The everlasting covenant and gospel dispensations -- Part 6 (Jesus Christ)

The previous parts of this series are found here:

• Part 1: Introduction and Adam
• Part 2: Enoch
• Part 3: Noah
• Part 4: Abraham
• Part 5: Moses

This post will focus on the gospel dispensation of Jesus Christ himself. There is plenty of material to take from since the scriptures testify of him. Some of that describes Christ as a restorer of the everlasting covenant. It is interesting to note that from Enoch and on, there is an increasing amount of available information on the gospel dispensations. We know next to nothing about Enoch from the Bible but the Pearl of Great Price gives us a chapter and a half. We have several chapters in Genesis about Noah. We have even more chapters about Abraham in Genesis plus the Book of Abraham in the Pearl of Great Price. We have entire books about Moses (Exodus-Deuteronomy). The same can be said about Jesus. In addition to the four gospels, we have the account of his visit among the Nephites in 3 Nephi, but numerous prophecies and sermons in addition. From Joseph Smith we have almost the entire Doctrine and Covenants plus much more detailed accounts of his life than any of the other heads of previous dispensations.

But back to Jesus Christ. The peculiar thing about this dispensation is that he, as the God of the Old Testament, established the everlasting covenant in the first place. He covenanted with Adam, Enoch, Noah, Abraham and Moses. He is "the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning" (Mosiah 3:8). The author of the everlasting covenant came to earth himself to restore it. He who created all things longs to re-unite all creation and paid the price of it with his own blood.

In the previous post we discussed the dispensation of Moses. How the Lord wanted to give them the fullness and they could only handle a part. But Moses prophesied:

The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers (Deuteronomy 18:15)

Christ identified himself as that prophet when he visited the Nephites.

Behold, I am he of whom Moses spake, saying: A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me (3 Nephi 20:23)

More on this in a previous post about Moses and Christ, explained beautifully by Abinadi. There is a Jewish tradition of the Messiah as the second Moses and there are numerous parallels in addition to the simple fact that Jesus identified as the prophet that Moses told about and said he had come to fulfill the Law of Moses. For instance:

• Jesus was born without shelter and laid in a manger. Moses was also born without shelter and laid in a basket, interestingly called an ark.
• Pharaoh and Herod both order all male infants killed and thereby threaten the lives of Moses and Jesus
• Jesus and Moses both spent their childhood in Egypt
• Both Jesus and Moses fasted 40 days in the wilderness

These historical events establish a parallel such that we can find meaning in the following:

• Moses led Israel out of physical bondage. Jesus leads out out of spiritual bondage
• The people that Moses led were fed manna from heaven. Jesus referred to this event as he identified as the bread of life
• Moses smote the rock so the water gushed out. Jesus is the rock who offers the water of life
• The 10 commandments were given through Moses. Jesus discussed and re-interpreted these in the Sermon of the Mount
• Moses erected a tabernacle to house God. Jesus came down in an earthly tabernacle to house his spirit
• Moses initiated the passover lamb. Jesus is the Lamb of God offering himself as a sacrifice.
• Moses led the people to the promised land. Jesus leads us to the promised land of the celestial kingdom

Jesus came as the second Moses to fulfill the law. The law came with a covenant. The old covenant/testament was replaced by a new. The animal sacrifice pointing forward to Christ's sacrifice was replaced by the sacrament held in remembrance of Christ's sacrifice.

27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;

28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. (Matthew 26)

Both the sermon of Abinadi and the Letter to the Hebrews explain that salvation could not come by the Law of Moses alone but only through the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The Law of Moses was administered with the Aaronic Priesthood, also called the lesser or preparatory priesthood. The gospel of Christ and the everlasting covenant are administered with the Melchizedek Priesthood.

11 If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron?

12 For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law. (Hebrews 7)

6 But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises.

7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second.

8 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:

9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.

