THY WORD IS TRUTH JOHN 17:17

Pastor Ted Whitaker, PhD, CLP

Sunday March 22, 2009

Sermon Delivered to Annapolis and Hopedale Presbyterian Churches

Bible quotes: NIV (New International Version)

“Jesus’ Death on the Cross Foretold - Part 4”

Today is the fourth Sunday in lent and we are going again to focus on the sacrifice that Jesus made for us on the cross and what it means for us.

This is the fourth sermon in the series “Jesus Death on the Cross Foretold”.

We have seen very explicit references to Jesus death in the Old Testament scriptures in the previous sermons in lent.

The best of all is Psalm 22 that has 7 major verses that describe a crucifixion scene including piercing of hands and feet written by the prophet David 1000 year before crucifixion was invented by the evil Roman Empire.

If you missed that sermon it is publish on the “Thy Word Is Truth” Hopedale Annapolis blog spot.

Last weeks sermon on the Thirty Pieces of Silver will be posted on the blog Monday if you have missed that one also.

But today, we will consider a passage in Genesis that foretell of a sacrifice of a lamb that will take place in the future and on a very particular piece of real estate called to this very day Mt Moriah.

And where is Mt Moriah located?Mt. Moriah is located in the city of Jerusalem but in the time of Abraham, the first Jew, (the first man to be circumcised), it was not called Jerusalem.

The name of the small town was Salem.(And you may recognize that Salem is contained in the later name of the city, Jerusalem).

Well what is so special about Jerusalem that makes it a special place on the earth that God would make it Holy ground?

And the answer is many things but this passage that we heard read today from the Old Testament in Genesis 22 is one of them.

For the scene in Genesis, is a sacrifice of a son and that son was named Isaac.

We should remember that Isaac was very special son.

He was the son of Abram and Seri old age after they had passed their reproductive years.

And before God changed their names to Abrham and Serah.

Isaac’s birth was a miraculous birth for the birth of Isaac in human terms was impossibility so much so that Isaac name means laughter in Hebrew.

For both Sarah and Abraham laughed when God told them that they would have a son.

So Isaac is a picture of a coming son the only begotten son of God who also had an impossible birth from a woman who had known no man, as virgin.

And there is a scripture one in the Old Testament and one in the New Testament that connects together here describing the birth of both theses impossible sons Isaac and Jesus.

It happened in the New Testament before the birth of John the Baptist at the announcement to the Virgin Mary that she will have a son there is a scripture from Luke 1:3 “Nothing is impossible with God.”

So Isaac, John the Baptist and Jesus all were impossible pregnancies and impossible births in human terms.

So that is the back ground of the sacrifice of an impossible son in Genesis but what is the connection of the intended sacrifice of Isaac and the sacrifice of Jesus of Nazareth on the cross of Calvary that very important piece of real estate in the city of Jerusalem and as I said before it happens on Mt Moriah of all places on the earth this happens at the very same place.

So where is Mt. Moriah in the city of Jerusalem and why is it so important?

To find out we need to look thought the history of the Nation of Israel to see what happens on Mt Moriah between the intended sacrifice of Isaac by Abraham and the crucifixion of Jesus on this very mountain perhaps only few humdred yards hundred of yards away for the very spot.

If we go to the book of chronicles, we find a reference to Mt Moriah and its significance to the Jewish Nation.

Chronicles is a much neglected book of the bible because it is sort of the biblical dumping ground for details that were not included in other books of prophesy.

So it should not be surprising to us that we should find a reference to Mt Moriah in the book. And what do we find about Mt Moriah in Chronicles.

The time is just after the death of King David and David’s son Solomon is now king of Israel.

2 Chronicles chapter 1 verses 3 reads, “Then Solomon began to build the temple of the LORD in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where the LORD had appeared to his father David.

It was on the threshing floor of Araunah, the Jebusite, the place provided by David.

He began building on the second day of the second month in the fourth year of his reign.

So Mt. Moriah is the mountain in the city of Jerusalem where the temple of Jehovah God (YWHW) was built.

