Jesus: God's Elect (Part 3)

"Behold, Mine Servant, Whom I uphold; Mine Elect, in Whom My soul delighteth" (Isa 42:1)

The Revelation of Election is by the Actions of the Elect. 

How are men able to recognize those whom God has chosen. Primarily, how are men to recognize the Elect One of God? It is by the record that God has given AND by the works of the elect. In other words, God will declare whom He has chosen and then what they do will be evidence of this election. This is true of Christ and this is true of anyone else chosen by God.  

The Works of the Messiah. Being God's Elect according to Isaiah 42 meant being the Messiah. God's Elect would be His Anointed One; the One who would save Israel. He was promised to come and was understood to be the King of the Jews that would deliver the people from their enemies. Many of Jesus' day perceived that this Messiah would come and deliver them from tyrannical Roman rule. They failed to recognize that sin and death were their greatest enemies, not the Romans. So when Jesus came declaring that He was the Son of God, their Messiah and at the same time refused to fight with the sword, they rejected His testimony and the testimonies of others. They rejected Jesus because, in their minds, His works did not accord with His profession. 

Yet, the prophets did speak of what God's Elect would do. Consider the record of Isaiah 42:

• He shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles (v1)
• He shall not cry, nor lift up, nor cause His voice to be heard in the street (v2)
• A bruised reed shall He not break, and a smoking flax shall he not quench (v3)
• He shall bring forth judgment unto truth (v3)
• He shall not fail nor be discouraged, till He have set judgment in the earth (v4)
• He will be given as a covenant of the people (v6)
• He will be a light of the Gentiles (v6)
• He will open blind eyes and bring out prisoners from the prison (v7)

His Own Received Him Not. The Jews' mocking of Jesus revealed that they knew that God’s elect would be the Messiah but it also revealed that they did not know how the Messiah would save them. They called on Him to perform that which they thought the Messiah should do. “…He saved others,” they said, “let Him save Himself, if He be Christ, the chosen of God” (Lk 23:35). They rejected Isaiah's prophecy that God's servant would bare the sin of many and pour out His soul unto death (Isa 53:12).

They even rejected the testimony of Christ's forerunner. John testified of Jesus’ election: that He was the Christ. His message was "Behold, the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world." Though, the appropriate response from the people was to rejoice in John’s light and believe, the majority of the religious elite of that day rejected John's testimony. However, Jesus said that John’s testimony was not all. The Father hath borne witness of Jesus (Jn 5:37). Moses wrote of Him (Jn 5:46). The Scriptures themselves are "they which testify of" Jesus (Jn 5:39). Yet Jesus said there was another.

“I have greater witness than that of John, for the works which the Father hath given Me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of Me, that the Father hath sent Me" (Jn 5:36).

Jesus is revealed as the Elect of God by His works. When pressed, “How long dost Thou make us to doubt? If Thou be the Christ, tell us plainly (Jn 10:24), Jesus said, “I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in My Father’s name, they bear witness of Me” (Jn 10:25). His election was made sure and shown to be true and right by His ability to save to put away sin, lay down His life, take it up again, save men to the uttermost, and at last bring all things into subjection under His feet thus defeating every foe. His works testify of His election.

The Scriptures, the testimony of John, the Witness of God Himself, the work of the Holy Spirit and the works of Jesus all reveal that Jesus is the Chosen of God, the Christ that saves the world. As men behold this truth and it presses upon their spirits they will cling unto Him with purpose of heart and He will show Himself to be a mighty Savior. As Jesus also declared: their response to His election is a revelation of their election. “But ye believe not, because ye are not of My sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (Jn 10:26-27). Believe in Jesus. Make your calling and election sure. 

Jesus: God's Elect (Part 2)

"Behold, My Servant, Whom I uphold, Mine Elect in Whom My soul delighteth" (Isa 42:1)

SAINTS OF OLD WERE ELECTED TO MANIFEST GOD'S ELECT

When God said, “Behold, Mine Elect” He was pointing His finger at Jesus and declaring that all the hope of man would be upon Him and He would be victorious. “Look for Him, believe in Him, trust in Him, lay hold of Him, He is the covenant to the people. He is My Chosen One.” Prior to the incarnation of Christ God chose vessels through which He would prepare future generations for the recognition and reception of the His Elect. We must have this perspective to have an appropriate understanding of "election" in the kingdom of God.

All those chosen by God are chosen in view of Jesus. Men are chosen based upon God's eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus and their connectedness with Jesus Himself. Think about Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, David, Solomon, the prophets and priests. They were all chosen, NOT because they were superior to their contemporaries, but because of the role they would play in what God had purposed to do in Christ. God introduced us to these men so that they could introduce us to Jesus. For those who were looking for the Messiah, there would be a sort of familiarity with Him upon even their first encounter. God was preparing men to receive His Son. 

