qualified to be our Shepherd than one who experienced being a lamb?

Have a great Sabbath,

Gary Smith

Mardi Gras - An Excuse for "Christians" to Sink Into Drunken Debauchery?

Being out and about this week, I was oblivious to two significant events going on in the Christian world. As a result of going to Galveston to take care of some Feast of Tabernacles business, I became aware that Tuesday, February 17, 2015 was a big day for both Christians and non-Christians. Galveston was in the midst Mardi Gras festivities.

I was reminded of the second significant Christian observance when I came into contact with individuals who had a cross marked on their foreheads with black ashes. This cross on the forehead marked Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent.

For many, the words Mardi Gras conjure up all sorts of images in our minds. We think of parades, floats, masquerades, balls, beads, doubloons, parties, king cake and revelry. New Orleans promotes it as “the greatest free show on earth”, and it is considered by most to be a good wholesome time of frolicking and fun.

Most people think that Mardi Gras came to us from the French, and that its history dates back only a century or so (The first “REX” parade in New Orleans was held in 1872). There are also accounts of some sort of Mardi Gras celebrations dating back to the early 1700’s (though those celebrations were little more than drunken brawls).

In actuality, the Mardi Gras celebration originated in the pagan pre-Christian celebrations of spring. Ancient Greeks would sacrifice a goat, cut its hide into strips and run naked through the fields while their pagan priests lashed them with the goat-hide strips. This was a part of their spring fertility rite to insure a productive harvest for their fields and increase the fertility of their flocks and women. The custom was degenerate, even by pagan standards, being a time of lewdness, immorality, drunkenness and revelry and was associated with the worship of the Greek god “Pan”.

“Pan”, besides being the Greek god of fields and pastures, was even more closely associated with cattle, flocks and herds than with agriculture. He was a fertility god and therefore always represented as crude, wanton, and lustful. He took the form of half goat and half man, having the legs, ears, and horns of a goat (the goat is the ancient symbol of Satan), but the torso, arms and face of a man.

The Romans, also thoroughly enjoyed this Greek festival. It was held each year in Rome during mid-February.

One writer says of this predecessor to our modern Mardi Gras: “It became known as “Lupercalia”, after the grotto on the Palatine hill where the festivals of the god PAN were held. The Roman aristocracy of the time preferred debauchery and licentiousness to legality and morality. Men donned women’s clothing, the better to abandon themselves to orgy; thus the masquerade tradition began.” (Errol Laborde, MARDI GRAS! Picayune Press, N.O.LA. p.33).

Another writes: “Most scholars see a relationship between present day Mardi Gras and the ancient tribal rituals of fertility that welcomed the arrival of spring. A possible ancestor of the celebration is the Lupercalis, a circus-like orgy held in mid-February in Rome.” (Arthur Hardy, NEW ORLEANS MARDI GRAS GUIDE, 1982 ed. p.9).

Obviously, the celebration was totally licentious. Though it is mistakenly believed that our present Mardi Gras celebration is of more recent descent, sociologists and historians trace the present celebration directly to these obscene pagan spring fertility rites. Of course, most of the elements attending the ancient pagan celebration: (i.e., the drunkenness, lewdness, men-masquerading-as-women, obscenity, nudity, etc.,) have survived and are still very much a part of the present Mardi Gras celebration.

Mardi Gras is the last chance for Christians to eat, drink, and revel before Lent begins with Ash Wednesday and the marking of the forehead. With the beginning of the Lenten season Christians are to fast (abstain from chosen item) for forty days.

It is hard to believe that a festive occasion characterized by eating, drinking, and debauchery can be considered Christian, but in a world under Satan’s sway it is not a problem.

What were your thoughts on Tuesday and Wednesday? Were they upon Mardi Gras and Ash Wednesday?

Or were your thoughts upon those things that are biblical? More specifically, have we begun to think of the Passover? Have we begin to focus upon examining ourselves in order to be prepared to renew our covenant in the Passover ceremony described in 1 Corinthians 11 and John 13?

We are blessed to be able to know the truths of the Bible concerning the Passover and the Days of Unleavened. God’s festival plan will begin to unfold in just a few weeks. The coming festivals give us significant things to consider in the weeks ahead.

Perhaps we can use the Sabbath as time to study and consider the magnitude of the sacrifice of our Savior and be renewed in our commitment to God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.

Gary Smith