The Unfolding of a Plan

 

 

The unfolding of a plan

From inception to completion,

The narrative, not the myth,

Of man’s redemption.

 

From Eden’s perfection

To that horrendous fall

But thank God, in His agape love,

That was not all.

 

Thus, came offerings

That were only types:

Of the symbolic and ceremonial

But weren’t quite right.

 

Until Shiloh came

That was to be the Light

Shining out of gross darkness

And blackness of night.

 

From a stone as a pillow

To a pillar of stone,

Angels ascending and descending

Showing God’s throne.

 

From a stone to an altar

With many a stone

Bearing the sacrificial offerings

Whereupon burn.

 

To a crudely looking tent

But heavenly designed

Where man approached God

At an appointed time.

 

 

To tabernacle with man

Though not in fulness

But symbolic of what was to come

In man’s eternal rest.

 

To an impressive edifice

Built by David’s Son,

The third king of mighty Israel,

Who was King Solomon.

 

But this was not all;

These were mainly types

Signifying greater was to come

In the form of the Light.

 

This centre-piece temple

Became the wherewithal

And just like in Eden’s Garden

Denoted another fall.

 

Destroyed then rebuilt

By Nehemiah and Ezra

It later became a sight to behold

When refurbished by Herod.

 

Monumental in significance

It was to the Jews

When in relation to its future

Jesus gave terrible news.

 

It was the Jews ultimate

But to God: part of a plan;

A plan that was steadily unfolding

In the redemption of man.

 

Destruction was coming,

Its time near at hand

And soon very little would remain

Of this temple grand.

 

The unfolding of a plan

From inception to completion,

The narrative, not the myth,

Of man’s redemption.

 

 

From a stone to an altar,

From an altar to a tabernacle:

All bespeaking itinerancy

Before the temple.

 

Then came the temple:

A more permanent stay

But then that was removed

And Jesus is here.

 

And now we, lively stones,

Are built up into him,

Pardon of our transgressions

And relieved of our sin.

 

No longer strangers

From Israel’s Commonwealth

But one in the Lord Christ Jesus

Growing in spiritual health.

 

 

The plan has unfolded;

“It is finished!” said Christ,

He is our temple and we, his,

No more sacrifice.

 

Our bodies are temples

In which Christ dwells,

It’s a wonderful transformation

Of which we can tell.

 

We have come to Mt Zion

Leaving Sinai behind,

Never to return to that mountain

Now or at any time.

 

 

The unfolding of a plan

From inception to completion,

The narrative, not the myth,

Of man’s redemption.

 

Stewart Russell © January 5, 2025

 

Spiritually Significant Mounts

 

 

Spiritually Significant Mounts

Is what I’ve named this poem,

Starting with the testing of Abraham

To the New Jerusalem.

 

Each mount is of significance:

Of a significance that is spiritual

And mostly speaks to some triumph

Re the children of Israel.

 

From mount Moriah to Sion

From Abraham to Christ,

The penultimate mount of Calvary

Where Jesus was crucified.

 

Called from a land of pagans,

I speak of Abraham,

His was to follow the lead of God

To the promised land.

 

 

But a crucial test lay ahead

To show him who held full sway,

On the way that led to the promised land

Mount Moriah was in the way.

 

The offering up of Isaac

The son that Abraham loved

And Abraham was definitely convinced

The command was from above.

 

There upon mount Moriah

God held back his hand

And provided a substitute sacrifice,

A foreshadowing of His lamb.

 

The lamb already slain

Before the foundation of the world;

The lamb, the Lord Jesus Christ,

The written and living Word.

 

From mount Moriah to Horeb

From Abraham to Moses,

One of the greatest leaders ever to live

But Israel’s heads were like sieves.

 

A rebellious and stiff-necked people

Prone to quickly lose hope

Who, after witnessing God’s miracles,

Still found it difficult to cope.

