JULY, 1962 WITH MATERIALS FROM THE BROADCASTS HEARD DURING JUNE
TheBible IostitafoHoar
I B I O L A
broadcaster Monthly Publication of the BIOLA FELLOWSHIP Voi. 2 No. 7 JU LY , 1962 CONTENTS THE MAJESTY OF GOD ........... 3 ILLUSTRATION ..................... 6 THE TWELVE STONES IN THE BREASTPLATE OF THE HIGH PRIEST .............................. 7 JUDAH: THE SARDIUS STONE „ 9 ISSAOHAR: THE TOPAZ STONE ..11 ISSACHAR: GOD'S ISLAND STONE .............................. 13 QUESTIONS A N D A N SW E R S ...... 16 BIOLA GRADUATION, 1962 ...... 22 PARABLES AN D PEARLS ..........24 THE BIOLA FELLOWSHIP PLAN ..26 UNBURDENING A N D RENEW AL 27 ZEBULUN: A HAVEN FOR SHIPS 30 BIBLE STUDY OUTLINES FROM I THESSALONIANS ...............34 COVER: Dr. Ray A. Myers (left), Biola Board Chairman; and Dr. Samuel H. Sutherland, President, look over plans for new men's dormitory. 9:00 P. M. K G O Monday through Friday 1 50,000 watts _______ 810 kc STAFF President .....S. H. Sutherland Editor ................Ruth D. Gill Supervision ..Thomas E. Steele Production .......... A l Sanders Printing ............Church Press Published monthly by the Radio Dept. BIBLE INSTITUTE OF LOS ANGELES 558 S. Hope St., Los Angeles 17, Cal. Controlled circulation postage paid at Los Angeles. California.
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For those who, for various reasons, J were deprived of the privilege of lis tening to Dr. Anderson as he recently , gave the following excellent studies — and, To those who fortunately could follow | along with him over the radio, we Iset down these summaries for your ■ reading and further study. |N the pages of the Old Testament * Book of Exodus, chapter 28:'9-30,! | we find the episode of the High Priestl Iwho had upon his chest a pouch, and Iupon that pouch, set in gold, were Itwelve beautiful stones. Each stone rep- | resented one of the houses of Israel -— Ithe twelve sons of Jacob.
Worn on the chest of the High Priest, | atop his other garments, and suspended from his shoulders by a chain of gold, was this pouch-like bag which was doubled. This bag was called the “breastplate of judgment” which meant 1 the ornament of decision. The sole pur- pose of this pouch was to serve as a f repository for the Urim and Thummim by which God was to give him decisions [ in the event of doubt (verse 30). Now we feel there is need to remem-1 ber, as we come to these studies of the magnificent gems in the breastplate, that the High Priest, as he bore the names of the Twelve Tribes before God I under the Law, prefigures the Lord Je- e-S
nant theme of it was “praise” as Judah means praise. You see, God always put praise first, for in the Book of Psalms, Psalm 50:23, we come upon this say ing “Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me . . .” saith the Lord Himself. Now we are going to turn back to the Book of Genesis and read in chapter 49, verses 8-12 inclusive where we will find a glimpse of the individual of God builds no churches. By His plan That labor was left to man. No spires miraculously arise; No little mission from the skies Falls on the bleak and barren place To be a source of strength and grace. The humblest church demands its price, In human toil and sacrifice. Men call the church the house of God, Toward which the toil-stained pilgrims trod In search of strength and rest and hope, As blindly through life's mists they grope. And there God dwells. But it is man Who builds that house and draws its plan; Pays for mortar and the stone, That none need seek for God alone. The humblest spire in mortal ken Where God abides was built by men. And if the church is still to grow, Is still the light of hope to throw Across the valley of Despair, Men still must build God's house of prayer, God sends no churches from the skies— Out of our hearts must they arise! — Edgar Guest whom this blood-red stone, the sardius, is representative. We read: “Judah, thou art he whom thy breth ren shall praise: thy hand shall be in Dr. Anderson is pastor of the Bethany Bap tist Church, West Covina, and is a member of Biola's Board of Directors. 4 THE CHURCH
Message One (continued) sus Christ who now bears you and me in intercession before the throne of God in Grace. The breastplate, worn by the High Priest, was foursquare in shape. It is a point of interest to note the meanings lying here; for example: gold repre sents the eternal Godhead and you and I, according to Ephesians 1:4, have been set into Jesus Christ, by God himself, just as these precious stones were set in gold and then placed on the pouch that was upon the chest of the High Priest of the people of Israel. We read that these stones were always set ac cording to a definite order, as far as God was concerned. There was a tre mendous variety of the stones on the breastplate — no two stones were alike. The same variety is true of believers, they may look alike but they act dif ferently. God’s children have varying talents and gifts according to His wis dom. But let us not forget to look at the onyx stones — there weTe two of them; one stone resting upon each shoulder of the High Priest. Graven upon each stone were the names of the Twelve Tribes of Israel; six names were graven upon each stone and note, they were graven according to their birth (Exo dus 28:10). The shoulder stones of onyx were alike for we are all born of God in the same way — we have a common acceptance. Perhaps you have never given thought to the fact that there is a mes sage about the Lord Jesus Christ, and there is a message about the believer, and there is a message about the sons of Jacob in these twelve lovely stones of the breastplate. The first stone to which we want to direct your study is, of course, the beau tiful sardius stone which is the first in order of the twelve stones. The name sardius comes from the Hebrew word, adorn, the root meaning of which is red — the color of the sardius stone, which was in harmony with the char acter of Judah. This stone was given the honor of being the first gem in the priestly breastplate and the predomi
