Messianic Perspectives

Liz Aiello: Jesus said, "If we know the truth, the truth will make us free." On this edition of Messianic Perspectives, Dr. Gary Hedrick shows us one truth in particular that enables us to walk in real freedom. Stay with us as we discuss The Christian's Greatest Discovery.

Liz Aiello: Shalom, and welcome to Messianic Perspectives, a daily program where we look into the scriptures from a distinctive first-century Jewish point of view. I'm Liz Aiello.

Today, Dr. Gary Hedrick is discussing The Christian's Greatest Discovery. I'll be back at the close of the program to tell you about our special offer. And now, with today's installment, here's Gary Hedrick.

Dr. Gary Hedrick: We welcome you, listening friend. It's good to have you with us today as we continue our series of studies from the life of Abraham, which we've entitled, The Christian's Greatest Discovery.

And of course, the discovery we've been talking about is the assurance of salvation. We've been looking at the life of Abraham, the father of the Jews. And we've seen that Abraham came to a point in his life where he needed assurance.

So God gave Abraham assurance. And he did it by going through a rather unusual ceremony here in Genesis chapter 15. It was a ceremony designed to reveal the true nature of the Abrahamic Covenant, to assure Abraham that God means what he says and he says what he means.

Now, when we finished up last time, we were talking about the smoking furnace and the burning lamp. It says in Genesis 15:17, "And it came to pass that when the sun went down and it was dark, behold, a smoking furnace and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces."

And we saw last time that the smoking furnace and the burning lamp represent two aspects of God's character, two attributes of God which seem almost irreconcilable: his justice and his love. And they seem irreconcilable because his justice demands that sin be punished.

But at the same time, his love demands that the sinner be pardoned. And from a philosophical standpoint, how can God do both? That was the problem of the atonement, how God's justice and his love could both be satisfied without violating either one.

But God found a way. And it was through the sacrifice of the Messiah on a cross, some 2,000 years ago. At the cross, God's justice was satisfied because the price for sin was paid in full. And at the same time, the cross becomes the highest expression of God's love.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16. So there's a point in time where these two seemingly irreconcilable attributes come together, they intersect: his love and his justice. And that's at the cross, 2,000 years ago.

Now, while we're on this subject, let me see if I can kill two birds with one stone. There's one New Testament passage we receive more questions about than any other. And that's Hebrews chapter 6. And one of the things people wonder about in Hebrews chapter 6 is about the two immutable things mentioned in verse 18 of chapter 6 of Hebrews.

And the key to understanding this passage in Hebrews chapter 6, it just so happens, is to understand that the writer of Hebrews is talking about what happened here in Genesis chapter 15. Now don't get me wrong. I'm not against commentaries. But, most of the time, the best commentary on the New Testament is the Old Testament. And the best commentary on the last part of Hebrews chapter 6 is Genesis chapter 15.

So let's take just a moment and read this passage in its context in Hebrews chapter 6, beginning in verse 13. Hebrews 6:13 says, "For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he swore by himself, saying, 'Surely blessing I will bless thee and multiplying I will multiply thee.'"

"And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. For men verily swear by the greater, and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife." In other words, the swearing of an oath is the final word, the strongest confirmation of an agreement.

Now, look at verse 17. "Wherein God, willing more abundantly to show unto the heirs of promise," that is the Jews, "show unto the heirs of promise the immutability," that is the unchangeableness, "the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath." And this is the oath of Genesis chapter 15, which confirmed the covenant God had made with Abraham back in Genesis chapter 12. So he confirmed it with an oath.

Now look at verse 18. "That by two immutable things, two unalterable things, two unchangeable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie." And mark it down, my friend. There are not many things God cannot do. But one thing even God cannot do is lie.

Now, you might say, "Gary, I know that. Everybody knows God doesn't lie." But listen, my friend, what God wants us to see is that when we doubt his word, when we lack assurance, what we're really doing is entertaining the possibility that God might lie, that he might let us down, that he might mislead us, because our salvation rests upon his word. That's what God wants us to see.

So he says in verse 18, "That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to take hold upon the hope set before us." Verse 19, "Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast."

How's that for assurance? "And which entereth into that within the veil." Now, here's the question: "What are the two immutable things he's talking about here?" Well, if you check 10 different commentaries, you're liable to find 10 different answers to that question. But there's no need for all the confusion because the answer is found in the Old Testament.

