By Phil Hopkins
As I look about in the world, I see planning in almost all that we do. A seamstress will use a pattern to make a garment, the builder uses plans for a construction project. If we buy an airline ticket, we buy it with a particular destination in mind. I have yet to see airlines sell a ticket to just anywhere! The engineer will create and test plans for items that he might want to be built and the builder is to follow the plans exactly. In life, we avoid randomness and prefer order. An essential job in the industry is that of a project coordinator, one who helps to manage a project of almost any type to ensure that those who implement the project follow the plan, including the timeline for the project. Rarely, do we do anything in life without some goal or plan in mind. As a result, I find it amazing with all of the order around us, one might suggest that order doesn’t matter to God. A number of folks even claim that it doesn’t matter to God what we do just as long as we love Him. Nothing could be further from the truth. God has always had a plan for mankind and how He wants us to live in harmony with His will. In fact, we find that Jesus Christ came and His life is to be an example for how we are to live: 1st Peter2:21 “For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow His steps”. We have a pattern for our life, that of Jesus Christ. He willingly set Himself forward so that we can use His example as a model to live by. Examining more closely this admonition that Jesus is our example, we find an interesting word used in 1st Corinthians 10:11 “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come”. The root Greek word that is translated into the archaic form for example – “ensample” is tupos (pronounced – too’-pos). Strong in His concordance gives the meaning for this word as: “a die (as struck), i.e. (by implication) a stamp or scar; by analogy, a shape, i.e. a statue, (figuratively) style or resemblance; specially, a sampler (“type”), i.e. a model (for imitation) or instance (for warning):–en-(ex-)ample, fashion, figure, form, manner, pattern, print”. The Greek word tupos appears 16 times in the New Testament and carry the exact meaning as of a pattern. Consider the various ways it is translated. From the word “fashion” in Acts 7:44 “Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as He had appointed, speaking unto Moses, that He should make it according to the fashion that He had seen”, to “form” in Romans 6:17 “17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you”, to “pattern” in Hebrews 8:5 “Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.” Two of those examples refer back to the Old Testament, with God telling Moses specifically, that Moses was to carefully follow the plan or blueprint that God had given him and do it exactly as given. God had given Moses very specific directions on how to make the tabernacle and there was to be no variance in how Moses followed or implemented those plans. But God’s directions to Moses went far beyond the building of the tabernacle. It covered the clothing that Aaron and his sons were to wear when they gave worship unto God and, it also covered the exact way that worship was to be done. God even set forth laws that would govern how the nation of Israel was to live. In order for them to be in harmony with God and not sin, they were to follow God’s plan exactly. They were not to go to the right or to the left of God’s directions and if they did stray, they would be punished for their error. Consider the case of Nadab and Abihu in Leviticus 10, They offered worship unto God in their way, not in God’s way and they paid for their error with their lives. What is incredibly surprising is when we find those, that approach the New Testament, with a very cavalier attitude. Paul through the Holy Spirit told Titus: “But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine:” in Titus 2:1. Or in Romans 6:17 “But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.” He told them that there was some “form of doctrine” or pattern of doctrine that they had been given, and they were to obey it, hold fast to it. If they did not exactly obey it, that would have been wrong. If that they really, really, really loved God, then God should know their love so why would He be so picky if they didn’t follow all the details? Or if they didn’t teach everything that God had taught them? If Timothy taught something other than what he had been taught of God would he have followed God’s instruction:2nd Timothy1:13 “Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me,” God wanted Timothy to follow Him exactly, to not leave anything out, as God instructed all of us in: 1st Thessalonians 5:21 “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” We are to be obedient in our worship John 4:24 “God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.” Could we say that we are properly worshiping God, if we added jumping and screaming to our worship of God or if we took singing out of our worship? We certainly would not be obedient. We would not be worshiping God “in truth” or as He has instructed. We would be violating our commitment to be obedient to our Lord. As one looks around at the denominational world, we can find people doing all sorts of things that are not found in the Bible, yet they will claim that they love God, however God has already told us how we can identify those who love Him: John 14:15 “If ye love Me, keep My commandments.” We can readily identify those who really love God by comparing their behaviors and teachings to God’s word. Are they in harmony with God or are they arguing about why what they are doing doesn’t really matter? If we are following God’s plan we should never fear the words of Ezekiel 43:10 “Thou son of man, shew the house to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities: and let them measure the pattern.” We pray that we will always hold for the pattern that God gave us in the New Testament so when He measures our works against the pattern they will hold up.