I read a verse which I had read many times before, but the words suddenly stunned me. This was when Moses was interceding for the Israelites asking God to forgive them for their sin of rebellion by not entering the Promised Land due to the bad report ten of the twelve spies gave when they returned from spying out the land which God had promised them. “The LORD replied, ‘I have forgiven them, as you asked. Nevertheless, as surely as I live and as surely as the glory of the LORD fills the whole earth, not one of those who saw my glory and the signs I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness but who disobeyed me and tested me ten times—not one of them will ever see the land I promised an oath to their ancestors. No one who has treated me with contempt will ever see it’” (Nu 14:20-23).

Now the word translated here as “fills” in the Hebrew means “will be filled.” So, it seems to be a future action and not a present action. It seems God is making a contrast here. While the Israelites experienced God’s glory through the various miracles he performed for them, they did not esteem him and trust him to carry them through. Yet, at some future point, God’s glory will become so profound that it will seem to fill the entire earth and will not be able to be denied as the Israelites had done.

Now, to my knowledge, that has not yet been fulfilled. As we saw in the last post, God’s glory is displayed constantly for us to see. Yet, this particular verse seems to imply something different, something more dramatic. Are there other references for this within Scripture? Yes. Yes, there is.

In Psalms, we read, “Praise be to his glorious name forever; may the whole earth be filled with his glory. Amen and Amen” (Ps 72:19). Again, this seems to indicate some event to occur at a future time.

In Isaiah, when he experienced God and the seraphim surrounding God’s throne, we read, “And they [seraphim] were calling to one another: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory’” (Is 6:3). Since this is occurring in heaven where there is no time element, this is an exclamation in the present even though as we see from other verses, this will be an event in our future.

Then in Habakkuk we read, “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea” (Hk 2:14). Again, Habakkuk seems to imply a time in his future which this would occur and just how impactful it will be. And, so, it seems, it is still a time future for us as well. Yet, it may be closer than you think.

Some may claim this proclamation of God’s glory filling the earth is referring to Christ’s millennial kingdom when he will be the King of kings reigning over the entire earth from Jerusalem. Yet, there are additional verses within Scripture that talk about this time in our future describing it to be somewhat different from this time described by the verses we have identified above. The timing seems to be tied to what is described in Daniel chapter 7 where one of the verses states, “Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be handed over to the holy people of the Most High” (Da 7:27). This is in reference to the fourth beast which Daniel saw in a vision that was different from any beast he had ever seen. God stated he would destroy this beast and turn its rule over to “the holy people,” that is, those who follow him. You can learn more about this aspect from a previous post I did (Kingdom Age).

Now if there is a time coming where God will reveal his glory in a miraculous and marvelous way, wouldn’t it be at least implied in the New Testament? Well, I think it is there. I think many times we gloss over its reference because many of us haven’t been taught about such an event occurring. Perhaps Jesus was implying such a time when he taught his disciples how to pray. He first says, “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven” (Mt 6:10). Many say Christ is referring to his millennial rule here. Yet, that would be Christ’s kingdom, not necessarily God’s kingdom. Perhaps Christ is referring to this time where God’s glory will be spread out over the entire world in a tangible way, just like his glory is spread out over the entire heavenly realm. So, maybe our view of what Jesus was praying needs a little re-thought on our part.

Another aspect to consider is that when God’s glory was experienced by anyone, it brought them to obeisance and a feeling of unworthiness causing one to bow in reverence. Yet, when Christ rules, God’s spirit will instead empower individuals. We’ll talk more about this in a future post.

In addition, it seems Jesus prophesied about this aspect of God’s glory filling the earth as well when he was telling his disciples about future events. He says, “And this gospel of the kingdom will be peached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come” (Mt 24:14). Many claim this is Christ speaking of the evangelism that will occur during the Tribulation period through the leadership of the 144,000 evangelists that Christ will raise up to evangelize the whole world (Rv 7, 14). Yet, after speaking about this time, Christ goes on to talk about what will occur after this time, so it seems the time spoken of here is before the Tribulation period and may likely be the time of God pouring out his glory over the earth.

Why did the apostle Paul not talk about such a time occurring? I addressed this in a previous post (Church Age). He likely assumed he was already in such a time because God had poured his spirit out and much of what will occur when God pours out his spirit again was already occurring. Yet, one of the things he said to Titus likely helps us to understand that he began to understand this time of God pouring out his glory was not yet occurring (Empowerment of the Holy Spirit). He told Titus to teach what Jesus had taught them until God’s glory has manifested itself to purify a people for his very own (Tt 2:11-14).

So, it seems we are on the cusp of something wonderful that God will bring upon our world and upon us. Are you ready for it? Are you excited about it? I’m reminded about a scene from the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey where the question was asked, “What’s going to happen?” The simple response was, “Something wonderful.” Well, that’s what’s going to happen here: something wonderful. Do you plan on being around to experience it? I trust you will.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

In our last post, we saw examples of God’s glory being manifested in a physical way, typically as a type of cloud or mist. We also talked about one of the aspects of God’s glory being that it should produce awe, respect, and worship of God himself. Yet, there is another aspect to God’s glory, and that is its ubiquitous nature.

What do I mean by that? I mean God’s glory is all around us. The apostle Paul stated it this way: “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse” (Ro 1:20). What is he saying? All of creation around us testifies to us of God’s power and divinity being reflected back to us, that is, God’s glory is on display all around us 24/7.

“Wait a minute,” you may say. “I was taught that all of creation was happenstance. Given enough time, chance itself will yield such a creation.” Well, the short answer is “no.” Evolution is adaptation not creation. Even the laws of thermodynamics agree with this. Matter naturally goes from order to chaos—not vice versa. And, if you understand how living things are created, you will come to the realization that these same laws apply. For example, you need proteins to make proteins. And if that is the case, where did the first protein come from? Oh, amino acids by chance came together in the right order to produce a protein. But that is only half the solution. You not only need protein, but proteins configured in just the right conformation: one structure to carry the unfolded protein into another protein structure to fold the protein into its proper 3-D configuration. You can look further at this argument here (Fingerprint of God-Part 1).

But that is only the beginning of the complexity of all that exists around us. When one looks at the structure of matter, it is, of course, composed of atoms, nature’s basic building blocks. Yet, atoms are a conundrum of existence. What keeps an atom together? There are forces within its nucleus that help to achieve this, but again, even an atom is quite complex, and the right atoms being formed by happenstance is also an infinitesimally small probability. You can look further into this argument here (When God Removes His Fingerprint). So, part of God’s glory is him holding all of creation together. The writer of Hebrews states this is a function of none other than Jesus Christ himself (Hb 1:2-3) who also reflects to us God’s glory. Therefore, us accepting Christ helps us to accept his glory at the same time.

What does all this mean for us? It means that seeing all of nature around us, seeing the cosmos above us, hearing the wind, smelling the fragrances that waft on the breeze, and touching the delicate flowers that bloom in our garden beds, and understanding the complexities of all these things gives testimony to us of God’s glory. It is undeniable and will be a testimony against us as we stand before God one day to give an account of our lives. He will require proof of why you did not believe these things. Do you have that? Or are you just going off the saying of someone else? Have you taken your “logic” to the very end of that logic trail? If you investigate thoroughly, that trail does not lead you where you think it leads. If you are honest with yourself and your trail of logic, it will lead you to God, to his glory, and to Jesus Christ himself.

So, this is the second aspect of God’s glory. It is both tangible yet ubiquitous. It is both something you feel, but also something you see. It is not the element of seeing alone that helps you to understand God’s glory in these elements, but what you can’t see about these elements that helps you to display the awe, respect, and worship toward God that he deserves. Paul said this in Colossians: “For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible” (Cl 1:16). While part of what Paul is describing is the spiritual aspects of the invisible, it can encompass the physical invisible forces he created to hold all that we see, appreciate, admire, and cherish together.

There is also a third element to God’s glory that we will explore next time. I hope you join me.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

According to Strong’s Concordance, there are at least a dozen different Hebrew words in the Old Testament translated to mean “glory,” and at least seven Greek words in the New Testament translated as “glory.” Yet, there is only one that is most associated with God when a biblical author is describing the glory of God. That Hebrew word is kavod and the Greek word meaning the same is doxa.

The other words are often used to describe one’s splendor, grandeur, loudness, beauty, prominence, ampleness, or honor. These can be used as in either a good or bad connotation. Other usages are presented in their negative connotation, such as being boastful, self-centered, or prideful. When used in a derogatory way, their usage leads us to contrast those traits to God’s glory and see how mankind falls short of the ideal concept of the term “glory.”

