Man a Tripartite Being

Man a Tripartite Being

A.     Introduction

The Bible which is the Word of God expressly reveals that man is a tripartite being. There are many passages in both the Old and New Testament that clearly substantiate that man is of three parts.

 

In the biblical account of the three-step creation of man in Genesis 2:7 we read, "And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul". This corroborates the view.

 

Ø                  Genesis 2:7a "the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground." (KJV) - With this act, God formed man's body.

Ø                  Genesis 2:7b "and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life." (KJV) With this act, God created man's spirit.

"Breath" is derived from the Hebrew word "neshamah" which means  "spirit". God's breathing into man the breath of life produced man's spirit. Zechariah 12:1 tells us that just as Jehovah stretched forth the heavens and laid the foundation of the earth, He also formed the spirit of man within him.

Ø                  Genesis 2:7c "and the man became a living soul." (KJV)

The soul (man's intrinsic person) was the issue of the breath of God entering into the nostrils of the body of dust.

Coming to the New Testament, 1 Thessalonians 5:23 says, "May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Again Hebrews 4:12 specifies "The word of God is living and operative and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit and of joints and marrow." All three parts are once again articulated: the joints and marrow pertain to the body, and the soul is explicitly stated separate from the spirit.

 

God used two kinds of materials to make man—the dust for making man's body and the breath of life for producing man's spirit. When these two things came together, man became a living soul. That means the soul is the issue of the breath of life getting into the physical body of man.

 

The Word of God points out in 1 Cor. 3:16 that we are God's temple. The three parts of man can thus be compared to the three parts of the temple - the Outer Court, The Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. Today as the temple of God we are its three parts: our body corresponds to the outer court, our soul to the holy place, and our human spirit to the Holy of Holies, which is the very residence of Christ and God's presence.

B.    Three Parts of Man

The three parts of man, namely, the spirit, soul, and body functions in different spheres. Of the three parts, the first and most crucial is the spirit.  The spirit enables man to communicate with God. With his human spirit, man can worship, serve, and know God intuitively. The soul  of a man is that part which forms his personality. Finally, the physical body with its five senses enables man to relate to the physical world.

I)        The Human Spirit

Our human spirit is also composed of three parts: the conscience, fellowship, and intuition. The conscience enables us to perceive right from wrong and as a result it either condemns or justifies us. Through the fellowship, we are able to contact God and commune with Him. Finally, through the intuition God imparts within us a particular sense or knowledge that is independent of reason, circumstance or precedent. These three faculties of the spirit: conscience, fellowship, and intuition are clearly described in Scripture.

i.         Conscience

The primary or leading part of the spirit is the conscience. In Romans 9:1 Paul testifies, "My conscience bearing witness with me in the Holy Spirit." In Romans 8:16 it is, "The Spirit Himself witnesses with our spirit". The Spirit of God witnesses with our human spirit, yet at the same time our conscience witnesses with the Holy Spirit. Thus we can see by association that the conscience must be part of the human spirit.

ii.       Fellowship

In John 4:24 Christ Himself says, "God is Spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth". Worshipping God is altogether a matter of contacting God in fellowship. Ephesians 6:18 speaks of another form of fellowship with God, "pray in the  spirit on all occasions…,". These verses help us conclude that fellowship is a component of the human spirit.

iii.      Intuition

Let us search the Scriptures about intuition being also a part of the spirit. 1 Corinthians 2:11 says, "For who among men knows the things of man, except the spirit of man which is in him?" This verse shows us that there are things which only the spirit of man knows, and which the soul is unable to know. Intuition has the capacity to know and discern apart from human reason or experience. For example, in the gospel of Mark the scribes were silently reasoning within their hearts about the Lord's statement, "Child, your sins are forgiven." How does Jesus respond to the reasoning within their hearts? "Immediately Jesus, knowing fully in His spirit that they were reasoning this way within themselves, said to them, Why are you reasoning about these things in your hearts?" (Mark 2:8). The spirit can have an inner sense and knowledge independent of reason or outward circumstances upon which the soul relies.

II)      The Soul

The soul or the "person" of man, is similarly composed of three parts: the mind, the will and the emotion. God's Word proves this clearly and definitively.

  i.      The mind

In  Ps.139:14 the Psalmist exults, "I will praise You, ……… Your works are wonderful, and my soul knows it well". Knowledge pertains to the mind. In addition, Lamentations 3:20 says, "My soul remembers them well and is bowed down within me." To remember is another function of the mind. These verses clearly indicate that there is a part of the soul that knows and remembers; this part is the mind.

ii.      The will

The will is also part of the soul. Job says, "So that my soul would choose strangulation and death rather than my bones" (Job 7:15). He also said, "My soul refuses to touch them…" (6:7). Choosing and refusing are functions of the will, a part of the soul.

iii.      Emotion

In Song of Songs 1:7, the Shulamite speaks to her beloved, "Tell me, you whom my soul loves." In 2 Samuel 5:8 David says,  "………..who are hated by David's soul…." Later in Psalm 86:4, David with a different feeling exclaims: "Cause the soul of Your servant to rejoice…" Since love, hate and rejoicing are clearly expressions of the emotions, it is obvious that the emotion is part of the soul.

III) The Body

The body of man with its five senses is that part which contacts the physical world. God provided man the body for his existence in the physical realm. Originally created as a pure and undefiled body it changed nature after the fall. It became the fallen flesh full of lust. Hence, Paul bemoans in Romans 7:18, "For I know that in me, that is, in my flesh, nothing good dwells"

v     The Heart – Soul plus the Conscience (The Leading Part of the Spirit)

Man's heart, according to the Scripture, is a composition of all the parts of the soul plus the primary part of the spirit, namely the conscience.

§         The Mind - part of the heart

Genesis 6:5 reads, "And Jehovah saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." Furthermore, Matthew 9:4 reports, "Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, Why are you thinking evil things in your hearts?" Both "thoughts" and "thinking" relate to the mind as a part of the soul, while simultaneously a part of the heart.

§         The Will - part of the heart

Acts 11:23: "Who, when he arrived and saw the grace of God, rejoiced and encouraged them all to remain with the Lord with purpose of heart."

Hebrews 4:12 speaks of the Word's ability to discern, "the thoughts and intentions of the heart." Both "purpose" and "intentions" are functions of the will, indicating that the will is part of the heart.

§         The Emotion - part of the heart

In John 16:6, Jesus tells His disciples, "But because I have spoken these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart." The Lord continues, "Therefore you also now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and no one takes your joy away from you." Since "sorrow" and "rejoicing" are human emotions, it indicates that man's emotional faculty is also part of the heart. Thus we can see that the soul (mind, will, and emotion) is part of the heart of a man.

§         The Conscience - part of the heart

The leading part of the spirit, the conscience,  according to the Word is also integrally related to the heart. Hebrews 10:22 strongly links these two: "Having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience." Additionally, 1 John 3:20 warns, "Because if our heart blames us, it is because God is greater than our heart and knows all things." Blame and condemnation are the primary functions of the conscience, proving that our conscience is part of our heart. Therefore we can safely conclude from all the above scripture references that a man's heart consists of the conscience, in addition to the three parts of the soul.

C.    Function of the different parts of man

Genesis 1:26 clearly indicates that God created man in His own image and likeness with the intention of being expressed and represented through man. Therefore, each part of man (spirit, soul and body) was created for a specific function in relation to God's purpose and plan.

