Posted by: thaishin | November 6, 2015

How are the people of the old testament saved?

Question from moody radio listener:

How did the people in the old testament know that they are saved or not? I know God made the relationship known like Moses, Abraham and the prophets, but without Jesus, how are the people saved in the old testament?

Answer from Dr Michael Rydelnik from Moody Radio openline on Oct 24, 2015

I think the simplest way to understand salvation is people are saved the same way all the time, by grace through faith in the revealed will of God. So, it is always by God’s undeserved kindness towards us, that is by grace through faith through trust. However, what is the object of trust? What are we trusting in? It is by whatever God has revealed for us to trust in. In the old testament, people were told to trust that if they sinned, and offered sacrifices, God will provide a covering for their sins and probably they received enough revelation of a coming Messiah, though they might not have known that his name is Jesus. They might not have comprehended of all the details that have been revealed to them about Jesus in the scriptures. So, if they offered the sacrifices in trust in God forgiving them and they look forward to that coming redeemer, that was their trust and their sins are forgiven. We know that those old testament sacrifices are like paying the minimum balance of the credit card and holding them off for another month but it does not deal with the principal and interest of the debt. When Jesus came, his death paid the penalty, paid the principal and interest and everything dealing with the debt. This is not only true of the case for us who believed today but even for the people in the old testament. It is Jesus’ death that dealt with sin. It is Jesus’s death that is the fulfilment of the old testament sacrifical system.

Above answer is not word for word from Dr Michael Rydelnik.  Some words are phrased based on my own understanding of the audio clip.

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Posted by: thaishin | November 2, 2015

Curse of God

Matthew 27

5 And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.  -kjv

Acts 1

18 Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.  -kjv

Observation and comments:

  1. Acts was written by Luke and has a different account of how Judas Iscariot died as written by Matthew.
  2. The passages can be easily harmonized by the event in Matthew 27:5 occurring first, followed by Acts 1, meaning Judas hanged himself first (that was how he died) and then probably the branch of the tree broke and he fell headlong and his bowels gushed out.
  3. Matthew was writing to the Jews. To the Jewish person, cursed is the one who is hanged on the tree. This showed to the Jews that Judas was cursed. Luke was writing to the Greco-Roman world. To them, suicide was not a curse but defacing the body (the Greco-Roman people elevated the body) showed it to them that Judas was under a curse. Each author had a purpose for the way they presented it to help their audience see that Judas was under a curse.

Learned this from openline, moody radio, on October 17, 2015

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Posted by: thaishin | October 24, 2015

The verse that Muslim apologist commonly use

Numbers 23

19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?  -kjv

19 God is not human, that he should lie, not a human being, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill?  -niv

19 God is not a man who lies, or a son of man who changes His mind. Does He speak and not act, or promise and not fulfill?  -hcsb

Observations and Comments

  1. Numbers 23:19 is a verse that Muslim apologist commonly use to argue against the incarnation, that God became a man.
  2. The verse is not saying that Jesus cannot become a man but that God is not like humanity, men and women, who lie. The idea is taken out of context by Muslim apologists legalistically too.
  3. This verse is proclaimed by Balaam. Balaam is a true prophet and Moses included Balaam’s word as truth.

Learned this from open line, moody radio broadcast of June 27, 2015

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Posted by: thaishin | October 18, 2015

Significance of the title “Son of man”

One of the strongest ways Jesus claimed deity was by calling himself the “Son of man”. “Son of man” is understood in Judaism to be equivalent to deity.

At the trial before the high priest,

Matthew 26

63 But Jesus held his peace, And the high priest answered and said unto him, I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God. 64 Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. 65 Then the high priest rent his clothes, saying, He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have we of witnesses? behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy.  -kjv

Jesus combines Psalm 110:1 and Daniel 7:13 in Matthew 26:64. The high priest understands Jesus’ implication that he is claiming deity and hence rents his clothes and accuse Jesus of blasphemy.

Psalms 110

1The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.  -kjv

Daniel 7

13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.  -kjv

In Daniel 7

9 I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire.  -kjv

The word thrones – plural shows that Jesus was sitting on one throne while God the Father – the Ancient of days sit on the other throne.

