After spending forty years in the back-side of the desert, Moses was finally called by God. The excuse he gave (Ex. 4:10) ‘Oh my Lord, I am not an eloquent man…I am slow of speech…’ showed how he had changed from the confident man he used to be in Pharaoh’s palace into a humble shepherd.
During his ministry as leader of Israel, Moses prophesized the coming Messiah’s manifestation many generations later.
Every person in the prophetic link had to be aware that it was ALL GOD. The Almighty was to receive all the glory.
Joshua, Moses’ successor, proved to be the right person for the job, but even he questioned his calling. So God encouraged him, ‘be strong and courageous because you will lead these people…’ Joshua became a prophetic link, a leader and inspiration.
Deborah, a prophetess, was leading Israel (Judges 4). Her responsibility was to keep the prophetic link connected by providing Israel direction with the Word of God.
Hannah, the mother of Samuel, understood the need to maintain the promise and gave her son as a prophet to Israel.
The prophet Isaiah, when declaring the arrival of the promised Messiah in chapter 42:9, proclaimed that EVERYTHING concerning His appearance would be foretold.
The list goes on and on. NO OTHER religion, faith, group of thinkers, philosophers etc. can make such a statement. No other man in history had such an amount of prophetic pronouncements as Jesus.
Chapter Five: Blood Covenant
The simple fact that God chose mere humans to carry out such an important directive demonstrates the love of God for His children. He wanted to restore the fellowship such as it was in the Garden of Eden. Hence the blood covenant.
Allusions to this fact where hidden in the construction of the tabernacle and the observations and practices. The blood of lambs and other animals was essential in every convocation. If a male Hebrew was not circumcised and did not partake in the blood sacrifice, he had no part in the blessings of the covenant.
It was a ritual to be practiced by all Israelites until the manifestation of God’s Lamb, Jesus, as the ultimate sacrifice. Man’s rebellion in the Garden of Eden made it indispensable.
The covenant in Christ is legal and binding. It is sealed by the blood – unbreakable, sound, unfathomable, enduring, enforceable, indisputable and certain.
God’s love bound Him to His creation. Love moved Him down that path. The debt needed to be paid in full, with no legal loopholes. (The term means a small hole or slit in wall for firing a weapon.)
The blood covenant is a powerful contract which is compelling evidence of God’s gracious love towards us. It is irretrievable and impossible to overcome, clear and understandable.
The gateway into this world was through birth. Hence, Mary, the virgin, was chosen to provide the door. A non-polluted man, one not carrying the blood curse, the contaminated cells of the fallen race, was required for the sacrifice. Such was the demand of Adam and Eve’s rebellion.
The devil was under the impression that God was ‘hamstrung’ because of his Holiness and Character. God could not lie. He had given all authority and ownership to his beloved creation, Adam and Eve. How wrong the devil was.
The perfect lamb was walking among the multitudes of humankind, but there was something about Jesus that was a mystery to the devil. All the wicked one saw was a holy man, a prophet, a miracle worker…and he proceeded to manipulate the masses to murder this thorn in his flesh.
The devil had already murdered many of the previous speakers of God’s truth. This one would be like all the others…so he thought.
The devil incited the mobs into a wild frenzy. At the sight of blood, right after the soldiers whipped Jesus and brought him out before the crowds, an unexplainable fury drove them mad. The demons from hell were having their ‘heyday.’ A blood-thirsty cry of ‘crucify him!’ filled the courtyard. Many had no idea why they were there. The mob unexplainably lusted for blood.
The devil incited the mobs into a wild frenzy. At the sight of blood, right after the soldiers whipped Jesus and brought him out before the crowds, an unexplainable fury drove them mad. The demons from hell were having their ‘heyday.’ A blood-thirsty cry of ‘crucify him!’ filled the courtyard. Many had no idea why they were there. The mob unexplainably lusted for blood.
In the book of 1Corinthians, you read, ‘…had they known (the devil and his minions) they would not have crucified Him.’
The prophetic text was so puzzling to the devil that it was a mystery right up the crucifixion. The resurrection was the vindication of the sacrifice.
Now, the responsibility of sharing the Good News of this marvelous truth has been given to mere mortals who, as their predecessors, must look past their weakness and shortcomings and trust in God.
Being born again by the faith in the finished work of our Messiah Jesus, washed in the Blood of God’s Lamb, following Him into the waters of baptism and being filled by the Holy Spirit, provides the power to do what Jesus instructed us to do. Angels have not been assigned to carry out the commission. They are your backup, ministering with and alongside the believer (Revelation 22:9).
God understands the feeling of insignificance and weakness that causes us to hesitate when confronted by His calling. That is where faith plays an essential part in our obedience. God will use and enhance our abilities, but remember, it’s still ALL GOD.
MERE MORTALS are the vessels God uses to demonstrate his glory. And, as the prophets of old had to submit to the calling, so do we. Believers today carry the same mission as the prophets of old. The revelation of redemption and restoration is now in our hands as born-again children of God. The prophets proclaimed the coming Messiah; we proclaim his imminent return.
The question still can be heard resounding from heaven… ‘Who shall I send…?’
Epilogue
In the book of John 13, Jesus promised before his departure and ascension that He was going to prepare a place for the believers to be with Him in heaven. Their arrival there was going to be even more glorious than Eden.
When God calls you, don’t expect to be adored, acknowledged, well received or loved, Jesus said so Himself.
The church – the redeemed, the born-again, the new creation in Christ – have been endued with power and authorized to carry on God’s purposes and give voice to the imminent return of Jesus.
In the book of Acts we read of the pouring out of the Holy Spirit. That event initiated the Good News of God’s redemption and restoration of His beloved creation. As it is written in the book of the Apostle John: ‘For God so loved the world that He gave…’
The Master’s instructions were clear, ‘…go therefore…make disciples…’(Matthew 28: 19)
In the book of Mark, ‘…these signs SHALL follow…cast out demons…speak in new tongues…serpents and deadly things will not hurt them…lay hands on the sick for healing…’
Mere mortals are still called to carry out such daunting tasks. Keep in mind the promise that
‘Greater is HE who is in you, than he who is in the world.’
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