NORTHERN STYLE NEWSWATCH No. 27
CREDO
`I am the LORD . . . with the first . . . with the last'
In these days of heightened international tension and of `wars and rumours of wars', the world's media in all its forms seems to have discovered Biblical expressions to add an additional sense of drama to its reporting. No less so is the news emanating from the various church ministries. Those of a more `prophetic' nature find an endless source of startling warnings from the Old Testament; others find a similar endless source of `personal blessings' by appropriating to the Church the promises given to Israel; and of course there are many variations springing from these two alternatives. One leads to a deepening anxiety and a `bunker mentality', whilst others busy themselves in `community projects' and `saving the world'. One amusing, if somewhat cynical, cartoon appeared in a recent Christian news booklet depicting a `prophetic word' being spoken to `the Church of the Apocalypse'. It had a banner proclaiming `fifty-nine minutes and fifty-nine seconds to midnight', whilst at the foot of the pulpit there was a caption reminding the congregation that their purchase of books, tapes and videos would ensure that `this ministry will be available for FUTURE generations'! However, there is little doubt that we are facing a time of great change and uncertainty, and if we are not grounded in the Word and standing firm in our understanding of God's will and purpose, as revealed to us in the Scriptures, we too will be `tossed to and fro by every wind'.

It is the common lot of man to live out our natural lives in a constantly changing environment. Apart from the natural ageing of every person and the cycle of birth and death for everyone, there is undoubtably a heightened sense of change, possibly brought about by the advancement of communication technology. The so-called `Baby Boom' generation have certainly lived out their lives so far in this rapidly changing situation, but even those of an earlier generation have lived, and are living, through the same rapid changes. Only fifty years ago the cry was for social justice, with universal health and retirement care being of immense concern as radicals sought to break the armlock of poverty that the grip of capitalism had held the working classes in for past decades. The dramatic opening of educational opportunities paved the way for the social revolution that has changed the face of the so-called western liberal democracies. But those same people who gained `freedom' have today become capitalists themselves, and they anxiously watch the value of shares in the companies which their managers have invested in. As one politician has said, `We are all middle-class now'.

Within the Church, following the move of the Holy Spirit in the 1960's, the same dramatic changes have taken place, causing the demise (or certainly a decrease in) the authority of hierarchical denominations that seemed to be impregnable granite fortresses of religious life to our forefathers. The wealth of teaching materials which flooded the `land of the Church' at that time ensured that all had a `ministry', which changed the `social face' of the Church. It seemed that all were now evangelists, teachers and prophets. Change is a natural part of any dynamic social community, but we do need to be quiet in certain periods to ensure that the change we engage is within God's will and purpose for His people. A little knowledge does indeed lead to pride and into delusion, whilst at the same time ignorance of God's Word can lead to some being `in denial' of what Scripture so clearly records will outwork itself `in all the changing scenes of life' (as the old hymn puts it).

Without doubt, those who take the Word of God seriously can see the possibility (and we dare not say more than that as the world stage has a habit of changing quite suddenly) in the present world situation of the power base of the antichrist being established in biblical Mesopotamia, wherein (Daniel records) the antichrist, whilst invading the Beautiful Land, hears `reports from the East and the North (which) alarms him'. It is also the avowed intent of the western powers' coalition - once Iraq is dealt with - to deal with the Israel/Palestinian `problem'. This could well pave the way for the prophecies recorded in Ezekiel 38-39 to be fulfilled, for any Middle East solution involving Israel will have to lead to secure borders of the State of Israel - `a land of unwalled villages'. In addition there are the voices of many secular commentators forecasting the withdrawal of America from being a world policeman into a fortified colossus protected by a screen of technological weaponry, emerging occasionally like a roused lion if it is threatened in any way. In this way a vulnerable Europe will have to depend on its own military forces, thereby preparing a power-base for the antichrist to step onto the world stage.

These are all possibilties that could emerge on the world scene very rapidly in what we see unfolding in the current international situation. For this reason we need to step back from the news hype - from whichever source - and consider these events in the light of Scripture, for it needs to be said that at this stage Israel is not a land at peace - `a land of unwalled villages'! Europe has not yet the political will to form itself into a Superpower State ready to take up the responsibility of defending itself as a coherent whole, and we need to be reminded that whoever has foreshadowed the antichrist in past historical times has always needed a secure base from which to operate. Such people as Napoleon, Mussolini and Hitler were all inconsequential people until they seized the legal reigns of state power, and as yet no such `inconsequential person' who could qualify for such a role has been seen.

