Call-In Classic Christianity Radio – Bob George P614 (03-05-21)
Synopsis
What is the purpose of the book of Hebrews? Have you ever heard a sermon on it? It is so valuable to understand the New Covenant we are living under today. Oftentimes the only passage people have heard about from Hebrews are Hebrews 6:4, and without understanding the entire context of what the author of Hebrews is writing about, people get all fearful that they are deliberately sinning, meaning they have committed one of the nasty nine or one of the dirty dozen, that they are going to be cast into a raging fire. So what do people do? They pull out their 1 John 1:9 and ask God to forgive them of their sins.
First of all, one must understand the totality of the cross. When the Jew is going back to the day of atonement, killing a bull or a goat, to get his sins forgiven, or the Catholic is going to the confessional booth to get his sins forgiven, or the Protestant is going direct to God to get his sins forgiven, quoting 1 John 1:9 out of context, what are they doing? They are sinning against the knowledge of the truth. They heard the truth, they were among the apostles and heard them preach, or they heard a complete gospel message, but are not repenting of their unbelief in what Jesus already accomplished at the cross by his death, burial and resurrection.
So what are they doing? They are denying what Jesus said when he said “it is finished”, that He is not going to shed His blood again to take away the sins of the world. You deny the finality of the cross, saying that He did not die for the sins of everybody, or He did not die for the sins of the whole world. By doing so, asking God to forgive you, you would have to bring Him back down and crucify Him all over again. If there is going to be any more forgiveness to be executed on your behalf by God, what would He have to die? He would have to die again, wouldn’t He? Is He going to do that? For without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins.
So listen now to several callers who have asked questions about Hebrews, about the New Covenant, about how the Old Testament applies to us today? What applies to us in the Old Testament? Is it not obsolete toward us now, as we read in the book of Hebrews? Certainly it has good historical information, of God’s faithfulness in the midst of the unfaithfulness of the Jews, and we learn that man was created in the image of God and how God created the heavens and the earth. But the wisdom of Psalms and Proverbs pales in comparison to the wisdom of God in Christ Jesus, who indwells a born again believer. We have the wisdom of Christ living in us. He guides us into all truth, having been given the mind of Christ. And His faithfulness is so complete in us in comparison to what the Old Testament Jew could never have until Christ Jesus finished the work, and fulfilled all of the law, what was spoken through the prophets.
So what do we gain by reading the New Testament, in contrast to the Old Covenant? What is applicable to us today, in how we live our lives? It is certainly the New Covenant of grace in Christ Jesus, of being made complete in Christ, no longer under the law but under grace. So how do we live as a Christian today? What if we still continue to sin from time to time, and we will, with sin-indwelling flesh? Is there any retribution toward us from God? No. Not at all if you are in Christ Jesus. Why? Jesus paid the full debt of sin for the entire world and you have been set free from the law of sin and death to a new law of liberty in Christ Jesus.
So when we sin, we say “Thank you, Lord”, and turn to trust Him again, for that is what caused us to sin. We learn to boast in our weaknesses so we might depend on Him, for that is how we live, by faith. It is not faith to ask God for something you already have. You do not ask God for forgiveness or for more of the Holy Spirit. You have everything you need when you have Christ in you. The righteous shall live by faith. So your spiritual act of worship is to make your body available to God, for Him to live in you and through you. The worshippers God seeks is not in this or that place, performing religious ceremonies in legalism, observing certain holidays thinking you are spiritual by what you do or say, but those who worship Him in Spirit and in truth, every moment of our lives, depending on Christ.
God deals with us, not on the basis of a law of sin and death, external laws written on stone, but on the basis of a new life in Christ Jesus, internally written in our heart, the Spirit of Christ Jesus in us. So He deals with us as a child of God, as a loving father to a child. He lives in us to will and to act according to His good purposes. He has given us everything we need for life and godliness, Himself. So we have the privilege to participate in that divine nature who lives in us. The Spirit of God is sealed in us, never to leave us or forsake us, if you are in Christ Jesus. That is great news, to know you have been made complete in Christ.
Transcript
Dave from Covington, LA
Dave: I had a question for you. I was in church, and they were preaching on the book of Philippians, and they referenced something in Hebrews. They only referenced a portion of the scripture. I read on and I got quite confused. It was in Hebrews 6:4, where it actually starts.
Hebrews 6:4-6
4 It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age 6 and who have fallen away, to be brought back to repentance. To their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.