10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: (Hebrews 8)

Since Christ's mission was to fulfill the Law of Moses, there are numerous parallels to that dispensation in particular. But the life and ministry of Christ also refers to the other gospel dispensations

• Adam plucked the fruit from the tree. Jesus reversed the fall as the firstfruits of God hanged on the tree at the crucifixion. "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." (1 Corinthians 15:22)
• Enoch established Zion that was taken up to heaven. When Jesus comes again from heaven, he will establish the millennial Zion and the two will meet.
• Noah survived the baptism of the earth and sent forth a dove when the water receded. When Jesus was baptized and came out of the water, the Spirit descended on him in the form of a dove.
• Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son. This is a "similitude of God and his Only Begotten Son" (Jacob 4:5)

As in previous dispensations, the everlasting covenant was brought to earth when Christ came. But where previous dispensations only had looked forward to the sacrifice that was required to effectuate it, Jesus, the creator, came to sacrifice himself for the creation.

Let the mountains shout for joy, and all ye valleys cry aloud; and all ye seas and dry lands tell the wonders of your Eternal King! And ye rivers, and brooks, and rills, flow down with gladness. Let the woods and all the trees of the field praise the Lord; and ye solid rocks weep for joy! And let the sun, moon, and the morning stars sing together, and let all the sons of God shout for joy! And let the eternal creations declare his name forever and ever! And again I say, how glorious is the voice we hear from heaven, proclaiming in our ears, glory, and salvation, and honor, and immortality, and eternal life; kingdoms, principalities, and powers! (D&C 128:23)

I think this verse is a fitting way to end the year on a positive note. We also wish our readers a Happy New Year! 

The Jewish festivals and their fulfillment

Yes, the title may appear a bit strange. Are festivals really, like prophecies, something to be fulfilled? This seems to me to be the case. As I studied about the Feast of Tabernacles and saw some sort of fulfillment in Isaiah 54 and Revelation 19-21 that I wrote about recently, I had the thought that this may be the case for all the Jewish festivals. After some searching I realized that I am not the first to have had that thought either. But I think that the restored gospel offers a unique perspective on this. 

There are 7 Jewish festivals altogether. This is definitely not a coincidence, considering the symbolism of the number 7 in Judaism.

Though the origins of this view are shrouded in the past, it is believed that one prime reason the number seven gained this particular symbolism of “perfection and completeness” is that it combines the number three and the number four. The number three symbolized heaven (or the masculine) and the number four represented the earth (or the feminine). As is commonly explained, “Seven symbolizes wholeness in many cultures, being the union of the divinity (three) and the material earth (four).” Seven was regarded as “a holy number yielded by adding the basic number of the masculine, 3, and the basic number of the feminine, 4.” “Because the number seven (the septenary) combines the ternary and quaternary—heaven or divinity and earth or humanity—it unifies the macrocosm and microcosm and signifies cosmic order.” (Source)

This aspect of the symbolism of seven as a sum of four (earth/humanity) and three (heaven/divinity) is of particular relevance. The Jewish festivals are grouped into four spring and three fall festivals. These are

1. Passover
2. Unleavened bread
3. First fruits
4. Pentecost
5. Trumpets
6. Atonement
7. Tabernacles

The four spring feasts are all related to and fulfilled at Christ's first coming, when he was born to earth as a man. So this is the earth part, the four out of the complete seven. The three fall feasts are all related to and fulfilled at Christ's second coming, when he will come from heaven in his full divinity. The four plus three are combined in two comings of Christ to complete the salvation and exaltation of man. There is a lot of beautiful symbolism all around. The common pattern is a Jewish festival with a specific purpose for Israel but also with symbolic significance (that they may or may not have understood). At some point in time, either at the first coming of Christ for the spring festivals, or at the second coming of Christ for the fall festivals, there is the realisation of events that the feast symbolized or pointed forward to. Below is a brief summary of each feast along with my interpretation of their symbolic value and fulfillment. More information on the feast itself is linked in the headlines.