So, what does the “glory of God” actually mean or connote? The root of the word implies a heaviness. But this is not our standard use of the word but a usage to imply respect, awe, and honor in the most reverent of ways and attitude that leads one to both worship and praise God.

There are three ways Scripture utilizes the phrase “glory of God.” The first way is as a literal physical entity. In this post, let’s look at a few of these events in Scripture when God’s glory is presented to us in physical form.

When God presented himself to the children of Israel as a cloud with thunder and lightning on Mount Sinai, Scripture describes this as God presenting his glory to them. This revealed the seriousness of worshiping God with respect and honor that is due him. In this instance, it produced actual fear in the heart of each Israelite in addition to the awe his presence evoked (Ex 19:16). Hearing God speak was so terrifying, they asked Moses to speak with God and then relay his message to them rather than them hearing God speak to them himself (Dt 5:24-27).

When Moses first erected the tabernacle, God’s glory filled it (Ex 40:34-35) with a visible presence that prevented anyone from entering because of the magnificence of God’s presence there. The same thing happened when king Solomon dedicated the first permanent temple for God in Jerusalem (2Ch 5:13-14). In each case, duties withing the tabernacle or temple had to be halted due to God’s presence being so thick within the structure no one could bear to be in it (Ex 40:35; 2Ch 5:14).

The prophet Isaiah also experienced this when he had his vision of standing in God’s holy temple in heaven (Is 6:4) which elicited his cry of just how unholy he was compared to God’s holiness (Is 6:5) which caused him to say, “Woe is me! For I am undone” (Is 6:5). John the revelator also experienced the same phenomenon, and no one could enter the temple due to God’s presence there (Rv 15:8).

The prophet Ezekiel experienced the glory of God both exiting the temple in Jerusalem (Ek 11:22-23) as well as enter the new temple that will one day be erected to worship the Lord God again (Ek 43:4-5). Ezekiel also fell to his face upon his first encounter (Ek 1:28) and was only able to stand and perform due to the help of God’s Spirit (Ek 2:2).

Peter, James, and John experienced the glory of God as a bright cloud as well when Jesus Christ was transfigured before them (Mt 17:5). They, too, fell upon their faces due to the experience (Mt 17:6).

In each of these cases, those who experienced God in this way had a feeling of inadequacy overwhelm them being in God’s presence. The idea of one’s own goodness completely evaporated instantly upon their encounter with God. As we can see, experiencing the presence of God automatically demands respect, awe, and worship. Hence the true meaning of biblical authors using the essence of the word kavod or doxa.

When we pray, this is the attitude we should also have as we approach him. Not that we are afraid of him because, after all, we are his children and co-inheritors with him (Ro 8:17). Even in our day-to-day lives we can, and should, have reverence for those who are over us, like our parents, even though we are close to them and love them greatly. Even more so should we have this attitude toward God himself. May we ever do so.

Next time, we’ll look at another aspect of God’s glory.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

We have been looking at how the people of Israel responded to God sending snakes into their camp as they traveled toward their Promised Land because of their rebellion. Moses makes a brass snake and sets it up on a pole in their midst and the people were asked to look up at it for healing. Why?

God now expects a personal response to him. God enacted a national judgment on Israel because of their rebellion but is now going to reward a personal response to him. Israel was to become an ambassador to the rest of the world (Ex 19:6). Israel would be an example of how God punishes and rewards nations but more importantly, God is now showing them that a personal response to God supersedes a national response to Him. Their individual response to the raised serpent on a pole would set the example for how individuals are to respond to Jesus Christ raised up on the cross. Can you now see why Jesus used this as a example to compare himself being raised up on the cross?

Warning! The cross can also become like Hezekiah looked at Nehushtan: it is just a thing. People often revere the cross but not necessarily the one on the cross: Jesus himself. People look at this as a way of coexisting with those of other religions. I’m sure you have seen the coexist sticker before. It has the cross with the other religion symbols. You can have the cross in this sticker, but you can’t have Jesus Christ within this sticker because he is the only way to God (Ac 4:12). It makes being good equal to being righteous; that way no one is offended. Yet what makes one feel good does not make it true. There is only one truth and that is found within Jesus Christ himself (Jn 14:6). Succumbing to such a trivialization of Christianity to other religions takes away the power offered to us through our relationship with Jesus Christ (Ep 1:19-19).

We must recognize that Christ bore our sins (past, present, and future) on the cross for several reasons:

1.      He appeased the wrath of God. Isaiah 53:11c says, “and he [Messiah] will bear their iniquities.” Also, Romans 5:8-9 says, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!”

2.      He shed his blood to atone for our sins. 1 John 4:9-10 says, “This is how God showed his love among is: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”

3.      Through him we can confess our sins and he will cleanse us because his blood has already been shed. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

4.      His act allows God to now declare us righteous—not because of us—but because of Jesus Christ. Romans 3:21-22 says, “But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile.”

5.      We can now have an eternal inheritance with Christ—something we could obtain no other way.

The good news is that it doesn’t end there! Christ rose from the grave defeating Death and Sheol (Hades/Hell). 1 Corinthians 15:55 says, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” We no longer go to Sheol upon death but go directly to be with Christ for eternity (2Co 5:8). The apostle Paul tells us in Romans 8:2, “Because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.” Also, he tells us in Romans 6:4, “We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.”

And what is our reward? Hearing our Lord and Savior say, “Well done my good and faithful servant.” He’s Waiting! Just for you. He’s calling out to you. What is your answer? I trust you say “yes” to him today.

(Note: all scripture references are from NIV Bible version)

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

We now come to the third usage of Nehushtan: “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him” (Jn 3:14-15).

Now, let’s do a comparison between Nehushtan and Christ’s crucifixion.

First, what was God’s wrath directed toward in each situation? His wrath was against the Israelites rebellion in the wilderness. His wrath was against the sin of all mankind when Christ was on the cross.

Second, what was the instrument God used to absolve his wrath in each situation? He used the poisonous snakes as a means of absolving his wrath for the Israelites in the wilderness. He used the sacrifice of Christ, his sinless son, as a means of absolving his wrath against us.

Third, what was the method required for healing in each situation? Faith was needed for the Israelites in the wilderness to be healed from their snakebite wounds and death. Also, faith is needed for us to be released from our doom of a second (or spiritual) death.

Fourth, who received God’s healing in each situation? For each, it was an individual act. Only those of the Israelites who looked up at the snake on the pole were healed. They had to obey God and face their sin. No one could do it for anyone else, no matter how much they may have loved them or wanted them to look. Everyone had to do that for themselves. The same is true for us today. Accepting Christ’s act of paying for our sins on the cross is an individual decision. No one can do it for you.

If these complaining Israelites had only known how close they were to reaching their Promised Land, they might have held their criticism. They were less than two years away from entering the land they had waited for for almost forty years. They let their frustration get the better of them rather than remembering God’s promises to them. Yet are we not similar in that we do the same? Sometimes we miss out on God’s blessing because we become impatient rather than relying upon His faithfulness.

The Israelites had selective remembrance of what happened to their parents. So, how had God responded to these Israelites’ parents when they refused to enter the Promised Land 38 years prior? God responded to the peoples’ rebellion upon the spies returning from Canaan and Moses pleading for them: “The LORD replied, ‘I have forgiven them, as you asked. Nevertheless, as surely as I live and as surely as the glory of the LORD fills the whole earth, not one of those who saw my glory and the signs I performed in Egypt and in the wilderness but who disobeyed me and tested me ten times—not one of them will ever see the land I promised on oath to their ancestors. No one who has treated me with contempt will ever see it’” (Nu 14:20-23).

What were these ten times and how did God respond to their rebellion? Six times God was merciful with the Israelites’ rebellion:

1. Israel became trapped between Pharaoh’s army and the Red Sea. The people complained that Moses had led them out of bondage to just have them destroyed. God was merciful and helped them by parting the water so they could travel through the Red Sea on dry ground (Ex 14:10-31).

2. Water at Marah was bitter and undrinkable, so the people complained even though days earlier God had saved them from destruction by the hand of Pharaoh. God instructed Moses what to do to make the water sweet and drinkable (Ex 15:22-25).

3. Israelites were hungry in Wilderness of Sin and God sent quails and manna to feed them (Ex 16:1-18).

4. Some Israelites left manna until morning going against what God commanded, and God had the manna spoil (Ex 16:19-20).

5. Some Israelites looked to gather manna on the Sabbath against what God commanded, and God reprimanded them (Ex 16:27-29).

