Resurrection Sunday (2013)

Resurrection Sunday (2013) I. The Glory of God Source of Death and Life The naked, unveiled glory of God is a deadly thing. Exodus 33:18 23 Moses said, Please show me your glory. And [the Lord] said, I will make all my goodness pass before you But, he said, you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live. The Apostle Paul says that God dwells in unapproachable light, and that no man has ever seen God, or can see God (1 Timothy 6:16). The prophet Isaiah describes how even the angels who surround the throne of God have two wings with which they cover their faces (Isaiah 6:1-2). The reason that we live from day to day is because the God who fills heaven and earth mercifully hides Himself from our eyes. But this same God is also to us our only source of life. In the beginning, God breathed into Adam s nostrils the breath of life (Gen. 2:7; cf. Acts 17:25). It was God who gave to Adam and Eve not just physical life, but life indeed joy, peace, fulfillment, life abundant, and overflowing, and everlasting. The Psalmist writes: Psalm 16:11 You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Death, and life. The reason we live is because God hides Himself from our eyes. And yet to be utterly cut off from God would mean instant death. That s why even in the Garden of Eden, God came to Adam and Eve with His glory veiled. He revealed Himself to Adam and Eve by taking a visible form and walking with them even as a man would walk (Gen. 3:8, 10). The naked, unveiled glory of God was deadly to man even before he sinned. How much more so after he sinned after we sinned? As the Seraphim stand in God s presence with covered faces, they call to one another and say: Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory! (Isaiah 6:3) In Revelation, the four living creatures day and night never cease to say, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty (Rev. 4:8). God is holy, holy, holy. His perfections are uncountable and infinite. And so when the prophet Isaiah saw this vision of God s holiness and glory, he cried out, Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips ; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts! (Isa. 6:5) Our sin cries out every day for our destruction. And day by day, it s only because of the Lord s mercies that we are not consumed (cf. Lam. 3:22). In the garden, God veiled His glory and came down, and walked with Adam and Eve. But when Adam and Eve sinned when we sinned how could the God who is holy, holy, holy, dwell with us, even with His glory veiled? And even if there was any way for this to happen, why would He? This is a true mystery that He did want to, and that He did make a way. 1

II. The Glory of God Veiled in the Temple In the Old Testament, that way was the temple with its priesthood and sacrifices. God said to Moses: Exodus 25:8; 29:43-46 Let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst There I will meet with the people of Israel, and it shall be sanctified by my glory. I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their God. Moses describes the day when the veiled glory of God came down to dwell among His people: Exodus 40:34 35 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. The presence of God s glory among His people was the source of life indeed joy, peace, fulfillment, life abundant, and overflowing, and everlasting. And so the Psalmist could write: Psalm 84:1 12 How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts! My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the LORD Blessed are those who dwell in your house, ever singing your praise! For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. Psalm 27:4 (cf. 65:4; 23:6) One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple. The temple was the place where God veiled His glory in order to make Himself known. The temple was the place where sinful men and women could delight in the sweetness of God s presence. But unlike in the garden, now there were curtains and walls. The ceremonially clean could go in to the outer courts. But only priests could enter the holy place. And only the high priest could enter the holy of holies but once in a year. And unlike in the garden, now there were animal sacrifices where blood was shed daily as a constant reminder of sin. Death, and life. The temple was the center of everything. The temple was the place where God veiled His glory and lived among a sinful people. The temple was the sign of God s mighty power to save. Life. And yet the temple was daily the scene of death a reminder of what would happen if God s glory were unveiled or if the boundaries of the walls and curtains were ever transgressed. In the Bible, many long chapters are given over to the description of the movable tabernacle in Moses day, and then the more permanent temple which was built in the days of King Solomon. Materials and dimensions are carefully recorded not only for the buildings but for every piece of furniture, and even the utensils. The temple ceremonies are all outlined in the utmost detail. The life of God s people revolved around the temple, because apart from the veiled glory of God s presence in the temple, what life did they really have? 2

