The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…
"The Holy Spirit's Masterpiece (Tour de Force!)"
"We open the pages to behold the Person, the Person of the Lord Jesus in His character, nature, way, and promise to serve as the very Life of our lives."
The Bible exists as the Holy Spirit's masterpiece biography of the Lord Jesus Christ. As the Savior declared…
"Search the Scriptures, for in them ye think ye have eternal life. And they are they which testify of Me" (John 5:39).
Certainly, the New Testament bears continual and constant reference to the Lord Jesus, beginning with "the book of the generation of Jesus Christ" (Matthew 1:1). However, the Old Testament to which He referred in the statement above no less accomplishes the same purpose without directly referencing our Lord's name. This perfectly correlates to God's "eternal purpose" being "in Christ Jesus our Lord," and to the centrality He occupies in everything our Heavenly Father does (Ephesians 3:11).
"When He shall appear, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is" (I John 3:2).
"Beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, we are changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord" (II Corinthians 3:18).
The Apostle John references the coming day of perfection in our Lord's direct presence. The Apostle Paul addresses the subject regarding this present day of progress in Christ's likeness. John promises our physically seeing Christ with our glorified eyes, and being like Him as the holy result. Paul references our presently knowing Christ by faith, and thereby progressively becoming more like Him. Where best to do so? The Holy Spirit's masterpiece answers the question. The living Word, the Lord Jesus, shines with wondrous brilliance and glory in the written Word, the Bible. "In Thy light shall we see light" (Psalm 36:9). We open the pages to behold the Person, the Person of the Lord Jesus in His character, nature, way, and promise to serve as the very Life of our lives. "To live is Christ" (Philippians 1:21). Wondrously, the Author comes with His book as the Holy Spirit illuminates the words He inspired to infuse them with living displays of the Savior He seeks to glorify and reveal (John 16:14; 15:26). "When He, the Spirit of truth is come, He will guide you into all truth… Jesus said unto him, "I am… the truth" (John 16:13; 14:6).
As we read and ponder, we will not always perceive how Christ serves as the heart and theme of all Scripture. Some passages may seem as mere history of other individuals, or events, genealogies, and obscure references that do not seem to glimmer with the light of the Lord Jesus. They do, however. The Holy Spirit made certain of this in His inspiration. He will also help us as we read to realize how Christ-saturated and infused is the entire Bible. Again, of the Scriptures, the Lord Jesus declared, "They are they which testify of Me." Remembering this primary truth will make far more likely our beholding the Savior's significance as related to every letter, word, sentence, verse, book, and Testament of the Bible.
Our calling involves opening the Book in realization of its Theme and Subject. We do well to ask our Heavenly Father for the Holy Spirit's guidance as we read to "grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ" (II Peter 3:18). The Spirit of God will thereby bear witness to the Christ of God, whether knowingly, or deeply within our hearts in rays of light that may someday connect with other Scripture to reveal the Lord Jesus. What a Volume, what a gift of grace, and what a light to shine upon and within us! Yes, the Bible abides as the most widely read and best selling book of all history. How could the Holy Spirit's masterpiece, His tour de force of the Lord Jesus Christ, be anything else?
"And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself."
(Luke 24:27)
"We have also a more sure Word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the Day Star arise in your heart - I am the bright and morning Star" - knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit."
(II Peter 1:19-21; Revelation 22:16)
Weekly Memory Verse
"Thy gentleness hath made me great."
(Psalm 18:35)
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