Learned this from openline moody radio on 10 Oct 2015.

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Posted by: thaishin | October 11, 2015

Jesus asked the Israelites to do what the Pharisees says?

Matthew 23

23 Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples, 2 Saying The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: 3 All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.  -kjv

23 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2 “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3 So you must be careful to do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.  -niv

23 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples: 2 “The scribes and the Pharisees are seated in the chair of Moses. 3 Therefore do whatever they tell you, and observe it. But don’t do what they do, because they don’t practice what they teach.  -hcsb

Comments and Observations

  1. It seemed in verse 3 that Jesus is asking the Israelites to obey what the scribes and pharisees say when they sit in Moses’ seat, which is puzzling because Jesus certainly did not say anything that is remotely positive of the scribes and pharisees anywhere else in the gospels.
  2. In most synagogues, there is this chair called the seat of Moses. The scribes and pharisees function as legal authorities in addition to their religious authorities, so they would be the attorneys, judges in their so called court cases in their time and they would sit in these ceremonial chairs which are called the Moses’ seat to oversee the court case.
  3. As per Exodus 18:13, Moses used to sit to judge the legal problems of the Israelites. In Deuteronomy 17, it becomes apparent that that authority get distributed and delegated to other leaders and when these leaders render judicial decisions, the Israelites must do and observe what they say.
  4. So what Jesus is saying here is that the Israelites are not to listen to the scribes and Pharisees with regards to religious matters but when they function as the legal and judicial authority, their decisions are binding.
  5. There is no commandment in this verse that we are to keep the law but with regards to the Israelites back in Jesus’ time, they are to observe and do what scribes and Pharisees say in the courts.

Learned this from moody radio openline on Oct 3, 2015.

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Posted by: thaishin | October 6, 2015

Thou shalt not kill, commit adultery, steal, bear false witness, covet

Exodus 20

13 Thou shalt not kill. 14 Thou shalt not commit adultery. 15 Thou shalt not steal. 16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. 17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.  -kjv

Romans 13

9 For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.  -kjv

From the sixth commandment to the tenth commandment, repeated in both old and new testament.

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Posted by: thaishin | October 1, 2015

Honour your parents

Deuteronomy 5:16

Honour thy father and thy mother, as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.  -kjv

Ephesians 6:1-3

1Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. 2 Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise; 3 That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.  -kjv

This commandment is repeated in both old testament and new testament and is thus still a commandment today. This commandment, if followed, will add years to the person’s life.

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Posted by: thaishin | September 25, 2015

Abolished?

Learned something from moody radio openline sometime back: The commandments in the old testament is to be obeyed in the current age only if the same principle is expressly mentioned in the new testament. Generally there is wisdom in the commandments of the old testament but is not mandatory if it is not mentioned in the new testament.

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Posted by: thaishin | September 19, 2015

Only this life, then judgement

Hebrews 9

27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:  -kjv

27 Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment,  -niv

27 And just as it is appointed for people to die once—and after this, judgment—  -hcsb

Observations and comments:

  1. People only live one life and after that to die once. This verse suggest that there is no possibility of reincarnation and thus of past lives. The soul, however, lives on after the death of the body. Believers will be in the presence of the Lord after death (2 Corinthians 5:8).
  2. People are given one chance in this life on earth to accept or reject Jesus and after that judgement (2 Corinthians 5:10)

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Posted by: thaishin | September 14, 2015

Saviour of all

John 10

14 I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.15 As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.  -kjv

14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.  -niv

14 “I am the good shepherd. I know My own sheep, and they know Me, 15 as the Father knows Me, and I know the Father. I lay down My life for the sheep. 16 But I have other sheep that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice. Then there will be one flock, one shepherd.  -hcsb

Observations and Comments:

  1. Jesus is the good shepherd.
  2. The sheep are the believing Israelites.
  3. The sheep that are not of this fold are the gentiles. The gentiles are believers who are non Jew.

Heard this from Moody Radio openline last Saturday.

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