THE FOUR SHEEP OF JERUSALEM. Session 1. The Ram of Mt Moriah (The first of four studies on The Four Sheep of Jerusalem )

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1 THE FOUR SHEEP OF JERUSALEM Session 1 The Ram of Mt Moriah (The first of four studies on The Four Sheep of Jerusalem ) Before we begin this study on the sacrifice of a ram at Mount Moriah, it s worth asking what can be learned from the very first mention of animal sacrifice in the Bible. The first account of animal sacrifice in Scripture is the story of Cain and Abel (Gen 4:1-7). Read Genesis 4:1-7 What principles does this story teach? The story of Abel is the first to establish the principle of a lamb (or any other herd animal) being sacrificed in an act of worship to God. We read that Abel offered animals (probably lambs) from his flock as a sacrifice. Specifically, it says: Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of the flock (Genesis 4:4). What does the fat signify? The book of Leviticus gives us a clue. It says of the fat, The priest shall turn these into smoke on the altar as a food offering by fire for a pleasing odour. All fat is the Lord s (Lev 3:16). Fat, as anyone familiar with a barbecue will tell you, was that part of the sacrifice that caused a sweet aroma to rise. It was the part of the sacrifice that was particularly combustible and caused a sweet smell. The fat portion was considered the best and it was this that was offered to the Lord. It was specifically stated that although the priests were able to eat a portion of the meat from sacrificed animals, no one was allowed to eat the fat of any animal sacrificed to God. This is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come wherever you live. You must not eat any fat (Lev 3:17). The fat was given exclusively to God. We read that Abel s careful sacrifice was in stark contrast with that of his brother Cain who was careless with his offering to God. He simply placed some vegetables before God, without care. The Lord, who knows the inner thoughts of everyone s heart, knew this and was displeased (Jer 17:10). This is a salutary reminder that our worship of God needs to be real and sincere. The story of the first animal sacrifice in Scripture establishes the principle of returning a life to God as a token of gratitude, and of doing so at some cost to yourself. 1

2 Let s now explore some other key principles concerning animal sacrifice taught in Genesis? Read Genesis 22:1-18 Quiet reflection: What things is God calling you to sacrifice in order to be faithful to him? Many people find this story deeply disturbing. It prompts the question: Does God require the sacrifice of children? What do you think? God loves people who totally commit to him, who withhold nothing and who honour him with everything. And yet God hates the killing of innocent people particularly children. So when God tells Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac to him, God is making it clear that God loves devotion to him that is total. However, by preventing Abraham from sacrificing his son, God is making it clear that he is not the sort of God who requires the sacrifice of children. In fact, he makes it very clear that he considers the sacrifice of children a detestable practice a practice which he did not command or mention, nor did it enter my mind (Jer 7:31; 19:5). God says specifically to his people, Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire... (Deut 18:10). The term detestable practices is used in the Old Testament in relation to the worship of false gods (Deut 20:16-18; Jer 16:17-18). In particular, it was used to describe the practice of sacrificing children to false gods (2 Chron 28:1-4; 33:1-6). This behaviour resulted in God s judgement on those whom the Jews dispossessed when they invaded Canaan (Deut 12:29-31; Ps 106:34-39). It was certainly a practice of the Amalekites. The Amalekites consistently sought the annihilation of the Jews (Exod 17:8-14; Num 14:41-45; Judges 3:12-14; Judges 6:3,33-35). It was their implacable stance against the Jews, coupled with their practice of sacrificing children to false gods (Deut 12:31), that resulted in God condemning them to total annihilation (1 Sam 15:1-3). What factors help us make sense of the violence of God in the Old Testament? There are eight factors to be born in mind when seeking to make sense of the violence of God in the Old Testament. 1. God is loving (1 Jn 4:8). He is the final definition of love 2. God is just (2 Thess 1:6). He is the final definition of what is just (Job 40:2,8). 3. God is holy. He has a zero tolerance for evil. God will kill it off. The sobering reality is that there is a sense in which we all deserve death (Rom 2

