Hidden (Krypto) Treasures

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Month: December 2009 Page 2 of 3

Jesus in the OT :: Jeremiah

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On December 17, 2009

In Christian, Jesus in the O.T.

The book of Jeremiah gives us a glimpse of who Jesus is in the Old Testament (O.T).

The book of Jeremiah is an Autobiography and as the heartbroken prophet writes his life story, a heartbreaking message of doom to its readers, he bathes it with tears of compassion, so much so that he comes to be known as the Weeping prophet.

And as Jeremiah laments and weeps over an unpenitent people, fast forward many years and you see Jesus entering into Jerusalem and he stops and looks at the City (Jerusalem) and weeps over it (Luke 19:41). Why? Because they did not know of the time of God’s visitation or they would not accept the one who came in the name of the Lord as their King (Luke 19:14)

Jesus looked at their past and saw that the city had not seen God visit them through the voice of His prophets.
Jesus looked at the present and saw how some in the city did not recognize God having visited them in the flesh, in His own person.
Jesus looked at the future and wept that the self-righteous impenitent had really only to hope for dread in the days to come, when all they trusted on will crumble as did the city and that they would not possibly still recognize His upcoming visitation when He returns the second time as King of Kings.

In Jeremiah, Jesus is a Weeping GOD hoping that all who hear His voice, will see Him and How God visits man through Him.

Jesus in the OT :: Isaiah

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On December 16, 2009

In Christian, Jesus in the O.T.

The book of Isaiah gives us a glimpse of who Jesus is in the Old Testament (O.T).

The book of Isaiah can be likened to an miniature Bible. Like the entire Bible has 66 books, Isaiah has 66 chapters. In the first 39 chapters, Isaiah stresses the RIGHTEOUSNESS, HOLINESS and JUSTICE of God, a theme similar to the 39 books of the Old Testament. In the next 27 chapters of Isaiah portrays the Lord’s GLORY, COMPASSION and GRACE, a theme similar to the 27 books of the New Testament. In the 40+ years it records, it spans 4 kings of Judah. The Book starts with the Judgment of Judah and the nations and in the middle moves into Redemption, closing with Redemption and Future Glory.

Isaiah, the Latin form of Yesha’yahu (shortened as Yeshaiah) means Yahweh is Salvation and the well known passages in Isaiah that we are familiar with are from Isaiah 9:6 and Isaiah 53.

Isaiah 9:6 which is the prophecy of the ANOINTED ONE reads
For unto us a child is born (expressing the humanity of Jesus),
unto us a Son is given (expressing the divinity of Jesus).

And Isaiah 53 which is a prophecy of the ANOINTED ONE’s ATONING WORK states the Jesus was wounded for our transgressions, Bruised for our Iniquities and The chastisement of our peace was upon him and by His stripes, we are healed and like a Lamb to slaughter, He (Jesus) came.

Now when we fast forward many years, we saw John the Baptist, a man dressed brutishly, alongside a river making a promulgation as recorded in John 1:29 (29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God (Agnus Dei), which taketh away the sin of the world.)

The Lamb that Isaiah saw being led to the slaughter, is the Lamb of God that John the Baptist sees, and it will be this same Lamb that we will all see, seated on the throne, of whom it will be sung –  Blessing and honor, and glory and power be unto him who sits on the throne and unto the Lamb, forever and forever and ever and ever … (Revelation 5:13) and  Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. (Revelation 7:10)

In Isaiah, Jesus is the Agnus Dei, The Lamb of God

Isaiah 53: 5-7
5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

Jesus in the OT :: Song of Solomon

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On December 15, 2009

In Christian, Jesus in the O.T.

The book of Song of Solomon gives us a glimpse of who Jesus is in the Old Testament (O.T).

Allegorically the Song of Solomon paints the imagery of the Church as the Bride who is espoused (engaged) to Jesus Christ, the Bridegroom.

As a young student of Sunabeda Public School in Orissa, India, I remember participating once in a quiz competition in which the question that was asked was “What is the expansion of the abbreviation SOS?” Some teams said, Sons of the Soil while others said Song of Solomon and our team got it right by saying the abbreviation SOS stood for Save our Souls. In hindsight today, as I ponder on this, it makes me wonder if God was probably trying to tell me something even in my school days. I feel now as if I just wasn’t paying attention to Him then because now putting the three together, I can now see that the The Song of the King of kings (Jesus) is that the sons of men made from the dust of the ground (a.k.a. the sons of the soil), are soiled in sin, until the King (Jesus) Saves Our Souls.

