Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. (Psalms 2:3,4)
The people of today may be willing to receive the good news of the blood atonement. The atonement is something that benefits man. But receiving the lordship of Christ is another matter. It is not obvious how submission to the kingship of Christ benefits us. In fact, such submission to the will of God in Christ does away with our so-called liberty. The humanists of today recognize this and resist Christianity with all their power.
Mankind is bent on freeing itself from every inconvenient rule. How willing will it be to become the bondslave of Christ? Are the Christian people of today willing to become the bondslaves of Christ? Is the Wife of the Lamb ready to accept Jesus as her unqualified Lord? Or does she expect to direct the Lord by her will?
It is ironic that the "New Age" teaching, which proclaims a counterfeit of the Kingdom Age that is coming, also teaches union-union with God and nature. The "New Age" teaches also that man is a god and can become an integral part of God Almighty. The difference in the New Age teaching and the Gospel of the Kingdom is that the Gospel requires stern, total obedience to Christ while the New Age doctrine stresses absolute liberty to follow every inclination of the "god" who is in us, that is, the god that is our self.
The end result of the Gospel of the Kingdom, the Gospel that teaches stern obedience to Christ, is the liberty of the children of God, a liberty, joy, and glory that exceeds all the hopes and dreams of mankind.
The end result of the New Age gospel, the gospel that teaches we are free to do as we please, is the chains of sin, Satan, and our self-will. In addition, the future of those who disobey Christ is terrifying beyond human comprehension.
Satan promises liberty to those who follow him. The truth is, Satan and those who follow him already are in chains and shall continue to be in chains throughout eternity.
The thousand-year Kingdom Age, which has been termed the Millennium, will be one of spreading the rule of Jesus to the nations of saved peoples of the earth. The holy city will not descend to the earth until first there has been an age of image and union during which the nations of the saved, and God's elect as well, are brought into total submission to the will and moral image of God as expressed in the Lord Jesus Christ.
The process of producing image and union involves suffering. It is through suffering that we cease from sin and self-will and become submissive to the will of God.
The concept of the kingship of Christ is beginning to enter the Christian Church. We conceive of Christ as the loving Savior, the Helper, the gentle Shepherd. It is difficult for us to receive Jesus as a real King with absolute authority.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Thursday, December 17, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #17
And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.(John 10:28)
The day of life. We now are in the day of life. Much Gospel work is being carried forward in our time. There is considerable chaos and confusion as the "fish" are subjected to the teachings of one group and then another. Some are entertaining the fish. Others are warning them of the wrath to come.
There also is a return to the concept of true, cross-carrying discipleship. This is part of the Divine preparation of the saints who will give the worldwide testimony, and also of the army of Christ that will invade the earth in the Day of the Lord.
We have a better understanding today of the message of eternal life. The traditional goal of salvation has been eternal residence in Heaven. Now we can see that the message of Christ and His Apostles is not eternal residence in Heaven but eternal life. Our eyes are fixed on the coming of the Lord and the day of resurrection rather than on dying and going to Heaven. The emphasis is on the coming of the Kingdom of God to the earth, not the flight of the Church to Heaven.
There is the awesome realization that we are entering a period of transition that will bring mankind from one creative day to the next. Such a transition means we can expect much Divinely appointed preparatory work, chaos, confusion, and also murderous opposition from people who are deriving satisfaction from the old day. Some of us will gain an appreciation for the people of past eras who stood firm during the uproar that always accompanies climactic changes in the Kingdom of God.
Can you imagine how the Jewish fishermen felt when Jesus informed them they had to eat His flesh and drink His blood in order to live? They had been taught from childhood that it is an abomination to the Lord for people to drink blood.
Can you imagine how Paul felt when the Holy Spirit impressed him that circumcision no longer was part of God's covenant with man? Or how the other Jews felt when they heard Paul teach?
As undoubtedly was true of the people of past time, we never thought we would be faced with radical change.
But the transition from day five, the day of life, to day six, the day of image and union, is beginning now. The Kingdom of God is at hand.
In order to keep from being shipwrecked during a period of transition we must be careful to stay close to the written Word of God, the holy Scriptures.
Perhaps the first concept we need to establish from the Scriptures is the coming emphasis on God's Kingdom, rule, and will. The work of the two witnesses who announce the day of image and union will be different from the type of Gospel ministry to which we are accustomed. The stress will pass from how people are being benefited to how God is being benefited, how His will is being brought into view in the earth. The two witnesses will proclaim a total change of the government of the world.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The day of life. We now are in the day of life. Much Gospel work is being carried forward in our time. There is considerable chaos and confusion as the "fish" are subjected to the teachings of one group and then another. Some are entertaining the fish. Others are warning them of the wrath to come.
There also is a return to the concept of true, cross-carrying discipleship. This is part of the Divine preparation of the saints who will give the worldwide testimony, and also of the army of Christ that will invade the earth in the Day of the Lord.
We have a better understanding today of the message of eternal life. The traditional goal of salvation has been eternal residence in Heaven. Now we can see that the message of Christ and His Apostles is not eternal residence in Heaven but eternal life. Our eyes are fixed on the coming of the Lord and the day of resurrection rather than on dying and going to Heaven. The emphasis is on the coming of the Kingdom of God to the earth, not the flight of the Church to Heaven.
There is the awesome realization that we are entering a period of transition that will bring mankind from one creative day to the next. Such a transition means we can expect much Divinely appointed preparatory work, chaos, confusion, and also murderous opposition from people who are deriving satisfaction from the old day. Some of us will gain an appreciation for the people of past eras who stood firm during the uproar that always accompanies climactic changes in the Kingdom of God.
Can you imagine how the Jewish fishermen felt when Jesus informed them they had to eat His flesh and drink His blood in order to live? They had been taught from childhood that it is an abomination to the Lord for people to drink blood.
Can you imagine how Paul felt when the Holy Spirit impressed him that circumcision no longer was part of God's covenant with man? Or how the other Jews felt when they heard Paul teach?
As undoubtedly was true of the people of past time, we never thought we would be faced with radical change.
But the transition from day five, the day of life, to day six, the day of image and union, is beginning now. The Kingdom of God is at hand.
In order to keep from being shipwrecked during a period of transition we must be careful to stay close to the written Word of God, the holy Scriptures.
Perhaps the first concept we need to establish from the Scriptures is the coming emphasis on God's Kingdom, rule, and will. The work of the two witnesses who announce the day of image and union will be different from the type of Gospel ministry to which we are accustomed. The stress will pass from how people are being benefited to how God is being benefited, how His will is being brought into view in the earth. The two witnesses will proclaim a total change of the government of the world.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Monday, December 14, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #16
The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. (Isaiah 40:3)
The day of separation.
There is confusion today in the relationship between the Church and the world. The way of the Lord has not been made straight as yet, but the coming persecution and Divine glory will result in the separating of the Wife of the Lamb from the world spirit. Following the example of Abraham our father, we are not to take a shoestring from the world. We are not of the world.
The day of dry ground.
There is confusion concerning the development of the third day, the day of dry ground. Extremism in the teaching of Divine grace has left numerous Christians with the impression that God is overlooking the sins of the believers. The Gospel of the Kingdom is seen as a means of evading moral responsibility rather than what it is-the opportunity for forgiveness coupled with the Divine wisdom and power to enable us to keep the moral law.
Much deception is abroad in the land but Christ in His goodness is picking out disciples from every church and bringing us back to the original Gospel of the Kingdom, in which the cross is central to our viewpoint-not only the cross of Jesus but also the personal cross of the disciple. The Lord Jesus is giving us the desire to forsake all and follow Him-even to death.
The day of revelation.
The day of revelation is continuing as Christ is being formed in us. We understand by experience how the Father and the Son are One because we are being created part of that Oneness. The devout saint is beginning to realize that marriage to the Lord is the highest of all callings.
One destructive error of our time is the belief that the Lord Jesus is our servant. Self-love is creating a new gospel in which Christ is compelled to do what we say. The Lord Jesus is seen as the servant of the churches-someone who exists in order to cater to our every desire. We need to behold the galactic Christ who holds the angels of the churches in the right hand of His omnipotence.
Faith is being advanced as a supernatural principle by which we can gain material advantages. God is seen as love only and not wrath. The severity of God is not being presented adequately. As a result the believers are not working out their own salvation with fear and trembling. Suffering is regarded as an abomination that never should fall on the believers. In actuality, however, suffering is part of the redemptive process.
Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; (I Peter 4:1)
We must have a fresh revelation of the majesty of the Godhead. Let us pray God grants one before multitudes of "believers" awake to the terrifying awareness they are in the hands of the consuming Fire of Israel, the memory of whom causes the demons to cry out in fear.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The day of separation.
There is confusion today in the relationship between the Church and the world. The way of the Lord has not been made straight as yet, but the coming persecution and Divine glory will result in the separating of the Wife of the Lamb from the world spirit. Following the example of Abraham our father, we are not to take a shoestring from the world. We are not of the world.
The day of dry ground.
There is confusion concerning the development of the third day, the day of dry ground. Extremism in the teaching of Divine grace has left numerous Christians with the impression that God is overlooking the sins of the believers. The Gospel of the Kingdom is seen as a means of evading moral responsibility rather than what it is-the opportunity for forgiveness coupled with the Divine wisdom and power to enable us to keep the moral law.
Much deception is abroad in the land but Christ in His goodness is picking out disciples from every church and bringing us back to the original Gospel of the Kingdom, in which the cross is central to our viewpoint-not only the cross of Jesus but also the personal cross of the disciple. The Lord Jesus is giving us the desire to forsake all and follow Him-even to death.
The day of revelation.
The day of revelation is continuing as Christ is being formed in us. We understand by experience how the Father and the Son are One because we are being created part of that Oneness. The devout saint is beginning to realize that marriage to the Lord is the highest of all callings.
One destructive error of our time is the belief that the Lord Jesus is our servant. Self-love is creating a new gospel in which Christ is compelled to do what we say. The Lord Jesus is seen as the servant of the churches-someone who exists in order to cater to our every desire. We need to behold the galactic Christ who holds the angels of the churches in the right hand of His omnipotence.
Faith is being advanced as a supernatural principle by which we can gain material advantages. God is seen as love only and not wrath. The severity of God is not being presented adequately. As a result the believers are not working out their own salvation with fear and trembling. Suffering is regarded as an abomination that never should fall on the believers. In actuality, however, suffering is part of the redemptive process.
Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; (I Peter 4:1)
We must have a fresh revelation of the majesty of the Godhead. Let us pray God grants one before multitudes of "believers" awake to the terrifying awareness they are in the hands of the consuming Fire of Israel, the memory of whom causes the demons to cry out in fear.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Saturday, December 12, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #15
For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. (Galatians 6:8)
If we Christians after having been sealed by the Lord continue to live in the appetites of our body we will be clothed with corruption instead of eternal life in the Day of the Lord.
One of the main purposes of the present age is to produce a group of saints who have attained the early resurrection from the dead. These will appear with the Lord when He returns. They will judge the nations of the earth and also the sinners of the churches.
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? (I Corinthians 6:2)
To execute judgment upon all [sinners in the churches], and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him. (Jude 1:15)
If we are willing to allow the Lord to sow our present body to the death of the cross, a robe of righteousness will be formed as the resurrection life of Jesus enters us. Then, when He returns, our resurrected mortal remains will be clothed with righteousness, immortality, and glory.
The fifth day, the day of life, is working now as men are saved from the waters of mankind and are sealed by the Holy Spirit for the time when their bodies will be made alive by the Spirit. The fifth day will have its fulfillment in the new heaven and earth reign of Christ as the "pure river of water of life, clear as crystal" proceeds "from the Throne of God and of the Lamb" (Revelation 22:1).
In addition to being representative of our life in the heavenlies, the birds of the fifth creative day suggest the ministry of angels which, no doubt, will become increasingly prominent as we approach the Day of Christ. Angels were mentioned several times by the Apostle Paul and are active in the events described in the Book of Revelation. The more our life is focused on the heavenlies the more we become aware of angelic activity.
In the present hour, five creative days are working:
The day of unveiling.
The development of the material creation still is being carried forward by the almighty power of the word of God. People are being born. Earthquakes, volcanoes, erosion, continental drift, are shaping the contours of the land. Mankind is learning how to subdue nature, how to cope with such problems as harmful bacteria and food shortages.
The wheat and the tares are coming to maturity. What is in Satan's heart and mind is being unveiled in the increasing perversity and wickedness of the nations of the earth. The self-centeredness of the believers in Christ is causing them to want to be little gods, to use the gifts and graces of Christ for their own pleasure and security; to sell what they have received to buy the favor of the world.
The true saints are determined to overcome the world, Satan, and their own self-will. They have the goal of the first resurrection before them and they are bearing their cross behind Jesus. The line is being drawn between those who belong to the Lord and those who do not.
The outlines of the plan of God concerning the restoration of physical Israel can be seen more clearly.
The wisdom of God is being unveiled.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
If we Christians after having been sealed by the Lord continue to live in the appetites of our body we will be clothed with corruption instead of eternal life in the Day of the Lord.
One of the main purposes of the present age is to produce a group of saints who have attained the early resurrection from the dead. These will appear with the Lord when He returns. They will judge the nations of the earth and also the sinners of the churches.
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? (I Corinthians 6:2)
To execute judgment upon all [sinners in the churches], and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him. (Jude 1:15)
If we are willing to allow the Lord to sow our present body to the death of the cross, a robe of righteousness will be formed as the resurrection life of Jesus enters us. Then, when He returns, our resurrected mortal remains will be clothed with righteousness, immortality, and glory.
The fifth day, the day of life, is working now as men are saved from the waters of mankind and are sealed by the Holy Spirit for the time when their bodies will be made alive by the Spirit. The fifth day will have its fulfillment in the new heaven and earth reign of Christ as the "pure river of water of life, clear as crystal" proceeds "from the Throne of God and of the Lamb" (Revelation 22:1).
In addition to being representative of our life in the heavenlies, the birds of the fifth creative day suggest the ministry of angels which, no doubt, will become increasingly prominent as we approach the Day of Christ. Angels were mentioned several times by the Apostle Paul and are active in the events described in the Book of Revelation. The more our life is focused on the heavenlies the more we become aware of angelic activity.
In the present hour, five creative days are working:
The day of unveiling.
The development of the material creation still is being carried forward by the almighty power of the word of God. People are being born. Earthquakes, volcanoes, erosion, continental drift, are shaping the contours of the land. Mankind is learning how to subdue nature, how to cope with such problems as harmful bacteria and food shortages.
The wheat and the tares are coming to maturity. What is in Satan's heart and mind is being unveiled in the increasing perversity and wickedness of the nations of the earth. The self-centeredness of the believers in Christ is causing them to want to be little gods, to use the gifts and graces of Christ for their own pleasure and security; to sell what they have received to buy the favor of the world.
The true saints are determined to overcome the world, Satan, and their own self-will. They have the goal of the first resurrection before them and they are bearing their cross behind Jesus. The line is being drawn between those who belong to the Lord and those who do not.
The outlines of the plan of God concerning the restoration of physical Israel can be seen more clearly.
