Vida en Cristo - El Verbo, lleno de gracia y de verdad.

There is an important difference in revelation that exists between the Old Testament and the New Testament.

 
The inferior revelation we find in the Old Testament has been surpassed by the maximum revelation of God to man, Jesus, in the New.  When Jesus was standing on the  Mount of Transfiguration with Moses (representing the Law) and Elijah (representing the prophets), God spoke from heaven and declared, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.”  (Matt. 17:1-5)

 
God was specifically indicating that Jesus was superior to the revelation found in the Law and the Prophets.  We find support for this in Hebrews 1:1-2 which states, “God who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son….”

 
Jesus said, “For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.”  (Mt 13:17)  This would include Moses and the prophets and their understanding of what God was saying to them.  We also need to take into consideration the fact that God Himself was limited in what He could reveal to fallen man before redemption had been accomplished by Jesus.

 
Thus, all Old Testament revelation is subject to the superior revelation we find in Jesus who represents God’s final expression of Himself to man; God in the flesh!  When we compare some Old Testament verses with New Testament revelation we are blessed to see the grace and love of God abounding toward us in the “acceptable year of the Lord.”

 
"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,  19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord."   Luke 4:18 -19 

 
When we are confronted with Deuteronomy. 32:39 . . .

 ¶ See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand.  Deut. 32:39

and the limited understanding of God at the time it was written (remember that scripture was inspired, not dictated, and the prophets of old had not seen nor heard what we have seen and heard through Jesus), we learn from the superior revelation of the New Testament that God would have all me to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth.

 
"For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;  4   Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth."  1Timothy 2:3   

 
“For God so loved the world….” John 3:16

 
There are many, many other verses which show the true heart of God for humanity and how He is not imputing our sins unto us 

 
“To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.”  2Cor. 5:19

 
Isaiah 45:7  describes the God that Israel knew based on their limited knowledge (virtually none) of the enemy (the destroyer).

 
“I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.”  Isaiah 45:7

 
We now know that when God created and defined light, the opposite also is “created” by definition.  If God establishes North, then South by definition also exists.  The same for ‘hot’ and ‘cold’, 'good' and 'evil,' and so on.  God created the world in perfection and called it good in Genesis 1:31.  Therefore, anything less than that perfection would be considered evil.  God created man in perfection.  Sin unleashed blindness, deafness and other maladies.  When man chose disobedience and sin, evil was released.  Jesus revealed that it is the enemy, not God, who comes to “steal, kill and destroy.”  (John 10:10)

 
Amos 3:6 is a similar situation. 

 “Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be evil in a city, and the LORD hath not done it?”  Amos 3:6    

The superior revelation of the New Testament reveals that God cannot be tempted with evil nor does He tempt any man (James 1:13).  Verse 17 reveals the true nature of God, that “every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.”   Praise God!  Amos was prophesying against Israel under the Old Covenant of the Law.  But we have a better covenant established on better promises!

“But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises.”     Heb 8:6

 
In Exodus 4:11, Moses writes of a conversation he had with God. 

 “And the LORD said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the LORD?”    Exodus 4:11

 
We do not doubt that the conversation took place as recorded, but we believe that what God chose to reveal to Moses at that time was limited to what Moses could deal with as a fallen man.  The context of the conversation was Moses' fear of speaking.  God was instructing him that He would be with Him because He was the creator of all things.  We now know that God is not the author of sickness and disease.  Moses did not have that knowledge.

 
Those who would attribute evil to God, or even attempt to call down evil from God were rebuked by Jesus.  “For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them.” (Luke 9:56)  To suggest that God is the author of sickness would make Isaiah 53:4-5 a nonsensical statement. 

 
“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.  5   But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.”  Isaiah 53:4-5

 
Why do we need redeeming from something that God has caused?  If sickness is from God, then doctors, hospitals and healing must be from the devil.  But we see in James 5:14 that sickness was considered abnormal in the church, and the remedy (the prayer of faith) was given so that all might be healed.

 
“Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord;  And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up;”  James 5:14-15

 
The gospel that we preach is that “today is the day of salvation,” and today is the “acceptable year of the Lord.”  God is not imputing our sins unto us.  God is not judging the world, and has in fact given all judgment unto the Son.

 
“For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son.”   Joh 5:22

And the Son declares that it is His word that will judge us in the last day.

 
“He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day”.    John 12:48

 
Thank God that the earth is not being judged during this “acceptable year” of grace.  The gospel of love and mercy can go forth.  The full revelation of God to man, Jesus, is Grace and Truth.

 
“For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.”   John 1:17