Christ and His Various Cameos

Okay, any questions crop up as a result of the sermon?

You know, the Good Samaritan text, you'll notice that if you've heard sermons on the Good

Samaritan text, oftentimes people will turn it into you need to go and be kind to your neighbor kind of text,

you know.

But the emphasis is really on Christ and His mercy when you kind of, when you find Jesus in there properly.

Kind of a false start today, but any questions, any questions then about the sermon?

The texts.

Now, were you aware that Levites were not permitted to make themselves unclean with

corpses that weren't really close relatives?

A lot of people didn't know that.

Yeah, yes we are.

In fact, you'll notice that I have Leviticus right there on the screen and we're in chapter

19.

Funny thing because our Old Testament text today was from Leviticus 19.

I consider that to be, you know, God saying Leviticus, get back to

Leviticus.

No, I'm kidding.

Okay, why did they not like each other?

This is, I'll give you the flight 10 ,000, 5 ,000, no, maybe 30 ,000 flight over.

So with the death of Solomon, when Solomon died, because he had sinned so

grievously, God basically told him he was going to tear the kingdom apart.

And so you have the kingdom of Israel after the death of Solomon and the ascension of his son Rehoboam,

when he comes to the throne, then everything is just torn apart.

So you have the ten northern tribes, they peel off from Judah and Benjamin.

And what ends up happening is that the first political leader in the northern kingdom, he makes an

intentional move to not have the people in the northern kingdom worship in Jerusalem.

And we know that his motive, because it's stated in Scripture, because he thought that if they traveled to Jerusalem

to go to the temple to worship, that their hearts would be, you know, warm and united towards the, you know,

Judah and Benjamin, and he didn't want that.

And so he intentionally set up idolatrous practices, even enlisted the help of a Levite to kind of get

their religious practices going.

And they eventually would build their own competing worship center, and their competing worship center was on the

top of Mount Gerizim.

And so that's where it starts.

They were eventually conquered, intermarried, and just wandered off

into the weeds, you know, biblically, theologically, and other things.

And so from that time forward, there's this tension between Jews

and Samaritans, because Samaritans are then, they're related genetically to Jews, but they're also,

I think they got Syrian and some other things in them.

And by the way, there are Samaritans who exist to this day.

However, as a people group, they are really dwindling quickly, very quickly.

So very few Samaritans left, but they, you know, so that kind of talks about

why the fight.

Self -righteous, you know, I read this,

what must I do?

You know,

this is like the second

parable.

You've turned it back to, this is about Christ and what Christ has done.

Yeah.

Is there a resource you can recommend?

A book of, no, this is really about Jesus.

So, you know, looking at the parables, and like, you know, King David and Goliath, all the famous,

you know, I think it was John Coram, when I was young, that you were pointing to Christ, and I was like, phew, one

equals one, you know, is short of going to seminary, where do I get ahold of?

That, because here's the thing, I didn't, right, so I didn't pick up this Christ -centered approach from a

particular book.

If I can tell you kind of how I came about it, and then, you know, I can point you to some

resources, and you can patchwork it together, kind of the way I did.

But, so years ago, when my kids were knee -high to a

grasshopper, so Faith was five years old, so hard to believe she's married and, you know, and

she's not here today.

She's not feeling, actually, Alex isn't feeling well.

So our family tradition was when dinner was finished, before we took the dishes off the

table, out comes the family Bible, and I would read the Bible to the kids.

And so this particular day, we are working our way through the book of Daniel, and we get to

the great story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

And as I'm reading out the story, as I'm reading out the story, in fact, let's take a look at it in

Daniel.

It's not looking good for Leviticus today, by the way.

So Daniel chapter, what is it, three?

Yeah, here it is, Daniel 3.

And so I'm reading this text out to my family, and it says, King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold,

whose height was sixty cubits, its breadth six cubits.

He set it up on the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon.

King Nebuchadnezzar sent to gather the satraps, the prefects, the governors, the

counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces

to come to the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

Then the satraps, the prefects, the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the

officials of the provinces gathered for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

And they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up and the herald proclaimed aloud

You are commanded.