I)       Function of the spirit

   i.     To contact God

Jesus exhorts in John 4:24, "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truthfulness." To worship God is to actually contact Him. The Greek word used here literally means, "to come forward and kiss." To kiss is to make intimate contact with another person. So in John 4:24 Jesus is actually telling us that we are to make intimate contact with God through our human spirit.

 ii.     To Receive God

We initially receive God when we are born anew. According to John 3:6 this new birth takes place in our spirit, "…that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." Not only does our spirit function to receive God initially; it continues to function to receive God as the Spirit for the rest of our Christian walk. Ezekiel 36:26 says,  "I will also give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you." God gives us a new heart to love Him as well as a new spirit to receive Him.

iii.     To Contain God

Finally, our spirit functions to contain God. 2 Timothy 4:22 says, "The Lord be with your spirit." The Lord makes His abode within our spirit. Therefore we can see that our spirit functions as a container of God.

II)    The Function of the Soul

The primary function of the soul of man is to express and reflect the Lord. We can see this expressed in the Gospel of Luke. In response to Elizabeth's blessing, Mary exclaimed, "My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has exulted in God my Savior" (Lk 1. 46-47). The joy in Mary's spirit was expressed through her soul.

2 Corinthians 3:18 says, "But we all with unveiled face, beholding and reflecting like a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord Spirit." Our soul is like a mirror designed to behold and reflect Christ.

III) The Function of the Body

Man's physical body is God's provision for his existence within the physical realm. It is the organ for man's existence.

D.    The Three Parts of Man flawed by the Fall of Man

Created with a spirit to receive God, a soul to express God, and a body to maintain his existence, Adam before his fall possessed a tremendous potential to express and represent God. However, Satan came in to picture damaging and ultimately annulling the proper function of each of man's three parts. The disobedience and transgression of Adam resulted in the corruption of all three parts of his being, thereby preventing man from fulfilling God's purpose.

All three parts of man were adversely affected by the fall: First, his soul was contaminated; second, his body was transmuted into the sinful flesh; and third, his spirit was deadened. We must be aware of the tactics employed by God's enemy to corrupt man's soul (mind, emotion, and will) so that we may be well equipped to discern the strategies he continues to employ to keep man from receiving and enjoying God and thereby expressing and representing Him.

I)       The Human Soul contaminated by Satan's thought, feeling and will

In Genesis 3:1 Satan in the form of a serpent  began the process of contaminating man's soul by injecting the human mind with doubt: "Did God really say, You shall not eat of any tree of the garden?" By responding Eve opened the door of her soul to the serpent. The serpent went on to assure Eve, "You shall not surely die!" By this time poison had infiltrated her mind, causing her to doubt God's Word.

Secondly man's emotion came under attack. The contamination of man's emotion led man to begin to dislike God. In this stage, the serpent sowed a seed of resentment into Eve by lying to her about God's motive: "God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will become like God, knowing good and evil" - Genesis 3:5. This incited Eve's emotions. She felt that God was withholding something good from her. Thus, the human emotion that was created to love God was poisoned instead with an actual dislike for God.

The third stage of the contamination of man's soul took place in his will, enticing man to choose the satanic tree of knowledge of good and evil rather than the divine tree of life. Genesis 3:6 records, "And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make oneself wise, she took of its fruit and ate." This consummated the contamination of the human soul.

II)    The Human Body Transmuted into the Flesh

The body as originally created by God was a pure vessel created in God's image and likeness. However, this pure body changed in nature into the fallen flesh when a foreign element called Sin was introduced through the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. This indwelling sin, now resides in man's flesh. This is why Paul says in Romans 7:5,17, " For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death. ………Now then it is no longer I that work it out, but sin that dwells in me." (KJV)

 

III) The Spirit Deadened

The ultimate consequence of man's fall was that his spirit was deadened.  Thus man become insulated from God and the God-contacting function of our spirit was deadened. Therefore, Ephesians 2:1 says, "And you, though dead in your offenses and sins," refers to our fallen, deadened, state before we are saved. Since our body and soul are alive, this verse must certainly refer to our human spirit.

Thus, we can see that each of the three parts of man was damaged by the fall. The entire soul (mind, emotion, and will) was contaminated, the body changed in nature, and the spirit was deadened. This hopeless state of man set the stage for God's salvation to restore man in all of the three parts!

E.     God's Salvation for the Three Parts of Man

The three-fold contamination of man is counteracted by God's three-fold purification. God's complete salvation encompasses man's entire being and restores the three parts of man to their proper function. God starts from man's innermost part (the human spirit) and spreads outward through the soul to the body until every effect of the fall is reversed, every trace of the fall is erased, and man is filled with the life of God in each of his three parts.

I)       Regeneration in our Spirit

As the first step of God's salvation, He regenerates man's spirit. When we first repent of our sins and receive Christ as our savior, our deadened spirit is made alive. Ephesians 2:5 explains, "Even when we were dead in offenses, [God] made us alive together with Christ." Our new enlivened spirit then begins to sense God and to contact God. Through this contact, not only is our spirit's function restored, but the divine life of God is also added to it (Romans 8:10).

II)    Transformation in our Soul

As a result of regeneration in our spirit, a change in life begins to take place in our being. God's life with its divine nature has been added to our human spirit. Following this, God desires that this change of life would continue by gradually spreading into our mind, emotion, and will. It is often found that we may have Christ in our spirit, yet our mind, emotion, and will remain the same. For this reason, we need Christ to grow and expand continually from our spirit into our soul, a process the Bible calls transformation.

Christ carries out this transforming work through the indwelling Holy Spirit, beginning with the renewing of our mind mentioned in Romans 12:2: "be transformed by the renewing of the mind." As a result of this daily renewing process, we begin to think as God thinks, love as He loves, and choose as He chooses. Eventually we will resemble God; that is, we will be conformed to the image of God. This is why 2 Corinthians 3:18 says, "we all with unveiled face, beholding and reflecting like a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord Spirit." Thus, through God's salvation of our soul, not only is the contamination of Satan negated, but we are transformed into the glorious image of Christ. This is a lifelong process.

III) Transfiguration of our Body

The culmination of God's salvation process will be the transfiguring of our mortal body, as described in 1 Corinthians 15:52-53: " In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye…we will be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality." Philippians 3:21 also speaks of our transfiguration: "Who will transfigure the body of our humiliation to be conformed to the body of His glory.

F.     Conclusion

Thus we see that in His salvation, God first regenerated our spirit (John 3:6), now is transforming our soul (Rom. 12:2), and in consummation will transfigure our body, making us the same as Christ in all three parts of our being.

Jesus and the Fig Tree

The past few weeks I have been observing a pepper plant that's growing near my kitchen. At first I thought hey its growing strong maybe I can soon pluck a few peppers for my early morning chutneys. (My daughter's favourite - green pepper chutney)It stared blooming and every morning I would eagerly look for some signs of baby peppers. The plant continued to grow tall, bushy and was covered in blooms however the one thing it lacked was pepper. So what good is a pepper plant without peppers. All these weeks I have been patient but my thoughts kept turning to an incident in the Book. I am becoming very impatient with the pepper plant in my kitchen yard. So I have decided to see what Jesus did when He faced a similar situation. Come take a journey with me thru the Word of God.

Matthew 21:18-22
Early in the morning, as he was on his way back to the city, he was hungry. Seeing a fig tree by the road, he went up to it but found nothing on it except leaves. Then he said to it, "May you never bear fruit again!" Immediately the tree withered.
When the disciples saw this, they were amazed. "How did the fig tree wither so quickly?" they asked.

Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and it will be done. If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."

Mark 11:12-14, 19-25
The next day as they were leaving Bethany, Jesus was hungry. Seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to find out if it had any fruit. When he reached it, he found nothing but leaves, because it was not the season for figs. Then he said to the tree, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." And his disciples heard him say it.