says that “. . . Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the chief ruler; . . .” The expression, chief ruler, means a prince and the Hebrew word, we are told, as used here is “nagid” — it is the same term which is translated Messiah, the Prince, in Daniel 9:25. You see, it was from the tribe of Judah, for which the sardius, the blood red gem, stands representative of the Lord Jesus Christ who later came. Let us look, now, at the words of Jacob as he speaks in Genesis 49:8-12 inclusive. The first thing we are told of Judah is . . thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise . . The word used here for praise always refers to the praise or worship which is offered to the Lord. Christ is the One who shall yet receive the praise and worship of His own brethren according to the flesh: namely, the people of Israel. Then, in the second expression we are told, . . thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father’s children shall bow down before thee.” So, while Judah stands symbolical of the Lord Jesus Christ, we need to re mind ourselves that Christ is the One who, like Judah, shall have dominion over Israel and subdue all their ene mies. We see this dominion of the tribe of Judah commenced in the days of Nathan who was the first king from that particular tribe. It was during the reign of David that Judah’s hand was in the neck of their enemies because Judah became a dominant tribe and, as such, became a leader among the nations of the world. Read for yourselves the glorious words of Genesis 49:9,10 in which their father Jacob contemplated the supreme destiny of the tribe of Judah — using the figure of the lion, it threads its gold en path through the intricate days of time until the full figure of The Lion of the Tribe of Judah breaks upon the page of the Book of the Revelation, chapter 5 and verse 5! “The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh (Christ) come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.” 5
the neck of thine enemies, thy father's children shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion’s whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be. Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.” Now the above section of Jacob’s prophecy concerning Judah, finds its GOD NEVER FAILS Each happy morn when I awake, This promise for the day I take: "I'll never leave thee, nor forsake," HE FAILETH. NOT! Along life's road I'll fear no ill, For Christ my Lord is with me still; He never faileth! He never will! HE FAILETH NOT! He has not failed me in the past, He will not fail while life shall last, For whereso'er my lot be cast, HE FAILETH NOT! ultimate fulfillment in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ. We read about garments that were washed in wine and clothes in the blood of grapes. This language of Scripture, where such pn expression is used, simply means that this rich color flowed in abundance in the land that Judah had taken over as his portion of the land of Israel. Then, again, “his eyes were red with wine.” Now what was natural of his life be came obvious of his record or his per manent testimonial. Wonderful? Yes, because all of this stands representative of the precious blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. We suggest that with this section of Jacob’s prophecy should be coupled I Chronicles 5:2 where the Scripture
because of a lack of finances. God help us to put the emphasis upon that which is really important!” “. . put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ and make not provision for the flesh, to fu lfil the lusts of the flesh” (Romans 13:14). . . . "One needs to give much more concern to making a life, than to making a living!" * * * TH IS IS A N INTERESTING MOTTO which hangs over the busy sink in the kitchen of one of our listen ers: “Divine service is conducted here three times daily.” Did you ever think of your routine care of your dishes, three times a day, as the time and place where you can worship God? May the following lines be your prayer — “God bless my little kitchen small, 1 love its every nook, And bless me as I do my work, wash my pots and pans and cook. May meals that I prepare here, Lord, be seasoned from above, W ith all the blessings of Thy grace, but most of all Thy love. As we partake of earthly food, the table for us spread, We'll not forget to thank Thee, Lord, who gives us daily bread. So bless my little kitchen, Lord, and those who enter in, May they find nought but joy and peace and happiness therein.” Yes, mothers, the cornerstone of the nation is its hearthstone and each and every part of it is an appointed place of worship of our Heavenly Father. * * * "M ost people talk Christianity by the yard who can't walk it by the inch."
