The true Mincah
“Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for Him hath God the Father sealed.” (Jn. 6:27). Labor not; strive not. Give not your utmost strength to the feeding of your flesh. Let your greatest yearning not be to please or satisfy yourself in this body or this world. Place the needs of your body secondary to your true need, which is to resolve the trouble of sin.
“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” (Matt. 5:6). “He answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” (Matt. 4:4).
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me hath everlasting life.
I am that Bread of life.
Your Fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.
This is the Bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.
I am the living Bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this Bread, He shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” (Jn. 6:47-51).
I am the true Mincah, that was sacrificed for your peace and joy.
“Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you.
Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
For My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.
He that eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me, and I in him.
As the living Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me.
This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your Fathers did eat manna, and are dead: He that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.” (Vs. 53-58).
To search for the bread of heaven or the fountain of youth in anything that comes from a world ruled by Satan, to look to the things of this world for true happiness and joy, is the whole essence of idolatry. Giving this world the highest priority has given Satan our open invitation to him to usurp the throne of God in our body temples and in this world. The devil has urged and assisted us in the act of subordinating heavenly things to satisfactions of the moment. This has been his first and greatest deception, and remains his most potent success.
We must seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and our earthly needs will come in their turn. We must choose God and His righteousness above earthly things. Let this world and its issues sink into insignificance as we seek God and likeness to His character. And that likeness is in His Son.
“Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus,” “who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person.” (Heb 1:3;3:1). In Christ we most clearly see the exalted nature of God.
“Being made so much better than the angels, as He hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.
For unto which of the angels said He at any time, Thou art My Son, this day have I begotten Thee? And again, I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son?
And again, when He bringeth in the Firstbegotten into the world, He saith, And let all the angels of God worship Him.” (Vs. 4-6). “Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” (Phil. 2:6-8).
He was the true Mincah. He demonstrated heavenly righteousness. His obedience was the fruit of uninterupted breathing of communion with His Father. His words were God-breathed, expressed from a soul in heaven. “Believest Thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of Myself: but the Father that dwelleth in Me, He doeth the works.” (Jn. 14:10). Jesus was the second Adam, who was the perfection of a living, breathing soul. His thoughts were the expression of God’s thoughts. He was more than the prophets, which were constrained to speak for God, whose sinful natures felt a certain pain while possessed by God in vision, and might even sometimes resist. (1Cor. 9:17;1Sam. 16:2;Jonah 1:3). Adam never once felt the disposition to resist the pure revelation of perfect righteousness; in him was no rebuke or condemnation; neither was he a burden on God’s grace. Likewise, Christ.
Being the only Begotten, Jesus’ mind and nature and joyful obedience was that of Adam’s. The communications of His mouth came from a disposition of pure joy in God. His Father was His chief joy; heavenly paradise was His home. His thoughts were God’s thoughts; His Father’s will was all His delight. No other could accomplish our removal from the grip of sin; none else exemplified before us the righteousness to obtain: a perfect man, the measure of the stature of the fullness of God.
None else from the great cloud of witnesses of the past provided us a life that God breathed through so continuously every moment of His presence on earth. He was the Word of God, the Bread of heaven which gives life to the whole world. He was the burnt sacrifice who accepted God’s hottest wrath for sin, who drank indeed of the world’s cup of woe, and was baptized with the baptism of the divine fire from His Father, who was much greater than He.
“And when He had given thanks, He brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is My body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of Me.” (1Cor. 11:24). “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is My body. And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; for this is My blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” (Matt. 26:26-28). “For My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He that eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me, and I in him.” (Jn. 6:55,56).
We must have righteousness or we die. “I gave them My statutes, and shewed them My judgments, which if a man do, he shall even live in them.” (Ez. 20:11). But our natural disposition abhors the Law and righteousness and obedience. The One and only who can help us overcome our contempt of God is Christ, Christ’s righteousness. He showed us His loyalty and love of God and His love toward us. He gave His life for us and for God. “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to His own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” (Is. 53:6). “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed.” (vs. 5).
“He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied: by His knowledge shall My righteous servant justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities.” (Is. 53:11). Christ has proven Himself to be our greatest friend. No one else went so low to redeem us from the pit of sin into which we have sunken, and to bring us up so high, forgiven, cleansed, and glorified. He is our burnt offering. The wrath of God toward sin He diverted wholly from us onto His Son, and His God-breathing Son willingly accepted it all. On the cross He took our sentence of the full high-voltage electric chair, as blood ran from every pore on His body and organs. In the cross we see justice and mercy meet when divine vengeance to put a final end to a world of murderous criminals was satisfied on the innocent Son. Christ assumed it all for us.
Now those who will look into the Law and hear its condemnation, if they will receive the gift of repentance and forgiveness and acceptance and justification and sanctification in their Savior, will find a new ability to accept the righteousness of the Law. The sky-high requirements of the Father’s perfect righteousness will be doable. The Father has become our friend and His Law our friend, too.
His law, seen in Christ’s life, is our new standard. Christ brought love and redemption into our concept of obedience. Not that it wasn’t always in God’s character, but we couldn’t see it there. We could not discern love in God’s threats toward sinners. Divine justice categorically drove hope from us. We could not try to petition for grace. We saw divine wrath as despotism and God as a tyrant.
Humanity needed a Mediator to bring them back to God, to broker an appeal for God’s mercy, to stand in our place before a holy God during the intercession because we would have been destroyed in God’s offense. We needed an Intercessor to be our surety that, under His supervision, Christ would restore in us the original image of God, His character, our whole will and heart and strength bent to reflect His righteousness and praise forever.
