Hi all,
I hope you enjoyed the study of Isaac and Rebecca and the foreshadowing for us the Lord did in their lives. I find it amazing and fascinating, so I'd like to share a few other types and shadows. They aren't life-changing, but they do build us up to know He was thinking of us so far in the past, so we know our future is secure and thought out, we might say. 
 
Some examples of types and shadows
In Isaiah 40:2 and 61: 5-7 respectively, the Lord says: 
 
"Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she has received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins." and
 
"For your shame you shall have double; and for confusion they shall rejoice in their portion: therefore in their land they shall possess the double: everlasting joy shall be unto them."
 
To a person not familiar with the customs of the times it would seem these are contradictory statements: Their sin is pardoned and yet they have received double for all her sins...what does that mean? For her shame 'you will have double' and 'possess the double', thus everlasting joy will be to them..." What does that mean? 
 
The custom of the day was that if a person was bankrupt they would write their debts on papyrus and nail that notice at their gate for all to see, in the hopes a pilgrim with tithes and offerings on the way to temple would see their debt, and pay them as an offering to the Lord. 
 
When the person paying did so, they folded double the papyrus and sealed it with their own seal, marking it 'paid in full' and their name. This was called 'receiving the double', or for the person receiving the grace, 'possessing the double'. 
 
This may be one reason Paul made this statement in Colossians 2: 14: "Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross..."
 
Jesus was the man who as an offering to the Lord, doubled over the list of our debts, nailed it to the cross, and put His seal (the Holy Spirit) on it, marking our debts PAID IN FULL. With that understanding the verses make sense, and provide a beautiful and humbling picture of the work of Jesus on the cross on our behalf. 
 
Another example
Another example is the revealing of King Joash after having been hidden for 6 years. II Kings 11 tells the story that evil Athaliah killed all the royal line and took the throne herself for 6 years (6,000 prophetic years). But Jehosheba, the daughter of former king Joram took the boy Joash who was the rightful heir, and hid him for those 6 years. 
 
II Kings 11: 3 says he was, "...hidden in the house of the Lord six years. And Athaliah reigned over the land." 
 
In the 7th year Jehoiada gathered the nobles and army and came to the temple, and 11: 5 says '...and showed them the king's son.' There is much more about the coronation that is a type of Jesus. He was hidden for 6 years, or 6,000 years while an evil king rules. But at the 7th year, He will reign in Israel (and over the whole world). 
 
In the coronation II Kings 11: 11-12 tells us they gave king Joash 'the crown' and 'the testimony'. There are 4 parts to the ancient coronation ceremony not detailed in the text. They were the anointing, affirmation, enthronement, and paying homage to the king. The oil poured on his head represents the anointing of the Holy Spirit, the testimony given him is the Word of God. In the passage the people yell out, "God save the king!" in affirmation, and 11: 19 tells us that king Joash "sat on the throne of the kings." - this is the assumption of power and authority as king. 
 
What a beautiful picture of the future crowning of the Lord Jesus on the 7,000th year who will rule the world, after having been 'hidden' for 6,000 years. 
 
The wedding at Cana
John chapter 1 details 4 consecutive days in the life of Jesus, then tells us nothing for 2 days, and then the 7th day is a wedding feast. This is a type of the Jewish perspective of Messiah being in the world of the Old Testament, over the course of 4,000 years, then has disappeared from them for 2,000 years, and on the 7th day or 7,000th year, there will be a wedding feast. 
 
John 1: 19-28 is the first day, in which the elders ask John if he is the Messiah, which he of course denies and tells them of the One coming after him.
 
John 1: 29 says 'the next day' or day 2, John saw Jesus coming to him, and proclaimed: "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" His teaching continues to v34.
 
John 1: 35 says 'the next day John stood, and 2 of his disciples...', which is day 3, and that continues through verse 43.
 
John 1: 44 says 'the day following' Jesus wanted to go to Galilee, which is day 4. His discussion with Philip, Andrew, Peter and Nathaniel continues to the end of the chapter, ending in v51. 
 
John 2: 1 opens with: "And three days later there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee..." 
 
