Day: April 19, 2009

Every Sunday I provide videos and valuable links to the Truth or Tradition teachings. We’ve been following the Truth or Tradition teachings for many years now and they have truly blessed our family. We have found peace and happiness through our beliefs and we walk confidently for God. My hope, by passing on this information to you, is that what you find here, or on the Truth or Tradition website, will guide you to a better, more blessed and abundant life.

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Let’s get started:

This addendum to our FAQ about the birth of Jesus Christ will set forth the corollary truth about his second “birth,” something not as well known but, in reality, just as necessary as his first birth in accomplishing God’s plan for him as the Savior of mankind. Had Jesus not been born in Bethlehem, and then chosen to live a sinless life all the way to the Cross, he could not have been “born” a second time via God raising him from the dead.

We will see that, in Scripture, resurrection is figuratively called “birth.” At his first birth, God prepared Jesus for his earthly ministry as the Redeemer of man by giving him a body with sinless blood, untainted by the sin of Adam that beset all other men and women. At his “second birth” (his resurrection), God prepared Jesus for his heavenly ministry by giving him a body forever energized by His holy spirit, one in which Jesus as “Lord” now has the capacity to function as the Head of his Body, the Church, communicating with each member of that spiritual organism.

The book of Hebrews begins with God setting forth His Son as His most unique communication to mankind ever. Verse 3 (NIV) calls him the “…radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being.” It then says that after Jesus had done his job on earth, he took up his position as Lord at God’s right hand. Verse 4 then begins a comparison between Jesus and angels that extends all the way through Chapter 2 (In our book, One God & One Lord, we cover this fabulous section of Scripture in detail.). Verse 4 represents Jesus as far superior to the angels because of the name (position) he has been given by God. Then verses 5 and 6 read:

Hebrews 1:5 and 6 (NIV)
(5) For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father”? Or again, “I will be his Father, and he will be my Son”?
(6) And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.”

At first glance, the above verses seem to refer to the first birth of Jesus, and one might think of the words to the classic Christmas carol, “O Come All Ye Faithful,” where it says that Jesus was “born the king of angels.” As per Hebrews 1, those words are true, but not regarding his first birth. Yes, Jesus was born to one day be the king of the world, but it was his “birth” from the dead that guaranteed the future fulfillment of this reality. At Bethlehem, the great company of angels who announced the glad tidings to the shepherds did not worship Jesus, but God (Luke 2:13 and 14). And, speaking of his first birth, Hebrews 2:9, properly translated, says that Jesus “was made lower than the angels for a little while” (RSV, NRSV, NASB). So let us look more closely at Hebrews 1:5 and 6, and in so doing we will see some of the marvelous precision of God’s written Word.

According to the Greek text, the first part of verse 6 is better rendered, “When he again brings his firstborn into the world…” The word “again” indicates that this is referring to a second coming. Next, all commentators agree that Hebrews 1:5a is quoting Psalm 2:7, which comes after the first six verses that paint a prophetic portrait of the kings of the earth vainly opposing the Messiah’s return to rule the world from Jerusalem, a kingdom that will last 1000 years (Rev. 20:4). We will quote verse 7 along with the remaining five verses of the psalm:

Psalm 2:7-12 (NIV)
(7) I will proclaim the decree of the LORD: He said to me, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father.
(8) Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession.
(9) You will rule them with an iron scepter; you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”
(10) Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth.
(11) Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling.
(12) Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

In his brief but brilliant discourse at the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch in Acts 13, the Apostle Paul summarizes the history of Israel, culminating with God sending them Jesus as the promised Messiah, whom they killed. His subsequent statement in verse 30 is pithy and powerful: “But God raised him from the dead.” Paul continued:

Acts 13:32 and 33 (NIV)
(32) “We tell you the good news: What God promised our fathers
(33) he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm: “‘You are my Son; today I have become your father.’

Paul specifically clarifies that Psalm 2:7 refers to the resurrection of Jesus, and that fits perfectly with the ensuing verses (8-12 above), which are as if God said to Jesus, “Well, now that you’re up from the dead, what would you like to do? How about ruling the world when the time comes?” And that is exactly what Jesus will do one day.

Read the rest of the article here.

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