THERE IS A NARRATIVE that has come to my desk, relative to an oil well that was brought in on proper ty owned by a certain church. After paying off the church debt, the con gregation voted that the remainder be divided among the membership. Forthwith, a member of the con gregation arose and said, “I make a motion that membership in this church be closed!” (Of course that was said in jest, or at least we trust it was). Many churches seem to be made up of individuals who make just such a motion — not verbally, but by their actions. And this attitude is not the result of oil having been brought in on the property of their church. But remembering that oil is a type of the Holy Spirit, it may be that their actions result from the fact that there is no oil in their lamps. Exactly what is the spiritual condition of the members of your church? Has prosperity caused them to cease witnessing for Christ? May we always be ready to give an answer to every man that asketh us a reason of the hope that is in us w ith meekness and fear! * * * "N o problem is too great for God's power, nortoo slight for His love." * * * THE OTHER D A Y the Army an nounced thousands of dollars worth of electronic equipment going on sale for only a penny a pound. It is unused, outdated waste! One won ders how much waste is involved in what is done in our Country. Last year, Americans spent five billion dollars for tobacco, ten bil lion dollars for alcohol, and seventy- six million for lipstick. The cause of Missions is suffering
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Twelve Stones in the Breastplate of the High Priest: JUDAH Verse 10 of the 49th chapter of the Book of Genesis opens up a matter of interest to us—it is that “The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a law giver from between his feet, until Shi loh come; and unto him shall the gath ering of the people be.” We feel that this verse requires a peculiar and separate word. The He brew word “shebet” is also used and translated “tribe” in Genesis 49, verses 16 and 28. It is interesting to see, ac cording to its usage in Scripture, that it also means “tribal rod or the staff of office” which belonged to any tribe and was the ensign of authority. This part of Jacob’s statement gave promise that the tribal rod would not leave Judah ■ until a certain prominent person would make His appearance. In other words, the Tribe of Judah would retain its tribal distinctiveness and separate au thority until Shiloh, or the Messiah — the Lord Jesus Christ, would come. Christ was born and His birth most remarkably fulfilled this prophecy. Now the separate kingdom of Israel — the ten tribes — was lost at an early (continued on next page) 7
The High Priest at the Altar of Incense. (Picture from the Biola Films, “Christ in the Tabernacle.”) I t was Dr. Charles W. Stemming who said, “In dealing with the destinies of tribe of Judah, under the figure of a lion, it is to be observed that this tribe’s history is contemplated under three distinct stages according to the growth or the age of a lion in the jungle.” Now we feel, first of all, that there is need to remind ourselves that we have a great lion’s whelp, which means a little cub. The lion must have this beginning just as every other animal of human being is launched forth. Then he is considered to be a lion when he comes to his middle age, and lastly, he comes to old age. The gradual growth in power of the Tribe of Judah is set forth in Genesis 49:4. And here, we would suggest that this passage looks at the Tribe of Ju dah, first: from the days of Joshua to the days of King Saul. The full grown lion in his middle age, follows in the days of the first warrior David, the King of Israel. And lastly, from Solo mon’s reign until the Kingdom is dis solved, we have Judah represented as an old lion. This serves as a working outline for us.
to “The Lion of the Tribe of Judah”, the Lord Jesus Christ. We must turn first to the Song of Solomon, chapter 1 and verse 14 where we are told of the vineyards of En- ge-di. Through Joshua 15:62 we learn that En-ge-di was one of the chief cit ies of Judah. II Chronicles 26:9, 10, speaks of the vinedressers of Carmel and Joshua 15, verses 21 and 55 point out that Mount Carmel and the district of Carmel, which were southward to ward Edom, were included in the por tion of Judah’s inheritance in the land, geographically. Now all of this makes clear the fact that this was a country of vineyards and that wine was probably more plen tiful than water — which fact we want to remember. Also, this has reference to the Tribe of Judah and ties in to an understanding of Genesis 49:11, 12. However, we must make this com plete by comparing Isaiah 63:1-3, with the Genesis passage to which we have just referred. In Isaiah we read, “Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, travelling in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save. Wherefore art thou red in thine appar el, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat?” The washing of His garments in wine, of course, has a greater reference to the Lord Jesus Christ. One thing we must understand, and that is, that the abundance of wine caused it to enter into the ordinary things of life. Now wine speaks of joy and the joy of the Lord is epitomized in this matter of the vine. So may His joy permeate the everyday things of our living. Would to God that we could drink fuller and deeper of this spiritual wine of God’s joy so that this thing would radiate from our very eyes. We are told in Nehemiah 8:10 — “. . . that the joy of the Lord is your strength.” “The Bible Institu te Hour” PHOENIX 9.00 A M . Daily, KHEP, 1280 kc. 8