Celine Dion is famous for her hit song “The Power of Love” but if you really want to know the power of Love, I reckon you read Song of Solomon 8:6-7 which avers
6 Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame.
7 Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned.

Now if we replace the word love in verse 7 with the word Jesus and read it, what essentially surfaces is if a man would give all the substance of his house for love Jesus, it would utterly be contemned (despised/cursed).

Now to see the glimpse of Christ in the Song of Solomon from the Song of Solomon 3:6-11

6 Who is this that cometh out of the wilderness like pillars of smoke, (remember the pillar of cloud in the wilderness) perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all powders of the merchant? (Gifts that were presented to Jesus at his birth) 7Behold his bed, which is Solomon’s; threescore valiant men are about it, of the valiant of Israel.8 They all hold swords, being expert in war: every man hath his sword upon his thigh because of fear in the night. (Jesus returns with his hosts to make war (Rev 19:11) and out of his mouth comes a Sword (Rev 19:15)) 9 King (of the Jews) Solomon (Jesus) made himself a chariot of the wood (The Cross) of Lebanon. 10 He made the pillars thereof of silver (The Pillar of the Holy Spirit that is a consuming fire, that purifies and refines as silver is refined in the Fire), the bottom thereof of gold (Humility from divinity), the covering of it of purple (The color of the robe that was put on Jesus as he was led to be crucified), the midst thereof being paved with love, for the daughters of Jerusalem. (Via Dolorosa, aka the way of suffering, or in other words – God’s Love Walk) 11 Go forth, O ye daughters of Zion, and behold king Solomon (see King Jesus) with the crown (of thorns) wherewith his mother (we can say God the Father) crowned him (with a crown above all) in the day (day of the Lord) of his espousals (marriage of the Lamb), and in the day of the gladness of his heart (because man, the delight of his heart can once again be restored into a relationship with God).

2 Corinthians 11:2 reads
2 For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.

In Song of Solomon, Jesus Christ is the Bridegroom waiting for you are me, who are engaged to Him.

Jesus in the OT :: Ecclesiastes

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On December 14, 2009

In Christian, Jesus in the O.T.

The book of Ecclesiastes gives us a glimpse of who Jesus is in the Old Testament (O.T).

The title Ecclesiastes, means Speaker before the ekklesia (assembly). God is the speaker before the assembly, this assembly (His Church and body of believers) and so pay attention to what He has to say.

Any thing apart from God is futile (vain, vain, vain) is the key theme that pretty much rings throughout the entire book, until we come to the penultimate words in the very last chapter, as recorded in Ecclesiastes 12:13 that talks about man’s all (the chief end of man) which is to Fear God and Keep His commandments.

The next verse (Ecclesiastes 12:14) gives us the reason as to why we ought to Fear God and Keep His commandments. The reason is because, God shall bring every work under judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good or evil.

Hebrews 9:27 tells us that it is appointed unto men once to die and then enter into judgment.

Whether good or evil, not just the evil; the faithful with the unfaithful; the faithless with those who believe in Jesus, all will be judged for our works, no exceptions whatsoever and each of us will have to give an account of our lives to be judged by the RIGHTEOUS judge (the same Judge we saw in the book of Judges).

Carefully treading on this topic, it is important for us to recognize that we are judged on our works to receive God’s reward, not his Salvation, because it is not by our works that we can be saved, but by the grace of God (in believing in Jesus Christ) alone.

With Jesus Christ as the loving Savior – there is no other way
With Jesus Christ as the righteous Judge and King – there is no escape

We are not saved by our works, but we are saved FOR good works (good works that people may see those works and glorify God the Father, who is in Heaven) as expressed by Jesus himself in Matthew 5:16

Those who have put their trust in Jesus will not be condemned, but let us not fool ourselves into thinking that we now have a license to live the way we want to and not be held accountable. James warns us of this that we should not be merely hearers of the word, but doers lest we deceive ourselves (James 1:22)

Now back to the chief end of man which is to Fear God and keep His commandments.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Even Jesus feared and glorified God (John 17) giving him the reverence and awe and kept ALL the commandments of God the Father (John 15:10). So we are expected to do the same.

Infact the greatest commandment as expressed by Jesus is to Love the Lord;

How is this demonstrated?
Jesus said, People will know you are mine (aka. we belong to Jesus), if you obey Him (His commandments), for in doing so you will demonstrate your love for God. (John 15:10)
Loving God in other words is Keeping His commandments.

So in essence, to Fear God and Keep His commandments is to become wise and love God.

