And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; (Romans 5:3)
Compare your life before your suffering and after your suffering. You may notice an increase in godliness, in faith, in peace, in compassion. Tribulation produces patience. Patience is one of the principal characteristics of the Kingdom of God. Or, if you have blamed people or circumstances for your suffering you may have become bitter.
The cross we carry teaches us to wait patiently for the Lord. Those who are impatient seek to avoid the cross. They want to have their desires fulfilled now. The "faith" teachers promise instant gratification by faith. The way of impatience and grasping is the way of Satan. The way of cross-carrying obedience and patience is the way of God-the way of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Wait patiently on the Lord. Pray fervently. Ask God to deliver you according to His holy will. As much as you are able, refrain from complaining and blaming people for your discomfort. Do not become angry or impatient with God. Jesus will pray for you that your faith does not fail.
Remember this: the day will come when your warfare has been accomplished, your iniquity pardoned. The day will arrive when God says, "Enough." The day will come when your cross will be lifted from your shoulder and you will enter green pastures. Peace and righteousness in the Presence of the Lord will be your portion.
The brush of the most gifted artist, the pen of the most talented writer, could never portray the glory that will be given to the believer who keeps plodding ahead faithfully through the flames and floods that are sent to purify the Wife of the Lamb. These troubles help her wash her robes and make them white in the blood of the Lamb. The overcomer inherits all things, and God is his God, and he is God's son.
When the three Hebrew children came forth from the furnace, only their bonds were destroyed. The same is true of the members of the Wife of the Lamb.
The Union Stage
So far we have discussed the formation stage and the reconciliation stage of the marriage of the Lamb. In the formation stage the Substance of Christ is given us through the Spirit and we pass through repeated deaths and resurrections until our first personality passes away and in its place stands a new creation, a life-giving spirit (I Corinthians 15:45). This is "Christ in us" in the sense of being a transformation of what we ourselves are. It is a recreation of our personality from a dead soul into a life-giving spirit. Christ is a life-giving Spirit and He must be wed to what is like Himself in Substance and Nature.
Eve was created as the completion of Adam. She was created as his flesh and bone. No other destiny was available to her. We are being created as the completion of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are being created from His body and blood. We can never experience that for which we have been created until we have been joined eternally to the Lord Jesus.
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 � 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Friday, October 29, 2010
Thursday, October 28, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #21
My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land; (Song of Solomon 2:10-12)
If it were true that to overcome merely is to confess Christ; that our only work is to believe; that to behave righteously is desirable but not of critical importance because when God looks at us He sees only the righteousness of the Lamb; that we will receive neither the good nor the evil we have done because God no longer sees us or our behavior but only the righteousness of His Son in us; then most of the exhortations of the New Testament from the beginning of Matthew to the last chapter of Revelation do not apply to us.
The concept of the blood-covering is scriptural in its context but it has been carried to an extent neither Christ nor Paul ever suggested. When faith is not balanced by righteous behavior we have a destructive error.
We hope by the foregoing words to have supported our emphasis on the reconciliation stage of the marriage of the Lamb. It is time for the Bride of the Lamb to awaken and wash her robes in the blood. It is time for the Bride to come out (in a spiritual sense) from the babylonish (manmade, man-centered, man-directed) confusion of the churches and to seek her Lord.
The winter is over and past. The time of the singing of birds has come. Can you hear His voice? He is calling to you. He wants you to be without spot or wrinkle. If you will go with Him He will make you His spotless bride.
"It is time. It is time. It is time. Arise, Bride of the Lamb, go with your Husband. He has come for you."
The marriage of the Lamb contains a formation stage and also a reconciliation stage. The reconciliation stage is the coming of the King to us in fulfillment of the old covenant Blowing of Trumpets and Day of Atonement to cleanse us from all rebellion and lawlessness.
We have pointed out that such judging and cleansing cannot take place when the Lord appears, for we will appear with Him in glory (Colossians 3:4). How could we appear with Christ in glory before we have passed before the Judgment Seat of Christ, before we have been reconciled to Him completely and perfectly?
Perhaps the reader is going through just such a season of fiery trials. You are seeking the Lord to the best of your ability but are undergoing prolonged difficulties. No explanation has been given as to the reason for them and it is not possible to determine how long they will last. Problem is heaped upon problem until it seems impossible to bear them any longer.
Keep in mind what the Apostle Peter said: "the righteous scarcely be saved" (I Peter 4:18). Judgment begins with the household of God, and even those who are close to the Lord are saved with difficulty. Your fiery trials are "saving" you. You are being redeemed by judgment. You are being reconciled to the Lamb by the tribulations you are suffering.
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 � 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
If it were true that to overcome merely is to confess Christ; that our only work is to believe; that to behave righteously is desirable but not of critical importance because when God looks at us He sees only the righteousness of the Lamb; that we will receive neither the good nor the evil we have done because God no longer sees us or our behavior but only the righteousness of His Son in us; then most of the exhortations of the New Testament from the beginning of Matthew to the last chapter of Revelation do not apply to us.
The concept of the blood-covering is scriptural in its context but it has been carried to an extent neither Christ nor Paul ever suggested. When faith is not balanced by righteous behavior we have a destructive error.
We hope by the foregoing words to have supported our emphasis on the reconciliation stage of the marriage of the Lamb. It is time for the Bride of the Lamb to awaken and wash her robes in the blood. It is time for the Bride to come out (in a spiritual sense) from the babylonish (manmade, man-centered, man-directed) confusion of the churches and to seek her Lord.
The winter is over and past. The time of the singing of birds has come. Can you hear His voice? He is calling to you. He wants you to be without spot or wrinkle. If you will go with Him He will make you His spotless bride.
"It is time. It is time. It is time. Arise, Bride of the Lamb, go with your Husband. He has come for you."
The marriage of the Lamb contains a formation stage and also a reconciliation stage. The reconciliation stage is the coming of the King to us in fulfillment of the old covenant Blowing of Trumpets and Day of Atonement to cleanse us from all rebellion and lawlessness.
We have pointed out that such judging and cleansing cannot take place when the Lord appears, for we will appear with Him in glory (Colossians 3:4). How could we appear with Christ in glory before we have passed before the Judgment Seat of Christ, before we have been reconciled to Him completely and perfectly?
Perhaps the reader is going through just such a season of fiery trials. You are seeking the Lord to the best of your ability but are undergoing prolonged difficulties. No explanation has been given as to the reason for them and it is not possible to determine how long they will last. Problem is heaped upon problem until it seems impossible to bear them any longer.
Keep in mind what the Apostle Peter said: "the righteous scarcely be saved" (I Peter 4:18). Judgment begins with the household of God, and even those who are close to the Lord are saved with difficulty. Your fiery trials are "saving" you. You are being redeemed by judgment. You are being reconciled to the Lamb by the tribulations you are suffering.
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 � 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #20
For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. (II Peter 2:20,21)
They did not maintain their good work of following the Lord Jesus Christ. They turned back into the pollutions of the world. They drew back from the way of righteousness. They turned away from the holy commandment.
Did they stop believing in Christ? Maybe they did or maybe they did not. Perhaps they continued to live in the terror of Divine judgment as they wallowed in the cesspool of the flesh. We have known some of whom this was true. The point is, they stopped serving the Lord. Our behavior is the evidence of the state of our faith. Faith apart from works is dead.
It is our behavior, our works, that Christ judges, not our faith. Or rather we should say, Christ judges our faith by our works. The eleventh chapter of the Book of Hebrews, which is the "faith chapter" of the Scriptures, is a record of the works of righteous men and women. It describes what they did, not their doctrinal position.
