Recently I was at a gathering of friends and one person
commented, “I like the kind and tolerant god of the New Testament, but I don’t
much like the angry, violent god of the Old Testament.” I
think that sentiment is quite prevalent among people who know about God without
really knowing Him. Since we have spent
the last several months looking at Christ in the Old Testament, before we begin
our study in the New Testament I think it would be appropriate to take the time
this week to show that the New Testament and the Old Testament are in perfect
harmony, without contradiction, and revealing to us the same God with the same
attributes in both sections of our Bible. Let's see what God has to say about Who He is and what He is like:
- God says, “I AM.”
And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And
He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to
you.’” (Exodus 3:14, New King James Version)
God does NOT say I will be what you want me to be or who you
think I should be. If I told you that I
know the president of the United States of America – He is a man who was born
in Hawaii on August 4, 1961; his mother’s name was Ann Dunham; his father, Martin
Luther King, lives at the White House with the first family; he was educated at
Ole Miss; and he is a Republican – you would probably call me crazy. I might genuinely, earnestly, and sincerely
believe that description of the President, but anyone who truly knows the
President would know that I don’t know what I am talking about! Believing something does not make it
true. Many people have sincere beliefs
about who God is, but they are sincerely wrong if what they believe about God
is not what God says about Himself. How
can you know if what you believe is true?
Read God’s Word, the Bible. He
tells us who He is. “The name ‘Yahweh’
is most often translated ‘Lord’ and is the most significant name for God in the
Old Testament, used 6,823 times. It is
closely associated with the Hebrew verb meaning, ‘to be,’ meaning the active,
self-existent One. It is also associated
with God’s holiness, His hatred of sin, and His gracious provision of
redemption.”* He IS indicates that He
has always been and always will be. He
has no beginning and no end, neither in time nor in space.
- God says, “I am sovereign.”
But our God is in heaven;
He does whatever He pleases. (Psalm 115:3, New King James
Version)
“Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the
heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too
hard for you.” (Jeremiah 32:17, New International Version)
God created us and everything that was ever created. He created time! He created the laws of science and nature. He created the first laws of society. He gets to decide what is right and what is
wrong, not us.
- God says, “I am jealous.”
“You shall have no other gods before Me . . . you
shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a
jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the
third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing mercy to
thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments. (Exodus 20:3, 5-6,
New King James Version)
When we worship or trust in a god of our own making or of
our imagination, we are worshipping an idol.
God warned His people about that and said that was something He would
not tolerate. And by the way, in the
verse above, when He says “before Me,” that doesn’t mean He will allow other
gods as long as He is our primary God.
No, not at all. When you read the
word, “before,” think about appearing before
a judge. God does not want to see any
other gods before Him, in His
universe, His courtroom. Anyone who
thinks God is tolerant does not know Him.
- God says, “Vengeance is Mine.”
Vengeance is mine, and recompense, for the time when their
foot shall slip; for the day of their calamity is at
hand, and their doom comes swiftly. (Deuteronomy 32:35,
English Standard Version)
For the day of vengeance is in mine heart,
and the year of my redeemed is come. (Isaiah 63:4, King James Version)
God always has the last word. He is patient because He knows that we are
weak and that our wisdom and understanding are feeble compared to His. He always gives us a way to avoid temptation,
and He warns us about our disobedience.
But when we defiantly shake our fist in His face, demanding our own way,
turning our backs on Him and His commandments, He will judge us and punish
us.
- God says, “I am merciful.”
Go, and proclaim these words toward the north, and say, “Return,
faithless Israel, declares the Lord. I will not look on you in anger, for I am
merciful, declares the Lord; I will not be angry forever.” (Jeremiah 3:12,
English Standard Version)
The Lord is not slow about His promise, as
some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish
but for all to come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9, New American Standard
Bible)
But God demonstrates his
own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
(Romans 5:8, New International Version)
If we confess our sins, He
is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness. (1 John 1:9, New King James Version)
For God so loved the world
that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not
perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)
Here’s how we can be sure that we know God in
the right way: Keep his commandments. If someone claims, “I know him well!” but
doesn’t keep his commandments, he’s obviously a liar. His life doesn’t match
his words. But the one who keeps God’s word is the person in whom we see God’s
mature love. This is the only way to be sure we’re in God. Anyone who claims to
be intimate with God ought to live the same kind of life Jesus lived.
(1John 2:2-6, The Message)
God loves us so much that He provided us with a Way to receive His mercy and forgiveness for all our disobedience. It is not His desire for anyone – not even the worst mass murderer or terrorist – to die and spend eternity separated from Him in torture and anguish as punishment for their sinful disobedience. All we (or anyone) need to do is to agree with Him (confess) that we are guilty; ask for His forgiveness; accept His punishment (Christ died on the cross as payment for my sin); turn our lives over to Him (repent), changing the direction of our lives from that of self-direction to God-direction.
- God says, “I do not change.”
For I the Lord do not change; (Malachi 3:6a, English
Standard Version)
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and
today and forever. (Hebrews 13:8, New International Version)
Remember that the Old Testament covers a period of over 4,000
years of world history. During all those
years we are able to see a pattern of God’s instruction, man’s disobedience,
God’s warning, and God’s judgment. It’s
a pattern that repeats itself over and over and over, both in the lives of
individuals and in the lives of nations.
The New Testament covers a time span of only approximately 70 years, and
its historical theme is more focused on the life of Christ and the birth of the
Church, rather than the history of nations and their leaders. But the pattern of instruction, disobedience,
warning, and judgment is not overlooked in the New Testament, but is
reinforced. The mercy of Christ that is
so vividly described in the New Testament is foretold throughout the Old. God did not change, but our understanding of
Him was forever changed and magnified when He sent His Son to demonstrate His
love for us.
My prayer for you this week is that you will know the only
true, living God. The One Who gave
Himself to purchase you from the slave market of sin, to give you a life as a
child of The King, to live with Him for eternity, and to be a joint heir with
Him in all His riches in heaven. My
prayer is this, taken from Psalm 145:18-19 –
Thank You, Heavenly Father, Lord, God Almighty:
The Lord is near to all who call upon Him,
To all who call upon Him in truth. He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;
He also will hear their cry and save them.
* Bible. English. New American Standard. 1978. “The Ryrie
Study Bible,” Moody Press (Footnote Genesis 2:4)
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