Divine Courtship

“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. John 6:44

We love because he first loved us.1 John 4.19

God can woo you both intellectually and emotionally. Today let us be sensitive to his endearments.

Woman a Biblical Profile

Key Verse:

So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them. (Genesis 1:27)

Introduction

The book of Genesis records the beginning of the world, of man and woman, of sin and God's plan for salvation, and the formation of the nations.

Origin Of Woman

The first chapter of Genesis describes the creation of the world. The second chapter tells of the creation of mankind with a specific reference to woman in 1:27. The main references describing the origin of woman are Genesis chapter 2:

And the Lord God said, it is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.

And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam and he slept; and He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh instead thereof;

And the rib, which the Lord God had taken from man, made He a woman, and brought her unto the man.

And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.

Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother and shall cleave unto his wife; and they shall be one flesh. (Genesis 2:18, 21-24)

The Bible reveals that woman was:

1. Created By God:
Genesis 2:7 states that man was created by God from the dust of the earth. God breathed into man (Adam) the breath of life, and he became a living soul. God decided it was not good for Adam to be alone (Genesis 2:22). God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, then He took one of his ribs and from it created the first woman who was named Eve.

Adam called his mate woman, which means "she-man" or "joined to man," because she was taken out of man. This is where the word "woman" originated.

2. Created In The Image Of God:

Genesis 1:26-27 documents that God created both male and female in His image:

And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness...So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them. (Genesis 1:26-27)


Mankind's First Responsibility

Adam and Eve were told by God to:

∙ Be fruitful.
∙ Multiply.
∙ Replenish the earth.
∙ Subdue the earth.
∙ Have dominion over every living thing on earth. (Genesis 1:28)

Interestingly God's first command to man and woman was to "be fruitful." Spiritual fruitfulness is a Biblical concept traced from this initial command to the final harvest among the nations prophesied in the closing book of Revelation.

Adam and Eve were to be fruitful in each area of their triune nature, physically, spiritually, and mentally as they replenished the earth, subdued and took dominion over it.

Woman's Relationship To God

Woman was created by God, in the image of God, with an eternal soul (Genesis 2:7) related to God in a special union. This relationship is spiritual because God is a spirit (John 4:24). God enjoyed a spiritual relationship with Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:8). This union was broken due to man's fall into sin, but God provided a plan to restore man's spiritual relationship with his Creator.

Woman's Relationship To Man

The relationship of woman to man was one of:

1. LOVE:

The creation of woman from man is an example of the type of relationship that would later exist between Jesus Christ and the Church. While Adam slept, his side was opened and woman was created. Centuries later Jesus Christ hung on the cross for the sins of all mankind and through the great sleep of His death the Church was created. Christ's side was pierced with a spear and there came forth a creative flow of blood to redeem and water to purify the Church:

...Even as Christ also loved the Church, and gave Himself for it;

That He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word. (Ephesians 5:25-26)

The creation of woman speaks of a love relationship, similar to that which exists between Christ and the Church..

2. COMPANIONSHIP:

God said it was not good for man to be alone. He intended for man and woman to be companions.

3. HELPFULNESS:

God said He would create a "help meet" for man (Genesis 2:18). The same Hebrew word for help meet, Azyer, occurs forty times in the Old Testament and is often used to speak of God as helper of His people. The word does not mean subjection, as God is certainly not subject to man. Rather, it pictures a giving, loving, caring, relationship of help similar to that which exists between God and man.

4. COMMITMENT:

Genesis 2:24 speaks of the relationship of commitment between man and woman. The man is to:

Leave his father and mother: Mental commitment.
Cleave unto his wife: Emotional commitment.
They shall be one flesh: Physical commitment.

Love, companionship, commitment, and a mutual helping relationship are qualities of the union God designed between man and woman.

Godly Parenting P.A.T.H. part two

If you enjoyed the first part of Tommy Hilliker's article on Godly parenting I am sure you are interested in reading the second part - 'God’s P.A.T.H. for parenting: part two'.

This is a must read for all parents and future parents. Hilliker concludes the article with the last two letters in P.A.T.H., Training and Helping.

Click the title of this post to read the second part of God's P.A.T.H. for parenting

What ways are we training our children intentionally?
How are we helping our children develop godly habits?

Copy and paste the link below to access the article if clicking on the title of this blog does not work for you.

http://legacy.pastors.com/rwmt/article.asp?ArtID=11427

Godly Parenting thru P. A. T. H.

Are we as parents helping our children to set the right path for their lives. All parents ask this question at some time or the other. Everything we say, do, and don't do speak volumes to our children. Tommy Hilliker of Saddleback Church's recently wrote a great article titled 'God’s P.A.T.H. for parenting: part one' about helping our children find the right path.


P.A.T.H. includes four key directions:

Provide a spiritual foundation for your family.
Accept your children unconditionally.
Train them intentionally.
Help them develop healthy godly habits.

Guys this is a must read. To access the article just click on the title of this post. To navigate back to my blog click on the back button on the top left hand corner of the page you are reading.


You can also copy and paste the link below to read the article. Let me know if you enjoyed/found the article useful.

http://legacy.pastors.com/rwmt/article.asp?ArtID=11427

part two of the article will also be be posted soon.

Why did Christ take human form?

Let us examine the Scripture and see just one of the purposes. The first book of John (1 John 3:8) as well as the Book of Hebrews (Hebrews 2:14) speaks of the main purpose that Christ was manifested. Here too I have followed my usual practice of referring more than one version to get a clear picture of the original intent of the Biblical writers.