When evening came, they went out of the city.

In the morning, as they went along, they saw the fig tree withered from the roots. Peter remembered and said to Jesus, "Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!"

"Have faith in God," Jesus answered. "I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, `Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins."
________________________________________
Why did Jesus curse the fig tree, when figs weren't in season and miraculously cause it to wither ?

It has been ascertained by various scholars that Jesus was crucified during the first days of April. Toward the end of March leaves begin to appear on fig trees. Coincident with this, and sometimes even before, there appears quite a crop of small knobs, not the real figs, but a kind of early forerunner. These small figs are the size of green almonds and are eaten by peasants and others when hungry. These precursors of the true figs are called taqsh in Palestinian Arabic. Their appearance is a harbinger of the fully formed appearance of the true fig some six weeks later. So, as Mark says, the time for figs had not yet come. But if the leaves appear without any taqsh, that is a sure sign that there will be no figs either. Since Jesus found "nothing but leaves" - leaves without any taqsh- he knew that "it was an absolutely hopeless, fruitless fig tree" and said as much.

Jesus - the Great Teacher - could not miss out on such an opportune teaching moment. Jesus' teaching methodology often involved parables and word pictures and this fig tree incident was an acted-out parable which Jesus used to teach His disciples an important truth.

Jesus illustrated the principle of faith to his disciples through the parable. He assured them that If the disciples had such faith, they too could do such things as withering fig trees and moving mountains (Matthew 17:21-22, Mark 11:22-25). . It is also likely that Jesus, knowing in advance that his disciples would be surprised by the quick effect his curse had, used the fig tree to provoke their reaction and thus make the lesson about faith more memorable.

The fig tree had leaves on it and from a distance it gave the appearance of being fruitful. But upon closer examination it became clear that there was no fruit on it at all. By cursing the fig tree Jesus taught his disciples that God will also judge those who give an outer appearance of fruitfulness but in fact are not fruitful. This parable is fair warning to all professing Christians to examine their lives. In John 15: 1-8 Jesus speaks of ‘bearing much fruit’ as an outward symbol of being His disciples.

It is also significant that the account of Jesus' cleansing of the temple in Mark's Gospel (Mark 11:15-18) is sandwiched between the two sections of Scripture dealing with the fig tree (verses 12-14 and 19-25) Certain scholars have suggested that perhaps Jesus was teaching that from afar the Jewish temple and its sacrificial activities looked fine. However up close it symbolized mere religion lacking substance and bearing no spiritual fruit. It was ripe for judgment.

The fig tree is often used in the bible to represent Israel. Israel professed to be faithful to God and fruitful as a nation, but it was faithless and fruitless. Israel even rejected Jesus the long awaited Messiah. Israel was thus ripe for (withering) judgment. The withering of the fig tree could also be seen as a foreshadowing of the destruction of Israel as a nation in a few years time.

When did the fig tree wither?

The potential problem here is that Matthew says the fig tree withered immediately, while Mark says the disciples saw the withered tree the next day only. Here is a possible sequence of events that reconciles the two accounts:

On the morning after the Triumphal Entry, Jesus and the disciples return to Jerusalem. On the way, Jesus sees a fig tree some distance from the road. He goes to it to check for figs, while the disciples continue on the road. Jesus curses the fig tree and the disciples hear him. The fig tree withers, but the disciples have passed the tree and haven’t yet noticed that it withered.

Jesus and the disciples return to Bethany in the evening; likely it's too dark to see the tree. The next morning, they return to Jerusalem along the same road. As they near the withered fig tree, Peter points it out, and the disciples express amazement that it's already withered.

Two days ago I was re-reading the first chapters of Genesis and came across Genesis 3.8"And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the Garden." It suddenly struck me that no where does it say that God was in the habit of doing this every evening.

If you are like me you will want to know what is written in the Bible versus what is intrepreted. So while searching for any verse in the Bible that supports such a claim I came across a blog which had dealt with the issue just a few months back. So rather than type out all my observations on the subject I will give credit where it is due. The following is the blog post and the comment on the topic.

http://dailyreflections-matthew.blogspot.com/2008/05/adam-walked-with-god.html

Begin quote
I would have began this post with a scripture citation, but there don't seem to be any! This would seem to be yet another case of needing to discern the difference between what we think we know, and what we really know. It occurred to me recently that we always use the example "Adam walked and talked with God in the Garden every day before the Fall," as an example of the relationship God wants to have with us, but I didn't know where the verse was that said it. So I decided it would be better to find out than to have someone question me on it later and leave me with no explanation. So I looked... and looked... and looked... and this looking went on for quite some time before in my frustration I exclaimed "IT'S JUST NOT HERE!!!" If you know where the Bible says this, then by all means correct my understanding, but I have yet to find anywhere where the Bible actually says that Adam walked and talked with God in the Garden on a daily basis (or at all, unfortunately). Please understand that I'm not saying that this wasn't the case, merely that the Bible doesn't actually say that it happened.

I know it's not much, but this is basically what I've been studying for the past couple days and sadly this is all I came up with... i.e. nothing. [End quote by the blog owner]

This is how Pete commented
Hi Matthew,

This is just where I've got to with this:

Genesis 17v1 Abraham is told to "walk before God and be blameless" - what on earth does this mean? Abraham certainly wasn't sinless! I think we get this picture of "walking with God" as being "relating to him by faith". So also in:

Genesis 6v9 "Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God." Again, Noah is righteous and blameless - he lived by faith as he "walked with God"

Genesis 5v21-24 Enoch also "walked with God". In Hebrews this is taken up as living by faith in 11v5.

So to "walk with God" seems to indicate a life of faith... a life of relationship with God. But where did the term come from in Genesis? It's earliest reference is in Genesis 3v8:

"And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the Garden."

Their sin has ruined their previous relationship with God. Their unbelief in taking the fruit has ruined the relationship of faith and love they had with God before the fall. That relationship seems to have been one of God "walking" in the Garden with Adam and Eve.

This would seem to indicate that they saw regular theophanies of God, and related to him like that. Either way, the sense of "walking and talking" with him is certainly true... at least it seems to me that's the sort of relationship this phrase is intended to convey.

Hope that helps!
End of post comment]


I too hope that Helps



Yours in Christ
Pete

The Significance of the Thousand Year Reign Rev. 20:1-10

Mention of the thousand year reign is found only in the book of Revelation. We must take into consideration the fact that Revelation is filled with prophetic symbols. When dealing with an unclear or controversial section of Scripture we must begin with the realization that no matter how we understand it, it must be in agreement with the clear teaching of Scripture elsewhere. We never use unclear Scripture to interpret plain Scripture. Rather we use what is clearly taught to help us understand areas that are not plain.

With this in mind let us consider the order of events that is yet to take place.

Rapture -> Tribulation -> satan bound for 1000 yrs-> satan loosed, wicked dead come alive & new Jerusalem -> battle of Gog & Magog-> satan and the wicked thrown into lake of fire.

Rapture
When Jesus returns, the dead in Christ and the living in Christ get caught up and they are taken to heavenly mansions Jesus promised us in his word. John 14:2, 3 “In my Father’s house are many mansions…I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”

Tribulation
Then comes tribulation and many will become martyrs except the ones who receive the mark of the beast. Then,
• Revelation 6:14-17, ".....and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?"

However Revelation 19.11-18 comes to pass
• Revelation 19:11-18, "........, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great."

satan bound for 1000 years
When all men are dead satan is bound for 1000 years. With no man to deceive, satan is bound literally and figuratively.

