Eric Casagrande / Genelyn Novabos

Jesus Christ: The Square Peg In A Round Hole

My friends, I want to speak with you today about a rebel. But in stark contrast to the famous movie star, James Dean, this rebel to whom I am referring, actually has a cause – and it’s so important he unconditionally laid down His life for it.

Perhaps you’ve heard of this rebel — His name is Jesus Christ.

Many see Him as the Lover of their soul and the Giver of life. But to some in the Church today, Jesus Christ is cautiously viewed as enigmatic. He just doesn’t fit in to their religious thinking of what God is supposed to be all about. Trying to reconcile both the character and teachings of Jesus Christ, with the familiar traditions in which they grew up, is an impossibly frustrating task.

They want to believe in a God who sends plagues and pestilences – but they read about how Jesus stayed up all night to heal the sick and the oppressed (Luke 4: 40-44). They want a psychotic God who angrily sends disasters, but instead, through Christ, they see a God who calms the storms (Mark 4: 35-41).

They want to believe in a God who never forgives - a God who points the finger at people for their sin – only to discover that Christ was a friend of sinners (Matthew 11: 19), and the God who died for the sins of mankind (Romans 5: 6-8).

My friends, Jesus Christ is anti-religion. Standing out like a sore thumb, He is the proverbial square peg in religion’s round hole.

Faced then with the gut-wrenching choice that a child-like faith in Christ requires, namely, the abandonment of all their religious ideologies, many simply choose to run away from Christ, into what they perceive as the Old Testament safety zone. They don’t want to deal with a Jesus who doesn’t support any of their false ideas awash in religious doctrine – a God who just cannot be explained.

Instead, they choose to avoid the distracting truths about God, as clearly evidenced through the person of Jesus Christ in the New Covenant, and look instead for solace in the Mosaic Laws of the Old Covenant, which they assume gives the proper definition of God’s character.

There is a parallel for this, my friends – it’s called the nation of Israel.

Trapped as slaves in Egypt, they cried out to God for deliverance. So God raised up Moses, to lead them into the Promised Land. But on the journey there, many bitterly cried out against God because they didn’t understand Him. Despite the marvelous goodness and providence that He extended to them every step of the way, the people looked upon God as a despot, and cruel dictator, who didn’t care for them. They rejected both His grace and the promise of a better land, wanting instead to go back into the slavery of Egypt!

My friends, in the end, absolutely none of that generation who rejected God and His grace, ever made it into the Promised Land. Every last one of them who pined for the old days of slavery in Egypt, perished in the desert.

Do you see the modern-day connection with some in the Church?

They don’t like the New Covenant definition of God, as very clearly shown in the person of Jesus Christ – so they run back into “Egypt”, back into the Old Covenant, which they assume gives a perspective on God that is more in line with their religious thinking.

But the amazing thing is that – even in the Old Testament – all of the law, and all of the prophets, point in one direction … namely, to the person of Jesus Christ!

Let’s take a walk-through, and see Jesus revealed in the Old Testament:

