September 8, 2013
Scripture:
Let’s look at Hebrews 10:14. I just want to look at the two words “perfected forever.” Can it get any better than “perfected” or get any more enduring than “forever”? These words speak of the result of the sacrifice of the Lord for us. The hymn that we sang said, “Perfect righteousness.” That was the way the Lord dealt with us. This is a marvellous truth about the work of Christ. There is no expiry date. How thankful we can be and praise the Lord for the blood! Not only has it washed away our sins, but it also gives God righteous ground to justify us. He has given us faith to believe. We are now “perfected forever.”
Hymn 323 - There’s a friend for little children
Prayer
Last time, we looked at king Asa. Today we will meet Asa’s son Jehoshaphat, who became king after Asa. In the world today, it is important to choose your friends wisely. We will see how Jehoshaphat’s choice of friends affected him.
2 Corinthians 6:14
In the world today there are two kinds of people: those of the light and those of darkness. God is represented in those of the light, and Satan in those of the dark.
Ephesians 5:6 - 8 & 11
We were born in our sins or in darkness. When we get saved, we are brought into the light and our friendships should not be with those of the darkness.
2 Chronicles 17:1 - 4
1 Kings 16:29 - 33
Jehoshaphat was king of Judah and he sought the Lord and followed His commands. We could say that he was walking in the light. At the same time, Ahab was king of Israel. Sadly, Ahab sinned and provoked the Lord to anger; he was walking in darkness. It wouldn’t have been a very good idea for Jehoshaphat to be friends with Ahab. When two people are together, character rubs off—and unfortunately, it is usually the bad character.
2 Chronicles 18:1 - 3
Jehoshaphat wanted the people to know the ways of the Lord. Unfortunately, we see that he did become Ahab’s friend. As they talked, Jehoshaphat agreed to help Ahab in war. We will find out next time what happened, but it is important that as we grow, we do not get attracted by the darkness of this world.
Acts 2:1 - 13
We said before that this is one of the most important spiritual events in history: the birth of the church. The disciples had been told to wait in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit, and He came with precision timing: the day of Pentecost fully came. The Jews had celebrated this feast often, but now it was truly fulfilled.
In Leviticus 23, God gave the Israelites seven feasts: the passover, the feast of unleavened bread, the feast of first-fruits, Pentecost, the feast of trumpets, the day of atonement, and the feast of booths. These feasts represent different important times and events. The feast of passover—when the Israelites put the blood on the doorposts—is a picture of the cross. This feast was immediately followed by the feast of unleavened bread, when the Children of Israel ate the passover. This is a type of the remembrance of the Lord. The Israelites brought a portion of their harvest on the feast of first-fruits—a picture of the resurrection. Fifty days were counted from the feast of first-fruits, and then came the feast of Pentecost, when the Israelites would bring two loaves made from the harvest. This, of course, was the type of the coming of the Holy Spirit. The last three feasts have yet to be fulfilled. The feast of trumpets is the calling together of Israel after the rapture. Then comes the day of atonement (the repentance of the Jews) and finally the feast of booths: the Millennium.
The disciples had “lost” Jesus at this point; He had gone back to heaven. The fact that Jesus ascended into heaven proved that the work He accomplished was perfect. He had lived with sinners, and yet wasn’t affected by them. He didn’t fail like man did. He was unaffected by sin outside, and He did not have a sinful nature; even though He was tempted in every form possible. To show the perfection of His life and work, God the Father raised Him from the dead and received Him back to glory. Christ’s followers couldn’t accompany Him, but they did receive power (the Holy Ghost) to be His witnesses in the world. God did not leave them without a person of the God-head!
The Holy Spirit is interesting to study. There are seven symbols of the Spirit in the Bible: wind (Acts 2:2), fire (Acts 2:3), water (John 3:5, 7:38-39), oil (Isaiah 61:1, Hebrews 1:9), a seal (Ephesians 1:13, 4:30), an earnest (Ephesians 1:14), and a dove (Matthew 3:16).
When our Lord was baptized at the start of His ministry, the Spirit descended on Him like a dove. The dove is a symbol of peace, and Christ’s work made it possible for us to have peace with God. Acts 2:2 brings the Spirit before us as wind. The wind was around the disciples, showing that the Spirit in-dwelt them, but was also with them. The fire speaks of judgement, and the message of the need to repent and be forgiven. The fact that the fire was in the shape of a tongue shows that we need to be a testimony to the world of the truth of Christ. The fact that the tongues were cloven means that the door was now open to both Jews and Gentiles to be part of the one Body. Before, Jesus had sent the disciples only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, and only Gentiles who specially believed in the God of Israel could come under blessing. (Like Rahab and Ruth.)
At Pentecost, Christ got a body: He received members, and became their Head in Heaven. God got a house, in which He dwells. This was possible because of the coming of the Spirit.
These 120 believers were baptized with the Holy Spirit. Some Christians today believe that you must be baptized with the Holy Spirit as an experience separate from salvation, but Scripture doesn’t teach this. There was only one baptism of the Holy Sipirt—here at Pentecost—and all other believers were and are added to the Body formed that day.
This is the start of the Church, and we are still in the Church Age today. We may not be in one accord, or in one place, as these believers were, but all Christians are still one Body and one Church. Though ruin has come in, we can still seek to find a right place to gather, even though that makes us few in number.
Hymn 338 – I love my Saviour, my precious Saviour
Prayer