6. No water at Rephidim and God provided water from the Rock (Ex 17:1-7).

God then started imposing national judgment:

7. People made and worshipped a golden calf. 3000 Israelites were slain by the sword (Ex 32:1-27).

8. Israelites complained at Taberah. God had many Israelites burned by fire from the Lord (Nu 11:1-3).

9. Israelites complained about not having meat to eat at Kibroth-Hattaavah. God sent quail but then also a plague (Nu 11:4-6; 31-34).

10. Most Israelites believed the bad report of the 10 spies saying the Promised Land couldn’t be conquered, and God said that those above the age of 20 would not enter the Promised Land (Nu 13:1-33; 14:1-45).

If we look at the location where each of these rebellions occurred, the first six occurred before they reached Mt. Sinai and the others were after they reached Sinai. It seems God was merciful with their rebellion and explained things to them before their encounter with Him at Mt. Sinai. Yet, after their encounter with Him, he started instituting judgment for their rebellion (sin). They were now his people, his ambassadors (Ex 19:6), and they needed to learn to act accordingly.

It seems even after 38 years of having to wait to get to Canaan, their Promised Land, lessons were not learned. God had provided everything for them for 38 years, but they were not grateful. It was not this generation who had been in Egypt, yet they still vocalized the same complaints their fathers and mothers had voiced. Rather than learning from their present, they clung to what they had heard about earthly satisfaction of their past, ignoring the hardships that occurred when they had what they were longing for. They, unfortunately, did not focus on the supernatural blessings God had provided to their fathers and mothers, as well as to themselves. They took for granted their current blessings and took those as normal, mundane. Yet do we not do the same? We focus on what is the here and now rather than the supernatural blessings of now and a guaranteed future of even more blessings to come.

I think the plague of poisonous snakes was the first individual salvation God provided to the Israelites once they had been judged. Therefore, this is a very appropriate one for Jesus to relate to Nicodemus about his crucifixion as our response to him is also an individual act.

We’ll explore this further next time. I hope you join me.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

In the past post, we came to understand why Jesus came to Earth when he did. This now leads us to try and understand a mysterious paradox. The very thing that was causing their suffering was what was placed on the pole for them to look up to for healing. This seems strange, doesn’t it?

Yet this is similar to other requirements God implemented:

The purification requirement for someone who became defiled by blood was to shed blood of an animal for a sacrifice (for example, after menstruation or giving birth, a woman was considered unclean for a time and had to make a blood sacrifice).

The purification requirement for someone who became defiled by a dead body was to mix the ashes from a dead heifer with water for cleansing. Also, the making of the ashes of the red heifer for this cleansing made those who made these ashes unclean, although the use of these ashes once made caused the person on whom the ashes were placed to become clean.

It also is a representation of God’s wrath – he sent the serpents as a punishment for the Israelites’ rebellion and blasphemy.

This brings us to the second usage: “He [Hezekiah] did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father David had done. He removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles. He broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses had made, for up to that time the Israelites had been burning incense to it. (It was called Nehushtan)” (2Ki 18:3-4).

Hezekiah called the brass snake Nehushtan meaning “only a thing of brass.” Why did he call it by this name and have it destroyed? The people burned incense to it. You may be asking, “What is bad about that?” Incense represents prayers (Rv 5:8). A special blend of incense was made for the tabernacle/temple (Ex 30:34-38) because they were to pray only to God.

Burning incense to this brass serpent on a pole was indicating they were praying to it (a symbol of the wrath of God); likely for healing. This shows the people were trying to take God out of their needs and relying on their own effort (their incense). Also, Satan had them deluded that the power of healing was achievable without God.

Hezekiah called it “just a piece of brass” meaning it had no power to heal. Hezekiah had it destroyed because they were not praying to God but to a representation of His wrath against rebellion (sin).

Yet, despite the effort of Hezekiah, the effects of the people’s sin lingered on for several generations. The power over Satan and the power over sin is not easily won. It takes not only a physical act of removal but a change of heart and desire.

The great-great grandson of Hezekiah (Jehoiakim) married a woman named Nehushta (2Ki 24:8). It is likely her name was derived from Nehushtan because the meaning of her name is copper or bronze. This occurred over 100 years after Hezekiah destroyed Nehushtan.

So the idea of Nehushtan bringing life still prevailed even though the shrine was destroyed a long time earlier, and this woman was likely named Nehushta because of this event with the bronze snake Moses placed on a pole even though her name was really glorifying rebellion and not life. The power of sin is eradicated only when one’s view of sin changes.

What about you? Do you have God’s view of sin or one that you have created? If we are really searching for truth, then we need God’s view to permeate ours.

Next time, we’ll see how Jesus compared his death to that of Nehushtan.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

The “cure” God told Moses to construct for the people who were bitten by poisonous snakes was to construct a brass serpent and place it on a pole for the people to look at. One thing to realize is that it took a lot of time for Moses to construct such a brass serpent on a pole. Their salvation from when the solution was announced to when it was implemented took time. It was not immediate.

Moses first had to make the mold: craftsman would be needed to make it look like a snake that could drape over a pole or cross. The brass had to be collected and melted. Once poured, it had to be allowed to cool. While brass was commonly used and the Israelites had obtained much of it from the Egyptians and it could be melted using wood fires, the making of such an elaborate piece would likely have taken several days to a week or more in order to complete the process. How many people died before the brass serpent was on the pole for them to look at?

This is somewhat congruent to the time it took for Jesus’s birth to occur here on the Earth. A lot of time passed from when God first announced Christ’s coming to earth (Gn 3:15) to the time he arrived (Lk 2:11). God says Christ arrived at just the right time. He did not come too late, and he did not come too early. Galatians 4:4-5 says, “But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.”

So why did Jesus arrive on the Earth when he did? Let’s explore that question. Well, the short answer is only God knows! Yet, there are a few reasons we could mention that could help to explain this:

1.      The Law was needed for mankind to understand they could not save themselves by following a set of rules.

2.      The people were ready for a Messiah (although most were looking for the wrong type of Messiah).

3.      The entire known world was under the domain of Rome and Parthia with both existing in a détente where travel was allowed between the two empires enabling travel over the known world to be allowed with little resistance.

4.      Jews lived in almost all prominent cities of the known world.

So, it seems Jesus arrived on the scene when he was supposed to arrive—not any earlier; not any later. There is a video by Julian Gentry (MK TriciaUGC FB 240318A 16x9 to MK VSL Alt Intro 16x9 1 07x (youtube.com) who gives an explanation as to why Jesus had to have come 2000 years ago and not at any other time in history. Julian is a Christian who works for Ratio Christi in North Carolina ministering to college studies. He also makes YouTube videos of apologetics in defense of the Christian faith. In this video referenced here, he makes two main points: first, this was the time of history that many cultures were looking and worshipping a type of god with many of them having similar characteristics and this was the time that Jesus Christ stepped into history and made a lasting impact which has lasted for over two-thousand years. Second, if Jesus Christ had been just another “god,” then his influence should have waned just like all the other ones did. But he didn’t. He is still impacting people in a positive light even today.

That fact is something we can’t really ignore. I hope you don’t either.

Next time, we’ll look at how Nehushtan is, indeed, a mysterious paradox.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

In the previous post, we learned that the Israelites rebelled against God once again because they felt they were going back into the wilderness rather than toward their Promised Land. Because of their rebellion, God sent poisonous snakes among them. It is likely this was somewhat symbolic of the winged serpent god Wadjet that many Egyptians worshipped.

In Egypt, the snake (asp or cobra) was considered a protector of Pharaoh and was often depicted with wings. It is interesting that God was demonstrating to the Israelites that wanting to go back to Egypt is what is deadly to them. Their only hope was to trust in God (their new way, their deliverance) – not Egypt (their old way, their slavery).

But are we not the same? We desire our sin, the thing that enslaves us.

God is making a symbolic statement here. Going back to Egypt, or their old ways, is death. Going forward with God is life.

There is other symbolism here as well. In the Hebrew text, it states that God sent fiery (seraph) serpents. In Hebrew, the word “seraph” means “burning.” This could mean the snakes were very poisonous and their bite extremely painful. Or it could mean they were copper in color. Or it could reference what were known as “flying” serpents as the word seraph is also used for certain angels near God’s throne who have six wings (Is 6:2). Some believe the hood of the cobra could be what is representative of wings in this reference.

There are two types of snakes that may fit the Biblical description of these snakes which would live in this area. One is the Painted Carpet Viper. Its venom is both cytotoxic (meaning it causes tissue necrosis) and hemotoxic (meaning it interferes with the body’s ability to clot). Therefore, it causes a slow painful death, if untreated. It comes in various colors, but can be in an off-red, copper-like, color. The other is the Arabian Cobra. Its venom is neurotoxic which will cause paralysis and death. It also has a hood like other cobras and could be the reason for saying it has “wings.”