Passover

This is the first feast of the Jewish calendar and arguably the most well-known. I think the symbolism is also well-known. The blood of the lamb at the door posts preceding the Exodus out of Egypt representing sin, is an obvious pointer to the Savior and his atoning blood. No further elaboration needed, I think. But it is interesting to note that Jesus was likely crucified on the 14th of the Jewish month, Nisan. This was the day of the pesach feast where the sacrificial lamb would be prepared in every believing Jewish household.

Unleavened bread

Some Jewish feasts go together. The feast of unleavened bread follows immediately after passover, on Nisan 15. This would be the Saturday where the body of Jesus laid in the tomb. Leaven or yeast was an ancient symbol of sin and corruption. Unleavened bread would therefore symbolize a holy life without corruption. A body in a tomb would normally rot and decay, but the "bread of life" changed the natural course of events. The feast of unleavened bread is fulfilled in Christ and we may even regard the partaking of the sacramental bread (even though we don't worry about its yeast content) as part of this fulfillment or perhaps as a latter day celebration of this feast. The feast actually went on for seven days to have an extended period of time to eat unleavened bread and sustain the uncorrupted life. Similarly, we should let the effects of our partaking of the sacrament last for a full seven days to "walk in holiness before the Lord" throughout the week until the next time.

First fruits

"On the morrow after the Sabbath" followed after unleavened bread, Leviticus 23:11 schedules the feast of first fruits. So this is another festival attached to passover. It was a feast for acknowledging the fertility of the land. Israelites were to bring the early crops and "wave the sheaf before the Lord". This is the third feast and represents the third day when Jesus arose from the grave. The symbolism is evident to Paul

But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. (1 Corinthians 15:20)

The feasts of passover, unleavened bread and first fruits were all fulfilled in the atonement, death, burial and resurrection of Christ.

Pentecost

Perhaps unknown to some, pentecost was also an ancient Israelite feast and not originally a Christian holiday. It obviously became so when it was fulfilled at the day of pentecost. Israel was instructed to celebrate pentecost (Hebr. Shavout) 50 days after pesach. It was supposed to align with the events of the Exodus, where Moses received the Torah on Mount Sinai 50 days after leaving Egypt. Pentecost therefore, dispite its focus as an agricultural festival like many of the others, signifies revelation and covenant. It is ironic, then, that the people who are described in Acts on the day of pentecost gathered to renew their commitment to the old covenant, when the Holy Ghost came to fulfill the promise of the new covenant.

Trumpets

The Jewish spring feasts described already and their symbolic fulfillment have been quite conventional, in the sense that all our Christian brothers and sisters would share the LDS view. But now it's getting interesting. The feast of the trumpets was the first fall festival. A season had passed since the spring festivals, just like there has been a long time of spiritual darkness on earth after Christ and until the restoration. Leviticus 23, that gives instructions for all Jewish festivals requires in verse 24

In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.

In Israel, the trumpet was the signal for the field workers to come to the temple. The high priest blew it as an invitation to worship. Remarkably, but perhaps not surprisingly given the consistent pattern we see, September 22 1827 was the the first day of the seventh month in the Jewish calendar. In other words, faithful Jews would be celebrating this feast on the very day when the angel Moroni (who is found on top of many LDS temples with a trumpet) visited Joseph Smith. Lord Wilmore has previously written about this so I will just refer to his post linked in the heading.

Atonement

Yom Kippur or the Day of Atonement is the holiest day of the Jewish calendar. It was the one day of the year where the high priest could enter into the Holy of Holies of the temple, sprinkle blood upon the mercy seat and utter the sacred name of God, YHWH. The symbolism might seem confusing because we would naturally connect this with Jesus' atoning sacrifice, his first coming and therefore the spring festivals. But we already have pesach (easter) and the sacrificial lamb symbolism covering this aspect. According to the pattern we have seen so far, we should expect the day of atonement to be fulfilled in conjunction with Christ's second coming. With the feast of trumpets (restoration) leading up to and marking the preparation for the day of atonement, assuming the day of Christ's second coming happening on that day as its fulfillment is almost inevitable. We should not speculate and "that day and hour knoweth no man", so I hesitate a bit to say it, even though it seems obvious from the symbolism at play. At least we still don't know which year.