Matthew, therefore introduces Jesus to the world in these terms: “The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham” (Mt 1:1). Anyone familiar with the Divine record has become intimately acquainted with both David and Abraham. God's choice of these men and the promises given to them were all in view of the Servant of God, Whom God would manifest in the fullness of time.  To Abraham it was said, "in thy Seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed" (Gen 22:18). To David it was said, "behold, a son shall be born to the, who shall be a man of rest...He shall build an house for My name; and he shall be My son, and I will be his Father; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel for ever" (1 Chr 22:9-10). Of course, Solomon was the immediate fulfillment of this word but no doubt, Jesus is the "body" of this "shadow."

Philip introduced Nathanael to Jesus in these terms: "We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write" (Jn 1:45). God chose Moses and the prophets and Israel was very familiar with them. But Moses and the prophets were not the focus of God's choice. They were chosen to speak about the coming Messiah; the Chosen One of God. And so the people of God gave attention to the word of the prophets and the patriarchs and were then acquainted with the promise of a coming King who would rule over Israel as both king and priest; a Prophet who would tell them all things (Jn 4:25); a Savior who would take away their sins. Philip and Nathanael were both acquainted with God's election of Moses and the prophets and as a result they were looking for this One.

To the two on the road to Emmaus, Jesus introduced Himself by beginning at Moses and all the prophets and expounding unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself (Lk 24:47). The gospel of Christ brings to light that all the Scriptures are really speaking about Jesus. This is what Jesus was doing with these two men. He was helping them make the connection with their knowledge of Moses and the prophets and Himself being the substance of those ministries. Paul testified that this too was his purpose in ministering the word of God.

"...according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began but now is made manifest...by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith." (Romans 16:25-26)

The mystery of God in Christ is made known by the opening up of the scriptures of the prophets. They testified of Christ both in their lives and in their words.

Time would fail us if we sought to numerate all of the prophecies of Jesus but the point here is that God's election of other men is not because of those other men...it is because of Christ. Men are not primarily chosen by God to save to His people but to shine the spotlight of revelation upon the Savior of all men. The saints of old were chosen of God to manifest the Chosen One of God. And, dear reader, if you have been chosen by God it is for this same purpose - not for your own glory but for the glory of God in Christ Jesus, His Elect. 

Jesus: God's Elect (Part 1)

"Behold, My Servant, Whom I uphold, Mine Elect in Whom My soul delighteth" (Isa 42:1)

BEHOLD. HIM.

God has, in many places, declared WHAT He would do and THAT He would do it. Isaiah 42 is a declaration concerning WHO would accomplish it and HOW He would accomplish it. Before the foundations of the world were laid God, the Father had determined to glorify Himself by saving man. Then, in time and history, He stretched forth His arm in the person; the Man, Christ Jesus and performed His will. Jesus is the means through which God would accomplish the work of salvation. Furthermore, He is the "Worker" who would accomplish it. 

God’s Choice. The world needs saving. The world needs a Savior: One who will do what is necessary. God determined that all of His good pleasure would be accomplished by His Elect. His Choice for saving man would not be a location, not a commandment, not a system, not even an angel. His Elect would be His own Son; a man. 

When the Lord looked upon the face of the earth He saw that there was no man (born of the flesh) that could accomplish His eternal purpose; for it was purposed in Christ Jesus the Lord. No tryouts would be possible, no application process necessary, no voting of men would be appropriate for there was none that qualified, none good, no, not one. 

How then could salvation be accomplished? With men this proved to be an impossibility but not with God. For God had already made a choice. The election of Jesus was not a reaction to the absence of an able man in the earth. Rather, the absence of an able man in the earth was evidence of the need for a Divine man to be sent to the earth. And so, Jesus' "goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting"(Mic 5:2) so that He could save men from their sin, satisfy the righteous requirement of the Law, and please the Father once for all.

God’s Covenant. In view of unveiling this great salvation to the minds of men, the Lord promised a  covenant that He would make with the people of Israel and the people of Judah that would not be like the one He made with them when He took them by the hand out of the land of Egypt. This covenant would be more “living” than that one. It would not be contained in laws and ordinances, it would be contained in a person. It would not rest on their ability to fulfill demands but on God’s ability to accomplish what He had promised. So, finding fault with the flesh’s ability to measure up, God sent His Servant in the fulness of time to be "a covenant of the people" (Isa 42:6) and His "salvation unto the end of the earth" (Isa 49:6). This Jesus is not only be a messenger of the covenant (Mal 3:1) and a mediator of the covenant (Heb 8:6; 12:24), He IS the covenant. He is the arrangement, agreement, provision and promise that God has purposed to save men and justify all judgment. He is God's Choice.

