By now you probably understand how fascinated I am with “Types and Shadows” in the Bible. There are thousands of them and quite literally they tell the same story as the surface writing does. It is extremely intriguing to see how intricately God told His story just below the surface of his Word. It proves conclusively to me that only a divine being like God could have written the Bible.

        Today we will look at a sampling of one that runs throughout the entire scriptures. I call it the “two men” shadow.

        As we discussed in an article last week, Joseph is a “type” of Jesus. There are so many similarities between the two that it is uncanny. Let’s look at the story about Joseph in prison with the two men who had dreams. One was a cupbearer to Pharaoh, and the other was his chief baker. You can read the story of their dreams and Joseph’s interpretations in Genesis 40. I’ll just skip to the chase and say that the cupbearer was restored to his position and the chief baker was killed.

        Like me, you may have read this account several times without seeing the hidden shadow. Once you see it, though, it will be as clear as one of those fuzzy pictures you stare at for a few minutes that then become a clear picture. Those two men represent the two thieves on the cross. They are a shadow of what was to come on Golgotha. One thief got to be in paradise with Jesus. The other did not. As I said, the entire story of Joseph is the story of Jesus.

        Shadows, however, often carry on beyond what we think to be the fulfillment. In this case, the types of the two men with Joseph come to fruition with the two thieves on the cross, but the shadow continues. As I noted in my book, those two thieves also represent you and me. We can either accept Jesus as Lord of our lives and enter paradise, or we can choose not to, and enter destruction. There is not a third position for us to take.

        We all know that Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” But have we also paid attention to His profound statement in Luke 11:23, “He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me, scatters.”

        Are you gathering with Jesus?