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Genesis always reminds me of a Christmas morning or a child at his or
hers birthday party. There are gifts all beautifully wrapped
and as the child sees them, there is built up excitement upon
excitement. This is how Genesis is to me. It is a book filled with
developing enlightenments, development of God’s program, and the
constant seeking by Satan to counter check God’s purposes. It contains
the first seed manifestations of our Lord, and in them there are no
disappointment. In this our first study of “Christ in all the
Scriptures”, we are aware that the manifestations of our Lord always
excel our anticipations. As the hymn writer wrote:
To Jesus every day I find my heart is closer drawn,
He’s fairer than the glory of the gold and purple dawn;
He’s all my fancy pictures in its fairest dreams, and more,
Each day He grows still sweeter than He was the day before.
Refrain:
The half cannot be fancied this side the golden shore;
O there He’ll be still sweeter than He ever was before.
His glory broke upon me when I saw Him from afar,
He’s fairer than the lily, brighter than the morning star;
He fills and satisfies my longing spirit o’er and o’er,
Each day He grows still sweeter than He was the day before.
My heart is sometimes heavy, but He comes with sweet relief,
He folds me to His bosom when I droop with blighting grief;
I love the Christ who all my burdens in His body bore,
Each day He grows still sweeter than He was the day before.
Since the subject is so vast, this meditation is only a surface
consideration but which we trust may be used by the Holy Spirit to cause
us to worship the Lord more worthily. They are not complete exegesis of
any title or manifestation of the Lord in each book, but simply a few
observations for consideration.
The Clothing of Adam and Eve
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The first picture of the sacrificing Christ is when man sinned
and God clothed him with skins (Gen. 3:21). How precious to
trace the garments with which the Lord clothes His own. The
prophet wrote: “He hath clothed me in the garments of salvation,
He hath covered me with the robe of righteousness” (Isa.
61:10). By using the skins of an animal several truths come to
the fore: |
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a) |
The sacrifice was provided by God. |
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b) |
The sacrifice was executed by God. |
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c) |
The clothing was made by God, it was all of God. |
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d) |
The sacrifice was already prepared in the purposes of God before
man ever sinned. |
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Therefore, although man had only sinned
once, the wages of sin was death, but God graciously provided
an animal, void of any blemish. That animal (what sort it was
we do not know) came under the sword of divine justice and
became a substitute, a theme which will come to the fore again
with the ram (Gen. 22:13). This sacrifice had its deficiencies
as all the Old Testament sacrifices had, for it could never
remove the guilt, prevent the flow of sin already in the human
family, nor fit man to come to God. After this we never read of
God and Adam in fellowship. Thank God for the sacrifice of
Christ which cleanses from sin (1 Jn. 1:9); removes the guilt by
the justification Christ has provided (Rom. 5:9), and fitted us
for fellowship with God (1 Jn. 1:7) and with the saints in light
(Col. 1:12).
Adam is by similarity and contrast a figure of Christ. The only
point of similarity is that of being the head of an order of
manhood. In every other aspect he is set in contrast. Paul
writes: “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be
made alive” (1 Cor. 15:22). It is a contrast similar to when he
was writing to the Romans. He wrote: “By the offence of one
judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the
righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto
justification of life. For by one man’s disobedience many were
made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made
righteousness” (Rom. 5:18-19). What a debt of love we owe Him.
He became “obedient unto death, even the death of the cross”
(Phil. 2:8). Furthermore, the Holy Spirit through Paul makes it
clear that Adam had limitations relative to life whereas Christ
has no limitations, for He says: “Adam was made a living soul;
the last Adam (Christ) was made a quickening spirit (1 Cor.
15:45).
Judah
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In Judah we get a glimpse of the Lord as “surety”. Judah
pledged himself for his brother Benjamin (Gen. 43:9). There are
two scriptures which are relevant to the Lord as the Surety: |
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a) |
“He that is surety for a stranger shall smart for it.” (Prov.
11:15) |
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b) |
“By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament.”
(Heb. 7:22) |
No tongue can tell nor can any mind and heart comprehend the
smarting He endured as our Surety. The word translated “smart”
can have several avenues of thought, two of them being “mar” and
“broken”. When reading: “His visage was so marred more than any
man” (Isa. 52:14), I do not believe this was speaking of that
which man did to Him, but rather His appearance after the hours
of darkness were past. His was a marring, a disfigurement that
is beyond human mind to picture: “All my bones are out of joint”
(Psa. 22:14). When there is added to this “This is my body,
which is broken for you” (1 Cor. 11:24), it is evident the cross
sufferings are indescribable. It is gloriously true that: “a
bone of Him shall not be broken” (Ex. 12:46; Num. 9:12; Psa.