The binding of Satan also reveals the fact that God can stop his evil work when He is ready, and that without sending the armies of Heaven to do so. When the time has come, God will empower and command a single Angel to imprison him. Satan is not cast at this time into the "Lake of Fire," because God has further use for him at the end of the 1000 years for which period he is bound.

What are the Saints of the Lord doing meanwhile?
• Revelation 20:6, "Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years."
• Revelation 20:4, "And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them:.."
• 1 Corinthians 6:2-3, "Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?"

The Saints of the Lord will be reigning and judging with Jesus. Judging the wicked is important. This will give you all the proof that Jesus did everything He said He would to help your loved one gain Heaven, and your loved one denied Him DAILY! The Lord opens the books so you can see with your own eyes that they did in fact ignore Him. And then finally you come to the conclusion, it is not His fault. Jesus has been vindicated. You now have rock hard evidence they chose Hell of their own free will.
This must happen if Rev 21. 4 "He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, ... " is to be fulfilled.

At the end of the 1000 years
At the end of the 1000 years satan is loosed, and the wicked dead come alive.

• Rev 20.7 When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison
• Rev 20.5 “But the rest of the dead (the wicked) lived not again until the thousand years were finished.” Which clearly states that they will come alive. These have no more opportunity to repent nor are they resurrected with perfect bodies as the saints were.

Something else too happens at the end of the thousand years.

Rev 21.1-4 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

Battle of Gog & Magog •
Rev 20.7-9a When the thousand years are over, Satan will be released from his prison 8and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth—Gog and Magog—to gather them for battle. …. 9They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God's people, the city he loves They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God's people, the city he loves.

The end of satan and the wicked
When the wicked come alive satan deceives them again and gathers them into an army and surrounds the camp of God's people, the city he loves (New Jerusalem). Why would the people come against the camp of the Lord? They see within the transparent walls of the new city something they greatly desire. (Rev 22.2 On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. Remember that the wicked are still bound in their sin, curse, disease etc). satan has not lost his touch either. Together they storm the city and bring down the final judgment over satan and wicked alike.

• Rev 20.9b But fire came down from heaven and devoured them.
• Rev 20.10 And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur.
• Rev 20.11-15 Then I saw a great white throne ............ The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 13The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. 14Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. 15If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

Lake of Fire and Brimstone
"And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever." Rev. 20:10.

As punishment for his final act of rebellion, Satan shall be seized and hurled into the Lake of Fire, where he will find alive and waiting for him the Beast and the False Prophet who were cast therein a 1000 years before. This shows that there is no such thing as annihilation. The Lake of Fire was prepared for the devil and his angels (Matt. 25:41), not to consume them in, for God could do that with fire from heaven, but to punish them in; and all those whose names are not written in the Book of Life will go to the same place to spend eternity.

(The theory of annihilation is another one of satan’s deceptions. Proponents of this theory say that God is far too loving to allow man to suffer for all eternity. They argue that it would be unjust of God to allow Evil to ‘exist’ in eternity. They also suggest that satan worshippers are on the rise because of the lure of reigning with satan in the underworld for all eternity! So they argue that the annihilation theory is much more acceptable.)

Satan does not want people to read and study the Book of Revelation because he does not want the world to know that there is to be an end to his power.
Only the bodies of those who perish in this last great war will be destroyed by fire, their souls and spirits will come out at the resurrection of the wicked dead and at the Great White Throne Judgment, and be sentenced to the Second Death, which, as we have seen, means that they must spend eternity without a material body in the Lake of Fire.

Conclusion
The final dwelling place of man according to the scriptures is the new earth. The conditions in the new earth will be as God blessed Adam (man) in Gen 1. 28

• Gen 1. 28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
• Matthew 5:5, "Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth."
• 2 Peter 3:10-13, "But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved………., wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness."

Every word of God is eternal and this promise becomes a eternal fact only thru Jesus. The fulfillment of this promise is yet to be.

Rev 22.1-6 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. 3No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. 4They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever. 6The angel said to me, "These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place."

Caution
It is to be clearly understood that the understanding of these events or their order is not central to our Christian faith and therefore I urge you with the love of Christ that agreement or lack thereof with the above mentioned should not result in any discord among believers. When queried by a friend about the significance of the 1000 years reign I had no clear answer to give and babbled my way out. I wrote this in an attempt to try and put things in a clearer perspective.






An alternative way of looking at The Significance of the Thousand Years


Thousand Years



(1.) Satan Bound. Rev. 20:1-3.
Man has charged his fall and continuance in sin to satan. So that man may be "without excuse" God is going to subject him to a final test under the most favorable circumstances.

Satan shall be bound and imprisoned so that he can no longer deceive men, and lest man shall say that sinful habits are too deeply rooted to be soon eradicated the test shall last for a Thousand Years, and man shall have during that period of probation all the blessed influences of the Holy Spirit and the presence of Christ Himself.

It would certainly be a amazingly different world. There would be no one to stir up hate and passion, and prompt strife and turmoil. Man would still have an evil heart of unbelief to contend against, but it would be like a magazine of gunpowder without a spark to ignite it. That the evil heart of man has not been eradicated will soon be evident when at the close of the 1000 years satan is loosed and easily deceives the nations. Rev. 20.8.

(2.) Land of Palestine.
Palestine when it was first occupied by the children of Israel under Joshua, was a land of "milk" and "honey" and of "all manner of fruits," and its soil brought forth "abundantly," and this continued as long as the Children of Israel kept its Sabbaths. But God had warned them that if they did not obey Him and turned aside to worship other Gods He would shut up the heavens and the harvests would fail. Deut. 11:13-17. Palestine today has the same fertile soil it had in Joshua's time, but it lacks rain and irrigation. God has withheld the "early" and "latter" rain, but they are now becoming more frequent and copious.

In the 1000 years the Land of Palestine will be restored to its former fertility. This will be aided not only by the rains, but by numerous rivers and streams that shall flow from the "New River" that shall have its source in the Sanctuary.
"It shall come to pass in That Day (Millennium) that the mountains shall drop new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the Rivers of Judah (where the New River will be) shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the House of the Lord, and shall water the Valley of Shittim," the country about the Dead Sea. Joel 3:18.

The "mountains dropping new wine," and the "hills flowing with milk," are figures of speech declaring that the mountain sides will be covered with vineyards from which an abundance of wine shall be obtained, and that the pasture lands will be so productive that they will sustain vast herds of milk cattle.

The harvests will be so great and abundant that the ploughman will "overtake the reaper," and the treader of grapes him that "soweth seed." Amos 9:13.

"The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose." Isa. 35:1.

"Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir-tree, and instead of the briar shall come up the myrtle tree; and it shall be to the Lord for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off." Isa. 55:13.

"Then shall the earth yield her increase." Psa. 67:6.

"And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the vats shall overflow with wine and oil. And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm and the caterpillar, and the p. 190 palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. And ye shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God that hath dealt wondrously with you; and My People (the Jews) shall never be ashamed."' Joel 2:24-26.


(3.) Human Life Prolonged.

"There shall be no more thence an infant of days, for the child shall die a hundred years old." Isa. 65:20.

That is, a person dying 100 years old shall be considered only a child. Therefore a man, to be called a man, must live for several hundred years.

"For as the days of a Tree (oak tree) are the days of my people." Isa. 65:22.
"Thus saith the Lord of Hosts: There shall yet Old Men and Old Women dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, and every man with his staff in his hand For Very Age." Zech. 8:4.
Patriarchal Years will be restored, and men shall live as long as they did before the Flood. This may be due to some climatic or atmospheric change, or divine in nature.

