AND THE PURPOSE OF THE AGES

The living bird was identified with the slain one by being dipped in its blood, showing that it was two aspects

of the same work, and then released alive, a picture of death and resurrection. The same truth is set forth in the

sixteenth chapter of Leviticus describing the day of atonement. Aaron was commanded to take two goats, one

which was offered as a sin offering (16:9) and the other was let go alive into the wilderness (16:10,22).

The New Testament commentary on this chapter is found in Hebrews:

`But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come . . . neither by the blood of goats and calves, but

by His own blood He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us' (9:11,12).

The fulness of His antitypical work is then summarised under three appearings:

He hath appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself (His atoning death) (Heb. 9:26).

He now appears in the presence of God for us (His resurrection and ascension) (9:24).

He will appear the second time without sin unto salvation (His second advent and the hope of the believer)

In our presentation of the redeeming work of Christ let us make sure that we present the full gospel of His

grace and rejoice not only in His death as our substitute, but in the glorious fact of resurrection in that He ever lives

to make intercession for us.

(3) Resurrection and Promise.-We who are believers in the Lord Jesus Christ rejoice in the precious promises

of God which are yea and amen in Him - but do we realise how much they owe to the truth of resurrection? It

would be difficult to find a promise in the New Testament that has not this fundamental truth either directly

associated with it or in the background. It is noteworthy that the first occurrence of the word promise occurs after

the resurrection. `Behold, I send the promise of My Father upon you' (Luke 24:49).

We see the outworking of the Divine promises backed by resurrection power clearly exemplified in the life of

Abraham. In Genesis 12:1-3 and 15:1-6, God made a promise to Abraham that through his seed He intended to

bless the whole world. Now although the promises of God are sure, they are not necessarily put into operation

straight away and this is where faith is exercised and the believer is disciplined in order that he may grow in grace

and in the knowledge of the ways of the Lord. Abraham and Sarah had to wait until, humanly speaking, the

fulfilment of the promise seemed impossible. During this time they had to learn that they were dealing with God

`Who quickened the dead' (Rom. 4:16,17) and that resurrection power infinitely transcends all the limitations and

the inability of the flesh.

`And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years

old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb; he staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but

was strong in faith, giving glory to God; and being fully persuaded that, what He had promised, He was able

also to perform' (Rom. 4:19-21).

Isaac, the child of promise, was a literal example of resurrection power in operation. Nor was this the last time

in Abraham's life that he was to learn the exceeding greatness of this power. The climax of this man's experience

came when at length he was asked by God to give back the son he had waited for so long, the one who had become

so precious to him. The Epistle to the Hebrews makes it clear how the patriarch's faith was able to stand so severe a

`By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his

only begotten son . . . accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he

received him in a figure' (Heb. 11:17-19).

Abraham knew that the power that had conquered the deadness of his own body could bring his own son back

to life and his implicit trust in resurrection power is seen in the narrative in Genesis 22:4,5:

`And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and

worship and come again to you,'