That He Might Bring Us to God
For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: (1Peter 3:18).
BRINGING US TO GOD. Is this strange? Why would I need to be brought to God? And if I need to be brought to God, why couldn’t my mother or father bring me to God? My mother carried me to church in her womb and I have attended church ever since that time. Wasn’t my mother bringing me to God? My mother was a good Christian woman and she brought me to church. But, alas, that was as far as she could bring me. She could not bring me to God. Bringing me to church is not the same thing as bringing me to God. Some things stood between me and God. I WAS...
WITHOUT CHRIST AND GOD AND FAR OFF...
That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. (Ephesians 2:12-13) I was…
OUTSIDE THE HOLIEST. The “holiest” refers to where God is. In the Jewish Tabernacle and then in the Jewish Temple, it was the innermost room that contained the Ark of the Covenant and its Mercy Seat and was behind the veil. Of course, only the High Priest could actually go into the "holiest" once a year.
But now, Christ has been sacrificed as the lamb of God and the veil that hid the "holiest" has been rent in two and we may now go into the "holiest" through the blood of Christ. (Hebrews 10:20) I was outside The Holiest because I was not morally clean. I was a rebel, insisting on my way. I wanted to decide what was good and evil. I did not want God to decide that. The blood had not been applied to my heart and I was outside the "Holiest."
Fallen man has never been able to approach God apart from a blood sacrifice. Cain tried to approach God with garden produce. He refused to approach God with blood. He was a rebel. I was a rebel and needed a blood sacrifice to approach God. Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, (Hebrews 10:19) I WAS…
NEEDING TO BE DRAWN. Why would I need God when I had friends who loved to do anything they could think of? I would never have searched for God on my own. My friends dominated me. I wanted to be accepted by them, so I practiced cursing and profanity, so I would be one of them, at age nine. I needed to be convicted of my sin. I needed to be drawn by the Spirit of God and He did just that for several days. He promised that He would draw, not only me, but all people. God is faithful to draw people to Himself, but people resist Him and struggle to go their own way until God draws them no more.
No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: (John 6:44)
And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me (John 12:32).
And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man,…. (Genesis 6:3)
Just as I am without one plea – But that thy blood was shed for me;
And that thou bidst me come to thee, O Lamb of God I come – I come.
Digging Deeper
From the earliest days of the Bible (Genesis 4), people discussed how to get to God. They instinctively knew that they were not fit to be in the presence of God, so they needed to bring God a little something to “try to fix it.”
And she [Eve] again bore his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. (Gen 4:2)
And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: (Genesis 4:3-4)
But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? (Gen 4:5-6)
…. And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. (Genesis 4:8) Cain despised God and despised his brother who reminded him of God.
OUR TEXT FOR TODAY MENTIONS THAT CHRIST “hath once suffered for sins.” This was the promised Christ who was portrayed by Moses at a rock in the Old Testament.
At the beginning of their Wilderness Wanderings, God told Moses to strike the rock that the Israelites might have water. Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. (Exodus 17:6)
NEAR THE END OF THEIR WANDERINGS, God told Moses a second time to get water from a rock. God said: speak to the rock. Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink. (Numbers 20:8)
THOSE TWO ROCKS WERE A PICTURE OF CHRIST. He was struck with death….one time. And now we may speak to Him and obtain the water of life. And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. (1Corinthians 10:4)
WE ARE FACED WITH A GREAT, OVERWHELMING TRUTH HERE: It takes the Old and New Testaments to have a complete Bible. “The New is in the Old contained; The Old is in the New explained.” By reading the Old Testament, we cannot know that Moses was striking Christ (in a figure) and making living water come out of Him. Nor can we know by reading the Old Testament that Moses was speaking to Christ (in a figure) in order to obtain water from Him. But, the New Testament tells us this.
AT THE CRUCIFIXION WE READ: But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water. (John 19:34) The blood portrays His death and the water portrays His resurrection and eternal life for those who speak to Him in repentance and faith.
WE MAY NOW SPEAK TO THE ROCK OF CALVARY and obtain the living water. We are immediately ushered back to the Garden of Eden where God put Adam to sleep and took his bride from his riven side. Adam was here, a type of Christ, who was the second Adam. (1Corinthians 15:45) The sleep was a picture of Christ’s death and the taking of Eve from Adam’s side portrayed Christ giving birth to the saints of God.
THE SONG WRITER (Toplady) says: “Let the water and the blood, from thy wounded side which flowed, be of sin the double cure, Save from wrath and make me pure.” (This is an illustration of why our children and young people need to be singing the old hymns to draw from them the wealth of the great doctrines of the Bible.)
DARE WE GO ONE STEP FURTHER? The woman at the well drew Jesus to make an unusual trip there to meet with her. The Jews didn’t go through Samaria to go north, but Jesus did. Her soul was empty and parched from her struggle with life; five husbands and one who was not her husband. She was thirsty and ready to encounter God. Jesus knows where the thirsty souls are.
Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. (John 4:10)
THE FULLNESS OF TIME HAD COME.(Galatians 4:4) Simeon and Anna spotted Him when he was a baby in the Temple. John spotted Him as he walked one day and said: “Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world.” He is now offering the woman at the well: “living water.” Have you spoken to The Rock? Do you have the living water, eternal life? Ω
Read Through the Bible in a Year
MARCH 6, 2018 – TUESDAY
A.M. Deuteronomy 1-2 P.M. Mark 11:1-19
(Bible Gateway will read this to you if you like. Look for the speaker icon.)
Good Verses to Memorize:
Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14)
Song for Today:
Just As I Am (A Cappello) (3:30) ( Pub. By S.E. Samonte)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxA0TFe3-Uo
You may have to adjust the volume or delete an ad.
A Cappello: Without instruments; in the style of a chapel, (a small church) which have no instrument, no organ. In contrast to (large churches which usually have an organ, or instruments.)
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