The wisdom of God is being unveiled.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Friday, December 11, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #14
Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. (Isaiah 60:5)
God views the saved as being fish drawn from the sea of mankind.
When the Lord Jesus returns to earth, the fountains of living water will be opened in those in whom the Father and the Son are dwelling, those who have become the Throne of God and of the Lamb. The water of life will flow from them into the dead sea of mankind and all that is in the sea will live.
And it shall come to pass, that every thing that liveth, which moveth, whithersoever the rivers shall come, shall live: and there shall be a very great multitude of fish, because these waters shall come thither: for they shall be healed; and every thing shall live whither the river cometh. (Ezekiel 47:9)
But what of the birds during the fifth day, the day of life?
Whenever Christ is born in us our new inner nature is lifted to the right hand of God, as we noticed in the day of separation. Our life is hidden with Christ in God. During the past two thousand years of the Gospel message there has been a planting of the heavens with Christ. Christ is being enlarged in Heaven as each believer is added to Him.
It is the Lord's will that after we receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit we walk in heavenly places with Christ, placing our interests and hope there with Him at the right hand of God. At one time we dwelled in the natural world, but now the Lord would draw us upward as part of Christ's resurrection from the dead and ascension to the right hand of God.
When Christ appears we shall appear with Him in glory provided He indeed is our life (Colossians 3:4). Christ who appears the second time will be greatly enlarged in comparison with His first appearance to the world, for now He is both in and with a vast company whose Life He is. He is our Life. Our new Life already is in Heaven in and with the Lord Jesus, the result of the day of separation (Ephesians 2:6; Colossians 3:1-4).
The Lord Jesus came to bring us eternal life in spirit, in soul, and in body. The goal of the Christian salvation is the redemption, the adoption, the resurrection of the mortal body.
But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken [make alive] your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. (Romans 8:11)
And not only they [the material creation], but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. (Romans 8:23)
Paul was striving to attain the first resurrection from the dead-the resurrection to bodily righteousness, immortality, and glory.
If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection [Greek, out-resurrection] of the dead. (Philippians 3:11)
The saints of today have been sealed by the Holy Spirit for the day of redemption, the day when God is ready to adopt our mortal body by making it alive with His Holy Spirit. We have the "firstfruits of the Spirit" meaning we shall be the first of mankind to experience eternal life in spirit, soul, and body.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
God views the saved as being fish drawn from the sea of mankind.
When the Lord Jesus returns to earth, the fountains of living water will be opened in those in whom the Father and the Son are dwelling, those who have become the Throne of God and of the Lamb. The water of life will flow from them into the dead sea of mankind and all that is in the sea will live.
And it shall come to pass, that every thing that liveth, which moveth, whithersoever the rivers shall come, shall live: and there shall be a very great multitude of fish, because these waters shall come thither: for they shall be healed; and every thing shall live whither the river cometh. (Ezekiel 47:9)
But what of the birds during the fifth day, the day of life?
Whenever Christ is born in us our new inner nature is lifted to the right hand of God, as we noticed in the day of separation. Our life is hidden with Christ in God. During the past two thousand years of the Gospel message there has been a planting of the heavens with Christ. Christ is being enlarged in Heaven as each believer is added to Him.
It is the Lord's will that after we receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit we walk in heavenly places with Christ, placing our interests and hope there with Him at the right hand of God. At one time we dwelled in the natural world, but now the Lord would draw us upward as part of Christ's resurrection from the dead and ascension to the right hand of God.
When Christ appears we shall appear with Him in glory provided He indeed is our life (Colossians 3:4). Christ who appears the second time will be greatly enlarged in comparison with His first appearance to the world, for now He is both in and with a vast company whose Life He is. He is our Life. Our new Life already is in Heaven in and with the Lord Jesus, the result of the day of separation (Ephesians 2:6; Colossians 3:1-4).
The Lord Jesus came to bring us eternal life in spirit, in soul, and in body. The goal of the Christian salvation is the redemption, the adoption, the resurrection of the mortal body.
But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken [make alive] your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. (Romans 8:11)
And not only they [the material creation], but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. (Romans 8:23)
Paul was striving to attain the first resurrection from the dead-the resurrection to bodily righteousness, immortality, and glory.
If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection [Greek, out-resurrection] of the dead. (Philippians 3:11)
The saints of today have been sealed by the Holy Spirit for the day of redemption, the day when God is ready to adopt our mortal body by making it alive with His Holy Spirit. We have the "firstfruits of the Spirit" meaning we shall be the first of mankind to experience eternal life in spirit, soul, and body.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Thursday, December 10, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #13
At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you. (John 14:20)
The mystery of the Godhead still is unfolding. We can state there are three Gods in One and one God in Three. But we cannot understand the Three in One because in the material realm in which we live it is impossible for three to truly be one.
The Jews have a problem with the "threeness" of God because the unchanging, incorruptible Word states that God is One. How then can He be Three? A logical question, and difficult to answer because of the limitations to our understanding imposed by our experience.
The understanding will be given to us, not in the form of an improved theological statement but by experience. As Christ is formed in us, and we become one in Him in the Father, we comprehend how we retain our identity and uniqueness even though we lose our individuality (our own will and life apart from Jesus).
The revelation of God can come to us only as we experience God. It is in the experiencing of God that we know in our spirit that God totally is One and totally is Three. More importantly, the awareness comes that we are in Christ and Christ is in God.
The Lord Jesus teaches us of the Father:
All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him. (Matthew 11:27)
As we demonstrate our love for Christ by doing what He commanded, the Father and the Son enter us and make Their abode with us. It is by the indwelling that we understand the mystery of God.
The fourth day, the day of revelation, will have its fulfillment in the new heaven and earth reign of Christ, as the Fullness of God and of His redemption and Kingdom is revealed in the new Jerusalem.
The Day of Life
The concept of life is that of filling our spirit, soul, and body with the incorruptible resurrection Glory of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Holy Spirit and the Apostles are the two witnesses of the day of life. The Holy Spirit and the Apostles of the Lamb are bearing witness to us through the written Word in the hour in which we are living.
And we [the apostles] are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him. (Acts 5:32)
The work of the fifth day is to bring eternal life to each of the elect, to each individual whom the Father has given to Christ. We receive eternal life by eating the Bread from Heaven-Christ. When we believe in Him and receive Him we pass from death to life. This is the Word given by the Holy Spirit through the Apostles, and to us through the Epistles of the Apostles.
On the fifth day of creation, as described in the first chapter of the Book of Genesis, fish and birds were brought forth. The fish symbolize the Gospel work of fishing for the souls of men. For two thousand years the net has been let down. Multitudes have been touched with eternal life. Christ makes us fishers of men.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The mystery of the Godhead still is unfolding. We can state there are three Gods in One and one God in Three. But we cannot understand the Three in One because in the material realm in which we live it is impossible for three to truly be one.
The Jews have a problem with the "threeness" of God because the unchanging, incorruptible Word states that God is One. How then can He be Three? A logical question, and difficult to answer because of the limitations to our understanding imposed by our experience.
The understanding will be given to us, not in the form of an improved theological statement but by experience. As Christ is formed in us, and we become one in Him in the Father, we comprehend how we retain our identity and uniqueness even though we lose our individuality (our own will and life apart from Jesus).
The revelation of God can come to us only as we experience God. It is in the experiencing of God that we know in our spirit that God totally is One and totally is Three. More importantly, the awareness comes that we are in Christ and Christ is in God.
The Lord Jesus teaches us of the Father:
All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him. (Matthew 11:27)
As we demonstrate our love for Christ by doing what He commanded, the Father and the Son enter us and make Their abode with us. It is by the indwelling that we understand the mystery of God.
The fourth day, the day of revelation, will have its fulfillment in the new heaven and earth reign of Christ, as the Fullness of God and of His redemption and Kingdom is revealed in the new Jerusalem.
The Day of Life
The concept of life is that of filling our spirit, soul, and body with the incorruptible resurrection Glory of the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Holy Spirit and the Apostles are the two witnesses of the day of life. The Holy Spirit and the Apostles of the Lamb are bearing witness to us through the written Word in the hour in which we are living.
And we [the apostles] are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him. (Acts 5:32)
The work of the fifth day is to bring eternal life to each of the elect, to each individual whom the Father has given to Christ. We receive eternal life by eating the Bread from Heaven-Christ. When we believe in Him and receive Him we pass from death to life. This is the Word given by the Holy Spirit through the Apostles, and to us through the Epistles of the Apostles.
On the fifth day of creation, as described in the first chapter of the Book of Genesis, fish and birds were brought forth. The fish symbolize the Gospel work of fishing for the souls of men. For two thousand years the net has been let down. Multitudes have been touched with eternal life. Christ makes us fishers of men.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Wednesday, December 09, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #12
No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. (John 1:18)
In the first three days the two witnesses were two people: Adam and Eve; Abraham and Sarah; Moses and Aaron. The two witnesses of the fourth day, the day of revelation, are the Father and the Son. The two witnesses of the last three days will be God and man, as we shall see.
The significance of the fourth day is that the Godhead was revealed. We learn to refer to God as our Father. We learn also that Christ is the Eternal Life who has been with the Father from eternity.
Every saved human being must witness the unveiling of God's purpose, must submit to separation from evil, and must receive dry ground on which to stand. He also must experience the revelation of God-who He is, His will for mankind, and His will for the individual person.
The fourth day is the revelation of God. It was not Jesus who originated the words of the Sermon on the Mount, it was the Father dwelling in Him who conceived those universal Words and who worked the miracles. In the Lord Jesus Christ dwells all the fullness of the Godhead in bodily form. In Christ we behold the Person and Life of the Father.
The angels themselves desire to look into the things of the Gospel, for God has appeared in the flesh. The appearing of Christ to the world is the most important event in the history of mankind. It also is a revelation to the spirit realm-to the elect angels and to the fallen angels as well.
The fourth furnishing of the Tabernacle of the Congregation was the solid gold Lampstand, the light of the Holy Place. The witness of the fourth day is purely Divine (solid gold). It is the manifestation of God Himself: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Mankind has seen the God of Heaven in Christ. Now we understand much more about our Creator. We are commanded to be baptized into the name of the Father because we are His children. We are commanded to be baptized into the name of the Son because He is our Lord and Savior. We are commanded to be baptized into the name of the Holy Spirit because He is the eternal resurrection Life in us-the third Person of the Godhead.
Four days are working simultaneously:
The day of unveiling of the purpose of God is continuing. We are drawing near to the return of the Lord Jesus. The setting up of the Kingdom of God is clearer, more real to us. The mystery is unfolding in the Church.
The day of separating the Church from the world, the eternal from the temporary, the heavenly from the animal and satanic, is continuing. People still are being called out of the world to follow Jesus.
The day of dry ground is continuing. Christ is being formed in the saints. The godly remnant are learning to lean on the Lord in every matter. The saints are growing in righteousness, holiness, and obedience to God.
The day of revelation of the Divine Godhead is looking forward to the goal-the first resurrection. The Spirit of God is calling the firstfruits of the Bride to come away with the Lord. We understand God's intention to be that we enter total union with the Lord Jesus, becoming an eternal part of Him.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
In the first three days the two witnesses were two people: Adam and Eve; Abraham and Sarah; Moses and Aaron. The two witnesses of the fourth day, the day of revelation, are the Father and the Son. The two witnesses of the last three days will be God and man, as we shall see.
The significance of the fourth day is that the Godhead was revealed. We learn to refer to God as our Father. We learn also that Christ is the Eternal Life who has been with the Father from eternity.
Every saved human being must witness the unveiling of God's purpose, must submit to separation from evil, and must receive dry ground on which to stand. He also must experience the revelation of God-who He is, His will for mankind, and His will for the individual person.
The fourth day is the revelation of God. It was not Jesus who originated the words of the Sermon on the Mount, it was the Father dwelling in Him who conceived those universal Words and who worked the miracles. In the Lord Jesus Christ dwells all the fullness of the Godhead in bodily form. In Christ we behold the Person and Life of the Father.
The angels themselves desire to look into the things of the Gospel, for God has appeared in the flesh. The appearing of Christ to the world is the most important event in the history of mankind. It also is a revelation to the spirit realm-to the elect angels and to the fallen angels as well.
The fourth furnishing of the Tabernacle of the Congregation was the solid gold Lampstand, the light of the Holy Place. The witness of the fourth day is purely Divine (solid gold). It is the manifestation of God Himself: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Mankind has seen the God of Heaven in Christ. Now we understand much more about our Creator. We are commanded to be baptized into the name of the Father because we are His children. We are commanded to be baptized into the name of the Son because He is our Lord and Savior. We are commanded to be baptized into the name of the Holy Spirit because He is the eternal resurrection Life in us-the third Person of the Godhead.
Four days are working simultaneously:
The day of unveiling of the purpose of God is continuing. We are drawing near to the return of the Lord Jesus. The setting up of the Kingdom of God is clearer, more real to us. The mystery is unfolding in the Church.
The day of separating the Church from the world, the eternal from the temporary, the heavenly from the animal and satanic, is continuing. People still are being called out of the world to follow Jesus.
The day of dry ground is continuing. Christ is being formed in the saints. The godly remnant are learning to lean on the Lord in every matter. The saints are growing in righteousness, holiness, and obedience to God.
The day of revelation of the Divine Godhead is looking forward to the goal-the first resurrection. The Spirit of God is calling the firstfruits of the Bride to come away with the Lord. We understand God's intention to be that we enter total union with the Lord Jesus, becoming an eternal part of Him.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Tuesday, December 08, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #11
There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. (John 1:6,7)
The first three days are working simultaneously. The day of unveiling still is developing. The day of separation, of the calling out of the elect from the ranks of mankind, still is developing. The day of dry ground, of giving God's creatures the strength to live righteously, still is developing.
The Day of Revelation
The fourth day we have termed the day of revelation.
The concept of revelation is that of perceiving God and our relationship to Him.
John was not of the fourth day, the day of revelation. John was of the third day, the day of dry ground. John was of the Law of Moses.
John and Jesus were on the earth at the same time. There is a period of transition when one creative day is blending into the next. This is why the present hour is so significant: it is the period of transition from the fifth creative day, the day of life, to the sixth creative day, the day of image and union.
In the time of John there was the usual chaotic situation and time of preparation. The Roman Empire was governing the land of Israel. John was part of the Divine preparation for the introduction of a new era. The fourth creative day, the day of revelation, was at hand.
The two witnesses of the fourth day appeared. The two witnesses of the fourth day, the day of revelation, are the Father and the Son:
It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two men is true. I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me. (John 8:17,18)
The fourth day of creation, as described in the first chapter of the Book of Genesis, included the bringing forth of the sun, the moon, and the stars. These lights are for signs and seasons and govern day and night.
Speaking figuratively, Christ is the sun, the Church is the moon, and the conquering saints-those who turn many to righteousness-are God's stars. All this light proceeds from God in Christ in the saints.
Throughout the long night of earth's history it has been the saints, not the Church, who have guided men. The moon illumines the earth at night and sheds light on our pathway. But men find their direction from the stars. We think of Noah, Abraham, Daniel, Moses, Elijah, Peter, Paul, James and others. These are God's eternal witnesses. They are the "stars" who have guided us through the long night that precedes the dawning of the Day of the Lord. They are the examples whom we use to teach people the righteous ways of the Lord.
