90 Day Bible Reading Plan Devotional Day 21

Luk 4:1  "And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness"

THE NUMBER FOUR

The number 4 and the Gospel:

The elementary student of the Bible will instantly recognize that there are 4 books in the Bible the reveal the story of Christ’s life, ministry, miracles, death, and resurrection. They are the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John; the Gospels. The very word “gospel” or "gospel’s” is mentioned 104 (4x26) times in the Scriptures. What we will see in this section is that there is a clear reason why there are 4 gospel stories in our Bibles, and the many places elsewhere where we can see the number 4 and the beautiful story of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

In the 4th book of the Bible, the book of Numbers, we find the following story. (Numbers 21:6-9) "And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died. {7} Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people. {8} And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. {9} And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived." Jesus revealed to us in the 4th book of the New Testament, the Gospel of John, that this was a type of His sacrificial death on the cross. (John 3:14-16) "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: {15} That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. {16} For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Jesus’ title of “Lamb” is given him exactly 28 (4x7) times as well, the first time being found in the 4th gospel book, John.

(John 1:29) "The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world." The connection between the Gospel and the theme of the world should be obvious to any student of the Gospel, as evident in these verses. (Matthew 24:14) "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." (Mark 16:15) "And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature."

The very center piece of the Gospel message is the cross. The place of Jesus’ crucifixion was called “Golgotha” 3 times, Matthew 27:33, Mark 15:22, John 19:17, and “Calvary” one time, Luke 23:33, giving a total of 4. The word “cross” is mentioned exactly 28 (4x7) times in the Bible. A cross has 4 points that point in 4 directions. As they laid Jesus on that cross and began to nail his hands and his feet to it, the cross would have been pointing to all the nations of the world as a witness. Above the cross, the Scriptures record that the accusation against Christ was printed on a plaque of some kind. Liberal theologians have always had a “field day” with the fact that in each of the 4 gospels, the exact wording of this inscription is different. This, they say, proves that the Bible cannot be counted on to be an accurate representation of what really happened at Calvary. They are, however, misguided. Let us look at the inscriptions that are recorded for us.

Matthew 27:37 – THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS

Mark 15:26 – THE KING OF THE JEWS

Luke 23:38 – THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS

John 19:19 – JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS

The total number of words in all 4 inscriptions is 28 (4x7).

When they took the cross and set it in the ground, it is apparent that they would have done so with Jesus facing south, toward Jerusalem and in the general direction of Mt. Sinai. This is where the law was given. Jesus, whose face shone like the sun at the Transfiguration, Matthew 17, would seem to be shining the much needed light of revelation on the Law, showing that He had come to fulfill it. There are several instances in the Scriptures where Satan is associated with the north, Isaiah 14:13, Jeremiah 1:14, Ezekiel 38:15. The northern most constellation is that of Draco, the Dragon. As Jesus was on the cross, his back would have been turned against the north, thus fulfilling Jesus’ statement on three occasions, “Get thee behind me, Satan.” His left hand would have been pointing east, and His right hand pointing west. This would fulfill the prophecy in Psalms 103:12 "As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us."

It is also important to note that his right hand is the one pointing west. Take note of what the Scriptures reveal about Christ’s right hand.

(Psalms 16:11) "Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore."

(Psalms 17:7) "Show thy marvellous lovingkindness, O thou that savest by thy right hand them which put their trust in thee from those that rise up against them."

(Psalms 20:6) "Now know I that the LORD saveth his anointed; he will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand."

(Psalms 44:3) "For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them: but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favour unto them."

(Psalms 48:10) "According to thy name, O God, so is thy praise unto the ends of the earth: thy right hand is full of righteousness."

