The Oracles of God

PSALM 119:105; ISAIAH 2:2-4; MICAH 6:1-8

GOLDEN TEXT: “And He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths.”—Isaiah 2:3

SIN first led to the division of the Israelites into two camps—the ten tribe kingdom, and the two tribe kingdom: or the house of Israel and the house of Judah—and its virus continued to blight both groups until they disintegrated and lost their national independence. Despite this, however, God’s dealings with them bore a rich fruitage when viewed from the standpoint of his plan as a whole; for, beginning with Moses and continuing through all his “holy prophets,” he caused his laws to be recorded and his plan for human redemption and salvation, outlined. The people of Israel were thus advantaged by being the ones to whom “the oracles of God” were first committed.—Romans 3:2

But as the apostle explains, “Whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.” (Romans 15:4) Israel failed to keep the Law, but it served as a schoolmaster or pedagogue to point the way to Christ and the need of a Redeemer. (Gal. 3:24,25) Israel’s unfaithfulness on so many occasions called forth warnings from whic1 the church of this age should benefit.

Israel’s failure to qualify as the ruling nation to bless all the families of the earth brought forth the many prophecies and promises of God concerning the true Zion class—Jesus and his church—and the manner in which the messianic kingdom in their hands will be the channel through which God will fulfill his promise to bless all the families of the earth.

In the divine providence the whole plan of God was recorded in the writings and messages of the Old Testament. Very little of it was understood by those to whom it was first given, for it remained for Jesus to bring “life and immortality to light through the Gospel.” (II Tim. 1:10) However the New Testament is new only in the sense that it throws light on great truths of the Old Testament which had not previously been understood.

“Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path,” wrote the Psalmist. The natural house of Israel refused to be guided by that Word, but it still serves to enlighten the pathway of the Lord’s people today, those who are walking in the “narrow way.” When Jesus came as the Head of the spiritual house of sons he recognized the necessity of being guided by the Old Testament “lamp,” for he covenanted to do that which had been written of him “in the volume of the book.”—Psa. 40:6-8; Heb. 10:5-9

Fundamentally, God’s requirements of his people are the same in every age. They vary in detail as his plan progresses, but these varying details must be carried out in keeping with basic principles of righteousness which are as unchangeable as God himself. “And what doth the Lord require of thee,” asks the prophet, “but to do justly, and to love mercy, and, to walk humbly with thy God.” (Micah 6:8) These seem to be simple requirements, but in reality they are very exacting.

“To do justly” means to observe the Golden Rule laid down by Jesus. No service we might render to God can be acceptable to him if it is not performed in keeping with justice. “To love mercy,” according to the Hebrew text, means to love “lovingkindness.” Jeremiah tells us that God delights to exercise “lovingkindness … in the earth.” (Jer. 9:24) To love “lovingkindness,” then, means to be imbued with that great principle of love which motivates God in all that he does. It means to love what he loves, and to be self-sacrificing in our enthusiasm to co-operate in his plan for the blessing of the world.

“To walk humbly” with our God means to be attentive to his will as it is expressed through his Word. This is what the Israelites failed to do, and it is what we must not fail to do if we are to make our calling and election sure to a place in the spiritual kingdom of Christ. To walk humbly with our God is the crucial test of obedience. Through his Word, God tells us what we ought to do, and there is no way to walk humbly with him except to try as earnestly as possible to do what he asks of us.

The prophecy of Isaiah (2:2-4) is one that will be fulfilled by the kingdom of Christ—“It shall come to pass in the last days.” These “last days” are not, of course, the last days of time, nor the last days of this earth but rather the last days of the reign of sin and death, culminating in the full establishment of Christ’s kingdom. Not until then will the “mountain,” or kingdom of the Lord, be exalted above the other “mountains” or kingdoms.

And there is no hope that “many people” will say, “We will walk in his paths,” until, humbled in the great “time of trouble” which brings to an end this present evil world, they are willing to acknowledge their own failure and look to the Lord for help. When they learn the Lord’s ways, and do them, they will “beat their swords into plowshares,” and they will not “learn war any more.” While the typical kingdom of God failed, the divine plan for blessing all nations will yet gloriously triumph to the joy of all mankind. Then God’s will shall be done on earth as it is now done in heaven.

QUESTIONS:

What good resulted from the failures of natural Israel?

Are the basic requirements of God the same for the church as for the Israelites?

When will “all people” ask to be taught the Lord’s ways?

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