Another analogy can also be drawn here: Seraph angels are near God’s throne and have been described as protectors and purifiers. Therefore, this could also be symbolic of God’s name and character being defended.

The making of such an object took time. We’ll explore that aspect next time.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

There are many paradoxes in the Bible. We quote such phrases as “Whoever finds their life will lose it” (Mt 10:32); “The greatest among you will be your servant (Mt 23:11); and “When I am weak then I am strong” (2Co 12:10) as paradoxical statements. I think God has them there for people to dig out their meaning so they can understand what God is truly trying to say. There are also event paradoxes. One of these is the snake on a pole that Moses raised for the people to look upon who had been bitten by poisonous snakes. Hezekiah called this serpent Nehushtan.

This event is referenced only three times in the Bible:

1. Numbers – poisonous snakes were sent as a punishment for Israel’s rebellion.

2. 2 Kings – King Hezekiah destroys the snake on a pole (he called it Nehushtan).

3. John – Jesus references the snake on a pole when he told Nicodemus about his crucifixion that would occur.

What is the significance of Nehushtan? Let’s look at this further.

As stated, the first usage is found in the book of Numbers:

“They [the children of Israel] traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!’’

“Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us.” So, Moses prayed for the people.

“The LORD said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived” (Nu 21:4-9).

When did this event occur? The Children of Israel had made it to Kadesh Barnea, the closest point to the Promised Land they had achieved so far. They were here for about 38 years (although some believe God led them to other places during this time) until all those above 20 years of age died out because of their unbelief that God could lead them into Canaan victorious no matter the size of their enemy. Ten of the spies Moses had sent into Canaan did not support Joshua and Caleb who stated that despite the size of the men they met during their scouting mission, God would be with them and help Israel defeat them. The people believed the ten rather than the two and rebelled against Moses, and, ultimately, against God. God deemed that the current generation would die out before Israel as a nation could enter their Promised Land (Nu 14:22-23).

So when God told Moses it was time for them to move, it was the children and grandchildren of those who first arrived here who heard this announcement. When God told them to move, Moses asked the king of Edom to let them pass through their land, but he refused to have them enter the territory of Edom. Because Edom, a country descending from Esau (the brother of Jacob (Israel)), was their ancestry uncle, God said they could not harm any of the Edomites. Therefore, Moses had the people travel back toward the Red Sea so they could travel around the land of Edom.

This angered many of the people and they began to complain. They had been waiting for this command for 38 years. Now, they evidently felt they were going back into more hardships rather than progressing toward their goal. While we could possibly understand their frustration, their complaint was actually false and blasphemous. What did they say that was so severe?

There are two main parts to their complaint. The first part of their complaint was, “There is no bread! There is no water!” This complaint was an exaggeration. When people get mad and angry, this is what they resort to even without thinking about it. They exaggerate their condition and make it sound worse than it really is. If they had really thought about what they were saying, they would have realized this is not a true statement because God had supplied their needs before. They were complaining rather than asking God for what they desired.

Their history was replete with miracles God had done for them, or rather, their parents and grandparents. God had made bitter water fresh for their parents and grandparents (Ex 15:23-25); God had provided quail for their parents and grandparents to eat (Ex 16:13); God had provided water for their parents and grandparents to drink (Ex 17:1-7). They could have asked again rather than complain. Yet, these were miracles of their parents and grandparents. Maybe they didn’t believe God would do the same for them.

Are we not the same? We read of all these miracles in the Bible and yet don’t believe God will do the same for us. He tells us he is a God who never changes (Ml 3:6). Perhaps we have some self-exploring to do as well.

What they were really saying was that they wished they were back in Egypt because they were fed there. Yet, how they quickly forgot about all the hardships. These were people who had never lived in Egypt. They had only heard what their parents had said. Perhaps their parents told them of their desires for what was good back in Egypt and did not focus on all the hardships that God delivered them from. They were now speaking foolishly because there is no way they would want all the hardships their parents had to endure just to get a meal.

Their second major complaint was, “We detest this miserable food!’’ Maybe what they really meant was that they desired variety. Would God have granted that if they had asked? But rather than ask, they complained—again. And complained vehemently. This was even more egregious than the first complaint. Why? Because it was blasphemous.

The manna God provided for them was prophetic and represented the one who would come from heaven and supply all needs – Jesus Christ, himself. Manna brought life to the Israelites just as Christ would bring life to all those who follow him. This is what Jesus told those to whom he ministered. After he fed them, they asked for a sign and compared what Jesus did for them to what Moses had done for the children of Israel in the wilderness.

Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” “Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.”

Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” (Jn 6:32-35)

The punishment for their rebellion was that God sent poisonous snakes.

Next time, we’ll look at this further.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

Have you ever tried to convince someone of a fact you knew to be true, but they just would not accept what you said and kept making excuses as to why it could not be as you told them? Perhaps someone famous is in town and you want your friend to go with you to meet them, but they keep insisting that person is not here and continually tells you why that person could not be who you claim him/her to be. They never get to experience the joy of meeting that special someone with you that you had hoped for. Well, Jesus had the same problem when he was here on the Earth.

Awhile back, we discussed there were three miracles Christ performed which proved himself to be the promised Messiah that Old Testament prophets had predicted would one day come (Jesus Drives out an Evil Spirit): healing a person blind from birth, healing a Jewish leper, and healing a mute who was demon possessed. Yet, Jesus did all three of these things (Jn 9:1-6; Mk 1:40-44, Lk 5:12-14; Mt 9:32-35), yet the Jewish leaders still did not believe Jesus to be their Messiah. To give these Jewish leaders the benefit of the doubt, two of these were brought to them by hearsay so they had to believe the witnesses to be credible. Yet, one of these would involve a temple priest and he would, or should, have to at least question Jesus’ validity of being their Messiah. What do I mean by saying this?

Moses gave the cleansing rituals for what one who had been cleansed from leprosy (i.e., some type of a skin disease) was to do (Lv 14:1-7; 33-53). When the temple was constructed, four chambers within the four corners of the Court of Women were built: Nazarite Chamber, Chamber of Wood, Chamber of Oils, and Chamber of Lepers. Those who were cured from leprosy would take their required offerings to the priest on the eighth day of their purification ritual, immerse in the mikveh within the Chamber of Lepers and then go to the Nikanor Gate (the gate between the Court of Women and the Inner Court) where a priest would pronounce him or her clean and be anointed with the blood from the sacrifices provided earlier.

This is all well and good, but it seems that there was never a recording of any Jew being healed from leprosy since the time of Moses. Therefore, it became a saying that only the coming Messiah would be able to heal a Jewish leper. So, shouldn’t the priest that day have been totally shocked that this man was coming to receive a pronouncement of being cleansed after having been a leper? There should have been a big stir among all the temple priests that day. After all, something that had not happened in several centuries had just occurred. Wasn’t that worth a stir?

So why didn’t it? I guess we will never know for sure, but we can speculate. The Jewish leaders had already had some falling out moments with Jesus. Rather than praising them for their meticulous keeping of all the tedious commands the Law required, Jesus criticized them because they did not really care about the people (Lk 11:42). They cared about keeping the letter of the Law, but not the overarching theme of how the Law should lead the people to God. They used it to brag and show how the “common” people were not as good as they were in keeping the Law. Because of this, Jesus reprimanded them. Jesus’ harsh words hurt their pride and angered them. According to them, if Jesus was the Messiah who was proclaimed by all the prophets, he should care about the Law and be raising them up as pristine examples of how to keep the Law, and invite them into his kingdom he was to now set up. Therefore, it is my suspicion that when the once-leper told the priest it was Jesus of Nazareth who healed him from his leprosy, this priest likely totally dismissed what the man said and likely didn’t even accept that the man had leprosy in the first place or was cured by happenstance somehow. Or, as was done on other occasions, just told the man to be grateful he had somehow been healed and give glory to God because the man Jesus was no Messiah.

So, the Jewish leaders really had no excuse in not knowing that Jesus Christ was their Messiah. He had fulfilled all their teachings about what a coming Messiah would do. What he did not do while he was with them was set up an earthly kingdom and they used this fact to justify their unbelief (Jn 10:22-42). If they had asked questions, they would have come to learn that Jesus first had to overcome their spiritual needs before he could overcome their physical needs.

So, what was the outcome of their unbelief? They missed out on one of the greatest blessings that could have been theirs. And they kept other Israelites from enjoying that same blessing. Their whole life, they had taught about a Messiah who was prophesied to come to Israel and believed a Messiah would come but missed it completely when he finally did arrive—mainly because of two things. First, Jesus did not meet their expectation of what a Messiah would look like, do, and accomplish. Second, they let their pride and hurt feelings get in the way of them objectively looking at what Jesus said and did. They asked no questions. They just condemned.