SATAN LOOSED.
"And when the Thousand Years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, and shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the 'Camp of the Saints' about, and the Beloved City (Jerusalem): and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them." Rev. 20:7-8.

At the end of the Thousand Years satan will be loosed and come forth embittered by his forced confinement to vent his anger upon the people of God. His hatred against God and His people will be unquenched.

GOG AND MAGOG.
As soon as Satan is loosed from his prison, he will find a vast multitude ready to believe his lie, and to serve and obey him. He will gather them from the "Four Quarters of the Earth" until they compass the "Camp of the Saints" (the Holy Land), and lay siege once more to the "Beloved City." From this we see that the unregenerate heart is like a powder magazine, all it needs is a match to set it off, and Satan when freed will be that match. This "last war" that this world shall ever see, will be bloodless, for the vast armies of Satan shall be thrown into the Lake of Fire.


Significance of the Thousand Years
Finally God will have tested man in "Innocence," under "Conscience," under "Self-Government," under the "Headship of the Family," under "Law," under "Grace," and finally under the influence of the "Holy Spirit," free from Satanic influences, and under them all man will prove himself to be hopelessly, incurably and incorrigibly bad.

The Power of Hearing

Luke 7 The Faith of the Centurion (NIV)

‘1 When Jesus had finished saying all this in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum. 2There a centurion's servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die. 3The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to him, asking him to come and heal his servant. 4When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with him, "This man deserves to have you do this, 5because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue." 6So Jesus went with them.
He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him: "Lord, don't trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. 7That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it."
9 When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, "I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel." 10Then the men who had been sent returned to the house and found the servant well.’

The above quoted familiar scripture portion is a rich mine full of gold nuggets. It is often used to emphasis the power of faith. However, a careful reading of the text helps us to discern
1. The power of hearing
2. The power of being under authority
3. The power of the spoken word and
4. The power of faith

Each one of them is of great importance though I would like to examine now the first point – the power of hearing.

The power of hearing In the above quoted scripture, let us consider verse 3a “The centurion heard of Jesus”. Obviously most people in Israel had heard of Jesus at one time or the other. Many reacted scoffingly while others responded with eagerness and faith.

This centurion was a roman soldier and a little background information makes it easy for us to understand better, who he was. 2000 years back, Israel as a nation was under the rule of the great Roman Empire. The Romans were known for their high organizational skills and boasted of a highly organized army. The Roman army consisted of a number of legions commanded by legionnaires. A legion consisted of 6000 soldiers. Under every legionnaire, there were 60 captains and under every captain, there were six centurions. Every centurion had 100 soldiers directly reporting to him.

This particular heathen centurion was favorably inclined towards the Jewish nation and for some unrecorded reason had even built them a synagogue.
(It is of particular interest to note here that the Jews are Jehovah’s special chosen people through whom he had vowed to bring redemption to all mankind. God had also promised to bless those who bless His people the Jews and to curse those who curse them. Here we see a member of the oppressor (Roman Empire) showing unmerited favor to the Jews and receiving great blessing directly from the hand of God. In Matthew 15:22 A Canaanite (heathen) woman seeks a miracle for her daughter and Jesus enters into an argument with her as to why he should give children’s bread to dogs. Here the woman’s unusual faith determines her fate. However, in the case of the centurion Jesus enters into no such dialogs. Though outside the old covenant, the centurion was still entitled to receive from Jesus because he had shown favor to God’s chosen people. Let us be reminded of Jesus words “Anyone who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and anyone who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man's reward.- Matthew 10.41 The ‘righteous’ are all believers washed in the blood of Jesus. So let us be eager to do good not only to the under-privileged but also to the people of God who have set apart their lives to serve in God’s vineyard.)

During a period of time when neither slaves nor servants were of much value, here is a centurion who valued a servant so much that he was willing to seek favor from the Jews! (Romans considered themselves superior to Jews as the stronger and technologically forward nation. They also sort of despised what they considered as obsession of the Jews with their God. The Jews on the other hand considered themselves as the chosen people of God and expected the arrival of Messiah who would topple the cruel roman empire and rule the earth from Jerusalem. At the other end of the spectrum were the intellectual and sophisticated Greeks who were the most superstitious of the three.)

To return to our study, this particular centurion ‘had heard of Jesus’. He heard of the miracles performed by this strange Jewish rabbi. It was said that he could heal any diseases and raise dead people. He had heard that even nature (wind and the storm) obeyed Jesus’ commands. He did not just hear of such happenings as some interesting news but he gave his full attention to it. He considered the evidence and came to a then unpopular conclusion about what he heard. Unlike most other Romans and a good number of Jewish religious leaders, this centurion came to believe that Jesus was a person of high authority. In his experience, when people with authority spoke those under them obeyed. Here this Jesus evidently had authority over sickness, demons, death and nature. So despite being a Jew (a citizen of the conquered nation) Jesus proved He had more authority than even the centurion’s superiors. Obedience was something the centurion was quite familiar with. He was a man under authority (verse 8) and so implicitly obeyed his superiors’ orders. He also had men under him and they obeyed every word of his.

Therefore, when the centurion’s favorite servant was at his deathbed he pressed in his influential Jewish acquaintances to persuade Jesus to work a miracle on his behalf. Asking a Jewish rabbi to enter a heathen household was high presumption. Jews became ceremonially unclean by entering non-Jewish houses or even by close association. (E.g. The Samaritan woman at the well) This was more true in the cases of Teachers or Rabbis. Hence the Jewish elders ‘pleaded earnestly with [Jesus]’ vs 4. They put Jesus ‘into remembrance’ Isa 43.26 considering the centurion’s works for Israel. However long before Jesus and His entourage reached the centurion’s house he sends some of his friends to meet Jesus. Having realized that Jesus whom he recognized as a person of great authority (even his emperor who was considered, as a god by Romans did not have the same authority as Jesus had over the non-physical realm) was approaching his house in answer to his demand made through the Jewish elders he is smitten by remorse. He becomes deeply aware of his unworthiness to welcome one such as Jesus into his house. Therefore, he entreats Jesus not to trouble himself by coming to his house. However, he makes one of the most powerful statements of faith about Jesus. vs 7b ‘But say the word, and my servant will be healed. 8For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and that one, 'Come,' and he comes. I say to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it." In short, the centurion was saying that ‘Jesus, your physical presence is not necessary. Just your word of command is sufficient. I know and believe that you are so great in authority that your mere word is sufficient to heal my servant and return him from death.’

Jesus recognizes the depth of faith this centurion is exercising and exclaims ‘I have not found such great faith even in Israel’. Jesus is always in search of faith. He can operate only where there is faith. Jesus performed all his healing miracles based on the faith of the people. The Old Testament and the New Testament speaks of God looking for faith. Jesus even made a statement to the effect ‘when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?" Luke 18.8 The faith of the centurion was even greater than the faith Jesus had seen among His people, the Jews.

To recap, the centurion heard about Jesus and understood the significance of what he heard and he acted on what he understood. God who is debtor to none healed the servant of the heathen centurion. The only other incident of non-Jewish healing recorded in the NT before Jesus’ resurrection was the healing of the daughter of the Canaanite woman. The woman’s unusual faith was the catalyst to this miracle.

The messiah was send to the nation of Israel. But people like this centurion and the Canaanite woman exercised great ability to discern the Truth of Jesus and thru force of faith availed the children’s bread for themselves. The key that unlocks the kingdom of God is faith and ‘faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.’ Romans 10.17 Therefore let us be always eager to hear the word of God. We can hear it through our personal reading and studying, as well as through other sources. May God open our inner ears to understand the depth of His love for us.