The teaching that the Christian salvation primarily is a covering of us with Christ's righteousness, and therefore how we behave is not critical, is expanded to mean that "to overcome" is to believe that Jesus is the Son of God.
Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? (I John 5:5)
The second and third chapters of the Book of Revelation have the most to say about the victorious saints. The one statement Christ made to each of the churches is "I know thy works." These two chapters refer to the behavior of the Christians, not to their doctrinal position.
First John 5:5 means if we believe that Jesus is the Son of God we will be able to overcome the world, not that it is the belief itself that is the overcoming (except in the sense that to maintain true faith enables us to overcome the lusts and malice of the world). True belief in the Lord Jesus is the basis for, and results in, overcoming the world. Belief is not an alternative to actually overcoming the lusts of the world. If such were the case, the verse would contradict the context of I John.
The same thought occurs in the preceding verse:
For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: . . . . (I John 5:4)
This does not mean being born of God is the overcoming of the world, it means that whatever is born of God will fight against the world until the world has been overcome.
Faith is the victory that overcomes the world because through faith we are able to follow Christ rather than the ways of the world. True faith always enables the believer to achieve victory over the world, over sin, and over self-will. Apart from faith we cannot overcome the world.
According to the same writer, John, we overcome Satan by the blood of the Lamb, by the word of our testimony, and by loving not our life to the point of death (Revelation 12:11).
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 � 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
They did not maintain their good work of following the Lord Jesus Christ. They turned back into the pollutions of the world. They drew back from the way of righteousness. They turned away from the holy commandment.
Did they stop believing in Christ? Maybe they did or maybe they did not. Perhaps they continued to live in the terror of Divine judgment as they wallowed in the cesspool of the flesh. We have known some of whom this was true. The point is, they stopped serving the Lord. Our behavior is the evidence of the state of our faith. Faith apart from works is dead.
It is our behavior, our works, that Christ judges, not our faith. Or rather we should say, Christ judges our faith by our works. The eleventh chapter of the Book of Hebrews, which is the "faith chapter" of the Scriptures, is a record of the works of righteous men and women. It describes what they did, not their doctrinal position.
The teaching that the Christian salvation primarily is a covering of us with Christ's righteousness, and therefore how we behave is not critical, is expanded to mean that "to overcome" is to believe that Jesus is the Son of God.
Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? (I John 5:5)
The second and third chapters of the Book of Revelation have the most to say about the victorious saints. The one statement Christ made to each of the churches is "I know thy works." These two chapters refer to the behavior of the Christians, not to their doctrinal position.
First John 5:5 means if we believe that Jesus is the Son of God we will be able to overcome the world, not that it is the belief itself that is the overcoming (except in the sense that to maintain true faith enables us to overcome the lusts and malice of the world). True belief in the Lord Jesus is the basis for, and results in, overcoming the world. Belief is not an alternative to actually overcoming the lusts of the world. If such were the case, the verse would contradict the context of I John.
The same thought occurs in the preceding verse:
For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: . . . . (I John 5:4)
This does not mean being born of God is the overcoming of the world, it means that whatever is born of God will fight against the world until the world has been overcome.
Faith is the victory that overcomes the world because through faith we are able to follow Christ rather than the ways of the world. True faith always enables the believer to achieve victory over the world, over sin, and over self-will. Apart from faith we cannot overcome the world.
According to the same writer, John, we overcome Satan by the blood of the Lamb, by the word of our testimony, and by loving not our life to the point of death (Revelation 12:11).
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 � 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #19
And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. (Revelation 22:12)
The idea of this verse is that each individual will be rewarded specifically in terms of his work.
Because Jesus declared (John 6:29) that the work of God is that we believe in the One whom God sent, are we to maintain, therefore, that all that is required of us is that we believe that Jesus is Christ?-that the Christian work is only to believe in the Divinity and claims of Jesus? Such a conclusion could be reached from scattered verses but it is in opposition to the greater part of the writings of the Apostles. It is to remove John 6:29 from its context and ignore the bulk of the admonitions of the New Testament. It is the practice of cultists, not of saints, to seize on a few verses and from them develop a body of faith and practice.
The abominable, the sorcerers, the immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and the liars are not allowed into the new Jerusalem (Revelation 22:15). Can a liar enter the new Jerusalem by believing in Christ? Can he gain the right to the tree of life apart from performing the commandments of God (Revelation 22:14)?
Contemporary Christian teaching answers, "Emphatically, yes!" The Scriptures thunder, "Never!"
"But what about the thief on the cross," those who want an excuse to sin may ask.
We know nothing about the thief on the cross except that Christ promised him he would be with the Lord in Paradise (not in the Kingdom of God) that day. We do not know what events had brought him to that point; what covenants he had made in his heart with God; what crying out and repenting he had done.
(The disobedient Saul and his sons went to be with the Prophet Samuel in the regions of the dead-I Samuel 28:19.)
We do know that numerous "believers," desiring to worship Satan throughout their lifetime and then "receive Christ" in a deathbed conversion, have comforted themselves and others with the story of the thief on the cross, not understanding what Jesus meant by His statement that the thief would be with Him in Paradise. All such will receive their due reward.
The Holy Spirit does not intend that Christ's goodness to the thief on the cross be used to cancel the warnings of the New Testament.
The doctrine that the Christian redemption primarily is a covering with Christ's righteousness is expanded to include the idea that once we are "saved" we cannot be lost because God no longer sees what we are or what we do. We are saved by "grace" and our works have nothing to do with it.
There are many passages that invalidate this concept:
For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. (II Peter 2:20,21)
Sometimes it is taught that such individuals never were truly "saved." This argument is weak.
The Scripture states they have escaped the pollution of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Christ. They have known the way of righteousness. Obviously this is referring to true Christians.
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 � 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The idea of this verse is that each individual will be rewarded specifically in terms of his work.
Because Jesus declared (John 6:29) that the work of God is that we believe in the One whom God sent, are we to maintain, therefore, that all that is required of us is that we believe that Jesus is Christ?-that the Christian work is only to believe in the Divinity and claims of Jesus? Such a conclusion could be reached from scattered verses but it is in opposition to the greater part of the writings of the Apostles. It is to remove John 6:29 from its context and ignore the bulk of the admonitions of the New Testament. It is the practice of cultists, not of saints, to seize on a few verses and from them develop a body of faith and practice.
The abominable, the sorcerers, the immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and the liars are not allowed into the new Jerusalem (Revelation 22:15). Can a liar enter the new Jerusalem by believing in Christ? Can he gain the right to the tree of life apart from performing the commandments of God (Revelation 22:14)?
Contemporary Christian teaching answers, "Emphatically, yes!" The Scriptures thunder, "Never!"
"But what about the thief on the cross," those who want an excuse to sin may ask.
We know nothing about the thief on the cross except that Christ promised him he would be with the Lord in Paradise (not in the Kingdom of God) that day. We do not know what events had brought him to that point; what covenants he had made in his heart with God; what crying out and repenting he had done.
(The disobedient Saul and his sons went to be with the Prophet Samuel in the regions of the dead-I Samuel 28:19.)
We do know that numerous "believers," desiring to worship Satan throughout their lifetime and then "receive Christ" in a deathbed conversion, have comforted themselves and others with the story of the thief on the cross, not understanding what Jesus meant by His statement that the thief would be with Him in Paradise. All such will receive their due reward.
The Holy Spirit does not intend that Christ's goodness to the thief on the cross be used to cancel the warnings of the New Testament.
