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Time
Line Notebook
Events Fulfilled for a Specific Purpose
Again, we could pack this tour stop with lots of information... but let's summarize points here simply and make reference to useful information elsewhere within the WindowView.To describe one aspect of the Messiah's role in history might call for a bit of over simplifying... but only to the end of making an illustrative point — yet there is no compromising the core relevance here... that said, here's a bit of illustration:
From Abraham forward there has been a Divine story line conveying a promise of redemption — ultimately a process of saving those who adopt faith for something that is further along the time line. Later, when Israel (as a Jewish people and as a Nation under the LORD's direction) left Egypt, there was a period when the Nation failed God's will — they came up short of the Lord's expectations. Ultimately these were the people that were to guide all peoples (the nations, Gentiles) out of bondage (from the world to the spiritual). The Bible records many instances where persons or the Nation Israel fell short — and thus provide examples of sin.
Reflecting on types of sin:
- Individuals ''miss the mark,'' and do what is wrong (from Cain and Abel onward)
- Corporate / national (Israel as a whole did not recognize... then did not accept Messiah; this rejection is a corporate sin that in part due to the ignorance of Jews and Gentiles lead to Messiah's execution — which was an anticipated event and is part of the larger biblical story line leading to a final Promise and a solution to the sin problem (e.g., see Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53 as accounts of Messianic events before the fact))
- Global sin (global changes resulting in habitat alteration and loss of renewable resources compromises the biblical mandate for stewardship — this too is a sin on an entirely larger human dimension)
Messiah's role in part is to take the heat, bear the burden, relieve humanity of the sin problem... but under a primary requisite condition... we need to recognize Him and accept His teachings... and thus from a point in time leave the sin problem behind as we grow further in relationship with God. His specific roles are:
Sin Bearer - and this is illustrated by the events leading up to Messiah's death [which is covered in part by Chapter 15 in Part III of the Creator's Window].
Establish a Relationship with God — and you can reflect on this in the various feature articles in the Jew and Gentile area of WindowView.
To die for a purpose — demonstrating death's limitation for those who believe and abide in the relationship (the promises that are kept)
Proof that His death was part of the fulfillment of promises and prophesies stated long before His appearance on earth.
Promise to come again in time future... see further down the time line. [This point and other above are illustrated further in Messiah Time Line]
While academics debate the validity of portions of Scripture or the historicity of the Messiah, the biblical text from the very first pages of the Hebrew Bible (i.e., Tanach) to the pages of the New Covenant — foretold by Jeremiah (see this link or Evidences page of Jew and Gentile page to read relevant quotation for the Book of Jeremiah) — all these pages of Scripture tell a simple story of sin and being saved from the consequences of the sin nature that comes into every human life.
Overcoming individual, corporate, or even global sin requires a mediator, someone to act in our place to relieve us of sin... that in a nut shell is why Daniel's time line tells us that in the year 30 to 34 C.E. the Messiah would be 'cut off' — that is to say suffer death. The good news is someone overcomes our problem for us. Think about it! The story is not all that complex and you are a personal beneficiary to what the story has to convey.
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