Many more verses could be cited that follow this same context. Notice that the Scriptures reveal that salvation and righteousness are at the right hand of Christ. This points us to a very revealing teaching concerning the wilderness tabernacle. It is apparent from the Scriptures that the tabernacle was a replica of the true tabernacle of God in heaven. As the high priest entered the outer court of the tabernacle, he would have done so by the only gateway into the court on the east side. In order to make his way to the most holy place where the Ark of the Covenant was, he would enter through three entrances, the gate at the outer court, the veil of the sanctuary, and the veil of most holy place. These are typical of the three heavens, the third heaven being where the throne of God is. As the high priest travels, he travels west to the Ark of the Covenant, which is on the west side of the tabernacle. The Ark was a four-sided box upon which sat the Mercy Seat. Once a year, the high priest would enter into the most holy place and sprinkle blood on the mercy seat to atone for the sins of Israel. This is a type of Christ offering His blood as the atonement for the sins of man, not once a year, but only once. (Hebrews 9:12) "Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us." Truly, salvation is at the westward pointing, right hand of Jesus Christ. It is also interesting to note that in the sanctuary of the tabernacle, the menorah, which represents the light of the Holy Spirit, is on the south side. This menorah was the only source of light in the tabernacle itself. This would seem to confirm the idea of Christ’s countenance facing south, shining light upon the law. Also, the table of showbread was specifically placed on the north side. This not only confirms our earlier idea of Jesus turning his back to Satan on the north, but also points to the location of the salvation of Israel; Calvary being on the north side of the city of Jerusalem.

Before the blood of sacrifice could be carried into the Ark of the Covenant, the sacrifice had to take place. This was done in the court area of the tabernacle at the brazen altar. The exact specifications for this altar were given to Moses on Mt. Sinai. (Exodus 27:1-2) "And thou shalt make an altar of shittim wood, five cubits long, and five cubits broad; the altar shall be foursquare: and the height thereof shall be three cubits. {2} And thou shalt make the horns of it upon the four corners thereof: his horns shall be of the same: and thou shalt overlay it with brass." First we note that God specifically told Moses, even though the length and the width were identical, that the altar had to be foursquare. We will look a little later at something else that is foursquare in the Bible, but for now, we also see that horns were to be placed on the four corners of the altar. These four corners of the altar directly correspond to the four corners that the earth has. Here again, we see the message of the four gospels going to the four corners of the earth, and being preached to the whole world. In the book of Leviticus,

God gives an interesting instruction to the priests who would be performing sacrifices on this brazen altar. Notice the instruction given when a priest sacrifices a lamb on the altar.

(Leviticus 1:10-11) "And if his offering be of the flocks, namely, of the sheep, or of the goats, for a burnt sacrifice; he shall bring it a male without blemish. {11} And he shall kill it on the side of the altar northward before the LORD: and the priests, Aaron's sons, shall sprinkle his blood round about upon the altar."

There are two things that we will note about this passage. First, we see again the correlation between the location of the sacrifice of the lamb and the location of the crucifixion of Jesus, on the north side of Jerusalem. Second, the priest was instructed to sprinkle the blood of the lamb round about the altar, or in every direction so that north, south, east, and west would be covered by the sacrificial atoning blood of the lamb. The Calvary fulfillment of this type was prophesied by Isaiah. (Isaiah 52:14-15) "As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men: {15} So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider."

There is yet another, very interesting thing to note about the blood that was shed at the altar of sacrifice. In nearly every instance in the law when an animal was sacrificed on the brazen altar, a majority portion of that blood was either sprinkled or poured out on the ground at the base of the altar. We will see the significance of this in the following scriptures. From the

fourth gospel story, we find that immediately after Jesus gave up the ghost on the cross, a Roman soldier took his spear and pierced His side.

(John 19:34) "But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water."

By no stretch of the imagination can we say that there must have been a large amount of blood that came out of the Jesus’ side on that day. This blood would have literally been poured out on the ground at the base of Calvary’s altar of sacrifice, the Cross.

This takes us, then, to the 4th chapter of the Bible, Genesis 4. In this passage we have the well known story of Cain and Abel. Truly this story is a microcosm of the gospel message, and it is only through the pages of Scriptures themselves that we may understand what is being portrayed in Genesis 4. First, lets look at the relevant portion of this chapter.

