Rejection and Suffering

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To be the Messiah of Israel meant suffering and death for others, and Jesus summoned his disciples to follow that same path – Mark 8:31.

Jesus explained what it meant to be Israel’s Messiah and the Son of God as his entourage approached Jerusalem, suffering and death. This was contrary to popular expectations, including those of his closest disciples. He also summoned anyone who wished to follow him to take up his cross and emulate his example. Failure to do so would result in shame before the Lord of Glory.

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Слава Божья

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С тех пор как Слово стало плотью, Божественная Слава проявилась в Иисусе из Назарета, и все, кто следует за ним, видят это – Иоанна 1:14.

Иисус – это Логос в Евангелии от Иоанна, “Слово, ставшее плотью”, в котором пребывает “Слава Божья”. Он – Истинная Скиния, о которой свидетельствует Шатер, который Израиль нес в пустыне, где Слава Яхве проявлялась впечатляющими, но ограниченными способами. Распятый Мессия – это истинное и полное проявление Славы Живого Бога.

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The Divine Glory

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Since the Word became flesh, the Divine Glory has been manifested in Jesus of Nazareth and all who follow him behold it – John 1:14.

Jesus is the Logos in the Gospel of John, the “Word become flesh” in whom the “Glory of God” resides. He is the True Tabernacle foreshadowed by the Tent carried by Israel in the wilderness where the Glory of Yahweh was manifested in impressive but limited ways. The Crucified Messiah is the true and full manifestation of the Glory of the Living God.

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Where God Dwells

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The New Testament applies Temple language and imagery from the Hebrew Bible to the Body of Christ, the true Sanctuary of God.

Apart from the contacts between Jesus and the early church with the priestly authorities, the New Testament shows minimal interest in the Temple complex in Jerusalem. More frequent are the applications of temple language to the community of believers inaugurated by Jesus and built by his Apostles. What the Temple and the Tabernacle foreshowed is coming to fruition in the “Body of Christ.”

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Limits of the Law

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The jurisdiction of the Mosaic regulations over the covenant community reached its limit with the arrival of Jesus, the Seed of Abraham.

In responding to claims that Gentiles must be circumcised, Paul appealed to the common experience of the Spirit received by the Galatians.  Did they receive the Gift through a “hearing of faith” or “from the works of the Law?”  Having begun in the Spirit, why did they seek the “completion” of their faith based on “flesh” by submitting to circumcision?

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