devotional

15SEP
2013

Christ Our Glorious Mystery

 

Christ Himself is spoken of as “The mystery” of God that’s now been revealed in Colossians 2:2.

The following is an interesting prophecy from about 1405 B.C. It’s Numbers 24:16-17 and is the 4th prophecy of Balaam. In it he says,

16 “The utterance of him who hears the words of God,
And has the knowledge of the Most High,
Who sees the vision of the Almighty,
Who falls down, with eyes wide open:
17 “I see Him, but not now;
I behold Him, but not near;
A Star shall come out of Jacob;
A Scepter shall rise out of Israel…”

There is immediate context here in Balaam’s prophecy of Israel as a nation, but the references throughout clearly evoke the Messiah. In Numbers 24:9 Balaam directly quotes Genesis 49:9 and echoes Genesis 12:3 and God’s Abrahamic promises. The Messiah is called the scepter from Judah and a star from David. Balaam beheld a piece of the mystery. He did hear God’s words, just as he said.

 

That mystery is much later spoken of like this in the following passage:
“By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness:
He who was revealed in the flesh,
Was vindicated in the Spirit,
Seen by angels,
Proclaimed among the nations,
Believed on in the world,
Taken up in glory,” 1 Timothy 3:16. This is Christ. 

 

Job’s heart was driven upward in anticipation of the Messiah in what was most likely about 2200 B.C. saying in Job 9:2-3:

“How can a man be righteous before God?
3 If one wished to contend with Him,
He could not answer Him one time out of a thousand.”

—This is such a rich book. Such a rich chapter. Just a bit later Job says:

“For He is not a man, as I am,
That I may answer Him,
And that we should go to court together.
33 Nor is there any mediator between us,
Who may lay his hand on us both.” Job 9:32-33.

 

Oh, my dear blessed Job! He became a Man! I know His name! It’s Jesus from Nazareth.

Now I have a righteousness! I stand upon it firmly because it’s His!

I need not contend with God. I know I couldn’t! You’re right! The enmity is gone!

We have a mediator whose hands have reconciled us to God our Father!

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