Treasures New and Old

God’s Pattern for His Disciples: The Way We Need to Think

We are taking a deeper look at that discipleship lifestyle than we did in 2020 by looking at what I call God’s pattern for His disciples.

So far in this series we have looked at the following:

1. What Being a Disciple of Christ Means
2. Guarding our Hearts
3. Making our Calling and Election Sure
4. Being of One Mind with Christ and One Another
5. Making No Provision for the Flesh but Also Replacing Those Sinful Behaviors with Godly Behaviors
6. Disciple’s Control of Their Tongue
7. Holding Fast to our Head, Jesus Christ
8. Our Kinsman-Redeemer
9. Beware of False Doctrines

To go along with and supplement several of the past articles, I want to add an article about the way we tend to think. This is a discussion regarding cultural behaviors that are usually ingrained in us from birth. Greek thinking and Hebrew thinking were dramatically different as is Asian and Western thought processes today. So that we can get a better handle on biblical teachings, it would be good to understand the Bible from the Hebrew mindset as opposed to the Greek mindset most modern Western peoples have today.

The Way We Think

Modern man is steeped in Greek culture and thinking processes. Starting from pre-school onward, we are taught “problem-solving” processes and ways to think that actually limit our vision and ability to grasp concepts that are hidden to us by simple surface examinations. The age-divided peer-to-peer groupings that the world uses to train children further exacerbates the problem by having us challenged only by our peers and not by those older or wiser than ourselves. The result is that we stay immature longer than our ancestors did, and we look for quick resolutions to issues and matters without searching out root causes and finding lasting solutions to problems. This is evidenced in almost all of the sciences today, and in politics, medicine, and even the church.

We felicitate the soothing of symptoms but rarely find a cure.

In the study of Scripture, we do virtually the same thing. We study a passage for what it appears to be addressing (even looking at contextual matters) but rarely do we look for God’s hidden wisdom or even what is floating at the surface of the text. We are not generally equipped (not by our schools today) to “study to show thyself approved, a workman rightly dividing the words of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15, paraphrased). For many of us it isn’t our fault, we were simply not taught to study God’s Word properly.

The Hebrew study method is to look for patterns. Shadows of things to come. God’s fingerprint buried in the text: near and far fulfillments, types, symbols, metaphors of what is yet to come and definitions laid down for us in the past that explain the events of the future. For example, nearly every major doctrine of importance to Christians today all have a start in Genesis, but few want to study that “mythical” book.

Why do we marry? What is marriage? Why do we wear clothes, and what is modesty all about? Economics, political authority, the races (there is actually only one race – the human race – but science wants us to believe otherwise), and a host of other common questions all have their beginning in Genesis.

Many spiritual principles and subjects like sowing and reaping, redemption, sin, angels, man’s true nature, child bearing pain, work ethics and sweat, penalties, even predictions about the end times all started in Genesis.

It is all about seeing Christ throughout the Bible and on every page and what He has done for us.

• Psalm 40:7: “Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book, it is written of me,”
  

• Hebrews 10:7: “Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.”
  

My goal has become to look at Scripture to not only find the surface meaning, but the hidden nuggets that are buried there that I believe God wants us to find. Beware! Some will find things that are not there and we need to be discerning about those “winds of doctrine” that the world will try to sell you. God’s wisdom is from above and not earthy – so always ask God to have His Holy Spirit guide you in your studies.

Getting Started:

First understand the following:

• Hebrews thought in patterns; Greeks do problem-solution thinking (or prediction-fulfillment or issue-resolution).
  

• We tend to close a matter while the Hebrews tend to look deeper into a matter and look for patterns (they love acrostics!).
  

• The Holy Spirit directed every book, subject, page, word, and letter! So don’t quit after a simple read or two – ask God what it is that He is trying to teach us in that passage.
  

• Create a notebook of topics (one per page), and as God reveals an insight in a matter, put that insight in your notebook. It will grow so you may wish to use a loose-leaf notebook.