 

 

Introducing mount Sinai

Where Moses received God’s law,

The mount that burnt with great fire

Forcing Israel to withdraw.

 

Now with the tablets of stone

Given to Moses on the Sinai’s mount,

The children of Israel had God’s law

That held them to account.

 

 

Required to depart mount Horeb

To enter the promised land,

The fear-struck children of Israel

Would ignore God’s command.

 

Just an eleven days journey

Would be turned into forty years

As they wandered in the wilderness

And died along the way.

 

Just two: Joshua and Caleb

Would enter of the original set,

The rest wandered in the wilderness

Until their deaths they met.

 

To mount Sinai, they came again

With Moses at the head,

Remember, of those he left Egypt with,

All but two were dead.

 

On the threshold of Canaan land

Now for the second time

However, Moses would not be able to enter,

He would be left behind.

 

 

God allowed him to view it

From mount Nebo's lofty height,

Up to the summit of the mount he climbed

And took in the lovely sight.

 

Fast forward to mount Carmel

Where a great victory was wrought,

Baal’s prophets versus the prophet Elijah;

The former were left distraught.

 

Baal was a definite no show

And his prophets miserably failed,

They shouted and even cut themselves

But all this to no avail.

 

Compared to the fuss they made

And with nothing to show,

Elijah simply called on the Lord

And the sacrifice was aglow.

 

It even licked up the water

That was in the trench around,

That unusual day on mount Carmel

The fire of the Lord came down.

 

 

And now to the mount of Olives

Where Jesus often sat

And from where he would minister

To the multitudes of their lack.

 

It was there He prophesied

About the temple’s pending destruction

And of many other tribulations

To come on that generation.

 

In Matthew, Mark and Luke

The details can be found

And all these events would be witnessed

By some standing around. 

 

 

Mount Calvary is next up

Where Jesus was crucified,

There his mission was accomplished

When for sinners he died.

 

From Abraham to Christ

From Mount Moriah to Calvary,

The plan of redemption culminating

In glorious victory.

 

“It is finished!” Jesus said,

The cry of the vanquisher,

The head of the serpent was crushed

By the Lamb of God our Saviour.

 

Next the glorious resurrection

Followed by Pentecost,

None indwelt by the Holy Spirit

Need not fear being lost.

 

 

This innumerable band

Known as the elect or born again

Is come to mount Sion, the city of God

Where the King of kings reigns.

 

Spiritually Significant Mounts

Dotting the road to redemption,

Starting with the testing of Abraham

To the heavenly Jerusalem.

 

Stewart Russell © May 31, 2024

 

The Sabbath and Salvation

 

 

 

Keep the Sabbath we are told

But what are we to keep?

After God created the world

Did he go off to sleep?

 

Well the Bible said he rested

But what does that really mean?

He rested from His work

That’s how to me it seems.

 

God blessed the seventh day

And set it apart

As a memorial I am told

Commemorating the start.

 

The seventh day is mentioned

Twice in the beginning

And in both of these cases

God had ceased his working.

 

He never worked after this

Having completed his work

His final creative act being

When he made man from the dirt.

 

Man was placed in a garden

And given one command

But of this he made a mess

And God instituted His plan.

 

The seventh day rolled over

Into every following day

Until Adam and Eve decided

They would contravene God’s way.

 

Before he had sinned

He had perfect rest

But he lost that and more

When he failed the given test.

 

The first covenant was in Eden,

The second was with Noah,

The third was with Abraham

And on they go.

 

The third was at Mount Sinai

As told in the book of Exodus

Where God gave the Decalogue

But not on Mount Olympus.

 

Go to the book of Exodus

Chapter 12 and verse 15

There you’ll find the seventh day

But it’s a very different scene.

 

The focus is on the Jews

Regarding what God required,

By this time they have left Egypt

And quite a lot has transpired.

 

God prepared the Israelites

To enter the promise land,

This was the land he had given

To their patriarch Abraham.