And some of you may remember a sermon that I preached here about the temple of Solomon about a year ago.

God the Father took up residence in that Temple that Solomon built and we learned this in the book of 1 kings chapter 8 what happened in the Temple that King Solomon built.

1st Kings Chapter 8 verse 6 reads, “The priests then brought the ark of the LORD's covenant to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place (the Holy of holies), and put it beneath the wings of the cherubim.

The cherubim spread their wings over the place of the ark and overshadowed the ark and its carrying poles.

These poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the Holy Place in front of the inner sanctuary, but not from outside the Holy Place; and they are still there today.

There was nothing in the ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Horeb (which is another name the Jews used for Mt Sinai), where the LORD made a covenant with the Israelites after they came out of Egypt.

When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the temple of the LORD.

And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled his temple.

And I should like to add a comment here.

In the glory of God present in the temple of Solomon, the nation of Israel had a visible sign of God’s presence just like the children of Israel did in the desert floor when Moses when up on Mt Sinai to receive the tablets of stone upon which were written the 10 Commandments.

And here remains in the Holy of Holies the Ark of the Covenant with those same tablets of stone.

And God takes residence in this place and a cloud and the light of his presence is His Shikina glory and the glory of God lighted the Temple of Solomon both day and night.

And what we Kings Solomon’s words as he dedicates the Temple, “Then Solomon said, "The LORD has said that he would dwell in a dark cloud; I have indeed built a magnificent temple for you, a place for you to dwell forever."

But sadly, because of the sin of idolatry of King Solomon kingdom of Israel in the very next generation would be divided and the Temple would remain in the kingdom of Judah.

Israel would build an idolatrous temple in Sechem that would become Samaria.

God did not reside in his Temple forever as Solomon declared for after generation after generation of idolatry of the kings of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar came into Jerusalem destroyed the Temple that Solomon built and carried all the inhabitants of Jerusalem of into slavery in Babylon.

So let’s look at the intended sacrifice of Isaac on Mt. Moriah and see how it foretells of the real sacrifice of Jesus on that very place in Jerusalem.

I have been referring this morning to the intended sacrifice of Isaac on Mt Moriah because as we all know, “Isaac was not sacrificed on the rock on Mt Moriah that day.

And why did this not happen?Because God that Father commanded Abraham to stop and not sacrifice Isaac, Isaac and Abraham lived happily ever as we heard in the Old Testament reading today.

God said to Abraham, "I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore.

Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me."

And it is was a good thing because both Abraham and Isaac are ancestors to Christ.Isaac is the child of the promise just like the land of Canaan is the land of the promise.And what is the promise?

It is the covenant made the Abraham by God. And what about that promise to Abraham is it still a promise and is that promise still in effect.

Does God break promises? God does not swear falsely. The promise of the land was sworn by God.

To break a promise sworn to by God, He would cease to be God because he would no longer be a good God.

God never breaks His promises.But did Abraham fail make a sacrifice there on Mt. Moriah that day in disobeying God to make a sacrifice?

Abraham did not disobey God and for Abraham made a sacrifice of a lamb. And male sheep not just any lamb.

What did Isaac say as he was lead to that rock on Mt. Moriah?“

Where is the lamb for the sacrifice, father?

And what was Abraham’s response to Isaac’s question.God will provide a lamb my son.

And when God stopped Abraham from sacrificing Isaac what happened. They found a ram, a male sheep, caught in a bush by its horns and that was the lamb that God provided so his command would be obeyed by Abraham. Isaac was not sacrificed but an animal was substituted for a human sacrifice.

And it is a substitutionary sacrifice.

And it foretells of Jesus sacrifice on that very mountain in Jerusalem approximately 2000 years later.

Jesus is the real substitutionary sacrifice for our sins.He takes on our sins on himself and He is the perfect Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world.

Jesus takes our punishment for our sins on himself on Mt Moriah.

The fact that God provided a substitution of a male sheep on exactly the same spot on the earth that King Solomon built the Temple and exactly the same spot on the earth that Jesus of Nazareth was crucified is enough evidence for anyone to believe!

Amen.