In Ecclesiastes, Jesus is speaker before the assembly requiring us to become wise and love God, i.e., to Fear God and Keep His commandments.

Jesus in the OT :: Proverbs

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On December 11, 2009

In Christian, Jesus in the O.T.

The book of Proverbs gives us a glimpse of who Jesus is in the Old Testament (O.T).

The 31 chapters in Proverbs are like wisdom nuggets for 31 days – a mix of poetry, parables and pithy questions by the principal author covering maxims that can maximize our relationship with God and Man, the Hebrew title is Sepher Hokhmah – meaning “The Book of Wisdom”.

Psalm 8 – asks What is Man? Proverbs 8 – Gives the Answer
Man is the delight of God (Proverbs 8:31 – Rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth; and my delights were with the sons of men.)

Proverbs 8:22-31 Talks about the Creation of man, and if you replace the word for wisdom with the word, Jesus, you will see that Jesus = Wisdom

22 The LORD possessed me in the beginning of his way, before his works of old. (John 1:1)
23 I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was.
24 When there were no depths, I was brought forth; when there were no fountains abounding with water.
25 Before the mountains were settled, before the hills was I brought forth:
26 While as yet he had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor the highest part of the dust of the world. (Psalm 90:2 – From everlasting to everlasting thou art God)
27 When he prepared the heavens, I was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth:
28 When he established the clouds above: when he strengthened the fountains of the deep:
29 When he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth:
30 Then I was by him, as one brought up with him: and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him;
31 Rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth; and my delights were with the sons of men. (Genesis 1:26 – Let US make man in our own image)
32 Now therefore hearken unto me, O ye children: for blessed are they that keep my ways.
33 Hear instruction, and be wise, and refuse it not.
34 Blessed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors. (Mark 1:15 – Jesus’ Message – Repent for the Kingdom of God is Near)

And moving on to a few verses later, we hear Wisdom saying
35 For whoso findeth me findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the LORD.

Now listen to what Jesus is saying in John 11:25-26
25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me (finds me) shall never die (find life). Believest thou this? – FIND ME!

Proverbs 9:5 – Wisdom says “Come eat of my bread and drink of my wine”
Jesus at the last supper says, “Take this bread, which is my body given for you and take this cup (wine), which is my blood shed for you, eat and drink of it)

In Proverbs, Jesus is Wisdom and all who ask for Wisdom (Him) will receive Him.

Jesus in the OT :: Psalms

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On December 10, 2009

In Christian, Jesus in the O.T., Reuben

The book of Psalms gives us a glimpse of who Jesus is in the Old Testament (O.T).

What are some familiar Psalms that come to mind? There are 150 of these in total.
Psalm 1, 8, 23, 91, 100, 150 are the more commonly referred to ones and let’s start with Psalm 1.

Psalm 1:1-2
1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.

Psalm 2:12
12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.

Do you see it?

Psalm 1 is about the LAW
Psalm 2 is about GRACE – Blessed are all who put their trust in the Son of God. Psalm 2 – the first Messianic Psalm (verse 7)

Psalm 2 refers to the phrase “Kiss the Son?” – a.k.a. Love and embrace Him.
We kiss whom we love and embrace. Reuben our little boy, loves to be kissed by Sangeetha and they play this game often.

What are the events that come to mind when we say “Kiss” in the Bible?

  1. Judas’ betrayal kiss (Mark 14:45)
  2. Israel beheld his grandchildren and kissed them and embraced them (Genesis 48:10)
  3. The woman that would not stop kissing the feet of Jesus as she anointed him (Luke 7:45)

Judas kissed Jesus to show who Jesus was.
Aren’t we supposed to do the same, save with the right attitude of Heart, wherein, we are to kiss Jesus to show Him and His Love to others, because in doing so, we expression of love for Him and we tell the world that we are EMBRACING HIM.

Now let’s move to Psalm 23.

Psalm 23 tells us that the Lord is my Shepherd
Psalm 22 is The Psalm of the Cross, that is a prophetic description of the Messiah who comes.

See without Psalm 22 where Jesus lays down his life willingly for us, and is rejected of God (as he cries out My God, My God, why have you forsaken me), so that man could be accepted by Him, He cannot claim to be the good shepherd (as described in John 10)

To the final Psalm, Psalm 150.

Psalm 150 commands Let every thing that hath breath, praise the Lord (verse 6). Those who kiss and embrace him, can boldly then move to Psalm 150, where ALL that have breath are commissioned to praise God and worship Him.