For 4 days Jesus is seen, then 2 days He is unseen, and 'three days later' is the 7th day. The wedding feast. There was 4,000 years of Messiah being present in the OT, then 2,000 years of the Gentiles in which He is not seen by the Jews - and we are near the close of that Gentile age, and then on the 7,000th year will be a wedding. 
 
There is much more, but I'll not take up more space. If someone tries to teach something goofy, off balance, know there are many types and shadows that speak of the traditional timing of end time events, such as I've shared with Isaac meeting his bride in the field part way between his home and her home, to the above. New subject next week, until then, blessings,
 
John Fenn
www.cwowi.org and email me at cwowi@aol.com
 

Hi all,
We left Rebecca having agreed to return with Eliezer to marry Isaac, and being blessed by her family to do so. 
 
There are some things to consider about her because she is a type of you and I, as believers and more than that, disciples of Jesus.
 
The first is that Abraham came from the very area in which she was born and lived. He left because after he came to know the Lord, the Lord appeared to him and told him to leave. He left by command, with a promise of reward.
 
Abraham and Sarah were the foundation of the faith, the groundbreakers. Isaac and Rebecca were the next generation of believers. They inherited the covenant Isaac's mom and dad had made with God. They had to make their faith their own. They had to establish their own household, their own boundaries as the 2nd generation of the covenant. 
 
Rebecca didn't leave by command, but by her free will. Abraham, Sarah, and Isaac, came into the covenant with God directly. She didn't, she entered the covenant and family through marriage. She is the first person in the Bible to of her own free will became grafted in to the covenant by faith, with the Jewish people.  
 
She was unique for in the ancient world blessings and covenants were passed from father to son, so she was special, having entered into the covenant by marriage, and in a unique position to be sure the right son received the blessing. 
 
The first among women
Rebecca was the first woman in the Bible to receive a blessing. Think about that. We will later read in nearly the whole of Genesis 49 how the aged Jacob blessed his sons, but Rebecca clear back in Genesis 24: 60, received a blessing from her father and family. She truly is remarkable.
 
Are you the first in your family to receive the blessing of God? Do they perhaps, like the culture of Rebecca's day, not fully recognize the blessing of God on your life? 
 
A picture of the 'rapture'
With Abraham as the Father God, Isaac representing Jesus, and the Holy Spirit represented by Eliezer, we should note that Rebecca is alive and well when she gets on a camel and goes with Eliezer to the Father's home for her. 
 
She is carried off by Eliezer - with the Holy Spirit - to meet the groom. In fact we are told in 24: 63-67 that Isaac had left his father's house to go pray in a field, no doubt thinking about his bride. He was gone from his home, but not yet fully at Rebecca's home. 
 
As she is carried along, one day she sees the groom, standing in the field. She is in between her home with her father and her home with her new father. Isaac is out in a field. 
 
A field in the parables of Jesus is the human heart, or the harvest field of the world. Because he is a type of Jesus, and Rebecca a type of the church, we see the Lord having left His Father's home to go to the field part way to His bride's home - and she meets him there between the two. They two, standing in the field between homes, meeting face to face for the first time. No doubt laughter truly laughed with joy upon finally seeing his bride face to face! No doubt this young woman once ensnared, once bound, now bound to Laughter, was thrilled with her new life in him!
 
Verse 67 says Isaac took her into his tent, which was in his father's home, and that he loved her. The fact they are concealed out of view in the tent is a picture as well - for the Jewish Feast of Trumpets tells us the last trumpet will be blown in the time of the new moon, and believers in Messiah will be caught up with Him, hidden from view as the new moon is also concealed. 
 
What a picture of the 'rapture', meeting the Lord 'in the air', part way between His Father's home in heaven and our home on earth!
 
