Christ, Creation Mandate, and New Creation

I’m not a “yard work” guy. At all. It’s all I can do to keep my lawn cut and my weeds (reasonably) at bay. Yard work gives me hives—literally—along with itchy, bloodshot eyes and a runny nose. The one redeeming quality of yard work, as I see it, is that it highlights our need of Christ.

Now, my knee-jerk response to weeds is to blame Adam for the fall and curse in Genesis 3. However, though what we often call the “first gospel” (protoevangelium) doesn’t occur until Genesis 3:15, I’d argue that even Genesis 1-2 highlight Christ and redemption for at least two reasons.

First, Genesis 1:26-28 records the “Creation Mandate”:

Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

God gave humanity the responsibility of subduing the earth. From where I’m sitting, that’s not going well. My feeble efforts on my two-acre parcel of the earth, described above, demonstrate the problem. Creation—like my yard—is far from subdued, and it’s not just weeds. Earthquakes, tsunamis, and floods rage. Animals eat each other. In short, the thorns and thistles are winning. Until when? Until Christ establishes His kingdom. Only then will the Creation Mandate be completely fulfilled. Only through Jesus will all things be brought under a man’s feet (Psalm 8:6-8; 1 Corinthians 15:25-27; Ephesians 1:22). Only when Christ has triumphed will animals be subdued under a human Governor and the wolf lay with the lamb (Isaiah 11:1-9). In short, only Christ can fulfill God’s command from Genesis 1:26-28, just as only Christ could fulfill God’s commands from Exodus 20. God gave the commands in Genesis 1-2, knowing that only the Second Adam and not the First could ultimately keep them.

Second, God’s revelation ends with an unmistakable allusion back to Genesis 1-2 in Revelation 21-22. When Christ’s redemptive work is complete, creation will be remade (note the allusion to Isaiah 65:17-25 in Revelation 21:1ff). The New Jerusalem will be the improved and permanent Eden. Creation will be perfect and peaceful and subdued when the Messiah’s redemptive ministry if fulfilled and He hits creation’s “reset” button. Christ will fulfill and renew Genesis 1-2 while also undoing Genesis 3.

As much as I love Genesis 3:15, we need to be mindful that God’s plan of redemption preceded the fall and even creation itself (Revelation 13:8). Centering all things on Christ, the Creator, Redeemer, and King, wasn’t a response to human sin, nor is it a sub-plot of the Scriptures. It’s central to what God is doing—and has always done—in His relationship to creation. Christ, the source of creation, is also its end. The Bible hinges on Him, from Genesis 1 through Revelation 22. So what? Well, for one thing, I can’t wait to cast off my weeding gloves and allergy meds. But more importantly, Genesis 1-2 are every bit as Christ-centered as the rest of Scripture.

Christ: The Lamb, Scapegoat, Turtle Dove, and Heifer

I love the Word. And the Word. And words. It’s no wonder, then, that I so enjoy reading Spurgeon when he waxes eloquent about our Savior—which is often. Today I marvel with him at Christ’s fulfilling such varied and “apparently contradictory” OT prophecies. I invite you to join us.

“There is not a single jewel of promise, from that first emerald which fell on the threshold of Eden, to that last sapphire-stone of Malachi which was not set in the breast-plate of the true High Priest. No, there is not a type, from the red heifer downward to the turtle-dove, from the hyssop upwards to Solomon’s temple itself which was not fulfilled in Him. And not a prophecy, whether spoken on Chebar’s bank, or on the shores of Jordan, not a dream of wise men, whether they had received it in Babylon, or in Samaria, or in Judea which was not now fully worked out in Christ Jesus. And, Brethren, what a wonderful thing it is, that a mass of promises and prophecies and types apparently so heterogeneous, should all be accomplished in one Person! Take away Christ for one moment and I will give the Old Testament to any wise man living and say to him, ‘Take this. This is a problem, go home and construct in your imagination an ideal character who shall exactly fit all that which is herein foreshadowed. Remember, He must be a Prophet like unto Moses and yet a champion like Joshua. He must be an Aaron and a Melchisedek. He must be both David and Solomon, Noah and Jonah, Judah and Joseph. No, He must not only be the lamb that was slain and the scapegoat that was not slain, the turtle-dove that was dipped in blood and the priest who slew the bird, but He must be the altar, the tabernacle, the mercy seat and the showbread.’ No, to puzzle this wise man further, we remind him of prophecies so apparently contradictory that one would think they never could meet in one man—such as these, ‘All kings shall fall down before Him and all nations shall serve Him.’ And yet, ‘He is despised and rejected of men.’ He must begin by showing a man born of a virgin mother—’A virgin shall conceive and bear a Son.’ He must be a man without spot or blemish, but yet one upon whom the Lord does cause to meet the iniquities of us all. He must be a glorious one, a Son of David, but yet a root out of a dry ground. Now I say it boldly—if all the greatest intellects of all the ages could set themselves to work out this problem, to invent another key to the types and prophecies—they could not do it. I see you, you wise men—you are poring over these hieroglyphs—one suggests one key and it opens two or three of the figures. But you cannot proceed for the next one puts you at a nonplus. Another learned man suggests another clue—but that fails most where it is most needed—and another and another and thus these wondrous hieroglyphs traced of old by Moses in the wilderness must be left unexplained, till one comes forward and proclaims—’The Cross of Christ and the Son of God incarnate’—then the whole is clear, so that he that runs may read and a child may understand. Blessed Savior! In You we see everything fulfilled which God spoke of in old by the Prophets. In You we discover everything carried out in substance which God had set before us in the dim mist of sacrificial smoke. Glory be unto Your name! ‘It is finished’—everything is summed up in YOU!”