Today, the Christian community has become polarized, and we seem to be on the verge of the same problem that these Jewish leaders had. We think we know the next steps God is going to take on this Earth. Some adamantly say the time of the Rapture is upon us (1Th 4:16-18). The world is so bad, there is nothing else that can save us expect Christ coming for his bride. Others say that the Holy Spirit is going to sweep across the Earth like a flood (Hk 2:14) and will achieve the greatest harvest since the Church was founded back in the book of Acts. Many are quite adamant in this regard as well. Each side has scripture to back them up. So, who is right? The Jewish leaders had Scripture to back up why they did not accept Jesus as their Messiah, not realizing that their reservation of doing so was really about what the Messiah would do at another time in history. Their minds and hearts were not open for God to instruct about this so he could use them in their day and time.

So, what is the solution? Let God be God. Prepare for the possibility of either scenario to occur. Plus, neither of these events may happen or occur exactly as we think they will. These New Testament Jewish leaders certainly thought they had it all figured out. After all, they had been studying their Scriptures their entire lives. They couldn’t conceive God coming any other way except how they envisioned it in their minds. Yet, they totally missed it. They let tradition override God’s actual plan. Let’s not be the same way.

Could the Rapture be upon us? Certainly. Yet, could God also send the Holy Spirit to cleanse his bride to make her purer and bring in a harvest of souls to expand the number to be part of his bride? Certainly, and it would be within his character to do so.

No matter which scenario God performs will still be awesome. Let’s be open to the leading of the Holy Spirit during this time. Let’s not be so adamant about our future that we don’t allow God to use us in what he has prescribed for our time. Let’s press into his Word and press into Him so we can have an open heart and open mind focused on Him. Then, we can be part of something amazing that God is going to do. We are definitely on the cusp of something. Something wonderful. Let’s be sure we’re ready. God bless.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

The Jewish holiday of Shavuot has started. We talked about this holiday in the last couple of posts and what it signifies and how it has become different from the Christian holiday Pentecost even though, originally, they were one and the same.

Those Jews today who celebrate this holiday recognize it as the day God gave their Torah to them, so the Ten Commandments are read and/or recited. In many synagogues, the Book of Ruth is also read. We talked before that this is one example of inclusion which this feast commemorates. Yet, many today do not see this same connection to the reading of this book. Most eat dairy products on this holiday, yet most have no idea how this custom came into being.

God gave the Israelites seven feasts to commemorate: Passover (Pesach). Feast of Unleavened Bread (Matzah), Feast of Firstfruit (Bikkurim), Pentecost or Feast of Weeks (Shavuot), Feast of Trumpets (Rosh Hashanah), Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur), and Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot). There are several noted historical events that have occurred on these days over history. In the last several posts, we talked about those regarding Shavuot or Pentecost. Yet, there is also an ultimate fulfillment of each of these feasts:

Passover (Pesach): Christ was crucified

Feast of Unleavened Bread (Matzah): Christ was in the tomb (until Firstfruit)

Feast of Firstfruit (Bikkurim): Christ rose from the dead

Pentecost or Feast of Weeks (Shavuot): God gave the Holy Spirit to those who accept Christ as their future hope

Each of these occurred in our past (Jn 19:31, 1Co 15:20, Ac 2) and we can see a similar pattern for the other three to be fulfilled in our future.

Feast of Trumpets (Rosh Hashanah): The beginning of the Tribulation Period (God remembers his covenant with Israel; Da 9:27)

Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur): God returns and forgives Israel (Zc 12:10, 13:1)

Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot): God now dwells with his people and reigns as King of kings over the whole Earth (Zc 14:16).

While these scriptures are not confirmatory in and of themselves, when you combine them with the intent God set forth for these feasts, they are definitely supportive (An Appointment with God). Yet some of these feasts do not continue once Christ returns. Why is this? Because their ultimate fulfillment is no longer needed. Let’s investigate this further.

Three of these holidays will not be celebrated once Christ returns because their purpose has been fulfilled: the Holy Spirit has been given permanently (Shavuot), Christ remembered his covenant with Israel and the Tribulation is now a thing of the past (Rosh Hashanah), and Christ has returned with forgiveness for Israel (Yom Kippur).

What about the other four? Well, their work is still continuing and will therefore be celebrated during Christ’s reign:

Passover (Pesach), Feast of Unleavened Bread (Matzah), and Feast of Firstfruit (Bikkurim) represent Christ’s sacrificial death, burial, and resurrection, respectively. Because people will be born during this time of Earth’s history, it is important for them to understand the payment Christ did for them, so these holidays are still important. And what about Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot)? Well, God will be residing among us reigning as King of kings, so it is important that we recognize this holiday and celebrate it enthusiastically. Actually, God will require this feast to be celebrated (Zc 14:16). Without Christ, we would not have such a wonderful life to embrace and live.

God is truly a magnificent God, isn’t he?

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

Last post, we talked about how Shavuot and Pentecost were the same holiday but became different due to some antisemitism that began to occur in the 2nd century church. Yet, the theme of the two has remained the same, even though how they are celebrated does not necessarily include this theme. Sound confusing? Let me explain.

When I first began talking about Shavuot some time ago, I mentioned that this Jewish holiday had a pattern of inclusion (A Pattern of Inclusion), and it seemed that this was the theme of his holiday (A Pattern of Inclusion) and that God wanted the Israelites to pick up on this theme (Pass It On). This was demonstrated by several events that occurred which dealt with the theme of inclusion: the giving of the Law to the Israelites (Ex 19-24), the incorporation of Rahab into the nation of Israel (Js 6), the incorporation of Ruth into the nation of Israel (book of Ruth), the birth of Christ (Lk 2) (Shavuot), and the ultimate inclusion of God giving the Holy Spirit (Ac 2) (Ultimate Inclusion).

We also discussed that this feast was also about paradigm shifts (Shavuot for Gentiles?). For example, the giving of the Law to the Israelites meant God went from dealing with individual patriarchs to a nation to be his representative to the world (Ex 19:6), the birth of Christ was a paradigm shift from God using a nation to God using individuals to reach the world (2Co 5:20), and he has empowered us to do so through the gift of the Holy Spirit (Ac 2).

Unfortunately, both Jews and Christians have lost sight of these themes. We have become exclusionary rather than inclusionary. Most Jews today celebrate this holiday as an agricultural holiday, if they celebrate it at all. While it is true that this had always been an agricultural holiday ever since its institution by God to the Israelites (Lv 23:15-21; Dt 16:9-12), it was also about caring for the needs of others (Lv 23:22) as well as recognition and thanks to God for the blessings he bestows. As stated above, this seemed to also be about the inclusion of others because of the important happenings that God had occur on this special holiday.

Christians today, if they do celebrate Pentecost, have lost all ties to it being anything agricultural as a way to recognize that all comes from God to them. While they do celebrate God sending his Holy Spirit and it marking the beginning of his ecclesia, his Church, I am not sure that anyone recognizes that the church was originally only composed of Jews. We Gentiles were only brought in because many of these Jews shared the gospel message to their Gentile neighbors.

Unfortunately, what was started as a means of inclusion has become a wall of separation between Jew and Gentile. This is unfortunate. We need to go back to our roots and really understand our history so we can see God is a uniter and we are the ones who create the division which God does not desire at all. May we ever seek to untie all, both Jew and Gentile, under God’s umbrella of inclusion though Jesus Christ.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

Shavuot is one of the three Jewish feasts that were regarded as pilgrim festivals requiring all male Israelites to celebrate it at the temple in Jerusalem (Ex 23:14-17). Because of the unique timing of this festival, it went by other names as well: Feast of Weeks because it was to be 7 weeks after the Feast of Firstfruit (Bikkurim), and Pentecost because it was actually 50 days after Bikkurim. And, because the timing of Bikkurim is tied to Passover (Pesach) (Lv 23:11), Shavuot is therefore also tied to Passover in its timing as well (Lv 23:15).

So, if that is the case, then why did the Christian celebration of Pentecost become different from the Jewish celebration of Shavuot. Today, one would think they were two totally separate events. Technically, I guess they have become two separate celebrations, but that is rather unfortunate. So, what happened? How did this separation occur from something that was at one time united?

