Hebrews 1:1-4, John 14:7-9, Mark 10:45, Romans 6:23, Isaiah 53:4-6, John 3:16-17

Summary: Throughout the ages, God has been seeking men and women who have ears to hear and hearts willing to respond to spiritual truths. In these last days, He has spoken to us through the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Is anyone still willing to hear Him?

The Scriptures tell us that God is not silent regarding His presence, His direction, His expectations from us, and the message of salvation He brings to all who will hear and obey Him. He has spoken to us through the wonder of creation (Psalm 19:1-3; Romans 1:18-22), the words of the prophets, and as the writer of Hebrews tells us, He has spoken to us through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ (John 1:1-4; Hebrews 1:1-4).

The author of Hebrews was directing his message to his fellow Jews who had come to know Jesus as both Messiah and God Incarnate. His objective was to show that Jesus was superior to men and angels who had presented God’s messages to Israel in the past. Jesus was superior to Moses, the great lawgiver. He was superior to the prophets who had foretold His coming. Jesus was superior to the Aaronic priesthood as mediator between God and humanity.

The Lord Jesus became the great High Priest and, at the same time, the final sacrificial Lamb who gave His life as a sacrifice for our sins. As the Holy High Priest, His death for our sins and resurrection showed that the continual sacrifices in the Temple as an atonement for sin were no longer needed. When He declared upon the cross, “It is finished” (John 19:30; Acts 4:12; Romans 5:6-11), nothing else needed to be done. To add anything else to what God did in Christ was to propagate a damning false gospel (Galatians 1:8-9).

In Christ Jesus, God speaks to us about His Unique Nature. From the beginning, people have wondered about the nature and character of God. People have sought an explanation for the origin of the universe and why we possess a unique nature apart from other living creatures. Thoughts about God as the Creator range from being the all-powerful principle behind the design of the universe, and some think of Him as an impersonal entity who “wound up the clock” of the universe and left it to “fend for itself.” We cannot rely on our finite minds to define the nature and person of God. We must turn to the Bible for the complete and correct answer of Who He is and What He does.

The Hebrew Scriptures, known as the Old Testament, record God’s progressive self-revelation, doing so continually as people received and responded to that revelation. In other words, He takes His time to show us His Holy nature and direction. We cannot absorb it all at one time. It would be too much for us (Psalm 19:6; Job 5:9, 33:13, 37:23; Ecclesiastes 3:11, 8:17; Isaiah 40:28; Jeremiah 23:18; Romans 11:34; 1 Corinthians 2:16).

When the Lord Jesus started His ministry, He taught about the love and goodness of God. He taught His disciples to think of God not only as our King but also as our Heavenly Father. He presented word pictures that showed God as the Great Shepherd who looks for a lost sheep and as a father anxiously and eagerly awaits a wayward son’s return. He portrayed God as a God who rejoices and welcomes home the prodigal son, immediately preparing a banquet.

To understand the nature of God, we need to look at the nature, character, and motives of the Lord Jesus Christ (John 1:18, 14:7-9). When we see Jesus, we see the work and person of God the Father as well as the power of the Holy Spirit working within the believer to encourage us, to teach us (John 16:5-15), and give us that comfort and “peace that passes all understanding” (Philippians 4:7). It is in Christ that God speaks to us not only of His Divine nature but also the message concerning our need for salvation (Isaiah 64:6; Matthew 1:21; Mark 10:45; John 1:29; Romans 6:23; 1 Corinthians 15:3).

The awfulness of our sins is seen in the agonizing death that Jesus endured for our sakes so that we might have eternal life and escape the wrath of God, who will not allow sin in His Holy presence and will not allow us to enter His heaven by any other means. The Bible says that it is only through the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross for our sins that we have any hope, real peace, and the means by which to be in the presence of God eternally. To say that there has to be another way to heaven is to insult God and render Christ’s work ineffective. If there had been another way, then the cross was not necessary. It is the cross of Christ that knocks all pride and feeling of “self-effort” out from under us and makes us see ourselves for who we are, like it or not.

I am not going to place my faith and trust in another person’s efforts who is just as finite and sinful as I am. I am not going to rely on imperfect human “rationality” to redeem myself. I am not going to rely on my so-called “good works” to get me into heaven (Ephesians 2:8-9). Nobody can. We are fallen, corrupted, and reprobate, and we have a lot of nerve to come before a Holy God and tell Him that He has to provide another more “convenient means” to save us that will “fit the bill.” It is this kind of prideful arrogance that will keep many out of heaven and fill hell at the last judgment (Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 12:13-21; Hebrews 9:27; Revelation 20:11-15).

In Christ Jesus, God has spoken to us about the future of both this world and of those who refuse to come to Him for mercy, grace, and redemption. Jesus’ discourse on the Mount of Olives (Matthew 24; Mark 13; Luke 21) presents a scenario that destroys any naive belief that we are in control of the events upon this fragile planet. Bible prophecy clearly shows that this world will come to an end according to God’s timetable and His Sovereign control.