Oh peoples and I remember reading this out when I read it out to the kids.

They enjoyed it if I would take on a character, so I kind of envisioned this kind of nerdy, you know

Slimy government official going you are commanded.

Oh peoples nations and languages.

Yeah, it flies a little better with five -year -olds when you do it that way.

When you when you hear the sound of the horn the pipe the liar the trigon the harp the bagpipe and every kind

of music you are to fall down and Worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up

whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into a

burning fiery furnace and Of course, you know you have to kind of explain this so kids

this basically what's going on here.

They have to engage in idolatry and they have a choice.

You can either Worship this false god or voila.

You have you can choose to die in a fiery furnace and faith at this point.

You know, she's into the story.

She's really into the story and you could tell she's a little bit nervous for

Those people who wouldn't bow down to this idol so therefore as soon as all the people heard the sound of the horn

the pipe the liar the trigon the harp the bagpipe and every kind of music all The peoples and the nations and languages they fell down

and worshiped the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and maliciously accused the Jews.

They declared to King Nebuchadnezzar Oh King live forever.

You Oh King Have made a decree that every man who hears the sound of the horn the pipe the liar the

trigon the harp the bagpipe and every kind of music Shall fall down and worship the golden image and whoever

does not fall down and worship shall be cast into the burning fiery furnace.

There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon Shadrach Meshach and

Abednego.

These men Oh King they pay no attention to you.

They do not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.

Then Nebuchadnezzar in a furious rage commanded that Shadrach Meshach and Abednego be brought.

So they brought these men before the king.

Nebuchadnezzar answered and said to them.

Is it true?

Oh Shadrach Meshach and Abednego.

That you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up.

Now if you are ready when you hear the sound of the horn the pipe the liar the trigon The harp the bagpipe and every kind of

music to fall down and worship the image that I have made well and good.

But if you do not worship, you shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace.

No, trust me.

This has everything to do with your question, but you can't see what's going on here.

So who is the God who will deliver you out of my hands.

Nebuchadnezzar asks great question, right?

So Shadrach Meshach and Abednego they answered and said to the king Oh Nebuchadnezzar We have no need to answer you in this

matter.

If this be so our God whom we serve he is able to deliver us from the burning fire

Fiery furnace and he will deliver us out of your hand Oh King but if not be it known to you Oh King

that we will not serve your gods or Worship the golden image that you have

set up.

So then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with fury.

The expression on his face was changed against Shadrach Meshach and Abednego.

He ordered the furnace to be heated seven times more than it usually was heated.

He ordered some of the mighty men of his army to bind Shadrach Meshach and Abednego and cast them into

the burning Fiery furnace then these men were bound in their cloaks and their tunics their hats and their

other garments and they were thrown into the burning fiery.

Furnace.

At this point my daughter five years old.

She was

Audible gasp dad.

Are they did they die?

Do you want me to keep reading?

Uh -huh.

All right, I mean she was just gripped Totally engaged in this story and she

lets out this audible gasp.

What happens next though gives me the gasp.

So they fell into the fiery furnace then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished he rose up in haste.

He declared to his counselors Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?

They answered and said to the king true.

Oh king.

And he answered and said but I see four men Unbound walking in the midst of the fire and they're not hurt.

And the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.

To this my five -year -old jumps up from her seat does something like a celebration dance

and Says daddy Jesus came and saved them

that hit and I mean hit me hard and Of course at the moment I can only say

yes dear, of course Jesus came and saved them.

But the thing is she was right.

And I had never seen it then never seen it.

That was Christ who showed up.

So the story continues.

So Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the burning fiery furnish and he declared Shadrach Meshach and

Abednego servants of the Most High God come out.

Come here.

So Shadrach Meshach and Abednego came out from the fire and the satraps and the prefects and the

governors and the kings and the counselors together and All saw that the fire had not

any power over the bodies of those men.

The hair of their heads was not singed their cloaks were not harmed and no smell of fire had come upon them.

Nebuchadnezzar answered and said blessed be the God of Shadrach Meshach and Abednego Who has sent his

angel and delivered his servants who trusted him and Set aside the king's command and yielded

up their bodies rather than serve and worship any God except for their own.

