Ezekiel (Program #25) – The Holy Land and the Holy City

Clearly the subject and central focus of the last section of the book of Ezekiel is the temple, the house of God. Show the house to the house, the Lord tells Ezekiel and that is exactly what he does in the final chapters. Yet, there’s a very profound postscript to Ezekiel’s vision that is found in the final chapters of the book and that is the land upon which the temple sits. In fact the land and the house are the central focus of the entire Old Testament. Recall Jehovah’s words to Joshua following the death of Moses as the children of Israel were encamped at the border of the good land in Canaan, “Moses My servant is dead; now then arise, and cross over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land which I am giving to them, to the children of Israel. Every place on which the sole of your foot treads I have given to you, as I promised Moses…Be strong and take courage, for you will cause this people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give to them.” (Joshua 1:2-3,6). Well if the temple typifies the church as the fulfillment of the house of God, what then does this land typify?

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Jeremiah (Program #17) – Jehovah as the Potter and Israel as the Pottery

The prophet Jeremiah found himself in a difficult almost impossible situation. On one hand, he himself was part of the nation of Israel. A nation that had rebelled against the Lord and as a result was suffering under the hand of Jehovah’s discipline and chastisement. Therefore, Jeremiah was suffering along with all his countrymen. Yet Jeremiah was unique in that he had faithfully spoken Jehovah’s word to Israel pointing out their unfaithfulness and warning them to turn back to the God who had so marvelously brought them into the Good Land. But this faithful speaking by Jeremiah was rejected by Israel and caused them to hate him and even further persecute him.  So it’s not surprising to hear this man of God crying out in anguish to the one person who would surely sympathize with him – his own mother. In chapter 15, the prophet said “Woe is me, my mother, because you bore me, A man of strife and a man of contention to the whole land. I have not lent with interest, Nor have they lent to me; Yet everyone curses me.” But before his mother could speak a comforting word, Jehovah intervenes. And in the discourse that follows, we see that Jeremiah had a different view from Jehovah regarding the way that the Lord was dealing with His people, Israel.

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Isaiah (Program #18) – Christ as the Servant of Jehovah (2 & 3)

The Bible in many places present Christ as a land to God’s people.  The Old Testament type of this good land is Israel.  But this land in the New Testament is our own experience of Christ.  God’s purpose for His people is not just to have the Bible and biblical knowledge but to experience and enjoy this Christ in an ever increasing measure.  Stay with us today as we pursue together the rich experience of Christ in the book of Isaiah on the life study of the Bible.

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Nehemiah (Program #5) – The Leadership of Nehemiah for the Reconstitution of the Nation of God’s Elect

Nehemiah loved God and he loved God’s interest on earth concerning His economy. This interest included the good land, the temple and the city of Jerusalem all of which Nehemiah loved. Even though he was a common person, without a rank such as that of a king or of a captain in the army, he took care of God’s interest on the earth.

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Hebrews (Program #26) – The Three Stages of Salvation

Today we will see our salvation is a journey much like the children of Israel’s of three stages. It has a goal and that goal is to enter into the Sabbath rest.

According to the divine revelation, God’s salvation is in three stages. The children of Israel experienced these three stages on their way into the Good Land. The picture painted by their experience in the Old Testament provides us with a road map into the full salvation of God in our spirit. We’ll look at these three stages of salvation in today’s life study of the Bible.

Hebrews is a New Testament book but it draws upon many Old Testament types and pictures to convey it’s New Testament message. We’re going to follow the exodus of the Israelites today.  A quick sketch of this story including the parallel to the three parts of man as they related to the three stages that the children of Israel passed through…

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Hebrews (Program #17) – The Good Land for the Fulfillment of God’s Purpose

The good land typified in the Old Testament is profoundly related to God’s eternal purpose to have a corporate expression. Hebrews 2:5 says, “For it was not to angels that He subjected the coming inhabited earth concerning which we speak.” Though we may long for heaven, it is the earth, the land, the good land that has occupied God from the ages for His purpose. We will see all this land typified in today’s life study of Bible.

Though we’re in the midst of the life study of Hebrews, today we’re going to touch many points that we first touched in the life study of Genesis for those that were with us at that time. What is the basis or the ground to draw upon the pictures that were presented in Genesis in order to help us with the book of Hebrews?

As we will soon see this particular message connects as the Bible does the matters of the land, Christ and God’s chosen people. In Genesis 1, we have these three matters either stated or implied. The land is obviously signified by the dry land that emerged from the dead waters on the third day. This dry land, the sphere for the living of the human beings created by God typifies Christ in resurrection. Significantly as Genesis 2:7 reveals, humankind was created from the dust of this land. more…

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