 1 John 3:8 [But] he who commits sin [who practices evildoing] is of the devil [takes his character from the evil one], for the devil has sinned (violated the divine law) from the beginning. The reason the Son of God was made manifest (visible) was to undo (destroy, loosen, and dissolve) the works the devil [has done]. (AMP)


 He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work.(NIV)


 So, my dear children, don't let anyone divert you from the truth. It's the person who acts right who is right, just as we see it lived out in our righteous Messiah. Those who make a practice of sin are straight from the Devil, the pioneer in the practice of sin. The Son of God entered the scene to abolish the Devil's ways. (1 John 3.7-8 MSG)

Here we see that God came and dwelled among us in the visible so that He may undo all the works of the evil one.

 Hebrews 2:14 Since, therefore, [these His] children share in flesh and blood [in the physical nature of human beings], He [Himself] in a similar manner partook of the same [nature], that by [going through] death He might bring to nought and make of no effect him who had the power of death--that is, the devil—(AMP)

 Since the children are made of flesh and blood, it's logical that the Savior took on flesh and blood in order to rescue them by his death. By embracing death, taking it into himself, he destroyed the Devil's hold on death and freed all who cower through life, scared to death of death. (Hebrews 2:14 -15 MSG)

 Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil (NIV)

The verse in Hebrews confirms that Christ Jesus had to take the same form as man to destroy the evil one’s strangle hold over His children.

Alleluia to the Lord.

Why can the demonic realm "not touch us"?

To answer this question it is best to examine two key verses in the Bible -1 John 4:4 & 1 John 5:18. I have quoted four different Bible versions viz. NIV, KJV, AMP & MSG for in-depth understanding.


 1 John 4:4You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. (NIV)

 Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. (KJV)

 Little children, you are of God [you belong to Him] and have [already] defeated and overcome them [the agents of the antichrist], because He Who lives in you is greater (mightier) than he who is in the world. (AMP)

 My dear children, you come from God and belong to God. You have already won a big victory over those false teachers, for the Spirit in you is far stronger than anything in the world. These people belong to the Christ-denying world. They talk the world's language and the world eats it up. But we come from God and belong to God. Anyone who knows God understands us and listens. The person who has nothing to do with God will, of course, not listen to us. This is another test for telling the Spirit of Truth from the spirit of deception. (1 John 4:4-6 MSG)

The above verse makes it clear that those who are in Christ have victory over the demonic realm.

 1 John 5:18 We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the one who was born of God keeps him safe, and the evil one cannot harm him. (NIV)

 We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not. (KJV)

 We know [absolutely] that anyone born of God does not [deliberately and knowingly] practice committing sin, but the One Who was begotten of God carefully watches over and protects him [Christ's divine presence within him preserves him against the evil], and the wicked one does not lay hold (get a grip) on him or touch [him]. (AMP)

 We know that none of the God-begotten makes a practice of sin—fatal sin. The God-begotten are also the God-protected. The Evil One can't lay a hand on them. We know that we are held firm by God; it's only the people of the world who continue in the grip of the Evil One. And we know that the Son of God came so we could recognize and understand the truth of God—what a gift!—and we are living in the Truth itself, in God's Son, Jesus Christ. This Jesus is both True God and Real Life. Dear children, be on guard against all clever facsimiles. (1 John 5:18-21MSG)

So if we have victory over the demonic realm, how can it overcome or “touch us”? Dear beloved in Christ it can not!

The Creation Of Woman

Many people and incidents of the Old Testament are "types" of spiritual truths revealed in the New Testament. When we speak of a Biblical type, we refer to the fact that certain incidents recorded in the Scripture are not only important in themselves, but are examples of even greater spiritual truths. The study of types is an important form of Bible study.

The creation of woman from man is an example of the type of relationship that would later exist between Jesus Christ and the Church. While Adam slept, his side was opened and woman was created. Down the centuries Jesus Christ hung on the cross for the sins of all mankind. Through the great sleep of His death the Church was created. Christ's side was pierced with a spear and there came forth a creative flow of blood to redeem and water to purify the Church:

...just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,

to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,
(Ephesians 5:25-26)

The creation of woman speaks of the love (agape) relationship, similar to that which exists between Christ and the Church. This is a deep, enduring, spiritual love, not a sensual relationship based on external charm or beauty.

So sisters, today forget not the Love that FATHER has for you.

Modesty in Church

In a recent article of Zion’s Messiah Magazine contributor Tikva Michael wrote, “The goal behind dressing modestly is to help others focus on our character and inner beauty without being distracted by what we wear”. He continued, "“Modesty helps us find the Godly spark in ourselves and in others. The manner in which we dress, speak, and conduct ourselves encourages this process. . .”

Modesty is a trait that is certainly admirable and sits well on christians and non-christains alike. It is more so in our conversations and dressing. I was motivated to speak out on this because of the constant snide remarks one hears as well as my personal observations on the blatant lack of modesty in dressing in our churches -both traditional as well as new generational.

Let me leave you with this verse in 1 Cor 10.23-24 where Paul speaks of a believer's freedom - "Everything is permissible"—but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible"—but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.

Shalom

Blessings for Obedience

Deuteronomy 28

1 If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. 2 All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the LORD your God:

3 You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.

4 The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks.

5 Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed.

6 You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out.

7 The LORD will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven.

8 The LORD will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The LORD your God will bless you in the land he is giving you.

9 The LORD will establish you as his holy people, as he promised you on oath, if you keep the commands of the LORD your God and walk in his ways. 10 Then all the peoples on earth will see that you are called by the name of the LORD, and they will fear you. 11 The LORD will grant you abundant prosperity—in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your ground—in the land he swore to your forefathers to give you.

12 The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. 13 The LORD will make you the head, not the tail. If you pay attention to the commands of the LORD your God that I give you this day and carefully follow them, you will always be at the top, never at the bottom. 14 Do not turn aside from any of the commands I give you today, to the right or to the left, following other gods and serving them.

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.