ETERNAL COVENANT
PART II
The Bible
says, “The blood on the door-posts will be a sign to mark the houses in which
you live. When I see the blood, I will pass over you and will not harm you.”
(Exodus 12:13)
Job was a righteous man,
blameless, upright and one who feared God and shunned evil. (Job 1:1)
God made him a prosperous man -
seven sons, three daughters and owned thousands of sheep, camel, ox and other
possessions. He was called the greatest of all people in the East. (Job 1:3)
Though Job was affluent, he was
concerned about the lifestyle of his children. His seven sons would take their
turns holding feast in their homes and they would invite their three sisters to
eat and drink with them.
His heart was so troubled about
their spiritual condition that when the day of feasting was over, he would rise
early morning and offer burnt offering for each of his children.
For Job thought that-- it may be that
one of them might have sinned and cursed God in their heart, and so he offered
it regularly for the purification of his children. (Job 1:7-10)
Here we see the obedience of a
faithful man to the Law of Moses, who followed the instruction of God, on
behalf of his family and descendants.
If anyone obeys the instruction-
to cover you and your family with Lord’s Blood- God will surely honor your
faith.
It is a spiritual example to be
followed by one and all, so that the calamities will reduce and slowly our good
God will honor you and bless your land.
In (Levi. 14:1-10), The Lord gave
Moses the following regulations about the ritual purification of a person cured
of a dreaded skin-disease. On the day he is to be pronounced clean, he shall be
brought to the priest, and the priest shall take him outside the camp and
examine him. If the disease is healed, the priest shall order two ritually
clean birds to be brought together with a piece of cedar wood, a red cord and a
sprig of hyssop. Then the priest shall order one of the birds to be killed over
a clay bowl containing fresh spring water. He shall take the other bird and dip
it, together with the cedar wood, the red cord and the hyssop in the blood of
the bird that was killed. He shall sprinkle the blood seven times on the person
who is to be purified from the skin-disease, and then he shall pronounce him
clean. He shall let the live bird fly away over the open fields. The person
shall wash his clothes, shave of all his hair, and have a bath; he will then be
ritually clean. He may enter the camp, but he must live outside his tent for
seven days. On the seventh day he shall again shave his beard, his eyebrows and
all the rest of his hair on his body; he shall wash his clothes and have a
bath, and then he will be ritually clean.
In the above chapter of the Old Testament,
leprosy refers to a variety of skin disease. It is also a symbol of sin.
The cleansing of a leper
prefigured God’s further plan to cleanse all mankind from sin.
·
A leper to be cleansed was to be
brought to the priest. The priest shall then order two ritually clean birds to
be brought together with a piece of cedar wood, a red cord and a sprig of
hyssop.
Each
of these instructions reminds us the work of Christ for the remission of sin.
In the New Testament, we see the priest going outside wall of Jerusalem to
crucify Jesus Christ.
·
The symbol of two birds stands
for the death and resurrection.
Cedar wood and red cord points to the
Cross and scarlet to his suffering.
·
The hyssop is a plant which is used in
purification ceremonies. In Exodus 12:22 it says, “Take a sprig of hyssop, dip
it in the bowl containing the animal’s
blood, and wipe the blood on the door-posts and the beam above the door
of your house.” So in the new covenant sprig
of hyssop symbolizes our faith, by which we pray “by faith in your merits…..”
·
“Then the priest shall order one
of the birds to be killed over a clay bowl containing fresh spring water” When
the first bird was killed the blood was caught in an earthen vessel with water
in it which means that Christ shed his
blood in an earthen vessel i.e. his human body. The priest took the living
bird along with the cedar wood means Christ’s
cross, the scarlet of his suffering.
·
The slain bird’s blood was mixed
with the water in the earthen vessel signifying cleansing by the Word of God.
·
He shall take the other bird and
dip it, together with the cedar wood, the red cord and the hyssop in the blood
of the bird that was killed. He shall sprinkle the blood seven times on the
person who is to be purified from the skin-disease, and then he shall pronounce
him clean means after our sins are
cleansed by the Blood, we will be able to witness the Resurrection in the
living bird that is released.
“He shall let the live bird fly
away over the open fields.”
·
Finally, the person may be
permitted into the camp --- similarly, if you have been purified by the
precious Blood of Christ, you are also worthy
to enter the Kingdom of God.
This is just one example of how
the Old Testament is a shadow of the New Covenant.
“So let no one make rules about
what you eat or drink or about holy days or the New Moon Festival or the
Sabbath. All such things are only a shadow of things in the future; the reality
is Christ.” (Col. 2: 16-17)