The sun, moon, and stars remind us of the twelfth chapter of the Book of Revelation. The all-important issue of Christianity is the bringing forth of the Son, Christ, in the personalities of the members of the Body of Christ. The ministries of the Church are in travail today as Christ is being formed in us. Christ is the Light of the world. We shall become the light of the world, the eternal Light that the new Jerusalem is, when Christ has been formed in us.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The first three days are working simultaneously. The day of unveiling still is developing. The day of separation, of the calling out of the elect from the ranks of mankind, still is developing. The day of dry ground, of giving God's creatures the strength to live righteously, still is developing.
The Day of Revelation
The fourth day we have termed the day of revelation.
The concept of revelation is that of perceiving God and our relationship to Him.
John was not of the fourth day, the day of revelation. John was of the third day, the day of dry ground. John was of the Law of Moses.
John and Jesus were on the earth at the same time. There is a period of transition when one creative day is blending into the next. This is why the present hour is so significant: it is the period of transition from the fifth creative day, the day of life, to the sixth creative day, the day of image and union.
In the time of John there was the usual chaotic situation and time of preparation. The Roman Empire was governing the land of Israel. John was part of the Divine preparation for the introduction of a new era. The fourth creative day, the day of revelation, was at hand.
The two witnesses of the fourth day appeared. The two witnesses of the fourth day, the day of revelation, are the Father and the Son:
It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two men is true. I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me. (John 8:17,18)
The fourth day of creation, as described in the first chapter of the Book of Genesis, included the bringing forth of the sun, the moon, and the stars. These lights are for signs and seasons and govern day and night.
Speaking figuratively, Christ is the sun, the Church is the moon, and the conquering saints-those who turn many to righteousness-are God's stars. All this light proceeds from God in Christ in the saints.
Throughout the long night of earth's history it has been the saints, not the Church, who have guided men. The moon illumines the earth at night and sheds light on our pathway. But men find their direction from the stars. We think of Noah, Abraham, Daniel, Moses, Elijah, Peter, Paul, James and others. These are God's eternal witnesses. They are the "stars" who have guided us through the long night that precedes the dawning of the Day of the Lord. They are the examples whom we use to teach people the righteous ways of the Lord.
The sun, moon, and stars remind us of the twelfth chapter of the Book of Revelation. The all-important issue of Christianity is the bringing forth of the Son, Christ, in the personalities of the members of the Body of Christ. The ministries of the Church are in travail today as Christ is being formed in us. Christ is the Light of the world. We shall become the light of the world, the eternal Light that the new Jerusalem is, when Christ has been formed in us.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Monday, December 07, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #10
Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. (I John 3:4)
The moral law, the Character of God, was in existence before the universe was created. The eternal moral law ruled the conscience of Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel. Its negative dimension was written clearly in the Ten Commandments, which are a judgment on angels and men.
The new covenant provides forgiveness for sins-sins against the eternal moral law of God, and also Divine virtue and power (in the body and blood of Christ and the Holy Spirit of God) by which the believers become able to refrain from doing what is forbidden by the holy law and able also to practice that which God's moral Nature requires-the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22,23).
The moral law of God is fulfilled in loving God with all our being and our neighbor as ourselves. These are the two great laws of the Kingdom of God. These principles always are disobeyed by Satan and his followers, and their disobedience always brings them into the bondage of the chains of eternal darkness.
The Ten Commandments and the accompanying ordinances, which are based on the two great laws of the Kingdom of God, were solid ground given to people so they could walk uprightly in the Presence of the Lord.
The eternal moral law governs us today. It has governed all God's creatures from eternity and will continue to govern them to eternity because it proceeds from God's eternal Nature. The greatest possible catastrophe would be for God's eternal Nature to change in any manner.
The destructive error of contemporary Christianity is the belief that the grace of God in Christ somehow diminishes the force of the eternal moral law of God; that Christians, because of their identification with Christ, are not bound to obey the principles of righteousness, holiness, and obedience to God.
All Christians who do not obey the moral law, that which is written in the conscience of mankind and set forth in the Ten Commandments, the unadulterated worship of God, honesty, truthfulness, kindness, mercy, moral purity, the love of God and of one's neighbor, are judged by the Lord and suffer because of their sins.
The Ten Commandments are a guide to us and a judgment on our conduct until we enter Christ and He enters us. Christ is an infinitely more comprehensive expression of the eternal moral law than is true of the Ten Commandments.
The new covenant does not do away with the Ten Commandments. Rather, it is the placing of the law of God, in a marvelously amplified form, in our minds and the writing of it in our hearts.
For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: (Hebrews 8:10)
The moral law of God will continue to govern men and angels, finding its complete manifestation in the new heaven and earth reign of Christ. There the law of God is embodied in the holy city, the new Jerusalem, the Wife of the Lamb. The holy city, the center of government of the Kingdom of God, the visible, tangible expression of the holy Character of God Almighty, will illuminate the material creation forever.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Dr. Thompson has recently finished a book entitled Heaven-God's Wonderful World. It was written to comfort terminally ill children and their parents, and anyone else who may be afraid of death.
To order a copy of Heaven-God's Wonderful World, please click here. Thanks!
The moral law, the Character of God, was in existence before the universe was created. The eternal moral law ruled the conscience of Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel. Its negative dimension was written clearly in the Ten Commandments, which are a judgment on angels and men.
The new covenant provides forgiveness for sins-sins against the eternal moral law of God, and also Divine virtue and power (in the body and blood of Christ and the Holy Spirit of God) by which the believers become able to refrain from doing what is forbidden by the holy law and able also to practice that which God's moral Nature requires-the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22,23).
The moral law of God is fulfilled in loving God with all our being and our neighbor as ourselves. These are the two great laws of the Kingdom of God. These principles always are disobeyed by Satan and his followers, and their disobedience always brings them into the bondage of the chains of eternal darkness.
The Ten Commandments and the accompanying ordinances, which are based on the two great laws of the Kingdom of God, were solid ground given to people so they could walk uprightly in the Presence of the Lord.
The eternal moral law governs us today. It has governed all God's creatures from eternity and will continue to govern them to eternity because it proceeds from God's eternal Nature. The greatest possible catastrophe would be for God's eternal Nature to change in any manner.
The destructive error of contemporary Christianity is the belief that the grace of God in Christ somehow diminishes the force of the eternal moral law of God; that Christians, because of their identification with Christ, are not bound to obey the principles of righteousness, holiness, and obedience to God.
All Christians who do not obey the moral law, that which is written in the conscience of mankind and set forth in the Ten Commandments, the unadulterated worship of God, honesty, truthfulness, kindness, mercy, moral purity, the love of God and of one's neighbor, are judged by the Lord and suffer because of their sins.
The Ten Commandments are a guide to us and a judgment on our conduct until we enter Christ and He enters us. Christ is an infinitely more comprehensive expression of the eternal moral law than is true of the Ten Commandments.
The new covenant does not do away with the Ten Commandments. Rather, it is the placing of the law of God, in a marvelously amplified form, in our minds and the writing of it in our hearts.
For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: (Hebrews 8:10)
The moral law of God will continue to govern men and angels, finding its complete manifestation in the new heaven and earth reign of Christ. There the law of God is embodied in the holy city, the new Jerusalem, the Wife of the Lamb. The holy city, the center of government of the Kingdom of God, the visible, tangible expression of the holy Character of God Almighty, will illuminate the material creation forever.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Dr. Thompson has recently finished a book entitled Heaven-God's Wonderful World. It was written to comfort terminally ill children and their parents, and anyone else who may be afraid of death.To order a copy of Heaven-God's Wonderful World, please click here. Thanks!
Saturday, December 05, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #9
There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name was Job; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed [shunned] evil. (Job 1:1)
What was true of Job that God considered him to be "perfect and upright"?
This expression signifies that Job, who lived before the day of Moses, was adhering to the eternal moral law of God. Before the Ten Commandments were issued the moral law was written in the conscience of mankind.
The moral law is based on spiritual realities. The moral law is the Nature of God Himself. It expresses God's Character.
Satan, the chief of the fallen angels, is the father of liars and murderers. God is Truth and Love. Before the earth was created, some of the angels of Heaven, including personages of high rank, decided they would practice behavior contrary to the righteous and holy Nature of the most high God. The Ten Commandments are God's judgment on the actions of Satan and his followers.
The Ten Commandments are an initial witness to the earth of the coming rule of the Kingdom of God, of what has been and always will be the Character of God.
The desire of every righteous man and woman of God from the time of Abel has been to please God, to walk uprightly before Him. The path of the righteous has been a shining light leading to the day when there is a new world in which righteousness prevails in every creature.
The Apostle Paul cried out for deliverance from the power of sin, from the waters of evil. The heroes of faith always look for the city that has foundations. The righteous always are restorers of paths to walk in.
The earth and its resources, and all its inhabitants, belong to the Lord. But He has founded the earth on the seas and floods.
The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods. (Psalms 24:1,2)
There is no solid foundation in the swirling waters of the material creation. The only true path, the only enduring way for the feet of people is the Rock, the Lord Jesus Christ. We cannot gain our moral footing until we rest our trust on the Lord Jesus. Everything and everyone else is transitory and shifting-completely unreliable.
The land of Egypt was in moral chaos. Hundreds of demon gods were being worshiped. The Egyptians led a sensuous existence, similar in many respects to the wealthy nations of our own time.
Suddenly the "waters were gathered together" and two witnesses appeared-Moses and Aaron. They bore a powerful testimony before the creatures of Heaven and earth of the Nature of the one true and living God (Deuteronomy 32:1; Ephesians 3:10).
Mount Sinai groaned in travail and the awful Word was brought forth. The moral law, the Nature of God written in the conscience of mankind, was engraved by the finger of God in two tables of stone.
Now the race of mankind had solid moral ground on which to walk, a means of walking uprightly before the Lord in spite of the counsel of rebellious angels. The fruit of righteousness came forth from this newly exposed "earth" as the righteous and holy Nature of the Lord was revealed in the Law, in the priesthood, and in the structure and activities of the Tabernacle of the Congregation.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
What was true of Job that God considered him to be "perfect and upright"?
This expression signifies that Job, who lived before the day of Moses, was adhering to the eternal moral law of God. Before the Ten Commandments were issued the moral law was written in the conscience of mankind.
The moral law is based on spiritual realities. The moral law is the Nature of God Himself. It expresses God's Character.
Satan, the chief of the fallen angels, is the father of liars and murderers. God is Truth and Love. Before the earth was created, some of the angels of Heaven, including personages of high rank, decided they would practice behavior contrary to the righteous and holy Nature of the most high God. The Ten Commandments are God's judgment on the actions of Satan and his followers.
The Ten Commandments are an initial witness to the earth of the coming rule of the Kingdom of God, of what has been and always will be the Character of God.
The desire of every righteous man and woman of God from the time of Abel has been to please God, to walk uprightly before Him. The path of the righteous has been a shining light leading to the day when there is a new world in which righteousness prevails in every creature.
The Apostle Paul cried out for deliverance from the power of sin, from the waters of evil. The heroes of faith always look for the city that has foundations. The righteous always are restorers of paths to walk in.
The earth and its resources, and all its inhabitants, belong to the Lord. But He has founded the earth on the seas and floods.
The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods. (Psalms 24:1,2)
There is no solid foundation in the swirling waters of the material creation. The only true path, the only enduring way for the feet of people is the Rock, the Lord Jesus Christ. We cannot gain our moral footing until we rest our trust on the Lord Jesus. Everything and everyone else is transitory and shifting-completely unreliable.
The land of Egypt was in moral chaos. Hundreds of demon gods were being worshiped. The Egyptians led a sensuous existence, similar in many respects to the wealthy nations of our own time.
Suddenly the "waters were gathered together" and two witnesses appeared-Moses and Aaron. They bore a powerful testimony before the creatures of Heaven and earth of the Nature of the one true and living God (Deuteronomy 32:1; Ephesians 3:10).
Mount Sinai groaned in travail and the awful Word was brought forth. The moral law, the Nature of God written in the conscience of mankind, was engraved by the finger of God in two tables of stone.
Now the race of mankind had solid moral ground on which to walk, a means of walking uprightly before the Lord in spite of the counsel of rebellious angels. The fruit of righteousness came forth from this newly exposed "earth" as the righteous and holy Nature of the Lord was revealed in the Law, in the priesthood, and in the structure and activities of the Tabernacle of the Congregation.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Friday, December 04, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #8
And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the Lord hath given you to eat. (Exodus 16:15)
The relationship between manna (food) and the law of God is seen in the New Testament.
Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. (John 6:32,33)
Man can keep the eternal moral law of God only as the Lord Jesus, the Bread of God, is formed in him. As we eat the flesh of Christ and drink His blood, His Substance, Virtue, and Life are formed in us. In this manner, the Torah of God, God's law, is engraved in our mind and heart. Then we keep the eternal moral law of God by nature.
Man can live uprightly only as he has dry ground (Christ born in him) to stand on, and the Word of God (Christ) to feed on continually.
Sinners often make resolutions to "do better," to stop this behavior or that behavior. But they soon fall back into their old habits. The reason is, they have no "dry ground" on which to stand and walk. They may attempt to stand and do what is right but the ground under their feet is marshy. They have little strength to support their purpose.
Saved man receives dry ground to stand on and Divine food to eat.
Abraham looked for a city that has foundations.
The earth is that on which mankind walks. Before the waters under the heaven were gathered into one place there was no earth on which to walk or from which vegetation could grow. There must be earth before the food of the material creation can be brought into being.
The manna stopped falling when the Israelites came to the land of promise. They could not grow food in the wilderness but lived by a miracle. They were given angel's food, the corn of Heaven. When they came to the "dry ground" of their inheritance they were able to grow food.
And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them of the corn of heaven. Man did eat angels' food: he sent them meat to the full. (Psalms 78:24,25)
And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year. (Joshua 5:12)
The Scriptures have much to say about uprightness, about righteous behavior. With the exception of the presentation of the Person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ, the subject of upright behavior, of adherence to the eternal moral law of God, may be the main topic of the Scriptures. Satan has stung mankind in the heel so people cannot walk uprightly.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The relationship between manna (food) and the law of God is seen in the New Testament.
Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. (John 6:32,33)
Man can keep the eternal moral law of God only as the Lord Jesus, the Bread of God, is formed in him. As we eat the flesh of Christ and drink His blood, His Substance, Virtue, and Life are formed in us. In this manner, the Torah of God, God's law, is engraved in our mind and heart. Then we keep the eternal moral law of God by nature.
Man can live uprightly only as he has dry ground (Christ born in him) to stand on, and the Word of God (Christ) to feed on continually.
Sinners often make resolutions to "do better," to stop this behavior or that behavior. But they soon fall back into their old habits. The reason is, they have no "dry ground" on which to stand and walk. They may attempt to stand and do what is right but the ground under their feet is marshy. They have little strength to support their purpose.
Saved man receives dry ground to stand on and Divine food to eat.
Abraham looked for a city that has foundations.
The earth is that on which mankind walks. Before the waters under the heaven were gathered into one place there was no earth on which to walk or from which vegetation could grow. There must be earth before the food of the material creation can be brought into being.