Consider Jesus, of Nazareth: God’s Elect. Behold HIM!

Mountain Top Magazine #6

Mountain Top Magazine #6

Jesus Has, By Himself, Purged Our Sins

A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver

"God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by Whom also He made the worlds; Who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” (Hebrews 1:1-3)

Jesus sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high because He had accomplished His work and merited this high position. He had effectively, forever, and once for all PURGED OUR SINS. All of salvation is taking place in the wake of such a great work. As a result of Christ purging our sins He has been exalted, men and their offerings have been made acceptable, and we shall be presented to the Father as a pure and spotless bride. 

A TRUTH TO BEHOLD AND BELIEVE

Redeemed men must have a conscience awareness of this purging if they are going to live boldly before God. They can only have confidence to stand before Him if they know that He is not against them. Ignorance of the fact or else failure to believe that Christ has purged their sins will cause men to remain bound by sin for he such a man “is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins” (2 Pet 1:9).

Christ HAS purged our sins. He came and fulfilled His purpose in doing so. As it is written, “And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness” (Mal 3:3). Jesus has once for all purged men of their sins and is in the process of purifying them. The knowledge of this will cause them to endure hardness, rejoice in tribulation and live by faith and patience.

THE EFFECTS

A Purged Conscience. In the present day we are a contrast to those who lived under the sacrificial system of the law who under “a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, [could] never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually” were never made perfect. Otherwise those sacrifices would “have ceased to be offered because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins” (Heb 10:1-2). “But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year for it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins” (Heb 10:3-4). But now, Jesus “after He had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God from henceforth expecting till His enemies be made His footstool. For by one offering He hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified” (Heb 10:12-14).

The Removal of Sin has a Forward Working as Well. When Christ purged our sins He didn’t just provide a salvation to deal with our past. He provided a salvation to provide a holy future. The removal of sin and a clear conscience before God enables man “to serve the living God” (Heb 9:14). This is actually depicted in the Passover meal and the subsequent Feast of Unleavened Bread. 

“And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, ‘Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, Concerning the feasts of the Lord, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are my feasts. Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the sabbath of the Lord in all your dwellings. These are the feasts of the Lord, even holy convocations, which ye shall proclaim in their seasons. In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the Lord's passover. And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the Lord: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread.’” (Leviticus 23:1-6)

After the Lamb is sacrificed it is right for men to no longer have part of the leaven of sin anymore. “Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us” (1 Cor 5:7). It is as though we are living in a continuous Feast of Unleavened Bread. We have been purged from our sins and they have no more part in our lives.

We are a Holy Tree Bringing Forth Good Fruit. Jesus said “I am the True Vine, and My Father is the Husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit” (Jn 15:1-2). We are the tree of God. Individually and collectively we shall be presented to the Father with not a single unfruitful branch thus making us more productive in the world to come. In the end there will be no bad trees, no bad fruit, no unfruitful branches. Only holy branches that have been granted into one holy tree producing a multitude of holy fruit. For Christ has purged our sins. He has sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high, and from thence the Spirit has been poured out upon us. “The wilderness [has become] a fruitful field, and the fruitful field [shall] be counted for a forest” (Isa 32:15).

The Everlasting Gospel

A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver

And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, "Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His judgment is come; and worship Him that made heaven and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." (Revelation 14:6-7)

The message from heaven is good news. It is glad tidings of deliverance from present and impending doom. It is a message of hope when hope is otherwise gone. It announces an impossible thing and then declares that it is possible with God. The gospel is a summons to partake of the glorious salvation offered to men on the basis of the Son’s ability to perform all that is required for the ungodly to gain fellowship with God. 

Everlasting. This message is not for a particular time. It is everlasting. What is declared by the angel was always appropriate. This message is just as fitting for Adam and Eve as it is for us today. The everlasting nature of the gospel does not mean that it becomes dull or common. It never needs to be updated or adapted. This everlasting gospel is a promise of blessing through the Messiah and was sufficient for Abraham (Gal 3:8). It is a message of the salvation of souls by the grace of God and was sufficient to save the prophets and their hearers (1 Pet 1:10-11). It’s glory is seen in that it is still able to save those who hear it today.

The trend of culturing the gospel to fit to “our times” is a vain endeavor that actually makes the message of none effect. Any alteration of the everlasting gospel will cloud the eternality of the purpose of God. It will prevent it’s hearers from fellowship with the saints of old and with the ministry of reconciliation. They will see their experience as something that is isolated from the that which they read about in the Scriptures. 