In Leviticus, we learn that the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Matzah) started the day after Passover (Pesach), lasted for seven days with the Feast of Firstfruit (Bikkurim) within this week of celebration of Matzah. Over time, because of their juxtaposition, each of these three feasts became part of a single celebration. In the gospels, we learn that Jesus Christ was crucified on Passover, was in the tomb on first day of Matzah, and rose on Bikkurim. The early Church then began to celebrate Christ’s crucifixion on Passover, or the 14th day of Nissan. This meant that it was on a different day each year on the Gregorian calendar (even though it was the same day each year on the Jewish calendar).

Over time, as the church became more hierarchical in nature and more predominantly Gentile in composition, there were some prominent church leaders who began to teach that Christians should separate themselves from those of the Jewish faith because Jews were the ones who rejected Jesus Christ and had him crucified. While it hard to really defend such a belief, this is what many taught at this time of church history.

At the same time, the Emperor Constatine declared Christianity as the national religion. What this did was demand that all should become part of the church. To accommodate this, the church began to “Christianize” many of the pagan holidays in order to more effectively incorporate people of other religions into the church. The pagan holiday Easter, which, in a loose way, celebrated Spring, life, birth, and renewal was used as a way to merge this festival with Christ’s resurrection (which technically occurred on the Jewish festival Bikkurim). This caused a split among many worshippers as some churches adopted this new “Christian” holiday to celebrate Christ’s resurrection and others kept to the traditional Jewish holiday of Passover when Christ was crucified. These Christians who celebrated Passover were known as Quarterdecimans (as quarta decima, in Latin, means fourteen).

This split of how Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection were celebrated continued for about twelve years until the Council of Nicaea (325 A.D.) where the church leaders agreed that the official church celebration of Christ’s death and resurrection would be celebrated on Easter each year rather than on the Jewish Passover. Easter was decreed to be the first Sunday after the first full moon following the Spring Equinox. This meant Easter could occur as early as March 22nd or as late as April 25th on the Gregorian calendar, depending upon when this full moon occurred. This forever separated the celebration of Christ’s death and resurrection from Passover.

Then, the church decided that their version of Pentecost would be fifty days after Easter. This was a play off how the Jews determined Shavuot from Bikkurim. This was convenient in one way, because it always made Pentecost on a Sunday whereas the Jewish Pentecost (Shavuot) would be fifty days after Firstfruit (Bikkurim) which could be any day of the week. Because Passover and Easter were now technically separated, the worship of Pentecost and Shavuot could be nowhere near each other on the Gregorian calendar. For example, the Jewish holiday Shavuot in 2024 will occur on June 12th (starting sundown on June 11th), the Christian holiday Pentecost occurred on Sunday, May 19th. In addition, the focus of the two holidays is not the same any longer.

This is the topic of what we will discuss next time. I hope you will join me.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

Because the Jewish leaders had preconceived ideas about Jesus, this incident of Jesus fulfilling prophecy as recorded in Zechariah made them buckle down on their animosity toward Jesus rather than accepting him. Jesus knew what their decision would be but wanted to give them the ability to make a choice.

The Jewish leaders conspired and plotted how they could get Jesus killed without the people revolting. When Judas approached them, they saw their opening for how to accomplish their plot. They put plans into place to ensure Jesus’ death would occur and turned the heart of the people against Jesus as well.

The Jewish leaders wanted to preserve the peace with Rome at the expense of Jesus. Yet, war rather than peace still occurred. They did away with the one person who could have brought them ultimate peace.

The peace with Rome the Jewish leaders tried to keep by sacrificing Jesus was a peace that did not prevail at all. High priest Caiaphas said, “It is better for you that one man dies for the people than that the whole nation perish” (Jn 11:50). He said he was given this prophecy from God, but it seems he totally misapplied the meaning of it and interpreted it from his own bias rather than understanding it’s true meaning. Despite their actions, their nation still perished a little less than forty years later. Josephus, the Jewish historian, stated of what occurred in 70 AD: “[Roman soldiers] made the whole city run down with blood, to such a degree indeed that the fire of many of the houses was quenched with these men’s blood” (Josephus, The War of the Jews, Book 6, 406).

Today, we can also be like the Jewish leaders and let pride rob us of the peace we can have. Or, we can accept the sacrifice Jesus made for us so we can have his peace which surpasses all understanding: “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ro 5:1). We can repent of our sins, realizing that we can do nothing about our sin problem on our own. John tells us, “He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world” (1Jn 2:2). We can accept the payment Christ did for us realizing that only he was able to pay our sin debt. Paul tells us, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord” (Ro 6:23). Nothing we do can satisfy our sin debt. Paul also tells us, “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Ro 3:23). Yet, once we accept him, we cannot be taken from him. Jesus said, “My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand” (Jn 10:29). Our decision takes a conscious effort—never forced upon us, and it has eternal consequences.

So, it’s all about choice. God has given us choice. But with choice comes responsibility—and consequences. We can choose to have calm in light of life’s chaos. This will lead to an eternity of peace. Or, we can choose to make our own way through life’s chaos and end up with eternal regret. Which is the wisest decision? The wisest decision is to choose what Joshua chose: “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Js 24:15).

I trust you will choose the same.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

Leading up to this time of Jesus fulfilling prophecy by riding into Jerusalem on the colt of a donkey (Zc 9:9), Jesus used miracles to show his authority and divine nature. The people needed to know that he fit the prophet’s description of their Messiah. He also limited who could tell others of their miracle to control the spread about him. He knew most had a picture of a conquering Messiah, and he wanted to avoid an uprising that would get Rome’s attention. He needed to get his message across before people would ignore his message and go with their desire. Jesus used parables to weed out those who truly sought him versus those who only wanted to use him for their gain. He knew many people just wanted what he could do for them physically. He was looking for those who were spiritually hungry.

Jesus tried to get the Jewish leaders to understand the error of their ways. They were leading the people astray and needed correction. Yet, they thought too highly of themselves to take Jesus’ words as anything but insulting.

Now, Jesus was ready to force everyone to accept or reject him by choosing Nisan 10th when Passover lambs were selected. This was one of his most brazen statements of himself being their Messiah. The Jewish leaders would not be able to put their decision off any longer.

He was also forcing Satan’s hand as well. Satan had to decide if the death of Jesus would be his best option to cause Jesus’ failure as the Messiah. He evidently believed that to be the case because he made the Jewish leaders more determined to kill him and caused Judas to turn against Jesus.

Once reaching Jerusalem, the people were curious as to who was entering the city in such a fashion with all the commotion and fanfare. Jesus attracted a large crowd which the Jewish leaders did not like.

Greek Jewish proselytes came to see him (Jn 12:20-22), and Jesus announced his soon-coming death. The Father announced his approval audibly (Jn 12:28). Many in attendance thought an angel had spoken to him. Maybe because the Gentiles were present, but he responded very differently now than with previous interruptions by Gentiles. Jesus was now very clear he was for both Jews and Gentiles: “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (Jn 12:32).

Many responded that the Messiah would be with them forever once he came so what did Jesus mean by his words. Jesus reemphasized his words which likely confused many in the crowd causing them to disperse. He then went to the temple. He looked around—unhappy at what he saw—but the hour was late, so he left and went back to Bethany (Mk 11:11). So, his entry was anti-climactic—at least for that day.

The next day, when Jesus entered the temple, he overturned the tables on the moneychangers and chased them and the animals from the Court of Gentiles (Mt 21:12-13; Mk 11:15-17). He quoted Isaiah 46:7 stating that the temple was to be a house of prayer, but they had made it a den of thieves. The merchants were overcharging for the animals for sacrifice and the priests, especially the house of Annas, got a cut of their profits.

That day, blind men came to him for healing, and Jesus healed them (Mt 21:14). This excited many of the people again. Even the children joined the praise saying, “Hosanna to the son of David” (Mt 21:15). The Jewish leaders were angry with Jesus but were afraid to do anything because of the people who were praising and supporting him. Jesus left before the leaders could devise a plan to do anything that day. Yet, this fortified their stance that they had to get rid of him.

As we can see, Jesus controlled everything around this event. Even though the Jewish leaders, and even Satan, wanted him gone, they were not the ones in control even though they thought they were. Next time, we’ll talk about this aspect and what this event meant for the Jews of that day and what it means for us today.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

Last time we talked about how Jesus forced the Jewish leaders into a final decision. Today, we’ll see how he did the same to Satan as well.

Satan had to decide if he was for Jesus’ death or not. He, just like the Jewish leaders, had to figure out Old Testament Scripture and how it related to Jesus. One of the reasons the Jewish leaders did not accept Jesus was because he did not fulfill everything the Scriptures stated about the coming Messiah. Also, they felt the Messiah, when he came, would be praising them for their faithful following of the Torah and all the Jewish laws they kept. This is something Jesus did not do, and they could not forgive him for that and even believed him to be insulting them. They considered Jesus’ correction insulting because they believed themselves to be the learned ones. Not some self-proclaimed rabbi from Nazareth. Satan had to contemplate the same.