 

He gave them instructions

Regarding the seventh day

And he strictly admonished them

To walk in His determined way.

 

Notice the next point

That I want you to capture,

In chapter 16 verse 23

The Sabbath becomes the central matter.

 

Remember the Sabbath day

To keep it holy,

This purpose we find

In verse 8 of chapter 20.

 

However, for the first time

Just two verses thereafter

The seventh day is the Sabbath,

You’ll find it in this chapter.

 

Four covenants thus far

And each with its own theme,

Each one depicting different eras

And a changing of the scene.

 

Innocence marked the first of these,

The rainbow was the next,

Circumcision figured in the third

But the fourth was more complex.

 

So from the Adamic to the Noahic,

From the Noahic to Abrahamic,

Then after the exodus

God introduces the Sinaitic.

 

The Sabbath had its own laws

And there were many

And for each one that was breached

There was a penalty.

 

There were ceremonies too

That had to be observed,

They were to be strictly kept

By every woman, man, boy and girl.

 

Physical rest from labour

The Sabbath was mainly about rest

But like every law instituted

It was an obedience test.

 

It was a covenantal sign

A sign of sanctification too,

A reminder of the rescue from Egypt

And all God brought them through.

 

From Genesis to Exodus

And throughout the Old Testament

There were commands of different sorts

And a total of four covenants.

 

From the Old to the New

That’s our next move

Let’s see how the law shapes up

And what is there to prove.

 

 

 

Now we have Jesus

The mediator of the new covenant,

Read about it in Hebrews

It is described as more excellent.

 

The new covenant is better

As indicated thirteen times,

Read it in the book of Hebrews

Let it sink in your mind.

 

Today some push the Sabbath

To make it stand on its own

But that was never the intention,

In the Bible such is not shown.

 

It was the central theme

Of the Ten Commandments

And it pointed to the creation

As in the old covenant.

 

But there’s been a change

That to us should be obvious,

Now there is a new covenant

And the central theme is Jesus.

 

The rainbow was once the sign

And then it was circumcision,

The fourth commandment followed

But Jesus bought salvation.

 

Where once it was the law

It now is the Christ,

He fulfilled the law

Through his willing sacrifice.

 

Fast forward from the law

Where the letter was the issue,

Now focus on the spirit

This is now what holds true.

 

I mean the spirit of love

Not the letter of the law,

It was the obsession with the letter

And therein was the flaw.

 

Go to the book of Hebrews

And see how better there relates,

The new covenant in Jesus

Offers a much better state.

 

A better revelation of truth

That gives a better hope,

Has a better guarantee in Christ

What wondrous scope!

 

The old was written in ink

On tablets of stone,

The new is written with the Spirit

In hearts for which Christ atoned.

 

The old was inadequate

Since the letter kills,

The new is more than adequate

Through the life the Spirit wills.

 

In the old there was bondage

In the new there is none,

We now have glorious liberty

Through Jesus Christ, God’s Son.

 

We welcome the transition

From the Old to the New,

Let all men be liars

And let God be true.

 

 

 

Jesus is the way

And he is the truth,

Jesus is the life

And to this he gave full proof.

 

He is the Good Shepherd

And he is the Light

He was the only one in the Bible

To restore men’s sight.

 

He is the I AM

The first and the last

And only what’s done through him

Will truly last.

 

He is the bread of life

He is our resurrection

And with his precious blood

He bought our redemption.

 

So why focus on the Sabbath

When there is a new command?

“Love as I have loved you,”

Jesus personifies this plan.

 

The initiate was circumcised

Under the old covenant

And he was to remember the Sabbath

Throughout the Old Testament.

 

The Sabbath could not save

Neither could its keeping,

Salvation came by Jesus Christ

Who after the lost came seeking.

 

The Jews came out of bondage

Where they were in Egypt land,

The passage through the Red Sea

Was their baptismal plan.