The Justice of Divine Judgment

I have lost count answering the question, “what about the untold millions who have never heard of Jesus Christ. Will they be also judged the same way as others?” Today I came across a devotional that dealt with the same question so here it is for your reading pleasure.

The following is a direct quote from the devotional for May 17-18, 2008 -- The Justice of Divine Judgment -- Revelation 20-11:15 “In Touch Daily Devotional” by Dr. Charles Stanley


Every person will face God on judgment day. Whenever that topic comes up, I am usually asked something like, "What about remote African tribes that will never hear about Jesus?" The concerned questioner is really wondering, How could a loving Lord send an ignorant person to hell? In other words, How can it be fair to condemn those who have never heard the gospel?

To understand how God judges, we should recognize two truths about Him. First, He's not limited. While whole groups still have no Scripture in their language, God always reaches individuals whose hearts are open to knowing Him. Men like Abraham and Moses had no spiritual training or Scriptures, and the Lord spoke to them.

Second, God reveals Himself to all people, whether or not they have access to the Bible. He demonstrates His power and attributes through creation. He also programs our conscience to understand the basic distinctions between right and wrong.

For those blessed to hear the gospel at some point, Jesus Christ is the greatest revelation of God in their life. When people stand before the Father, He'll judge them on three criteria from the amount of truth that each has been exposed, to how many opportunities there were to accept the truth and share it with others; and what was done with those opportunities. The believer's responsibility is to reach as many as possible with the gospel so that no one need ask, "What about those who've never heard of Jesus?"

Children's Bread

At our homes, whenever we prepare any delicacy we set aside the major portion for the enjoyment of our children. Often even after they have feasted we keep apart a small portion of their favorite dish so that our children may enjoy it afterward.

Jesus said “If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! Matthew 7:11 & Luke 11:13 From this verse it is evident that our Heavenly Father too sets aside the best heaven has to offer for His children. The best that Father God has is His Son and His Holy Spirit both of whom He has given for us. (John 3:16 and Romans 8.15)

Who are the children?
Romans 8:14-16 says
1Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus
14….those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." 16The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children.

According to the above Bible verses, it is those that are led by the Spirit of God and have received the Spirit of Sonship that are children of God. (It goes without saying that to be led by the Spirit of God you have to be in Christ Jesus.)

Romans 8 identifies the children of God. None can claim to be children of God because you have Abraham as your father (Jew), or because you have been born of a Christian family, or have a long lineage of God’s ministers or even because you have lived a life par excellent. No wordly claim can be made to your heavenly position.

God the father has sovereignly make known through His Word who His Children are. His word is final and the Truth. The Spirit of Truth testifies within those who are the children that they are the children of God.

Who is the children’s bread?
You read correctly. I did not mean what is the children’s bread but who. This is because according to the Word of God the children’s bread is a person. Do not take my word for it let us examine what Jesus himself had to say concerning this.

Matthew 15 relates an interesting conversation that took place between Jesus and a gentile woman. This is a very familiar passage to all students of the Bible.

Matthew 15:21- 28 21……. Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession." 23Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, "Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us." 24He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel." 25The woman came and knelt before him. "Lord, help me!" she said. 26He replied, "It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs." 27"Yes, Lord," she said, "but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." 28Then Jesus answered, "Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted." And her daughter was healed from that very hour.

In verses 24 and 26 Jesus speaks of himself.
Verse 24 he says that He was sent for the lost sheep of Israel. In verse 26 he says that it is not right to toss children’s bread to dogs. Jesus himself says that He is the children’s bread.

The gentile woman initially came to Jesus with the understanding that He is the Lord, a divine person and the Son of David, a royal descendant, a King. However, Jesus reveals himself to her as the children’s bread. (It was hard teaching for He spoke in parables [Matthew 13:13-14] but the woman understood unlike many Jews and so partook of the kingdom blessing. Elsewhere Jesus had said that “…….the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it”. Mt 11.12)

Within this scripture portion (Mt 15:21- 28) is hidden a great mystery of the gospel. Jesus says I am the bread that you my children are to partake of. I am available to you as nourishing food whenever you need me. You need not cry or fret. See I have given you of myself for your full and complete enjoyment. Eat of me and you will not lack anything. Even if we are the ‘gentile dogs’ “even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table."

Jesus says I am your strength, your healer, your joy, your protector, your fortress, your shield. I am everything you need in this life. I am life. If you feed on me you will have abundant life. You need nothing apart from me. So continue to feed on me daily. I am your early morning bread and I shall sustain your throughout the day.

I am your king and I rule by feeding my children, the citizens of my kingdom with myself. You can be my people and children only if you feed on me and are nourished by me. As my children feed on me, they walk in the kingdom blessing.

Now we have seen that according to the Bible which is the ultimate word of God, Jesus is the Children’s Bread. So let us be diligent in feeding of him. From now on, I hope we would contact the Lord every day with the realization that He is the children’s bread. To eat Christ as our supply is the way to be the kingdom people in the reality of the kingdom.

God of the Wilderness

Genesis 28:16
..."Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it”.

The Bible in 2 Timothy 3:16 and 1 Cor 10:11 says that all scripture, including ancient history, is recorded in the Bible for instruction and as examples for our benefit. Remember, Jacob?

Not content with persuading Esau, his elder brother, into selling his birthright, Jacob tricked his father, Isaac into blessing him instead of his brother. He was forced to flee his family because of his broken relationship with his brother, who now threatened to kill him.

Jacob was alone and while sleeping in the wilderness area at Bethel he encountered God. This was Jacob’s first personal encounter with the God of his ancestors. In his dream, he saw that Heaven was opened up to him. The Lord spoke to him there and gave him a promise to give him the very land on which he was lying.

This encounter with God in the wilderness made Jacob realize that God is in this place, even though he had not been aware of it. How often we too fail to recognize that God is in the very place where we are. God had to remove Jacob from all that was of comfort to him in order to reveal Himself to Jacob. What began as a crisis in Jacob’s life led to an encounter with the living God and a fresh vision of God's purposes for his life.

God brought Jacob to a place of separation from his old life and stripped him of all his worldly possessions. He was alone with God at Bethel; nothing could distract him from the encounter that would change his life forever.

In our life, we go through different wilderness experiences during different seasons of our lives. Look back to the time when you first personally encountered God. You were probably walking through the toughest wilderness experience in your life. God met you there and gave you a new vision for you life. You probably thought that the wilderness would never touch you again, but you realize you are now passing thru one. Jacob too had to pass through another wilderness.

If in Gen 28 Jacob was alone and bereft of all worldly possessions, then by Gen 32 he is extremely wealthy and has a large entourage. Yet Gen 32.24 tells us that Jacob was left alone and he wrestled with God till daybreak. It was during this encounter with God that Jacob became Israel. It was God’s intention to bless Jacob and the current crisis in Jacob’s life was essential; so nothing could distract Jacob from his encounter with God.

Like Jacob, God allows different wilderness experiences in our lives too. In fact, God often does radical things in our lives because He has radical plans for us. Things like separation from family, removal of physical and emotional resources are often the hallmarks of an eminent encounter with God. Time and again, God uses these encounters to build a vision into our lives.

Often wilderness is the best place to meet with God on a personal level. May we have the faith and humility to submit to God during our wilderness experiences so that we may come out of it with a new vision and greater blessings.

Is Yeshua the Meschiach of the OT?

How can we prove that Jesus/Yeshua is the Messiah/Meschiach of the Old Testament?

Jesus himself used the OT Messiah prophesies to prove from the Scriptures that He is the Christ.