Judah (continued) age, but Judah with her tribes in the South was still in the land when the Lord Jesus Christ made His appear ance. It is to be noted further that Jacob declared of Judah that a lawgiver should not depart from this tribe until Shiloh come. There is the striking fact that after Shiloh had come, the legal authority vested in this particular tribe of Judah, disappeared as is evident from John 18:31, “Then said Pilate unto them, Take ye him, and judge him ac cording to your law. The Jews there fore said unto him, It is not lawful for us to put any man to death.” That was a remarkable admission on their part — that they were no longer their own governors but were under the dom ination of the Roman government, a foreign power! Caiaphas, the high priest, said in effect, “You, the Roman Governor, alone can pass the sentence of death on Jesus of Nazareth.” So it was that by this admission Genesis’ 49:10 came to its fulfillment. Thus the absence of the sceptre, or rod of au thority, and of the iawgiver, blazoned the fact that the Christ out of the Tribe of Judah must already have come! Then, will you kindly notice Gene sis 49:11, 12 — “. . . unto him shall the gathering of the people be.” This ex pression looks forward to Christ’s sec ond coming as also do the words that follow: “Binding his foal (colt) unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes: His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.” Dr. Pink holds that the reference here seems to be a double one: first, to the Tribe of Judah and in the second place to the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that to be absolutely true, for Pales tine, Judah’s portion of the land that flowed .with milk and honey, was the vine-growing district of the south. Now let us tie together some verses from the Word of God and we shall capture the picture as it runs from the Sardius stone on the breastplate, through Judah and the Tribe of Judah,
JUNE RADIO MESSAGES
The Twelve Stones in the Breastplate of the H igh Priest JUDAH: the sardius stone by Dr. Lloyd T. Anderson
In Genesis 49 we read that Jacob prophesied that “The sceptre shall not depart f r o m Judah until Shiloh come . . .” Jacob prophesied at the same time, something of the characteristics of the ministry of Christ — that He would weave together the common place, represented by the ass’s colt, with the beautiful, as represented by the vine. Jacob also foretold that Christ would have the fullness of the Spirit and be the Bread of Life — Genesis 49:11, 12. We have seen the spiritual grasp that Jacob had of the Tribe of Judah, but he was not alone in this leading of the Spirit for we must add the name of Moses who also prophesied that Christ would come of the Tribe of Judah and that in Him would be perfect sufficiency, redemption, and spiritual santification according to Deuteronomy 33:7. And there is an other to be added to this number •— the prophet Micah for he prophesied that Christ would be born in Bethle hem in Judaea (Judah). In coming to this blood-red stone, we see it in its majesty as it rests cen tered upon this composite picture of Judah, the Tribe of Judah, and the Lord Jesus Christ, to whom the Word refers as being a precious stone. The sardius, in its meaning — blood-red, all the more relates the stone with Christ and, of course, with His own precious blood. One of our great authors said, “In the English Authorized Version of the Bible, the stone is called sardius, a (continued on next page) 9
W e have b e e n devoting our studies to the stones of the breastplate en bloc and have considered, briefly, the first stone of the twelve in its typi cal significance to the Lord Jesus Christ, and direct reference to the per son of Judah. We now want to look at the sardius stone and its ramifications, in part. Our interest shall be fastened upon this choice gem, the sardius, not only because of the honor of its placement among the other stones, but because of its many qualities that shone in its dual reference to Judah and to our Lord. And now we shall see how it works itself out in the things of beauty in our faith. It was fitting that the name of Judah be engraved on the sardius stone as Judah had the meaning of “praise”— the praise of a life directed only to the worship of God. We see this in various acts of his life; for instance, when he intervened with wise counsel at a time when there was danger of his brothers putting Joseph to death. Judah’s argu ment lies in Genesis 37:26, . . What profit is it if we slay our brother and conceal his blood?” It was Judah who promised to stand as surety for the little boy Benjamin — and it was his appeal that broke down the decision of Joseph. This appeal was set down in Genesis 44:34. These acts, we are sure, rested under the direction and bless ing of God. After looking at the man, we want to rather quickly review some prophe cies relative to the tribe that bore his name — the Tribe of Judah.
give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” We are further admonished “. . . now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light . . .” These verses are written to you and me as believers. When Christ comes into our lives He gives a sheen and luster, a brilliancy that outlasts all others. Another characteristic of the sardius stone is. that, it sometimes has a most remarkable transparency — how like our Lord! He had nothing to hide. He had no dark secrets in His bosom for He was pure through and through. It is wonderful to read the words of this quotation, “Never a breath of scandal ever touched the Lord Jesus Christ. His whole life was as sweet as the winds of the morning across the Ju daean hills.” With this beauty of life in Him, He turns to us and says, “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.” Dr. Hoag gives us this thought in his studies — that the sardius stone was much in demand for the making of seals for the stamping of important documents. First of all our Lord spoke of Himself as being sealed by His Fa ther. Then He said, “Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Fa ther sealed.” And what security and comfort this verse in II Timothy gives us! It is found in chapter 2 and it is the 19th verse: “. . . the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his . . .” The subject of the seal of God has always been of paramount interest to me because the sealing of the Holy Spirit in His ministry declares a fin ished work. Then, too, the seal always denotes a genuineness of the things that are sealed, and so you and I have the stamp of Christ in our lives. Have we been sealed by the Holy Spirit? As we leave this particular study we are grateful that the magnificent sardius stone which stood for Judah and which represented Jesus Christ . 10