In Psalms, He is the Grace of God, to be kissed and embraced; He is the rejected servant and THE Good Shepherd, worthy of all our praises – praises from all that have breath.

Jesus in the OT :: Job

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On December 9, 2009

In Christian, Jesus in the O.T.

The book of Job gives us a glimpse of who Jesus is in the Old Testament (O.T).

The story of Job is a fascinating account of what happens in a realm beside the physical. The facts of the account are as follows. Job is an perfect and upright man, one who feared God and eschewed evil (Job 1:1). Yet, he loses his Wealth, His Family and His Health. And even in such dire circumstances, Job refrains from cursing God but instead glorifies God by blessing Him.

Job prefigures Jesus in that Jesus is THE PERFECT and UPRIGHT (not only sinless but blameless) God made Man Who feared God (demonstrated by His keeping of the commandments – John 15:10) And eschewed evil (there was no sin found in Him – 1 Peter 2:22)

Jesus lost
His Wealth (Treasures of heaven (Matthew 6:20 & Revelation 21),
His Family (His Father, whom He had to address as My God, My God, why have you forsaken me (Psalm 22)) and
His Health (He was marred beyond recognition and his body was crucified, his blood was shed (Isaiah 53))

In Job 4:12-14 – Job sees an image and trembles in his bones. At the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, in His day, the heavens and earth will shake (Haggai 2:21; Isaiah 13:13) when it receives its King.  Interestingly, Job in Hebrew (Iyyob) means the “Persecuted One” and in Aramaic it means “To Come Back”.

In Job, Jesus is the Persecuted One who will Come Back as King of kings and Lord of lords.

Jesus in the OT :: Esther

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On December 8, 2009

In Christian, Jesus in the O.T., Movie Motions

The book of Esther gives us a glimpse of who Jesus is in the Old Testament (O.T).

The book in which the word ‘God’ is not mentioned even once (Acts 17 – Unknown God; Psalm 19: There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard), yet His character is evident through all of the events that transpire in this time frame where Esther is made the queen of Persia.

Also, did you know that the land of India is mentioned in this book (Esther 1:1 – Ahaseurus reigned from India unto Ethiopia, from Persia). Sandwiched between the 1st and 2nd return of the people of God from Babylon (led by Zerubbabel and Ezra) and the 3rd and final return (led by Nehemiah), to the remnant that chose to remain in Babylon, God raises his ruler so his people can be saved. As we look for Christ in the book of Esther, we are often told about how Mordecai, Esther’s cousin, typified Christ from the very last verse in this book – Esther 10:3
3 For Mordecai the Jew was next unto king Ahasuerus, and great among the Jews, and accepted of the multitude of his brethren, seeking the wealth of his people, and speaking peace to all his seed.
Which can be used to reflect
For Jesus, the Jew was next unto the King of kings (God the Father) and the greatest among all Jews, accepted by many, seeking the wellbeing of his people and speaking peace to all his children.

But I want us to focus our attention today on the title character – Esther.
One of my favorite movies of all times is “A few Good Men”. In that there is a dialogue that takes place between Jack Nicholson (playing Colonel Jessup, the marine) and Tom Cruise (playing Lieutenant Kaffee, the prosecuting attorney).

JESSEP: I ordered Markinscn to have Santiago (the marine who is killed that causes this entire investigation) transferred off the base immediately.
KAFFEE: Why?
JESSEP: I felt that his life might be in danger once word of the letter got out.
KAFFEE: Grave danger?
JESSEP: Is there another kind?

The scriptural record in Esther brings to our attention, Haman, who was promoted to be prince over Persia, an evil man who sought to annihilate all the Jews i.e. put the Jews in GRAVE danger. Daniel 10:13,20 talks about how the prince of Persia (a demonic force) delayed God’s messenger from bringing the message to Daniel, God’s servant for 21 days, eluding to spiritual battle. Mordecai, Esther’s cousin intervenes and plans the salvation of his people by making Esther intercede with the King. When Mordecai asks her to speak up for her people, hoping that Esther has probably been established by God FOR SUCH A TIME AS THIS (Esther 4:14)

Note Esther response – If I perish, I perish
Similar to Jesus’ words, I lay down my life for my sheep (John 10)

Esther was made for such a time as this.

Jesus’ words before he endured to the cross willingly – the hour is come (Mark 14:41). Earlier in John 2:4 – Jesus tells his mother, my hour is not yet come.
Jesus was God made in the image of man, for such a time as this, for such a people (you and me), saving us from DANGER UNTO DELIVERANCE (deliver us from the evil one – in the prayer that Jesus taught us to pray).