Would Jesus’ death prevent him from setting up his kingdom? This is likely the question Satan had to ask himself. Therefore, Satan had a dilemma. Did he or did he not want to encourage Jesus’ demise? He first had to figure out how human Jesus really was. Hence, the temptation in the wilderness.

Satan knew Jesus wanted a kingdom but found Jesus was unwilling to compromise as to how he would achieve it. After all, he offered something most humans would jump at: a way to obtain the kingdom they desired without having to suffer for it. Yet, Satan, as did the Jewish leaders, did not understand the order of kingdoms Christ had to overcome. In order to establish an everlasting peace, Jesus first had to take back the spiritual kingdom Adam had lost; then he would set up the physical kingdom on the earth.

Jesus said, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only,’” quoting from Dt 6:14: “Fear the Lord your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name.” Jesus was saying serval things here. He called Lucifer his adversary (which is what the word ‘Satan’ means), and he was saying that Lucifer should be worshipping him because he was higher than Lucifer in rank, so what Lucifer wanted was never going to happen. The Creator can never worship the created. Jesus was unlike other humans who Satan was able to tempt more successfully.

So, what kind of kingdom was Jesus wanting to set up? Because of Adam’s rebellion, he lost the theocratic kingdom he was to set up on the Earth. Lucifer, the Adversary (Satan), usurped Adam’s kingdom from him. So, the kingdom was set up under Satan and not under God. Can you deny that the kingdoms of this world are more Satanic than they are godly? So, first, Christ had to take back the control Satan had on mankind before he could set up an Earthly kingdom. Therefore, his death was necessary so people could transfer from Satan’s kingdom into God’s kingdom (Jn 3:18). Christ could not set up a physical kingdom until his followers were part of his kingdom. Neither the Jewish leaders nor Satan himself likely understood this at this time.

What actually constitutes a kingdom? Three things: a ruler, land, and subjects. Jesus as the Messiah would be the king of such a kingdom. Yet, Satan currently had rights to the land (the Earth). Satan owned the earth like we own our home. The mortgage company really owns our home, but we have legal rights to claim it as ours even though the ultimate ownership is not ours until all debt is paid. Also, at this time, Christ had no subjects except for angels and perhaps Enoch, Moses, and Elijah (each of these were likely in heaven and not Sheol [see Strange Verses of Hope]). So, before anything else, Jesus had to obtain his citizenry.

So, the question now becomes, how would Jesus obtain citizens for his kingdom? Those in Sheol were not yet his even though they had put their faith into his coming. Some say Satan did not own Sheol or even go there. Yet, Scripture states that Sheol is tied to the Earth. So, why were all those who died in Sheol? It was because of sin. Adam had sinned and it passed to all who came after him (Ro 5:12). In order for Jesus to get those who had trusted in his coming out of Sheol, he had to ransom them. He had to place their sins on himself (1Jn 2:2), take them to Sheol to show their ransom as paid then take those who trusted in his coming to heaven (Ps 68:18). Then, going forward, all those who trust in him will be with him when they die (2Co 5:8).

In other words, he conquered the power that death and Sheol had over those who believed in him, and he now holds the keys to both (Rv 1:18). His first coming was about obtaining the citizens for his kingdom. His second coming will be about obtaining the land, the Earth, for his kingdom by destroying the power Satan has over the Earth. Then, he will reign over the entire Earth and all will then be part of his kingdom, just as he had intended it to be from the beginning.

Satan wanted Jesus to fail at being the Messiah and worked through whomever he could. The demon possessed tried to announce Jesus as the Messiah (Mk 3:11; Lk 4:41) as that would get the people riled up about a Messiah who would deliver them from Rome. Jesus denied them from speaking such. Satan also convinced the Jewish leaders Jesus was not their Messiah and used their pride against them. He even tried to turn some of Jesus’ disciples against him. While he was unsuccessful with Peter, he was successful with Judas (Lk 22:3; Jn 13:27).

Satan didn’t know Jesus’ plan but had to figure it out just like the Jewish leaders had to do. He guessed wrong, just as they did. He likely felt Jesus’ death would be the ultimate way to make him unsuccessful as the Messiah. Satan was wrong, and like the Jewish leaders, focused on the physical rather than the spiritual. Christ’s death made the ultimate way for people to be transferred from Satan’s kingdom into Christ’s kingdom.

So many of us are quick to judge based upon limited data. Let’s be those who look more deeply and see the heart of Jesus and what Scripture really says about him. Then, you can see clearly that he is for you and has done everything possible for you to have a wonderful future. You just have to accept it. Why not today?

Next time, we’ll look at what occurred once Jesus got to the temple. I hope you join me.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

The narrative about the event of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on the colt of a donkey to fulfill prophecy was controlled by none other than Jesus Christ himself. He was the one who orchestrated all of this. Why did he? And was it to only fulfill prophecy?

While prophecy fulfillment is an important reason, I think there are additional important reasons as well. He was forcing the Jewish leaders to a final decision. Jesus had tried to get the Jewish leaders to understand that his miracles were evidence of him being their Messiah, just as Isaiah prophesied: “Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert” (Is 35:5-6).

Isaiah spoke of a future time when sickness would be no more, and people would live a long time. Jesus’ miracles confirmed that he could cure the sick and keep people form dying. The Jewish leaders had to decide if they were going to overcome their pride and accept Jesus for who he claimed to be.

Jesus wasn’t against the Jewish leaders, even though he spoke harshly to them. He just wanted them to be who they claimed to be. After all he told the people, “So you must be careful to do everything they [i.e., teachers of the Law and the Pharisees] tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach” (Mt 23:3).

Jesus now enacted a prophecy all Jews, and especially the Jewish leaders, would be extremely familiar with. The question was, were they now going to accept Jesus as the fulfillment of that prophecy as the people were currently doing?

As mentioned previously, Jesus likely entered the Sheep Gate with many of the pilgrims who had come to Jerusalem for the Passover with their lambs as he was presenting himself as the paschal lamb they had been waiting for since the time of Moses. This was the 10th of Nisan, the time that lambs for Passover were set aside and evaluated before offered and verified fit for Passover sacrifice (Ex 12:3-7).

The Jewish leaders wanted Jesus to stop the people from praising him for two important reasons, or at least important to these Jewish leaders: (1) This Hallel psalm the crowd was quoting from was about the Messiah, which they did not believe Jesus to be, and (2) This Hallel psalm was the one they quoted when they took the paschal lamb to the temple for sacrifice; so, according to them, this was not the right time for the psalm to be quoted. They, as always, looked at the prophecy without considering how and when it would be fulfilled.

Both of these reasons indicated Jesus was the Messiah and the people’s national paschal lamb. The Jewish leaders asked Jesus to stop the people from quoting from this Hallel psalm, but Jesus replied that if they stopped, the very stones would take up their cry. Jesus being the Messiah was not just for the people but for the Earth as well. Paul tells us in Romans, “We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time” (Ro 8:22). The Earth itself is also waiting for the reign of the King of kings.

There is another important reason Jesus rode into Jerusalem. He was also fulfilling Zechariah’s prophecy. We’ll get into that reason next time. I hope you join me.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

In Genesis, Jacob (whose name was changed to Israel) gave a prophecy to Judah which said, in part, “[Judah] will tether his donkey to a vine, his colt to the choicest branch; he will wash his garments in wine, his robes in the blood of grapes. His eyes will be darker than wine, his teeth whiter than milk” (Gn 49:8-12).

Judah’s blessing has always been believed to be a Messianic prophecy. It indicates he is of perfection and his blood will somehow be important. Donkeys represent peace and the vine prosperity.

It seems the prophet Zechariah picked up on this theme from Genesis as he spoke of a coming king: “Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey” (Zc 9:9).

The verse before this one speaks of the One to come to be a victorious warrior, but he would have Israel reign in peace. This is reminiscent of King Solomon (1Ki 1:32-40). His father, King David, had been the warrior king and conquered many nations and incorporated them into Israel. Solomon became a king of peace. When he was inaugurated, he was placed on David’s mule and paraded throughout Jerusalem so that all would know he was the succeeding king and that he was about peace and not war.

The mule is different from a donkey. The mule has a mare, a female horse, for a mother and a donkey for a father. Solomon riding on David’s mule indicated he was the current king’s choice for who would be the next king, and the animal he rode being a mule indicated the kingdom was going from a nation at war (the mare) to a nation at peace (the mule).