Therefore I make a decree any people nations or language that speaks anything against the goddess Shadrach Meshach

and Abednego shall be torn limb from limb and Their house is laid in ruins for there is no other God who is

able to rescue in this way.

Then the king promoted Shadrach Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon.

So read the story finished the story faith was gripped by the story and her little blurting out

that Jesus came to save them.

Just Tore me apart.

So that night after she went to bed and after Barb went to sleep I pulled out my Bible and I reread the story

of Shadrach Meshach and Abednego and Sure enough there was Jesus in the fire with

them.

It was as if he was looking at me through the flames going.

Hi didn't expect to see me here.

Did you?

It's like what are you doing there Jesus.

And At that point I realized

that I Still had a lot to learn about the scriptures.

Then you think of what Jesus says in John chapter 5.

In John chapter 5.

He says to the Jews He says you diligently search the scriptures because you think that in them you have life.

He's talking about the Tanakh.

You do you diligently search the scriptures because you think that in them you have life yet.

They are the very scriptures that testify about.

Me.

And you refuse to come to me that you might have life now granted.

You can look at the prophecies regarding the virgin birth.

You can look at the prophecies about where Jesus will be born.

But I don't think that's the totality of what Christ was talking about.

These are the scriptures that testify about him.

So was at that point that I began a search for kind of understanding theophanies.

Theophanies are you know the appearances of the pre -incarnate Christ?

One of the starkest ones and one of the most amazing ones is the story of when Christ appears to the parents of

Samson, you know, it's it's an amazing story.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah, no in Abraham in in in Genesis 19.

Yeah, no, there's weird things in the Bible.

There's really weird things and then.

And so this this is where I went next is kind of looking at theophanies and that I didn't think filled it out

and then kind of concurrent with that I Read Lenski's

commentaries if you have Lenski.

His New Testament commentaries are fantastic.

What's really funny is as I remember years ago John MacArthur was asked, you know how does he prepare his sermons and

Lenski is one of the one of the Commentary series that he you know intentionally reads

he calls him a sacramentarian though.

And it's like no, I don't think that word means what you think it means.

But yeah, he was a Lutheran.

I think it was an old ALS guy, but.

So Lenski started kind of pointing me in the right direction but where I really

start it started to bump up against biblical typology was in the writings of the church fathers

and.

Then a friend of mine in the ministry whose name is Mark Buto.

And I so this is going on maybe 11 years ago now.

I was brought on to the the Board of Directors for higher things and the

Reverend Buto was on you know was it was employed by higher things at the time and.

Everybody thinks he's kind of a little bit like a screw loose.

There's something weird because the way he talks and so he's you know.

So we're at we're at dinner one night after one of our board meetings and he says Roseboro.

Yes, Buto what he goes.

What do you think about this idea?

And what what idea mark he goes?

So there's Moses right there in the wilderness and it's like remember when he struck the rock at Horeb.

Yeah, I remember when he struck the rock at Horeb.

Remember the second time he struck the rock.

I said, yeah, that was the time he couldn't go into the promised land because he struck the rock a second time.

He's supposed to speak to it the second time.

I'm all yeah.

He's all well.

Paul says the rock is Christ.

So you can't you can't strike Jesus twice and I'm thinking you're an idiot.

Okay, where are you getting this it's like I've never heard this kind of talk before

he's it's in the Bible man.

You just got to listen to what the Bible saying.

Right, you know and it's like and it's like.

And it just bugged me, you know, so don't tell him this and if you point him to this audio I'll deny that I

I said any of this so after that it's like.

So I went and did some research, you know Moses rock strike twice you know Google and stuff like that

found resources and I have a pretty good library on Lagos and it's like There's church fathers that talk this way.

And it's the weirdest thing.

So that's where I really began to start to read all the sermons I can get a hold of of the church

fathers so from like, you know from like Irenaeus to Augustine, you know after

Augustine starts to get a little sketchy, you know and you have to kind of take Augustine with a grain of salt because

he's so Into Plato and it's it's weird some of the stuff he does but you know and sure enough

I mean every sermon I got a hold of especially when they're when they're referencing Old Testament texts.

