Has your veil been lifted?

Today so many Christians have no understanding of the Old Testament Scriptures. For this very reason much of the protestant New Testament theology is skewed. It is not that many New Testament believers are purposely twisting Scripture, it simply happens because they have not been properly taught the Old Testament in it's relationship to the New Testament.

Many today are looking into self-help programs and books not knowing that the Old Testament is full of examples of self-applied principles and programs. These old systems were mere shadows or types of a better system, a better reality.

People want to "feel" good about themselves. They want to be confident in the tasks of their daily lives. The problem with the self-help stuff is that it relies on only human strength and effort. It points to the idea of "rule following" or "repetitious following of some human law" for the ultimate in charactor perfection. So what happens is people who are stuck in this trap are constantly buying the latest human understanding of "perfection" regarding many different subjects such as; "How to keep your house clean at all times", "How to earn money while sitting at home","How to loose weight and still eat like a pig". Do you see how ridiculous this is? These people are "ever seeking yet never arriving at an accurate knowledge of the Truth." The Bible says; "Put no confidence in the flesh." [Philippians 3:3]

God gave a system of worship and economy to the Jewish people which was full of shadowy ceremonies of types which held great importance in the understanding of spiritual things. But these ceremonies were never meant to be looked upon as a "self-help" program of salvation. The Jewish people fell into the trap of glorifying their own works as a means of salvation rather than trying to understand what the ceremonies pointed to. Look at this statement by Christian author Ellen White:

"The death of Jesus Christ for the redemption of man lifts the veil and reflects a flood of light back hundreds of years, upon the whole institution of the Jewish system of religion. Without the death of Christ all this system was meaningless. The Jews reject Christ, and therefore their whole system of religion is to them indefinite, unexplainable, and uncertain. They attach as much importance to shadowy ceremonies of types which have met their antitype as they do to the law of the Ten Commandments, which was not a shadow, but a reality as enduring as the throne of Jehovah. The death of Christ elevates the Jewish system of types and ordinances, showing that they were of divine appointment, and for the purpose of keeping faith alive in the hearts of His people." [RH May 6,1875]

So we understand that the old system of worship was a "school master" [Galatians 3:24] which pointed to the "WAY". The Christian way! If you want answers to all the areas of your life. If you want to develop the ultimate beautiful charactor, then read your Bible and come to the Truth of ALL THINGS!

In the apostle Paul's second letter to the Corinthians he addresses this subject. Let's look at what the Bible says here:

"He [Jesus] has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?" [2 Corinthians 3:6-8 NIV]

Let's look at Paul's statement closely here. Paul states that the Old System [Jewish Law] brought death. What does he mean? Paul is pointing out that the Moral Law given to the Israelites could not be perfectly kept by them so it "brought death." The Bible states that the "wages of sin is death" and that sin is the "transgression of the law." [Romans 6:23; 1 John 3:4] Paul further states here that the old system "came with glory". This means that it came with a sacrificial system which allowed pardon of sins. The Bible states that "without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins." [Hebrews 9:22]

So the entire old system "came with glory", God's approval. Now Paul says that since the shadowy types, the ceremonial system of pardon is done away with in Christ will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?

Paul goes on to point out that when the Jews who are still under the old system read the Law a veil is over their faces. Which is to say that they cannot see Christ, the true Messiah, the perfect sacrifice for sin. Paul says it like this;

"And if what was fading away came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!
Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at it while the radiance was fading away. But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. " [2 Corinthians 3:11-17 NIV]

Notice the last portion of this passage; "...where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." So true freedom from guilt, the breaking of the moral law, comes through and in Christ Jesus and through the Holy Spirit which He has given to all that truly believe in Him. It does not come from animal sacrifces practiced under the old system.

Now, I would argue that those who are in any other system other than the plan that Christ Jesus has offered still have a veil over their face. They cannot see Christ as the ultimate answer to the penalty of sin. So what do they do? They invent their own self-help program. One which they feel will liberate them and bring them true peace and happiness.

Let me ask you, has your veil been lifted?

Written by, Eric W. King [January 5,2008]