Jesus as the Perfect Sacrifice

I have always known that Jesus was the perfect sacrifice, the Lamb slayed for us. But I didn’t know all of the rules that had to be followed to fulfill the Prophecies for the Old Testament. As we see in John 19: 36

“These things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: ‘Not one of his bones will be broken’”

Referring to when Jesus died on the cross, not a single bone in his body was broken. Which is noteworthy as they usually broke the bones of those being crucified to speed up their death. Jesus already being dead at the time was spared the process. The Scripture that was fulfilled is Numbers 9:11-12, talking about Moses when he told the Israelites how to prepare the Lamb for Passover.

They are to celebrate it on the fourteenth day of the second month at twilight. They are to eat the lamb, together with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. They must not leave any of it till morning or break any of its bones. When they celebrate the Passover, they must follow all the regulations.”

Jesus’ bones couldn’t be broken for this reason but also for God to accept him as a perfect sacrifice, according to Malachi 1:13.

‘When you bring injured, crippled or diseased animals and offer them as sacrifices, should I accept them from your hands?’ says the Lord.”

God knew all of the things that had to be done in order for Jesus’ death to be without blemish.

Jesus Sends out the Twelve

When Jesus sends out the Disciples he gives them specific instructions. In
Matthew 10:5-10

These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts; take no bag for the journey, or extra tunic, or sandals or a staff; for the worker is worth his keep.”

He tells them ‘heal the sick and raise the dead‘, not heal some sick or a few of the dead, but just the sick and the dead. I think that the instructions Jesus gives to the Disciples should be the same for us as well. He gave us similar authority, but the farther we get from Jesus the further get from the miraculous. I think in order to return to the miraculous, we need to return to Jesus. And live how he commands us.

I also think its interesting how he tells them not to take anything extra with them. He tells them to not take along any gold, silver or copper, basically don’t take any form of money. I’m not sure how long the will be sent out for, but that isn’t important, what’s important is that all that they needed once they were sent out was provided for. When you take everything with you that you need you miss a part of God’s blessing. He knows what we need and will provide for us. He finishes by saying ‘the worker is worth his keep‘. So if you work for the world you will get paid with the world’s money, but when you work full-time for God you get paid in God’s currency.

Don’t Worry

When Jesus gives the Sermon on the Mount, he talks about not worrying.

“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” – Matthew 6:31-33

I think that sometimes I forget God can provide and I start to worry about things that really don’t matter. Then, I run after them like the pagans do. Or I start to be discontent with what I have and I stop thinking of what I have and start thinking of what I want. And other times I forget that God knows what we need. Jesus talks about this too later on.

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” – Matthew 7:7-11

Not only does He know how to give us good gifts but He wants to give us them. When I read something like this I think back to John the Baptist. He walked and preached through the desert, ate locusts and wild honey, and was clothed in camel skins. It looks like God was able to provide for John, and if he did it for him I know he can still do it for me. I believe that if you are doing the will of God he will provide for you, no matter how impossible it may seem. We just need to ask him and he will give it to us. I pray that I will have faith in God and won’t forget this next time.

Preparation

I believe God is calling our family to Africa. Africa fits into the non-typical lifestyle that I was raised in. I believe that my childhood was preparation for God’s plans, and I expect him to use these 2 last years will be as well. I grew up moving around a lot in the States and on the mission field, Tajikistan, going wherever God called our Family. So I have always thought that God’s plan for my life would involve missions or something like that. I haven’t figured out everything that God has in store for me, but I don’t think it will be a typical American life. I am looking forward to what God has planned for me, I have enjoyed what how God has used our family thus far and am excited for the road ahead.

Recently I have felt God calling me to live a Lifestyle similar to that of John the Baptist. He wondered the desert, and prepared the way for Jesus. For awhile now I have wanted to take a summer off sometime to be homeless (hobo). A journey sort of like Mike Yankoski’s in the book Under the Overpass. He talks about Philippians 4:11-12: “I have learned what it means to be content in all circumstances, whether with everything or with nothing.”, saying how he wanted to put his faith to the test and live on no income but only on what God gave him. I had thought of doing something similar even before I read the book, it just re-inspired me. My verse was 1 Timothy 6:8; “But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.”, I wondered if I could truly be content with just that. I looked up the verse and I found out that the ‘have’ he uses means to hold in your hand. So basically it means to have food in your hand and clothes on your back. For awhile I really wanted to try it, but I don’t really feel like that is what I should do anymore, but more like God used that idea to get me ready for the future. It grabbed my attention and now I think the idea matured into something similar but probably better for the kingdom of God. Now I feel like I want to live like John the Baptist. There are a lot of similarities between a hobo and John the Baptist. He wandered in the desert sort of like the homeless wonder the streets. He also ate unusual foods such as locusts and honey. I think that people out on the street don’t worry about where food has been, and maybe eat food that doesn’t seem appetizing. I don’t feel like I grew out of the Homeless idea, but more that I grew into the John the Baptist lifestyle.

The Beginning of My Blog

Welcome to my Blog. This will show the steps leading up to Africa. Be Sure to check out my Dad’s Blog.