Yet we are told to `watch and pray', and as we do so we should quietly consider what is outworking itself, listening carefully to and living out the words which the apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, his `true son in the faith: (2 Timothy 4:1-5)

" In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and
in view of His appearing and His Kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be
prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage - with great patience
and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound
doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of
teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the
truth and turn aside to myths. But you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship,
do the work of an evengelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry. "
As we said in our opening comments, much use of Old Testament Scriptures is being made by both Christian and secular commentators to set out the backcloth for their message. Therefore it seems appropriate in this Credo to join their ranks and turn to the same Scriptures to gain understanding of what the LORD is saying in the circumstances we find ourselves in. As these `Old Testament' Scriptures were given to and recorded by the scribes of old Israel, it would seem appropriate to seek to enter into their `mindset', for apart from the fact that all Scripture is `God-breathed' those Jewish ancients had applied themselves over long centuries to gaining a deep insight into the workings of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in His dealings with His covenanted people!

It has been noted that in the oldest and most reliable Hebrew manuscripts there were recorded on each and every page (beside and beneath the text) smaller scripts called the `Massorah' - the word springing from another Hebrew word meaning `to deliver into the hands of another; an entrusting of something precious' - in this case, the sacred script. The text itself had therefore been fixed and completed before the Massorites (as they were called) had been given charge of them. Those who so arranged and fixed the sacred scripts were called the Sopherim, the word springing from the Hebrew word meaning `counting or numbering'. The Sopherim were the authorised recorders of the sacred script - the men of the Great Synagogue who began their work under Ezra and Nehemiah following their return from the Babylonian captivity. The Sopherim's work, once completed, was entrusted to the Massorites, who from that time on became the legally appointed custodians of the sacred script - and within the expression `custodians' was the implication that they were to preserve it exactly the way in which it was entrusted to them. The Massorah has been called `the Fence (or Hedge) around the Scriptures', such was their devotion to their task and the exacting way in which they ensured that the words were `locked' into place with the intricate numbering of words, letters and verses of all the texts entrusted into their care. However, when the Hebrew Scriptures were translated into our more familiar Bible the work of the Massorites was largely ignored, thereby losing a vast store of Scriptural treasures for future generations, and it has been the work of dedicated scholars over past centuries to restore much of what had been lost, their work occasionally being seen as footnotes in our present Bibles.

The work of the Massorites was not to add commentaries to the sacred scripts such as we find in our Study Bibles. Their work was to ensure that by counting and cross-counting words, letters and verses, and recording them alongside the text, any future copies of the text would be exactly as the originals entrusted to them, and as they counted and cross- counted, any words or verses which implied a deeper meaning than just a casual reading suggested were noted against the Scripture texts, thereby building up over the long years a `treasure trove' of Scriptural insight. Such a recording is found against a verse from the Book of the Minor Prophet, Zephaniah (8:8) where the Massorites noted that this verse contains all the letters of the Hebrew alphabet. Within the understanding of the Jewish scribes that the 12 Books of the Minor Prophets were considered to be one Book, there was an implication within verse 8 that the Minor Prophet Books recorded the whole purpose of God concerning Israel. (A careful reading of the small Book of Zephaniah will indeed reveal that the Massorites' implication was correct.)

With this background in place we would suggest that much of what is purported to be Bible teaching falls short of God's best as modern-day `prophets' dip into the Old Testament Scriptures and produce sensational teachings on a par with the best of the world's media. The Apostle Paul in his Epistle to the Ephesian Church reveals that the Lord:

" . . gave some to be . . . . teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that
the Body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge
of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fulness of
Christ. Then we will no longer be infants tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown
here and there by every wind of doctrine . . . ." (Ephesians 4:11-14 in part)
God-appointed teachers will be as the Massorites, ensuring that the sacred texts entrusted to them are kept intact, and only that which is within the Scriptures will be brought out and taught!

With that background, and with much thankfulness, we turn at last to those Old Testament Scriptures to see what is implied for us at such a time as this, and in particular to the Book of Isaiah chapter 41. Those Christians who accept the Dispensational nature of Scripture will of course know that this chapter refers principally to the nation of Israel, and (rightly so) there is a tendency amongst such people to focus on those covenanted people of God. However their focus can become unbalanced, and here in the opening verse there is a correction to such a possibiity which brings all into the correct perspective: `Be silent before me, you Islands'. Our thoughts and actions must always be brought back to this understanding: It is God who instructs . . He alone who creates . . it is the LORD who outworks His will and purpose in all things: (Verse 1)

" Let the nations renew their strength!
Let them come forward and speak;
let us meet together at the place of judgement. "
The LORD then speaks, through Isaiah, of two occasions when He called people into His service: (Verse 2)

" Who (He asks) has stirred up one from the east,
calling him in righteousness to His service?
He hands nations over to him
and subdues kings before him. "
Here is a clear reference to the calling of Abram, which we see recorded in Genesis 12:1 - a man from the east called into God's service in righteousness: (Genesis 12:1-3)