(Luke 24:27). “And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, [Jesus] expounded
unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself” The Bible also says that Apollos showed “from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ” (Acts 18:28 NKJV).

Yes! Old Testament predictions of the coming Messiah are so specific and so clearly fulfilled by Jesus of Nazareth that both Jesus and the apostles successfully used these prophecies to prove He was, indeed, the Messiah. The Old Testament holds more than 300 of these prophecies. Here are just 12 of them:


Prophecy About the Messiah

Old Testament Verse New Testament Fulfillment

1 Born In Bethlehem Micah 5:2 Matthew 2:1
2 Born of a virgin Isaiah 7:14 Matthew 1:18–23
3 Of David’s lineage Jeremiah 23:5 Revelation 22:16
4 Attempted murder by Herod Jeremiah 31:15 Matthew 2:16–18
5 Betrayal by a friend Psalm 41:9 John 13:18, 19, 26
6 Sold for 30 silver coins Zechariah 11:12 Matthew 26:14–16
7 Pierced Zechariah 12:10 John 19:16–18, 37
8 Lots cast for His clothes Psalm 22:18 Matthew 27:35
9 No bones broken Psalm 34:20; Exodus 12:46 John 19:31–36
10 Buried in a rich man’s tomb Isaiah 53:9 Matthew 27:57–60
10 Time of His death Exodus 12:6 Matthew 27:45–50
12 Raised the third day Hosea 6:2 Acts 10:38–40

Why does God allow evil to exist?

I. Who is the devil?
Most people in the world believe satan, who is often called the devil, is just a symbolic figure of evil, but the Bible says he is real and represents the very essence of evil!

He is ever subverting families, churches, and even entire nations. And his plans for escalating immorality, sorrow, pain, destruction, and sin are succeeding to an incredible degree. His plan for your life is … death.

II. Where did the devil come from?
How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning!” (Isaiah 14:12).
“I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven” (Luke 10:18).
Both these OT and NT quotes makes it clear that satan’s first home was heaven, and he was originally called Lucifer.

III. Why did God make the devil?
“ Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee" (Ezekiel 28:15).

“ Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth” (Ezekiel 28:14).

“ Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty ... every precious stone was thy covering ... the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee“ (Ezekiel 28: 12, 13).

God did not make a devil—He created a perfect angel! Lucifer was a “covering” cherub that stood covering God’s throne (Psalm 99:1). He was a highly exalted, respected, and cherished angel. His beauty was flawless and his brightness was awe-inspiring, a breathtaking being. The Scripture also indicates his wisdom and ability were unmatched, and he may have been especially gifted with musical skill (Ezekiel 28:13). Some scholars believe he led the angelic choir.

IV. Why did Lucifer sin?
“Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness” (Ezekiel 28:17).

“For thou hast said in thine heart ... I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: ... I will be like the most High” (Isaiah 14:13, 14).

Pride, discontent, and self-exaltation arose in his heart. Lucifer became jealous of God’s supreme power. He actually hoped to somehow unseat God and then demand that all worship him.

Centuries later, he even tempted Jesus, with rulership/lordship over all the earth if Jesus would fall down and worship him (Matthew 4:8–11). [God gave Adam and Eve dominion over the earth (Genesis 1:26). When they sinned, they lost it to Satan (Romans 6:16; John 12:31). So world dominion was satan’s to give away, if he so desired. Dominion is different from ownership. God owns everything in the visible and invisible realm.]

In the last days, God calls all people to worship Him (Revelation 14:6,7), but this so infuriates Satan that he will try to force people to worship him or else be killed (Revelation 13:15). God says, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me” (Exodus
20:3). Satan wants you to disobey this commandment, because he knows if you don’t worship God, it will be as if you’re following satan!

V. What happened in heaven when Lucifer rebelled?
“And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels. ... And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him”(Revelation 12:7–9).

Amazingly, Lucifer won the support of one-third of the angels and caused an insurrection in heaven (Revelation 12:3, 4). He probably deceived them too by slandering God the way he deceived Eve. The war in heaven was one of the greatest cosmic battles ever fought. God had no choice but to evict Lucifer and his followers to ensure peace in His kingdom. After his expulsion from heaven, Lucifer was called Satan (adversary) and devil (slanderer), and the angels who followed him were called demons.

VI. Who initiated evil?
…(devil) He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8.44)

The devil sinneth from the beginning” (1 John 3:8).

“ That old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan” (Revelation 12:9).

Satan is the originator of all sin; he was the first created being ever to go against God. Only the Bible explains the true origin of evil!

VII. Why did the devil deceive Eve?
Satan bitterly hates humans, who were created in God’s image. (Genesis 1.26, 27) He can’t touch God, so he directs his venom against God’s children. He’s a hateful, vicious liar whose aim is to destroy you and thus hurt God.

“Your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

“Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil" (Genesis 3:1, 4, 5).

The first humans were told by God not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and that the penalty for eating from that tree would be death. But Satan used a serpent—one of the most clever of God’s creatures—to deceive Eve. Lies that include some truth are the most effective of all, and this is how the devil deceived Eve. Satan made the knowledge of evil appear attractive, as he still does today. He told lies to misrepresent God’s character, because he knew no one would turn away God’s love unless he or she misunderstood His character.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary puts it like this, “Satan ruined himself by desiring to be like the Most High, therefore he sought to infect our first parents with the same desire, that he might ruin them too. The devil continues to draw people into his interest, by suggesting to them hard thoughts of God, and false hopes of advantage by sin. Let us, therefore, always think well of God as the best good, and think ill of sin as the worst evil: thus let us resist the devil, and he will flee from us.”

VIII. Why was eating the fruit such a big problem?
“Sin is the transgression of the law” (1 John 3:4).

“And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever? So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life” (Genesis 3:22, 24).

Eating the fruit was a sin because it was a direct rejection of God’s command. It was open rebellion against God’s law and authority. By rejecting God’s command, Adam and Eve allied themselves with God’s enemy, and thus brought separation between themselves and God (Isaiah 59:2). Satan hoped the couple would sin and then eat of the tree of life, and thus become immortal sinners like himself. But God removed them from the garden to prevent such a tragedy and make way for his plan of redemption of mankind.

IX. The devil’s character
Here are some other traits of satan and his demons that the Bible tells us:
1. Deceives/persecutes (Revelation 12:9, 13).
2. Quotes/misquotes the Bible (Matthew 4:5, 6).
3. Falsely accuses/murders (Revelation 12:10; John 8:44).
4. Traps/ensnares (2 Timothy 2:26; 1 Peter 5:8).
5. Wars against God's people (Revelation 12:17).
6. Binds/prompts betrayal (Luke 13:16; John 13:2, 21).
7. Imprisons (Revelation 2:10).
8. Possesses/hinders (Luke 22:3–5; 1 Thessalonians 2:18).
9. Works miracles/lies (Revelation 16:13, 14; John 8:44).
10. Brings disease/afflicts (Job 2:7).
11. Inspires false teachers (Matthew 24:5).
12. Calls fire from heaven (Revelation 13:13).

X. What is the devil’s punishment?
“ And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone” (Rev 20:10).
“ Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41)
“ Therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. ...And never shalt thou be any more” (Ezekiel 28:18,19).

The devil will be cast into the lake of fire on this earth at the end of the world.

XI. Why didn’t God destroy the devil and put an end to sin?

“We are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men” (1 Corinthians 4:9).