• Ask a lot of questions! Don’t be happy until you have found an answer to those questions. The usual who, what, when, where, why, and how are really good starts. But another might be, “Where have I seen this subject before?” Or “Are there related synonyms I should look up to see related verses?” Finally, “What does that (those) word(s) mean in the original language?”
  

Some Pattern Examples:

Example 1: Melchizedek:

Melchizedek was a type of Christ in the Old Testament. How do we know? Because the New Testament tells us so. But how was he a type of Christ? What lessons can we learn from the brief encounter with him we are given?

Genesis 14:18: “And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.”

Hebrews 6:20: “Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made a high priest forever after the order of Melchizdek.”

Hebrews 7:1-4: “For this Mechizedek, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace; Without father, without mother, without decent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually. Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils.”

• What did Melchizedek offer to Abraham? Bread and wine.
  

• Who is Melchizedek a type of? Christ’s priesthood (not Levitical).
  

• What did the Holy Spirit emphasize at the Last Supper? Bread and wine.
  

• Was that the only food at the Last Supper? No – it was a Passover meal.
  

• What else was Melchizedek? King of Peace (Salem).
  

• Who else in Scripture is both a king and a priest? Christ and His bride – the Church.
  

Example 2: Abraham and Isaac:

Abraham is a type of our Heavenly Father. Isaac is a type of Christ. Sarah was Abraham’s wife so she must be a type of the nation of Israel. Rebekah becomes Isaac’s bride, so she must be a type of the church. The church has not yet met Christ as a whole body – so somewhere in the story in Genesis must be that pattern. Finally, God temporarily rejects Israel (gives them spiritual blindness and disperses them across the world) just as the church is born, and they have been disbursed until 1948 (when they returned to the land). Also, Daniel and many other places in Scripture predict that one day Israel will be restored to God and believe in their Messiah. So, I expect to see that pattern somewhere in the Abraham discourse as well. Let’s see if we can find it. While we are walking through these passages (not every verse – look for yourself at the full story) – we will need to carefully watch the sequence of events to verify that the pattern follows what we know. If not, we need to adjust what we think we know!

Genesis 22:3-4: “And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and cleaved the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.”

• Who walked to the mountain to offer a sacrifice at Mount Moriah? Abraham and Isaac (and the two servants).
  

• How long was Isaac dead to Abraham? From the moment of the call from God to the day he lifted up his eyes to the top of Mount Moriah was three days.
  

• How long was Christ dead to the Father? Three days.
  

Genesis 22:7-8: “And Isaac spoke unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.”

• Who went up to the top of the mount? Just Abraham and Isaac – the father and son.
  

• What did Abraham prophesy? That God would provide for HIMSELF a lamb for a burnt sacrifice (why didn’t he say for us?)
  

Genesis 22:19: “So Abraham returned unto his young men, and they rose up and went together to Beer-sheba; and Abraham dwelt at Beer-sheba.”

• Who after the sacrifice was completed (and Isaac was spared and a ram offered) went back home? Abraham and the servants.
  

• Where was Isaac? The Holy Spirit did not write him into the story for several chapters. Are we to believe that he never left the mountain? OR perhaps the Holy Spirit was creating a model or pattern for us?
  

• Why did the Holy Spirit leave him out? I think it may be because Christ is with the Father in heavenly places at the moment, and we can’t see Him. To make this pattern fit – the Holy Spirit had to “hide” Isaac for a while. Surely, Isaac came off the mountain with Abraham, and they all went home together. But immediately after the sacrifice scene on the mountain, Isaac “disappears” until we see him again receiving his bride – sound familiar?
  

• Does the church see Christ today? Not physically.
  

• When do we next see Him? At the Rapture – the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.
  

Genesis 23:2: “And Sarah died in Kirjath-arba; the same is Hebron in the land of Canaan: and Abraham came to mourn for Sarah, and to weep for her.”

• Who is Sarah a type of? The nation of Israel, God’s “wife”.
  

• What next important event occurs after the scene on Mount Moriah? Sarah dies and is buried.
  

• What happened after Christ rose from the dead and the Church was born? God left off dealing with Israel until the times at the end (tribulation period).
  