They're finding Jesus like under every rock and tree and sometimes they overcook their typology and so

I set out to prove that you can't do this with the Bible and somebody politely

pointed out to me and said Yeah, but the New Testament tells you to do this with the Bible and

I said where where does it teach you to do this?

Well, John 5 is a good place to start but then you look at you'll fight Colossians 2.

You know, don't let anyone judge you regarding a new moon a Sabbath or a festival, right?

These are a shadow.

The substance is in Christ, right and then you think of then you'd look at 1st Peter 3.

Let's take a look at that one real quick.

This is a fascinating text.

Because it it teaches you the if you listen to the Bible, it'll tell you how to understand these things.

So here's our 1st Peter 3 18 and you'll note that this is one of those scant texts.

You know that we have so little information.

What we confess in the creeds when we say that Christ descended into hell here we have one of these texts that actually addresses the

topic and You know again, there's so little that's written but Peter says this Christ also

suffered once for sins.

The righteous for the unrighteous that he might bring us to God.

Being put to death in the flesh.

But made alive in the spirit in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison.

Because they formerly did not obey when God's patience waited in the days of Noah.

So you'll note here we can see Christ's descent into hell and what's his descent into hell

for it's for the purpose of what?

Caruso to proclaim to preach to the spirits in prison and this would be Sheol.

Because they formerly did not obey when God's patience waited in the days of Noah.

While the Ark was being prepared in which a few that is eight Persons were brought safely through

water and then you have to take a look at the Greek here Haka who must

auntie to pawn noon and.

So he says baptism which corresponds is that baptism is the auntie to pawn.

It's the anti type of.

What.

The Ark being the type.

So so Haka who must auntie to pawn noon so they baptized ma.

That so baptism which corresponds to this if you were to just translate it wouldn't ly Baptism

which is an anti type to the flood Now saves you not as a removal

of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience.

So the idea then here is is that this text is clearly teaching That the

salvation theme of Noah and his family in the Ark is that the

anti type is that is the type and that our Baptism is the type so

it is the anti type to it.

So you got type and anti type so this is where you come up with to pasquia with types and shadows.

Yeah, yeah.

Yeah, and then then you look at the creation of the tabernacle itself.

It is a perfect replica of the original and.

So you starting to see something here?

And and so the way the ancient church read the Old Testament was when you look at the

story of Noah and the flood.

They saw it because of this text as a type and shadow of our salvation.

Which is exactly what Peter is saying.

And so you can kind of work the details out in this way.

You can say just as Noah was and his family were saved by being put into the Ark and they

were saved through the flood.

Our baptism now saves us because in our baptisms we are put into Christ.

All right, and the church fathers when you read their sermons on this, especially the older ones.

They talk about the door of the Ark being the like the wound of Christ in his side.

That's that's how far they go in their typology.

Right.

And then on top of it, they would even point out and the Ark looks a lot like a coffin.

This is how they talk and you sit there and you go.

This is an interesting thing so what they're seeing is is that that that that story of the

global flood is a picture of our salvation

and that we are saved through water now add into the mix what other Water salvation themes.

Can you think of?

Oh, I know the Red Sea and funny enough the New Testament calls the Red Sea

a baptism and You're going wait a second.

Isn't this some kind of a weird allegorical way of reading the text answer?

This is not real allegory.

You know, and I've really struggled with this because I I am I don't like allegorizing the texts.

But instead what you have to do is you have to let both of them kind of speak for themselves.

And so when you're teaching in the Old Testament you look for those connection points where you can then hang the

details of Christ on it because he's ultimately going to be the Fulfillment of it.

And so the way I kind of liken it to and I've never done this because I'm way too overweight.

You think of those climbing walls, right?

You know that you know that you get up on the climbing wall.

You got the hand plate you put your hand here.

You can put your foot there and climb up and so the Old Testament is like a climbing wall and you can literally

Perfectly fit the details of Christ certain parts of Christ's life in our salvation.

Onto that climbing wall because they're made to hook on to there.