It says here in Hebrews that he confirmed it by an oath, verse 17. And that was the oath God took back in Genesis chapter 15, as his presence moved in the midst of those sacrificial animals. And the two immutable things are those two unchanging attributes of God mentioned in Genesis 15, namely, his justice and his love. The smoking furnace and the burning lamp.

You see, that's why the blood sacrifices were necessary because neither one of those attributes could be compromised. His justice cried out for punishment. But at the same time, his love cried out for pardon. And since both of those attributes were immutable, unalterable, some way had to be found to satisfy both of them without compromising either one. And of course, that's what happened at the cross.

So the writer of Hebrews follows this line of reasoning. He says, "The attributes of God are immutable. Therefore his counsel, his plans and his purposes are also immutable. And therefore, his promises are absolutely unalterable." You see, that's his reasoning. In other words, when God made the promise to Abraham, he meant every word of it. And when he makes a promise to us, my friend, he means every word of it.

That's why the writer of Hebrews says, "We have an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast." Now back to Genesis chapter 15, before we run out of time here today. When Abraham said, "Lord, how can I know you're going to keep your word?" God showed him the way to the cross. And you know, when you understand the cross, everything else falls into place: the Old Testament sacrifices, the Old Testament ceremonies, the Messianic promises. Everything falls into place when you understand the significance of the cross.

Several years ago, I heard about a little boy who lived in a suburb of London, in England. And his mother and father had warned him many times not to stray too far from home when he was out playing. But one day the little guy got lost. And the more he wandered around, the more lost he became, until finally, a constable saw him and realized he was lost.

Well, the little boy didn't know his last name, and he didn't know his address. And so the constable began taking the little boy around, trying to find out where he lived. And the constable said, "Son, tell me if you see anything familiar, anything you recognize."

And after they walked for a few minutes, suddenly the little boy's face lit up, and his eyes got big, and he pointed to a church steeple visible over the treetops. And he said to the constable, "Sir, if you'll take me to the cross, I can get home from there." How true that is. Take me to the cross, and I'll find my way home from there.

That's why Paul says in 1st Corinthians 1:18, "For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness, but unto us who are saved, it is the power of God." Well, on the next program, we're going to move on to Genesis chapter 17 and look more specifically at the promises God made to Israel, and how they relate to those of us who are New Testament believers.

Liz Aiello: Thank you, Gary. And thank you, listening friend, for tuning in today. It's always good to have you with us as we look into God's word together.

Now, let me tell you about our special offer. It's the compact disc which includes all of the programs in this current series of studies on The Christian's Greatest Discovery. Of course, the discovery we're talking about is the truth of the believer's security. When we understand that salvation depends on Christ and his merits, rather than on ourselves and our merits, then we've taken the first step toward walking in true freedom.

It's unfortunate that so many of us don't fully appreciate our security in Christ. We get bogged down in our spiritual lives because we never know from one minute to the next how we stand with God. That's why this teaching is so important. We need to know that our standing before God doesn't fluctuate depending on how well we perform.

All of our sins, past, present, and future, have been forgiven through the shed blood of the Messiah. His righteousness has been imputed to us. So we can know that we're saved. And that's what this series is all about. The title once again is, The Christian's Greatest Discovery, and it can be yours for a gift of just $6 or more to Messianic Perspectives.

Just visit our secure online store at MessianicSpecialties.com to place your order. If you would prefer to order by mail, just address your request to Messianic Perspectives, P.O. Box 345, San Antonio, Texas, 78292. To order by phone, use our toll-free order line. The number is 1-800-926-5397.

Have you enjoyed this edition of Messianic Perspectives? Why not continue to learn about the Jewish roots of your Christian faith by inviting a speaker from CJF Ministries? Call our toll-free number 1-800-926-5397 and we'll be happy to handle all of the details.

And as always, when you're in touch with us, please mention the call letters of this station. If you're listening to our webcast or podcast, we need to know that too. I'm Liz Aiello. Join us next time, won't you, as Dr. Gary Hedrick continues our series of studies on The Christian's Greatest Discovery, right here on Messianic Perspectives.

Messianic Perspectives is sponsored by CJF Ministries of San Antonio, Texas, and is made possible on this station by the free will contributions of our listeners in this area.