Genesis 1 tells us that God created the heavens and the earth. His creation was good, it was very good. Man and woman were created in God's image and they walked with God and with one another in the midst of a place specially prepared for them, the Garden of Eden. We were made to dwell in such a place.

Yet Adam and Eve chose to trust themselves more than the words of God. They sought their own wisdom rather than rejoicing in God's perfect wisdom. They turned away from God and hid from Him in their shame. They blamed each other and tried to cover themselves with leaves. What was God's response? Did He execute them on the spot? Did He tell them to try better next time? No, He cursed the liar who had tempted them, multiplied the sorrow and pain of childbearing, and cursed the ground which man worked. In the midst of the curse, God gave the man and woman a promise:

"So the LORD God said to the serpent...

And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed and her Seed;
He shall bruise your head,
And you shall bruise His heel.'" (Genesis 3:14-15)

God promised that the Seed of the woman would someday come and defeat the enemy. The Old Testament recounts the anticipation of God's people for His salvation. Who would this Seed be? Yesterday's sermon explored this and provided a high-level overview of the whole Bible: The Big Picture: Genesis to Revelation

A cherubim was set outside the Garden of Eden to keep Adam and Eve out (Genesis 3:24). Some say that this was to protect them from eating of the Tree of Life and thus having their condition sealed for eternity like the fallen angels. In any case, they were kept apart from the Tree of Life. Similarly, a curtain inside the Tabernacle kept the priests out of the holiest place where God's presence dwelt. Cherubim were woven into the design of this curtain (Exodus 26:31). When Jesus died on the cross, "then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised..." Matthew 27:51-52 Jesus became the Way (John 14:6, John 10:9). He is the Seed of the woman whom the Old Testament Scriptures anticipate.

Christians call Jesus the Christ. What does it mean to call him "the Christ"?

The word Christ means "anointed" in Greek. The Hebrew word for "anointed" is Messiah. So when we use the words Christ or Messiah, we're referring to an anointed one, and in particular, the anointed one that God had promised in the Old Testament. Where is the Anointed One promised in the Old Testament?

In the Old Testament, there are three types of people who were anointed:

The priest (often called "the anointed priest" - Leviticus 4:3, 4:5, 4:16, 6:22)

After freeing Israel from slavery in the land of Egypt, God brought them to Mt Sinai where He made a covenant with them. And God called Moses to come up into the mountain, where God gave Moses the 10 Commandments written on stone and instructions for building God a sanctuary "that I may dwell among them" (Exodus 25:8). This sanctuary was the Tabernacle. It was the place where God dwelt among the people. His presence was there. It was the place of worship where the 10 Commandments were stored and where sacrifices were offered to atone for sin and to thank God. God appointed priests to serve at the Tabernacle. "You shall anoint [Aaron and his sons], consecrate them, and sanctify them, that they may minister to Me as priests." Exodus 28:41b The priests were anointed with holy oil, oil which was only used to anoint the holy objects and people of the Tabernacle (Exodus 29:7, 30:23-33). Psalm 133 speaks of the beauty of this anointing, comparing it to "how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down on the beard, the beard of Aaron, running down on the edge of his garments."

The prophets (1 Chronicles 16:22; Psalm 105:15)

The Bible records one event where a prophet was anointed. God commanded Elijah to anointed Elisha as prophet in his place (1 Kings 19:16).

The king (often simply called "His anointed" - 1 Samuel 2:10, 12:3, 12:5, 16:6, 24:6, 24:10, 26:9, 26:11, 26:16, 26:23; 2 Samuel 1:14, 1:16, 19:21, 22:51, 23:1; 2 Chronicles 6:42; Psalm 2:2, 18:50, 89:38, 89:51, 132:10, 132:17)

A few hundred years after the Exodus, Israel asked for a king and God gave them one. God spoke to the priest Samuel and told him, "Tomorrow about this time I will send you a man from the land of Benjamin, and you shall anoint him commander over My people Israel, that he may save My people from the hand of the Philistines; for I have looked upon My people, because their cry has come to Me." (1 Samuel 9:16) "Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on [Saul's] head, and kissed him and said: 'Is it not because the LORD has anointed you commander over His inheritance?'" (1 Samuel 10:1) Later, David was anointed by Samuel with a horn of oil and made king in place of Saul. When this happened, the Spirit of the LORD came upon David. Other kings in Israel's history were also anointed with oil: Solomon (1 Kings 1:39), Joash (2 Kings 11:12), etc.