And so that you bring the two together so you don't want to allegorize the story the story stands by itself.

It's a true historical story and at the same time the implications Theologically have everything to do

with what Christ has done for us and you can then connect it back to Christ.

So Christ is the way you pull the Old and the New Testament together and it's true that they that that

the Old Testament Testifies about Christ in so many ways that when you start looking for the kind

of the themes and the other way I liken it.

My kids they used to play this game called memory.

All right, so we have we had special cards for memory.

So you got the animal ones?

I think you got cards.

Two of them have frog a picture of a frog on it.

It was got giraffes and stuff like that.

It's kind of like that.

Oftentimes you can see that.

It'll be a word or a theme that is going to be consistent Between the two and you can connect them

together and then you can't understand the Bible apart from the gospel itself.

If you don't get salvation by grace through faith alone, then you're gonna start mixing your covenants.

You're gonna start mixing you're gonna improperly not divide the scriptures so that you'll end up

messing it up.

So that it'll end up becoming an allegory about you rather than about Christ.

And it's not even an allegory.

It's a type and shadow of him.

So does that answer your question?

All right, so Lenski is a good place to go.

Anything you can get a hold of by Mark Buto.

He's a pastor in Illinois.

You know and he he's written extensively for higher things.

He he he introduced me to the concept a little bit deeper.

And like I said, I bristled against it tried to prove him wrong and found out that he was right, you know.

Yeah.

Right, right, so so here's so here's the idea then, you know.

You you have to rightly understand Who the bad guys are in the types

and shadows.

So when you come to the story of the Exodus Pharaoh who is a God King

a False God King a cruel tyrannical God King who has enslaved the people of God.

Does this sound familiar to you?

Right.

It's his forces that are drowned when Israel is baptized.

So years ago when I would teach this in Sunday school class to the youth when I was teaching the youth I'd take

him up I'd say all right.

Let's read the story read the account of the children of Israel passing through the Red Sea.

And I said what happened to the forces of Pharaoh?

Oh.

The whole army was drowned and their bodies and their corpses washed up on the shore and I said come on up to you.

Know to the altar.

Let's go up to the baptismal font.

So we go to the baptismal font and open it up.

What do you guys see?

Nothing, I Said look closer.

Look around the rim here.

You see all the corpses of the demons right here at the on the edge of the baptismal font.

That's kind of the point.

All right.

So what salvation for us is ultimately destruction and

defeat for the devil.

All right.

So so the idea then is is in and this is where by Paul what Peter says baptism now

Saves you it's it's not a removal of washing of water for the removal of dirt from the body.

But again, it's an appeal to God for a clear clean conscience how so because in our baptism

we are united with Christ in his death and his resurrection and.

There's themes then that that go all the way back then to the beginning book the beginning chapter of

Genesis and this is kind of an interesting one and you know when you kind of flesh out some of the More

nitty -gritty details come back to the very first chapter.

That are sheet Barak Elohim at Hashem.

I am by at high edits in the beginning God created the heaven heavens in the earth and this listen to this this next

this next part the earth was without Form and void and darkness was over the face of the home over the deep

and the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

The Mayim and so here kind of bookend it here.

So in the beginning here, you've got God takes like a dump truck of matter.

Right, and he creates it right at the beginning and just like a good project.

You know.

Like if you're doing landscaping in your yard you go and you got a bunch of dirt.

You got a bunch of plants you got a shovel a wheelbarrow all this kind of stuff and it doesn't look like nothing.

Right and so the picture here is is that there's a spirit of God brooding hovering over the face of the waters and

it's chaos the toe who will bow who this deep and you know, then and it's just complete mess and

then God creates order out of it, so we're created out of water and The spirit

was intimately involved and Christ was there because he spoke because he's the Word of God, right?

Let there be light and there was light and then now fast -forward that same theme then picks up in

the in the flood of Noah.

Because after the flood while they're still in the ark, you know when they're waiting for the waters to subside.

What does Noah?

Throw out of the ark to go see if there's any dry land a.

Dove.

Right.

Fast forward to Jesus's baptism there.

He goes into the waters.

Right and now the heavens open up and here's the voice of the Father saying this is my beloved Son in whom I am.