There is coming a day when those of us who truly know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior will be “caught up” to meet Him in the air (John 14:1-3; 1 Corinthians 15:51-58; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Revelation 3:10) and escape the coming wrath of God for seven horrendous years (Daniel 9:27; Revelation 6-19) as a just punishment and judgment for both rebellious humanity and reprobate devils for their wickedness, evil, hatred, and demonic malevolence toward God.

If you are reading this and are not sure about where you stand before God, first admit that you are a sinner and cannot save yourself (Romans 3:23), believe that Jesus Christ is Lord and that God has raised Him from the dead, and according to the Scriptures, you will be saved (Romans 10:9-10, 13).

Tell others about Him (Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8), talk to Him in prayer, and begin reading the Bible to get to know Him better (I recommend you start with the New Testament Gospel of Luke and then Acts).

My website has a list of ministries that can recommend further resources to help you in your new life in Christ. Please do not ignore His warning nor refuse His offer of salvation. God has spoken in Christ, and it’s time that everybody listens before it is too late.

donaldwhitchard@outlook.com

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Another Easter season has come and gone. It’s Easter Monday (yes, that’s really a thing) as I write this, and I thought it might be a good time to share a few thoughts about the meaning and significance of the season as I understand it.

These ideas really crystallized in my mind as I was driving home from a ministry appointment on Good Friday afternoon, searching for something meaningful to listen to on the radio—yes, even Christian radio—as the traffic raced past me. How many of these people, I wondered as I watched the cars, even know that today is Good Friday? More importantly—how many people in our churches remember that it is Good Friday?

I realize, by the way, that some will object to my use of the term Easter, and that’s fine. In fact, I’ve trained myself to default to talking mostly about Resurrection Sunday, at least from the pulpit. There’s uncertainty about the historical development of the term Easter, and some avoid it for this reason. But I will use it here for the sake of simplicity.

So, speaking of Easter—or, really, the entire Passion season—let me say this: I do not think we make nearly enough of its importance! I am referencing here our fundamentalist, conservative evangelical, or dispensational circles, however you would like to describe them. Compare, for instance, our celebrations of Christmas and Easter, the two most prominent holidays on our Christian calendar.

I have seen churches begin their preparations for the Christmas season at least as early as September. Then, some of us listen to Christmas music easily into January. That covers nearly half of the year! We, in our tradition, make as much of Christmas as pretty much anyone does in the Christian world, broadly speaking—with the exception, perhaps, that many in our circles do not observe Advent (at least by its name).

Consider our preparations for Easter by way of contrast. Many devote just one day to it! That’s all. Yet, Biblically, may I ask, where do we find the emphasis placed—on the birth of Christ or on His death and resurrection (see Rom. 1:4; 6:3-4; 1 Cor. 15:3-4)?

Since joining the ranks of fundamentalism more than 35 years ago, I have sensed a hesitancy to put too much emphasis on Easter (as well as the days leading up to it). It has often appeared to me that this attitude grows out of a concern with being too closely identified with anything resembling the practice of Lent—or anyone who engages in it.

Lent, in this line of thinking, is associated mostly with the unbiblical extremes of the Roman Catholic Church—and, perhaps, secondarily with the concept of ecumenical or community-wide services. The experience that I had with Lent growing up in confessional Lutheranism, however, was radically different than either of these. It is also not generally understood by my fundamentalist brethren. Be all that as it may, I realize there are still some troubling aspects tied into the history of Lent—and I am certainly not advocating for it to be instituted in our churches.

But here is the point I am driving at: If their association with Lent prevents us from remembering the importance of Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, then why are we free to celebrate Easter Sunday at all? It’s also part of the Passion Week—all of which is set forth on the church calendar. Is it only because the culture still celebrates Easter (to some minor extent) that we observe it in our churches? If we do not have the liberty to remember Good Friday, what is our rationale for participating in Easter … or, for that matter, even Christmas?

And how can you truly proclaim and celebrate the resurrection on Easter Sunday morning with zero amount of preparation—taking time to meditate, at the very least, on the events that preceded it, most notably on Good Friday?

I propose that we take Lent out of the equation but begin to emphasize Passion Week on a whole new level. I submit that it should receive at least as much of our energy and attention as the Christmas season does.

Of course, many congregations are already on this course, and I commend them for it. Yet, it really pains me that this is still a rather novel concept for many in our realm.

Since I began serving with The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry and have learned to share Passover Seder demonstrations, I have seen how this can be a wonderful way to prepare a congregation for the celebration of Easter—whether the Seder is presented during Passion Week, or even before. Perhaps that would be a good way for your congregation to begin next year.

After all, God must love spring holidays—since He gave the children of Israel four of them (see Lev. 23:4-22)!

This Passion season continues for me personally, as I will still be doing at least two more Passover Seder demonstrations—and that’s fine with me, too.

So, even on this Easter Monday, I’m not ashamed to say it: Happy Easter!

***

Paul J. Scharf (M.A., M.Div., Faith Baptist Theological Seminary) is a church ministries representative for The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, based in Columbus, WI, and serving in the Midwest. For more information on his ministry, visit sermonaudio.com/pscharf or foi.org/scharf, or email pscharf@foi.org.