The manna stopped falling when the Israelites came to the land of promise. They could not grow food in the wilderness but lived by a miracle. They were given angel's food, the corn of Heaven. When they came to the "dry ground" of their inheritance they were able to grow food.
And had rained down manna upon them to eat, and had given them of the corn of heaven. Man did eat angels' food: he sent them meat to the full. (Psalms 78:24,25)
And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year. (Joshua 5:12)
The Scriptures have much to say about uprightness, about righteous behavior. With the exception of the presentation of the Person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ, the subject of upright behavior, of adherence to the eternal moral law of God, may be the main topic of the Scriptures. Satan has stung mankind in the heel so people cannot walk uprightly.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Thursday, December 03, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #7
To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: (Colossians 1:27)
The mystery of God, which is Christ in us, is unfolding continually. People still are being born and then born again. The seals are being removed from the Scriptures and from the hearts of people. Understanding of the eternal purpose of God is being given to the godly remnant of believers.
Also, the work of the second day, the separating of the firstfruits of the Bride from the remainder of God's Israel, the calling of God's Israel from the ranks of mankind, and the lifting of the new nature of the believers to the right hand of God, are all proceeding.
Both of these days will find their consummation, their joyful realization, in the new heaven and earth reign of Christ.
And the city [the Church, the new Jerusalem, the Wife of the Lamb] had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the Glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. (Revelation 21:23,24)
The Day of Dry Ground
The concept of dry ground is that of the strength to walk uprightly before the Lord.
On the third day the waters were gathered together into one place and the dry land, the earth, appeared. Also, vegetation and fruit trees came forth from the earth. The earth and its fruitfulness are emphasized.
Every righteous human being must submit to the separation from evil, darkness, and death. In addition, every righteous human being must receive dry ground on which to stand.
Righteous behavior requires strength and is possible only to the degree that we are strong in the Lord. Dry ground and nourishing food give man the foundation and strength to walk uprightly before the Lord.
Food came into being on the third day of creation. An even more important food is the Word coming continually from the mouth of God.
And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live. (Deuteronomy 8:2,3)
Man is to live by the food, the commandment, the expression from the mouth of the Lord.
The third aspect of the sojourn of Israel from Egypt to Canaan was their setting out from the east bank of the Red Sea. The children of Jacob had been on "sinking sand" while in Egypt. They had no strength of purpose, nothing firm to stand on as a race. Moses and Aaron led them into the wilderness. In spite of the forbidding environment, the Israelites in the wilderness were now a nation. This was the beginning of their "dry ground."
At this time the manna began to fall from the heaven and continued until they were ready to enter Canaan.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The mystery of God, which is Christ in us, is unfolding continually. People still are being born and then born again. The seals are being removed from the Scriptures and from the hearts of people. Understanding of the eternal purpose of God is being given to the godly remnant of believers.
Also, the work of the second day, the separating of the firstfruits of the Bride from the remainder of God's Israel, the calling of God's Israel from the ranks of mankind, and the lifting of the new nature of the believers to the right hand of God, are all proceeding.
Both of these days will find their consummation, their joyful realization, in the new heaven and earth reign of Christ.
And the city [the Church, the new Jerusalem, the Wife of the Lamb] had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the Glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. (Revelation 21:23,24)
The Day of Dry Ground
The concept of dry ground is that of the strength to walk uprightly before the Lord.
On the third day the waters were gathered together into one place and the dry land, the earth, appeared. Also, vegetation and fruit trees came forth from the earth. The earth and its fruitfulness are emphasized.
Every righteous human being must submit to the separation from evil, darkness, and death. In addition, every righteous human being must receive dry ground on which to stand.
Righteous behavior requires strength and is possible only to the degree that we are strong in the Lord. Dry ground and nourishing food give man the foundation and strength to walk uprightly before the Lord.
Food came into being on the third day of creation. An even more important food is the Word coming continually from the mouth of God.
And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live. (Deuteronomy 8:2,3)
Man is to live by the food, the commandment, the expression from the mouth of the Lord.
The third aspect of the sojourn of Israel from Egypt to Canaan was their setting out from the east bank of the Red Sea. The children of Jacob had been on "sinking sand" while in Egypt. They had no strength of purpose, nothing firm to stand on as a race. Moses and Aaron led them into the wilderness. In spite of the forbidding environment, the Israelites in the wilderness were now a nation. This was the beginning of their "dry ground."
At this time the manna began to fall from the heaven and continued until they were ready to enter Canaan.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Wednesday, December 02, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #6
And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. (Genesis 1:7)
The waters under the firmament symbolize human life, the life of the flesh. The waters above the firmament represent the eternal resurrection life of Christ. Heaven, so to speak, is keeping Christ, and those whose life He is, separate from the nations of the earth. Soon He and His holy ones will return to be glorified together in the eyes of mankind.
The term church means "called-out from" (separated from). All those who are of Christ are not of the world. They have been called out from the world and now are an integral part of Christ.
The two witnesses of the second day, the day of separation, are Abraham and Sarah. Abraham and Sarah were called out of Ur. Abraham and Sarah embodied in themselves the day of separation and were the matrix, the mold of the new day.
The second day is that of the division between the world and the Church of Christ. It is the day of Divine election, the day of the Israel of God.
The Church of Christ has been taken from the people, the "waters" of the world. But the Church no longer is of the world. The world hates the Church because it is not of the world. The highest, most impenetrable wall in the universe of God is the wall between the world and the Church. It is the massive, ornate wall surrounding the new Jerusalem.
The churches (with some exceptions) always are seeking to be joined to the world. This is why they have only a little spiritual power and testimony. We can be strong, like Samson, and of benefit to the Kingdom of God as long as we are willing to be separated to God for His special purposes.
When Paul spoke of grace, of election, of the Israel of God, he often referred back to Abraham and Sarah. The Gospel of Christ, of the Kingdom of God, was preached to Abraham before the Law of Moses was given. Christ is the Seed, the Recipient of the promise made to the faithful Abraham. The Law of Moses was a guard against sin until the Seed, to whom the promise was made, came into view.
Before God spoke to Abraham the nations were in chaos. The language barrier had been erected by the Lord so that disorganization and confusion would attend the efforts of people to build their own kingdom apart from the Kingdom of God-the Kingdom that God will bring into being during the sixth day, the day of image and union.
Then God created the Church:
Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. (Genesis 12:1-3)
The work of separation of the second day continues to the present hour. Now there are two days working simultaneously. The day of unveiling is working.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The waters under the firmament symbolize human life, the life of the flesh. The waters above the firmament represent the eternal resurrection life of Christ. Heaven, so to speak, is keeping Christ, and those whose life He is, separate from the nations of the earth. Soon He and His holy ones will return to be glorified together in the eyes of mankind.
The term church means "called-out from" (separated from). All those who are of Christ are not of the world. They have been called out from the world and now are an integral part of Christ.
The two witnesses of the second day, the day of separation, are Abraham and Sarah. Abraham and Sarah were called out of Ur. Abraham and Sarah embodied in themselves the day of separation and were the matrix, the mold of the new day.
The second day is that of the division between the world and the Church of Christ. It is the day of Divine election, the day of the Israel of God.
The Church of Christ has been taken from the people, the "waters" of the world. But the Church no longer is of the world. The world hates the Church because it is not of the world. The highest, most impenetrable wall in the universe of God is the wall between the world and the Church. It is the massive, ornate wall surrounding the new Jerusalem.
The churches (with some exceptions) always are seeking to be joined to the world. This is why they have only a little spiritual power and testimony. We can be strong, like Samson, and of benefit to the Kingdom of God as long as we are willing to be separated to God for His special purposes.
When Paul spoke of grace, of election, of the Israel of God, he often referred back to Abraham and Sarah. The Gospel of Christ, of the Kingdom of God, was preached to Abraham before the Law of Moses was given. Christ is the Seed, the Recipient of the promise made to the faithful Abraham. The Law of Moses was a guard against sin until the Seed, to whom the promise was made, came into view.
Before God spoke to Abraham the nations were in chaos. The language barrier had been erected by the Lord so that disorganization and confusion would attend the efforts of people to build their own kingdom apart from the Kingdom of God-the Kingdom that God will bring into being during the sixth day, the day of image and union.
Then God created the Church:
Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. (Genesis 12:1-3)
The work of separation of the second day continues to the present hour. Now there are two days working simultaneously. The day of unveiling is working.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Tuesday, December 01, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #5
And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. (Revelation 21:2)
The first day will attain its consummation in the seventh day, the day of rest. The day of rest is the day of the new heaven and earth reign of Christ. The greatest unveiling of all will be the descent of the Bride of the Lamb through the new sky to be settled forever on the new earth. This is the coming of the Throne of God to the earth, the clothing of the life and joy of Paradise with material form.
Whether there will be subsequent unveilings after that remains to be seen.
The product of the first day is the coming forth of what is in God's mind.
The significance and joy of the material creation is found in people. The material creation, including the people that are the reason for its existence, will be present throughout the day of rest, the day of eternity. The body of the Lord Jesus Christ that was raised from the dead, and the resurrected bodies of the saints, will live forever.
The material creation is the house, the clothing of the Kingdom of God. It is a dead house, inanimate spiritually, without light, life, or joy until Christ enters it. Then it becomes wonderful and eternal.
The material form of the eternal Kingdom of God was created on the first day and will persevere through to the new heaven and earth reign of the Lord Jesus.
The product of each of the first six days is eternal and will find its consummation, its meaning, its joyful realization, in the seventh day, the day of rest.
The Day of Separation
The concept of separating is that of removing what is heavenly from what is earthly, what is more of God from what is less of God.
On the second day the firmament of heaven was created, and the firmament separated the waters under the firmament from the waters above the firmament.
One of the separations mankind experiences involves the members of the royal priesthood. They have been marked out from the beginning of the creation. At some point in the life of each of the elect, the Spirit of God separates him from the remainder of mankind. He is added to the church.
Another separation, related to the first, takes place in every individual whom God saves. It is the removal of all that is of God and Heaven from all that is animal and lawless. Each day, some aspect of the removal of eternal life from darkness and death takes place in those whom God has called to be the judges of the world and who are cooperating with their calling.
As soon as Christ is born in us our new inner nature ascends to dwell in Christ at the right hand of the Father. Our personality is divided into two parts by the spiritual Heaven. Part of us is on earth while the reborn part of us is in Heaven with Jesus.
When the Lord returns, the resurrected part of our personality will return with Him and take up our flesh and bones. Heaven will have been joined to earth. This is the Kingdom of God.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The first day will attain its consummation in the seventh day, the day of rest. The day of rest is the day of the new heaven and earth reign of Christ. The greatest unveiling of all will be the descent of the Bride of the Lamb through the new sky to be settled forever on the new earth. This is the coming of the Throne of God to the earth, the clothing of the life and joy of Paradise with material form.
Whether there will be subsequent unveilings after that remains to be seen.
The product of the first day is the coming forth of what is in God's mind.
The significance and joy of the material creation is found in people. The material creation, including the people that are the reason for its existence, will be present throughout the day of rest, the day of eternity. The body of the Lord Jesus Christ that was raised from the dead, and the resurrected bodies of the saints, will live forever.
The material creation is the house, the clothing of the Kingdom of God. It is a dead house, inanimate spiritually, without light, life, or joy until Christ enters it. Then it becomes wonderful and eternal.
The material form of the eternal Kingdom of God was created on the first day and will persevere through to the new heaven and earth reign of the Lord Jesus.
The product of each of the first six days is eternal and will find its consummation, its meaning, its joyful realization, in the seventh day, the day of rest.
The Day of Separation
The concept of separating is that of removing what is heavenly from what is earthly, what is more of God from what is less of God.
On the second day the firmament of heaven was created, and the firmament separated the waters under the firmament from the waters above the firmament.
One of the separations mankind experiences involves the members of the royal priesthood. They have been marked out from the beginning of the creation. At some point in the life of each of the elect, the Spirit of God separates him from the remainder of mankind. He is added to the church.
Another separation, related to the first, takes place in every individual whom God saves. It is the removal of all that is of God and Heaven from all that is animal and lawless. Each day, some aspect of the removal of eternal life from darkness and death takes place in those whom God has called to be the judges of the world and who are cooperating with their calling.
As soon as Christ is born in us our new inner nature ascends to dwell in Christ at the right hand of the Father. Our personality is divided into two parts by the spiritual Heaven. Part of us is on earth while the reborn part of us is in Heaven with Jesus.
When the Lord returns, the resurrected part of our personality will return with Him and take up our flesh and bones. Heaven will have been joined to earth. This is the Kingdom of God.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Monday, November 30, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #4
When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? (Job 38:7)
The heavenly host cried out in joy as the Father unveiled what was in His mind.
The firmament, space, invaded the waters so that part of the waters covered the surface of the earth and part were lifted above space to an incomprehensible distance.
The unveiling continued.
The waters on the surface of the earth were drawn together and land appeared. From the land, vegetation sprang forth.
Still the host of Heaven watched in awe, concentrating on the revelation of God's intention.
The great and small of marine life surged through the seas and winged creatures of all sorts increased on the earth. Soon the air was alive with the sight and sound of a variety of birds.
So much had been unveiled! But more was to come.
Insects crawled on the ground. Domestic cattle, the members of the cat family, and the huge land mammals milled about, claiming their territories.
The angels observed all this in joyful astonishment.
But the purpose of everything had not been revealed.
From the red clay of the ground appeared the man. Then the woman from the man. Creatures in the image and likeness of God, as intelligent as the angels but having a soul like the Soul of God, able to have fellowship with God, to judge like God, to unite with God in a manner possible to no angel.
Now the angels had a small understanding of God's intention. The holy angels worshiped. The dark angels began to scheme.
The "two witnesses" of the unveiling, Adam and Eve, were fashioned from the clay of the ground. God had in mind to bring forth creatures in His own image, capable of union, destined to be fruitful and to possess dominion over the material creation.
God's intention in creating the material realm was shown in bringing forth Adam and Eve. Otherwise, the material creation has no significance. Apart from human beings, the creation of the earth and the firmament has no meaning, no hope, no joy. Adam and Eve were the heralds of the new day-the first day of the seven with which we are dealing.
Adam and Eve embodied in themselves the new day and were the matrix, the mold in which the new day was formed.
God proclaimed that Adam and Eve would multiply and fill the earth, and subdue it. His power has brought into being the accomplishment of His eternal Word. Mankind has filled the earth and is in the process of subduing it.
The work of the first day, the day of unveiling, is continuing until the present hour. Every day, that which God has in mind becomes clearer. There yet are many surprises ahead for all of us-angels and men alike. The revealing of the sons of God, at the time Jesus returns to earth, will be the greatest unveiling of God's mind since the atonement made on the cross of Calvary. But there still will be more to come.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The heavenly host cried out in joy as the Father unveiled what was in His mind.
The firmament, space, invaded the waters so that part of the waters covered the surface of the earth and part were lifted above space to an incomprehensible distance.
The unveiling continued.
The waters on the surface of the earth were drawn together and land appeared. From the land, vegetation sprang forth.
Still the host of Heaven watched in awe, concentrating on the revelation of God's intention.
