Names of God: YHVH, part 7. The unfathomable riches of Yavah given to the church; Heb 10:19-25.

Listen my children and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.

 

He said to his friend, "If the British march
By land or sea from the town to-night,
Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch
Of the North Church tower as a signal light,--
One if by land, and two if by sea;
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm
Through every Middlesex village and farm,
For the country folk to be up and to arm."

 

Then he said "Good-night!" and with muffled oar
Silently rowed to the Charlestown shore,
Just as the moon rose over the bay,
Where swinging wide at her moorings lay
The Somerset, British man-of-war;
A phantom ship, with each mast and spar
Across the moon like a prison bar,
And a huge black hulk, that was magnified
By its own reflection in the tide.

 

Meanwhile, his friend through alley and street
Wanders and watches, with eager ears,
Till in the silence around him he hears
The muster of men at the barrack door,
The sound of arms, and the tramp of feet,
And the measured tread of the grenadiers,
Marching down to their boats on the shore.

 

Then he climbed the tower of the Old North Church,
By the wooden stairs, with stealthy tread,
To the belfry chamber overhead,
And startled the pigeons from their perch
On the sombre rafters, that round him made
Masses and moving shapes of shade,--
By the trembling ladder, steep and tall,
To the highest window in the wall,
Where he paused to listen and look down
A moment on the roofs of the town
And the moonlight flowing over all.

 

Beneath, in the churchyard, lay the dead,
In their night encampment on the hill,
Wrapped in silence so deep and still
That he could hear, like a sentinel's tread,
The watchful night-wind, as it went
Creeping along from tent to tent,
And seeming to whisper, "All is well!"
A moment only he feels the spell
Of the place and the hour, and the secret dread
Of the lonely belfry and the dead;
For suddenly all his thoughts are bent
On a shadowy something far away,
Where the river widens to meet the bay,--
A line of black that bends and floats
On the rising tide like a bridge of boats.

 

Meanwhile, impatient to mount and ride,
Booted and spurred, with a heavy stride
On the opposite shore walked Paul Revere.
Now he patted his horse's side,
Now he gazed at the landscape far and near,
Then, impetuous, stamped the earth,
And turned and tightened his saddle girth;
But mostly he watched with eager search
The belfry tower of the Old North Church,
As it rose above the graves on the hill,
Lonely and spectral and sombre and still.
And lo! as he looks, on the belfry's height
A glimmer, and then a gleam of light!
He springs to the saddle, the bridle he turns,
But lingers and gazes, till full on his sight
A second lamp in the belfry burns.

 

A hurry of hoofs in a village street,
A shape in the moonlight, a bulk in the dark,
And beneath, from the pebbles, in passing, a spark
Struck out by a steed flying fearless and fleet;
That was all! And yet, through the gloom and the light,
The fate of a nation was riding that night;
And the spark struck out by that steed, in his flight,
Kindled the land into flame with its heat.
He has left the village and mounted the steep,
And beneath him, tranquil and broad and deep,
Is the Mystic, meeting the ocean tides;
And under the alders that skirt its edge,
Now soft on the sand, now loud on the ledge,
Is heard the tramp of his steed as he rides.

 

It was twelve by the village clock
When he crossed the bridge into Medford town.
He heard the crowing of the cock,
And the barking of the farmer's dog,
And felt the damp of the river fog,
That rises after the sun goes down.

 

It was one by the village clock,
When he galloped into Lexington.
He saw the gilded weathercock
Swim in the moonlight as he passed,
And the meeting-house windows, black and bare,
Gaze at him with a spectral glare,
As if they already stood aghast
At the bloody work they would look upon.

 

It was two by the village clock,
When he came to the bridge in Concord town.
He heard the bleating of the flock,
And the twitter of birds among the trees,
And felt the breath of the morning breeze
Blowing over the meadow brown.
And one was safe and asleep in his bed
Who at the bridge would be first to fall,
Who that day would be lying dead,
Pierced by a British musket ball.

 

You know the rest. In the books you have read
How the British Regulars fired and fled,---
How the farmers gave them ball for ball,
From behind each fence and farmyard wall,
Chasing the redcoats down the lane,
Then crossing the fields to emerge again
Under the trees at the turn of the road,
And only pausing to fire and load.