(From Sermon #421: “It Is Finished”)

New Hymn from CWM: “Relentless Love”

Greg Habegger and I have collaborated on a new hymn which celebrates Christ’s love for the Christian—a love that is undeserved and unrelenting. We trust that Relentless Love will edify the church and exalt Christ. The text of the song and its links (including PDFs) can be found below.

As usual, many friends were involved in the editing process. This time, David Hosaflook and I enjoyed special fellowship around this great theme, and his input was exceedingly helpful. Thank you, David.

Relentless Love (Text by Chris Anderson; Tune by Greg Habegger)

Full Page / Half Page / Text / Notes & Discussion / MP3

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Relentless love embraced my soul in ages past—
Love undeserved, unknown, yet deep and vast.
God set His love on me—on me, in spite of me!
Salvation’s work is His from first to last.

Chorus
Unbounded love, unfailing love,
Love raised upon a tree;
Unending love, prevailing love—
My Savior’s sovereign love for me.

Relentless love pursued my heart, though I would hide—
Love unreturned, yet undeterred by pride.
Till by a grace unsought, my rebel soul was caught—
Redeemed by love that would not be denied.

Relentless love preserves my life from unbelief—
Sustains me through my sin, my doubt, my grief.
Since Christ has done it all, though feeble, I’ll not fall,
His wounded hands hold me, the sinners’ chief.

Relentless love transforms my soul and its delights—
Exceeds the fleeting joys which once sufficed.
Held by His love for me—a hold which sets me free!—
I have my heart’s desire, and that is Christ.

Follow the Cherubim

Tim Challies posts today on one of my favorite themes, the cherubims’ protection of God’s presence. It’s an amazing theme, and it highlights the access that was regained for sinners through the sacrifice of Christ. The torn veil signified the removal of the barrier between God and fallen humanity—the stepping aside of the cherubim who had barred access to God ever since Eden. “Access.” I love that word (Ephesians 3:12).

The cherub motif is one I’ve pursued in a hymn I wrote with James Koerts—”Draw Near through Christ” (Text /MP3 / PDF / SATB / Notes). Grace.

“There is room for no rival.”

I love this summary of the message of Colossians from Floyd V. Filson’s little book Opening the New Testament:

“Paul’s central theme is clear. Jesus Christ is the one and sufficient Saviour of men. He rightly claims the full faith and loyalty of them all. There is no need and no place for all the angel worship, legalistic rules, and ascetic practices by which some Colossians were tempted to think they could reach God. In Jesus Christ, God has come to them; the Son has made the Father known, and given redemption and new life to all believers. He is the one Head of the church. There is room for no rival.” (148)

That’s a relevant message for Uganda. And the United States.

The Purpose of Grace is Glory

One of the most important mental shifts of my Christian life has been learning that God’s purpose in salvation (as in all things) is not merely man’s blessedness, but His own glory. Just as all things were created by and for Christ (Colossians 1:16), all Christians are also redeemed by and for Christ (Colossians 1:18). Though I haven’t noticed it before, the latter verse is one of the most explicit in Scripture regarding the doxological (God-glorifying) purpose of redemption. Jesus has raised us from spiritual death with the specific intention (ina) of being “preeminent” in everything. The purpose of grace is glory, which (ironically) makes our salvation even more delightful to us! W. R. Nicholson comments on this point ably classic book on Colossians:

“He Himself should be pre-eminent. Precisely He is the objective point in the whole plan. As creation is unto Him (sixteenth verse), so redemption should terminate in Him. All its processes and all its results should be gauged and characterized by the unfolding of the ineffable riches of His Eternal Sonship. The purpose of redemption is the salvation of sinners; but the ultimate purpose is the setting forth of the Redeemer Himself. In this fuller display of Him who is the Son and the manifestation of Deity, the inseparable glory of the entire Godhead is made known; and thus, all the more perfect and soul-satisfying and endlessly precious, and glorious for ourselves, is our salvation, because of its being the leading and ultimate purpose thereof to unveil before us the effulgent majesty of Him who saves us.” (Oneness with Christ, 85)

Guest Post: The Central Message of the Old Testament

Joe Tyrpak is my dear friend. He is the assistant pastor of  Tri-County Bible Church, which also makes him my pastor and co-laborer. His insights into the Scriptures are always instructive for me (you can find many of his sermons here), and what follows is no exception. I post it with his permission as part of the growing discussion on Christ in the Old Testament (see this post).