(Genesis 4:1-11) "And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. {2} And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. {3} And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. {4} And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: {5} But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. {6} And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? {7} If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. {8} And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. {9} And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper? {10} And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground. {11} And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand;"

Now let’s take a really close look at some of the details that will reveal to us this amazing gospel story. First, we see that verse 2 mentions that Abel was a keeper of sheep, a shepherd, as was David, and the Good Shepherd, Jesus. We also see that Abel, without future knowledge of the Mosaic law, brought exactly what the law required as far as a sacrifice was concerned; the firstlings of the flock and the fat. There are many arguments as to exactly why Abel’s sacrifice was better than Cain’s, but one thing we do notice from this passage is that Cain’s offering came from the ground. There is a problem that exists in relation to his ground offering. At this point, the ground had been cursed in Genesis 3.

(Genesis 3:17-18) "And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy

life; {18} Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;" While it was possible for Abel to offer an offering without blemish, it was not possible for Cain to do so, because of the curse that was upon the ground. Any offering that Cain would have made from the ground would have been saturated with thorns and thistles.

The New Testament reveals some of the important details concerning the offerings of Cain and Abel. First, since we are dealing with the relationship between Abel and the gospel, it is interesting to note that we find Abel mentioned 12 (4x3) in the Old Testament, and 4 times in the New Testament, a total of 16 (4x4) times. First, we see that all of Abel’s deeds were righteous, and all of Cain’s deeds were evil.

(1 John 3:12) "Not as Cain, who was of that wicked one, and slew his brother. And wherefore slew he him? Because his own works were evil, and his brother's righteous."

In this, we see the types more clearly. Cain would represent the kingdom of Satan, being of that Wicked one, Satan himself. Abel represents a type of Christ, whose deeds are righteous. With this understanding, let’s look at what the Bible says about the sacrifice of Abel.

(Hebrews 11:4) "By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh."

Notice that in the context of the verse, we see a clear connection between the sacrifice of Abel and his own death. It can be said that the murder of Abel by his own brother carries a similarity to Joseph, who was betrayed by his brethren, them telling his father that a beast had killed him, and Jesus, betrayed, not just by his own disciple Judas, but by the whole house of Israel, and murdered on Golgotha. Truly, Abel was murdered as a result of the offering that he presented to the Lord. Now notice the exact language that Paul used in Hebrews 11:4, when he said that Abel, “being dead yet speaketh.”

There is something about the death of Abel that speaks to us even today. Now let’s go back to the Genesis story to see what it is that is speaking.

(Genesis 4:10) "And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground."

It is the blood of Abel that is his testimony. Just as the priest was instructed to sprinkle or pour the blood of the sacrifice on the ground around the altar, and as Jesus’ own blood was poured out on the ground at the base of the cross, so Abel’s blood was poured out on the ground, as a testimony to what would be done by Jesus at Calvary. Of this very idea, Paul once again expounds for us its true meaning in the book of Hebrews.

(Hebrews 12:24) "And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel."

Truly, Abel’s blood speaks, but Christ’s blood speaks better! It is the blood of Christ that is the center of the Gospel message. Without the blood, there can be no remission of sins, Matthew 26:28. In the temple of the human body, the main organ of the life-blood of all

human beings is the heart. It is with the heart that man believes the Gospel message and is saved. The heart has 4 chambers.

One final note concerning the “gospel preaching” blood of Abel. It is mentioned in Genesis 4:11 that the earth “…hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand.” The Scriptures reveal to us in Matthew 27:50 that Jesus cried with a loud voice and yielded up the ghost. John records for us that at this precise time, a Roman soldier pierced His side, issuing forth the water and the blood. Now according to Matthew 27:51, as soon as these events took place, the veil ripped in the Temple, an earthquake took place, and the rocks were torn apart. Could it not be, that at the base of the Cross, the rocks opened up and allowed the blood that was at the base of the Cross to seep in; the earth literally opening her mouth to receive His blood? Since the blood of Christ is a spiritual cleansing agent, this would have the effect of eliminating the curse that was upon the ground, thus making the ground underneath the cross holy ground. In Genesis 2, we see that there is a river that flows out of the land of Eden. Verse 10 tells us that this river watered the garden of Eden, and then parted into 4 heads. This would be typical of the “river of water of life” that flows out of the throne of God in Revelation 22:1. It parts into 4 heads because it is the gospel message that flows to the four corners of the earth.

Pastor Mike Hoggard, The King James Code