Christian Churches of God
No. 184z
Summary:
The Oracles of God
(Edition 1.4 19961214-20000624)
Some groups follow the rabbinical calendar for the Annual Holy Days of the Bible because they believe the Jews have sole authority for the determination of these dates. This in part is a result of Paul's reference in Romans to the Jews being the keepers of the oracles of God.
Christian Churches of God
E-mail: secretary@ccg.org
(Copyright ã 1996, 1998 Wade Cox)
(Summary ed. by Wade Cox)
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The Oracles of God
God speaks to humanity through His servants. His revelations went from Adam through to the patriarchs from Noah to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. God chose a people, Israel, through which He would enshrine His laws and reveal His plan of salvation. This system was revealed and followed by faith and obedience (Heb.11:1-40).
God spoke through the patriarchs and prophets, giving His laws, commands and plan to them, but they didn't receive the promise (Heb.11:39-40) and only through and with us could they be made perfect. The perfection of the patriarchs and prophets was given through the Church as the Church was given the Holy Spirit. The Scriptures, and especially the law, are the oracles of God. The oracles were given to the people of God by the prophets and these prophets were of Israel.
The end of the first phase of the Old Testament occurred with the prophets Ezra and Nehemiah. God was silent from this end phase of the Old Testament revelation until He spoke through His ministering spirits to Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist (Lk.1:5-30). God spoke through the prophet Daniel of His anointed ones, the construction of the physical temple and its cessation as the instrument of God. (Dan.9:25-27). The KJV version of the Bible mistranslates the prophecy and obscures the meaning of the text.
The first anointed one or messiah is actually Nehemiah. In Jewish history he is seen as a second Moses. He restored the law and the testimony (see paper The Sign Of Jonah and The History Of The Reconstruction of The Temple (No. 13)). The next anointed one is actually James, Bishop of Jerusalem and brother of Jesus Christ. He was martyred for the faith in 63 CE and from this year the final week of years commenced, leading to the destruction of the physical Temple. The end of the seventy weeks of years’ prophecy coincided with the forty years allocated for repentance to Judah.
That nation and priesthood had become entirely corrupt and neither repented. God then commenced to destroy the Temple in 70 CE removing Judah into captivity and dispersion and their authority was completely taken from them. The transfer of authority was to the true Church of God.
When Jesus Christ gave the law to Moses at Sinai (see the paper Pentecost at Sinai (No.115)), he also established a system of governance in Israel. This was affected through a council of seventy called the Council Of Elders or Sanhedrin (Ex. 24:1-18). The seventy were accompanied by two others. This number was constant in Israel (Lk.10:1,17). Thus the authority of the oracles of God was established in Israel and they were placed in its care. The elders were laymen not priests. They took part in the consecration of the priests (Lev.9:1 ff). These elders were given the spirit of The Lord, which had been given to Moses, and that Spirit sanctified them and set them apart in God's service (Num.11:16-17,24-26).
The basis of authority stems from the council. This is the case with the heavenly council also as seen in the Psalms. The early Tabernacle was a shadow of the heavenly (Heb. 8:5). The authority of Moses in the Holy Spirit rested with and was shared by the council of the seventy. Together with Moses and the High Priest they were representative of God The Father and Christ as the High Priest with the council of the Elohim of Justice in the heavens. This was also a shadow of the relationship to come in Christ and the Church.
The Church was the vehicle that would be given salvation. As we saw, the patriarchs and prophets were not to attain to salvation by faith apart from us. Thus, the authority of the Church is the power of God in the Holy Spirit, which has been given to it by Messiah in the name of God from His ordination of the seventy (Lk.10:1-20). When Christ ordained these seventy He removed the authority from Israel, which had been given at Sinai. The Spirit that rested on Christ was given to the elect to set them apart for God's work. These seventy plus two (God The Father and Christ) were established in the Church so that they were a council drawn out per year for two thousand years, or over the last days, and with the prophets numbered 144,000 (see paper The Harvests Of God, The New Moon Sacrifices and The 144,000 (No.120).
The Holy Spirit is that power which makes all of the elect sons of God, and one with the heavenly host as sons of God (see the paper Consubstantial With The Father (No. 81) and On Immortality (No. 165). The seventy through this power had authority over demons and the world systems concerning the Kingdom of God. The oracles of God were consigned to the Church from this transfer of authority. This transfer of power and authority is seen in the example of the seven sons of Sceva, the chief priest (Acts 19:11-17). This example was given to show that the authority of the Church had succeeded that of Judah and the Levitical priesthood, even to the highest levels.
Interestingly, even the demons knew and told them! Although the oracles had been lodged with Judah, once Jesus Christ ordained the seventy they were given to the Church. This fact is also acknowledged by Paul in his statement concerning the oracles. In the old physical temple the chambers were built around the Holy Of Holies, which is referred to as the oracle (1Kgs. 6:16,19-20). The law was kept there and God revealed Himself there through prophecy or the word of God. It was a cube of twenty cubits (1Kgs. 6:20). This is called the naos in the New Testament, which refers specifically to the Church, which naos we are (1Cor.3:17). The Church is the naos or Holy of Holies and, hence the oracles of God.
Judah had inherited the oracles only for a specific time from the captivity of Israel and the restoration of Nehemiah. Paul commented on this in Romans 3:2. Paul was not saying here that they still had that authority. The Church is the teacher of the oracles of God; that office no longer rests with Judah (Heb.5:5-14). The biblical book of Revelation was committed to the Church alone, from God to Jesus Christ and written down by John. It is the sole responsibility of the Church. Many have sought to remove Revelation from the Bible (see paper The Bible (No.164)). The Jews do not accept it at all and hence they cannot be acknowledged as being the oracles of God.
The Church received the oracles of God as part of another priesthood stemming from our High Priest. Christ did not glorify himself to be made High Priest but rather in the days of his flesh when he became a man, gave prayers and supplications in tears to He who could save him from death, namely God, and God heard him. Though he was a son he learned obedience by the things he suffered and became High Priest after the order of Melchisedek. The priesthood then was given to the elect (Heb. 7:3; Rev. 5:10). Christ as High Priest is first in order of authority over the other priests in that order.
This priesthood, the Church of God, has been given the responsibility for the care and instruction of the oracles of God (Heb. 5:12-14; 1Pet. 4:11). This is the authority of Christ and as evidenced by the apostles Peter and Paul, we see the transfer of responsibility to the Church. They are the oracles of God with the spirit of prophecy. Read the full paper for in-depth discussions on the false assertions involving the Hillel calendar, fixing the Old Testament canon, the prophecy of Haggai reviewed and Daniel 12.
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