Part 1: Context
From a simple cell to the expanse of the universe everything is governed by rules: cells cannot exist without a membrane, rain can’t fall from a cloudless sky, motion requires force, and nothing is created of itself. Without rules there is confusion. Out of rules comes stability and harmony. Paul wrote: for God is not of confusion, but of peace; (1Cor 14:33) thus the Word of God brings forth fidelity, wisdom and serenity through rules and order.
At the start of the Bible we see sequence, thought and development, in the beginning God created. The Spirit of the LORD brought order out of chaos when He moved over the void and the darkness of the deep, making darkness invisible by the breath of His voice: let there be light. The act of creation therefore a progression of thought, effect and reality; we see its permanence in the Earth, Sun, Moon and the Heavens. And in Scripture, we see this enduring state of being in terms of foundation, not only to emphasise its durability, but also its timeless creator.
Now, in Isaiah we find this declaration from the Existing One: I form the light, and create darkness; I make peace, and create evil; I am the LORD that does all these things. (Isaiah 45:7) Affirmation the LORD is also the author of rules, symmetry and foundational laws.
In Genesis 1:7, He divided the waters above from the waters below placing an expanse (firmament) between them, and then divided the earth and waters below, forming land and seas. Job tells us the LORD hangs the earth upon nothing (Job 26:7)And Peter writes; that by the word of God the heavens were of old standing out of the water and in the water: through which the world that was being overflowed with water perished: but the heavens and earth, which are now, by the same Word are kept in store: (2Peter 3:5-7)
Peter explains the earth was changed by the Flood of Noah’s day; the result of the LORD loosing the waters above to fall upon the Earth; Jesus confirmed the deluge in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. The rainbow His sign of promise it cannot happen again, His word assured by a timeless oath. And when to Abraham He said; by myself have I sworn, (Genesis 22:16) He swore on His own name as there was none greater than His.
As it is with the Flood, so it is with our sins.
The corruption of Adam and Eve is also a onetime event. The flight of Israel from Egypt, the giving of the Commandments and the virgin birth through the work of Holy Spirit, will never happen again. Equally, the Resurrection is set in time; yet our Redemption wrought by the Blood of Christ comes with a never-ending pledge, and everlasting promise.
Whereof the Holy Spirit also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before, this is the covenant I will make with them after those days, said the LORD, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them; and their sins and iniquities I will remember no more. Now, where remission of these is there is no more offing for sin. (Hebrews 10:15-18)
So, the redemptive Blood of Christ is also a once only event, and like Noah’s Flood, it will not repeat. Yet, if our sin was remembered by God then the sacrifice, as Paul said, was of no effect and the event an illusion. But how can we speak of such things, when any delusion is ours; still God came down to do His Work as history shows. His blood spent on an accursed tree to break sin’s hold, governed by rules He set for Himself: but why? Because He so loved the world as John said, well yes of course, but there is more to it than that. He is the Light, and cannot live in darkness where sin holds sway.
Part 2: obligation and possession
The Holy Bible is a record of God’s interaction with men; the Old Testament of foundation, hope and promise, which points to the Christ. The New is the fulfilment of that promise through God made flesh, and the reconciliation of sin through the Blood of Remission. It is a story of love and concern under the mantle of Mercy and Grace.
When people are asked why Jesus came the answers are often quite vague; when Jesus was asked, His answer was clear: my meat is to do the will of Him that sent me, and to finish His work. (John 4:34)
And so: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached to the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory. (1Timothy 3:16)
Now, the debate on sin is enduring; one part has its origin in the schedule of sin fixed by the Roman Church; another in the rolling discussion of faith over works. Both are distractions, which obscure the work of Christ, causing blindness to the root of sin and ignore its progenitor. Eve did not eat an apple; Pharaoh did not fail through weakness; they had one thing in common, they failed to believe. It is time in detail at the expense of what’s relevant, which distracts us from God’s pledge about the forgiveness of sin in its fullness. So let’s look at what was said of the Christ and His purpose.
And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shall call His name JESUS: for He shall save His people from their sins. (Matthew 1:21)
The auxiliary verb ‘shall ’appears three times in this sentence. It is used to underline something that will occur or exist in the future; also to describe an order, promise, requirement or obligation. Mary gave birth to a son as promised, and their requirement to name him JESUS was fulfilled. The second part of Gabriel’s statement relates to the self-imposed obligation of the LORD for the removal of sin as declared in the Prophets, now upon His physical form of promise. Bear in mind, Isaiah said Jesus was God with us (Immanuel: Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23) and Paul wrote
God was manifest in the flesh.