The Sardius Stone (continued) word that recalls the city of Sardis, one of the great cities of Asia Minor.” In Revelation 3, there is a stirring mes sage for the church from that particu lar city of Sardis. In effect it is, “You have the name of heing alive, but you are surely dead. Wake up, says John, in the Book of the Revelation, rally what is still left of you, though you are oh the very point of death, for if you wake not up I shall come upon you. You still have a few souls living in Sardis who have not soiled their garments, they shall walk beside me in white because they deserve to.” Then in verse 5 we read: “He that over- cometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Fa ther, and before his angels.” What a message to a church, and how deep was the need of those in Sardis for the power that lies in the atoning blood of Calvary. And those in Sardis had the symbol of this pow er of the atonement in the sardius stone! The Encyclopaedia Britannica yields an interesting thought on this sardius stone, it tells us that it is valued be cause it takes on a very high polish and retains that polish longer than any other gem we know anything about. In looking at this stone symbolically, it is one of the great commendations of our Lord Jesus Christ and of the men and women whom He redeems. God gave Jesus a singular brilliancy, it ex celled in Him all others who have ever lived. Dr. Barr said, “Every word He spoke, every deed He did served to heighten His glory and His bright ness.” The perfection and grandeur of His walk and every act were climaxed in the magnificence of Calvary! The brilliance of His words on the Cross, His understanding suffering, His sym pathetic heart and pure love toward mankind have beamed down through the centuries and II Corinthians 4:6 has this to say, “For God, who com manded the light to shine out of dark ness, hath shined in our hearts, to
Delitzsch has stated, in dealing with this story, that Reuben, the son of Leah, when he was about four or five years of age, was playing in the field— evidently following the reapers. We are expressly toid that it was the time oi £he wheat harvest. During his play he found a pretty little red and white flower with a strong aroma. Childlike, he uprooted it and took it home to his mother. This was the mandrake, of the taproot family, and Rachel seeing it, watered and covered the plant. The near eastern women believed that the mandrake flower root con tained certain medicinal, if not magi cal, properties that were a cure for the barrenness of a woman’s womb. We read that this condition—the fact that she, Rachel, could not bear children by her husband Jacob —*•was a matter of great grief to her. Leah, Jacob’s other wife had borne him four sons. Rachel’s distraction was so great that she even sought to obtain children through her handmaiden. Seeing this mandrake flower she thought it to be her opportunity and requested that it be given to her. In stead, Rachel received the rebuff of her sister who said, “Is it a small mat ter that thou hast taken my husband and would’st thou take away my son’s mandrakes also?” But the two women bargained and the outcome of the whole thing was that Rachel secured the mandrakes, but Leah was given an- (continued on next page) 11
W it h a p ic t u r e of the Breastplate of the High Priest in our think ing, we find that the next study in this series centers around the second stone, the topaz. Although this stone is men tioned quite often in the Bible, its ori gin and meaning are not usually known to the average Bible student. In this study we shall look into the life and characteristics of this son of Jacob for whom the second stone stands —namely, Issachar. Now Issachar was not necessarily the second son of Jacob by birth, but in position as we note here. We have but to recall the story of Jacob and Laban relative to two of Laban’s daughters, whom Jacob mar ried. Also, we recall how Leah be came the first of Jacob’s wives and Issachar was her son. The reason for naming Leah’s son Issachar, which means to hire for payment or reward, is discovered in the account concerning his birth. And here we have ,a story that is often passed over as almost un readable. It is also called a very sordid story, by some. But surely the Bible cannot be that readily discredited. If we approach the account of this birth of Issachar with an honest mind, we shall find that while the action may not be without reproach, yet there is something to be found worthy of medi tation. Were this not true, we may be sure that it would never have been written, for it is in the Bible by the Holy Spirit.
gave him that as the portion of his tribe. Issachar found his delight in local environment and living in tents. So, in a summary of the two, we see that Zebulun was a tribe that loved to follow the sea, but Issachar was a tribe that loved agriculture and each followed their own pursuit with equal success. This gives us a bit of an in sight into the manner in which God handled the placement of these peo ples. We must keep fixed in our thinking the fact that Issachar was a rugged individual who did a day of hard labor, and his men followed him in this way of life. In the Book of Numbers, chap ter 26, we see that in the numbering of those among the tribes who were people ready to go forth to war, that only the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, of the 12 tribes, were numerically stronger than Issachar — and in the days of the kings of Israel, the tribe of Issachar had become stronger still. Read Numbers 26:25 and in I Chroni cles 7:5 we find “And their brethren among all the families of Issachar were valiant men of might, reckoned in all by their genealogies fourscore and seven thousand” — (87,000 men). And so this wonderful stone, the topaz, stands representative of Issachar,' and in a greater sense it speaks of our Lord Jesus Christ who labored for you and me. Christ had wrought perfectly all that the Father had sent Him to do — thus the joy of the Lord is upon us. * * * "God is far more concerned with what we are than with what we do/’
Issachar (continued) other son! It was because of this bar gaining over the mandrakes that Leah named the child Issachar — “to hire for reward” — while Rachel remained without children for another two years. Now we come again to the passage of Genesis 49:14, 15 where Jacob is bestowing his patriarchial blessing up on his sons and what do we read here? “Issachar is a strong ass crouching down between two burdens.” Dr. Mason tells us that this blessing has ofttimes been misinterpreted, because the ass is so often considered to be a silly animal, which is absolutely not true. There are 143 references in the Bible to the ass, but not one of them would justify this characteristic of be ing silly, as a fair judgment—many would prove to the contrary. In the judgment of Isaiah the ass would certainly be wiser than Israel for he said in chapter 1, verse 3, “The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master’s crib: but Israel does not even know, my people do not even consid er.” Now “crouching down between two burdens” has been suggested by some as meaning between indolence and stubbornness, but this is far from the truth. Dr. Henry gave the opinion that if we would compare Scripture with Scripture, as we are exhorted to do, we would discover that the his tory of this tribe under Issachar was just the reverse in the matter of in dolence — they were ready to work. Dr. Pink said of the expression “crouching between two burdens,” that “These words have been translated in many ways: as between the cattle pen, or beneath the two hearthstones, or lying down between the foal or within their own boundaries.” If we look at the two names of Issa char and Zebulun, as did Moses, it might be seen how God distributes men according to their abilities and qualifications. A love for travel domi nated both Zebulun and his tribe and so God settled him geographically along the Palestinian coastline and