Rebecca's awareness of the times
We are told in 25: 20 that Isaac was 40 years old when he married Rebecca, which means she was probably about half his age, around 20 when they married. Keep in mind Isaac lived to be 180 years old* so waiting until he was 40 to get married does not seem out of place. (*35: 28-29)
 
Why is this happening to me? Fast forward in time
What we do see is that 25: 21-22 after Isaac asks the Lord to bless Rebecca with children, He does so, though she senses the twins struggling within her womb. Her response reveals even more about her character: 
 
"And the children struggled together within her; and she said, "If it be that the Lord has answered our prayer, why is this happening to me?" And she went to enquire of the Lord." (Genesis 25: 22)
 
That is SO much like us today. We seek answers. We pray and ask for something, and then when it happens differently than what we thought it would be, we stop and inquire of the Lord what is going on. "If this is the answered prayer, why is this happening?" 
 
But she was amazing - no doubt the Lord spoke to her, or at least gave her peace - but she seemed to know which son the Lord wanted to receive the birthright. She was delivered of the struggling twins, and goes down in history not only as a matriarch of Israel, but a beautiful type of the church - strong, resourceful, people of action, strong morals and integrity, and walking with God to one day meet the Groom in that half way point to be taken to the Father's home. 
 
Come quickly Lord Jesus! New subject next week, until then, blessings,
John Fenn
cwowi.org and email me at cwowi@aol.com
 

Hi all,
We left Rebecca having just watered the camels and having received a token of gifts from Eliezer, a type of the Holy Spirit. 
 
The name Rebecca means a coil of rope (used in a trap) or "tie up, snare, join (by trap)." Rebecca in Hebrew is 'Rivka', and some Hassidic writers note the name for 'teams of cattle' is 'Rivkah', which differs only in the 'h' at the end. They suggest her names implies in character and strength she is like a team of oxen.
 
But she is a type of the church. We are indeed bound, trapped to this fallen world until we go to our groom. The name 'Isaac' means 'laughter', and we can imagine the rejoicing the Lord will do when we who have been snared and bound by this world join Him in our Father's house - but that is yet future, for us and for where we are in our story, for Rebecca. 
 
Enter Laban...greedy from his introduction in Genesis 24: 29-30: 
 
"And Rebecca had a brother, and his name was Laban. And it came to pass when he saw the earring and bracelets upon his sister's hands, and when he heard the words of Rebecca his sister, saying, 'This is how he spoke to me', that he came to the man, who was still standing besides the camels at the well."
 
There is an interesting play on words here that doesn't come across in any language other than Hebrew.
 
The word 'laban' is in Hebrew spelled 'LaVan' (la-vahn), and means 'white'. For such a devious fellow that would seem strange on first glance, for white stands for righteousness and purity. Laban was none of those things, in fact he was the opposite. Some rabbinical writers bring out if you read his name in reverse it is 'NaVal', it means 'villain' or 'fool'. That exactly describes him, appearing to be righteous, but is in fact a villain. He is the opposite of what he appears.
 
This man who deceived Jacob and enslaved him for 20 years, and who prospered because of the blessings on Jacob's life, compares to so many so-called Christians today...we each have our own story with immoral or unethical Christian's who have taken advantage of us, so I'll leave it to you to understand the wisdom and types in the story. 
 
Laban saw Eliezer (the Holy Spirit) as a means to get rich, to use him as a sort of pipeline to wealth for his personal enrichment. He had ulterior motives for receiving Eliezer while saying in the next verse: "Come in you blessed of the Lord. Why are you still standing here? I've prepared room for you and your camels!" 
 
It says Eliezer 'came into the house'. If Eliezer is a type of the Holy Spirit, then entering the house of Laban is like Laban being born again, having the Holy Spirit 'in his house'. But he is not a man of honor or integrity. He is a 'believer' in this parable, but he is using the Lord for his own personal gain and motives. 
 
I find it fascinating that in 24: 34-49 once in the house, Eliezer shares his heart, his purpose, his motives for entering 'the house' - a type of the Holy Spirit in our spirit, sharing His plans, motives, and thoughts for us and our future. Are we like Laban or Rebecca? What do we do with those revealed plans? Try to use God for our personal benefit, or submit to His plan for us, things we know in our 'house', our spirit? 
 
Rebecca's free will involved - it is up to her
After Eliezer shares his story and reason for coming, and after her father and brother agree to let her go, v53 tells us: 
"(Abraham's servant Eliezer) brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and clothing and gave them to Rebecca; He gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things." 
 