34:20; Jn. 19:36), yet, when a body has disjointed bones, while
not a “bone is broken”, it is a broken body.
To be my Surety He had to have that which I was deficient in,
that is, moral excellency, fellowship with God, not a guilt ever
committed and essentially holy in Himself, and not have the sin
nature. He must also be willing to be the Surety for the better
testament, and thank God He was willing to be such.
Shiloh
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To me the words: “Until Shiloh come” have always been a
beautiful expression. As a child I had no idea what it meant
but I loved to hear it. The word “Shiloh” is a mysterious word
to such an extent that it is translated as “the Sent one”; “The
seed”; and “the Peaceable One”. Since it comes from a word that
means tranquility, I will view it in that way and leave the
reader to peruse the meditations on Christ as the “Sent One” and
“the Seed” |
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a) |
Our Lord said: “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be
called the children of
God.” (Matt. 5:9) |
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b) |
On the night of His betrayal He said to His own: “My peace I
leave with you.” (Jn. 14:1, 27) |
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c) |
He is the Prince of Peace (Isa. 9:6) |
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d) |
The Potentate of Peace (Heb 7:2) |
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e) |
The Procurer of Peace (Col. 1:20) |
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The Personification of Peace (Eph. 2:14-16) |
Because of Him and His work we preach the “gospel of peace”
(Rom. 10:15; Eph. 6:15) and we have “peace with God” (Phil. 4:7;
Col. 3:15).
Melchizedek
There can be no doubt that Melchizedek is one of the most
glorious of Old Testament foreshadowings of the Lord. This man
is mentioned in three books of the scriptures (Gen. 14:18; Psa.
110:4; Heb. 5:6, 10; 6:20; 7:1, 10, 11, 15, 17, 21). Each of
the books are separated by a thousand years, and in each case
the man suddenly appears. We have no way of knowing who he was,
and apart from these books, nothing is known of him, yet there
is sufficient in these to enable us to see the glory of his
foreshadowing.
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In Genesis there are ten genealogies beginning with that of the
heaven and earth (ch. 2:4) and the balance are of different
people and their fathers (ch. 11:27). There are also references
to the deaths of people (ch. 5:5; 9:29; 25:18) but for
Melchisedec there is no record of either. This had to be so for
him to be a suitable type of Christ of whom it is said: |
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a) |
“He abideth a priest continually” (Heb. 7:3) |
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b) |
“This man ever liveth” (Heb. 7:25) |
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c) |
“This man hath an unchangeable priesthood” (Heb. 7:24) |
His names and titles are: “King of righteousness and King of
peace” (Heb. 7:2), and with that he is “the priest of the Most
High God” (Gen. 14:18). Being a king/priest, he is unique and
prefigures the Lord of whom
it is said: “He shall sit and rule upon His throne; and He shall
be a priest” (Zech. 6:13). Again we read: “A King shall reign
in righteousness” (Isa. 32:1) and “Righteousness shall be the
girdle of His lions” (Isa. 11:5). |
Abraham and Isaac
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No consideration of the types of Genesis would be complete
without a consideration of Abraham and Isaac (Gen. 22:1-14). In
this incident there are many beautiful truths, among which are
the following: |
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a) |
It is here there is the first mention of “love”. How beautiful
are the words: “Thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest” (Gen.
22:2). If in the picture Abraham shadows the Father and Isaac
the Son, who can grasp the fulness of the love the Father had
for the Son. Our Lord said: “The Father loveth the Son, and
hath given all things into His hands” (Jn. 3:35), again: “The
Father loveth the Son, and sheweth Him all things that Himself
doeth” (Jn. 5:20). |
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b) |
Isaac was “thine only Son”. What riches there are in this. He
was the son of Mary but He was not her only son (Mk. 3:31); He
is the Son of Abraham and son of David (Matt. 1:1); the
“carpenter’s son” (Matt. 13:55). The widow of Nain was going to
bury her “only son” (Lk. 7:12). Coming to our Lord, how full
are the depths of the words: “For God so loved the world, that
He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him
should not perish, but have everlasting life” (Jn. 3:16).