We read that Christ will return in glory wearing red, triumph over his enemies and bless the righteous. His coming will usher in the millenium that is symbolized by the last Jewish feast of the year, the Feast of Tabernacles.

Tabernacles

The Feast of Tabernacles is also an agricultural feast. This time it is a celebration of the abundance of the recent harvest gathered in. People dwell in tents and invite God to dwell with them. I have recently written a few blog posts with some reflections on this theme. See here and here. The symbolism and fulfillment is clearly linked to the New Jerusalem and the Millennium. After the second coming, the resurrected Christ dwells among his people in a paradisiacal state of abundance and prosperity. As explained in the first of the two linked blog posts, Isaiah 54:2 describes the current preparation for this, continually expanding the tent of the covenant people. The end of the Book of Revelation also describes the fulfillment of the Feast of Tabernacles as a wedding feast between Israel and Christ.

Adam and Eve in the scriptures, part 2

In the last post, I focused on the number of times Adam and Eve are mentioned in each book of scripture.  I learned a few surprising things from that part of the study.  The next step was to take a qualitative look at each reference and compare how doctrine in connected to Adam and Eve.  In this regard, the Book of Mormon really stands out. First we'll look at references to Adam and Eve in each of the other books. This part will include the Bible and the Doctrine & Covenants and part three will include the Book of Abraham, Book of Moses, and Book of Mormon. I'll highlight the references which connect to doctrine, light yellow if it touches a little on core gospel doctrine, and a deeper yellow if it connects deeply with core doctrine.

The Old Testament

As discussed in part 1, 18 of the 21 references to Adam and Eve in the entire Old Testament happen in Genesis 1-5.  These occur as part of the narrative account -- there is no real discussion of doctrine, just a telling of the events that transpired.

The rest of the OT only contains 3 other references to Adam the person (there is one reference to a city called Adam in Joshua 3 which I excluded from this study):

1. Deuteronomy 32:8 -- "When the most High divided to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel." (This is an oblique reference to Adam as the father of the human family.)
2. 1 Chronicles 1:1 -- "Adam, Sheth, Enosh," (This is the beginning of a genealogy.)
3. Job 31:33 -- "If I covered my transgressions as Adam, by hiding mine iniquity in my bosom:" (This is a reference to an event in the Garden of Eden.)

That's it for the entire Old Testament.  I don't see much, if any, deeper doctrine connected with these references.

New Testament

The New Testament contains a few references to Adam and Eve and includes some doctrine:

1. Luke 3:38 -- "Which was the son of Enos, which was the son of Seth, which was the son of Adam, which was the son of God." (Part of a genealogy.)
2. Romans 5:14 -- "Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam’s transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come." (These two mentions of Adam come in a doctrinal discussion about sin and death.)
3. 1 Corinthians 15:22 -- "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." (This is a well-known verse in a doctrinal treatise on sin and atonement.)
4. 1 Timothy 2:13-14 -- "For Adam was first formed, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression." (This set of references includes references to events in the Garden as well as some doctrinal discussion about the roles of men and women.)
5. Jude 1:14 -- "And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints," (This reference to Adam is only in passing.)