In Esther, Jesus is our Intercessor and Salvation (for such a time as this, for such a people).

Jesus in the OT :: Nehemiah

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On December 7, 2009

In Christian, Jesus in the O.T.

The book of Nehemiah gives us a glimpse of who Jesus is in the Old Testament (O.T).

A contemporary of Ezra, leads the 3rd and last return from Babylon. Close introspection of the text in the book of Nehemiah reveals unbelievable hidden treasures as to how Nehemiah, like Ezra, is a portrayal of Christ, and not just in his first coming, but also his second.

Let’s see a quick overview of this that I beseech you to go and validate by reading the scriptures.

Nehemiah Jesus Christ
Profession A cupbearer to the king of Persia (2:1) Cupbearer to the King of kings (Matthew 26:39)
Position Gave up his exalted position at the right hand to the king (2:1-5) Gave up his position at the right hand of God, and humbled himself (Philippians 2:5-8)
Passion Wept over Jerusalem’s plight (1:3-4) Wept over Jerusalem (Luke 19)
Protection Defeats 3 enemies, Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem who laughed and scorned and despised him (2:19-20) Jesus defeated Satan, the World and Sinful nature, being mocked and despised (Matthew 4:1-11; Colossians 2:13-15; Romans 6:6)
Priesthood Reestablished the reading of the word of God and set the priesthood (Ezra) again before returning to the King (8:1-9; 9:13) Presented himself ALIVE with many convincing Proofs, speaking about the things concerning the kingdom (royal priesthood) of God (Acts 1:3)
Passage Returned to the king (13:4-6) Ascended into heaven to the King (Acts 1:9-10)
Purification (cleansing of sin) Returns to cleanse and throw his enemies out (13:6-9) Will return to cleanse all sin and impurity (Zech 13:1) and throw his enemies out (Luke 13:27) and rule with a Rod of Iron (Rev 19:15)
Provision (of rest) Commanded the Sabbath to be kept Holy. Restored the day of Rest. (13:22) And to those who are troubled, rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels. (2 Thessalonians 1:7)

Interestingly in order to provide rest for the people of God, Nehemiah has to fight, physically, some men who intermarried and had lost the language (in a sense their ability to worship the God of heaven) and you see Nehemiah says that he cursed them and smote some of them and plucked off their hair and made them swear by God. Those not so blessed with a full head of hair, don’t feel too good, The Bald, be not Bold. I am not suggesting that Jesus will pull your hair out, but you can be sure he knows the number of your hair in your head, even it is one.

In Nehemiah, Jesus in profession is the cupbearer of the wrath of God and in provision, He is the provider of Rest (the Sabbath).

Jesus in the OT :: Ezra

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On December 4, 2009

In Christian, Jesus in the O.T.

The book of Ezra gives us a glimpse of who Jesus is in the Old Testament (O.T).

Ezra, the author of Chronicles continues his narrative with conscription and precision, this time with the second exodus motif from Babylonian captivity, working toward the cleansing of the land and the Temple of God.  Unlike the exodus from Egypt, there were only a select few who chose to leave Babylon and there was 2 exodus out of Babylon.

Ezra 1-6    : The 1st return under Zerubbabel; for physical restoration of the temple
Ezra 7-10   The 2nd return under Ezra; for spiritual restoration of the people, a.k.a. the temple of God.
Ezra in a manner of speaking, prefigured in shadowy form the One named Jesus who is to Come.

Ezra 7:6 – says Ezra was a skilled scribe – one who wrote down the Law of the Lord.

Remember the account in John 8:1-11. Where a woman caught in the act of adultery is brought before Jesus to be Judged by Him according to the law of Moses. What do you see Jesus doing, He stooped and he Scribed (scribbled on the ground), not ones but twice. We don’t know what he wrote and we can speculate. But really the main point is this. See if he had spoken, he would have spoken to try to write the law into the hearts of the accusers, who asked him “What Sayest Thou?”, but knowing their hearts were hearts of stone, he wrote (just as the finger of God wrote the 10 commandments on tablets of stone), Jesus THE SCRIBE stooped and started to scribe.

Jesus the Scribe wrote down, not necessarily the law, but grace and forgiveness.

Ezra 9:8 reads grace has been shown by giving us a nail in his holy place. Grace of God shown to us, by the nails that were pierced in the Holy One of God (Jesus Christ)

In Ezra, Jesus is the faithful Scribe, writing grace and forgiveness in our stony hearts.

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