Genesis 24:2-4: “And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, they hand under my thigh: And I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac.”

• Note, the eldest servant sent to find Isaac’s bride is unnamed. Who seeks and finds a bride for Isaac? The unnamed servant (Holy Spirit).
  

• When is the servant to find a wife for Isaac? After Sarah has passed.
  

• When does the gospel go to the Gentiles and the Church is born? When God leaves off dealing with Israel.
  

• Who is responsible for conviction of sin and bringing people to Christ? The Holy Spirit who never speaks of Himself (John 16:13).
  

Genesis 24:61-67:

And Rebekah arose, and her damsels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man: and the servant took Rebekah, and went his way. And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahai-roi; for he dwelt in the south country. And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, the camels were coming. And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel. For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a veil, and covered herself. And the servant told Isaac all things that he had done. And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death.

• When do we next see Isaac as an active character in the Bible? When he is presented to his bride, Rebekah.
  

• Who is Rebekah a type of? The Church.
  

• What does Lahai-roi mean? Well of the living and place of the seer – read that the well of the living water and the prophet.
  

• Who is a prophet, priest, and king? Christ.
  

Genesis 15:2: “And Abram said, Lord GOD, what wilt thou give me, seeing I go childless, and the steward of my house is this Eliezer of Damascus?”

• Who went to gather a bride for Isaac (the son) at Abraham’s (the father) request? Eliezer – but as an unnamed chief steward (servant).
  

• What does that name mean? Comforter.
  

• What is one of the Holy Spirit’s names? Comforter.
  

• Who is Sarah a type of? Israel.
  

• Who died before Abraham had his servant get Isaac a wife? Sarah.
  

Why? Because Israel (the nation) rejected their Messiah when He presented Himself to them, and they were temporarily “set aside”, and the Church comes to center stage. Luke 19:41-44: “And when he was come near, he beheld the city, ans wept over it, Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side, And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.”

Daniel 9:26-27: “And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of the abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.”

Note: The Messiah was cut off at the cross, and the city was destroyed in 70 AD. But the verse (27) that follows refers to a covenant, oblations, and sacrifices being cut off half way through a week (a week of years). After Jerusalem and the Temple were destroyed in 70 AD, there has been no sacrifices, temple, or even a nation of Israel (that is until 1948!). Look to see Israel rebuild the Temple and restart the Levitical sacrificial system again – perhaps very soon!

Genesis 25:1-2: “Then again Abraham took a wife, and her name was Keturah. And she bore him Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, ans Shuah.”

• We know that Abraham later took a wife to himself after Isaac had his wife, Rebekah, and her name was Keturah, meaning “perfumed” – a reference maybe to the saved Israel in the last days?
  

• How often did God describe Israel as a “stench in His nostrils”? (Isaiah 1:10-15; Isaiah 3:24; Isaiah 34:3; 2 Chronicles 26; Amos 4:10; and lots of others).
  

• When the servant went to get Isaac a bride, what did the Bible name him? The servant – no name given.
  

• Why? He was in the role of the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit will never point to Himself but always to Christ (John 16:13: “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.“) And Christ will always do the will of the Father.
  

• Did Isaac take the bride presented to him by the father or get his own bride? He took the one his father got for him. In the prayer of Jesus to the Father in the Book of John, what did He say regarding those “in his hand”? John 17:6: “unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world“. Who gave Christ His bride? The Father. Who gathered the bride for Him? The Holy Spirit – the unnamed servant.
  

Example 3: Ruth and Boaz:

Let’s look at the story of Ruth. She is a type of the church; Boaz is a type of the kinsmen-redeemer: Christ. So other characters in the story must play some part as well. There is a nearer kinsmen (Satan?). How about Naomi? Let’s ask and answer some questions and look at some of the Scriptures.

• Who is she? A Moabite – Gentile – and the Church is mostly Gentile.
  

• Where is Naomi when she meets Ruth? Outside of Israel – in a strange land – same as the Diaspora of Jews for nearly 2,000 years.
  