The great and small of marine life surged through the seas and winged creatures of all sorts increased on the earth. Soon the air was alive with the sight and sound of a variety of birds.
So much had been unveiled! But more was to come.
Insects crawled on the ground. Domestic cattle, the members of the cat family, and the huge land mammals milled about, claiming their territories.
The angels observed all this in joyful astonishment.
But the purpose of everything had not been revealed.
From the red clay of the ground appeared the man. Then the woman from the man. Creatures in the image and likeness of God, as intelligent as the angels but having a soul like the Soul of God, able to have fellowship with God, to judge like God, to unite with God in a manner possible to no angel.
Now the angels had a small understanding of God's intention. The holy angels worshiped. The dark angels began to scheme.
The "two witnesses" of the unveiling, Adam and Eve, were fashioned from the clay of the ground. God had in mind to bring forth creatures in His own image, capable of union, destined to be fruitful and to possess dominion over the material creation.
God's intention in creating the material realm was shown in bringing forth Adam and Eve. Otherwise, the material creation has no significance. Apart from human beings, the creation of the earth and the firmament has no meaning, no hope, no joy. Adam and Eve were the heralds of the new day-the first day of the seven with which we are dealing.
Adam and Eve embodied in themselves the new day and were the matrix, the mold in which the new day was formed.
God proclaimed that Adam and Eve would multiply and fill the earth, and subdue it. His power has brought into being the accomplishment of His eternal Word. Mankind has filled the earth and is in the process of subduing it.
The work of the first day, the day of unveiling, is continuing until the present hour. Every day, that which God has in mind becomes clearer. There yet are many surprises ahead for all of us-angels and men alike. The revealing of the sons of God, at the time Jesus returns to earth, will be the greatest unveiling of God's mind since the atonement made on the cross of Calvary. But there still will be more to come.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Sunday, November 29, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #3
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. 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. (Genesis 1:27,28)
The pattern of the seven days of Divine working is true of mankind and also of the individual Christian.
Perhaps if we examine the seven days we may gain a helpful understanding of what is taking place in our time.
The Day of the Lord, the sixth day, the day of making man in God's image and bringing him into restful union with God, the Millennium, the thousand-year Kingdom Age, is now at the door. A new day is at hand, and whenever a new day is at hand there is a season of unsettledness and preparation, a heralding of the new day, a bringing to pass of what has been proclaimed, and then the carrying out of the work of the new day throughout the creation.
The Day of Unveiling
The concept of unveiling is that of moving from what is unknown (darkness) to what is perceived (light). The counsels of God are hidden in His mind until He reveals them to Christ, and through Christ to us. Prophecy announces future circumstances but often in a puzzling form. We see in a mirror dimly. It is the actual coming to pass of the vision (the unveiling) that shows us clearly the Father's intention.
We have termed the first day the day of unveiling. As we examine the first chapter of the Book of Genesis we can see there was a time of preparation. The Spirit of God brooded on a formless earth. Then there was a spectacular exercise of God's power: light came into being and was separated from the darkness.
In the physical realm, darkness is the absence of light, so it is difficult to understand how light was separated from the darkness. Perhaps the spiritual and physical realms were in union in some manner, as evidenced by the presence of light for the first three days while as yet there were no sun, moon, or stars. Also, the spiritual tree of life grew from the material ground of Eden-another indication of the union of the spiritual and physical realms.
In the spirit realm, darkness and light dwell together and light must be separated from the darkness. When we come to the Lord Jesus, God creates light in us and then separates it from the darkness in us.
God knows all things from the beginning. Before any aspect of the material creation came into existence, God envisioned all He would do, including the creation of sons in His image.
The host of the spirit Heaven gathered in awe as they realized something new was to be brought into being.
God spoke! The physical heaven came into existence. The earth was summoned into being, covered with a blanket of water. God spoke again! The pure light of God flashed in the darkness and was separated from the darkness.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The pattern of the seven days of Divine working is true of mankind and also of the individual Christian.
Perhaps if we examine the seven days we may gain a helpful understanding of what is taking place in our time.
The Day of the Lord, the sixth day, the day of making man in God's image and bringing him into restful union with God, the Millennium, the thousand-year Kingdom Age, is now at the door. A new day is at hand, and whenever a new day is at hand there is a season of unsettledness and preparation, a heralding of the new day, a bringing to pass of what has been proclaimed, and then the carrying out of the work of the new day throughout the creation.
The Day of Unveiling
The concept of unveiling is that of moving from what is unknown (darkness) to what is perceived (light). The counsels of God are hidden in His mind until He reveals them to Christ, and through Christ to us. Prophecy announces future circumstances but often in a puzzling form. We see in a mirror dimly. It is the actual coming to pass of the vision (the unveiling) that shows us clearly the Father's intention.
We have termed the first day the day of unveiling. As we examine the first chapter of the Book of Genesis we can see there was a time of preparation. The Spirit of God brooded on a formless earth. Then there was a spectacular exercise of God's power: light came into being and was separated from the darkness.
In the physical realm, darkness is the absence of light, so it is difficult to understand how light was separated from the darkness. Perhaps the spiritual and physical realms were in union in some manner, as evidenced by the presence of light for the first three days while as yet there were no sun, moon, or stars. Also, the spiritual tree of life grew from the material ground of Eden-another indication of the union of the spiritual and physical realms.
In the spirit realm, darkness and light dwell together and light must be separated from the darkness. When we come to the Lord Jesus, God creates light in us and then separates it from the darkness in us.
God knows all things from the beginning. Before any aspect of the material creation came into existence, God envisioned all He would do, including the creation of sons in His image.
The host of the spirit Heaven gathered in awe as they realized something new was to be brought into being.
God spoke! The physical heaven came into existence. The earth was summoned into being, covered with a blanket of water. God spoke again! The pure light of God flashed in the darkness and was separated from the darkness.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Friday, November 27, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand, #2
And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. (Genesis 1:3)
The central characteristic of each of the seven days is as follows:
1. The heavens and the earth, light, and the separating of the light from the darkness.
2. The firmament of heaven, the separating of the lower waters from the upper waters.
3. The gathering together of the waters, the appearing of dry ground, and vegetation.
4. The sun, moon, and stars to separate the day from the night, for signs and seasons, to give light upon the earth, and to govern the day and night.
5. Fish and birds.
6. Land animals, mankind in God's image, male and female, fruitfulness, dominion.
7. The rest of God.
Drawing out what we believe to be the essence of these seven concepts we would set forth the seven eras of God's eternal plan as follows:
1. The day of unveiling.
2. The day of separation.
3. The day of dry ground.
4. The day of revelation.
5. The day of life.
6. The day of image and union
7. The day of rest.
Saved man will witness the unveiling of God's purpose.
Saved man will submit to separation from what is animal and from what is evil.
Saved man will receive dry ground on which to stand.
Saved man will experience the revelation of God-who He is, what His will is, and what is man's relationship to Him.
Saved man will be filled with eternal life.
Saved man will be formed in the moral image of Christ and brought into restful union with God.
Saved man will enter the day of rest.
Whenever we pass from one "day" of God's working to the next there is a season of preparation. The Spirit of God broods on circumstances that are chaotic in terms of what God envisions as being His eternal purpose in Christ. There is a period of unsettledness, and sometimes tribulation and persecution.
There also is an appearance of two witnesses. The witnesses proclaim the new day at hand. The witnesses embody the new day and are the matrix from which the new day comes into being. The Divine heralds bring Divine understanding, Divine revelation, Divine light.
There must be an exercise of the power of God in order to bring to pass what the light (the two witnesses) reveals to be the purpose of God. The new day is born in the creative wisdom and energy of God Almighty.
The work of the new day begins and continues until all the Father has determined in advance has been accomplished to His standard of perfection.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The central characteristic of each of the seven days is as follows:
1. The heavens and the earth, light, and the separating of the light from the darkness.
2. The firmament of heaven, the separating of the lower waters from the upper waters.
3. The gathering together of the waters, the appearing of dry ground, and vegetation.
4. The sun, moon, and stars to separate the day from the night, for signs and seasons, to give light upon the earth, and to govern the day and night.
5. Fish and birds.
6. Land animals, mankind in God's image, male and female, fruitfulness, dominion.
7. The rest of God.
Drawing out what we believe to be the essence of these seven concepts we would set forth the seven eras of God's eternal plan as follows:
1. The day of unveiling.
2. The day of separation.
3. The day of dry ground.
4. The day of revelation.
5. The day of life.
6. The day of image and union
7. The day of rest.
Saved man will witness the unveiling of God's purpose.
Saved man will submit to separation from what is animal and from what is evil.
Saved man will receive dry ground on which to stand.
Saved man will experience the revelation of God-who He is, what His will is, and what is man's relationship to Him.
Saved man will be filled with eternal life.
Saved man will be formed in the moral image of Christ and brought into restful union with God.
Saved man will enter the day of rest.
Whenever we pass from one "day" of God's working to the next there is a season of preparation. The Spirit of God broods on circumstances that are chaotic in terms of what God envisions as being His eternal purpose in Christ. There is a period of unsettledness, and sometimes tribulation and persecution.
There also is an appearance of two witnesses. The witnesses proclaim the new day at hand. The witnesses embody the new day and are the matrix from which the new day comes into being. The Divine heralds bring Divine understanding, Divine revelation, Divine light.
There must be an exercise of the power of God in order to bring to pass what the light (the two witnesses) reveals to be the purpose of God. The new day is born in the creative wisdom and energy of God Almighty.
The work of the new day begins and continues until all the Father has determined in advance has been accomplished to His standard of perfection.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Thursday, November 26, 2009
The Kingdom of God Is at Hand
Behold, the former things are come to pass, and new things do I declare: before they spring forth I tell you of them. (Isaiah 42:9)
The Lord Jesus is coming soon. We know that. The thousand-year Kingdom Age, the Millennium, will be a reality on the earth in the near future.
Most believers in the Lord Jesus Christ may understand this is true. What we may not understand is the kind of events that take place when God moves from one creative day to the next; what we can expect to happen during the period in which we are living.
Whenever we pass from one "day" of God's working to the next there is a season of preparation. The Spirit of God broods on circumstances that are chaotic in terms of what God envisions as being His eternal purpose in Christ. There is a period of unsettledness and sometimes tribulation and persecution.
There also is the appearance of two witnesses. The witnesses proclaim the new day at hand.
It is the purpose of Christ in the Church to bring the rule of God into the personality of every saved person on the earth. This is the work of the Kingdom-the bringing about of the doing of God's will in the earth as it now is performed in Heaven.
When we state that the Kingdom of God is at hand, that the Lord Jesus is coming soon to set up His rule on the earth, we are saying we are entering the period of transition from the fifth day of creation to the sixth day of creation. By day of creation we mean a period or segment of God's working as He proceeds toward the attainment of the eternal purpose He has determined in our Lord, Jesus Christ.
The original six days of creation of the universe, and the seventh day of Divine rest, are a foreshadowing of the seven eras of God's plan. Let us think for a moment about the days described in the first chapter of the Book of Genesis:
1. The creation of the heaven and the formless earth, the creation of light, and the separating of the light from the darkness.
2. The creation of the firmament, the separating of the waters below the heaven from the waters above the heaven.
3. The gathering together into one place of the waters, the appearance of the dry ground, and the bringing forth of vegetation.
4. The creation of the sun, moon, and stars to separate the day from the night, for signs and seasons, to give light, to rule the day and the night.
5. The creation of fish and birds.
6. The creation of land animals, and mankind-male and female, the assigning of fruitfulness and dominion to man.
7. God rested.
This is the description of the creation of the physical universe and also is an advance notice of what God intends to do, from the creating of the physical universe to the coming down from the new heaven of God in His tabernacle to dwell among mankind on the new earth.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The Lord Jesus is coming soon. We know that. The thousand-year Kingdom Age, the Millennium, will be a reality on the earth in the near future.
Most believers in the Lord Jesus Christ may understand this is true. What we may not understand is the kind of events that take place when God moves from one creative day to the next; what we can expect to happen during the period in which we are living.
Whenever we pass from one "day" of God's working to the next there is a season of preparation. The Spirit of God broods on circumstances that are chaotic in terms of what God envisions as being His eternal purpose in Christ. There is a period of unsettledness and sometimes tribulation and persecution.
There also is the appearance of two witnesses. The witnesses proclaim the new day at hand.
It is the purpose of Christ in the Church to bring the rule of God into the personality of every saved person on the earth. This is the work of the Kingdom-the bringing about of the doing of God's will in the earth as it now is performed in Heaven.
When we state that the Kingdom of God is at hand, that the Lord Jesus is coming soon to set up His rule on the earth, we are saying we are entering the period of transition from the fifth day of creation to the sixth day of creation. By day of creation we mean a period or segment of God's working as He proceeds toward the attainment of the eternal purpose He has determined in our Lord, Jesus Christ.
The original six days of creation of the universe, and the seventh day of Divine rest, are a foreshadowing of the seven eras of God's plan. Let us think for a moment about the days described in the first chapter of the Book of Genesis:
1. The creation of the heaven and the formless earth, the creation of light, and the separating of the light from the darkness.
2. The creation of the firmament, the separating of the waters below the heaven from the waters above the heaven.
3. The gathering together into one place of the waters, the appearance of the dry ground, and the bringing forth of vegetation.
4. The creation of the sun, moon, and stars to separate the day from the night, for signs and seasons, to give light, to rule the day and the night.
5. The creation of fish and birds.
6. The creation of land animals, and mankind-male and female, the assigning of fruitfulness and dominion to man.
7. God rested.
This is the description of the creation of the physical universe and also is an advance notice of what God intends to do, from the creating of the physical universe to the coming down from the new heaven of God in His tabernacle to dwell among mankind on the new earth.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Judgment and Rewards, #56
Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. (John 5:28,29)
Dear reader, when you are awakened from your sleep in the dust of the earth, what will be your recompense when you are judged?
Not once in the Gospel accounts, that we are aware, does the Lord Jesus permit or deny entrance into the Kingdom of God to any person on the basis of a theological statement of faith in Christ. The issue always is our conduct in the world.
When Christ exhorts the churches, as described in the second and third chapters of the Book of Revelation, He states repeatedly: "I know thy works."
According to the Gospel accounts and the Book of Revelation, Christ will not refer to anyone's position concerning the virgin birth, anyone's stance regarding a premillennial or postmillennial coming, or anyone's view of the holy Trinity. The great issue of the Kingdom of God is not theological understanding, nor will our understanding or lack of it carry much weight in the Kingdom.
The concern of the Day of the Lord is our behavior. Were we a good, kind, generous person, serving the Lord Jesus faithfully; or were we an evil, treacherous, grasping, selfish individual, walking in self-will and pride? God's requirements for His fellowship with people remain unchanged from the time of Adam and Eve.
The greatest single error in Christian understanding is the belief that the people of today have been exempted from God's standard of behavior because they have professed faith in Christ; that God will accept an assent to the facts of Christ's death and resurrection in place of righteous, holy, and obedient behavior (Ezekiel 18:1-32).
This may prove to be the greatest heresy of all. Is it possible that the churches can understand, before the Day of the Lord, that they are teaching and living that which God never will accept?