There is another aspect to the anointed king that needs to be seen. This is the promise that God made to David, saying that "When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever..." (2 Samuel 7:12-16). God promised to give David a descendant who would build God's house and whose kingdom would endure forever. This is the Anointed One (or Messiah in Hebrew, or Christ in Greek) whom Daniel prophesied of: "Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the command To restore and build Jerusalem Until Messiah the Prince, There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks..." (Daniel 9:25-26) This is the Anointed One whom the people were expecting. Andrew went to his brother Peter and told him, "We have found the Messiah." (John 1:41) Also, the Samaritan woman at the well knew that Messiah was coming (John 4:25). Simeon, Peter, Martha, Samaritans, demons, and angels acknowledged that Jesus was the Messiah (Luke 2:26-30, Matthew 16:16, John 11:27, Luke 4:41, John 4:42). Many people cried out to Jesus, "Son of David!" (Matthew 15:22, 20:30-31, 21:9) The high priest demanded to know if Jesus was the Messiah (Matthew 26:63). John wrote the fourth gospel in order "that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name." John 20:31

"I have made a covenant with My chosen,
I have sworn to My servant David:
'Your seed I will establish forever,
And build up your throne to all generations.' Selah
And the heavens will praise Your wonders, O LORD..." Psalm 89:3-5

Sometimes I spend so much time trying to strain out a gnat and swallow a camel (Matthew 23:24) that I forget Who is of the utmost importance. Today, discontent with cookie-cutter approaches to the gospel, I went back to Acts 10 to see what Peter preached. He preaches Christ and the salvation that comes by Him - praise be to God!

2 Corinthians 11:3 (CEB) - "But I'm afraid that your minds might be seduced in the same way as the snake deceived Eve with his devious tricks. You might be unable to focus completely on a genuine and innocent commitment to Christ."

Ephesians 6:24 (NKJV) - Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.

Lately, this is the pain on my heart - that the words I pray sound nothing like the words God speaks to me. Should not my prayers sound like those of the saints of old (Psalm 89:5)? Should I not consider "the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith?" (Matthew 23:23) Should I not praise God for who He reveals Himself to be? Should I not sing the same songs as David, a man after God's own heart? (1 Samuel 13:14)

Where else can I turn but the word of God? Still, I struggle with weakness and with sin. When I read, I often neglect to recall what I've just read. When I recite Scripture to myself, I often don't stop to savor the truth the words contain. Often I don't even understand what the words mean! But these weaknesses are opportunities to receive strength from on high.

Moses has said, "Oh, that all the LORD’s people were prophets and that the LORD would put His Spirit upon them!" (Numbers 11:29) and in the mystery of the gospel, the Father has poured out His Spirit upon His people, answering the request of His Son Jesus (John 14:16-18; Acts 2:32-33,37-39). Praise the Lord!

May the Lord "teach me all things" (John 14:26) because of the covenant established in the Lord's blood (Matthew 26:26-29) - "...I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people." Jeremiah 31:33 "Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him." Romans 6:8

רני בת־ציון הריעו ישראל (Zephaniah 3:14)

Psalm 118:15
"The voice of rejoicing and salvation
Is in the tents of the righteous;
The right hand of the LORD does valiantly."

Deuteronomy 32:46-47

"Set your hearts on all the words which I testify among you today...all the words of this law. For it is not a futile thing for you, because it is your life..."

I was curious to see what the New Testament has to say about the Flood. Here are some passages that I found.

Jesus teaches that the Flood actually happened. He warns his listeners about the coming judgment.

"But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be." Matthew 24:37-39

Peter teaches that God's judgment and salvation are good.

"For if God ... did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly ... then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment..." 2 Peter 2:4-9

The writer of Hebrews describes the faith of Noah.

"By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith." Hebrews 11:7

Yesterday I was reflecting on the nation of Assyria. It was a mighty, ancient nation dating back to the early days of the earth. The Assyrian King list gives us a picture of this. This document lists the Assyrian kings who ruled during the course of some 1500 years. Yet "behold, the nations are as a drop in a bucket" Isaiah 40. "Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the LORD?" Psalm 89:6b For the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, the One who dwells between the cherubim, He is God, He alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. He has made heaven and earth. Isaiah 37:16

The LORD was also sovereign over Assyria and when He decreed that "she shall be led away captive," (Nahum 2:7) it was so. "Though Nineveh of old was like a pool of water, now they flee away." (Nahum 2:8) And the Assyrian empire came to an end.