Bob: I can help you with that, Dave. What is the purpose of the book of Hebrews? It is to show the superiority of Christ Jesus. It is to show the fact of superiority of His work of the cross as superior to the sacrificial system, that His priesthood is superior to the Levitical priesthood, that He is superior to Moses, superior to Abraham, and superior to Melchizedek. He is superior to all. Christ is the object of worship.
Hebrews 7:4-7
4 Just think how great he [Melchizedek] was: Even the patriarch Abraham gave him a tenth of the plunder! 5 Now the law requires the descendants of Levi who become priests to collect a tenth from the people – that is, from their fellow Israelites – even though they also are descended from Abraham. 6 This man, however, did not trace his descent from Levi, yet he collected a tenth from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises. 7 And without doubt the lesser is blessed by the greater.
Hebrews 7:11-12
11 If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood – and indeed the law given to the people established that priesthood – why was there still need for another priest [Jesus] to come, one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron? 12 For when the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed also.
Hebrews 6:5-6
5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age 6 and who have fallen away, to be brought back to repentance.
Bob: Why can’t you be brought back? Have you ever noticed how hard it is to come back to where you have never been? So again, David, the author of Hebrews is trying to get people to see the finality of the cross of Christ Jesus and the reality of the resurrection of Christ Jesus. In other words, there is only one way of salvation and that is through the works of Jesus, not the works of the blood of bulls and goats, not the works of priests, but of the work of Christ Jesus.
Hebrews 10:1-7
1 The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming – not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. 2 Otherwise, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. 3 But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins. 4 It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.5 Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said:
“Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; 6 with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased. 7 Then I said, ‘Here I am – it is written about me in the scroll – I have come to do your will, my God.’”[a]
Hebrews 6:4-5
4 It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age
Bob: So, he is talking about people been enlightened to that truth. Judas would have been an example of that, as someone who tasted. It does not say “swallowed”, but “tasted”, or who shared in the Holy Spirit, tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age. If you have fallen away, it is impossible to be brought back to repentance. Why? Doing what? To their loss, they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.
Hebrews 6:5-6
to be brought back to repentance. To their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace.
Bob: How could you do that? How can you be crucifying in your own mind and teaching the Son of God, crucifying Him all over again, subjecting Him to public disgrace?
Hebrews 9:22
22 In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.
Bob: So, in other words, when you deny the finality of the cross, saying that He did not die for the sins of everybody, or He did not die for the sins of the whole world, then you have to bring Him back down and crucify Him all over again. If there is going to be any more forgiveness to be executed on your behalf by God, what would He have to die? He would have to die again, wouldn’t He? Is He going to do that?
Dave: No.
John 19:30
30 When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
Bob: No. So if you do not have faith in the fact that He did it once, and for all, and cried out on the cross, “It is finished”, then you have not repented. You have not changed your mind. We have numerous people sitting in our pews today who have never changed their mind. People are saying, “I believe Jesus died for my sins but I keep asking Him to forgive me.” That is double talk. Then you are saying He has to forgive you of your sins. If you believe Jesus took away your sins from the eyes of God, never to see them again, then that means that is what you believe. That means from that day forward, you will thank God for His forgiveness. But to ask Him for what you already have is not faith.
Hebrews 11:6
6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
Bob: That would be the case of going back to the sacrificial system. “Why are you going back to the sacrificial system?” “Going to get my sins forgiven.” “Jesus took away your sins.”
Bob: If you do not repent of what you used to believe in and repent into believing in what Jesus did, you are crucifying the Son of God all over again. You cannot be brought back to repentance. You never repented. You never changed your mind to begin with. If I believed Jesus took away my sins but I am going to go back to kill a bull and a goat for forgiveness of sins, it means I never believed Jesus ever died for my sins.
Bob: In our legalistic churches, people say “You sinned so much you cannot repent.” That is nonsense. This passage of scripture is talking to people like that, these legalistic people who are teaching that type of nonsense, when what it is saying you are the one who has never repented.
Dave: Yes
Bob: How can a pastor ever repent of his sin of unbelief and believe that Jesus took away my sins and then be teaching you he didn’ take away your sins. It means he never repented. Those are the guys who are in serious trouble.
Bob: Now turn to Hebrews 10. This will be explained in detail even more. He just got through speaking about the New Covenant we are under today. That is what Jesus ushered in at the cross.
Hebrews 10:17-18
17 Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.”[Jeremiah 31:34]18 And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.
