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We are going to conclude our study on ‘Animals’ this week, and it happens to be the spiritual significance of the ass. In John 12:14 we have this statement:

Joh 12:14  And Jesus, when he had found a young ass, sat thereon; as it is written,
Joh 12:15  Fear not, daughter of Sion: behold, thy King cometh, sitting on an ass’s colt.
Joh 12:16  These things understood not his disciples at the first: but when Jesus was glorified, then remembered they that these things were written of him, and that they had done these things unto him.

Most people read that and think of what the leaders of the Jews had done to Christ, but this is not talking about what someone else has done.  This is talking about what WE have done to Christ. The bible is a commentary of what Christ does with us and what we do TO Him.

Ecc 3:18  I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts.

What is this ass on which Christ is riding?  It is mankind. Ecc 3 shows us mankind, all men are beasts. Christ comes to us…riding on us, but His second coming to us, Paul says will appear without sin unto salvation to those looking for Him.

Heb 9:28  So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

When Christ first comes to us He comes on an ass’s colt, but when He comes the second time He comes on a powerful white horse, and there is a big lesson in that.

Rev 6:1  And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.
Rev 6:2  And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.

Rev 19:11  And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.

This is Christ in both cases.  The whole christian world will tell you this is talking about the anti-christ, but this is the revelation of Jesus Christ. He is riding on a beast and that beast is a white horse this time because he is coming to reveal Himself this time. The first time around few people knew who He was. Christ came to the Jews – His own and they received him not. In face, they wanted to kill Him.

Joh 8:40  But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham.

We are told what the revelation of Jesus Christ is:

Rev 1:1  The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:
Rev 1:2  Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.
Rev 1:3  Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

Next week we will start the book of Revelation. We see now that this is entirely a book about Christ spiritually, not physically.  We will understand on a lot much deeper level what everything in this book is. But Christ came to His people on an ass’s colt, and that is the significance of it in scripture.

Gen 49:10  The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh (Christ) come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.
Gen 49:11  Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass’s colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes:

What happens when Shiloh comes?  Then the physical tribe of Judah will not be that prominent.

Rom 2:28  For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:

Nobody believes that statement, but it is right here in the bible. His foal is bound to the vine, not the ass itself, but its foal. God’s form of government is a vine.  All branches on a vine have equal access to the trunk. We have no dominion over each other.  Christ is our head and the head of his church, His elect.

Rev 7:13  And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?
Rev 7:14  And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

These twenty-four elders and four beasts represent the same thing – God’s elect.  We will get into that more in the book of Revelation study.

We are told what this wine is in which the robes of Revelation 7 are washed.

Mat 26:28  For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

In scripture Abraham is called the father of the faithful. The scriptures reveal Christ to us from Genesis to Revelation, starting with Adam, Abel, Seth, Noah, Abraham.  Noah is rather like Adam as God restarted everything with him.  Noah dies and Abraham comes on the scene and the whole world had apostatized and gone into paganism just a few hundred years after the flood. It would seem God had not accomplished anything.

1Co 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.

What God did by the flood was tell us this is what happens to ungodly men. We are that important when we are in Christ that the whole history of mankind teaches us this.

1Pe 1:12  Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

All of the old testament prophets, kings and priests ministered to us.

Rev 7:13  And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?
Rev 7:14  And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Mat 26:28  For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

Abraham, the father of the faithful, represents who we are when we first come to Christ. He is the type of who we are when we first walk with God. At first we walk in faith. “Abraham walked with God.”

Isaac represents the next step in our walk. Jacob was a servant, a hard worker who produced. We should produce, too.

Jesus is a singular Christ. He is not many, He is One.  Where does that leave us?

Gal 3:16  Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.

Where does that leave us? If we are in Christ, then we are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.

Gal 3:29  And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

We are not Jews outwardly, but rather are Jews inwardly. We are now God’s Israel.

Gal 6:15  For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.
Gal 6:16  And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God.

Ephesians 2 also says so.

Eph 2:11  Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;
Eph 2:12  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:

How close are we? We are made near by the blood.  How near? We are part of the commonwealth. We are in Christ, that one seed. We are the children of promise.

Gal 4:28  Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.

Abraham symbolizes the beginning of our walk with Christ. He knew nothing about horses. Israel came up out of Egypt where horses were abundant. Israel was pursued by men on horses. Israel had donkeys, but not a single horse. There is a message in this for us.

Gen 22:1  And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am.

At this point of our walk we are so eager to please God.

Gen 22:2  And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah [which is where the temple is]; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.
Gen 22:3  And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass [no horse], and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son, and clave the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went unto the place of which God had told him.
Gen 22:4  Then on the third day [a phrase we see a lot in scripture especially concerning Christ’s resurrection] Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.
Gen 22:5  And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.

Abraham had faith that God would bring Isaac back, but he was going there to kill Isaac.

Gen 22:6  And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together.
Gen 22:7  And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?
Gen 22:8  And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.
Gen 22:9  And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood.

Isaac was now 13 years old and big enough he could have struggled and given Abraham a hard time.  Like Christ who went willingly to the cross, Isaac went willingly to the sacrificial altar.

Gen 22:10  And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.
Gen 22:11  And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I.
Gen 22:12  And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.
Gen 22:13  And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son.

Abraham saw the ram behind him. Must live a thing to see it.  Truth must be lived to understand it. That is the revelation of Jesus Christ. John looked behind him in Revelation to see the candlesticks.  He would have to have been in the holy of holies to be able to look back and see the golden candlesticks.

We can look back and see we have died and are seated with Him in the heavens.  We have been dying daily! Sin no longer has dominion. Though we will still slip up and sin now and then, we have been given the strength to conquer sin because we have died – died to the flesh.

Gal 2:20  I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

Gen 22:13  And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son.

“Now I know that thou fearest God” is written as though God did not know Abraham feared Him, but it’s written for our benefit. It’s also written to keep the world from understanding. It’s all a parable. The bible is a parable from Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21. God knew exactly what Abraham was going to do.  That’s why He had the ram ready and waiting on him.  That’s why Christ was slain from the foundation of the world.

A doctrine that has the whole christian world in bondage is the belief that God did not know Adam was going to sin. It’s part of the firmly entrenched belief that we all have a free will. You have a will. You made the decision to be here today, but why did you do that? Because God caused you to do it.

Psa 119:160  The sum of thy word is truth; And every one of thy righteous ordinances endureth for ever.(ASV)

Truth is not contained in just one verse of scripture.  That one scripture is true, of course, but it will not be understood until it is put together with other scriptures to show the whole truth.

Isa 28:9  Whom will he teach knowledge? and whom will he make to understand the message? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts?
Isa 28:10  For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, there a little.

Those in Christ have been weaned from the doctrinal milk. These verses are quoted in 1 Corinthians 14.

Isa 28:12  To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear.
Isa 28:13  But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.

Christ spoke in parables so they would not understand. The ass is a beast of burden used as Christ came to His carnal people. They proclaim Him their king, and next day what Him dead when it is revealed His kingdom is spiritual.

Moses came into Egypt to deliver Israel out of Egypt, and he had only asses with him – not horses or oxen.

Exo 13:13  And every firstling of an ass thou shalt redeem with a lamb; and if thou wilt not redeem it, then thou shalt break his neck: and all the firstborn of man among thy children shalt thou redeem.

The ass had to be redeemed because it was an unclean animal. We are all unclean and must be redeemed by the lamb of God.  That ass was not going to be used for anything but God’s purpose. The ass represents God’s people. His people will not be used be anything but their salvation.