 

To the promise land they journeyed

Just two out of Egypt made it

Not because they broke the Sabbath

But unbelief was their habit.

 

The Sabbath could not save them

Even if they had truly kept it,

At every obstacle they faced

They displayed an unbelieving spirit.

 

As a result of unbelief

All but two would perish

And even the prophet Moses

Could only view the land he cherished.

 

The Jews’ deliverance was physical

But our deliverance is spiritual,

Their deliverance was temporal

But our deliverance is eternal.

 

To a country we also journey,

We are just pilgrims on this earth,

We are led by the Holy Spirit

Having experienced the new birth.

 

 

 

Jesus is our Saviour

Not the Sabbath as some opine

And daily as we walk with him

He is transforming our mind.

 

We came to him by faith

On account of hearing his word

And we trust him for our salvation

Even though some find that absurd.

 

As initiates in the new covenant

We were baptized into Christ

And the bread and wine we eat

Reminds us of his sacrifice.

 

The Sabbath was not meant to save us

It was just a shadow or type,

Its focus was to point to Jesus

The one whom John said is the Light.

 

The Sabbath points to creation

In particular to the seventh day

When God rested from His work

And everything was made.

 

But there is a new creation

Because Jesus came down from above

And the sign of that creation

Is the demonstration of love.

 

That love has been shed abroad

In the hearts of those that believe,

It’s in your heart too

If Jesus you’ve received.

 

Now we live a new law,

It is called the law of love,

It shows no contempt for a neighbour

And is regulated from above.

 

Love God with all your heart

And your neighbour as yourself,

On these hang the law and the prophets

And the way to spiritual health.

 

A rest remains for the believer

A rest that Israel never had,

Through unbelief they forfeited theirs,

For them this was really sad.

 

But the good news is God’s offer

Of rest to those who believe,

That true rest is found in Jesus

When God’s salvation they receive.

 

This is not a seventh day’s rest

As was required of the Jews,

This is God’s eternal rest

As detailed in the book of Hebrews.

 

Just like God ceased from His work

One day we too will cease,

It may be at the return of Jesus

Or at the end of our life lease.

 

The dead in Christ will rise first

Then they that are alive and remain

And eternal rest will be ours

Throughout Christ’s eternal reign.

 

Stewart Russell © June 2018

 

 

 

An Ominous Sound

He’d been away a long time

They longed for his return

They waited and they waited

And in them impatience burned

He had been their shoulder

Their counselor and their friend

He had been their guide

Without him all this would end

He had gone up the Mount

At the insistence of their God

Not likely to return they thought

And spread this news abroad

No word was heard from him

For more than forty days

And the people decided

To do something about the delay

Since he had been gone

It appeared that God had gone too

So they communicated to Aaron

What they thought he should do

Make us a golden calf they said

So that we may have a God

For there is certainly none

Since Moses went abroad

Well Aaron in his weakness

Acceded to their demand

And as we all surely know

This was against God’s plan

Of course God was always aware

Of all that they were doing

And this he told to Moses

And insist that he be going

God was mighty angry

And thought to destroy them all

But because of his promise to Abraham

He wouldn’t make that call

  

And so Moses left the Mount

And later with Joshua connected

Who had journeyed part of the way

Since at the top he was not expected

Moses would hear from God

This was at God’s request

So while Joshua stopped midway

Moses went all the rest

While on their way to the camp

They heard a peculiar sound

To Joshua it was the noise of war

Moses felt he was wrong

It was not the sound of victory

Or the cry of the vanquished

Rather is was the noise of something

That neither of them would wish

It was the sound of idol worship

The sound of revelry

The people were eating and drinking

And playing immorally

They professed to worship the Lord

By means of the golden calf

God had given his word to them

But they chose a different path

This was the sound of rebellion

And many of the people died

It is God’s word we must obey

And not that which men decide

Stewart Russell © May 2018