The doctrine that the Christian redemption primarily is a covering with Christ's righteousness is expanded to include the idea that once we are "saved" we cannot be lost because God no longer sees what we are or what we do. We are saved by "grace" and our works have nothing to do with it.
There are many passages that invalidate this concept:
For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. (II Peter 2:20,21)
Sometimes it is taught that such individuals never were truly "saved." This argument is weak.
The Scripture states they have escaped the pollution of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Christ. They have known the way of righteousness. Obviously this is referring to true Christians.
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 � 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Monday, October 25, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #18
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:19-21)
Paul is saying to believers in Christ of the churches of Galatia, as he wrote also to the believers in the other churches, that if they continue in sin they will not inherit the Kingdom of God.
"But," our fellow Christians may protest, "those who live a sinful life never were saved in the first place."
This is their argument. What they are saying when they respond in this manner is a true Christian is identified by a righteous, holy, and obedient life and that apart from godliness there is no salvation.
No matter how we turn and twist, the Divine truth is facing us: those who practice sin will reap death, whether or not they believe in Christ. They shall not inherit the Kingdom of God!
The current Christian teaching that the Gospel of Christ is the covering of men's sins so they can enter the glories of the Kingdom of God apart from any transformation of their personalities, any ceasing from sin, any conversion into the image of Christ, is false. It is destructive of the Kingdom of God in men.
Grace is not a waiving of the Divine requirement of righteous behavior. There is a grace period to be sure, but after that the necessary obligations must be assumed. This is true of any business transaction.
Faith from which no righteous works proceed is a dead faith. Righteous works are the life of true faith. Where Christ is there is righteous behavior. If Christ indeed is in us a new creation is coming into view. The true Christian keeps Christ's commandments (I John 2:4).
The Lord Jesus said the same thing to the members of the church in Thyatira:
And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works. (Revelation 2:23)
To maintain the above verse is not referring to "Gentiles who are saved by grace" is to fumble about ineptly in doctrinal chaos. The truth is, this verse does away with the current teaching that Christianity primarily is imputed (assigned) righteousness.
There is another consideration. The Spirit warned us not to tamper with the Book of Revelation (Revelation 22:18,19). The contemporary doctrine makes the words of Christ of no effect. Why should any "saved Gentile" take heed to Revelation 2:23 if he is covered eternally with Christ's righteousness and God cannot see his deeds? It makes the clear warnings of the Book of Revelation of no effect.
The doctrine that salvation is only a covering is expanded to include the idea that all Christians will receive the same reward, our behavior being of no consequence. This is in opposition to the words of the Lord Jesus Christ.
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 � 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Paul is saying to believers in Christ of the churches of Galatia, as he wrote also to the believers in the other churches, that if they continue in sin they will not inherit the Kingdom of God.
"But," our fellow Christians may protest, "those who live a sinful life never were saved in the first place."
This is their argument. What they are saying when they respond in this manner is a true Christian is identified by a righteous, holy, and obedient life and that apart from godliness there is no salvation.
No matter how we turn and twist, the Divine truth is facing us: those who practice sin will reap death, whether or not they believe in Christ. They shall not inherit the Kingdom of God!
The current Christian teaching that the Gospel of Christ is the covering of men's sins so they can enter the glories of the Kingdom of God apart from any transformation of their personalities, any ceasing from sin, any conversion into the image of Christ, is false. It is destructive of the Kingdom of God in men.
Grace is not a waiving of the Divine requirement of righteous behavior. There is a grace period to be sure, but after that the necessary obligations must be assumed. This is true of any business transaction.
Faith from which no righteous works proceed is a dead faith. Righteous works are the life of true faith. Where Christ is there is righteous behavior. If Christ indeed is in us a new creation is coming into view. The true Christian keeps Christ's commandments (I John 2:4).
The Lord Jesus said the same thing to the members of the church in Thyatira:
And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works. (Revelation 2:23)
To maintain the above verse is not referring to "Gentiles who are saved by grace" is to fumble about ineptly in doctrinal chaos. The truth is, this verse does away with the current teaching that Christianity primarily is imputed (assigned) righteousness.
There is another consideration. The Spirit warned us not to tamper with the Book of Revelation (Revelation 22:18,19). The contemporary doctrine makes the words of Christ of no effect. Why should any "saved Gentile" take heed to Revelation 2:23 if he is covered eternally with Christ's righteousness and God cannot see his deeds? It makes the clear warnings of the Book of Revelation of no effect.
The doctrine that salvation is only a covering is expanded to include the idea that all Christians will receive the same reward, our behavior being of no consequence. This is in opposition to the words of the Lord Jesus Christ.
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 � 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Thursday, October 21, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #17
I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, (Ephesians 4:1)
That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; (Colossians 1:10)
That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory. (I Thessalonians 2:12)
The prevalent and unscriptural thinking that underlies much of the current Christian preaching and teaching is that Christ alone is worthy and we are clothed with that worthiness, that we need not be overly concerned with our behavior or with the Judgment Seat of Christ because we are "saved by grace through faith."
"Saved by grace through faith" is interpreted to mean that God, in His love and mercy, having decided that man is hopelessly corrupt, has extended to him an eternal amnesty. God forgives man because of Christ's substitutionary death on the cross, with the intention of bringing man to Heaven where he never again will have to choose between good and evil.
This is the basis of Christian theology and it is largely erroneous and destructive of the Kingdom of God. It is not, by any means, the original Gospel of the Kingdom of God. The current thinking is that there are no rewards for our works because God does not regard our works. Once we are "saved" we cannot be lost because God does not see what we are or what we do. This in spite of clear scriptural teaching to the contrary.
Let us consider for a moment the concept that our behavior is not critical to our salvation because we are covered with the righteousness and worthiness of Christ.
In his writings the Apostle Paul warned the saints that those who persist in sinning will not inherit the Kingdom of God. These warnings are inconsistent with the teaching that God does not regard the behavior of Christians.
After enumerating the sinful practices of the flesh, Paul says to "the churches of Galatia":
. . . they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:21)
"Do such things."
"Shall not inherit the Kingdom of God"!
Why will they not inherit the Kingdom of God? Because they have practiced adultery and the other works of the flesh.
If they continue in the works of the flesh they cannot inherit the Kingdom of God, whether or not they are professing Christians. Thus the purpose of redemption is not only, or even primarily, to cover people with the righteousness of Christ, it is to change them so they have both the desire and the ability to do good works.
One of two things is true: either current doctrine is incorrect, or Paul is not speaking to people who have been saved, who have believed in Christ.
It is obvious that the fifth chapter of the Book of Galatians is speaking to Christians. By no means is Paul teaching that if the unsaved commit adultery they will not inherit the Kingdom of God. The converse of this would be that if the unsaved ceased from the works of the flesh they would inherit 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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; (Colossians 1:10)
That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory. (I Thessalonians 2:12)
The prevalent and unscriptural thinking that underlies much of the current Christian preaching and teaching is that Christ alone is worthy and we are clothed with that worthiness, that we need not be overly concerned with our behavior or with the Judgment Seat of Christ because we are "saved by grace through faith."
"Saved by grace through faith" is interpreted to mean that God, in His love and mercy, having decided that man is hopelessly corrupt, has extended to him an eternal amnesty. God forgives man because of Christ's substitutionary death on the cross, with the intention of bringing man to Heaven where he never again will have to choose between good and evil.
