If we, as Baptists, had a symbol, what do you think it ought to be? I suppose one of the symbols of Catholicism might be the crucifix. Taking the image of Christ off the crucifix, would we want the cross to be our symbol? It is so highly abused today, that frankly, I’d not like to use it. Some people use the fish as a Christian symbol, but 99% of humanity doesn’t understand that one. One of the Greek words for fish is “Ichthus.” Early in Christian history, the word was used as a Greek acronym for “Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Savior.” “Iesous Christos, Theou Yios, Soter.” Some people have used the image of an ox standing before a cross – a symbol of self-sacrifice. I like that one, but I don’t know how realistic it would be. A lion might be a good symbol – but it might be more Jewish than Christian – “the lion of tribe of Judah.” Perhaps ours ought to be baptism, but what image illustrates baptism? A flat smooth line of water? A tree-lined river? How about a whirlpool? Some charismatic groups like to use a dove as their emblem, citing this scripture. Again, because of its misuse, I don’t know if I like the image of a dove as a symbol of Christianity.
But, clearly, it can be used as a symbol of the Holy Spirit. Let’s consider the Biblical dove, this evening, not as a symbol, but as a devotional subject. We read of doves, turtle doves, or simply “turtles” almost fifty times. Sometimes they were used as Levitical sacrifices. Sometimes they were used to describe something beautiful. And then there are historical references to them.
Doves were, and still are, meaningful creatures.
For example, our scripture uses it in a somewhat typological way. Once in each of the gospels, the descent of the Holy Spirit is described as the resting of a dove upon the Saviour. To my mind this Holy Spirit aspect is the predominant application of this bird. So when I find it elsewhere in the Bible, my mind automatically pictures the Spirit.
But in Leviticus that symbolical meaning is over-ruled. Every Old Testament sacrifice is a picture, not of God the Father, or of the Holy Spirit, but of Christ. That isn’t my personal opinion or application, because Paul tells us as much in the Book of Hebrews. So when a turtle dove was slain over running water, it was a picture of Christ. And the image of a dove, meekly surrendering to the blade is a good representation of my Saviour. It died as a substitute for one who was offering it. And the dove was sometimes a substitute even for other sacrifices. But only in Leviticus and Deuteronomy is the dove a picture of Christ. In the rest of the Bible, it better symbolizes the Holy Spirit and His work.
The character of the dove is meaningful.
Christ speaks of His beloved in the Song of Solomon – “O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs, let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely. I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night.” The beloved of Christ is a person whose life is filled with the Spirit of Christ.
A dove speaks of beauty – a fitting picture of God’s holy – Holy Spirit. What is more beautiful than a child of God resting in the comfortable arms of his Saviour? Or, for that matter, a servant carrying out the will of the Lord in the power of the Spirit? God manages the best beauty parlor in the universe – from the crown of the head to the tips of the toes. “The Lord taketh pleasure in his people; he will beautiful the meek with salvation.” “How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!”
Doesn’t the dove generally bring up a vision of gentleness and harmlessness? They aren’t raptors, killing other birds or small mammals; you don’t see them diving into the lake for fish. And they don’t eat carrion; you wont find them at the side of the highway feasting on road-kill. Christ told His disciples to be as “wise as serpents, but as harmless as doves.” It doesn’t have claws or a hooked beak. “Be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous…” The dove flies off at the drop of a hat, or even at the appearance of a hat – it is not combative.
One of its significant characteristics, at least in the Bible, is where it chooses to rest.
Here in Matthew we see it alighting upon Christ Jesus. This opens all kinds of questions and studies. How complete – how thorough was Christ’s “kenosis” – His emptying? “He made himself of no reputation and took upon him form of a servant and was made in the likeness of man.” While Christ never ceased to be divine, how dependent did He become to the ministry of Spirt? There are lots of scriptures like Isaiah 11:1 – “There shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.” There is Isaiah 42:1 – “Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.”
The Holy Spirit of God rested upon Christ. And where else has the Dove of God been pleased to rest? He rested on the disciples and then on the church; on Peter and John. Barnabas was “a good man and full of the Holy Ghost,” as was Stephen in Acts 6. God’s dove is selective as to where he places His feet. “It came to pass at the end of forty days, that Noah opened the window of the ark which he had made: And he sent forth a raven, which went forth to and fro, until the waters were dried up from off the earth. Also he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters were abated from off the face of the ground; But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark.” Noah sent out the raven, but it never returned – constantly flying and resting, flying and resting. And where did it rest? Floating carrion perhaps, where it stopped and ate a bite or two? But not that dove. It refused to foul its feet on death and destruction. Not until the ground was dry, did it fly away never to return.
If we would like to experience the blessing of the Holy Spirit like Peter, Stephen and Barnabas, then we have to be clean enough for Him to rest upon us.
Another significant characteristic of the dove, is what it might carry.
In Genesis 8 on the dove’s second trip out of the ark, it returned with a gift – a small olive branch. Did that have any specific meaning to Noah? At that point it wasn’t the modern illustration of peace. But it could it have been like a breath of fresh air to the claustrophobic. Did it come back like a sun beam after weeks of foul weather? That olive branch was much like the rainbow – a promise of normalcy. Never again is the world going to be destroyed by such a universal catastrophe.
What about here in Matthew; was the message much different? When the dove landed upon Christ, it carried the promise of acceptance with the Father. “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
When the sinner is saved by the grace of God, the dove of the Holy Spirit comes to rest upon him. He becomes the temple of God with the Holy Spirit indwelling him – living in him. Just as if you have physical life you must have blood within you. Every car running down the road has some sort of fuel empowering it. And if you are a Christian, the Holy Spirit dwells within you. “He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself” – what witness? The Holy Spirit. “The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.” Every new saint should understand that the Spirit has come to him with an olive branch from God.
And with Him comes the availability of knowledge and understanding. Not new revelation, but an opportunity to understand the revelation God has already given. Jesus said to us all, “When he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth.”
And when the dove of God comes to the saint, He brings with Him a padlock. “In (Christ) also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.” The humble believer is sealed by the Dove of God unto the day of his final redemption.
When the Holy Spirit descended upon the Saviour that day, there was a declaration that God was pleased. And when the sinner is saved by God’s grace, the Spirit alights upon him as well. He still carries the olive branch of God, and there still echoes the words of the Father, “this (too) is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.”