Again, “In this was manifested the love of God toward us,
because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that
we might live through Him (1 Jn. 4:9). Hearts ought to bow in
contrition and worship as we read: “He that spared not His own
Son, but delivered Him up for us all” (Rom. 8:32). |
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c) |
The object of going to the mount was to worship. It is a point
we can easily miss. Calvary was an activity of worship, indeed
the supreme act of worship. It was there the Son showed what
worship in its highest form is, unreserved obedience, utter
purity of motive, all being done for the glory of God. God was
glorified as God, and in doing so, the wonders of His love,
mercy, and grace shone out. |
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d) |
Here we get the glorious truth of substitution when the ram is
placed on the altar instead of Isaac. |
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e) |
The wood never leaves the hand of the son (v.6). It is always
touching to read: “He bearing His cross went forth into a place
called the place of a skull” (Jn. 19:17). He was going forth in
weakness to be crucified (2 Cor. 3:3-4), yet this was to be the
death of all human wisdom. |
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f) |
The knife was never put in the hand of another. Despite the
horrific character of this death, it had to be in the hand of
the father. It was God Himself who gave the cup into the hands
of Christ, who baptized Christ, who made Him an offering for
sin. Truths beyond human comprehension. |
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g) |
While the sacrifice here is that of the ram, yet because Isaac
asks the question: “Where is the Lamb?” and Abraham answering:
“God will provided himself a Lamb” (v. 8), it is only right to
consider some of the aspects of Christ as the Lamb: |
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His superlative sufficiency. In Ex. 12:4 we read “And if the
household be too little for the lamb”. The lesson is
exceedingly clear, the lamb was never too little for household.
“The Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” (Jn.
1:29) |
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ii) |
It tells of the wonders of God’s purposes from eternity past.
Peter writes: “A Lamb slain before the foundation of the world”
(1 Pet. 1:20). |
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iii) |
His
Humiliation: “He
was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before
his shearer, so opened he not his mouth.” (Acts 8:32) |
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iv) |
His Precious Sacrifice: “Ye were not redeemed with . . . silver
and gold . . . but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a
lamb without blemish and without spot.” (1 Pet. 1:18) |
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v) |
His exaltation:
“And
every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under
the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them,
heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be
unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for
ever and ever.” (Rev. 5:13) |
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vi) |
His
Moral Qualifications: “He
(the Lamb) took the book out of the right hand of Him who sat
upon the throne.” (Rev. 5:7) |
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vii) |
Our Forever Guide: “For the Lamb which is in the midst of the
throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living
fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from
their eyes.” (Rev. 7:17) |
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vii) |
His triumph: “These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb
shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings:
and they that are with him [are] called, and chosen, and
faithful.” (Rev. 17:14) |
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h) |
The Ram (Gen. 22:13) |
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i) |
The ram indicates a number of truths, among which are, it was a
male, the Hebrew word means a strong one, a Leader or a Chief.
Apart from being a sacrificial animal signifying substitution
(Gen. 22:13), it also indicates the dogged unrelenting
determination (Dan. 8:7). |
This meditation will consider Him as the One who was determined to do
and fulfill the will of God.
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The Will of God |
Christ Fulfilling It |
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For Christ to come |
“I came . . . not to do my own will, but the will of Him
that sent me.” (Jn. 6:38) |
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For Christ to be raised |
“Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it
up.” (Jn. 2:19) |
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For Christ to do His will |
“My meat is to do the will of Him that sent me, and to
finish His work” (Jn. 4:34) |
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a) |
Luke writes: “When the time was come that he should be received
up, He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem” (Lk. 9:51). |
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b) |
Isaiah wrote: “The Lord God will help me . . . therefore have I
set my face like a flint” (Isa. 50:7). |
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c) |
Knowing that Lazarus had died and there had been severe
opposition to Him, He goes to Bethany saying: “Are there not
twelve hours in the day?” (Jn. 11:9). |
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d) |
He was a man who was uncompromising in the declarations of the
truth of God (Matt. 5:22-44); unswerving in His devotion to God
(Lk. 22:42); unabating in His unveiling of God (Jn. 1:18); and
unyielding to the promptings of Satan (Matt. 4:1-10). |
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Space forbids the consideration of: |
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The “Seed of the woman” (Gen. 3:15) |
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b) |
Joseph (Gen. 30:24-50:26) |
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c) |
Abel’s offering (Gen. 4:4) |
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d) |
Noah’s Ark (Gen. 6:14-8:19) |
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e) |
Jacob’s Ladder (Gen. 28:2) |
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f) |
And the Lawgiver (Gen. 49:10) |
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May God grant us good understanding as He, by His
Holy Spirit, deigns to guide us into all truth.
John 16:13
Rowan Jennings, Abbotsford,
British Columbia
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