To what type of destiny is your behavior leading you? What are you sowing in this life?
If you have never come to Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, you must do so at once. The individual who rejects the salvation of the cross of Calvary will certainly come face to face with an angry Creator.
If you have been a Christian for a while, ask God today to give you a "report card." Ask Him to let you know in some manner how well you are pleasing Him. Ask the Father to enable you to prepare yourself to enter His royal Presence. Ask Christ to show you what to expect at His judgment seat. He will enable you to make corrections in your behavior now.
It will be too late to make corrections when you are standing before Him in the Day of the Lord.
Let us pray with David:
Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. (Psalms 139:23,24)
God desires to be your God. Would you like to become His son?
You can. You can become a true son of God, an heir of all of the works of God's hands.
You can, if that is what you desire above all else.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Dear reader, when you are awakened from your sleep in the dust of the earth, what will be your recompense when you are judged?
Not once in the Gospel accounts, that we are aware, does the Lord Jesus permit or deny entrance into the Kingdom of God to any person on the basis of a theological statement of faith in Christ. The issue always is our conduct in the world.
When Christ exhorts the churches, as described in the second and third chapters of the Book of Revelation, He states repeatedly: "I know thy works."
According to the Gospel accounts and the Book of Revelation, Christ will not refer to anyone's position concerning the virgin birth, anyone's stance regarding a premillennial or postmillennial coming, or anyone's view of the holy Trinity. The great issue of the Kingdom of God is not theological understanding, nor will our understanding or lack of it carry much weight in the Kingdom.
The concern of the Day of the Lord is our behavior. Were we a good, kind, generous person, serving the Lord Jesus faithfully; or were we an evil, treacherous, grasping, selfish individual, walking in self-will and pride? God's requirements for His fellowship with people remain unchanged from the time of Adam and Eve.
The greatest single error in Christian understanding is the belief that the people of today have been exempted from God's standard of behavior because they have professed faith in Christ; that God will accept an assent to the facts of Christ's death and resurrection in place of righteous, holy, and obedient behavior (Ezekiel 18:1-32).
This may prove to be the greatest heresy of all. Is it possible that the churches can understand, before the Day of the Lord, that they are teaching and living that which God never will accept?
To what type of destiny is your behavior leading you? What are you sowing in this life?
If you have never come to Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, you must do so at once. The individual who rejects the salvation of the cross of Calvary will certainly come face to face with an angry Creator.
If you have been a Christian for a while, ask God today to give you a "report card." Ask Him to let you know in some manner how well you are pleasing Him. Ask the Father to enable you to prepare yourself to enter His royal Presence. Ask Christ to show you what to expect at His judgment seat. He will enable you to make corrections in your behavior now.
It will be too late to make corrections when you are standing before Him in the Day of the Lord.
Let us pray with David:
Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. (Psalms 139:23,24)
God desires to be your God. Would you like to become His son?
You can. You can become a true son of God, an heir of all of the works of God's hands.
You can, if that is what you desire above all else.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Judgment and Rewards, #55
And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. (Luke 9:23)
Receiving the Gospel of Christ does not diminish God's demands on us, it increases God's demands on us. The new covenant does not make fewer demands on us than was true of the old. The new covenant makes far, far greater demands on the worshiper than has been true of any other covenant or relationship of God with people. Never before has it been true that God has required that we set aside our life and follow Him with a perfect heart. Yet this always has been true of those rare individuals, such as Abraham, who somehow gained a true perspective of man's relationship to God.
To whom much is given, of him shall much be required.
The heathen sinner will be beaten with few lashes.
The born-again, Spirit-filled believer who does not take up his or her cross and follow Christ with a pure heart will be beaten with many lashes.
Beaten when, where, with what kind of lashes?
We cannot say at this time. But we know the whipping will take place sometime, somewhere, and it will be painful!
We cannot state for certain the sun will rise in the morning, or if it does, that we will be alive to witness its rising.
But there is one thing we do know.
There is a time coming in the life of every individual when he or she will hear the voice of the Son of God. He will awaken from the dead, and then he will stand before Christ (for the Father has committed all judgment to the Son).
What will it be like when we stand before Christ?
Can you imagine the joy that will flood the face of Christ when He awakens Daniel, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Peter, John, Paul, John Wesley?
"Well done!" The bells of Heaven will echo the triumphant cry of praise and congratulations.
But other "believers" will face a wrathful Christ.
"You disobeyed me constantly. Many, many times I urged you to go into the harvest and labor for me. But you found one excuse after another.
"Do you see that multitude of souls waiting over there? They were to be your inheritance. Now I must deal with them in terms of their ignorance. Were it not for your disobedience, there would have come forth fine fruit for my table from among those people-precious souls who would have grown in faith and in the knowledge and love of God.
"You wicked servant! You are not worthy of the Kingdom of God. You took care of yourself on the earth, holding back the wages due to those who labored in your employ. You lived in luxury while others about you perished in spiritual and material poverty. But now many of them are rejoicing in the Kingdom of their Father while your inheritance will be misery and darkness.
"Take him away! Cast him into outer darkness. He will not be allowed to share in My glory."
If you do not tremble at this thought you probably are walking in deception. Your teachers may comfort you with the idea that you are in a dispensation of grace and no harm can come to you. They are deceived-blind leading the blind.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Receiving the Gospel of Christ does not diminish God's demands on us, it increases God's demands on us. The new covenant does not make fewer demands on us than was true of the old. The new covenant makes far, far greater demands on the worshiper than has been true of any other covenant or relationship of God with people. Never before has it been true that God has required that we set aside our life and follow Him with a perfect heart. Yet this always has been true of those rare individuals, such as Abraham, who somehow gained a true perspective of man's relationship to God.
To whom much is given, of him shall much be required.
The heathen sinner will be beaten with few lashes.
The born-again, Spirit-filled believer who does not take up his or her cross and follow Christ with a pure heart will be beaten with many lashes.
Beaten when, where, with what kind of lashes?
We cannot say at this time. But we know the whipping will take place sometime, somewhere, and it will be painful!
We cannot state for certain the sun will rise in the morning, or if it does, that we will be alive to witness its rising.
But there is one thing we do know.
There is a time coming in the life of every individual when he or she will hear the voice of the Son of God. He will awaken from the dead, and then he will stand before Christ (for the Father has committed all judgment to the Son).
What will it be like when we stand before Christ?
Can you imagine the joy that will flood the face of Christ when He awakens Daniel, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Peter, John, Paul, John Wesley?
"Well done!" The bells of Heaven will echo the triumphant cry of praise and congratulations.
But other "believers" will face a wrathful Christ.
"You disobeyed me constantly. Many, many times I urged you to go into the harvest and labor for me. But you found one excuse after another.
"Do you see that multitude of souls waiting over there? They were to be your inheritance. Now I must deal with them in terms of their ignorance. Were it not for your disobedience, there would have come forth fine fruit for my table from among those people-precious souls who would have grown in faith and in the knowledge and love of God.
"You wicked servant! You are not worthy of the Kingdom of God. You took care of yourself on the earth, holding back the wages due to those who labored in your employ. You lived in luxury while others about you perished in spiritual and material poverty. But now many of them are rejoicing in the Kingdom of their Father while your inheritance will be misery and darkness.
"Take him away! Cast him into outer darkness. He will not be allowed to share in My glory."
If you do not tremble at this thought you probably are walking in deception. Your teachers may comfort you with the idea that you are in a dispensation of grace and no harm can come to you. They are deceived-blind leading the blind.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Monday, November 23, 2009
Judgment and Rewards, #54
If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. (Philippians 3:11)
He has attained the first resurrection from the dead. When Jesus comes, there is no need for him to be reviewed and evaluated. He has been continuously reviewed and evaluated throughout his lifetime on the earth. He is ready now to be invested with Divine authority and power. The crown of life is his.
But if the individual makes a profession of Christ and is baptized in water, and then turns again to the world, he will be worse off than if he had never started in the way of righteousness. He is as a dog returning to its vomit (II Peter 2:22). He is not abiding in Christ, in eternal life. He is walking in eternal death. The Divine condemnation rests on him as well as on all who are practicing sin, whether or not they make a profession of faith in Christ (Romans 2:6-11).
What would have happened to the young man of the Quonset hut and the flipped-open Bible if he had promptly proceeded to forget God's law; to despise God's commandments; to allow mercy and truth to forsake him? Would the Lord have continued to bless him and then have received him into glory? Not if the Apostle Paul has written the truth of God!
God will chasten the sinning Christian and work with him. Trouble will come on him. If he repents, Christ will lead him toward growth in the Spirit. But if he rebels against the Spirit of God, choosing instead to pursue the lusts of the flesh and the pride of life, he will be cut out of the vine (John 15:2).
Most Christian people appear to be somewhere in between the two extremes. They are not living as hundredfold overcomers; neither are they walking totally in the flesh and disobeying God in every area of their lives. They are lukewarm and will receive the reward of lukewarmness.
What the majority of believers must understand is that we will be judged according to our conduct in the world. The reality of judgment and rewards should cause us to think seriously of the quality of our Christian walk.
The wrath of God hovers over the nations of the earth in the present hour. The righteous scarcely will be saved in the days to come. All of us need to repent, confess our sins, and turn again to the Lord.
God's grace in Christ is not primarily a ticket to Heaven, although it may function that way in the case of a last-minute, deathbed repentance and confession of faith.
Rather, God's grace in Christ is our opportunity to escape the authority and power of sin and to choose to serve righteousness; to press vigorously into the Kingdom of God, into the doing of God's will in the earth as it is in Heaven. Being a saint requires all of our strength and attention, not just a token service while the main interests and efforts of our life are elsewhere.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
He has attained the first resurrection from the dead. When Jesus comes, there is no need for him to be reviewed and evaluated. He has been continuously reviewed and evaluated throughout his lifetime on the earth. He is ready now to be invested with Divine authority and power. The crown of life is his.
But if the individual makes a profession of Christ and is baptized in water, and then turns again to the world, he will be worse off than if he had never started in the way of righteousness. He is as a dog returning to its vomit (II Peter 2:22). He is not abiding in Christ, in eternal life. He is walking in eternal death. The Divine condemnation rests on him as well as on all who are practicing sin, whether or not they make a profession of faith in Christ (Romans 2:6-11).
What would have happened to the young man of the Quonset hut and the flipped-open Bible if he had promptly proceeded to forget God's law; to despise God's commandments; to allow mercy and truth to forsake him? Would the Lord have continued to bless him and then have received him into glory? Not if the Apostle Paul has written the truth of God!
God will chasten the sinning Christian and work with him. Trouble will come on him. If he repents, Christ will lead him toward growth in the Spirit. But if he rebels against the Spirit of God, choosing instead to pursue the lusts of the flesh and the pride of life, he will be cut out of the vine (John 15:2).
Most Christian people appear to be somewhere in between the two extremes. They are not living as hundredfold overcomers; neither are they walking totally in the flesh and disobeying God in every area of their lives. They are lukewarm and will receive the reward of lukewarmness.
What the majority of believers must understand is that we will be judged according to our conduct in the world. The reality of judgment and rewards should cause us to think seriously of the quality of our Christian walk.
The wrath of God hovers over the nations of the earth in the present hour. The righteous scarcely will be saved in the days to come. All of us need to repent, confess our sins, and turn again to the Lord.
God's grace in Christ is not primarily a ticket to Heaven, although it may function that way in the case of a last-minute, deathbed repentance and confession of faith.
Rather, God's grace in Christ is our opportunity to escape the authority and power of sin and to choose to serve righteousness; to press vigorously into the Kingdom of God, into the doing of God's will in the earth as it is in Heaven. Being a saint requires all of our strength and attention, not just a token service while the main interests and efforts of our life are elsewhere.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Judgment and Rewards, #53
He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil. (I John 3:8)
The preaching of today is that the Lord Jesus came to deliver us from Hell. There is not one passage of Scripture to support this preaching.
The Lord Jesus did not come to deliver us from Hell. He came to deliver us from sin. If we will seek victory over sin through the Lord Jesus we do not have to worry about Hell. But if we persist in our sinning we will inherit Hell, whether or not we are a Christian, because Hell is God's prison where He incarcerates the wicked. We have not borne the fruit of righteousness and so we shall be cut out of the Vine, out of Christ.
In many instances people today are not seeking to be delivered from sin but from the consequences of sin.
The demons cried out that Jesus is the Holy One of God. Does their "faith" save them?
The "damsel possessed with a spirit of divination" proclaimed, "These men are the servants of the most high God, that show unto us the way of salvation" (Acts 16:17). Did her "faith" save her?
If we are a child of Hell it is manifest, whether or not we profess to be saved by Christ.
The Pharisees of Jesus' day lived by the Law of Moses, the man of God. But it was Satan, not Moses, who was their father. It is our actions, not our beliefs, that truly reveal the kingdom to which we belong.
"But," some will question, "isn't it a fact that when we receive Christ we pass from death to life? Isn't it scriptural that there is no condemnation on those who are in Christ?"
Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. (John 5:24)
Let us consider once again what Jesus means by this statement, for it is used as the cornerstone of Christian theology.
Christ Himself Is the Resurrection and the eternal Life.
When any human being "hears" in his spirit the Word of Christ, he comes to life, just as happened to the young man in the Quonset hut. Christ forgives all of his sins. He has passed from spiritual death to spiritual life. There is no condemnation resting on him.
At this point he makes a choice.
Either he begins to walk in this new resurrection life that has been given to him, or else he continues to live as he always has, trusting that when he dies he will go to a place of joy rather than to a place of grief.
If he keeps on walking "in the Lord," being taught each day by the Holy Spirit, feeding on Christ, obeying the elders, reading the Scriptures, obeying the Father, he will pass from death to life; death to life; death to life; until finally there is nothing left in his personality that is not of God. He has become a new creation. Old things have passed away. All things have become new and all things are of God.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The preaching of today is that the Lord Jesus came to deliver us from Hell. There is not one passage of Scripture to support this preaching.
The Lord Jesus did not come to deliver us from Hell. He came to deliver us from sin. If we will seek victory over sin through the Lord Jesus we do not have to worry about Hell. But if we persist in our sinning we will inherit Hell, whether or not we are a Christian, because Hell is God's prison where He incarcerates the wicked. We have not borne the fruit of righteousness and so we shall be cut out of the Vine, out of Christ.
In many instances people today are not seeking to be delivered from sin but from the consequences of sin.
The demons cried out that Jesus is the Holy One of God. Does their "faith" save them?
The "damsel possessed with a spirit of divination" proclaimed, "These men are the servants of the most high God, that show unto us the way of salvation" (Acts 16:17). Did her "faith" save her?
If we are a child of Hell it is manifest, whether or not we profess to be saved by Christ.
The Pharisees of Jesus' day lived by the Law of Moses, the man of God. But it was Satan, not Moses, who was their father. It is our actions, not our beliefs, that truly reveal the kingdom to which we belong.
"But," some will question, "isn't it a fact that when we receive Christ we pass from death to life? Isn't it scriptural that there is no condemnation on those who are in Christ?"
Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. (John 5:24)
Let us consider once again what Jesus means by this statement, for it is used as the cornerstone of Christian theology.