This is the basis of Christian theology and it is largely erroneous and destructive of the Kingdom of God. It is not, by any means, the original Gospel of the Kingdom of God. The current thinking is that there are no rewards for our works because God does not regard our works. Once we are "saved" we cannot be lost because God does not see what we are or what we do. This in spite of clear scriptural teaching to the contrary.
Let us consider for a moment the concept that our behavior is not critical to our salvation because we are covered with the righteousness and worthiness of Christ.
In his writings the Apostle Paul warned the saints that those who persist in sinning will not inherit the Kingdom of God. These warnings are inconsistent with the teaching that God does not regard the behavior of Christians.
After enumerating the sinful practices of the flesh, Paul says to "the churches of Galatia":
. . . they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. (Galatians 5:21)
"Do such things."
"Shall not inherit the Kingdom of God"!
Why will they not inherit the Kingdom of God? Because they have practiced adultery and the other works of the flesh.
If they continue in the works of the flesh they cannot inherit the Kingdom of God, whether or not they are professing Christians. Thus the purpose of redemption is not only, or even primarily, to cover people with the righteousness of Christ, it is to change them so they have both the desire and the ability to do good works.
One of two things is true: either current doctrine is incorrect, or Paul is not speaking to people who have been saved, who have believed in Christ.
It is obvious that the fifth chapter of the Book of Galatians is speaking to Christians. By no means is Paul teaching that if the unsaved commit adultery they will not inherit the Kingdom of God. The converse of this would be that if the unsaved ceased from the works of the flesh they would inherit 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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #16
Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 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 6:7,8)
Perhaps many of the rewards set forth in the second and third chapters of the Book of Revelation are given us now in the reality of the spirit realm although the outward manifestation of them is not present as yet.
How true it is that God is not mocked! We receive the consequences of what we practice. This is the fundamental Kingdom law of sowing and reaping.
The attempt to evade the Kingdom law of sowing and reaping is based on a misinterpretation of the arguments of the Apostle Paul against the Judaizers.
It is true that the principle of compensating righteousness we have mentioned permits us to escape the full consequences of what we have sown. But the Kingdom law of sowing and reaping never was set aside. Christ on the cross reaped what mankind has sown.
The Lord never intended that the Divine pardon should be used permanently as the means by which rebellious, lawless people can sow sin and reap eternal life. Rather, the Divine pardon operates to enable us to approach God as a sinner, receive eternal life, and then go forth in the Spirit to become a new creation.
In the meantime, much tribulation comes on our rebellious, lawless personality in order to transform us from corrupt souls into life-giving spirits. We suffer so we will cease from sin.
. . . for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; (I Peter 4:1)
There is a difference between the concept that the blood of Christ is a covering of righteousness placed on us so God can give us the glory of the Kingdom no matter how rebellious and lawless we are, and the concept that the blood of Christ is a covering of righteousness on us while God transforms us until we are worthy of the Kingdom, until we are suitable to be members of the Wife of the Lamb.
The first concept is the prevailing doctrine and it appears to date back to the Protestant Reformers. It is erroneous and has produced moral chaos. The second concept is scriptural. If we follow its guiding principle we will be transformed from rebellious, lawless individuals into people who live righteous, holy, and obedient lives in the Presence of the Lord. The blood will have accomplished its purpose of redeeming us from the hand of the enemy.
What about the statement the righteous shall live by faith? Doesn't that mean we are saved by our profession of belief in Christ apart from any conversion into righteous behavior on our part?
No, it does not. "The just shall live by faith" means we are to live by faith in God, not by our own wisdom and strength. The faith is in the trustworthiness of the character of God. It matters little whether the individual has a completely correct understanding of doctrinal issues. The believer who is living in true faith in Christ is diligently seeking to walk by the Spirit of God. He is being changed into the image of the Glory of the Lord (II Corinthians 3:18).
Much of what is practiced in the Christian churches of our day is not of the Lord. It has more of the characteristics of Babylon, Laodicea, and the False Prophet than it does of Christ.
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Perhaps many of the rewards set forth in the second and third chapters of the Book of Revelation are given us now in the reality of the spirit realm although the outward manifestation of them is not present as yet.
How true it is that God is not mocked! We receive the consequences of what we practice. This is the fundamental Kingdom law of sowing and reaping.
The attempt to evade the Kingdom law of sowing and reaping is based on a misinterpretation of the arguments of the Apostle Paul against the Judaizers.
It is true that the principle of compensating righteousness we have mentioned permits us to escape the full consequences of what we have sown. But the Kingdom law of sowing and reaping never was set aside. Christ on the cross reaped what mankind has sown.
The Lord never intended that the Divine pardon should be used permanently as the means by which rebellious, lawless people can sow sin and reap eternal life. Rather, the Divine pardon operates to enable us to approach God as a sinner, receive eternal life, and then go forth in the Spirit to become a new creation.
In the meantime, much tribulation comes on our rebellious, lawless personality in order to transform us from corrupt souls into life-giving spirits. We suffer so we will cease from sin.
. . . for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; (I Peter 4:1)
There is a difference between the concept that the blood of Christ is a covering of righteousness placed on us so God can give us the glory of the Kingdom no matter how rebellious and lawless we are, and the concept that the blood of Christ is a covering of righteousness on us while God transforms us until we are worthy of the Kingdom, until we are suitable to be members of the Wife of the Lamb.
The first concept is the prevailing doctrine and it appears to date back to the Protestant Reformers. It is erroneous and has produced moral chaos. The second concept is scriptural. If we follow its guiding principle we will be transformed from rebellious, lawless individuals into people who live righteous, holy, and obedient lives in the Presence of the Lord. The blood will have accomplished its purpose of redeeming us from the hand of the enemy.
What about the statement the righteous shall live by faith? Doesn't that mean we are saved by our profession of belief in Christ apart from any conversion into righteous behavior on our part?
No, it does not. "The just shall live by faith" means we are to live by faith in God, not by our own wisdom and strength. The faith is in the trustworthiness of the character of God. It matters little whether the individual has a completely correct understanding of doctrinal issues. The believer who is living in true faith in Christ is diligently seeking to walk by the Spirit of God. He is being changed into the image of the Glory of the Lord (II Corinthians 3:18).
Much of what is practiced in the Christian churches of our day is not of the Lord. It has more of the characteristics of Babylon, Laodicea, and the False Prophet than it does of Christ.
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #15
And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: (Hebrews 9:27)
We are stating here that the Judgment Seat of Christ is part of the reconciliation stage of the marriage of the Lamb. It is not possible for us to be raised from the dead, to be changed into an immortal being, to ascend to meet the Lord and be ever with Him, to enter marriage with Him, shining in glory before all the world, and after that receive the bad we have practiced in our body (II Corinthians 5:10).
The members of the Wife of the Lamb must be made manifest before the Judgment Seat of Christ prior to the first resurrection from the dead. We must be revealed now-in the present hour-before the Judgment Seat of Christ.
Is it scriptural that the household of God is to be judged in advance of the world?
For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? (I Peter 4:17)
Isn't it true that we are judged after we die (Hebrews 9:27)?
Yes, but consider that the death into which the true saint is brought, in being made conformable to Christ's death, is a true death. Although it is not a physical death, it is a genuine death of our first personality. The Spirit is bringing us to the point where we can say, "It is not I who am living but Christ who is living in me."
As we are brought down to death by the Spirit of God the work of judgment commences.
Do we receive the good and the bad we are practicing?
Yes, we do. From the bad we are practicing comes the tribulation we experience. This tribulation results from the judgment passed on our personality by the Lord. We suffer pain in this world (and no doubt in the next) because of the rebellion and lawlessness in us. This is the meaning of the fourth chapter of I Peter.