• Who is Boaz? The Jewish kinsmen-redeemer – a type of Christ.
  

• Who told Ruth about Boaz? Naomi – so it was Israel who gave us the Bible from which the Church learned about our Kinsmen-Redeemer – Christ! Who were the first disciples? Jews. Who spread the gospel to the Gentiles? At first Jews like Paul.
  

• Who told Ruth how to approach Boaz (get redeemed)? Naomi.
  

• Who is Naomi a type of? Israel.
  

• Who is Ruth a type of? The Church.
  

Ruth 1:1: “Now it came to pass in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem-judah went to sojourn in the country of Moab, he, and his wife, and his two sons.”

Ruth 1:22: “So Naomi returned, and Ruth the Moabitess, her daughter-in-law, with her, which returned out of the country of Moab: and they came to Bethlehem in the beginning of barley harvest.”

Ruth 2:5-6: “Then said Boaz unto his servant that was set over the reapers, Whose damsel is this? And the servant that was set over the reapers answered and said, It is the Moabitish damsel that came back with Naomi out the country of Moab:”

Ruth 2:19: “And her mother-in-law said unto her, Where hast thou gleaned today? and where wroughtest thou? blessed be he that did take knowledge of thee. And she showed her mother-in-law with whom she had wrought, and said, The man’s name with whom I wrought today is Boaz.”

Ruth 3:2-5: “And now is not Boaz of our kindred, with whose maidens thou wast? Behold he winnoweth barley tonight in the threshingfloor. Wash thyself therefore, and anoint thee, and put thy raiment upon thee, and get thee down to the floor: but make not thyself known unto the man, until he shall have done eating and drinking. And it shall be, when he lieth down, that thou shalt mark the place where he shall lie, and thou shalt go in, and uncover his feet, and lay thee down; and he will tell thee what thou shalt do. And she said unto her, All that thou sayest unto me I will do.”

Ruth 4:10: “Moreover Ruth the Moabitess, the wife of Mahlon, have I purchased to be my wife, to raise up the name of the dead upon his inheritance, that the name of the dead be not cut off from among his brethren, and from the gate of his place: ye are witnesses this day.”

Ruth 4:16: “And Naomi took the child, and laid it in her bosom, and became nurse unto it.”

• Who brings in a harvest? Ruth after gleaning in the fields. Who is to bring in the harvest of souls today? The Church.
  

• Why can’t Naomi (Israel) bring in the harvest? They are currently experiencing spiritual blindness and cannot witness for the kingdom.
  

• What must Boaz do before he can marry Ruth? Redeem her from the nearest kinsmen (a type of Satan – god of this world).
  

• Was there any sacrifice involved? Yes – Boaz loses his right of inheritance to Naomi’s family and must pay for and redeem not just Ruth, but the land as well.
  

• Did Christ just redeem us? No – He will one day reclaim all the earth as well when He returns as king.
  

• When do we see Naomi meet Boaz? After Ruth has met him and introduce him to her (presumably at the wedding feast or before and, of course, when Ruth gives her the first born as seed for Naomi in place of the sons she lost. (Boaz gave up his first-born son!).
  

• Who else gave up His first-born son? God the Father.
  

Does Ruth love Naomi? Yes – she left her own people to be with Naomi. The famous: “And Ruth said, Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if aught but death part thee and me” (Ruth 1:16-17).

• Did Boaz love Naomi? Yes – he was willing to pay a great sacrifice to save her inheritance.
  

• Does Christ love Isreal today? You bet!
  

• What lesson is there here for us? We are to be as Ruth and love the Jewish people and the nation of Israel. We are to “[p]ray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee” (Psalm 122:6). Hey, that is a cool promise – as we pray (and love) Jerusalem – God will prosper us; boy, I could sure use that!
  

What other questions can we ask about this pattern-picture of a greater truth? How about I’ll ask some questions, and you on your own find the answers:

• What did Ruth have to give up? What did she leave behind? (both physically and spiritually)
  

• Who first loved whom? Boaz or Ruth? What do we learn about Christ and the Church from this?
  