III. The Temple Destroyed But over the years, the people took God s presence among them for granted. They treated the temple like some sort of good luck charm. And so Jeremiah prophecied: Jeremiah 7:2 15 Hear the word of the LORD, all you men of Judah who enter these gates to worship the LORD. Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Amend your ways and your deeds, and I will let you dwell in this place. Do not trust in these deceptive words: This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD. Go now to my place that was in Shiloh, where I made my name dwell at first, and see what I did to it because of the evil of my people Israel. And now, because you have done all these things, therefore I will do to the house that is called by my name, and in which you trust, and to the place that I gave to you and to your fathers, as I did to Shiloh. And I will cast you out of my sight. But the people didn t believe God s word. Instead, they kept on trusting in deceptive words, This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord. And so God showed the prophet Ezekiel a vision of His glory leaving the temple. Ezekiel 10:4 5 The glory of the LORD went up from the cherub to the threshold of the house, and the house was filled with the cloud, and the court was filled with the brightness of the glory of the LORD. Ezekiel 10:18 19 Then the glory of the LORD went out from the threshold of the house, and stood over the cherubim. And the cherubim lifted up their wings and mounted up from the earth before my eyes as they went out. And they stood at the entrance of the east gate of the house of the LORD, and the glory of the God of Israel was over them. Ezekiel 11:22 23 Then the cherubim lifted up their wings, and the glory of the God of Israel was over them. And the glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the city and stood on the mountain that is on the east side of the city. What does it mean when the glory of God departs? What does it mean when God withdraws His glory and ceases to dwell among His people? In 586 B.C., the Babylonian armies conquered Jerusalem, and all the vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of the Lord all these [the king] brought to Babylon. And they burned the house of God (2 Chron. 36:18-19; cf. Lam. 2:5-7). Can we even begin to imagine the mourning and sorrow and grief that must have overwhelmed the hearts of God s true people? How could they stop longing, and even fainting for the courts of the Lord (cf. Psalm 84:1-12)? How could they not earnestly desire to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple (Psalm 27:4)? The deepest longing of their hearts was still to dwell in God s courts to be satisfied with the goodness of God s house and the holiness of His temple (Psalm 65:4). But now that temple lay in ruins, and the glory of God had departed. What did it mean? How were they even to go on with life? 3

IV. The Promise of a Temple Rebuilt But then God came to them with comfort in the midst of grief with the promise of a temple rebuilt. No sooner had the temple been destroyed, than God gave to the prophet Ezekiel another vision this time Ezekiel saw a rebuilt temple far more glorious and wonderful than Solomon s, complete with priesthood and sacrifices. And most wonderful of all was the promise that God would once more veil His glory and come down, and dwell among them forever. Ezekiel describes what he saw: Ezekiel 43:1 7 Behold, the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east. And the sound of his coming was like the sound of many waters, and the earth shone with his glory As the glory of the LORD entered the temple by the gate facing east, the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the temple. I heard one speaking to me out of the temple, and he said to me, Son of man, this is the place of my throne and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the people of Israel forever. Here was the answer to all the deepest longings of God s people. Fifty years later, a small group of Jews returned to the ruins of Jerusalem and laid the foundation for a new temple. But in the midst of the rejoicing: Ezra 3:12 Many of the old men who had seen the first house, wept with a loud voice when they saw the foundation of this house being laid. This temple was like nothing compared to Solomon s not to mention the glorious rebuilt temple of Ezekiel s vision. The size of God s house reflected the condition of God s people. Fast-forward another sixteen years and at the urging of God s prophets the people were just picking up where they had left off with the foundation. And every day they still struggled with discouragement. What was the point? What were they thinking? So the word of the Lord came to the people through the prophet Haggai: Haggai 2:1 9 Speak now to Zerubbabel... governor of Judah, and to Joshua the high priest, and to all the remnant of the people, and say, Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in your eyes? Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the LORD. Be strong, O Joshua the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the LORD. Work, for I am with you, declares the LORD of hosts My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not. For thus says the LORD of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the LORD of hosts The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the LORD of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the LORD of hosts. It seemed hard to believe. How could the glory of that little, tiny temple ever surpass that of the former! What could that possibly mean? There was no way to fully understand, so by faith in God s promises, they went on building. It was at about this same time that the word of the Lord 4