GENESIS

The Seed of the woman …. Genesis 3: 15

The Son who is sacrificed …. Genesis 22

The Rejected Brother …. Genesis 37

Ruler from the Tribe of Judah …. Genesis 49: 10

EXODUS

The Passover Lamb …. Exodus 12: 13

The Manna from Heaven …. Exodus 16

The Rock struck at Horeb …. Exodus 17

LEVITICUS

The High Priest …. Leviticus 16

The Scapegoat …. Leviticus 16: 9

NUMBERS

The Cloud by Day & Pillar of Fire By Night … Numbers 14: 14

The Water from the Rock …. Numbers 20

The Bronze Serpent lifted up …. Numbers 21: 8-9

DEUTERONOMY

Our City of Refuge …. Deuteronomy 4: 41

The Redeeming Prophet …. Deuteronomy 15: 18-19

JOSHUA

Captain of our Salvation …. Joshua 2: 18 & Joshua 5: 13-15

JUDGES

The Judge and Lawgiver …. Judges 2: 16-18

The Angel of the Lord …. Judges 6: 20-22

The Lord our Peace …. Judges 6: 23-24

RUTH

Our Kinsman Redeemer …. Ruth 3: 7-9

1 SAMUEL

The Seed of David …. 1 Samuel 16: 11-13

The Faithful Friend …. 1 Samuel 18: 1-4

2 SAMUEL

The Son of David …. 2 Samuel 7: 12-16

1 KINGS

The One greater than Solomon …. 1 Kings 3: 12

2 KINGS

The Great Physician …. 2 Kings 5: 10-14

1 CHRONICLES

The Messiah from the Tribe of Judah …. 1 Chronicles 17: 14

2 CHRONICLES

The Temple of God …. 2 Chronicles 6: 18

EZRA

The Faithful Scribe …. Ezra 4

The Peg in the Holy Place …. Ezra 9: 8

NEHEMIAH

The Restorer …. Nehemiah 6: 15-16

ESTHER

Our Advocate and Great Deliverer …. Esther 4: 12-16

JOB

Our Resurrected Redeemer …. Job 19: 25-27

PSALMS

The Anointed, Eternal Ruler, Over all the Earth …. Psalm 2

The Only Begotten Son of God …. Psalm 2: 7

The Name above all names …. Psalm 8

The Incorruptible One who lives forever …. Psalm 16

The Forsaken Sacrifice for all mankind …. Psalm 22

The Great Shepherd …. Psalm 23: 1

The King of Glory …. Psalm 24: 8

The Anointed One who rules forever …. Pslam 45: 6-7

The One hated without a cause …. Psalm 69: 4

The Faithful and Everlasting Covenant …. Psalm 89: 1-4

The One condemned by false witnesses …. Psalm 109: 1-5

Seated at the right hand of God …. Psalm 110: 1

A Priest in the Order of Melchizedek …. Psalm 110: 4

The Lord our Salvation …. Psalm 118: 14, 21

The Stone the builders rejected …. Psalm 118: 22-23

PROVERBS

The Wisdom of God & The Everlasting One …. Proverbs 8

The Son of God …. Proverbs 30: 4

ECCLESIASTES

The One Shepherd …. Ecclesiastes 12: 11

The Revealer of Secrets …. Ecclesiastes 12: 14

SONG OF SOLOMON

Rose of Sharon & Lily of the Valley …. Song of Solomon 2: 1

The Lover and the Bridegroom …. Song of Solomon 4, 5, 6

ISAIAH

The Righteous Judge of all nations …. Isaiah 2: 4

Born of a virgin; God dwelling with man …. Isaiah 7: 14

Fully man and fully God …. Isaiah 9: 6

Wonderful Counsellor and Prince of Peace …. Isaiah 9: 6

The Rod of Jesse & The BRANCH …. Isaiah 11: 1

The Sign to the nations & Our glorious rest …. Isaiah 11: 10

The Redeemer and Gatherer of Israel …. Isaiah 11: 12-16

The Great Healer …. Isaiah 35: 5-6

The One who paid double for our sins …. Isaiah 40: 1-2

The Revealed Glory …. Isaiah 40: 5

The Lord who rewards …. Isaiah 40: 10

The Holy One and Creator of all things …. Isaiah 40: 25-28

The Renewer of our strength …. Isaiah 40: 29-31

The Everlasting Covenant & Light of the World …. Isaiah 42: 6

The Mighty Man of War …. Isaiah 42: 13

The One who guides the blind …. Isaiah 42: 16-18

Faithful Redeemer of Israel & The Holy One …. Isaiah 49: 6-7

Covenant of the people & Establisher of Earth … Isaiah 49: 8

The One whipped and beaten …. Isaiah 50

The Sacrifice for Sin & The Suffering Servant …. Isaiah 53

JEREMIAH

The Righteous Branch …. Jeremiah 23: 5-6

The Living Lord …. Jeremiah 23: 6-7

EZEKIEL

The One bearing the right to rule …. Ezekiel 21: 26-27

The Good Shepherd gathering His sheep …. Ezekiel 34: 11-16

The King descended from David …. Ezekiel 34: 23-24

The God who is mighty to save …. Ezekiel 38-39

DANIEL

The Fourth Man in the fiery furnace …. Daniel 3: 25

The Son of God …. Daniel 3: 25

The One coming in clouds of glory …. Daniel 7: 13

The Ancient of Days …. Daniel 7: 13

HOSEA

The Bridegroom …. Hosea 3

The God of the Third Day …. Hosea 6: 2

JOEL

The Lord God … Joel 2: 27

The Baptizer with the Holy Spirit … Joel 2: 28-29

The Coming Judge … Joel 2: 31-32

AMOS

The Restorer of the Tabernacle …. Amos 9: 11

OBADIAH

The Mighty Deliverer …. Obadiah 1: 17-21

JONAH

The One in the deep for 3 days and 3 nights …. Jonah 1: 17

The One who freely grants forgiveness & mercy …. Jonah 4

MICAH

The High Tower …. Micah 4: 8

Babe of Bethlehem; Everlasting One …. Micah 5: 2

NAHUM

The Stronghold in the day of trouble … Nahum 1: 7

HABAKKUK

The Revelation for an appointed time …. Habakkuk 2: 3

God my Savior & The Sovereign Lord …. Habakkuk 3: 18-19

ZEPHANIAH

The King of Israel …. Zephaniah 3: 15

HAGGAI

The Desire of the nations …. Haggai 2: 6-7

The Signet Ring …. Haggai 2: 23

ZECARIAH

The Priest and King …. Zechariah 6: 12-13

The Humble King riding a colt …. Zechariah 9: 9

The Pierced Son …. Zechariah 12: 10

MALACHI

The Son of Righteousness …. Malachi 4: 2

My friends, in closing, I would submit to you that God could not have shown a greater display of His tremendous love for all of mankind, than what He did through the person of Jesus Christ at the cross!