The Heart of God: The Messenger of the Covenant (5)

And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself. Luke 24.27

Read and meditate on Psalms 22, 69, and 110.
The psalms outline the work which the Messenger of the covenant would do as Messiah and King of Israel. We shall see that the New Testament is careful to anchor its own account of the work of Jesus Christ in just such passages.

For reflection
1.  In John 17.1-4, Jesus declared that He had come to earth to do a particular work, and that He had (or was about to) bring that work to completion. What was the work Jesus came to do, and how does this work relate to God’s covenant?

2.  The work of Jesus was intimately involved with the coming of God’s Kingdom. Meditate on Matthew 4.17, Luke 4.43, and Matthew 6.33. How would you describe the place and priority of the Kingdom of God in the work Jesus came to do?

3.  Review 1 John 3.8 in the light of Matthew 12.22-29. Look also at Colossians 2.13-15. What did this aspect of the work of Jesus involve?

4.  Meditate on John 3.5-21. Note Jesus’ comparison of Himself to Moses lifting up the serpent in the wilderness (Num. 21.4-9). What did Jesus have to do for people to be born again?

5.  Meditate on Isaiah 53 and 2 Corinthians 5.21. What did Jesus accomplish by His work on the cross?

Summary
The Messenger of the covenant came to earth to bring the New Covenant to full realization. Son of God and Son of Man, He came to destroy the works of the devil, overthrow and plunder his domain, and establish His own Kingdom of increasing righteousness, peace, and joy. To do this He would have to die for the sins of His people, and rise again for their justification. How can you see all the unifying threads of Scripture coming together in the work of Jesus Christ?

Closing Prayer
The LORD said to my Lord,
“Sit at My right hand,
Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”
The LORD shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion.
Rule in the midst of Your enemies!
Your people shall be volunteers
In the day of Your power;
In the beauties of holiness, from the womb of the morning,
You have the dew of Your youth.
The LORD has sworn
And will not relent,
“You are a priest forever
According to the order of Melchizedek.”
The Lord is at Your right hand;
He shall execute kings in the day of His wrath.
He shall judge among the nations,
He shall fill the places with dead bodies,
He shall execute the heads of many countries.
He shall drink of the brook by the wayside;
Therefore He shall lift up the head.

Psalm 110

T. M. Moore

Two books can help you gain a fuller understanding of the terrain we will be covering in this series. Kingdom Documents provides a concise overview of the primary teaching of the Old and New Testaments, and shows, through early Church creeds, how our forebears understood the primary teachings of God’s Word. (click here to order). I Will Be Your God develops more fully the idea of God’s covenant and leads us to consider the practical implications of our covenant relationship with God (click here).

Visit The Ailbe Seminary, where our course, Introduction to Biblical Theology, offers a parallel study of our theme in this series, using brief video presentations and the workbook God’s Covenant: An Introduction. All courses at The Ailbe Seminary are available without charge.

We are happy to be able to offer each week’s Scriptorium studies in a free weekly PDF, suitable for personal or group use. You can download all the studies in this series by clicking here. Please prayerfully consider sharing with The Fellowship of Ailbe through your giving. You can contribute to The Fellowship by clicking the Contribute button at the website or by sending your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Drive, Essex Junction, VT 05452.

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.