Notice when the Holy Spirit enters your 'house' - literal house or just your spirit - all around you are blessed. In this case it was not only Rebecca, but her brother and mother too. Paul tells us in I Corinthians 7: 14 that an unbelieving spouse and children are 'sanctified' (set aside for the Lord) because the other spouse is a believer. 
 
That is what we see here - because of Rebecca her whole household is blessed.  
 
She is called in v57 by her father and brother to see if she wants to go. It is totally up to her. This is no spineless young lady submitting to others. Her personal boundaries that she has lived by, not only a virgin but not having known any man, keeping them at arm's length until she finds Mr. Right, is well established with her brother and father. They know it is her decision, not theirs.
 
I would guess being a woman of strong will and action, and with a brother like Laban, much of her boundary keeping was for self preservation and protection. She longs to get out. She wants a husband. And they know it is her choice. 
 
What a picture of a mature believer. Knowing what we want, having boundaries, integrity, but not unwise in the ways of the world and the wiles of the enemy, or the deceit of others. Perhaps it is in part the recognition of her strength that after she agrees to return with Eliezer, they blessed Rebecca saying: 
 
"You are our sister, and may you become a mother of thousands of millions, and let your seed (offspring/descendants) possess the gate of those who hate them." 
 
She was just the woman to make sure the right son received the inheritance, as she looked forward to being that mother of 'thousands of millions' - and she wasn't going to let that divine blessing and 'marching orders' fall by the wayside! 
 
We will conclude next week...as we see the groom came part way to meet her, but she came 'up' to meet him. Types and shadows abound, until then, blessings,
John Fenn
www.cwowi.org and email me at cwowi@aol.com
 
 

Hi all,
There are many types and shadows in the Old Testament of Jesus and the events past and future, and each has its own beauty that provides revelation and insight into our lives in Christ.
 
Isaac and Rebecca
Perhaps though, no Old Testament type is as beautiful as the story of Rebecca and Isaac. 
 
The story begins in Genesis 24 where we are told Abraham was very old and sought a wife for his son, Isaac. We are told in v36 that perhaps in anticipation of his death, Abraham had given everything he had to Isaac. Consider that for a moment. Isaac is rich. All that his father had, he had given to Isaac. 
 
The type is set then, the Father is represented by Abraham, and Isaac represents Jesus. The Father has given all things to His Son. Abraham the Father sends Eliezer back to Abraham's home to find a wife for Isaac (Jesus). Eliezer is a type of the Holy Spirit, sent from the Father to 'home' to find a bride for His Son. 
 
Eliezer we are told in v10, loads 10 camels largely with gifts for the bride, which is a type of the Holy Spirit and His gifts, character building grace and fruit of the Spirit given to us. 
 
She kept herself for a future groom
When Eliezer arrives at Abraham's homeland he stops so the camels could have water after the long journey. Sources vary on how much water a thirsty camel can drink, but the most common number I found was 53 US gallons. (200+ liters). Eliezer was asking in prayer that whoever the young woman was at the well, that she would water him and his 10 camels - a big ask!
 
Of course we know it was Rebecca who not only gave Eliezer water, but volunteered to water all the camels, potentially over 500 gallons or 1000 liters. Next time you are at the store and see all those 2 liter soft drink bottles lined up on the shelf, imagine 500 of them and then imagine taking a jug you carry on your shoulder, lowering it into a well, hauling it up out of the well and over to a trough - if Rebecca had a 2 gallon pot (7.5 liter) that is about 250 trips to the well and back! Lest you think she called for help, the text says several times it was she alone who did that work. 
 
Verse 16 says this: "And the girl was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her..." Some Jewish commentators make note of the apparent double reference to her sexual purity, noting the 2nd mention that 'neither had any man known her' is not sexual in reference, but rather that she didn't have male friends but kept herself for the future 'Mr. Right'. They note her character was circumspect, moral, and that she had boundaries. She was not only a virgin, but she kept that as a treasure for her husband, keeping boundaries around her concerning men. 
 
What a beautiful picture of the way we disciples of Jesus are supposed to be! We are told that friendship with the world's system (cosmos, or world's ways, in the Greek) is enmity with God. We are to keep ourselves for the Lord!
 