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2 Timothy 3:14-4:2 is one of the more familiar passages in the Bible for Christians. It’s the classic proof text for the Scriptures’ inspiration and sufficiency and for the pastor’s primary responsibility of preaching it. However, what it teaches about the central message of the Old Testament is frequently overlooked. Read it again more closely:

“But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work. I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort with complete patience and teaching” (2 Tim 3:14-4:2).

Did you notice the three terms for the Old Testament? Paul commanded Timothy to “preach the word” (4:2). In the two preceding sentences he had reminded Timothy that “the sacred writings” had brought him to “faith in Christ Jesus” (3:15) and that “all Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable” (3:16).

Although “the sacred writings,” “all Scripture,” and “the word” are interchangeable terms that refer to the same material, the Old Testament, they denote that material in ways that slightly differ from one another.

Music Workshop Posted, Pride Article Printed

Two resources MTC readers might be interested in:

The first resource is a PDF of the notes from my music workshop at the Preserving the Truth Conference. The workshop was entitled “Music that Glorifies God.” Due to time constraints (and time management) I didn’t get through all of my material during the lecture, so some of the content isn’t on the mp3 of the session (or in the conference notebook, for that matter). Here are the main points:

Assertion 1: We must be more intentionally biblical in our evaluation of music that glorifies God.

Assertion 2: The Psalms are a model of music that glorifies God.

Application 1: The Psalms teach us how texts can glorify God.

Application 2: The Psalms teach us how tunes can glorify God.

This and other resources from the PTT Conference can be found here. Thanks to Joe Tyrpak, with whom I serve at TCBC, and whose thoughts on the Psalms have been foundational to my understanding. Our collaborative work on service-planning, including the use of the Psalms, was provided as supplementary material for the conference notebook and can be downloaded here.

The second resource isn’t available online but can presumably be purchased in print form. I was invited to write an article on pride for the FBF’s magazine Frontline. I took as my text Luke 18:9-14, where Christ contrasts the prayers of the self-righteous Pharisee and the self-loathing publican. The gist:

“Pride is deadly specifically because it denies our need of the gospel and its saving benefits.”

I appreciate both opportunities and pray that the Lord will use these studies to build up His church and glorify His name. Grace.

Wondering at the Incarnation: “Almighty Slept”

The doctrine of the incarnation—that the Godhead was “veiled in flesh,” to quote Wesley’s great hymn—is filled with ironies. As God, the Word has enjoyed all the attributes of deity from eternity past. But as man, the Word become flesh partook of the weaknesses of the creature. He fled and slept; He bled and wept. He died that He might purchase us with His blood.

The following text probably needs to be tightened up a bit if it is to be used in song, but it searches out some of the mysteries of the Incarnation and expresses my adoring wonder. What a Savior we have!

Almighty Slept

8.8.8.8.8.8

Almighty slept—What irony!
Be awed by Christ’s humanity.
In cattle stall then violent storm
Almighty slept, first young, then worn.
Almighty slept—Who slumbers not!—
And God as man salvation brought.

Messiah fled—Indignity!
Be struck by God’s fragility.
As mothers mourned and Herod schemed
Messiah fled, warned through a dream.
Messiah fled, yet at God’s time
Embraced the cross with joy sublime.

The Maker sweat—A mystery!
Be touched by His humility.
By toil fatigued and sin oppressed,
The Maker sweat that we may rest.
The Maker sweat great drops of red
To ponder death in sinners’ stead.

The Sov’reign wept—Such empathy!
Be moved by mourning majesty.
As once He grieved at Laz’rus’ tomb,
The Sov’reign wept with death-like gloom.
The Sov’reign wept in garden still,
Yet bowed before His Father’s will.

The Savior bled—Oh travesty!
Be pierced by Jesus’ agony.
As Satan raged and sinners scorned
The Savior bled—despised, forlorn.
The Savior bled for sin perverse
To vanquish sin and end the curse.

 

And He Shall Reign For Ever and Ever

I can’t watch this video without being moved to joyful tears. Oh, that those who sang and heard that day would understand the glorious gospel truths contained in that great anthem! And some day they will, when “the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever” (Revelation 11:15).

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Note: You can learn more about the gospel of Jesus Christ here.