Ezra (Program #1) – The Need of a Return from Captivity

The history of the children of Israel in the Old Testament gives us a picture of the church today in the New Testament.  And today what we want to look at is the picture of the children of Israel going into captivity and the recovery out of that captivity.  Today when God’s people are defeated in their spiritual life they remain in captivity until they repent and have a turn back to Him.  This repentance brings us back to the enjoyment of Christ.

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1 & 2 Kings (Program #4) – The Reign of Solomon (3)

More than a thousand years before the birth of Christ, in 1012 B.C. that was 480 years after God had brought the children of Israel out of Egypt, Solomon began to build the temple, the House of Jehovah.  Today on the life study of 1 Kings, we are going to talk some aspects of the temple that I am pretty sure that you have never heard before.

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1 & 2 Samuel (Program #13) – The History Concerning David (1)

When the children of Israel asked God for a king, He responded by giving them Saul, a tall, handsome, capable man who also was victorious over the Israel’s enemies. God’s intention was that Saul would use the kingship to build up God’s kingdom, but it soon became clear that Saul’s intent was different. Yes, He desired to build a kingdom, but not God’s kingdom. What Saul sought was to build a kingdom for himself under the guise of God’s kingdom. Of course the Lord knew Saul’s heart, and he moved secretly and quietly behind the scenes to prepare a king for Israel that was of His choice, and who would build up God’s kingdom, and even pave the way for Christ, the King, to eventually be brought forth. Who was this one chosen by God? Well, let’s turn to the book of Ruth chapter 4, “And Salmon begot Boaz, and Boaz begot Obed, and Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David.”

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1 & 2 Samuel (Program #12) – The History Concerning Saul (4)

After been established as king over Israel, God enabled Saul to defeat three successive enemies that were plaguing Israel. But during the course of these campaigns, it gradually become more and more clear what Saul was seeking in his own heart was not God’s kingdom, but rather to build up a kingdom or a monarchy for himself. The third of these enemies, the Amalekites had bothered the children of Israel many years before when they were traveling in the wilderness on their way to good land after leaving Egypt. After Joshua defeated them the Lord told Moses that He would war with the Amalekites from generation to generation. Because in typology, the Amalekites signified the most difficult of all of God’s enemies that is the flesh of mankind. Though king Saul may have outward success his battle against the Amalekites, inwardly he was defeated by his own compulsion to serve God according to his own flesh.

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Judges (Program #2) – The Miserable History of Israel’s Forsaking God (1)

In the history of the children of Israel God had manifested Himself to Israel in many aspects.  He fought for them as a warrior against Pharaoh and his armies, becoming their protector when they were still in Egypt. Then He supplied them with water and food in the wilderness as the source of all their living for more than 40 years. In addition He cared for them not just as a father but more so as their king.  Eventually He unveiled to them His deepest longing and that was to be a husband to them and for them to be a bride, a pure and chaste wife to Him.  But again and again Israel turned away from Him as their husband and as their king. At least 4 times, in the book of Judges we see the same words, “In those days, there were no kings in Israel, every man did what was right in his own eyes.”  How much these words must had offended Jehovah, Who had revealed Himself so faithfully to Israel again and again. But His love is greater than the weaknesses of His people, so He appeared to them again, not as a king not even as their husband but as a servant, a slave to minister to them in their poor condition and lowest state.

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Joshua (Program #11) – The Destruction of All the Nations

The last chapter in the book of Ephesians gives us the clear speaking in all of the New Testament regarding spiritual warfare. Listen to a few verses from chapter 6,  “Finally, be empowered in the Lord and in the might of His strength. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the stratagems of the devil, For our wrestling is not against blood and flesh but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenlies. Therefore take up the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.”

Throughout the ages these verses have aspired powerful sermons, stirring hymns, indeed of incredible faith and courage by the saints. But an enlighten study of the Old Testament provides us with even more of the details of how the forces of darkness are raged against God’s people, to frustrate and limit their pursuit and enjoyment of Christ. Among these portions are the middle chapters in the book of Joshua.  We will considered the warfare of the children of Israel and how their experience can be very meaningful in understanding much of what we go through in our Christian life.

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Joshua (Program #8) – The Destruction of Ai

After the wonderful victory at Jericho where the walls of the city crumbled before them upon their shout, the children of Israel then turned their attention to the city of Ai. No doubt full of expectation that this city would be delivered into their hands with equal ease.  But the record in the book of Joshua reveals that just the opposite happened. This time against a much less fierce opponent, the children of Israel were routed. Why such a change?  If the Lord had been with them to such an extent at Jericho what’s the reason that He abandon them now?

Well, the answers do not just tell us something about the history of Israel, they also tell us a lot of about our own history with God.

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Joshua (Program #7) – The Destruction of Jericho

Remember the story of Jericho, for 6 days the children of Israel bearing the ark borne by the priests marched around the fortified city of Jericho.  No doubt as the inhabitants watched from the top of the city wall and sure wondered at the strange behavior of these occupying force.

And then on the 7th day after the priests blew the trumpet and the people shouted and they came about when the people heard the sound of the trumpets that “the people shouted with a great shout, and the wall fell down flat. And the people went up into the city, each straight ahead, and they captured the city.  And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city with the edge of the sword: both men and women, young and old, and oxen and sheep and donkeys. And Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, Go to the house of the harlot, and bring out from there the woman and all that belongs to her, as you swore to her. And the young men who had been spies went and brought out Rahab and her father and her mother and her brothers and all that belonged to her; all her family they brought out and set outside the camp of Israel. And they burned the city with fire and all that was in it;” more…

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Joshua (Program #6) – Taking Possession of the Good Land

Listen to the Lord’s word to Joshua, in Joshua chapter 1, “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.

This was the Lord’s strong word to Joshua, the one God had chosen to replace Moses and lead the children of Israel, not just into the land but also to possess it, to occupy it, labor on it and gain their full sustenance from it.  Actually if our eyes are opened today, we can realize that God is speaking a similar word to us, as His New Testament people, for He had placed Christ before us and has prepared everything that we might enter into Him and to posses Him, as the children of Israel were to possess the good land.

Listen now to Paul’s word in the New Testament Philippians chapter 3:8 “But moreover I also count all things to be loss on account of the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, on account of whom I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as refuse that I may gain Christ.”

The children of Israel were about to gain the good land and we are exhorted by Paul to gain Christ. A real interesting parallel.

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Joshua (Program #5) – The Preparation Before the Attack

The children of Israel were preparing to enter into the good land to do battle with the kings that occupied the land that God had given them to occupy and possess. Prior to their engaging these enemies, Jehovah performed a miracle quite similar to one that He had performed for their fathers, a generation before when they escaped Egypt.  He once again held back the waters allowing them to cross. Only this time not the waters of the Red Sea but the waters of the Jordan River. News of this miracle reached the kings within the land and it caused them no small amount of fear for they realized that God was among the children of Israel once more. Yet the preparation of Israel was still not complete. As we consider the preparation of Israel in Joshua chapter 5, an interesting chapter.

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