Bob: That is the New Covenant. That is what Jesus did at a cross. You ask a Jew.
Christian: “What are you doing?”
Jew: “Going back to Jerusalem.”
Christian: “What for?”
Jew: “To go to the day of atonement.”
Christian: “What for?”
Jew: “To get my sins forgiven.”
Christian: “I thought you said you believed Jesus took away your sins?”
Jew: “Yes, I believe that.”
Christian: “Oh, good. Where are you going?”
Jew: “Back to Jerusalem.”
Christian: “What for?”
Jew: “To go to the day of atonement.”
Christian: “What for?”
Jew: “To get my sins forgiven.”
Bob: So where is the Jew? He never repented. He has just given lip service to it. He never changed his mind.
Bob: Turn to Hebrews 11:26. This is another passage legalists beat your head over with. They are talking about the nasty nine and the dirty dozen. These passages are not talking about that. It is talking about repenting of sinning on your unbelief.
Hebrews 10:26-27
26 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth
Bob: What are you sinning against? The knowledge of truth. What is the knowledge of truth?
Hebrews 10: 17-18
17 Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.”[Jeremiah 31:34]18 And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.
Bob: When Jesus cried on the cross and said “it is finished” that is what He meant. So if you keep on deliberately sinning after you received that knowledge, then there is no sacrifice for sins left. You may go back to the sacrificial system but there is no sacrifice left.
Hebrews 10:26-30
no sacrifice for sins is left, 27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.
Bob: Quite frankly, the only thing you have left forward to is the fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. In other words, going to hell. Why? You never accepted what God did for you.
Hebrews 10:28-30
28 Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”[Deuteronomy 32:35] and again, “The Lord will judge his people.”[Deuteronomy 32:36; Psalm 135:14]
Bob: That is what people are doing when they deny the finality of the cross. They are denying that Jesus took away the sins of the entire world from the eyes of God, never to see them again, and teach people that if you keep on sinning, you will go to hell, which is a lie. The only sin attributable to man, Dave, is the sin of the rejection of the Son of God. Jesus says “the world’s sin is unbelief in me”.
John 16:9 TLB)
9 The world’s sin is unbelief in me
Bob: The sins of the world have all been put on the back of God, never to see them again. The sin attributable to man is the sin of the rejection of the one who came to provide that for us.
Dave: Okay. This really is the basis of your ministry.
Bob: You better believe it. This is something that the Christian world does not understand. I wish I could say they do, but they don’t. They have all been taught the game. You believe Jesus died for the sins of the world. And the typical response is to quote 1 John 1:9, out of context of course. “That is why I ask Him to forgive me.” Do you understand the double-talk? That you are a double-minded man that is unstable in all your ways, with one side of your mouth saying Jesus took my sins from the eyes of God, never to see them again, and out of the other side of your mouth saying, “if I ask God to forgive me, He will forgive me.” Do you see the double talk of that?
Dave: Sure.
Bob: People say, “No, I don’t.”
Dave: I have another question. So we accept Jesus to wipe away our sins. It is over and done with. But a Christian who continues to sin, is there any retribution?
Bob: Listen to what you just said. Jesus has taken away your sins from the eyes of God never to see them again.
Dave: Correct.
Bob: But if we continue to sin. Do you see the double talk there?
Bob: Look. Dave, here is the deal. He took your sins away from the eyes of God. You and I, in this flesh of ours, and God could have taken sin out of our flesh. But He decided not to do that.
Romans 7:21-24
21 So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23 but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 25 Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!
Bob: Do you know why? If I did not have any sin, I would forget Jesus in a New York minute and so would you. That is why Paul said to rejoice in your weakness.
2 Corinthians 12:8-10
8 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Bob: It is your weakness that keeps you dependent on Christ. If you did not have any weakness, you would forget Him. When you or I sin, first of all look at what God did with that sin. He took it away from the eyes of God, never to see it again. What is the only response you can have to that?
Dave: Thank Him.
Bob: Absolutely. “Thank you, Lord.” That is what faith says. “Thank you, Lord. You, in your wisdom, love and mercy took that sin away, never to see it again. You also told me the root of all sin is unbelief in you.”
Romans 14:23
everything that does not come from faith is sin.
