When Heaven and Earth Passed

“For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass,

one jot or one tittle shall in now wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.”

 — Matthew 5:18

“For the priesthood being changed,

there is made of necessity a change also of the law.”

— Hebrews 7:12

Now, was Jesus being parabolic in his sermons or prophetic? Jesus said to his disciples, “it is easier for heaven and earth to pass than one tittle of the law to fail, [1]”yet Hebrews is telling us that the law indeed has changed. We do not have a temple, or priests, or animal sacrifices in the New Covenant. When Christ cried out, “It is finished [2],” it means that the demands of the law have been fulfilled in the person and work of Christ. Matthew Henry writes in his commentary on John 19:30:

It is finished, that is, all the types and prophecies of the Old Testament, which pointed at the sufferings of the Messiah were accomplished and answered. The work of man’s redemption and salvation is now completed, at least the hardest part of the undertaking is over. A full satisfaction is made to the justice of God, a fatal blow given to the power of Satan.

Christ says, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away[3.]” Indeed Christ IS the word made flesh (John 1:1) and “because he continueth forever, hath an unchangeable priesthood [4.]”

The cross of Calvary was an inflection point in human history. Time has been winding down from that point on. John the Baptist and Jesus were preaching that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. I don’t think 2,000 + years fits the definition of at hand. However, “except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God,[5] and even if he is born again, “we know in part, and we prophesy in part...For now we see through a glass, darkly[6.]” I’m not dogmatic about this doctrine of the new heavens and new earth. Greater theologians than myself do not all agree. It may be one of those things we can discern to some degree in our limited understanding, or not, but either way the Holy Spirit is sanctifying and renewing us in our minds until the day when we will see face to face.

Selah.

Scriptures

1Lk 16:17

2John 19:30

3Matt 24:35

4Heb 7:24

5John 3:3

61st Cor 13:9-12

Image:

George de la Tours, The Penitent Magdalene. Public Domain Image.

Because of the Angels...

“For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, for as much as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man. For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man. Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man.

For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head

because of the angels.

Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord. For as the woman is of the man, even so is the man also by the woman; but all things of God.”

— 1st Corinthians 11:7-12

“...I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne,

high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.

Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings;

with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet,

and with twain he did fly.” — Isaiah 6: 1-2

The practice of head coverings has fallen on hard times in American churches. I was shocked the first time that I heard that it was the norm for women to wear head coverings in virtually all denominations throughout the country until about the 1960's. What do you think changed?

But rather than appeal to tradition let’s pray for the Holy Spirit’s illumination and study the scripture. After all, the Catholic church preached a false gospel of works for over one thousand years before the Reformation. People can be wrong for that long!

Giovanni Strazza- The Veiled Virgin

Much of the argument for and against head coverings revolved around cultural norms and customs. I say if the Bible is our standard for life and godliness then it alone should tell us whether a custom is good or bad. “Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head….For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, for as much as he is the image and glory of God (v4, 7)."

Haman the Agagite villain in the book of Esther covered his head when he was inflamed with grief and aggravation (Esther 6:12). Haman is not an Israelite at all but appears to conform to what Paul is saying about men wearing head coverings – it is a shame to them. There may be a time when that is appropriate, but the corporate worship of God isn’t it.

Head coverings for women communicate something else. When Rebekah approaches Isaac (who pictures Christ) for the first time in Genesis 24:65, she covers herself with a veil. The servant who escorted her from her father’s house to Isaac did not tell her to do that — it came from within herself. I think we can infer that this modesty and impulse to cover up did not spring from the corrupt nature of Adam and Eve when they scrambled for fig leaves when God came looking for them. Rather I think of it like the angels in Isaiah 6 who cover both the heads and feet in the presence of the glory of God. These angels have no sin and yet they cover themselves anyway. It is simply a reaction to the presence of God’s perfect holiness.