3 3:23). 4. The nations displaced by the Jews when they had invaded Canaan had engaged in detestable practices when worshipping their false gods (Deut 20:16-18). This had particularly included the sacrifice of children (2 Chron 28:3). 5. God commanded the Jews to offer the option of peace rather than annihilation to any people-group living in Canaan if it were not a threat to God s people and was willing to serve them (Deut 20:10-11). 6. Jesus is the perfect picture of God. He completes and perfects our understanding of him and is therefore the true and authoritative representation of God s character. 7. This present life is not all there is. Nor is it of central importance when viewed from the perspective of God s eternity. No good person (of any race and nationality) will fail to receive his or her reward in eternity. 8. God allows us to represent a little of his authority in commissioning us to bring order to what is unruly in his creation (Gen 1:28; 2:15). This principle might possibly be extended to allow us to prefigure his judgement on what is evil by allowing us to engage in a just war. The significance of the Abraham and Isaac story is not just to teach about total commitment to God. Its purpose is to introduce two divine principles that will resurface continually throughout scripture. What principles do you think these are? By asking Abraham to sacrifice a ram instead of his son, God was establishing the principle of something else dying in our place of our life being redeemed or substituted by something else. The second principle introduced by this story is that of God himself providing the sheep to be sacrificed. When Abraham was walking with Isaac to the place of sacrifice, he had no idea that God would provide the sheep to be sacrificed. When Isaac asked innocently where the lamb was that would be sacrificed, Abraham hadn t a clue how accurate his reply would be: Abraham answered, God himself will provide the lamb (Gen 22:8). God s provision of a sheep (a ram) to be sacrificed in Isaac s stead resulted in Abraham calling the place of sacrifice The Lord Will Provide (Gen 22:14). What parallels do you see between this story and the story of Jesus? Leader s note: The sacrifice of an only son God s provision of the sacrificial offering. God provided a sheep (a ram) and later, God provided the Lamb of God (Jn 1:29) i.e. his son, Jesus. 3

4 Jesus, the Lamb of God (Jn 1:29), would die in our place to take the blame for our sins so that we might have the right to live with God eternally (Jn 3:16; 1 Pet 3:18). The parallels between the story of Abraham and Isaac and that of Jesus are not coincidental. Throughout this study series, we will learn that God does nothing significant in the New Testament that he hasn t foreshadowed in the Old Testament. The principles and patterns in Genesis that foreshadow the sacrifice of Jesus even extend to place where Abraham made his sacrifice Mount Moriah. The name Moriah occurs twice in the Old Testament. The first is in the Abraham and Isaac story. Then God said, Take your son, your only son, whom you love Isaac and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you (Gen 22:2). The second reference to Mount Moriah follows the story of King David offering a sacrifice at Araunah s threshing floor (1 Chron 21:18 22:1). Although some scholars dispute the location of Mt Moriah, its reference in 1 Chron 21 has led to the understanding that the peak on which Araunah's threshing floor was located became the site of Solomon s temple in Jerusalem. This peak on which the temple was built was Mount Moriah. 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 (2 Chron 3:1). What is the significance of this? Leader s note: The site where God first provided a sheep to be sacrificed became the site of Jerusalem s temple where sheep were routinely offered to take away the sins of the people. More than that, Jerusalem would be the place where Jesus, the Lamb of God would sacrifice himself to take away the sins of all people for all time. The principle of sacrifice first established in Genesis 4 reached its fulfilment in Jesus and all at the same place: Mount Moriah. Wow! Close in prayer 4