" The LORD had said to Abram,
`Leave your country, your people and your father's
household and go to the land I will show you.
I will make you into a great nation
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse,
and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you'. "
As we read on into chapter 14 we see that Abram's exploits in subduing kings before him are well recorded and have formed the basis for many a gripping Sunday School lesson! But within these verses a much sterner message is being spoken to the nation of Israel! Surrounded by hostile nations, and being a nation who repeatedly ignored the warnings of the prophets who were sent to them, causing the chastening Hand of the LORD to fall upon them, they needed to be reminded that He was still in total charge of their eventual restoration: (Isaiah 41:4)

"Who has done this (they are asked) and carried it through,
calling forth the generations from the beginning.
I, the LORD - with the first of them
and with the last - I am He. "
The people in `the Islands' had seen and understood that those Hebrews had an unseen Help that was outside of human origin, and they feared, `and the ends of the earth tremble' - to the point of imitating that help amongst each other, for `each helps the other and says to his brother . . '. Once again the nation is reminded of the Source of their calling: (Verse 8)

"But you, O Israel, My servant,
Jacob, whom I have chosen,
you descendants of Abraham my friend. "
It is here that we see the reason for the stern call recorded in the first verse: Israel needed to be reminded of their call to servanthood . . not to each other . . not to the surrounding nations . . but to the LORD God! It is one of three calls to servanthood that are recorded in the book of Isaiah, and together they point forward to the ultimate purpose of God. God, speaking through Isaiah, when reprimanding Hezekiah, telling him that Jerusalem would not fall to the Assyrian armies of Sennacherib, said: (Isaiah 37:35)

"I will defend this city and save it,
for My sake and for the sake of David My servant. "
and much later Israel is reminded that: (Isaiah 41:8b-9)

" . . . I took you from the ends of the earth,
from its farthest corners I called you.
I said, `You are My servant',
I have chosen you and have not rejected you. "
God's calling is not random or capricious: There is a continuing purpose in it, one of servanthood, through whom He will display His righteous salvation, spoken of (as we have seen) to Abram: (Genesis 12:2)

" I will make you into a great nation,
and I will bless you.
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing. "
Now Israel, the seed of Abraham, is being reminded of their servanthood, of the reason for their calling - which is to reveal the fulness of the Servant through whom all people on earth will be blessed. Chapter 42 reveals the fulness of God's ultimate Servant, to Whom Abraham and Israel were called to be faithful witnesses: (Isaiah 42:1)

" Here is My Servant, whom I uphold,
My chosen One in whom I delight;
I will put My Spirit on Him
and He will bring justice to the nations. "
If this is the LORD's ultimate Servant, then all who are called to follow Him and proclaim Him will be upheld by that same `unseen Help', the Help that `the islands have seen and fear, (and) the ends of the earth tremble'. In view of these `facts', the LORD says:

`Present your case . . set forth your arguments. (And in case you have not understood or believed that these two facts were brought about by My Sovereign will, know this):

I have stirred up one from the north, and he comes - one from the rising sun who calls on My name. He tread on rulers as if they were mortar, as if he were a potter treading the clay. " (Isaiah 41:25)

The LORD reminds them that even before their captivity He had raised up one (Cyrus) `from the north, and he comes from the rising sun, one who calls on My name' and He told them before their captivity, which was yet to come: (verses 26-27)

"Who told of this from the beginning,
so that we could know,
or beforehand, so that we could say,
`He was right'?
No-one told of this,
no-one foretold it,
no-one heard any words from you.
I was the first to tell Zion,
`Look, here they are'.
I gave Jerusalem a messenger of good tidings. "
This is the truth that is revealed in Scripture. It is not media exegesis, neither is it sensational rhetoric: (verse 28)

"I look (says the LORD) but there is no-one -
no-one among them to give counsel,
no-one to give answer when I ask them. "
But as we have seen, in the third Servant of God there is One who is faithful: (Isaiah 42:1)

"Here is My Servant, whom I uphold,
my chosen One in whom I delight. "
Without any doubt, the times that lie immediately ahead of us will bring about dramatic changes which will affect all lives. We need to see the chastening, discipling Hand of God upon those servants whom He has chosen to reveal and proclaim His Servant. The fulness of the servanthood of Israel has yet to come . . the fulness of the servanthood of the Church has yet to be seen . . but in what remains of this `Church Age' this is what we are being called to. Abram was called, and through his response he brought into being the nation of Israel! Israel's ultimate response will bring about the Second Coming of the Messiah, who alone will bring in the Kingdom of Peace and Righteousness the nations of the world strive for. Our assurance of this is seen in these words: (Isaiah 41:4)

"Who has done this and carried it through,
calling forth the generations from the beginning?
I, the LORD - with the first of them
and with the last - I am He. "
He who was `with the first of them' when He called into being Abram, through whom the line of the Servanthood of the LORD would come, is with the Last (the Messiah Jesus) and those of us who are in that line of Servanthood need to remember and stand firm in that understanding and not be shaken or dismayed at what unfolds before He comes for those who are His - our time of servanthood complete at last!



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