Christ Himself Is the Resurrection and the eternal Life.
When any human being "hears" in his spirit the Word of Christ, he comes to life, just as happened to the young man in the Quonset hut. Christ forgives all of his sins. He has passed from spiritual death to spiritual life. There is no condemnation resting on him.
At this point he makes a choice.
Either he begins to walk in this new resurrection life that has been given to him, or else he continues to live as he always has, trusting that when he dies he will go to a place of joy rather than to a place of grief.
If he keeps on walking "in the Lord," being taught each day by the Holy Spirit, feeding on Christ, obeying the elders, reading the Scriptures, obeying the Father, he will pass from death to life; death to life; death to life; until finally there is nothing left in his personality that is not of God. He has become a new creation. Old things have passed away. All things have become new and all things are of God.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Judgment and Rewards, #52
But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall. (Malachi 4:2)
How could a person, in the face of such love and glory, accept the grand Divine pardon and then live unto himself, trusting that God in His mercy will overlook his continued insincerity and disobedience?
Should we not lay aside all else and press forward in Christ so we might grasp that for which Christ has grasped us?
Many times people ask us, "Will I be saved anyway even though I fail God?"
We can understand that an individual would seek the assurance that even though he is weak, God will deal with his shortcomings and save him from his sin and rebellion. The Scriptures teach us that God will work tirelessly to strengthen the bruised reed and renew the smoking flax. The Sun of righteousness will arise with healing in His wings.
God will deliver those who seek Him diligently.
But another type of individual is asking if he will be saved whether or not he chooses to serve God in the world, or if it is possible for a person having once been a Christian to end up being lost to the Kingdom of God.
This inquirer is seeking to make a deal with God. He is attempting to determine if he can love the world and still not be cast into Hell. He wants to live like the world but not suffer the fate of the world. He wants to have fellowship with Satan, to worship Satan, to do the works of Satan, but not suffer Satan's punishment.
He does not love God. There is little of the love of God in him. He loves the world and the things of the world. He is an enemy of God.
He has been taught that if he will acknowledge (as the demons acknowledge) that Christ has been raised from the dead, he will be saved and cannot be lost in the Day of the Lord. He makes the Word of God of none effect by his traditions.
Neither he nor the demons will be saved in the Day of Christ.
He does not love God, Heaven, or the saints. He loves and practices sin. He loves the ways of Satan. He is a child of Hell, not a child of Heaven.
He desires to know if he will go to Heaven when he dies, even though he lives his life on earth according to the ways of Hell.
If the truth be known, he does not really care what God's attitude is toward him, if he is pleasing God or is not pleasing God. His only concern is that he will not be punished.
There are many preachers and teachers who will assure him he is saved by his "faith" in Christ and can never be lost.
We are lifting up our voice in warning: This individual and the multitude of professing Christians whom he represents are lost. They are not saved. They love the things of Hell and are filled with the spirit of Hell. Will their profession of "faith" save them?
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
How could a person, in the face of such love and glory, accept the grand Divine pardon and then live unto himself, trusting that God in His mercy will overlook his continued insincerity and disobedience?
Should we not lay aside all else and press forward in Christ so we might grasp that for which Christ has grasped us?
Many times people ask us, "Will I be saved anyway even though I fail God?"
We can understand that an individual would seek the assurance that even though he is weak, God will deal with his shortcomings and save him from his sin and rebellion. The Scriptures teach us that God will work tirelessly to strengthen the bruised reed and renew the smoking flax. The Sun of righteousness will arise with healing in His wings.
God will deliver those who seek Him diligently.
But another type of individual is asking if he will be saved whether or not he chooses to serve God in the world, or if it is possible for a person having once been a Christian to end up being lost to the Kingdom of God.
This inquirer is seeking to make a deal with God. He is attempting to determine if he can love the world and still not be cast into Hell. He wants to live like the world but not suffer the fate of the world. He wants to have fellowship with Satan, to worship Satan, to do the works of Satan, but not suffer Satan's punishment.
He does not love God. There is little of the love of God in him. He loves the world and the things of the world. He is an enemy of God.
He has been taught that if he will acknowledge (as the demons acknowledge) that Christ has been raised from the dead, he will be saved and cannot be lost in the Day of the Lord. He makes the Word of God of none effect by his traditions.
Neither he nor the demons will be saved in the Day of Christ.
He does not love God, Heaven, or the saints. He loves and practices sin. He loves the ways of Satan. He is a child of Hell, not a child of Heaven.
He desires to know if he will go to Heaven when he dies, even though he lives his life on earth according to the ways of Hell.
If the truth be known, he does not really care what God's attitude is toward him, if he is pleasing God or is not pleasing God. His only concern is that he will not be punished.
There are many preachers and teachers who will assure him he is saved by his "faith" in Christ and can never be lost.
We are lifting up our voice in warning: This individual and the multitude of professing Christians whom he represents are lost. They are not saved. They love the things of Hell and are filled with the spirit of Hell. Will their profession of "faith" save them?
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Friday, November 20, 2009
Judgment and Rewards, #51
And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God. (Ezekiel 36:28)
A number of years ago, during World War II, a young man serving in the armed forces was seeking the meaning of life. He had been raised in a home in which the parents did not know the Lord, although they were good to him and did what they could for him.
While in the military service he met some men who had been taught the way of salvation. They explained the Gospel of Christ to him. The Holy Spirit was working, and one night the seeker found himself in a church service being held on the base.
The chaplain was teaching: "And you will dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and you will be my people, and I will be your God."
At this point the Holy Spirit came on the young man. The love of God filled him. It sounded to him as though God were saying, "I greatly desire to be your God, if you are willing to be My people."
He exclaimed half aloud, "Did God say that?"
It seemed to him this was the reverse of what it should be. We humans should be the ones asking God if He would consent to be our God, not God asking us if we would be His people. The love being expressed by his Creator touched him deeply.
After the service he walked from the Quonset hut. The stars shone more brightly than ever before. The night air was alive with a new Spirit. He had been born again by the Word of God.
Two or three weeks later, feeling a need to hear directly from this God who expressed such love, he tried something that he does not advocate today because it could lead to a superstitious approach to the study of the Scriptures.
He asked, "O God, speak to me."
Then he flipped open the Bible at random and put his finger down blindly.
Under his finger were the words:
My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments: for length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee. Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them on the table of thine heart: so shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man. (Proverbs 3:1-4)
The truth burned into him as though God were talking directly to him: "My son, forget not My law; but let thine heart keep my commandments."
Obedience to His Word is all that God requires of any of us. It is the Father's good pleasure to give us His Kingdom. If we will obey Him, He will be our God.
How wonderful that God should be our God! How wonderful that we should become a son of God, that God should become our Father!
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
A number of years ago, during World War II, a young man serving in the armed forces was seeking the meaning of life. He had been raised in a home in which the parents did not know the Lord, although they were good to him and did what they could for him.
While in the military service he met some men who had been taught the way of salvation. They explained the Gospel of Christ to him. The Holy Spirit was working, and one night the seeker found himself in a church service being held on the base.
The chaplain was teaching: "And you will dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and you will be my people, and I will be your God."
At this point the Holy Spirit came on the young man. The love of God filled him. It sounded to him as though God were saying, "I greatly desire to be your God, if you are willing to be My people."
He exclaimed half aloud, "Did God say that?"
It seemed to him this was the reverse of what it should be. We humans should be the ones asking God if He would consent to be our God, not God asking us if we would be His people. The love being expressed by his Creator touched him deeply.
After the service he walked from the Quonset hut. The stars shone more brightly than ever before. The night air was alive with a new Spirit. He had been born again by the Word of God.
Two or three weeks later, feeling a need to hear directly from this God who expressed such love, he tried something that he does not advocate today because it could lead to a superstitious approach to the study of the Scriptures.
He asked, "O God, speak to me."
Then he flipped open the Bible at random and put his finger down blindly.
Under his finger were the words:
My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments: for length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee. Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them on the table of thine heart: so shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man. (Proverbs 3:1-4)
The truth burned into him as though God were talking directly to him: "My son, forget not My law; but let thine heart keep my commandments."
Obedience to His Word is all that God requires of any of us. It is the Father's good pleasure to give us His Kingdom. If we will obey Him, He will be our God.
How wonderful that God should be our God! How wonderful that we should become a son of God, that God should become our Father!
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Judgment and Rewards, #50
And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes. (Luke 19:41,42)
Jesus wept concerning what could have been true had Jerusalem been willing and obedient. The Jews missed the day of their visitation. Let us make sure that we as individuals do not miss the day of our visitation!
The Kingdom of God is at hand. The lovers of God are pressing into it. The crowns of glory are at stake.
Multitudes of "Christians" are determined to enjoy the present world, believing they will go to Paradise when they die if they make a profession of belief in Jesus. They do not understand the program or purpose of the Gospel.
Among the multitudes of Christian believers there is a handful of saints who are pressing into the Kingdom of God. They are gaining eternal life and authority under God. They are being fed by the Lord because they are doing His will and completing the tasks they have been assigned. They have been chosen, therefore, to be close to Him throughout eternity.
These saints will rule the nations of the earth because the Father and the Son are ruling them from the core of their personality. They behave righteously and will be empowered further to live righteously throughout the ages to come.
They will not be deceived by Antichrist because they are being kept by the indwelling power of Christ. They have guarded carefully the Word of Christ; now the Word of Christ is guarding them carefully.
They are being created an integral part of the Divine Godhead (John 17:21) and the name of God is being inscribed on them.
They reign over all things from the throne of Christ, which is in Heaven and in them at the same time.
To inherit all things (21:7).
Those who, through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, overcome the world, Satan, and their own bodily lusts and soulish self-will, shall inherit all that God is, all that God has done and will do. Theirs is an inconceivable, incomprehensible, unimaginable inheritance that stretches far, far beyond our mind's ability to grasp. The life we are living now on the earth is our one opportunity to attain exceedingly great glory.
Those who do not choose to make the effort to overcome the world will not attain the glorious inheritance of the conquerors. The New Testament writings say little about the non-overcomers, except that they are in danger of suffering eternal loss.
Our relationship to God Almighty is the most important part of our inheritance as sons of God.
To have God be one's God, and to be God's son (21:7).
God is the God of the conqueror. He is delighted to be the God of the conqueror.
God is not the God of the covetous Christian. His money is his god.
God is not the God of the lusting Christian. His flesh is his god.
God is not the God of the lying Christian. Satan is his god.
God is not the God of the self-seeking Christian. He himself is his own god.
God is the God of the overcomer.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Jesus wept concerning what could have been true had Jerusalem been willing and obedient. The Jews missed the day of their visitation. Let us make sure that we as individuals do not miss the day of our visitation!
The Kingdom of God is at hand. The lovers of God are pressing into it. The crowns of glory are at stake.
Multitudes of "Christians" are determined to enjoy the present world, believing they will go to Paradise when they die if they make a profession of belief in Jesus. They do not understand the program or purpose of the Gospel.
Among the multitudes of Christian believers there is a handful of saints who are pressing into the Kingdom of God. They are gaining eternal life and authority under God. They are being fed by the Lord because they are doing His will and completing the tasks they have been assigned. They have been chosen, therefore, to be close to Him throughout eternity.
These saints will rule the nations of the earth because the Father and the Son are ruling them from the core of their personality. They behave righteously and will be empowered further to live righteously throughout the ages to come.
They will not be deceived by Antichrist because they are being kept by the indwelling power of Christ. They have guarded carefully the Word of Christ; now the Word of Christ is guarding them carefully.
They are being created an integral part of the Divine Godhead (John 17:21) and the name of God is being inscribed on them.
They reign over all things from the throne of Christ, which is in Heaven and in them at the same time.
To inherit all things (21:7).
Those who, through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, overcome the world, Satan, and their own bodily lusts and soulish self-will, shall inherit all that God is, all that God has done and will do. Theirs is an inconceivable, incomprehensible, unimaginable inheritance that stretches far, far beyond our mind's ability to grasp. The life we are living now on the earth is our one opportunity to attain exceedingly great glory.
Those who do not choose to make the effort to overcome the world will not attain the glorious inheritance of the conquerors. The New Testament writings say little about the non-overcomers, except that they are in danger of suffering eternal loss.
Our relationship to God Almighty is the most important part of our inheritance as sons of God.
To have God be one's God, and to be God's son (21:7).
God is the God of the conqueror. He is delighted to be the God of the conqueror.
God is not the God of the covetous Christian. His money is his god.
God is not the God of the lusting Christian. His flesh is his god.
God is not the God of the lying Christian. Satan is his god.
God is not the God of the self-seeking Christian. He himself is his own god.
God is the God of the overcomer.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Judgment and Rewards, #49
And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever. (I John 2:17)
God loves all people because He is their Creator. God loves the members of His Church.
But God's eye especially is on His sons who, through the grace of Christ, are beginning to bring the rule of God into the material creation.
God blesses diligence, faith, and courage. Those who are performing His will are greatly blessed and helped by the Lord. He is with them to reward them and to guide them into ever greater victories.
The conquerors will be rewarded to an incomprehensible extent for they are performing the Lord's will. They are moving the creation toward righteousness.
But the weak believers, who often are overcome by the pressures and problems of the world, may not be entering God's program.
Some of those who appear to be defeated are strong saints who are passing through fiery trials. They will emerge stronger than ever. God will bring them forth when they have been formed to His satisfaction. Others who are being overcome may be physically, mentally, or emotionally handicapped in some manner. They are to be assisted by the stronger believers. This is pleasing to the Lord.
Still others who are faltering are lukewarm, deluded Christians. They are trusting and hoping God will save them in the Day of Wrath for Jesus' sake, and also that they suddenly will be transformed into divinely ordained kings and priests and will inherit the fullness of the inheritance of the sons of God.
Of this group, many are dangerously close to the fire. If we as a "Christian" continue to love the ways of Satan we will be cast into Hell. We may disobey God until we are lost to the Presence of our Creator for eternity. Consider the life and fate of Judas Iscariot, who was chosen to be one of the twelve disciples of the Lord!
God knows those who are weak but who love Him sincerely. He will send help to them so they may become stronger in the Lord. But every individual who hopes to be a part of Christ in that Day must seek the Lord with all of his heart. Christ is strict with us concerning the use of the talents given to us.
The weak, wavering believers are not as yet part of the solution to the problem of causing God's will to be done in the earth as it is in Heaven. The weak still are part of the problem. As was true of Lot, they are in one predicament after another. The stronger saints must help them at every turn (II Timothy 2:25; Jude 23).
God may save many of the weak in the Day of Christ. But they may be punished severely for their laziness and disobedience; they may be stripped of every reward.
How often the Kingdom of God would have made great advances in the earth, only to be slowed to a halt by the slothfulness and unbelief of the "believers" in Christ. God is fully aware of the details of each such incident. All will be brought forth; all will be made manifest in the Day of the Lord.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
God loves all people because He is their Creator. God loves the members of His Church.
But God's eye especially is on His sons who, through the grace of Christ, are beginning to bring the rule of God into the material creation.
God blesses diligence, faith, and courage. Those who are performing His will are greatly blessed and helped by the Lord. He is with them to reward them and to guide them into ever greater victories.