5 Session 2 The Lamb in the Temple (The second of four studies on The Four Sheep of Jerusalem ) The most important day of the Jewish nation was Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. It took place on the tenth day of the seventh month (Tishrei) in the Jewish lunar calendar. (This equates to a Saturday in September or October in our modern Gregorian calendar). Yom Kippur was, and is, regarded as the "Sabbath of Sabbaths". It was a time of national repentance, a time when the Jewish nation held its breath and prayed that God would forgive their sins one more year. The Day of Atonement was instituted by Moses at God s command (see: Lev 16). Aaron had to wash before wearing the special priestly garments reserved for his role as High Priest (Lev 16:4). He was the only one allowed to enter the Holy of Holies, and he did so just once a year on the Day of Atonement. The Holy of Holies was where the Arc of the Covenant was placed. This was a gold-covered box made of Acacia wood containing memorabilia reminding the Jews of God s faithfulness in the past. It contained the two stone tablets on which the Ten Commandments were written, a jar of manna (the food which fed the Jews during their forty years in the wilderness), and Aaron s staff which miraculously budded, indicating that Aaron had been chosen by God. Two golden cherubim adorned the lid of the Arc. The space between the cherubim on top of the lid was known as the Mercy Seat and it symbolized the very presence of God. The High Priest sacrificed a bull for his own sin offering and then cast lots to see which of two goats would be sacrificed to God for the sins of the people. Blood from the bull and the goat was sprinkled by the High Priest on the lid of the Ark. The High Priest then placed his hands on the head of the goat that stayed alive and symbolically transferred the sins of the people to the goat. Following this, the animal was taken out of the city and set free in the wilderness. It became the scapegoat that took the sins of the people away. Read Leviticus 16:6-10 What in this story foreshadows the ministry of Jesus? If it is true, as we learned in the last lesson, that God does nothing significant in the New Testament that he doesn t foreshadow in the Old Testament, then why didn t God organize for Jesus to die on the Day of Atonement? If he had, it would make the connection between Jesus, and the sacrifice of the goat that took away the sins of the people. 5

6 The Jewish people had gone to live in Egypt to escape the ravages of a seven-year drought. This happened when Joseph was managing Egypt s affairs for the Pharaoh. The Jews were resident in Egypt possibly as long as 400 years. Sadly, subsequent Pharaohs enslaved and brutalized the Hebrew people, forcing them to work on their building projects. If this were not bad enough, Pharaoh Amenhotep I ordered that all the first-born children born in a Jewish family were to be put to death (Exod 1:15-16). He d grown alarmed at the number Jews living in his kingdom. Amenhotep s son and successor Thutmose I ( B.C.) had a daughter named Hatshepsut. Hatshepsut married her half-brother, Thutmose II. When Thutmose II died prematurely, Hatshepsut assumed the role of pharaoh along with her young nephew (and stepson) Thutmose III. It is very possible that Hatshepsut was the young queen who rescued baby Moses from the Nile and brought him up in the royal court (Ex. 2:5-10). She was an extraordinarily capable woman. During her co-regency with Thutmose III, Egypt enjoyed a time of prosperity and undertook many ambitious building projects that relied on the labour of Jewish slaves. The son of Thutmose III then became pharaoh. He was called Amenhotep II ( B.C.), and it is likely that he was the pharaoh of the exodus. According to 1 Kings 6:1, the exodus occurred 480 years prior to the laying of the foundations of Solomon s temple in 966 BC. This means the exodus took place in 1446 B.C. Amenhotep II ruled from Memphis for most of his life, rather than from Thebes in the south where he predecessors had reigned. Memphis was relatively close to the land of Goshen, which would have made Pharaoh readily accessible to Moses and Aaron. The story of the exodus begins with God sending ten plagues of judgement on Egypt in order to persuade a hard-hearted Pharaoh to let the Jewish people go free. The last plague was the death of all firstborn animals and humans in the land. God told his people, through Moses, to take the blood of a male lamb (or goat) and smear it on the lintel and doorposts of their huts. This would prevent the angel of death bringing God's judgement on those inside. The judgement of God would pass over them. Ever since that day, the Jews have celebrated the Passover every year. The Passover was celebrated in spring, six months before the Day of Atonement. Exodus 12:3-13. What extra significance does the Passover teach about Jesus sacrificial death on our behalf? Leader s note: The lamb (or young goat), like Jesus, was without defect (Exod 12:5). The blood of the lamb really did cause the judgment of God (i.e. death) to pass over God s people. 6