Sin was something completely new in God’s universe, and its inhabitants might not have understood it. For every being under heaven, Lucifer was a brilliant, highly respected angelic leader. Most likely, his deceptive approach showed great concern for heaven and the angels. Perhaps he said, “Heaven is a wonderful place, but it would be improved if God listened to the wisdom of His wisest angels. God knows my suggestions are correct and sincere, but unfortunately, He is feeling threatened. Yet we must not permit our noble leaders, out of touch with their subjects, to jeopardize the very existence of heaven. They will listen, but only if we move in unison. Let us act; let us not be weak. Do you want our home to be ruined by a government that doesn’t even trust us?” According to the book of Revelation, Lucifer’s arguments convinced many angels—one-third joined him in his rebellion. Lucifer’s seeds of doubt may have caused confusion in the minds of angels, even those who stayed loyal to God, but if God had destroyed Lucifer immediately, at least some angelic beings who did not fully understand might have begun worshiping God in fear. They might have believed, “Lucifer may have been correct. Be careful. If you differ with God, He may kill you.” So nothing would have been settled; Satan’s crafty suggestions and questions would have remained and the problem would have been heightened. God demands loyalty out of love not out of fear.

So God is giving Satan time to demonstrate his methods. Satan claimed to have had a better plan for God’s universe, and God is allowing the universe to behold this claim. The Lord will abolish sin only after every soul in the universe is convinced that Satan’s government is unfair, hateful, ruthless, lying, and destructive. The entire universe is watching as we each play a part in the controversy between Christ and satan. As the controversy ends, every soul will fully understand the principles of both kingdoms and will have chosen to follow either Christ or satan. Those who have chosen to ally with sin and satan will be destroyed with him, and God’s people will be taken to the eternal safety of their heavenly home.

Lord's Table - Tree of Life

To those who have been sealed by God the Holy Spirit for the day of redemption.

We recognize the elements in the Lord’s Table represent the broken body of Christ and the sinless blood that was shed for us. We are aware that we ought to examine ourselves before we partake of it. We know who aught to and who aught not to partake in it. We know the covenantal blessings that we inherit by partaking in it. We remember our Lord’s sacrificial death and declare our belief in His second coming. But there is more.

The purpose of this article is to illustrate further the significance of the Lord’s Table for every believer. It is my prayer that you understand the blessed hope we have when we partake of the Lord’s Table.

I Cor 11.23-26 says, ………. The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me." In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me." For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

Tree of LIFE

Tree Of LIFE -> Passover -> Manna -> Lamb Of God (Jesus) -> Lord’s Table (bread & wine) -> Tree Of LIFE

In Genesis 3 we see that soon after creating man, God places man before the garden full of fruit bearing trees and asked him to eat. The first thing God required of man before multiplying or ruling the earth was to eat. God gave man food and asked him to eat. Man needed physical food as well as spiritual food. God placed man in the garden, drew his attention to the special two trees in the middle of the garden, and told him to eat from all, except the tree of knowledge of good and evil.

God’s original plan was that man may partake of the Tree Of LIFE. The Tree Of LIFE is the Triune God himself. God made man in His image and likeness but man did not yet have fullness of Life or Eternal Life in him. Therefore, God presented himself as food that man may choose Him and Live. It was necessary that man make that choice out of free will. (this is dealt with in another article)

God’s purposes never changed. John 1.4 says, ‘in Him was life’, speaking of the Word of God or Jesus. Jesus represents the full abundant life of God. When we have Jesus dwelling in us we have Life within us. God desires man to have LIFE in him that he may live to the full potential as Sons of God.

In Eden, man was deceived/tempted by satan into partaking from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. In his infinite love God stepped in to undo the consequences – that is what we see throughout OT and NT.

The OT as we know is the shadow or foretaste of the NT fulfillment. OT Passover, sacrifices, atonement, tabernacle etc represented Jesus’ crucifixion, death, resurrection and the resulting redemption of mankind.

In NT we see Jesus commanding all believers to partake of his body and blood in the form of bread and wine, until He returns.

We know our life on earth is not the ultimate end. We look forward to the blessed hope of Eternal Life in Jesus Christ. Revelation 22 gives us a glimpse of the fulfillment of this Eternal Life. Here it speaks of the Throne of God, the River of Life that flows from it and the Tree of Life on its banks. The Tree of Life bears 12 crops for every month and its leaves are for the healing of the nations.

In Eternity, we no longer shall feed on bread and wine but on the original Tree of Life. The same tree our ancestors were meant to eat from but were prevented by sin.

On that blessed day, we shall truly abide in Yahweh God and He shall abide in us. He shall make us His dwelling place and we will dwell in Him. (Rev 21.3, John 15.4) Then we shall have ‘Life and life in abundance’. (John 10.10) It will be the fulfillment of God’s original plan.

Passover & Manna

During the wilderness journey, Israel were led supernaturally in everyway by God. These 40 years, God dealt with them in an extremely personal and intimate manner. Almost reminiscent of God’s walk with Adam in Eden.

God’s original and perfect plan was for man to live a perfect life. For this man needed ‘God in Him’. For this purpose, God presented himself as man’s food in the form of the Tree of Life.
In the wilderness, manna or the bread that came from heaven was their daily food. Exo 16.35 Their clothes did not wear out and their feet did not swell during these forty years. Deut 8.4 They had LIFE inside of them, nourishing them. They fed off God himself. Jesus says that He is the bread that came from heaven.
[John 6.31-33 “Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written: 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat." Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world."]

However, before they could eat ‘manna’, they had to eat the Passover. (Exodus 12) The blood of the lamb was a covering for their sins protecting them from the destroyer, and the meat of the lamb was nourishment for their body and soul. At the end of the first month their provisions ran out, and God began to provide them with ‘manna’- the heavenly food, daily. (Exodus 16) The following year on the first month, God asked them to keep the Passover every year. (Numbers 9.1, 2)

NT & Passover

Jesus asked his followers to partake of his body and blood, until his return so, when he returns we may partake of the original Tree of Life.

Just as Israel had to keep the Passover even after the manna stopped, followers of Jesus are to partake of the Lord’s Table until we partake of the Tree of Life.

[John 6. 44-58 " No one can come to me (Jesus) unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. It is written in the Prophets: 'They will all be taught by God.' Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me. No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father. I tell you the truth, he who believes has everlasting life. I am the bread of life. Your forefathers ate the manna in the desert, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which a man may eat and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world."
Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?"

Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your forefathers ate manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever."

John 6. 60 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, "This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?" Vs 66From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him. Vs 67-68 "You do not want to leave too, do you?" Jesus asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.

Read John 6.25 - 69 with a new heart. ]

When we partake of the Lord’s Table, we eat his flesh and drink his blood which imparts to us eternal life (vs 54). We are to remember that the Lamb of God, Jesus Himself was slain for us and the consummation of this is the eating of the tree of Life in eternity.

We are now partakers of the tree of Life through the flesh and blood of Christ. The importance of water baptism and partaking of the bread and wine becomes now magnified. We partake of God as originally planned by God. Just as the nation of Israel ate manna for forty years, we are to eat the body and drink the blood of Christ until we eat from the Tree of Life.

Choose right

In Genesis, God says, do not choose to eat from the tree of Knowledge. In Deutronomy 30.19 God says, ‘I have set before you life and death, …….. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live’.

Our first parents choose the wrong tree to eat from. We choose right when we eat from the Lord’s Table.

The choice was and is between God and satan. They choose death when they choose the tree of knowledge of good and evil. We choose life when we partake of Lord’s Table.

Before the fall of man, God provided the tree of Life to provide man with Eternal Life.
Under the new covenant Jesus offers his body and blood for those who want Eternal Life,
In New Jerusalem the tree of Life and the river of life give the redeemed ones Eternal Life.