Back to our story
Why do you think Eliezer was looking for a strong woman? Being a type of the church, is it possible the Lord is looking for strong people as well? Strong of character, strong in stamina. 
 
Consider the life of Rebecca for she is known as a woman of strength and action. She watered all 10 camels. She later gave birth to twins Jacob and Esau, with Jacob grabbing Esau's heel in the birth canal - this before the days of C-sections and anesthetic! She came from a dysfunctional family; her brother* Laban would later trick Rebecca's son Jacob into marrying Leah rather than Rachel, and keep them enslaved 20 years**. (*v29) (**31: 38)
 
She and her husband Isaac weren't the most communicative with each other about their sons, for she took action to be sure the right son got the birthright, even by deceit. She was not a woman of words, but of actions. She was strong. She was a clever. She was a woman of action! So too is the church to be - wise in the ways of the world, yet keeping our integrity and Christ-like character, and fruit of the spirit/Spirit. 
 
I like to say it this way: The things you think disqualify you from being used or even loved by the Lord, are the very things that have made you strong and qualified you for a life of difficulty in the Lord! It is what Paul told Timothy in II Timothy 2: 3-7 when he told him to work like a farmer, train like an athlete, endure hardship like a soldier that we may please our Enlistment Officer! The things Satan put you through were like a trick on him, for you were like iron in the forge, made fit for the King!
 
Back to the well...
Genesis 24: 21 tells us Eliezer, the type of the Holy Spirit, stood by to watch her work. We might say it this way - in the presence of the Holy Spirit she went repeatedly back to the well of living water, to water the needs before her. We must continue to go back to the well.
 
She no doubt would take a drink now and then to keep herself going, but the bulk of her efforts focused on giving living water to thirsty camels - camels are unclean so a picture of us bringing Christ to the unsaved is what we gain from this. We go back to the well how many times? How strong are we encouraged to be, to faint not, to not be weary in well doing? Such is the life of the saint - we are here to serve not be served - just like our Master. 
 
When Rebecca has finished watering the camels, v22 tells us this: "And it came to pass as the camels had done drinking, that the man (Eliezer) took a golden 'earring' of half a shekel weight, and two bracelets for her hands of ten shekels weight of gold; and he said, 'Whose daughter are you?'" The margin of my Bible suggests the 'golden earring' was in Hebrew, a jewel or jewelry for a headdress, one that was worn around the head and over the forehead. 
 
This giving of a small part of jewelry is like the born again experience. These are not all the gifts the Holy Spirit has for us, it is a mere token. We are told in Ephesians 1: 13-14: "...in whom after you believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, which is the pledge (earnest money, less than the down payment) of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession..." Rebecca got the down payment, the rest would come later. 
 
At this point Rebecca has never seen her groom, has no idea how wealthy he is, has no idea she has a home in the groom's Father's house...next week then! Until then, blessings,
John Fenn
cwowi.org and email me at cwowi@aol.com

Hi all,
In the conclusion of this series let me say up front what we don't know is way more than we know. The Word only gives us brief statements or sketches of what is to come, and I suspect once on the other side many times we will observe: "Oh....that's what that meant." Such is the nature of prophecy - always understood fully after it happens. 
 
But let me summarize thus far:
The ones invited to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb as we saw previously, are those who died in Christ before the Feast of Trumpets' 'catching away', or were alive to hear the Last Tump and were as Paul said, 'changed' to ever be with the Lord. (I Corinthians 15: 40-55)
 
Those who die in the Lord during the Tribulation, which is happening on earth while the Marriage Supper is going on in heaven, obviously aren't in the Marriage Supper, but will be among those ruling and reigning with Christ in the Millennium. (Revelation 20: 4)
 
We saw in Matthew 25 how upon the return of the Lord He will divide the nations between the 'sheep' nations and the 'goat' nations. In Zechariah 14 we saw, some heathen nations will refuse to go to the Feast of Tabernacles to worship the King, and if they refuse then the Lord will stop the rain in their nation, presumably until they repent. 
 