7 The gospel accounts make it clear that Jesus died on, or very near, the Jewish religious festival of Passover (Mk 14:12; Lk 22:1-2). In other words, God chose the symbolism and significance of the Passover, rather than the Day of Atonement, to best reflect the significance of Jesus sacrifice. Luke 22:7-20 What particular features of this story impact you and inform you? Leader s note: Jesus is the Passover lamb who causes the judgement of God to pass over us and not destroy us. It was the shedding of Jesus blood (symbolised by the wine) that made this possible. It is interesting to note that Jesus eagerly looked forward to sharing the Passover meal with his disciples (Lk 22:15). On the face of it, this seems crazy as the meal meant that his death was imminent. However, in Jesus mind, the meal celebrated the new covenant that would exist between God and humankind because of his death on our behalf. It marked the climax and resolution of the Father s plans. Jesus therefore turns the last supper into a covenant meal. (A covenant meal typically ended the series of rituals that were carried out in the Middle East when two people entered into a blood covenant.) During the Passover meal, Jesus points to the time when he will eat and drink with his disciples again in God s coming kingdom when the full significance of our covenant with God will finally be realised (Lk 22:16-18). When God gave his people instructions about what daily sacrifices should be offered to him in his tabernacle (and later, in the temple), he said that that a lamb was to be sacrificed both in the morning and in the evening (Exod 29:38-41; Num 28:3-5). This was to happen every day. In other words, there was never a day when the Jews were allowed to forget the significance of a lamb that was slain to cause the judgement of God to pass over them. The grandest temple built to worship God in the Old Testament was constructed by Solomon. It was built in 832 BC and remained in use until the Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar II, destroyed it in 422 BC. This means that every day, for 410 years, two lambs were sacrificed to God for the sins of the people. The practice of sacrificing a lamb morning and night was continued when the second temple was built in Jerusalem under the leadership of Ezra. That temple operated between 516 BC and 70 BC. By instituting the practice of sacrificing a lamb morning and night in his temple, God cemented a principle into the heart of his people; a principle that was introduced by the first Passover in 1446 BC. 7

8 What links are there between the ram sacrificed at Mount Moriah, and the Passover? Teacher s note: Both involved the sacrifice of a male sheep. Both sheep substituted for the death of God s people. Both sheep were provided by God. Both were sacrificed in Jerusalem. Close with prayer 8

9 Session 3 Jesus, the Lamb of God (The third of four studies on The Four Sheep of Jerusalem ) This is the lesson in which we see everything coming together. This is when we see the fulfilment of Old Testament principles and prophecies regarding the lamb of God. The patterns only hinted at by God providing the ram for sacrifice on Mount Moriah; only hinted at by God ordering a lamb to be sacrificed morning and night in his temple all reach their fulfilment in the coming of Jesus. Jesus Christ was the one to whom all references to sheep being sacrificed in the Old Testament were pointing. So let s explore how the Old Testament principles regarding the sheep of Jerusalem are resolve in Jesus Christ. Read Romans 3:20-26 What principles and insights do you learn from this passage? Teacher s notes: No one can be made righteous by observing moral and religious laws. They can t change a person on the inside and make them perfect enough to be with a perfectly holy God (v.20). But now, something new has happened. Through God s initiative, we have been given righteousness. This initiative of God s shouldn t be a surprise to anyone, as the Old Testament prophesied that it would happen e.g. in Isaiah 53, (v.21). This righteousness is obtained by putting our faith in Jesus Christ who died to pay the price for our sins (vv.22-25). God waited patiently through history to deal with our sins, once and for all, at moment Christ died (vv.25-26). The principle introduced by the story of the ram on Mount Moriah is that of the Lord providing the sacrifice. It also introduces the principle of a sheep being sacrificed in the place of a human being. The story, as we have said, reaches its fulfilment in Jesus. The New Testament makes it clear that God sacrificed himself, as Jesus, in the place of humankind. Even though it was sinful humankind that deserved God s judgement and death (Rom 6:23), Jesus stepped in and offered himself in our place. He became our sin and took our punishment. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Cor 5:21) He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness (1 Pet 2:24). Similarly, the principle introduced by a lamb being sacrificed morning and night in Jerusalem s reaches its fulfilment in Jesus. Jesus became for us the Passover lamb whose blood was shed so that the judgement of God would pass over us. 9