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ISSACHAR: God's Island Stone
by Dr. Lloyd T. Anderson
W e have looked at Issachar and his tribe in sufficient detail to have an understanding of the back ground against which his identity with the topaz stone must be studied. And we continue now to open the Word as we feel assured that God will bless every moment as we share it. The second stone on the High Priest’s breastplate binds us in good debt to a small island in the Dead Sea for it is from this island that we chiefly get the topaz, a very interesting stone. We would do well to note the fact that the islands are often acknowl edged in various ways in the Word of God. For instance, in the Book of Isaiah, we read “Keep silence before me, O islands . . Isa. 41:1. Then Isaiah again records,’ . . the •isles shall wait upon me . . .” chapter 51:5. Although the islands were silent, it is very clear that God would have Isaiah cry out, “Sing unto the Lord a new song in the isles.” And with a blaze of glory, David brings the people of Tarshish and the isles into prophecy when he writes in Psalm 72:10—“The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring presents: the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer gifts.” And then the great crescendo comes when Scripture unfolds the revelation given to a man in prison on an isle: the man was John, and the Isle was Patmos! John was told to write his vision in a book. And here we learn that circum
stances can set all of us on islands of many different kinds, cutting us off from constant activities and from friends, and oft surrounding us by seas of sorrow and the deepest bewilder ment. Daniel knew the meaning of an island experience for he so states in the 10th chapter and verse 8 — “There fore I was left alone, and saw this great vision . . .” But he learned what God would have him do through it all. Jeremiah was brought to understand through the experience of being alone for he tells us in chapter 15, verse 17, “ . . . I sat alone because of thy hand . . .” Paul recalls in II Timothy 4:16 that “. . . no man stood with me” and he said, . . but all men forsook me”— turn to that passage and read what great things came to him in his times of being alone. Transcending all others, our Lord Jesus Christ had His island hours: the Mount of Transfiguration, Gethsem- ane, the wilderness temptations, and the death throes of the Cross. Christ tasted the cup of loneliness to the dregs. But where would we be were it not for the precious sayings that came to Him and through Him to us in His loneliness of life. We must leam this: When God sets us apart, be sure He has some big work that we are to do! It is big in His eyes and in His plans. (continued on next page) 13
meaning is believed to indicate a color — this would not be surprising be cause the topaz is a very unique color. Some say that it has a modern term or name of “the evening candle.” If this name be true we must turn to the Apostle Paul for a word of Scripture when he urged the Corinthian Chris tians to avoid grumbling so that it could be said that the children of God, GOD'S FULL FLOCK "Someone is absent", the Shepherd said, As over my classbook He bent His head: "For several Sundays absent, too, So tell me, teacher, what did you do?" " I didn't call, as perhaps l should, I wrote some cards, but they did no good, I've never heard, and he never came, So I decided to drop his name." He answered gravely, " A flock was mine, A hundred — no, there were ninety and nine, For one was lost in the dark and cold; So l sought that sheep which had left the fold. "The path was stony and edged with thorns; M y feet were bruised and wounded and torn, But I kept on seeking, nor counted the cost; And oh, the joy when l found the lost?" Thus spoke the Shepherd, in tender tone, I looked, and lo, I was all alonei But God a vision had sent to me, To show His will toward the absentee. — «Author Unknown in a crooked and perverse generation, were to shine like stars in a dark world. Jesus came as a star into the dark world. It was said of old that a star would come out of Jacob accord ing to Numbers 24:17. In Malachi 4:2 He gives us these words through Malachi: “But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of 14
Issachar (continued) Do not fear the island experiences of life — but fear lest, through lack of faith, you may miss the blessings that are harbored in those experiences. Then another matter of interest, ac cording to the World Encyclopaedia, is the fact that the ruler of Egypt had a monopoly of the precious stones ob tained from this island in the Dead Sea, the island on which the topaz is found. Men have tried to do the same with the Precious Stone which is- the Lord Jesus Christ. Various sects or “isms” have attempted to isolate Him to their cult, but Jesus Christ dealt a death blow to all such ideas for He made it abundantly clear that God was no longer to be tied down to any one people for He sent John 3:16 as the liberating key. God’s invitation has the universe in it. Matthew 11:28 tells us to “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” “. . . him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” is the word of John 6:37. You see, the Christ who gave His life at Calvary had a heart that took in the whole world. The ruler of Egypt had the mono poly of the topaz for long duration, but our Lord breaks over the mountains of nationality; over the bounds of lan guage, and over the bounds of religious groups He is for all men. Dr. Slemming writes that the topaz, when rubbed, will exhibit or discharge electricity. Many scientists have made similar statements. Now let’s look at the average Christian or, for that mat ter, the average unbeliever—■are we attractive when we become irritated? Our nerves often become frayed and only the love of Christ is sufficient for such trials of life. In Romans 5:3 we read what Paul said about this state: “. . . but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh pa tience:” It is tragic that when you and I are sometimes rubbed the wrong way, we do not exhibit that kind of spirit. Dr. Pink writes that the Hebrew name for this gem, the topaz, is pite- dah, a word, the meaning of which is absolutely unknown. However, the