And notice carefully:
So that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure: Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer: (II Thessalonians 1:4,5)
What are our persecutions and tribulations? They are "a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God." They are God's judgment upon us.
God sends fiery judgments on us for the purpose of burning sin out of us so we may be counted worthy of the Kingdom of God. We are suffering so we may enter the Kingdom of God. We suffer so we will cease from sin (I Peter 4:1). The righteous are saved with difficulty as they work out their salvation with fear and trembling.
How about the good we have done. Do we receive the good also? Yes, we do. We do not always witness the outward manifestation of our rewards during our lifetime on the earth. We receive our rewards spiritually, and they enable us to pass from glory to glory in spiritual authority and life while we yet are in 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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
We are stating here that the Judgment Seat of Christ is part of the reconciliation stage of the marriage of the Lamb. It is not possible for us to be raised from the dead, to be changed into an immortal being, to ascend to meet the Lord and be ever with Him, to enter marriage with Him, shining in glory before all the world, and after that receive the bad we have practiced in our body (II Corinthians 5:10).
The members of the Wife of the Lamb must be made manifest before the Judgment Seat of Christ prior to the first resurrection from the dead. We must be revealed now-in the present hour-before the Judgment Seat of Christ.
Is it scriptural that the household of God is to be judged in advance of the world?
For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? (I Peter 4:17)
Isn't it true that we are judged after we die (Hebrews 9:27)?
Yes, but consider that the death into which the true saint is brought, in being made conformable to Christ's death, is a true death. Although it is not a physical death, it is a genuine death of our first personality. The Spirit is bringing us to the point where we can say, "It is not I who am living but Christ who is living in me."
As we are brought down to death by the Spirit of God the work of judgment commences.
Do we receive the good and the bad we are practicing?
Yes, we do. From the bad we are practicing comes the tribulation we experience. This tribulation results from the judgment passed on our personality by the Lord. We suffer pain in this world (and no doubt in the next) because of the rebellion and lawlessness in us. This is the meaning of the fourth chapter of I Peter.
And notice carefully:
So that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure: Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer: (II Thessalonians 1:4,5)
What are our persecutions and tribulations? They are "a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God." They are God's judgment upon us.
God sends fiery judgments on us for the purpose of burning sin out of us so we may be counted worthy of the Kingdom of God. We are suffering so we may enter the Kingdom of God. We suffer so we will cease from sin (I Peter 4:1). The righteous are saved with difficulty as they work out their salvation with fear and trembling.
How about the good we have done. Do we receive the good also? Yes, we do. We do not always witness the outward manifestation of our rewards during our lifetime on the earth. We receive our rewards spiritually, and they enable us to pass from glory to glory in spiritual authority and life while we yet are in 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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Monday, October 18, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #14
. . . that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. (II Corinthians 5:10)
At the Judgment Seat the believer receives the consequences of the good things he has done and the bad things he has done. The issue is not that of good and less good, as is taught commonly, but of good and bad. The Judgment Seat of Christ has to do with the evaluation of the good we have done and the evil we have done.
Paul adds:
Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; . . . . (II Corinthians 5:11)
To hold that the Judgment Seat of Christ is an awards ceremony is not consistent with the New Testament usage of the term beema, the express statement of the verse, or the context. Paul's exhortation continues, in II Corinthians, until he says:
Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. (II Corinthians 6:17)
Also, in Romans, Chapter 14, in a discussion of holy living, Paul exhorts the stronger believers to cease judging their weaker brothers, for the weak will stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ and be judged concerning their holiness or lack of it (Romans 14:10).
Every knee will bow to Christ and every one of us will give an account of himself to God (Romans 14:11,12), concerning not only our Christian service but also all we have done in the body. According to Paul, the day will come when all the deeds of the believer will be brought forth into the light, just as the five kings of the Amorites were brought forth from the cave of Makkedah.
It is evident, then, that being clothed with the righteousness of Christ holds true under a specific condition. It is not an eternal amnesty we obtain by confessing that Jesus is Lord and believing in our heart that God has raised Him from the dead. We fall into error when we receive only a part of the counsel of God.
The specific condition is that we are obeying God. As long as we are walking in obedience, walking in the light of God's will for us, the blood of the Lord Jesus serves as a compensating righteousness that makes up the difference between what we are and practice and the standards of Divine righteousness.
As we follow the Spirit of God, putting to death the deeds of our body, the Divine Nature that is entering us is creating in us the standard of Divine righteousness. Meanwhile the blood-covering makes up the difference.
If we persevere in following the Lord our behavior finally will attain the quality of righteousness and holiness necessary for immortality in the body when the Lord appears. This is what Paul means by "attain unto the resurrection of the dead" (Philippians 3:11).
The concept of the blood-covering serving as a compensating righteousness while we are being transformed into the image of Christ is the central concept of the new covenant. It is radically different from the currently-expressed doctrine that the blood-covering is an eternal screen that prevents God from witnessing the actual personalities and behaviors of His children.
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
At the Judgment Seat the believer receives the consequences of the good things he has done and the bad things he has done. The issue is not that of good and less good, as is taught commonly, but of good and bad. The Judgment Seat of Christ has to do with the evaluation of the good we have done and the evil we have done.
Paul adds:
Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; . . . . (II Corinthians 5:11)
To hold that the Judgment Seat of Christ is an awards ceremony is not consistent with the New Testament usage of the term beema, the express statement of the verse, or the context. Paul's exhortation continues, in II Corinthians, until he says:
Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. (II Corinthians 6:17)
Also, in Romans, Chapter 14, in a discussion of holy living, Paul exhorts the stronger believers to cease judging their weaker brothers, for the weak will stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ and be judged concerning their holiness or lack of it (Romans 14:10).
Every knee will bow to Christ and every one of us will give an account of himself to God (Romans 14:11,12), concerning not only our Christian service but also all we have done in the body. According to Paul, the day will come when all the deeds of the believer will be brought forth into the light, just as the five kings of the Amorites were brought forth from the cave of Makkedah.
It is evident, then, that being clothed with the righteousness of Christ holds true under a specific condition. It is not an eternal amnesty we obtain by confessing that Jesus is Lord and believing in our heart that God has raised Him from the dead. We fall into error when we receive only a part of the counsel of God.
The specific condition is that we are obeying God. As long as we are walking in obedience, walking in the light of God's will for us, the blood of the Lord Jesus serves as a compensating righteousness that makes up the difference between what we are and practice and the standards of Divine righteousness.
As we follow the Spirit of God, putting to death the deeds of our body, the Divine Nature that is entering us is creating in us the standard of Divine righteousness. Meanwhile the blood-covering makes up the difference.
If we persevere in following the Lord our behavior finally will attain the quality of righteousness and holiness necessary for immortality in the body when the Lord appears. This is what Paul means by "attain unto the resurrection of the dead" (Philippians 3:11).
The concept of the blood-covering serving as a compensating righteousness while we are being transformed into the image of Christ is the central concept of the new covenant. It is radically different from the currently-expressed doctrine that the blood-covering is an eternal screen that prevents God from witnessing the actual personalities and behaviors of His children.
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Friday, October 15, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #13
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. (II Corinthians 5:10)
Obviously, if God does not see the behavior of the believers but only the righteousness of His Son, and if this condition holds true at the Judgment Seat of Christ, then it is not possible for the Christian to receive the bad he has practiced in his body.