10 But now, in Christ Jesus, you who once were far away (from God) have been brought near through the blood of Christ (Eph 2:13). For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous to bring you to God (1 Pet 3:18). Read Ephesians 2:1-10 What principles and insights do you learn from this passage? Leader s note: The fact that we are: made alive with Christ (v.5), and are raised up with Christ (v.6) teaches us the significance of being in Christ Jesus (v.7). We are saved by putting our faith in Christ Jesus. Yet verse 8 tells us that the faith to believe is a gift from God. Why would God give the gift of faith to some people and not others and then exclude those without faith from eternal life with him? It hardly seems fair. What s the answer? Leader s note: God always protects our free choice to accept or reject him. However, no one can make that choice unless God opens up the mind enough (i.e. gives faith) so that someone is able to make a legitimate choice to accept or reject Christ Jesus. So, whilst God s gives us the faith to believe, not everyone chooses to do so. John the Baptist made the link between Jesus and the Passover lamb very clear. He pointed Jesus out to his disciples and said, Look, the Lamb of God (Jn 1:29). The significance of this description of Jesus comes, of course, from the events of the first Passover that occurred when the Hebrew people were enslaved in Egypt. At that time, God sent ten plagues of judgement on the land of Egypt. The last plague was the death of all firstborn animals and humans. God had prepared his people for this and had told them, through Moses, to take the blood of a lamb and smear it on the lintel and doorposts of their huts. This would prevent the angel of death bringing God's judgement on those inside. In other words, the death of a lamb would cause the judgement of God to pass over them. When this is fully appreciated, it becomes possible to understand the significance of the words Jesus spoke just before his death. We read that Jesus lifted up a cup of wine during the last supper and said, this is my blood...which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins (Mt 26:28). In saying this, Jesus was making it clear that he was the true Lamb of God who would shed his blood to atone for the sins of all people in order to make them worthy of life with God. Intriguingly, the annual Jewish ceremony of the Passover typically involved hiding a third of a loaf of bread. This symbolised the fact that the Messiah was still hidden and had not yet been revealed. It is therefore highly significant that Jesus took the bread and instead of hiding it he gave it to his disciples saying that the bread represented his body that would be broken and given in payment for the sins of all 10

11 people (1 Cor 11:24). Significantly, Jesus did not hide any of the bread. He didn t hide it because the Messiah had now been fully revealed as Jesus. Share an agape meal together: Conclude by sharing in Holy Communion together if your denomination allows it. If they don t, then adapt the ceremony so that it becomes an agape meal. This will allow you to share in bread and wine in a more informal way. Invite people to pray and give thanks to God for: the gift of Jesus body to the church (symbolised by the bread) the sacrifice of Jesus blood shed on our behalf (symbolised by the wine) Thank God for the gift of Jesus and expect to experience God in a new way as you do. What impressions and insights into Christ s love and sacrifice did you have as you shared the agape meal together? A direct link between the Messiah and a lamb is given in the prophetic writings of Isaiah in the Old Testament. Isaiah writes about the Messiah, saying: He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth (Is 53:7). The mission of Jesus to die as our Passover Lamb was well understood by the early church. When the apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthian church, urging them to get rid of their old legalistic religious practices, he wrote: Get rid of the old yeast, so that you may be a new unleavened batch as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed (1 Cor 5:7). I invite you also to get rid of any thought that you can reach God through your own religious efforts and for you to put your faith in Jesus, our Passover lamb. 11

12 Session 4 Jesus, the Victorious Lamb of the New Jerusalem (The final of four studies on The Four Sheep of Jerusalem ) What is there left to say? Surely we have said it all in the last session when we saw how all the Old Testament patterns and prophecies about a sheep being sacrificed in Jerusalem were fulfilled by Jesus. Well not quite. The gospel (literally meaning good news ) does not end with the crucifixion of Jesus. Nor does it end with Jesus resurrection. The gospel, as the full intent of God the Father, only reaches its conclusion with the establishment of God s end game the singular purpose of God to which the arrow of history has always pointed. That end game is nothing less than the establishment of the kingdom of God. What do we mean by this? It s important to understand that there are three aspects of the kingdom of God. 1. There is a sense in which the kingdom of God has always existed as being the place where God is (Is 66:1). 2. There is also the sense that whenever the principles and power of God come to a situation on earth, that the kingdom of God comes (Mt 6:33; Lk 9:2; 10:8; 11:20; 17:20-21). 3. Finally, the kingdom of God is only fully realised when God takes a renewed heaven and joins it with a remade earth to become the eternal kingdom in which God and his people are together (Dan 2:44; Is 65:17; Rev 21:1-3). Jesus will be fully joined with his church in this kingdom. The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever (Rev 11:15) It is this last aspect of the kingdom of God to which we refer when talking about God s end game. How do you feel about God instituting an eternal kingdom of God? References to the New Jerusalem and the final kingdom of God are somewhat blurry in the Bible. Some think they are the same thing. Others suggest that the New Jerusalem is that which is established on earth for a thousand years during which time Jesus will reign with his people in triumph before his final battle with Satan (Rev 20:1-6). They say that after that battle, God will bring judgement on all evil and will inaugurate his new, eternal kingdom. What, then, can we believe? A reading of the final book in the Bible, Revelation, seems to suggest that the New Jerusalem will come down from heaven from God, i.e. it will be the New Kingdom 12