• Who took the first steps in protection and provision – Boaz or Ruth? What lesson is there for us in this pattern?
  

• When Ruth did as she was told, who prospered? Where has the Church failed in this area over the last 1,900 years?
  

• Ultimately – what does the Book of Ruth say about the end result of her and Boaz’s obedience? What lesson is there for us?
  

• Did you know that in Hebrew there isn’t a clear single word for “grandfather” or “grandmother”? In the Hebrew mind, for example, Abraham is the father of many nations, and in the Gospels in several places is mentioned where the Jews refer to Abraham as their father. With this mindset, who is Ruth? Is there an application for us when we lead someone to Christ, and they do the same, and so on?
  

Other Types and Patterns We Can Search in the Scriptures

Look at this partial list of types and/or patterns and ask your own questions (and answer them) as would a Hebrew-thinking person. See what deeper truth you can discern. Don’t forget to ask the Holy Spirit to guide and teach you so that you don’t go off on the deep end (like horses are a type of spiritual power and walking is a type of spiritual weakness, or something like that).

Types and patterns in the Old Testament must have a parallel example in the New Testament to qualify. These are different than principles like “don’t muzzle the ox while it treads the corn” (1 Corinthians 9:9) which is a lesson to remind us that men are worthy of their hire. Or, “you reap what you sow” (Galatians 6:7) which, of course, teaches us that if we sow good, we’ll reap good, and vice versa.

Types and patterns are God’s illustrations of a spiritual truth He wishes us to glean in His Word to get deeper meaning and understanding. Here are just a few:

• First man and second man (Adam and Christ)
  
• Joseph Ben Jacob (his life and time in Egypt)
• Passover meal
• Nebuchadnezzar’s image
• Jonah and the fish
• The plagues of Egypt
• Rebekah
• Scapegoat
• Feast days and their different offerings (like why at Pentecost was there to be two leaven loaves waved before the people?)
• Pentecost itself
• Petra and the cities of refuge
• Yokes
• The Ark of the Covenant and the Mercy Seat
• Living water, gates, sheepfolds, light, and other objects and their lessons
• Grapes and vineyards, fruit
• The bronze “sea” in the temple filled with washing water
• The alter
• The snake on a pole in Moses’ time
• Find your own . . .

Groups of “things” to find types and patterns include:

1. Persons: like Adam, Cain, Abel, Melchizedek, Abraham, Isaac, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, David, and Jonah.

2. Events: like the flood, the plagues of Egypt, the Passover, the brazen serpent, crossing the Jordan, and cities of refuge.

3. Ceremonies: like the offerings, ceremonial cleansing, feasts, Year of Jubilee, and Day of Atonement.

4. Structures: like the ark, the tabernacle, and the temple.

5. Furniture: like the brazen altar, the laver, the seven-branched candlestick, the table of shewbread, the altar of incense, and the Ark of the Covenant with its Mercy Seat.

6. Colors: like blue, red, white, purple, scarlet, and green. (Remember the tola?)

7. Numbers: like one, three, four, seven, eight or eighth, twelve, and forty.

Look for clues in the text such as the two comparative words “AS” and “SO” which bring a type to our attention.

• “For AS in Adam all die, even SO in Christ shall all be made alive” 1 Corinthians 15:22 (emphasis added).

• “But AS the days of Noah were, SO shall also the coming of the Son of man be” Matthew 24:37 (emphasis added).

• “And AS Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even SO must the Son of man be lifted up:” John 3:14 (emphasis added).

• “For AS Jonah was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; SO shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” Matthew 12:40 (emphasis added).

So fellow disciples, I hope this has been both a fun and enlightening lesson/article. I certainly enjoyed putting this one together more than some of the others. The ability to see types and patterns in the Bible will deepen our understanding of the things God wants us to learn. They are like shadows that have come out into the light once we understand them.

So, try to set aside that Greek thinking that we are all chained to, put on your Hebrew meditation hat, and dig into some of the types and patterns that I left in that list above, as well as finding a bunch of them on your own.

Maranatha!

Bro. Joe

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