Doctrine & Covenants

For the sake of post length, I'm going to summarize the 31 references found in the Doctrine & Covenants a little more generally:

• Section 27: Connects Adam/Michael/Ancient of days.
• Section 29: "all things unto me are spiritual" / Satan rebelled before Adam and sought God's honor / Adam became subject to the will of the devil by partaking of the fruit / God gave Adam the gospel of repentance
• Section 78: Adam-ondi-Ahman
• Section 84: Abel received the priesthood "by the hand of his father Adam"
• Section 107: The history of the order of the priesthood / a description of the great priesthood meeting held prior to Adam's death
• Section 116: Identifying Adam-ondi-Ahman
• Section 117: Adam-ondi-Ahman
• Section 128: Keys of the priesthood
• Section 136: A promise that we shall behold God's glory if we are faithful in keeping all His words.
• Section 137: A vision of Adam in the celestial kingdom
• Section 138: Adam and Eve standing in the "vast congregation of the righteous" in the post-mortal spirit world

Conclusion

We're building to something here.  Notice how the Old Testament is essentially devoid of deeper doctrine connected to Adam and Eve.  The New Testament fares a little better. The Doctrine and Covenants does quite well in this regard.  In the next post, we'll see how the last three Books included in this investigation compare.

Jesus Christ as "Firstfruits"

One of the benefits of re-reading the Book of Mormon is that you see the same verse in a new light based on life experiences and things you've learned since the last time you read a verse.

Such is the case with 2 Nephi 2:9 for me:

9 Wherefore, he is the firstfruits unto God, inasmuch as he shall make intercession for all the children of men; and they that believe in him shall be saved.

The idea of a sacred offering made by giving up the first grain of the harvest to God is symbolic of Christ--he came to earth to dwell in a "tabernacle of clay" (Mosiah 3:5) and "[make himself] an offering for sin" (Mosiah 15:10)

Grain grows from the ground, and in this case the first grain to spring forth from the ground is consecrated for a sacred offering.

Firstfruits were offered to God on 16 Nisan, two days and one sunset after Passover, at the Feast of Firstfruits.  For Christians, there is obvious symbolic reference to the Resurrection. As Paul notes in 1 Corinthians 15:20-23:

20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
21 For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.
22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.

Dust and fruit: Symbolism in the Garden of Eden and beyond

Long post warning! I have been fascinated with symbols and symbolism in the gospel for a long time. Finding meaning in symbols is a great way for me to learn eternal truths. I do realize that others might find different meanings in the same symbols teaching them equally important truths. I don’t think there always is necessarily one and only one correct interpretation. So what I’m about to share is just how I see things, not necessarily the "correct" interpretation.

Lately, I have been contemplating the Garden of Eden story. Perhaps this is more of an Old Testament note than a Book of Mormon note, but the thoughts I’m posting now are at least in part a result of previous posts on this blog and a verse in Alma 42 that caught my attention.

Lord Wilmore has posted both on the topic of nakedness and dust. In another post, I linked both of these to the Garden of Eden. The passage in Alma 42 that caught my attention is in verse 2:

the Lord God sent our first parents forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground, from whence they were taken

Alma is quoting Genesis, so this passage is also found there. There is a certain irony in the statement. Adam is cultivating the very substance he is created from. Indeed, we learn that Adam’s physical body is created from the «dust of the ground» (Genesis 2:7). To keep us humble, we are reminded of this throughout the scriptures (e.g. Ecclesiastes 3:20, Psalms 103:14, Mosiah 4:2, Helaman 12:7). For ancient Israelites, this reminder was even constantly there as part of their language. In Hebrew, the word for ‘ground’ is ‘Adamah’. The ‘ah’ ending is really just the Hebrew letter corresponding to the Latin, ‘h’, usually not pronounced at the end of a word. Consequently, the Hebrew word for 'ground' is very similar to and pronounced more or less the same way as ‘Adam’, the word for ‘man’ or ‘mankind’.

So in Hebrew, the dust/ground is associated with man, but the physical/carnal side of him. Keep in mind that it was the body of Adam that was formed from the dust of the ground and it had no life until it had a spirit. (It is usually translated as 'breath', but the Hebrew word 'ruach' can be translated as 'breath', 'wind' or 'spirit'). As opposed to the serpent, who was confined to the ground to eat dust, Adam had the potential to rise above the ground and even cultivate it.