“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” (Matt. 5:6). “He answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” (Matt. 4:4).
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on Me hath everlasting life.
I am that Bread of life.
Your Fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.
This is the Bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.
I am the living Bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this Bread, He shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” (Jn. 6:47-51).
I am the true Mincah, that was sacrificed for your peace and joy.
“Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you.
Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
For My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.
He that eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me, and I in him.
As the living Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me.
This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your Fathers did eat manna, and are dead: He that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.” (Vs. 53-58).
To search for the bread of heaven or the fountain of youth in anything that comes from a world ruled by Satan, to look to the things of this world for true happiness and joy, is the whole essence of idolatry. Giving this world the highest priority has given Satan our open invitation to him to usurp the throne of God in our body temples and in this world. The devil has urged and assisted us in the act of subordinating heavenly things to satisfactions of the moment. This has been his first and greatest deception, and remains his most potent success.
We must seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and our earthly needs will come in their turn. We must choose God and His righteousness above earthly things. Let this world and its issues sink into insignificance as we seek God and likeness to His character. And that likeness is in His Son.
“Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus,” “who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person.” (Heb 1:3;3:1). In Christ we most clearly see the exalted nature of God.
“Being made so much better than the angels, as He hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.
For unto which of the angels said He at any time, Thou art My Son, this day have I begotten Thee? And again, I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son?
And again, when He bringeth in the Firstbegotten into the world, He saith, And let all the angels of God worship Him.” (Vs. 4-6). “Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.” (Phil. 2:6-8).
He was the true Mincah. He demonstrated heavenly righteousness. His obedience was the fruit of uninterupted breathing of communion with His Father. His words were God-breathed, expressed from a soul in heaven. “Believest Thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of Myself: but the Father that dwelleth in Me, He doeth the works.” (Jn. 14:10). Jesus was the second Adam, who was the perfection of a living, breathing soul. His thoughts were the expression of God’s thoughts. He was more than the prophets, which were constrained to speak for God, whose sinful natures felt a certain pain while possessed by God in vision, and might even sometimes resist. (1Cor. 9:17;1Sam. 16:2;Jonah 1:3). Adam never once felt the disposition to resist the pure revelation of perfect righteousness; in him was no rebuke or condemnation; neither was he a burden on God’s grace. Likewise, Christ.
Being the only Begotten, Jesus’ mind and nature and joyful obedience was that of Adam’s. The communications of His mouth came from a disposition of pure joy in God. His Father was His chief joy; heavenly paradise was His home. His thoughts were God’s thoughts; His Father’s will was all His delight. No other could accomplish our removal from the grip of sin; none else exemplified before us the righteousness to obtain: a perfect man, the measure of the stature of the fullness of God.
None else from the great cloud of witnesses of the past provided us a life that God breathed through so continuously every moment of His presence on earth. He was the Word of God, the Bread of heaven which gives life to the whole world. He was the burnt sacrifice who accepted God’s hottest wrath for sin, who drank indeed of the world’s cup of woe, and was baptized with the baptism of the divine fire from His Father, who was much greater than He.
“And when He had given thanks, He brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is My body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of Me.” (1Cor. 11:24). “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is My body. And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; for this is My blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” (Matt. 26:26-28). “For My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He that eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me, and I in him.” (Jn. 6:55,56).
We must have righteousness or we die. “I gave them My statutes, and shewed them My judgments, which if a man do, he shall even live in them.” (Ez. 20:11). But our natural disposition abhors the Law and righteousness and obedience. The One and only who can help us overcome our contempt of God is Christ, Christ’s righteousness. He showed us His loyalty and love of God and His love toward us. He gave His life for us and for God. “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to His own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” (Is. 53:6). “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed.” (vs. 5).
“He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied: by His knowledge shall My righteous servant justify many; for He shall bear their iniquities.” (Is. 53:11). Christ has proven Himself to be our greatest friend. No one else went so low to redeem us from the pit of sin into which we have sunken, and to bring us up so high, forgiven, cleansed, and glorified. He is our burnt offering. The wrath of God toward sin He diverted wholly from us onto His Son, and His God-breathing Son willingly accepted it all. On the cross He took our sentence of the full high-voltage electric chair, as blood ran from every pore on His body and organs. In the cross we see justice and mercy meet when divine vengeance to put a final end to a world of murderous criminals was satisfied on the innocent Son. Christ assumed it all for us.
Now those who will look into the Law and hear its condemnation, if they will receive the gift of repentance and forgiveness and acceptance and justification and sanctification in their Savior, will find a new ability to accept the righteousness of the Law. The sky-high requirements of the Father’s perfect righteousness will be doable. The Father has become our friend and His Law our friend, too.
His law, seen in Christ’s life, is our new standard. Christ brought love and redemption into our concept of obedience. Not that it wasn’t always in God’s character, but we couldn’t see it there. We could not discern love in God’s threats toward sinners. Divine justice categorically drove hope from us. We could not try to petition for grace. We saw divine wrath as despotism and God as a tyrant.
Humanity needed a Mediator to bring them back to God, to broker an appeal for God’s mercy, to stand in our place before a holy God during the intercession because we would have been destroyed in God’s offense. We needed an Intercessor to be our surety that, under His supervision, Christ would restore in us the original image of God, His character, our whole will and heart and strength bent to reflect His righteousness and praise forever.
posted by David | 3:26 PM
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