Well, please and now the Spirit descends on him like a what?

Dove, okay.

So here you've got this new crew.

You've got creation new creation theme now.

You're baptized into Christ and then water appears again then at the very end of the

book.

No longer is it at the toe who a bow who and the to home in the deep in the chaos?

Instead there is no sea.

There's just a glassy sea everything calm before the throne of God.

So you can kind of see how the themes work out.

Does that make sense?

I might just.

You know.

Too much learning is Right.

I like the way you said that.

Yeah, it's it's More it may more be like Don Quixote, you know, his brain

was fried in the Sun, you know But but you kind of get what I'm saying here but as soon

as you can start seeing all of this you can see how all of the scriptures now are ordered and completely

Center around the high mass of gravity, which is Christ in one way or another

You can connect all these texts back to him and you're rightly reading it when you do and you're rightly distinguishing law and

gospel.

Yeah, I

Haven't figured that out yet.

I actually don't know.

I'm not sure.

I'm not sure.

Yeah, so

I there's a part of me that Thinks that because the devil can't create anything.

He can only Pervert the things that are you think of some of the ancient mythos?

Regarding death, you know when you die you cross the river Styx, you know.

Or even for us we as Christians sometimes in our parlance and it's you can even find it in some of our hymnity.

We talk about death as the crossing of the Jordan.

And there's a reason for that that one actually works.

The reason why it works is because kind of not worth the typology out if the Exodus is a type and

shadow of God's salvation of humanity his conquering and defeat of the

devil and we are baptized into Christ.

No sooner we baptize into Christ that we go and we go into a wilderness wandering now questions.

What does that represent?

Well, it's it's it's 40 years.

It's it's a it's a generation -long kind of thing.

All right.

And so the idea then is I think a proper way of understanding then the wilderness wanderings is that currently

right now post baptism each and every one of us are Wandering in the wilderness as we are

heading towards the promised land which Hebrews 11 makes it Perfectly clear has nothing to do

with a postage stamp piece of property in the Middle East.

The promised land is the new earth with the heavenly Jerusalem come down from heaven the city

whose builder is God itself.

That was the thing that Abraham was looking for.

Hebrew says right when you start to kind of put all the pieces together.

Then you sit there and you say ah, so death is when I cross the Jordan into the promised land.

Yes.

Right.

Now you kind of work.

You can see how that works.

Yeah.

I.

Have never worked out that typology and I'm I don't want to do it on the fly.

I think I'd mess it up because I'm not sure that's the right theme.

I Would say this though.

The fact that Christ is walking on the water Is seen by the ancient

church as his conquering of Leviathan.

Okay, and there you can see Jesus again on the chaos Walking on the deep

Conquering Leviathan, you know, which is this, you know this.

Mythic.

Beast that supposedly goes along with the chaos of the of the sea and stuff like that Christ is conquering him by walking on the

water.

And so if you're going to work the typology along those lines you'll note that Peter is incapable of doing such a

thing and That and that he only is given to do so by faith and keeping his eyes on Christ.

You know, you can kind of work it in that way.

So.

So let me show you one other story.

In.

Daniel and what you consider this one.

Let me find it here.

Might be nine.

Well, I got a hunt this down.

Hang on a second here.

Where's the story of Daniel and the lion's den?

Is it six?

It is six.

Okay, check this story out.

Okay, so if if what Paul says if what Peter says are true and then

adding into the have into it the Heavy Christ that the these texts testify about Jesus.

Let's take a look at this historical account of Daniel being thrown into the lion's den

and let's see how we can connect this back to Christ.

See if it makes any sense.

So here's what says it pleased Darius to set over the kingdom 120 say traps to be

throughout the whole kingdom and over them three high officials of whom Daniel was one.

To whom these say traps should give an account so that the king might suffer no loss.

Well, everybody knows in politics and things like that.

There's jealousies and stuff like that that come about.

So this Daniel became distinguished above all the other high officials.

The say traps because an excellent spirit was in him and the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom.

Then the high officials the say traps sought to find a ground for complaint against Daniel with regard to the

kingdom.