Bob: “That is the reason I did what I did. I stopped believing in you and started believing the lie of Satan. So help me to begin to understand the wisdom of listening to you in every moment of the day and abiding in what you tell me to do.” That is what spiritual growth is all about, Dave. Every day of our lives learning more and more to walk in total dependency upon our Father in heaven. The sin issue has been taken care of. It is done. It is over. Now He is dealing with you as a loving father with a child.
Dave: Okay.
Bob: That is good news, isn’t it brother?
Dave: That is absolutely good news.
Bob: That is what the good news of the gospel is. That is why He tells us to encourage one another. Do we need encouragement because we are told God is going to beat us to death? No. That is not true. God enabled Jesus to take the punishment for our sins. He is the one who took punishment of sins upon Himself.
2 Corinthians 5:21
21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Bob: He completed that work and there is no more work to be done. Enter into that Sabbath rest, resting from your works just as He did from His.
Hebrews 4:8-10
8 For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. 9 There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; 10 for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his.
Bob: There is nothing you can add to the forgiveness or that new life that He has now given you in Christ Jesus or can you subtract from it. Learn to walk in it. And you walk in faith in it.
Dave: That is our responsibility.
Bob: Yes. Does that help, Dave?
Dave: Yes. Clear.
Bob: Okay, brother. God bless you, Dave.
Sergio from El Paso, TX
Sergio: I just have one simple question. Being part of a church organization. What seems to be very common is the blowing of the Ram’s horn, the Shofar. I know it is a Jewish instrument. I know it is mentioned in Exodus, when God comes down from the mountain. Also, in the book of Revelation. Why does it seem to be used more often now? How biblical is it? I notice there are certain tools they use to explain certain things. Is this something that should be used? Or just set aside and used for some special occasion?
Bob: It is not something holy. It is a lamb’s horn. It was a call to worship for Jewish believers. We do not need someone to blow a horn to call us to worship God. As a matter fact, if we did we would have to be calling it every moment of the day. For in the New Testament we live in today, not in the Old Testament for the Jews, Jesus tells about this time that we are in that was going to come in their day.
John 4:19-24
19 “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. 20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”21 “Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”
Bob: We are not Jews unless you are a Jew. We are Gentiles. We were never given the law. The law was never given to us. The law was given to the Jews only.
Romans 2:12
12 All [Gentiles] who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all [Jews] who sin under the law will be judged by the law.
Bob: Gentiles who did not have the law, if they used it properly, they were not in better shape than the Jews who did have them. So these were just traditions of a Jewish nation. The Shofar, a lamb’s horn, is not a Jewish instrument. It is a lamb’s instrument. They used it. They did not have trumpets and bugles back in those days. So they used what they could. It was merely a tradition of Jewish people back in those days. People use it today. They can use anything they want to. Many times people who use it think they are very spiritual by doing so. But that is ludicrous.
Bob: What worship is today is given to us in scripture.
Romans 12:1
1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
Bob: Make your body available as a living sacrifice. That is your reasonable act of worship.
Bob: Back then worship was far different. It was something you came to a place to do. Today, it is something you do every day. True biblical New Testament worship is making your body available to the living God to live His life in and through you. That is my reasonable act of worship.
Bob: We have something called worship service. We are coming in to worship God. What a shame to think the only time you can worship God is only one day a week. Anybody can do that. You do not have to be saved to sing spiritual songs, get spiritual goose bumps and go through all the different things some people do. You do not have to be saved to do that. But you have to be saved to make your body available to Christ Jesus to live His life in you. If He does not live in you, you cannot make your body available to Him. That is what God calls a spiritual act of worship.
Bob: Everything in the Old Testament was exterior. The law was all exterior. The New Testament came for the interior.
1 Samuel 16:7
7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
Bob: Man looks on the outside but God looks on the inside.
Sergio: Okay. Just another instrument like anything else?
Bob: Just like anything else. Nothing sacred about it at all.
Sergio: Okay. Thank you, sir. Thank you for your time.
Bob: You are sure welcome, my friend.
Eric from Waco, TX
Eric: My question is this. What is the proper Christian perspective on the Old Testament? What applies? What is obsolete toward us now? I am having a hard time relating to the Old Testament as a Christian.
Bob: First of all, you have to see what God says about that. In the book of Hebrews 10, it says He sets aside the first, that is the Old Covenant, to establish the second, that is the New Covenant. By that will, or that covenant, or that testament, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus once and for all.
Hebrews 10:8-10
8 First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them” – though they were offered in accordance with the law. 9 Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. 10 And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
Bob: The Old Covenant or Testament is set aside because it was weak and useless.