In defense of their position, some Christians claim that the Judgment Seat (beema ) of Christ is the place where the believers receive only their rewards for their works of Christian service. This is not accurate, for two reasons: one, the verse includes receiving the bad we have practiced; and two, the term beema is used consistently in the New Testament to mean a court before which persons accused of crimes are brought. It never is used as a place where contestants receive laurel wreaths. Jesus was brought before the beema of Pilate.
We know from the Scriptures that when any person receives Christ as his Savior, His past sins are washed away. We know also that God covers him with the blood of Christ so he is as righteous as though he never had sinned. We know this is true. It is the foundation stone of the Divine redemption. This part of current teaching is scriptural.
The extension of this concept to mean that all the aspects of our inheritance, including marriage to the Lamb, are imputed (legally assigned) to us for eternity while we remain unchanged, is not scriptural.
The Kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy-all in the Holy Spirit. If the only righteousness of the Kingdom is that which is legally assigned to us, then the peace and joy of the Kingdom would also be legally assigned to us rather than experienced, and we certainly would not desire this! If the peace and joy are actual, then the righteousness is actual and not merely imputed.
Christian teachers sometimes state that "the things done in his body" (II Corinthians 5:10) refers to works of service and not to moral behavior, not to sin.
If such were the case, how could the believer receive the bad practiced in his body, unless we consider the absence of works of service as the "bad" that Paul mentions. In that instance, are we saying that the absence of Christian service is not a moral transgression? Jesus commanded that the man who had wasted his talent be cast into the outer darkness. He received the bad he had practiced while in his body. Lack of service, or improper service, leaves the offender spiritually naked in the Day of Christ-and sometimes subject to severe chastisement!
Let us consider the verse once again. Is it referring to rewards for Christian service, or is it referring to righteousness and unrighteousness?
. . . that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. (II Corinthians 5:10)
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Dr. Thompson has recently finished a book titled Heaven—God's Wonderful World. It was written to comfort terminally ill children and their parents, and anyone who may be afraid of death.
It is available in paperback, or as an audio book on CD. To learn more about Heaven—God's Wonderful World, or to order a copy, please visit our web site.
New! Pastor's original piano composition titled "God Is My Salvation" is available on music CD. Thanks!
Obviously, if God does not see the behavior of the believers but only the righteousness of His Son, and if this condition holds true at the Judgment Seat of Christ, then it is not possible for the Christian to receive the bad he has practiced in his body.
In defense of their position, some Christians claim that the Judgment Seat (beema ) of Christ is the place where the believers receive only their rewards for their works of Christian service. This is not accurate, for two reasons: one, the verse includes receiving the bad we have practiced; and two, the term beema is used consistently in the New Testament to mean a court before which persons accused of crimes are brought. It never is used as a place where contestants receive laurel wreaths. Jesus was brought before the beema of Pilate.
We know from the Scriptures that when any person receives Christ as his Savior, His past sins are washed away. We know also that God covers him with the blood of Christ so he is as righteous as though he never had sinned. We know this is true. It is the foundation stone of the Divine redemption. This part of current teaching is scriptural.
The extension of this concept to mean that all the aspects of our inheritance, including marriage to the Lamb, are imputed (legally assigned) to us for eternity while we remain unchanged, is not scriptural.
The Kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy-all in the Holy Spirit. If the only righteousness of the Kingdom is that which is legally assigned to us, then the peace and joy of the Kingdom would also be legally assigned to us rather than experienced, and we certainly would not desire this! If the peace and joy are actual, then the righteousness is actual and not merely imputed.
Christian teachers sometimes state that "the things done in his body" (II Corinthians 5:10) refers to works of service and not to moral behavior, not to sin.
If such were the case, how could the believer receive the bad practiced in his body, unless we consider the absence of works of service as the "bad" that Paul mentions. In that instance, are we saying that the absence of Christian service is not a moral transgression? Jesus commanded that the man who had wasted his talent be cast into the outer darkness. He received the bad he had practiced while in his body. Lack of service, or improper service, leaves the offender spiritually naked in the Day of Christ-and sometimes subject to severe chastisement!
Let us consider the verse once again. Is it referring to rewards for Christian service, or is it referring to righteousness and unrighteousness?
. . . that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad. (II Corinthians 5:10)
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Dr. Thompson has recently finished a book titled Heaven—God's Wonderful World. It was written to comfort terminally ill children and their parents, and anyone who may be afraid of death.It is available in paperback, or as an audio book on CD. To learn more about Heaven—God's Wonderful World, or to order a copy, please visit our web site.
New! Pastor's original piano composition titled "God Is My Salvation" is available on music CD. Thanks!
Thursday, October 14, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #12
But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. (II Corinthians 3:18)
This does not mean God brings to our attention the sins we committed before we became Christians. The guilt of our sins is gone forever provided we follow Christ.
There is a double work. First, the Lord forgives the sins of the past and covers our sinful personality. He no longer "sees" our sinful personality because of the righteousness of the blood of the Lamb.
However, the Kingdom of God does not consist of people who have rebellious and lawless personalities that the Lord cannot see because they are protected by the blood of Christ. Such a condition is temporary, being a necessary beginning phase of the Divine redemption.
The new covenant primarily is one of transformation. It is not primarily a covenant of forgiveness (Hebrews 8:8-12) although it often is preached as such today.
The Lord forgives us initially so He may proceed with the work of creating us in the image of Christ, for it is to such transformation that we have been predestined (Romans 8:29).
This double work, first a forgiveness, and then a bringing out and slaying of evil, is typified by Joshua's tactic with the five kings of the Amorites.
First, Joshua imprisoned the five kings in the cave at Makkedah (Joshua 10:18). The rolling of stones against the mouth of the cave portrays the covering of our lawless personality by the atoning blood of the Lord Jesus.
At a later time Joshua brought out the five kings and slew them (Joshua 10:26). This typifies the work of judgment and reconciliation, the baptism with fire that the saint experiences as he follows the Lord.
At this point in our study we have come to what, from our point of view, is one of the principal errors in Christian theology. This one error has kept the churches of Christ in a state of babyhood.
The error is in viewing the salvation that is in Christ as only a forgiving and covering of us so God cannot see our sinfulness. It is taught that God no longer sees the kind of person we are but only the righteousness of His Son, Christ. This commonly is held to be a perpetual, eternal state, rather than what it is, a temporary legal device while we are being transformed.
There are many fine Christians who follow the Lord into powerful ministry and spiritual maturity even though their doctrine is limited. We think multitudes more would profit from the correct understanding of the Divine redemption.
As we work outward from this commonly-held concept, in the drawing of conclusions and in application, a part of the writings of the Apostles becomes unintelligible.
If God no longer sees us but only the righteousness of His Son, we need have no fear at the Judgment Seat of Christ-and this is what many Christians are teaching. Their conclusion is consistent with their fundamental concept.
But this is not what the Scripture teaches!
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
This does not mean God brings to our attention the sins we committed before we became Christians. The guilt of our sins is gone forever provided we follow Christ.
There is a double work. First, the Lord forgives the sins of the past and covers our sinful personality. He no longer "sees" our sinful personality because of the righteousness of the blood of the Lamb.
However, the Kingdom of God does not consist of people who have rebellious and lawless personalities that the Lord cannot see because they are protected by the blood of Christ. Such a condition is temporary, being a necessary beginning phase of the Divine redemption.
The new covenant primarily is one of transformation. It is not primarily a covenant of forgiveness (Hebrews 8:8-12) although it often is preached as such today.
The Lord forgives us initially so He may proceed with the work of creating us in the image of Christ, for it is to such transformation that we have been predestined (Romans 8:29).