TH IS SEEMS TO BE A DAY when all sorts of new translations and ver sions of the Bible are being pub lished. Personally, none can compare with the majesty and beauty of the King James. However, it is of es pecial interest to note how some of the native converts, in various parts of the world, interpret the Scrip tures. . We turn now to an incident — the return of a missionary from the West Indies — which brings to us the translation of Lamentations 3:23, “The Lord's mercies are new every morning; great is thy faith fulness.” Some of the people of the West Indies, who had found the Lord as their Saviour, were struggling to interpret this verse when they came upon the statement, “Our God is greater than a palm tree.” This seemed strange to the missionary until he discovered that the palm tree provides more than 350 articles necessary to the living of the is land people . . . it is the most de pendable thing for their daily exis tence. Yet, God is greater than the palm tree — great in His faithful ness! * * * "Some people foolishly sow their wild oats all week, and then go to church on Sunday to pray for a crop failure!" * * * EACH N IGH T the powerful Radio Sta tion KGO reaches out to homes on the western coast from Canada to Mexico. In our mail from that area we brought this letter for your read ing. “We listen every evening. Our two boys turn the radio up loud so they can go to sleep listening to your program . . . Sometimes it hurts our eardrums for the radio is in the kitchen, and the boys are in the bedroom on the other side of the house. Yet how thankful we are for such a program that we all might listen and learn to love the Lord better. We want ours to be a truly Christian home.” 15
Righteousness arise with healing in his wings . . It was the thought of His life and ministry which He sought to describe when He said “I am the Light of the world.” It is claimed that the topaz has a color which is unmatched by any other known gem. This was certainly true of the Lord Jesus Christ who is unique in glory. It is impossible to classify Him with any particular group of FAULT-FINDING Pray don't find fault with the man who limps Or stumbles along the road, Unless you have worn the shoes he wears Or struggled beneath his load. There may be tacks in his shoes that hurt, Though hidden away from view, Or the burden he bears, placed on your back, Might cause you to stumble, too! Don't sneer at the man who is down today, Unless you have felt the blow That caused his fall, or felt the shame That only the fallen know. You may be strong, but still the blows That were his, if dealt to you In the self same way, at the self same time, Might cause you to stagger, too! Don't be too harsh with the man who sins, Or pelt him with words or stones, Unless you are sure, yea, doubly sure, That you have not sins of your own. For you know, perhaps, if the temp ter's voice Should whisper as soft to you As it did to him when he went astray "Twould cause you to falter, too! — Anonymous great men — He stands by Himself. Christ did something for you and me that no living man could have done. This wonderful stone is a picture of this One who is the Lamb of God slain from the foundation of the world. Yes, this stone represents Issachar and the tribe of Issachar—but it also represents Jesus Christ the lofty, the glorious One whom you and I love so much!
Q. “What is the meaning of the verse Matthew 18:18?” A. The verse is, “Verily I say unto you, What things soever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and what things soever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Sim ply, it is this — if you believe, your sins are forgiven; if you are unbeliev ing, your sins are not forgiven. It is in that sense that we understand Mat thew 18:18. No man, on his own pre rogative, can say that he, by his own spiritual power, is endowed with au thority to forgive sins. And, also to say, that when he does this act of forgiveness, that those in heaven re cord the way that he has indicated. Q . Modesto, California. “Why arerCt the four beast kings of Daniel 7:4-7 accept ed as four individual kings as verse 17 so clearly declares?” A* Now when we drop down to verse 17 and read of the four beasts or four kings — may we say that four kings or kingdoms could be equally used, the panelist believes, here in these pas sages. It is true that in connection with the first of the world empires, that of Nebuchadnezzar, he was in reality the great king of that particular dy nasty, and later on there were kings of the Medo-Persian Empire. These are four kingdoms, not individual kings, and I feel that this is where the confusion comes in connection with this one who has written this question. We think of the first two kings,
Nebuchadnezzar, the great king of the Babylonian Empire and Cyrus the Great, king of the Medo-Persian Em pire. Then along came Alexander the Great, king of the Grecian Empire. These were the outstanding kingdoms, but it was not limited to them, his torically. The fourth kingdom, of course, is the great Roman Empire. It is the world kingdoms that are in cluded here and not just the kings. Q . Spokane, Washington. “Do you think that the Apostle Paul suggests celibacy in I Corinthians 7:7, 8?” A. Perhaps I should do two things: first, define celibacy and then read the portion of Scripture to which the writ er refers. Celibacy is the position of one who remains unmarried. I Corinthians 7:7 reads, “Yet I would that all men were even as myself. Howbeit each man hath his own gift from God, one after his manner and another after that.” You have to take a passage like I Corinthians 7 and re late it to the given situation at that time. What Paul was saying was that in certain situations in Corinth, where there were special difficulties of great immorality, he would suggest that Christian workers would not marry be cause unmarried men and women could then give themselves more whol ly to the work of the Lord in combat ting the current conditions of sin. As a norm for the human race;, the Apostle Paul never suggested, nor did he ever intimate celibacy as the normal life. 16
