Today, while watching a “Dividing Line” episode with Dr. James White on YouTube, I saw a most wonderful thing. (I was watching the 27 Jun episode: “Yusuf Ismail and Deuteronomy, and Further Response to Abu Zakariya.”) No, what I saw that was wonderful was not the Borg Cube refrigerator that I bought for him that now sits behind him…thought that thing is pretty cool even to a non-Trekkie like me. It was a wonderful connection in thinking affirming the work of Jesus on the Cross. It was not the point of Dr. White’s talk. It was just a point I drew from it while listening.
To fully understand the atoning work of Jesus, I believe you must not separate that work from his mediation. Jesus’ mediation is not separable from his atonement. He died only on behalf of those for whom he intended to at some time mediate for. You can’t say he died for everyone…and then also that he mediates only for those who come to him and be consistent throughout Scripture. Consistency says he died for those he mediates for.
What Dr. White was talking about was that we as Christians today have far more light in revelation than the Hebrews had. From the Exodus itself the people were to remember all that God did for them in it. Remember, remember, remember. Deuteronomy 5:15; 7:18; 15:15; 16:12; Psalm 106:7, etc. Think of all the times that God reminded his people, even in the Torah, to remember the Exodus. In the New Covenant, we are to remember that work as well.
But in Christ we have even more to remember that God has now done. We have the Cross. We have the work of The Day of Pentecost, etc. The Apostles and prophets of the New Covenant speak of those promises fulfilled in Christ routinely from the Old Covenant, and add to them the truths of the New Covenant as well.
Here’s the point: what we look back to when we look to the Cross is our deliverance in Christ. Not the “option of a deliverance” made to us. What I saw when Dr. White was talking is that the Hebrews did not look back to an “option for deliverance;” they were to remember their deliverance. Period. God took them out by a strong and mighty hand. He gave them a Law to obey, but when? It was after they were delivered. God delivered them from Egypt. He saved them and then gave them the Law. In Christ, we too should look back at where God rescued us from sin and then gave us his gospel.
It’s not that we should look back to our choices, but to God’s. We look back to the deliverance God made for us in Christ. He took us out of our sin.
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