This double work, first a forgiveness, and then a bringing out and slaying of evil, is typified by Joshua's tactic with the five kings of the Amorites.
First, Joshua imprisoned the five kings in the cave at Makkedah (Joshua 10:18). The rolling of stones against the mouth of the cave portrays the covering of our lawless personality by the atoning blood of the Lord Jesus.
At a later time Joshua brought out the five kings and slew them (Joshua 10:26). This typifies the work of judgment and reconciliation, the baptism with fire that the saint experiences as he follows the Lord.
At this point in our study we have come to what, from our point of view, is one of the principal errors in Christian theology. This one error has kept the churches of Christ in a state of babyhood.
The error is in viewing the salvation that is in Christ as only a forgiving and covering of us so God cannot see our sinfulness. It is taught that God no longer sees the kind of person we are but only the righteousness of His Son, Christ. This commonly is held to be a perpetual, eternal state, rather than what it is, a temporary legal device while we are being transformed.
There are many fine Christians who follow the Lord into powerful ministry and spiritual maturity even though their doctrine is limited. We think multitudes more would profit from the correct understanding of the Divine redemption.
As we work outward from this commonly-held concept, in the drawing of conclusions and in application, a part of the writings of the Apostles becomes unintelligible.
If God no longer sees us but only the righteousness of His Son, we need have no fear at the Judgment Seat of Christ-and this is what many Christians are teaching. Their conclusion is consistent with their fundamental concept.
But this is not what the Scripture teaches!
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #11
Come, and let us return unto the Lord: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. (Hosea 6:1)
It is the Lord's way to wound us and then heal us.
Many of the Lord's people of today need to understand that the Lord brings judgment on us. It is happening to them and they cannot understand the reason for it. The false prophets of our day are teaching that if the believer is not healthy and prosperous, he is out of the Lord's will. According to this false teaching, the believer has two problems: the fact of his suffering, and then the guilt of displeasing the Lord (so he imagines).
It appears that many Christian people are passing through Divine judgment without any idea of what is taking place in their lives. They do not know whether they are backsliding, or Satan is attacking them, or just what is happening. They could profit more from the Lord's chastening if they understood that all whom the Lord receives must undergo prolonged chastening before they receive the peace and righteousness they are seeking (Hebrews 12:5-11).
The reconciliation stage is set forth in type in the Old Testament Day of Atonement (Leviticus, Chapter 16).
After the feast of Pentecost there were three final feasts celebrated in one month (see Leviticus, Chapter 23 for the seven feasts of the Lord):
The blowing of Trumpets.
The Day of Atonement.
The feast of Tabernacles.
The feasts of the Lord speak of Christ, of the kingdom-wide acts of God, and also of the work of redemption in the individual believer. In terms of the individual believer, the memorial of blowing of Trumpets portrays the coming of the King, Christ, to wage war against the rebellion and lawlessness that are part of the human personality.
The Day of Atonement speaks of the removal of all rebellion and lawlessness from us, the reconciling of us to the Lord God of Heaven.
The final feast, the feast of Tabernacles, typifies the union stage of the marriage of the Lamb, that is, the Father and the Son entering us in complete union, in untroubled rest. This is the "rest" of God spoken of in the fourth chapter of the Book of Hebrews.
Back now to the Day of Atonement, for we are speaking of the second stage of the marriage of the Lamb, that is, the stage of reconciliation.
During the annual Day of Atonement, as described in the sixteenth chapter of the Book of Leviticus, the sins of Israel were forgiven and then placed on the scapegoat and removed from the Presence of the Lord's people.
The initial act of salvation in our lives, as portrayed in the first feast, the feast of Passover, is a blood-shield over us as the Lord brings judgment on the gods of Egypt (the world).
When we come to the Day of Atonement (Day of Reconciliation), our rebellion and lawlessness are made manifest at the Judgment Seat of Christ and our sins are dealt with through the authority of the blood of the Lamb and the power of the Spirit of God.
The term atonement means covering, and also reconciliation. At first God covers our sins under the blood of the cross. Later in our experience, after we have received the spiritual fulfillment of the feast of Pentecost, God reveals our sinful personality to us and helps us get rid of what is displeasing to 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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
It is the Lord's way to wound us and then heal us.
Many of the Lord's people of today need to understand that the Lord brings judgment on us. It is happening to them and they cannot understand the reason for it. The false prophets of our day are teaching that if the believer is not healthy and prosperous, he is out of the Lord's will. According to this false teaching, the believer has two problems: the fact of his suffering, and then the guilt of displeasing the Lord (so he imagines).
It appears that many Christian people are passing through Divine judgment without any idea of what is taking place in their lives. They do not know whether they are backsliding, or Satan is attacking them, or just what is happening. They could profit more from the Lord's chastening if they understood that all whom the Lord receives must undergo prolonged chastening before they receive the peace and righteousness they are seeking (Hebrews 12:5-11).
The reconciliation stage is set forth in type in the Old Testament Day of Atonement (Leviticus, Chapter 16).
After the feast of Pentecost there were three final feasts celebrated in one month (see Leviticus, Chapter 23 for the seven feasts of the Lord):
The blowing of Trumpets.
The Day of Atonement.
The feast of Tabernacles.
The feasts of the Lord speak of Christ, of the kingdom-wide acts of God, and also of the work of redemption in the individual believer. In terms of the individual believer, the memorial of blowing of Trumpets portrays the coming of the King, Christ, to wage war against the rebellion and lawlessness that are part of the human personality.
The Day of Atonement speaks of the removal of all rebellion and lawlessness from us, the reconciling of us to the Lord God of Heaven.
The final feast, the feast of Tabernacles, typifies the union stage of the marriage of the Lamb, that is, the Father and the Son entering us in complete union, in untroubled rest. This is the "rest" of God spoken of in the fourth chapter of the Book of Hebrews.
Back now to the Day of Atonement, for we are speaking of the second stage of the marriage of the Lamb, that is, the stage of reconciliation.
During the annual Day of Atonement, as described in the sixteenth chapter of the Book of Leviticus, the sins of Israel were forgiven and then placed on the scapegoat and removed from the Presence of the Lord's people.
The initial act of salvation in our lives, as portrayed in the first feast, the feast of Passover, is a blood-shield over us as the Lord brings judgment on the gods of Egypt (the world).
When we come to the Day of Atonement (Day of Reconciliation), our rebellion and lawlessness are made manifest at the Judgment Seat of Christ and our sins are dealt with through the authority of the blood of the Lamb and the power of the Spirit of God.
The term atonement means covering, and also reconciliation. At first God covers our sins under the blood of the cross. Later in our experience, after we have received the spiritual fulfillment of the feast of Pentecost, God reveals our sinful personality to us and helps us get rid of what is displeasing to 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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #10
And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him. (Exodus 4;24)
Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer: (II Thessalonians 2:5)
Before the Lord is ready to reveal His glory in us He first must wage war against the wickedness that is in us. A forerunner of Armageddon will be fought in the personalities of the members of the Bride of the Lamb before the battle takes place against the nations that come up to attack Jerusalem.
You may recall that before the Lord revealed His glory in the presence of Pharaoh He sought to kill Moses because Moses did not keep the covenant of circumcision.
The Lord God of Heaven will cleanse His Church in the last days. The cleansing of the Church, the Bride of the Lamb, is one of the purposes of the great tribulation. The great tribulation will refine the elect until many of them will become fit to be members of the Wife of the Lamb. The tribulation will seek to kill the adamic nature of the members of Christ's Body.