was what we know now to be Mesopo tamia. In other words archaeology and scientific research confirm what Are know from the early chapters of Gene sis. Now it’s very simple to understand that when Adam’s son, meaning Cain, had killed his brother Abel, the Scrip ture says he went into the land of Nod. Nod was one of the portions of Eden the Scripture says. Well just as God created that part of the world, so he still created other parts of the world, other areas covered on the globe and Cain went to the land of Nod, this particular name of the area and lived there. Where did his people come from? Now I think that’s probably where most of the difficulty arises. The ques tion is how did Adam and Eve, the first ancestors of the human family, beget Cain and Abel. If Cain killed Abel, how could Cain go off and find a settled existence elsewhere? Well, for one thing, we believe on the basis of the Word of God, that there has never been a pre-Adamic race, that God did start with Adam and Eve according to Romans 1:12, “. . . as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.” All men liv ing in the world today came from Adam and Eve. We must also realize, according to the Book of Genesis, from this chap ter and the 4th verse, that the days of Adam, after he begat Seth, were 800 years and he begat sons and daugh ters. In other words Adam did have Cain and Abel as sons, but Adam and Eve also had other children, and Cain, when he left Eden, could have gone to live elsewhere and those areas could have already begun to be populated by relatives of Cain who came from Adam and Eve who had more than just Cain, Abel, and Seth. In answer to that I would suggest Genesis 5, verses 4 and 5. Q . Tacoma, Washington — “How can Satan rally a crowd of followers during (continued on next page)
Q . Spokane, Washington. “Why do Chris tians in Protestant churches keep East er when it is a pagan holiday?” A. The Protestant churches keep East er Sunday because it was on the first day of the week that Mary and those of the apostolic band went to the sepul chre and saw that the grave was empty. The particular Easter Sunday when our Lord rose from the dead had to do with the Old Testament Pass- over Season. It was at that time of the year, somewhere around the spring of the year — early April or late March, thus it became our Easter celebration. Easter is related to the Passover be cause three days after the Passover, the Lord Jesus Christ, following His cruci fixion, was raised from the dead, and the fact of the risen, living Lord is the significant thing about Easter! The question has been raised, “Does the word ‘Easter’ occur in the Scrip tures?” Yes, the term Easter does occur in the Scripture — it is in the Book of Acts where it is a translation of the Passover as has just been indicated. Q. Wenatchee, Washington. “When God sent Adam’s son from the Garden of Eden for killing his brother , the Bible says he went into the land of Nod and dwelt. Now how could the land of Nod exist — how could Cain know where this land was and where did his people come from?” A. We must always realize that though we have 66 books in the Bible, the world’s great marvel of condensation, that not everything is in the Bible concerning what transpired in history ever since God created the universe. I am afraid many people feel that the Garden of Eden covered the whole universe. There is no valid view along that line. I know of no student of the Bible, especially the New Testament who feels that when God created the whole world, Genesis the 1st and 2nd chapters, that the Garden of Eden, comprised that whole world. It is gen erally held that the Garden of Eden
cariot, was either the son or brother of James according to Luke 6:16; Acts 1:13. Judas is also called Thaddaeus, Matthew 10:3 and Mark 3:18. So there you have the two views. I think prob ably the first is the better of the two and that would make Matthew, James the less, and Judas, not Iscariot, bro thers. THE BAD EXAMPLE A Message to Fathers He whipped his boy for lying. And his cheeks were flaming red, And of course there's no denying There was truth in what he said — That a liar's always hated. But the little fellow knew, That his father often stated Many things that were untrue. He caught the youngster cheating And he sent him up to bed, And it's useless now repeating All the bitter things he said. He talked of honor loudly. As a lesson to be learned, And forgot he boasted proudly Of the cunning tricks he'd turned. He heard the youngster swearing And he punished him again — He'd have no boy as daring As to utter words profane. Yet the youngster could have told him. Poor misguided little elf, That it seemed unfair to scold him When he often cursed, himself. All in vain is splendid preaching. And the noble things we say, All our talk is wasted teaching If we do not lead the way. We can never, by reviewing All the sermons on the shelves, Keep the younger hands from doing What we often do ourselves. — Author unknown Q . "W e would like to know whether Acts 19:3 to chapter 4 is speaking of water regeneration, and is the water sufficient for forgiveness of sins?” A. Acts 19:3 reads in this way, “And he said unto them, into what then were ye baptized? And they said, Into John’s baptism. And Paul said, John baptized 18
Questions (continued) the millennium if he is to be bound during that 1,000 years?” A. Satan will not gather the crowd of followers during the millennium. We read in the Revelation, chapter 20, vers es 7 through 8: “And when the thou sand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog to gather them together to do battle: the number of which is as the sand of the sea.” In verse 9 we read how Satan and his followers went up on the breadth of the earth and compassed the camp of the saints about, and God sent down fire from heaven and destroyed them. Verse 10 tells us that the Devil was cast into the lake of fire to be tormented day and night for ever and ever. The Battle of Armageddon takes place at the end of the Tribulation and the beginning of the millennium and the battle about which you enquire takes place at the end of the millen nium. Q . Palo Alto, California — “Were Mat thew and James the less and Judas, not Iscariot, brothers?” A. Yes, there was a Judas, who was not Iscariot, mentioned in John 14:22. And now we will deal with your question. Well, some have identified Matthew’s father Alpheus as the father of James the less and that would make these men brothers. I think that that has the better argument. There is an argument against it and the argument appears to be based on the fact that Matthew and James are not joined in the lists of apostles as are other pairs of brothers. I do not know that that is a very strong argument, especially when having studied many different types of literature we come to know that writers often change for a variety of reasons — one of them being stylistic. In the interest of your further study will you note that this Judas, not Is
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