"Nineveh is laid waste!
Who will bemoan her?" Nahum 3:7

"O LORD God of our fathers, are You not God in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations, and in Your hand is there not power and might, so that no one is able to withstand You?" 2 Chronicles 20:6

My soul rejoices in God my Savior.
He is the Living God
And my Father of life.
He gives me wings to fly to the highest heaven
To sit at His feet and hear His teaching
To sit at His feet and hear His truth.
His words are pure words
Like seven-times refined silver.
His words are grace and truth.
He has visited and redeemed His people, even as He promised to Abraham
Even as He promised to Eve
And to His servant David.
His ways are everlasting
Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne.
He is coming in the clouds
At an hour none expect.
My Lord will come
He will come to establish His reign on the earth
And the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.
Let the peoples praise You!
Let all the peoples praise You!
The congregation of the righteous will praise You
The congregation which lives by faith in the Son of God.
He is the Precious Stone
The King of kings and Lord of lords
God with us.

"Because He is your Lord, worship Him." -Psalm 45:11b

The account in 2 Kings 19:36-37 is given within the context of the account of Assyria's invasion during the reign of Hezekiah, but there were quite a few years between the events of verses 36 and 37. In fact, if the historians' estimated dates are correct, Hezekiah wasn't even alive to see the events of verse 37 - they are considered to have taken place during the reign of Hezekiah's son Manasseh. Scripture may confirm this, but I haven't searched for it yet. (I'm making notes so I can remember to do that!)

Historians say that Manasseh co-reigned 10 years with his father Hezekiah. Scripture says that Manasseh was 12 years old when he began to reign (1 Kings 21:1). If they're correct, then Manasseh was about 7 years old when Hezekiah received the prophecy concerning his death (2 Kings 20:5-6).

I was surprised when I read in 2 Kings 20:12 that the king of Babylon sent letters and present to Hezekiah. Assyria and Babylon just don't seem like the kingdoms that would do that - especially considering that Sennacherib had just a year or two earlier invaded Judah. So, I looked up Berodach-Baladan, king of Babylon, on Wikipedia. Sure enough, he was one of the kings in Babylon who assumed rule of Babylon separate from Assyria. When I charted out timelines for this period, it seems that Assyria was the dominant power in Mesopotamia and that they either ruled directly over Babylon or else appointed vassal kings there. However, it seems that some tried to assume power as king of Babylon on their own. (I'll have to read more on this...) It wasn't for about another 80 years until Babylon arose as a power and finally conquered Assyria (with help from a few other nations). At any rate, during the time of Hezekiah's illness it seems that Berodach-Baladan had risen to be king of Babylon for a brief time. I wonder if his action was an attempt to gain support from Judah against Assyria? I don't know - I need to look more into the Assyrian/Babylonian histories and primary sources.

Since Samaria fell during the reign of Hezekiah, Manasseh would never have known a Northern Kingdom (2 Kings 18:10).

Which of these three Assyrian kings carried off Manasseh king of Judah: Sennacherib (the one who invaded Judah), Esarhaddon, Ashurbanipal (the one with the library)? I'm not sure that we know.

In July 2008, I posted a list of dreams and goals for my life. What would I include in that list today?

1. Become like Apollos of Alexandria, who was "mighty in the Scriptures" (Acts 18:24-28)
2. Grow in joyful trust of "the God of the living" (Mark 12:27)
3. Learn more recipes and invite many people to my house for meals (Leviticus 19:18; Matthew 22:39)
4. Learn how to care for children, how to walk together with folks my own age, and how to respect my elders (Leviticus 19:18; Matthew 22:39)
5. Memorize the Minor Prophets, Acts, Matthew, Hebrews, Chronicles/Kings, Nehemiah, etc (Jeremiah 15:16; Deuteronomy 32:47; Matthew 4:4)
6. Study the Old Testament in Hebrew (Deuteronomy 11:18)
7. Encourage others to "come to Him" (Revelation 22:17) and to "remain in Him" (John 15)
8. Run a few miles each week (1 Corinthians 6:19; 1 Timothy 4:8)
9. Learn to read Akkadian cuneiform documents, Biblical Aramaic, and modern German so I can read articles about those old cuneiform docs :) (Isaiah 28:11)
10. Do it all for the glory of Christ (Philippians 3:8)