Jesus told two of his disciples: “Go to the village [Bethphage] ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me” (Mt 21:2). When the disciples were questioned as to what they were doing, they simply stated that the Lord had need of them and those questioning let the disciples take them.

Jesus had the colt and its mother brought to him because some believed the passages in Genesis and Zechariah spoke of two separate animals. This ensured no one could claim the prophecy was not fulfilled. It is also likely that the colt’s mother being present helped the animal to remain calm when amid the throng of people around it.

Scripture states that Jesus rode on the colt of the donkey which had never been ridden. Normally, without being trained, a donkey would never allow a human to ride it. Yet, Jesus had no problem in riding on the donkey colt. Jesus was indicating two things by doing this. One, he was indicating his kingdom. Solomon rode on David’s mule to indicate he was now the reigning king of David’s kingdom. Jesus is riding on a donkey which had never been ridden indicating that his kingdom is not of this world for no one in the world could ride a donkey of this type without issue. Second, he, like Solomon, would be a king of peace, and the donkey indicated how he would bring about that peace.

It is interesting that all donkeys bear a dorsal cross on their backs. This likely explains, at least in part, why Jesus rode on a donkey to indicate how he was going to bring peace. Solomon rode on a mule which does not have this cross. He was going to bring peace based upon his father David’s previous work by bringing other nations under the umbrella of Israel. Jesus was going to bring peace based upon his Father’s work as well. His death would bring those currently under Satan’s kingdom under the umbrella of peace of his spiritual kingdom.

Note that here at Jesus’ first coming, Jesus is riding on a donkey to indicate the peace he offers. Yet, when he returns to this earth, he will be riding on a horse, as Revelation 19:11 states: “I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war.” As noted, the horse is a symbol of war because Jesus will defeat Satan and take the Earth which will null and void any rights Satan currently has to it.

I think this can be a lesson for us today as well. Scripture will always be fulfilled just as biblical prophecy indicates. Yet, it is us humans who use our imagination as to how God will accomplish his prophecy but it is rarely how God fulfills his word. His fulfilment is always more profound and impactful than we can ever imagine. So, we should know our Scripture and know what God is going to do, but we should let God be God and follow his lead when he fulfills Scripture before our eyes. We don’t want to miss it as the Jewish leaders did in this case we just mentioned. Let’s be watchful, vigilant, and be open to God’s leading.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

The path that Jesus took to get to Jerusalem had him traveling from Bethany to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives and then took a route into Jerusalem likely going through the Sheep Gate. Which gate he entered is not recorded in Scripture, but there is a logical and spiritual reason for thinking he entered through this particular gate. Of course, the other route he could have taken was through the Eastern Gate. It would have been more direct but likely not the route most of the pilgrims took if they had a lamb for Passover with them as they would need to have the lamb inspected by the priests to ensure it was without blemish to offer as their paschal lamb, and they would need to enter through the Sheep Gate to have this inspection done by the priests.

Now for a few more details of Jesus’ trip from Bethany to Jerusalem and its temple. Jesus and his disciple arrive at the home of Lazarus, Martha, and Mary in Bethany six days before Passover. Lazarus had been raised from the dead only a few months earlier. That evening, a feast is held at Lazarus’ house. Many heard that Jesus was there and came to see both him as well as Lazarus. This also upset the Jewish leaders that so many people were accepting Christ because of Lazarus being raised form the dead.

Mary, Lazarus’ sister, anoints Jesus’ feet as a testament of her understanding that Jesus was going to soon die (Jn 12:3-7). She seemed to have understood Jesus’ message better than many of his other disciples as the others still didn’t understand that in just a few days, he would be put to death. Jesus and his disciples stay with Lazarus through Sabbath. [As a side note, this same thing occurred two days before Passover in Bethany at the house of a former leper named Simon (Mt 26:1-6). The woman, this time anointing Jesus’ head, isn’t named. Could it have been the event as presented in the gospel of John? Possibly, but the days and locations are different. It had to have been a woman close to Jesus to understand what was going to happen to him as even his disciples did not understand what Jesus was saying about his death.]

The next day was Nassan 10th, likely a Sunday. Jesus and his disciples travel from Bethany to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives and likely join hundreds of others traveling to Jerusalem to get ready for Passover.

Jesus tells two of his disciples to go into Bethphage and retrieve a donkey and its colt (Mt 21:1-3). The colt had never been ridden on, but the colt remained calm for Jesus to ride him. This in itself was a miracle.

The disciples and the pilgrims put their cloaks on the animal for Jesus to sit on and spread them on the ground for the donkey carrying Jesus to walk on. Others gathered palm branches and began waving them and praising Jesus (Mt 21:8-9). They did this all the way to Jerusalem. The Old Testament records this practice of anointed kings. We have such a practice done for Jehu when he was announced as the new king of Israel (2Ki 9:12-13).

Many of the pilgrims quoted parts of Psalm 118 during their praising of Jesus which is a Messianic psalm, especially verses 25 and 26 which states, “Lord, save us! [Hosanna] Lord, grant us success! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. From the house of the Lord we bless you.” When the people sang, “Hosanna,” they were saying, “Lord save us.” It is clear they were singing that Jesus was their Messiah. Yet, when they said, “save us,” they were implying a physical saving and not the spiritual saving that Jesus had in mind.

When on the Mount of Olives, Jesus pauses and weeps over Jerusalem knowing the outcome, his rejection, and the destruction that Jerusalem would face in less than forty years (Lk 19:41-44).

Because many of the pilgrims likely had lambs with them for their Passover sacrifice, they probably entered Jerusalem through the Sheep Gate rather than through the more direct Eastern Gate as their lambs would need to be inspected by the priests at the temple and would need to enter through the Sheep Gate for this to occur.

Don’t you find it interesting that Jesus chose Nisan 10th to ride into Jerusalem? He was proclaiming not only to be their Messiah but the Promised One: the One promised to Eve (Gn 3:15), the prophet like Moses (Dt 18:15), the pascal lamb that had been prophesied ever since the time of Moses (Is 53). He was the fulfillment of the sacrifices that had been offered all these years. Now it was time for the Jewish leaders to inspect and see if they would take him as their Messiah and Passover Lamb from God.

Have you thought about Jesus Christ in this way? He did all of this not only for the Jews of his day but for the entire world. One of the things he said while at the temple was, “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (Jn 12:32). Did you get that? His death was for everyone on the earth: past, present, and future. Think about that and give him the praise he deserves.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens

When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the donkey colt, it would look like a triumphal entry based upon all the pageantry that went on. Yet, this question in the title of this post is somewhat of a tricky question, as it requires one to know from whose perspective one is looking.

From Jesus’ perspective, he accomplished exactly what he wanted to have accomplished. Yet, for the disciples and the people’s point of view, the prophecy of the event was not fully realized in their eyes as they had expected. And, for the Pharisees and Jewish leaders, they considered the event an absolute debacle.

Maybe getting some additional background would be helpful at this point. The current time is early Spring. Back in the winter, Jesus was teaching at the temple in Jerusalem during the Feast of Dedication (which today is called Hannukah). He claimed his divinity, and this angered the Jewish leaders so much that they actually tried to have Jesus stoned right then and there. Jesus escapes and heads to Bethany across the Jordan River with his disciples (this town is also known as Bethabara to distinguish it from the Bethany at the base of the Mount of Olives). This is also the place where John the Baptist taught and baptized, as well as the place where Jesus received the message that his friend Lazarus had died.

Jesus remained in this area for four additional days and then headed back across the Jordan River to Bethany with his disciples and raised Lazarus from the dead (Jn 11:38-44). As a result of this, many flock to Bethany to see Lazarus and hear his testimony. The Jewish leaders now want to kill both Jesus and Lazarus because many were now believing in Jesus because of Lazarus’ account of how Jesus brought him back to life (Jn 12:10).

Jesus and his disciples travel up to Ephraim, north of Jerusalem but still within Judea, to be away from all the commotion (Jn 11:54). They remain here until early Spring when Jesus decides to travel throughout Perea and then recrosses the Jordan River into Jericho where he performs several miracles. From there, he and his disciples once again enter Bethany and the home of Lazarus six days before Passover (Jn 12:1). Yet, there is an almost tangible buzz among all the people of the area wondering if Jesus will come back to Jerusalem for the Passover festival. Some want to see Jesus do more miracles, some want to see the sparks fly between Jesus and the Pharisees, and others want to hear Jesus speak to them again as they know his words are truth and so much different from how their Jewish leaders speak. Because of all of this, there were likely more in attendance for this Passover than previous ones.

Next time, we’ll go over the actual events that occurred on the day Christ enters Jerusalem. Please join us.

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Visit Books & Words to Inspire by Randy C. Dockens