13 of God The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name (Rev 3:12). I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband (Rev 21:2; see also Rev 21:10). The significant thing about the New Jerusalem is that it will be the place where Jesus, the Lamb of God, is finally glorified and honoured by all of God s people. Read Revelation 5:1-14 What insights and principles does this passage teach you? Teacher s notes: There is huge grief because no one is found who is worthy enough to open the scroll (the purposes of God) for humankind. Then Jesus the Lion of Judah, and descendant of King David (Mt 1:1; Rev 22:16), is found to be worthy enough to open the scroll (v.5). The method by which Jesus opens our future with God is then alluded to. He is described as the Lamb who was sacrificed to pay the price for our sins. By doing this, Jesus purchased righteousness for all of humankind (vv.6,9). Because we have been made righteous by Christ s sacrifice, we are able to be priests of God, i.e. serve him; worship him; and represent him (Rev 5:10; 1 Pet 2:5). Revelation 19:6-9 speaks of the wedding of the Lamb where Jesus is finally fully joined to his bride, the church. Jesus himself introduced the theme of a wedding in God s coming kingdom in the gospels (Mt 22:1-14 and Mt 25:1-13). Read Matthew 22:1-14 What insights and principles does this passage add to our understanding of the wedding of Jesus to his church? Leader s notes: It is God s initiative to celebrate life with his people. He therefore wants us to attend his heavenly party with Jesus as the special guest (vv.1-3). Those who were first invited (the Jews) made excuses and didn t attend. Some even murdered the messengers (God s prophets) who delivered the invitation (vv.5-7). God then invites everyone else, both good and bad, to respond to his invitation and come (vv.8-10). 13

14 However, in order to attend the wedding, you need to be dressed in God s righteousness the righteousness that comes through putting your faith in Jesus (Mt 22: See also 1 Cor 1:27-30). In Revelation 21, measurements are given for the New Jerusalem (Rev 21:15-17). It presents the city as a cube: a feature designed to emphasize the perfection of God s kingdom. The measurements are also given as multiples of 12, stressing the continuity between Old Testament (the number of tribes of Israel) and the New Testament (the number of apostles). The Old Testament prophet Zechariah also makes reference to the New Jerusalem. He writes: Run, tell that young man, Jerusalem will be a city without walls because of the great number of people and animals in it. And I myself will be a wall of fire around it, declares the Lord, and I will be its glory within (Zech 2:4-5). References to the bejewelled walls of the New Jerusalem in the Old Testament (Is 54:11-14) seem to tie in to the bejewelled walls of the New Jerusalem in Revelation (Rev 21:15-21). It is worth noting that these two references to the walls of the New Jerusalem are designed to teach the priceless perfection of the New Jerusalem, whereas the Zechariah 2:4-5 prophecy (which says there are no walls) is designed to teach that the security of the New Jerusalem would come entirely from the protecting hand of God. The passages therefore don t contradict each other as they were never designed to be taken literally. Read Matthew 25:1-13 What does being ready for the wedding of Jesus to his church mean practically? What implications does it have for how we relate to our family, how we work and what we do in our individual ministry? Close in prayer Close in prayer and end by praying God s blessing on everyone present, mentioning each person by name. 14