But they could find no ground for complaint or any fault because he was faithful

a little bit of a note here.

You'll note that immediately we can make a connection.

I can think of another fellow who they were looking for grounds to bring a charge against him.

But he was faultless and this sounds a lot like the trial of Christ, right?

So you can commit you can make that connection.

So there's a similarity between the two and in some way this story is pointing us to

Christ.

So no error or fault was found in him.

It says of Daniel and yet I could say the same thing about Jesus, right?

So.

Then these men said we shall not find any ground or complaint against this Daniel unless we find it in connection

with the law of his God.

Then these high officials and say traps came by an agreement to the king and said to him Oh King

Darius live forever.

All the high officials of the kingdom the prefects the say traps the counselors the governors are agreed that the

king should establish an ordinance and enforce in an Injunction that whoever makes petition to any

God or man for 30 days.

Except to you Oh King shall be cast into the den of lions.

It's like these guys, you know, they they come up with these elaborate movie set ways of killing people,

you know.

This is kind of fascinating.

So now Oh King established the injunction signed the document so that it cannot be changed according to the law of the Medes and

the Persians Which cannot be revoked.

Therefore King Darius signed the document and the injunction.

When Daniel knew that the document had been signed he went to his house where he had windows

in his upper chamber Open toward Jerusalem.

He got down on his knees three times a day and he prayed and gave thanks before his God as he had

done previously.

Then these men came by an agreement and found Daniel making petition and plea before his God.

Then they came near and said before the king concerning the injunction Oh king Did you not sign an

injunction that anyone who makes petition to any God or man within 30 days?

Except to you Oh King shall be cast into the den of lions.

The king answered and said the thing stands fast according to the law of the Medes and the Persians which cannot be revoked.

Then they answered and said before the king Daniel who is one of the exiles from Judah pays no attention to

you Oh king or the injunction that you have signed but makes his petition three times a day.

Then the king when he heard these words was much distressed and set his mind to deliver Daniel.

And he labored till the Sun went down to rescue him and these men came by agreement to the king and said to the

king.

No.

Oh king that it is a law of the Medes and the Persians that no injunction or ordinance that the king Establishes can be

changed a little bit of a note here.

The details are slightly different.

But there's something similar to what is happening here and pilot

Pilot who would ultimately be the one who sends Christ to the cross

sought to find a way to release him and I and I see

Between Darius and pilot at least some kind of parallel motive some kind of theme that I can

can I can take this story?

And say isn't this amazing how it's a lot like and very similar to the story We find of Christ when he was

on trial and so you'll note now We were in the time in the types and shadows.

We know where this should go when you connect these two points where we're going to be hanging out in the Gospels if we were to

connect the two is that is going to be the trial and the death and even the

resurrection of Christ that this story in Type and shadow is prefiguring that pointing

us to it.

So the king commanded and Daniel was brought and Cast

into the den of lions.

Now just so you know if you're thrown into a lion's den.

That's the end of you.

That's generally how that goes and usually they keep these lions pretty hungry.

Just a little bit that feed them a little bit less than what they would want.

So that when you throw a human being in there that human being is quickly consumed so the king

declared to Daniel may your God whom you serve continually deliver you and A stone was

brought and laid on the mouth of the den and the king sealed it with his own signet and with the signet Of his Lord's

that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel.

Do you see it?

Yeah, this this is this is the tomb of Christ.

I mean even with the official seal on the stone a stone is rolled in front of the tomb

and it's sealed with a Royal seal they did that to Christ's tomb

and you can see the connection.

You sit there and go so this it's a but Daniel here He would actually have to be raised from the dead if God allowed him to

be Torn apart by the lion.

So his death isn't going to be a physical death.

It's gonna be kind of a symbolical death.

He died and he rose again.

Right.

So the stone was brought laid in the mouth of tomb.

King sealed it with his own signet That nothing might be changed concerning Daniel.

The king went into his palace spent the night fasting.

No diversions were brought to him sleep fled from him Then at day at break

of day Literally as soon as the Sun comes up.

When did Jesus rise from the dead?

With first light right at the break of the day the king rose and went in haste to the lion's den.