Hebrews 7:18-19
18 The former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless 19 (for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God.
Hebrews 8:13
13 By calling this covenant “new,” he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and outdated will soon disappear.
Bob: So that is what God says in regard to the New Covenant replacing the Old Covenant, making it obsolete. We do not live under the Old Covenant today, Eric. We live under the New Covenant of grace. We live under that forgiveness that was provided for us by Christ Jesus and by the indwelling Holy Spirit that Christ Jesus sent to us on the day of Pentecost. That is how we live the Christian life today. We do not live it by laws written on stone. We live it by the Spirit of God written on our hearts. There are things in the Old Testament that you can learn historically. You certainly learned some of the things of how God created the heavens and the earth and how we were created in the image of God. I do not think He was a hairy ape so that eliminates the idea of evolution.
Historically we read some beautiful stories about Israel, its formation. Basically the Old Testament is an elaborate picture of the unfaithfulness of the Jewish people and the faithfulness of God in the midst of it, which is very encouraging. But again, not as encouraging to me as hearing the faithfulness of Christ Jesus, who so demonstrated His love for me that He came to die for me while I was yet His enemy.
Romans 5:8
8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Bob: Again, there is wisdom in the Psalms, and in Proverbs, but I do not think it is wisdom that replaces the wisdom of Christ Jesus. I think it becomes a supplement to rather than a substitute. I think you have to put it in its proper perspective. God says it is obsolete. It is aging and let it disappear in regard to the way in which you live your life today. It has no bearing on how you live your life today. It has some historical context. It can supplement your understanding of Christ but never let it be a substitute for it.
Eric: What scriptures can I go to to learn about these things?
Bob: Hebrews chapters 7, 8, and 10 are excellent chapters. These explain the New Covenant.
Eric: I appreciate that. That helps a lot.
Bob: You are sure welcome, my brother. Thanks for your call.
Kevin from Indianapolis, IN
Kevin: I have been noticing a trend lately among a lot of churches, especially my old church I used to go to. They have this couple that call themselves Messianic Jews. What they are starting to do, and I am hearing this with other churches, where they are starting to encourage and command a congregation to observe the Jewish festivals like the fall festivals, such as Yom Kippur. I wanted to know what your opinion on that is, especially considering we are on this side of the cross.
Luke 24:44
44 He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.”
Bob: Again, on this side, or regardless of what side, that stuff is nonsense. Christ fulfilled every one of those festivals. He is the fulfillment of them. What we have done is the very opposite of what Ephesians deals with.
Ephesians 3:4-6
4 In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5 which was not made known to people in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets. 6 This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.
Ephesians 2:14-16
14 For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, 16 and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.
Bob: The mystery and what was predestined was to make the two of us one, to make Jew and Gentile into one new man where there is no Jew, no Gentile, no slave or free, but we are all one in Christ. That is what was predestined by God.
1 Corinthians 12:12-14
12 Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body – whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free – and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 14 Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.
Bob: So man comes along in his brilliance, and says we need to separate ourselves. We need to be Messianic Jews. That is great. But I am a Messianic Gentile. So what is the big deal? Some people say I am a completed Jew. What is a Gentile if he is not completed? None of us are complete until we have been made complete by Christ. So we separate the body of Christ saying I am a Jewish Christian instead of saying I am a born again believer. So we are more thrilled about being Jewish than being a child of God. That is why we have Messianic Jews. God never intended that. God never intended Jews to be in one place worshipping and over this place Gentile believers worshipping. He thought we all ought to get together and find unity in our diversity. But we come along and say I am going to bring about the diversity and we do not care anything about the unity.
Bob: That is so dangerous what took place in biblical days, saying you need to observe Jewish holidays. That is ludicrous and it is heretical. Christ is the fulfillment of those.
Colossians 2:16-17
16 Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. 17 These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.
Bob: Every one of those things he said are a shadow of things that were to come. The reality is found in Christ.
Bob: To grab a hold of those is to deny Christ as the fulfillment of them. I do not agree with them at all.
Eric: Do you think if we are going to do that, then we might as well tell them to build a temple and start sacrificing animals?
Bob: Yes, absolutely. Might as well bring a bull and a goat in.
Eric: Thanks a lot. I knew basically the answer but I always appreciate your input. God bless you. Thanks for taking the time to answer my question.
Bob: You are sure welcome, Eric. Bless you, my friend.
Eric: God bless you, brother.
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