The conquerors will be rewarded to an incomprehensible extent for they are performing the Lord's will. They are moving the creation toward righteousness.
But the weak believers, who often are overcome by the pressures and problems of the world, may not be entering God's program.
Some of those who appear to be defeated are strong saints who are passing through fiery trials. They will emerge stronger than ever. God will bring them forth when they have been formed to His satisfaction. Others who are being overcome may be physically, mentally, or emotionally handicapped in some manner. They are to be assisted by the stronger believers. This is pleasing to the Lord.
Still others who are faltering are lukewarm, deluded Christians. They are trusting and hoping God will save them in the Day of Wrath for Jesus' sake, and also that they suddenly will be transformed into divinely ordained kings and priests and will inherit the fullness of the inheritance of the sons of God.
Of this group, many are dangerously close to the fire. If we as a "Christian" continue to love the ways of Satan we will be cast into Hell. We may disobey God until we are lost to the Presence of our Creator for eternity. Consider the life and fate of Judas Iscariot, who was chosen to be one of the twelve disciples of the Lord!
God knows those who are weak but who love Him sincerely. He will send help to them so they may become stronger in the Lord. But every individual who hopes to be a part of Christ in that Day must seek the Lord with all of his heart. Christ is strict with us concerning the use of the talents given to us.
The weak, wavering believers are not as yet part of the solution to the problem of causing God's will to be done in the earth as it is in Heaven. The weak still are part of the problem. As was true of Lot, they are in one predicament after another. The stronger saints must help them at every turn (II Timothy 2:25; Jude 23).
God may save many of the weak in the Day of Christ. But they may be punished severely for their laziness and disobedience; they may be stripped of every reward.
How often the Kingdom of God would have made great advances in the earth, only to be slowed to a halt by the slothfulness and unbelief of the "believers" in Christ. God is fully aware of the details of each such incident. All will be brought forth; all will be made manifest in the Day of the Lord.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Judgment and Rewards, #48
And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. (Romans 8:10)
What happens when we receive Christ as our personal Lord and Savior? Our sins are forgiven. Our spirit is joined to the Holy Spirit. Christ, the King of the Kingdom of God, is born in us.
But our physical body, that which is of the outward material creation, remains dead, cut off from God, because of the sin that still resides in it.
Salvation already has begun in our inward spiritual nature. But we stated that the outward form of the Kingdom of God is the material creation while the inward life of the Kingdom of God is the Spirit of Holiness, the eternal Spirit of God.
If Christ is in us our spiritual nature is alive because it has been joined to the Holy Spirit of God through the atoning authority of the blood of Christ. The Kingdom of God now is in us and we are citizens of that Kingdom.
But the outward form of the Kingdom of God, which is our body and the material environment of our body, still is dead because of the sin that is in it. It is cut off from the Presence and Life of God.
To enter the Kingdom of God is to begin to bring the rule of the Holy Spirit, which has been formed in our inward nature, into our physical body, and then into the spiritual and material environment of our body, that is, into the peoples of the earth and the earth itself. "Thy will be done in earth." It is as straightforward as that.
If we adopt the attitude that the Christian salvation is a blanket pardon of our sinful state so when we die physically we will be permitted to make Heaven our eternal home, we will not make the effort to enter the Kingdom of God. We will not work with Jesus and the saints in bringing the rule of God into the earth.
We will miss the Glory of God if we take that attitude. The sinning, disobedient, unclean Christian is not entering the Kingdom of God and has no part in the Kingdom of God. He does not possess a righteous inward nature that he can bring into his physical body. He is wasting the opportunity that God has given to him to bring the rule of God into the earth.
When we understand that the redemption of the material creation is one of the principal goals of the Christian salvation, our outlook and behavior will be transformed. Each day of our pilgrimage will become a new opportunity to enter the Kingdom of God.
Through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we will lay aside the demands of the world and our flesh and begin to seek the power of God so we can govern our behavior. Then we will be able to bring the will of God into our immediate surroundings.
Our part is to pray, use the faith that God gives us, and act, speak, and think in the will of God. Christ's part is to send from Heaven all the wisdom and power we need to overthrow the rule of darkness and to install the rule of God in the material realm.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
What happens when we receive Christ as our personal Lord and Savior? Our sins are forgiven. Our spirit is joined to the Holy Spirit. Christ, the King of the Kingdom of God, is born in us.
But our physical body, that which is of the outward material creation, remains dead, cut off from God, because of the sin that still resides in it.
Salvation already has begun in our inward spiritual nature. But we stated that the outward form of the Kingdom of God is the material creation while the inward life of the Kingdom of God is the Spirit of Holiness, the eternal Spirit of God.
If Christ is in us our spiritual nature is alive because it has been joined to the Holy Spirit of God through the atoning authority of the blood of Christ. The Kingdom of God now is in us and we are citizens of that Kingdom.
But the outward form of the Kingdom of God, which is our body and the material environment of our body, still is dead because of the sin that is in it. It is cut off from the Presence and Life of God.
To enter the Kingdom of God is to begin to bring the rule of the Holy Spirit, which has been formed in our inward nature, into our physical body, and then into the spiritual and material environment of our body, that is, into the peoples of the earth and the earth itself. "Thy will be done in earth." It is as straightforward as that.
If we adopt the attitude that the Christian salvation is a blanket pardon of our sinful state so when we die physically we will be permitted to make Heaven our eternal home, we will not make the effort to enter the Kingdom of God. We will not work with Jesus and the saints in bringing the rule of God into the earth.
We will miss the Glory of God if we take that attitude. The sinning, disobedient, unclean Christian is not entering the Kingdom of God and has no part in the Kingdom of God. He does not possess a righteous inward nature that he can bring into his physical body. He is wasting the opportunity that God has given to him to bring the rule of God into the earth.
When we understand that the redemption of the material creation is one of the principal goals of the Christian salvation, our outlook and behavior will be transformed. Each day of our pilgrimage will become a new opportunity to enter the Kingdom of God.
Through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we will lay aside the demands of the world and our flesh and begin to seek the power of God so we can govern our behavior. Then we will be able to bring the will of God into our immediate surroundings.
Our part is to pray, use the faith that God gives us, and act, speak, and think in the will of God. Christ's part is to send from Heaven all the wisdom and power we need to overthrow the rule of darkness and to install the rule of God in the material realm.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Monday, November 16, 2009
Judgment and Rewards, #47
He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he that is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. (Revelation 22:11)
Are you content to be joined eternally with those who behave as you do? Are you content to be clothed in the Day of Christ with the garments you have woven by your conduct in this life?
Some visionaries have suggested that there are various levels of Hell and various levels of Paradise. There may be depths of Hell where the vicious, hardened souls are kept, consigned like chained animals to the flames that give no light; and perhaps there are realms of darkness that are not as severe in their environment.
In like manner, the visionary saints inform us that there are many levels in Heaven, and that souls of like spiritual attainment are grouped together in families. Those who would temporarily visit a higher level of Heaven must shield their eyes, and those who would descend must partially cover their glory.
Perhaps this is true, because even on earth we enjoy associating with those of like spiritual development. But do we desire to be with our chosen companions for eternity? That is the question we must ask ourselves.
One of the governing principles of the Kingdom of God is that we reap what we sow. If we sow wheat we reap wheat. If we sow tares we reap tares. If we sow to the Spirit of life we reap life. If we sow to our corrupt flesh we reap corruption.
God is perfectly righteous and cannot be mocked: we will reap what we are sowing.
Christian grace is not pointed toward changing what we reap but what we sow.
God's net brings in such extremes! There was Enoch whose faith pleased God to such an extent God took him. And then there was the man who came to the wedding without being dressed properly. (How did he enter in among the guests?) The King commanded that he be bound and cast into outer darkness (Matthew 22:13).
Is this man a type of the Christian who does not practice righteous conduct? If not, of whom then is he a portrayal?
The prevailing concept of judgment and rewards is incomplete at best, dangerously misleading at worst. No doubt our own concept of judgment and rewards proceeds from our perception of what the Christian salvation is.
Is the Christian salvation a blanket pardon of our sinful state so when we die physically we will be permitted to make Heaven, the spirit Paradise, our eternal home? Is that what our salvation means?
Or does the Christian salvation include the redemption of the material creation (Romans 8:21)?
The outward form of the Kingdom of God is the material creation with which we are familiar. The inward life of the Kingdom of God is the eternal, incorruptible Spirit of Holiness-the Spirit of God.
What is true today? The material creation is dead-cut off from the Life of God in Christ. The outward material form of the Kingdom of God is being governed and driven by wicked spirits who are in rebellion against God.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Are you content to be joined eternally with those who behave as you do? Are you content to be clothed in the Day of Christ with the garments you have woven by your conduct in this life?
Some visionaries have suggested that there are various levels of Hell and various levels of Paradise. There may be depths of Hell where the vicious, hardened souls are kept, consigned like chained animals to the flames that give no light; and perhaps there are realms of darkness that are not as severe in their environment.
In like manner, the visionary saints inform us that there are many levels in Heaven, and that souls of like spiritual attainment are grouped together in families. Those who would temporarily visit a higher level of Heaven must shield their eyes, and those who would descend must partially cover their glory.
Perhaps this is true, because even on earth we enjoy associating with those of like spiritual development. But do we desire to be with our chosen companions for eternity? That is the question we must ask ourselves.
One of the governing principles of the Kingdom of God is that we reap what we sow. If we sow wheat we reap wheat. If we sow tares we reap tares. If we sow to the Spirit of life we reap life. If we sow to our corrupt flesh we reap corruption.
God is perfectly righteous and cannot be mocked: we will reap what we are sowing.
Christian grace is not pointed toward changing what we reap but what we sow.
God's net brings in such extremes! There was Enoch whose faith pleased God to such an extent God took him. And then there was the man who came to the wedding without being dressed properly. (How did he enter in among the guests?) The King commanded that he be bound and cast into outer darkness (Matthew 22:13).
Is this man a type of the Christian who does not practice righteous conduct? If not, of whom then is he a portrayal?
The prevailing concept of judgment and rewards is incomplete at best, dangerously misleading at worst. No doubt our own concept of judgment and rewards proceeds from our perception of what the Christian salvation is.
Is the Christian salvation a blanket pardon of our sinful state so when we die physically we will be permitted to make Heaven, the spirit Paradise, our eternal home? Is that what our salvation means?
Or does the Christian salvation include the redemption of the material creation (Romans 8:21)?
The outward form of the Kingdom of God is the material creation with which we are familiar. The inward life of the Kingdom of God is the eternal, incorruptible Spirit of Holiness-the Spirit of God.
What is true today? The material creation is dead-cut off from the Life of God in Christ. The outward material form of the Kingdom of God is being governed and driven by wicked spirits who are in rebellion against God.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Judgment and Rewards, #46
For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. (Romans 6:14)
Is this what you truly desire? Would you care to live in a world in which there is no sin of any kind? Not even one tiny sin? Not even your tiny sin and disobedience to the Father?
If an uncompromising Yes! roars from the depths of your personality, then join the ranks of God's conquerors. He has placed His Spirit of Holiness eternally in you. Let your faith be strong. You are moving toward complete and perfect victory in the Lord Jesus Christ.
If, however, a timid and fearful Maybe proceeds from your heart, then you need to ask God for faith. The timid and fearful cannot possibly enter the new Jerusalem.
You are the one who will decide. Satan has no power to overcome you if you choose to serve the Lord. In order to conquer a Christian, Satan must persuade him to believe a lie. Satan must successfully deceive him in one way or another.
In order to overcome a saint, Satan must enlist the saint's cooperation, either by lust, or pride, or an incorrect understanding of the written Word, or in some other manner that prevents the believer from choosing to conquer in Jesus' name.
People can be healed from sickness in Jesus' name if they will put their trust in Christ and obey Him. People can be healed from sin in Jesus' name if they will put their trust in Christ and obey Him.
Both sickness and sin are works of the devil, although sometimes God uses sickness in order to accomplish His purposes in us. It is not a sin to be sick.
We can conquer sin if we will follow Christ. We can be established in righteousness if we will read what God has written to us and then mix faith with that holy Word.
We can gain the upper hand over the works of the devil.
We can conquer.
The purpose of this essay is to explain the judgment and rewards that result from our behavior after we are saved.
We know from the Scriptures that some believers will reap Christ a hundredfold; others, sixtyfold; others, thirtyfold.
Since we know of no Scripture to the contrary, it seems likely that physical death does not change what we are. When we awaken to the spirit realm, after physical death, we essentially are the same personality.
Since God does not like mixtures (Leviticus 19:19), it no doubt is true that the holy will be with the holy; the filthy will be with the filthy; the lukewarm will be with the lukewarm.
He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he that is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. (Revelation 22:11)
It may prove to be true that the Lord's "mighty men" are with others of their rank. How equitable this would be. How glorious for the saints! But how dreadfully threatening to the family member who always has relied on the saint of the family to yank him from the flames.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Is this what you truly desire? Would you care to live in a world in which there is no sin of any kind? Not even one tiny sin? Not even your tiny sin and disobedience to the Father?
If an uncompromising Yes! roars from the depths of your personality, then join the ranks of God's conquerors. He has placed His Spirit of Holiness eternally in you. Let your faith be strong. You are moving toward complete and perfect victory in the Lord Jesus Christ.
If, however, a timid and fearful Maybe proceeds from your heart, then you need to ask God for faith. The timid and fearful cannot possibly enter the new Jerusalem.
You are the one who will decide. Satan has no power to overcome you if you choose to serve the Lord. In order to conquer a Christian, Satan must persuade him to believe a lie. Satan must successfully deceive him in one way or another.
In order to overcome a saint, Satan must enlist the saint's cooperation, either by lust, or pride, or an incorrect understanding of the written Word, or in some other manner that prevents the believer from choosing to conquer in Jesus' name.
People can be healed from sickness in Jesus' name if they will put their trust in Christ and obey Him. People can be healed from sin in Jesus' name if they will put their trust in Christ and obey Him.
Both sickness and sin are works of the devil, although sometimes God uses sickness in order to accomplish His purposes in us. It is not a sin to be sick.
We can conquer sin if we will follow Christ. We can be established in righteousness if we will read what God has written to us and then mix faith with that holy Word.
We can gain the upper hand over the works of the devil.
We can conquer.
The purpose of this essay is to explain the judgment and rewards that result from our behavior after we are saved.
We know from the Scriptures that some believers will reap Christ a hundredfold; others, sixtyfold; others, thirtyfold.
Since we know of no Scripture to the contrary, it seems likely that physical death does not change what we are. When we awaken to the spirit realm, after physical death, we essentially are the same personality.
Since God does not like mixtures (Leviticus 19:19), it no doubt is true that the holy will be with the holy; the filthy will be with the filthy; the lukewarm will be with the lukewarm.
He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he that is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. (Revelation 22:11)
It may prove to be true that the Lord's "mighty men" are with others of their rank. How equitable this would be. How glorious for the saints! But how dreadfully threatening to the family member who always has relied on the saint of the family to yank him from the flames.
To be continued.
We extend permission to make as many copies of this essay as you need, in both paper and electronic formats. Please include the following statement of copyright:
Copyright © 1997-2009 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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