What happens when Adam or mankind "arise from the dust" (2 Nephi 1:14) and start cultivating it? It produces fruit! Elder Neil L. Anderson just gave a talk on fruit this last General Conference. Fruit can be good or bad but Jacob 5 is a good illustration of how much God wants his children to produce good fruit. Elder Anderson quotes John 4:36, where Christ invites us to gather "fruit unto life eternal". He also talks about Lehi's dream, where people had to hold on to the iron rod and overcome obstacles like the mist of darkness and the mockery from those in the great and spacious building, to taste the fruit from the tree of life. Another example from the Book of Mormon is Alma 32, where we exercise faith, patience and diligence to plant a seed and nourish the tree, before we can finally partake of the fruit of the tree of life.

Alma 42:5:

5 For behold, if Adam had put forth his hand immediately, and partaken of the tree of life, he would have lived forever, according to the word of God, having no space for repentance; yea, and also the word of God would have been void, and the great plan of salvation would have been frustrated.

Alma reminds us that the tree of life was there and Adam could just "stretch out his hand" but God prevented it. Instead, he wanted us to go through all the trouble described in 1 Nephi 8 and Alma 32. Why? Because it is a necessary part of his plan that we partake of this mortal experience, use our agency and knowledge of good and evil to rise above the ground/dust/flesh/carnal to till/cultivate/master it. In this way we produce fruit and ultimately get to taste the sweetest fruit of them all, the one from the tree of life. If Adam/mankind could just stretch forth his hand without any other effort and in their current state, "the great plan of salvation would have been frustrated".

In Mosiah 16:3-4 we read

3 For they are carnal and devilish, and the devil has power over them; yea, even that old serpent that did beguile our first parents, which was the cause of their fall; which was the cause of all mankind becoming carnal, sensual, devilish, knowing evil from good, subjecting themselves to the devil.

4 Thus all mankind were lost; and behold, they would have been endlessly lost were it not that God redeemed his people from their lost and fallen state.

If we are carnal, we are confined to the ground (which is the substance the flesh is created from) where the serpent/devil has dominion and we become subjects to him. But because of the redemption from God, we are able to arise. When we arise and cultivate the ground instead of crawling on it like the serpent, fruit becomes the result. In fact, the ultimate act of arising is the resurrection, which Abinadi talks about only a few verses later. Because of his resurrection, Christ became the "firstfruits of God" (2 Nephi 2:9). The sweetest fruit is the one on the tree of life that represents God's love manifest in Him sending his Son. In other words, the fruit can represent Christ himself. Just as the juice is squeezed out of a grape or oil squeezed out of the olive, blood was squeezed out of Christ. Blood in Hebrew is 'dam', also related to the word, 'mankind', it's Adam without the first letter, aleph. Acts 5:30:

The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree

1st Corinthians 15:22:

For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive

The atonement is the reversal of the fall! The fall came about when Adam took the fruit from the tree. The atonement came about when the firstfruit of God was hanged on the tree. The fall was figuratively a fall to the ground, to the carnal and the captivity of the devil. The atonement enabled mankind to rise, to "cultivate the ground", i.e. to become master of the carnal instead of subject to it. It enables us to eat fruit instead of dust. John 15:5:

I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

When we come unto Christ, his grace enables us to "till the ground" and produce good fruit and ultimately taste the fruit of the tree of life. Then we're back in the Garden of Eden, back in God's presence, we just needed this detour to learn and grow and come back differently from how we started. Like a tree arises from the ground as it grows, so must we.

Perhaps this all seems a bit jumbled, but I find much meaning in these symbols. I think we lose out when we are more concerned with what's historical than what we can learn from this story. The layers of symbolism are there for us to uncover.