 

So through the night rode Paul Revere;
And so through the night went his cry of alarm
To every Middlesex village and farm,---
A cry of defiance, and not of fear,
A voice in the darkness, a knock at the door,
And a word that shall echo for evermore!
For, borne on the night-wind of the Past,
Through all our history, to the last,
In the hour of darkness and peril and need,
The people will waken and listen to hear
The hurrying hoof-beats of that steed,
And the midnight message of Paul Revere.

 

Paul Revere's Ride, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 1860

 

Happy fourth of July. May God bless our nation with the truth and grace she so sorely needs.

 

Vv. 19-20: the gospel given to the Jew. Behold His face.

 

HEB 10:19 Since therefore, brethren, we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus,

 

HEB 10:20 by a new and living way [hodos: road] which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh,

 

The Jew was told that this Tabernacle was in heaven, that he was not to enter with animal blood, but the blood of Jesus whose flesh was torn for all men.

 

The road given to us is the way of Christ. This "way" has always existed, but what is new about it is that it is now available to men. The word order in the NASB has been altered. In the proper word order, what has been inaugurated for us is the entrance to the holy place.

 

Correct word order in Greek:

Having therefore brethren confidence to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, which [entrance] He inaugurated for us, by a new and living way through the veil, that is His flesh.

 

The church age believer has been inducted into the most ancient way of goodness and righteousness, which had not been given to man prior, not even in the Garden of Eden when man was perfect before God. It is the way of Christ, the way of heaven, the way of the divine. It takes many years, in fact, a lifetime to probe even a fraction of its depths. This way was given to fallen creatures by means of the blood of Christ, which is the fullest manifestation of God’s love and grace. We must draw near and have the faith to follow the way, for it is the most challenging and most beautiful thing that life can be.

 

It is appropriate that this study concerning the wonder of the new life in Christ would occur in a study of the Names of God. His name is His essence and attributes and the love of God worked until it was finished so that fallen man could have God's very life.

 

Don’t settle for the way of the old nature and the world that was made to house it just so the war in your heart will die down. If we fight the good fight we will begin to see victory after victory

 

HEB 10:21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God,

 

HEB 10:22 let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

 

"sincere" - alethinos = true or genuine. This is a heart that knows that only the blood of Christ qualifies him to enter and draw near to God.

 

The error of the Jew in thinking that he could come to God based on his performance in the law was the error of all religions. Man cannot climb his way to heaven, no matter how much effort he exerts.

 

A true heart knows the truth in the matter of life. Life came from heaven and not the earth. Life is Christ who is the light of every man.

 

COL 3:1 If then you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

 

COL 3:2 Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.

 

COL 3:3 For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

 

What life is hidden with Christ? His life, way, and truth. What we must marvel at is that it now belongs to us.

 

COL 3:4 When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

 

We don’t have to wait until then to live it. This fact of the future is to give us the confidence to live it now.

 

So then, we move from heaven to the practice of this life on earth. We come down from the Mt. of Transfiguration and descend into the valley, roll up our sleeves, and fight the good fight, living in our heavenly lives though we are not presently in heaven.

 

COL 3:5 Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality [proneia], impurity [uncleanliness], passion [pathos], evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry.

 

COL 3:6 For it is on account of these things that the wrath of God will come [not on us - the reasoning is: Why pursue them when they are destined for wrath],

 

COL 3:7 and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them.

 

COL 3:8 But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth [added to the list from verse 5].

 

COL 3:9 Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices,

 

COL 3:10 and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him

 

COL 3:11 — a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave and freeman, but Christ is all, and in all.

 

No excuse for any believer.

 

COL 3:12 And so, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience;

 

COL 3:13 bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.

 

COL 3:14 And beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.

 

COL 3:15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body; and be thankful.

 

COL 3:16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

 

COL 3:17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

 

Notice that the list of the good and righteous contains the virtues that are intended for others and not for self. But it is not that self is fully neglected: peace in vs. 15; the word in vs. 16.

 

With such a heart we draw near.

 

HEB 10:22

let us draw near with a sincere [true] heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

It is faith in the finished work of Christ that sprinkles us completely clean and so we have a genuine heart in full assurance of faith.