I wouldn’t bind anyone’s conscience on this issue, nor would it make or break my decision on which church to attend. We must worship in spirit and in truth1, according to knowledge.2I’ve struggled with this doctrine for a long time and the Spirit is only now beginning to give me understanding. While the remnant of churches that practice head coverings have their own theologically astute reasons for doing so, I’ve never heard a good explanation for why it says down in verse 16: we have no such custom, neither the churches of God.” Paul says elsewhere in the same epistle, “Let all things be done decently and in order [3].” The spirit behind the letter that is much easier to prove is that dress standards should appeal to common decency and gender roles. Matthew Henry’s commentary on verses 13 and 16 read;

It should be our concern, especially in Christian and religious assemblies, to make no breach upon the rules of natural decency… He sums up by referring those who were contentious to the usages and customs of the churches. Custom is in a great measure the rule of decency. And the common practice of the churches is what he would have them govern themselves by…. It was the common usage of the churches for women to appear in public assemblies and join in public worship veiled; and it was manifestly decent that they should do so. Those must be very contentious indeed who would quarrel with this or lay it aside.

If Paul is deferring to custom, and the customs of society have changed, then I think we are at liberty to practice this or not. By two or three witnesses should a matter be established, and there really aren’t any other specific instructions on head coverings. Whether you do it or not, be firmly persuaded in your own mind and thank God for the liberty we have in Christ.

Scriptures:

1John 4:24

2Rom 10:2

31st Cor 14:40

Evangelism for Life

For covenanters, the Word of God is a divine masterpiece that we desire to absorb and apply to our lives continually.

But for the unbelieving world, the Bible is foolish and the verses that to us are sweeter than honey and the honeycomb, are to the world but nonsense. Therefore, it is not always appropriate to go in guns blazing with, “the bible says…” when there is no appetite for the Word at all. It’s not to say that God is unable of stones to raise up children unto Abraham, but perhaps we should be more deliberate about how we witness.

I’ll never forget the Christian neighbors we had when I was in high school, who offered to minister to me in a time when I was doing things my own way, but I rejected their offer because I preferred things my own way. They never shared with me Bible verses, but instead remained the kindest and most caring neighbors I could ask for, in spite of my lost soul. I suppose it was not my time to be pulled from the fire, but as I look back on my life, I can remember the bits of truth that God revealed to me through his chosen people.

There is much wisdom to be found in the Bible, but it might not be the right time to share it. Consider Job’s friends who assaulted him with the Word, and those were fellow believers! Perhaps the delicate soul before you is not ready to hear the truth. Perhaps the soul who resists is in need of an ear or gentleness, or perhaps it's time to part ways. Do we seek the lost sheep of Israel or do we aim to beat heathen into submission?

"…a word spoken in due season, how good is it!" Prov 15:23

Furthermore, did Abraham desperately try to convert Pharoah or Abimelech? Did Joseph desperately try to convert Pharoah? Did Daniel desperately try to convert Nebuchadnezzar? Did Esther desperately try to convert King Ahasuerus? Did Naomi desperately try to convert Ruth and Orpah? She told them to go back to where they came from!  

All of these saints witnessed to strangers through their works and all of these saints prevailed in the face of oppression and trial.

Even Jonah who reluctantly went to the Ninevites, didn't hit them with "christianese,” but when the troubled waters came, he told them with boldness, "take me up, and cast me forth into the sea." And the result was Ninevites calling out to the one living and true God :

Wherefore they cried unto the LORD, and said, We beseech thee, O LORD, we beseech thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood: for thou, O LORD, hast done as it pleased thee.

So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging.

Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice unto the LORD, and made vows. Jonah 1:14-16

For it is God who gives the increase (1 Cor 3:6) and we must be available and willing when he calls us to the front lines. We must aim to live in the Word ourselves and to use it masterfully out in the world.

I sincerely believe our purpose on earth is to enjoy God and to glorify Him forever, which could very well include martyrdom. There is a certainly a time for martyrdom, see Stephen in Acts 7, but I don't think we should purposely seek after it as if there were 72 virgins waiting on the other side for us. The examples above show how God preserves the life of his servants through the wisdom of the holy Spirit, even if we be swallowed and vomited out by a great fish along the way.

“The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death.” Prov 14:27