The next day, John sees Jesus coming to him and said, ‘behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.’ (John 1:29)
The intransitive verb ‘take:’ To get into one’s hands; possession of; to have power over; to capture, seize, remove, secure, defeat; to receive into one’s body; to move against; to acquire by authority.
In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sin, according to the riches of His Grace: (Eph 1:7)
And lastly the intransitive ‘have:’ to possess as a trait; to hold; to own; a feature or constituent part: and the noun ‘forgiveness’ in the context of Paul’s statement: pardoned; released from; the state of being forgiven; absolved; free of or from: assurance that true believers enjoy mercy as an integral feature of their faith and being.
And so, in the announcement from the Angel Gabriel, and in the declaration from John the Baptist we find Jesus under obligation through proclamation and pledge to capture sin; to remove it, secure and defeat it. The reason is reconciliation: the cleaning of a divided house to delete Satan’s barrier between God and men. Thus, Jesus came to rectify our fallen state so we can be free of blame and debt, to take what we cannot remove. His is the Kingdom, the Power to defeat sin, and the Glory of righteousness where sin has no place. It has been cast down to the earth where it will remain among men, until repentance is sought.
Part 3: the curse removed
Now, we need to confirm our Redeemer. By whose blood was purchase made and now the owner of the debt? We find the answer in much of Scripture, also the Psalms, where the circumstances are described; and in Isaiah where we first meet the LORD and His Christ.
I, I am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour. (Isaiah 43:11)
And all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob. (Isaiah 49:26)
I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels (Psa 22:14); the assembly of the wicked have enclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet. (Psa 22:16) For thou will not leave my soul in hell; neither will thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption: (Psa 16:10) which speaks of the Resurrection.
He will swallow up death (sin) in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces, and the rebuke of his people shall he take away from off all the earth: for the LORD hath spoken. (Isaiah 25:8)
Paul speaks to this often, and in Hebrews and Romans highlights the LORD’S promise to His Israel given through the Prophet Jeremiah: for I will forgive their iniquity and remember their sin no more: (Jeremiah 31:24)
For sin shall not have dominion over you, as you are not under the law, but under Grace. (Romans 6:14) For the Law of the Spirit of Life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. (Romans 8:2)
Watch now! When he said you have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings (these are offered according to the law) then he added, behold, I have come to do your will; He does away with the first in order to establish the second. And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ ‘once.’ (Hebrews 10:8-10; ESV)
In the Greek text, verse 10 ends with the word ‘ephapax’ translated on-once or once, which means on one occasion, or one time only. In the pure eternal sacrifice of Christ, our sin was redeemed and atonement made; where there is forgiveness of these is there is no longer any offing for sin. (Hebrews 10:18) Jesus has satisfied the requirement He placed upon Himself to remove sin’s debt under the New Covenant, which came into force with His act of Redemption. Having purchased its burden by the shedding of Blood, Jesus now owns sin’s debt, it being taken away so He can be with us. Jesus has divided flesh and spirit by removing the law of sacrifice, creating faith without arrears.
Guided by His Comforter Spirit, those under the Law of the Spirit of Life believe through Scriptural proof, Jesus is both LORD and Christ. As Paul states, One LORD, One Faith, One Baptism wherein they keep the Commandments of Jesus (Mark 12:29) and Faith in Him only. Under His promise, sin is now put aside as they worship the LORD in Spirit and Truth; (John 4:24) He in us, we in Him, a spiritual union of sinless perfection through Grace and Mercy under the Blood.
As in the Flood of Noah’s day, the sacrifice of Christ only happens once. Jesus said
…it is finished. (John 19:30)
His work is done. The redeeming of our sin has broken the chains of the law, sacrificial works and attendance. All that remains is faith in Jesus only. As Jesus declared; he who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not will be condemned. (Mark 16:16) And that condemnation is the sin we hold on to. But Mercy is greater than pride, and His Blood greater than sin. And in our belief, repentance and baptism in Christ, our sins are remembered no more…
In love and peace as always,
James