Our glorified bodies
In I Corinthians 15: 39-50 Paul says in part: "So also is the resurrection of the dead....there are bodies terrestrial and bodies celestial. The glory of the one is one thing, and the glory of the other is another thing. Flesh and blood shall not inherit incorruption...I show you a mystery, we will all be changed..."
 
He is talking about the glorified body we are to receive at the resurrection of the righteous dead. In Romans 8: 22-23 we are told all of creation 'groans and travails' in pain awaiting the revelation of the 'sons of God'. And we ourselves also groan and travail, yearning for the redemption of the body.
 
The redemption of the body he is talking about is not the theological truth that Jesus has redeemed us, but the literal fulfillment of that redemption - when we receive our glorified or celestial, bodies. We groan for this. 
 
He says the same thing in II Corinthians 5: 1-8, reminding them they have a body made without hands in heaven, and for this we groan - Not, he says, that we want to prematurely end this body's existence, just that we groan in longing for the new body and age to come. "To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord" was his conclusion. 
 
The first thing I remember the Father telling me when I was a teenager, maybe 17 years old, was about the glorified body: "When you receive your glorified body you'll find it is not subject to the natural laws of the earth." I asked, "What do you mean?" and He replied: "If you want to walk you can walk. If you want to run you can run. If you want to float you can float, if you want to fly you can fly. If you want to be somewhere at the speed of thought you can be there." 
 
Jesus is the first born of many to follow, from the dead, and the way He would appear and disappear to people, even behind closed doors, is a picture of us in our glorified bodies. Yet notice that He was able to eat bread, fish, and honeycomb with the disciples after His resurrection. (Luke 24: 42, Mk 14: 22 (implied))
 
That means our glorified body can eat food which is of the earth; a lower order of creation. But do you remember Elijah in I Kings 19: 4-8 who ate the meals provided by the angel, and that heavenly food lasted him 40 days? That shows us heavenly food is of a higher nature like our glorified bodies, and that life from above is like super food to the lowly earth-body we have now. Elijah went 40 days on the strength of that one meal. 
 
We will reign on earth in our glorified body. You will be flowing in the words of knowledge and wisdom and other gifts as needed in order to rule and reign properly, righteously, before the righteous and unrighteous alike. You and I are going into government service, but with glorified bodies and the gifts of the Spirit!
 
A look ahead
Consider when Jesus returns and rules as King over all the earth, He does so from Jerusalem, Israel finally taking her place as leader of the nations of the earth at last. 
 
There are 55 uses of the word 'kingdom' in Matthew, the vast majority used when Jesus is talking of the kingdom of heaven. There are 154 uses in the New Testament. So we need to think what being royalty in a kingdom means for that is how we are defined in Christ: Royal children of the King. 
 
We who know Jesus are in the process of making Him King in every facet of our lives. In every area of life we know Him as Savior. But knowing Him also as King is a life-long process called discipleship.
 
We who know Him are submitted to Him in our hearts, though not always obedient in our minds or bodies. One day our glorified body will complete our trinity: Our spirit, soul, and body will be one in Him. We will flow from our spirit, out to our soul which will be 100% renewed in Him, to our body which, being made of heavenly material, wants to obey, and is in fact eager to obey the Lord in all things. 
 
Gone will be this earth-suit that wants to go the way of the earth and world, in a constant struggle as Paul noted in Romans 7, between that which we want to do and that which we end up doing. Gone will be that struggle forever. 
 
Being whole and made 100% of heavenly material, our spirit, soul, and body, will never again wonder if in 10,000 years we might rebel and reject Jesus, or that we might commit some sin in the Millennial age and be cast out - NO! We will be 100% made of celestial, heavenly material, flowing as we were designed, spirit to soul to body, in perfect harmony. 
 
We are royalty, we will inherit the earth. Remember that when events of this life get us down. It is but for a moment, and no matter what man thinks of you now, when Jesus stands beside you and tells the Father that He knows you - that settles all opinions about you. "Now are we the sons of God, but it doesn't yet appear what we shall be, for when He comes, we will see Him as He is (full glory)." I John 3: 1-2
 
New subject next week, until then, blessings,
John Fenn
www.cwowi.org and email me at cwowi@aol.com