As He came near to the den where Daniel was he cried out in a tone of anguish.

The king declared to Daniel Oh Daniel servant of the Living God Has your God whom you serve

continually been able to deliver you from the lions?

Then Daniel said to the king Oh King live forever.

My God sent his angel and Shut the lion's mouth and they have not harmed me because I was found

blameless before him and also before you.

And in Scripture, what's the reason why it.

There's many reasons.

But some of the reasons why Christ Death was not able to hold him is because

he was faultless.

Blameless.

Death had no claim over him.

So because I was found blameless Oh King I have done no harm.

Then the king was exceedingly glad commanded the day to be taken up out of this den.

So Daniel was taken up out of the den no kind of harm was found on him because he had trusted in his God and.

And this is a theme regarding Christ's resurrection as well.

Yes.

Yeah, so, you know Jesus makes an appearance here we don't get to get all the details but he sent his angel.

So who was it that sat with Daniel that night and kept those those lions mouths closed?

Jesus.

You see it and so once you start to see it you can't unsee it.

And Once you listen to how the scriptures tell you how Jesus tells you to read

his word It like opens the whole thing up and it's and it's and it's a huge burden lifted.

So what you're saying is the Bible is not about me not at all man.

It's not about you at all.

It's about him.

This is why when we get to the parable of the Good Samaritan You and I are the guy who's been

beaten left for dead stripped naked have nothing and Christ does

everything.

For us.

Right, he's our Good Samaritan.

And.

When you start to read scriptures, it's like I said it the whole thing it starts to really bend your mind.

Let me throw this in here just to see if I can placate

Dwayne a little bit.

Here's a little bit of Leviticus.

It's starting to be it's starting to get it to joke level anyway.

Consider what our Old Testament reading said it began in verse 9 When you reap the harvest of your

land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge Neither shall you gather the gleanings after your

harvest?

You shall not strip your vineyard bare neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard and you shall leave

them for the poor and For the sojourner.

I am Yahweh your God.

This is totally about Christ.

The question is how?

Okay.

Yeah, that's gonna be the law end of it.

Okay, how about gospel?

And I'm not saying you're wrong.

You're absolutely right now.

Work the gospel through it.

Well, okay.

Yeah, your neighbor needs your help.

Okay, perfect.

Now use this text to show me where the Messiah was saved.

By this commandment being kept.

Mm -hmm.

Okay.

Yes.

Uh -huh.

Boaz.

Uh -huh.

Uh -huh.

Yep. Exactly.

Right and Boaz is the son of whom.

Boaz is the son of whom?

Rahab Rahab the prostitute of Jericho.

Uh -huh.

Yeah, so I mean so put so put it all together.

So here we have a text that's telling you that not harvest all of your food.

But leave some of the gleanings for the sojourner and for the poor.

And then the Messiah himself in the loins of Boaz has

mercy on the Moabitess and Ruth who is a picture a type

and shadow of the Bride of Christ.

Uh -huh, and She is saved through this commandment kept

by her kinsmen.

Redeemer Who is in the line of the Messiah

you see it?

If I have another stroke I blame you.

Right.

So the idea here is is that the the scriptures are so much better.

So much better than you can possibly imagine and Christ and the cross is the key to unlock the

whole thing.

You know, so, you know, I I understand.

When somebody writes an article and says you can't do this with the text I get it.

I tried to fight it, but the text itself argues that it has to be understood this way.

And.

So what you don't want to do is sit there and say so it doesn't matter whether or not Ruth was a historical person or Not that's

just nonsense.

No, what's amazing then is is that not only does God the Holy Spirit

Inspire prophets to write words where they Centuries ahead of time give us details regarding the

life of Christ.

But that that now God the Holy Spirit starts writing in broad Beautiful canvas strokes

using human lives and the details of their lives.

Now when you when you stand back from the canvas you sit there and go no, that's a portrait of

Jesus.

That's what the Tanakh is.

It's all these little stories Painted on a canvas in human lives and when you

stand back you can see that's the face of Christ.

That's the idea.

Yeah, yeah, and I think that's enough

for today.