also came to the prophet Zechariah. Some exiles had just arrived from Babylon bringing silver and gold for the construction of the temple. Zechariah 6:9 15 And the word of the LORD came to me: Take from the exiles who have arrived from Babylon silver and gold, and make a crown, and set it on the head of Joshua the high priest. And say to him, Thus says the LORD of hosts, Behold, the man whose name is the Branch: for he shall branch out from his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD. It is he who shall build the temple of the LORD and shall sit and rule on his throne. And there shall be a priest on his throne And those who are far off shall come and help to build the temple of the LORD. Once again, there was no way to fully understand. Apparently, their feeble efforts at rebuilding the temple were meant to point them to a far, far greater rebuilding by someone still to come. And so once again, by faith in God s word, the exiles went on building. In 515 B.C. the tiny temple was completed and dedicated to the Lord. And the people still wondered. How could the latter glory of this house ever be greater than the former? When would the true rebuilding of the temple be fulfilled? The point of this tiny little rebuilt temple was to remind the people that one day the true rebuilding would come and then God would veil His glory and come down and dwell in the midst of His people forever. And so it has already happened and in such a way that it far surpassed even the deepest hopes and longings of God s people. V. The Temple Rebuilt God veiled His glory and came down and dwelt among His people in the person of Jesus Christ. The Apostle John writes: John 1:1 4, 14 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God In him was life And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. God has tabernacled among us in human form. As Paul says in Colossians: Colossians 1:19 In [Jesus] all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell. This was no building made of stone and wood, but rather a living, breathing man God in the flesh. The promise was made using the language and pictures of the outer husk. But when the fulfillment came, the husk was laid aside, leaving only the inner kernel. The promise was made using the language of the outer forms. But when the fulfillment came, the outer forms were laid aside, leaving only the true reality. The promise was made using the language of a temple built of wood and stone. But when the fulfillment came, the wood and stone were laid aside, and now all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell in Jesus. John 1:14, 18 He dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father s side, he has made him known. Hebrews 1:3 He is the radiance of the glory of God. 5

Truly, the latter glory of this temple is greater than the former! But still, not all was as it should be. The Apostle John writes: John 1:10 11 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. Instead, they staged a mock trial, and sentenced Him to die by hanging on a cross. At the trial, one of the accusations brought against Jesus was that He had once spoken these words: Matthew 26:61 I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days. But Jesus never said that He would destroy the temple. It was when Jesus was at the temple driving out those who were buying and selling. A holy zeal for God s house consumed Him (John 2:17). John 2:18 19 The Jews said to him, What sign do you show us for doing these things? Jesus answered them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. What could this mean? Surely, for one man to rebuild a temple in three days could only be a supernatural miracle of God s power! So could this rebuilt temple be the fulfillment of Ezekiel s vision? Could this rebuilt temple be the fulfillment of all the promises in Isaiah, and Jeremiah, and Haggai, and Zechariah? But then Jesus was crucified; hung up by nails on a wooden beam. And still there was no temple rebuilt. And then, about the sixth hour, Luke tells us that: Luke 23:46 Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, Father, into your hands I commit my spirit! And having said this he breathed his last. They buried Jesus in a tomb cut in the rock, and rolled a great stone to the entrance of the tomb (Mat. 27:60), and then the religious leaders made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard (Mat. 27:66). And there Jesus lay for the rest of Friday. Saturday came and went. And then the third day came. Matthew 28:1 6 Toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. The temple rebuilt!!! John tells us that when Jesus was raised from the dead, His disciples remembered His word about rebuilding the temple, and then they understood the true fulfillment of God s promises (John 2:21-22). The glory of God is veiled now in Jesus, resurrected from the dead in Jesus who is Himself the radiance of the glory of God! And now, in His resurrection, He possesses the power of an indestructible life (Heb. 7:16). The temple of God is rebuilt, and 6

can never, ever again be destroyed. In Christ s death on the cross, He bore in Himself the wrath of God against our sin. Isaiah 53:5 He was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities. When Jesus offered Himself up to death, He was the fulfillment of both priest and sacrifice. And now in His resurrection from the dead, He is to us the temple of God rebuilt. He fulfills our every longing for the courts of the Lord (cf. Psalm 84:1-12). He fulfills all of our desire to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple (Psalm 27:4). He fulfills all of our deepest longings to be satisfied with the goodness of God s house and the holiness of His temple (Psalm 65:4). God has veiled his glory in Jesus, who is Himself the temple of God rebuilt and raised up from the dead! And now through faith in Jesus we can have true life indeed peace with God, joy overflowing, life abundant, and everlasting, and free. Will you believe in Him today? Do you believe in Him today? Are you believing in Him today? Have you found in Him true life indeed? He is risen! He is risen indeed! VI. A Glorious Postscript Christ, in His resurrection, is the fulfillment of all God s promises of a temple rebuilt. But in Christ, that fulfillment continues to grow. 1 Peter 2:4 5 As [we] come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, [we ourselves] like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house. Ephesians 2:19 21 [We] are no longer strangers and aliens, but [we] are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. And so the prophecy of Zechariah that those who are far off shall come and help to build the temple of the Lord is being fulfilled in us, even today, in this place (Zech. 6:15). God is shaking all nations, so that the treasures of all nations are coming in, and He is filling His house with glory (Haggai 2:7). 7