And I saw, in the middle of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the middle of the elders, a Lamb standing as if it had been slaughtered, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God that have already been sent into all the earth. Rev. 5:6.
I have had the privilege of spending significant time in the Middle East during the past dozen years. Early in that period my oldest daughter chose to be baptized in the Jordan River. It was a special moment, whether or not it was near the place where John the Baptist actually baptized people. A pretty spot, it had trees on both sides of the river, and the water flows quietly at that point.
A few years later my youngest daughter began to show an interest in baptism. Reminding her of her sister's baptism, I asked if she had any special plans for her own. I wondered what she could possibly come up with that would top what her sister had done. "I'd like to be baptized in the Red Sea, at the place where the Israelites crossed!" she announced. I doubt she realized it at the time, but Paul associates the crossing of the Red Sea with Christian baptism in 1 Corinthians 10:1-4. My daughter could not have chosen the location more wisely.
Now, archaeologists are not exactly certain where the Israelites made their crossing. Some even suggest that it was not the Res Sea, but the "sea of reeds," which they identify with a lake north of the Red Sea near the Suez Canal today. Scripture states that the Israelites were "hemmed in" with a mountain to their right and the sea to their left (Ex. 14:1-4). The beach at Ain Sukhna in Egypt fits the description perfectly. So some friends and I took her there and baptized her during the summer of 2001.
The book of Revelation encourages Christians to see the experiences of ancient Israel as a model for Christian action and experience today. The Lamb in Revelation 5 is a slaughtered one, reminding us of the Hebrew sanctuary and its sacrifices. The plagues of Revelation are modeled on those that fell upon ancient Egypt. It was the blood of the Passover Lamb that protected the Israelites from the worst of those plagues. Similarly, the blood of Jesus shelters His people during God's judgments on humanity (Rev. 7:3; 12:11). Just as the original Israelites became a kingdom of priests at Mount Sinai, so the followers of Jesus are a kingdom of priests drawn from every nation, tribe, language, and people (Rev. 5:9, 10).
The Exodus is a model for Christian experience today. Our personal Exodus occurs when our old nature is buried in baptism and we rise to newness of life (Rom. 6:3, 4).
Lord, thank You for the newness of life that You have given me through the mighty action of Jesus Christ. May my appreciation for His sacrifice constantly increase.
I have had the privilege of spending significant time in the Middle East during the past dozen years. Early in that period my oldest daughter chose to be baptized in the Jordan River. It was a special moment, whether or not it was near the place where John the Baptist actually baptized people. A pretty spot, it had trees on both sides of the river, and the water flows quietly at that point.
A few years later my youngest daughter began to show an interest in baptism. Reminding her of her sister's baptism, I asked if she had any special plans for her own. I wondered what she could possibly come up with that would top what her sister had done. "I'd like to be baptized in the Red Sea, at the place where the Israelites crossed!" she announced. I doubt she realized it at the time, but Paul associates the crossing of the Red Sea with Christian baptism in 1 Corinthians 10:1-4. My daughter could not have chosen the location more wisely.
Now, archaeologists are not exactly certain where the Israelites made their crossing. Some even suggest that it was not the Res Sea, but the "sea of reeds," which they identify with a lake north of the Red Sea near the Suez Canal today. Scripture states that the Israelites were "hemmed in" with a mountain to their right and the sea to their left (Ex. 14:1-4). The beach at Ain Sukhna in Egypt fits the description perfectly. So some friends and I took her there and baptized her during the summer of 2001.
The book of Revelation encourages Christians to see the experiences of ancient Israel as a model for Christian action and experience today. The Lamb in Revelation 5 is a slaughtered one, reminding us of the Hebrew sanctuary and its sacrifices. The plagues of Revelation are modeled on those that fell upon ancient Egypt. It was the blood of the Passover Lamb that protected the Israelites from the worst of those plagues. Similarly, the blood of Jesus shelters His people during God's judgments on humanity (Rev. 7:3; 12:11). Just as the original Israelites became a kingdom of priests at Mount Sinai, so the followers of Jesus are a kingdom of priests drawn from every nation, tribe, language, and people (Rev. 5:9, 10).
The Exodus is a model for Christian experience today. Our personal Exodus occurs when our old nature is buried in baptism and we rise to newness of life (Rom. 6:3, 4).
Lord, thank You for the newness of life that You have given me through the mighty action of Jesus Christ. May my appreciation for His sacrifice constantly increase.
RSS Feed