Peter once said, concerning Gentile converts, “we believe that through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they” (Acts 15:11). Likewise, we must say, “we believe that through the hearing and believing of the everlasting gospel we shall be saved, even as all men throughout history, world without end.”

Fear God! This is the genesis of all sound thinking. The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge. If men do not fear God whatever they say is of no value in the last analysis. The greatest intellect of the world is made foolish when it’s possessor fails to fear God. In fact, most of the “science” falsely so called of our day is spawn from the well of “the ignorance and rejection of God.” The entire earth has need of hearing this message - “Fear God.” Compliance with such a command would break down the fortress of ungodliness that is our society.

Give Glory to God! This is right because God is glorious. Let him who boasts, boast in God. It is high time for Nebuchadnezzar to come off of his wall and recant of his words. It is time for men to say “Look at this great creation which God has built.” 

Give honor, reverence, praise to the name of God. Those who believe the gospel will do just this. Partaking of the salvation of God will cause men to cry out in praise. Nothing in salvation promotes pride. Men must see the peril of their situation and cry out, “O wretched man that I am, who will deliver me from the body of this death” and then the gospel responds, “thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord” - He will! 

The gospel not only commands men to give glory to God but the message itself gives glory to God. In every congregation, gathering, and street corner in which the everlasting gospel is being published, Jesus, the only begotten of the Father, is being faithful to do just this. Through the mouths of His people He is fulfilling His purpose to glorify His Father according to what is written: “I will declare Thy name unto My brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee” (Ps 22:22).

The Blessed Appointment Unto Them That Mourn in Zion (Part 4 of 4)

THE BLESSED OUTCOME

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.

Trees of Righteousness, the Planting of the Lord. The children of God are known for strength. They are strong in the strength of their Father’s might. They are firmly rooted and grounded. They are not moved away from the hope of the gospel or from obtaining their inheritance. They are trees! But not just any trees. They are trees of righteousness. They live unto God though their environment is cursed. They are productive. They bear the fruit of righteousness and do the work of the kingdom. Their existence and stability is actually contrary to their environment as perceived in the world but in accord with the spiritual environment that they have entered. 

The power behind their efforts and stability is God Himself who ministers nourishment to them. And His benefits to them add to their strength. In fact, they go from strength to strength. The blessings spoken of in Isaiah 61 have utility toward the saving of the soul. The beauty exchanged for ashes enables them to adorn the doctrine of Christ. They aren’t governed by a list of rules but with the liberty wherewith Christ has set them free they find opportunity to adorn the gospel of Christ. As the psalmist has said, "Thy people shall be willing in the day of Thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning; Thou hast the dew of Thy youth" (Ps 110:3). 

Though those the saints of God must endure much suffering and affliction they are covered with a garment of praise in exchange for their spirit of heaviness. While in the prison house they can sing "praises unto God" (Acts 16:25). And after being persecuted they can praise the Lord for being "counted worthy to suffer shame for His name" (Acts 5:41). 

Finally, the oil of joy flows over their mourning and becomes the strength of the people (Neh 8:10). They will make their pilgrimage from the enemies land to their home all the while singing with everlasting joy upon their heads (Isa 35:10; 51:11). 

Their existence; the fact that they are overcoming the world is evidence of a Divine work being accomplished in them. They are strong but the strength is from the Lord. They are righteous! And their righteousness is not of them but of the Lord. The result of all of this is that God is glorified.

God is Glorified. All of heaven is engaged in expressions of glory to God. All of salvation is unto Him. Everyone present in the world to come is there because of God’s mercy, wisdom, grace, blessing, and goodness. The 144,000 know it. The great multitude of all the nations and kindreds and people and tongues know it. The angels and the elders and the four beasts know it.

“Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb…Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.” (Revelation 7:9-12)

Mourning Will Come but So Will Comfort. The way to endure hardship & heartache is not avoidance. It is not just pretending that everything is okay and staying “positive.” There is a time to mourn and blessed are they that mourn. Hardship is hard. Heartache aches. But these things are also productive. They are working for you are far greater and eternal weight in glory. The way to endure this world is to look for the world to come and partake of the abundance and overflow that has graciously been afforded to us by Christ. The day of acceptance is here. The day of salvation has dawned and high noon is coming.

Hope against hope! Believe to the end! Look unto Jesus, your Forerunner who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death but is now crowned with glory and honor and made higher than the heavens. Look to Him and see the fulness of your blessed appointment. For if you suffer with Him, you shall also reign with Him.