The "great tribulation" is so termed, not because the sufferings will be more intense than those that Christians already have suffered throughout history but because it will be worldwide rather than confined to one area. Many who walk with God through the great tribulation will come to high rank in the Kingdom of God.
Also, the great tribulation period and the reign of Antichrist will divide between those who will rule with God (Revelation 20:4) and those who will be tormented with fire and sulfur (Revelation 14:10). The coming of the Lord in judgment and fire will make His way straight in the hearts of His people and then in the whole earth. The Divine judgment begins with the household of God.
The Wife of the Lamb will be reconciled to Him by fire.
And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem: when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning. (Isaiah 4:3,4)
This passage parallels in meaning Matthew 3:11,12, Malachi 3:1-3 and the fourth chapter of I Peter. This is the reason we must "through much tribulation" enter the Kingdom of God (Acts 14:22).
"The Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, . . . by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning."
This is the baptism with fire. This is the reconciliation stage of the marriage of the Lamb.
Before the Lord receives Jerusalem, He fights against her.
Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins. (Isaiah 40:2)
"Her warfare is accomplished."
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Which is a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God, that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer: (II Thessalonians 2:5)
Before the Lord is ready to reveal His glory in us He first must wage war against the wickedness that is in us. A forerunner of Armageddon will be fought in the personalities of the members of the Bride of the Lamb before the battle takes place against the nations that come up to attack Jerusalem.
You may recall that before the Lord revealed His glory in the presence of Pharaoh He sought to kill Moses because Moses did not keep the covenant of circumcision.
The Lord God of Heaven will cleanse His Church in the last days. The cleansing of the Church, the Bride of the Lamb, is one of the purposes of the great tribulation. The great tribulation will refine the elect until many of them will become fit to be members of the Wife of the Lamb. The tribulation will seek to kill the adamic nature of the members of Christ's Body.
The "great tribulation" is so termed, not because the sufferings will be more intense than those that Christians already have suffered throughout history but because it will be worldwide rather than confined to one area. Many who walk with God through the great tribulation will come to high rank in the Kingdom of God.
Also, the great tribulation period and the reign of Antichrist will divide between those who will rule with God (Revelation 20:4) and those who will be tormented with fire and sulfur (Revelation 14:10). The coming of the Lord in judgment and fire will make His way straight in the hearts of His people and then in the whole earth. The Divine judgment begins with the household of God.
The Wife of the Lamb will be reconciled to Him by fire.
And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem: when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning. (Isaiah 4:3,4)
This passage parallels in meaning Matthew 3:11,12, Malachi 3:1-3 and the fourth chapter of I Peter. This is the reason we must "through much tribulation" enter the Kingdom of God (Acts 14:22).
"The Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, . . . by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning."
This is the baptism with fire. This is the reconciliation stage of the marriage of the Lamb.
Before the Lord receives Jerusalem, He fights against her.
Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the Lord's hand double for all her sins. (Isaiah 40:2)
"Her warfare is accomplished."
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Friday, October 08, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #9
I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire: (Matthew 3:11)
"He shall baptize you . . . with fire."
That this verse is speaking of the same coming of the Lord announced in Malachi 3:1-3 can be observed in the verse that follows:
Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire. (Matthew 3:12)
"He will throughly purge his floor"!
If we apply Matthew 3:12 to the Jews, as some are doing today, then we must reserve the baptism with the Holy Spirit for the Jews.
The result of separating the Gentile believers from the Israel of God has been doctrinal chaos.
And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God. (Galatians 6:16)
Paul considered the Galatian believers, who were Gentiles, to be the "Israel of God."
It is time for Christian scholars to take a close look at the effect the dispensational model has had on the straightforward, coherent interpretation of the Scriptures. It is certain that the concept of the Kingdom of God has been lost by the teaching that there are two separate kingdoms-one of elect Jews and one of elect Gentiles. It is time, we believe, for a reformation of Evangelical Christian thinking concerning God's plan of redemption in Christ and the nature of the one Kingdom of God, the Kingdom coming from Heaven.
The coming of Christ to reconcile Himself to His people, as set forth in John, Chapter Fourteen, Malachi, Chapter Three, and Matthew, Chapter Three, is not the manifestation of Christ to the world (Revelation 1:7).
The coming of Christ to His elect in judgment and reconciliation must take place before the appearing of the Lamb and His Wife. The appearing to the world of the Lamb and His Wife is the manifestation stage of the marriage of the Lamb. By the time of the manifestation stage the Bride already has been judged and reconciled, as evidenced by the clothing of her with the white raiment of bodily immortality.
Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness [righteous behavior] of saints. (Revelation 19:7,8)
The expression "to her was granted" signifies that a judgment has been made concerning her eligibility to be arrayed in immortal righteousness. It is obvious that the Bride will not, after she has been arrayed in immortal righteousness, be required to stand before Christ in judgment.
It is not possible she will be declared to be the Wife of the Lamb by virtue of being clothed with immortality, and then be baptized with purifying fire. The baptism with fire must take place before her glorification (manifestation). The stage of reconciliation must precede the stage of manifestation. Malachi 3:1-3; Matthew 3:11,12; and I Peter 4:12-19 must precede Revelation 19:7,8. The believer must be made manifest at the Judgment Seat of Christ before being presented to the universe as the Wife of the Lamb. It is not possible we can be clothed with bodily immortality and after that stand before Christ and receive the bad things done in our body (II Corinthians 5:10).
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
"He shall baptize you . . . with fire."
That this verse is speaking of the same coming of the Lord announced in Malachi 3:1-3 can be observed in the verse that follows:
Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire. (Matthew 3:12)
"He will throughly purge his floor"!
If we apply Matthew 3:12 to the Jews, as some are doing today, then we must reserve the baptism with the Holy Spirit for the Jews.
The result of separating the Gentile believers from the Israel of God has been doctrinal chaos.
And as many as walk according to this rule, peace be on them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God. (Galatians 6:16)
Paul considered the Galatian believers, who were Gentiles, to be the "Israel of God."
It is time for Christian scholars to take a close look at the effect the dispensational model has had on the straightforward, coherent interpretation of the Scriptures. It is certain that the concept of the Kingdom of God has been lost by the teaching that there are two separate kingdoms-one of elect Jews and one of elect Gentiles. It is time, we believe, for a reformation of Evangelical Christian thinking concerning God's plan of redemption in Christ and the nature of the one Kingdom of God, the Kingdom coming from Heaven.
The coming of Christ to reconcile Himself to His people, as set forth in John, Chapter Fourteen, Malachi, Chapter Three, and Matthew, Chapter Three, is not the manifestation of Christ to the world (Revelation 1:7).
The coming of Christ to His elect in judgment and reconciliation must take place before the appearing of the Lamb and His Wife. The appearing to the world of the Lamb and His Wife is the manifestation stage of the marriage of the Lamb. By the time of the manifestation stage the Bride already has been judged and reconciled, as evidenced by the clothing of her with the white raiment of bodily immortality.
Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness [righteous behavior] of saints. (Revelation 19:7,8)
The expression "to her was granted" signifies that a judgment has been made concerning her eligibility to be arrayed in immortal righteousness. It is obvious that the Bride will not, after she has been arrayed in immortal righteousness, be required to stand before Christ in judgment.
It is not possible she will be declared to be the Wife of the Lamb by virtue of being clothed with immortality, and then be baptized with purifying fire. The baptism with fire must take place before her glorification (manifestation). The stage of reconciliation must precede the stage of manifestation. Malachi 3:1-3; Matthew 3:11,12; and I Peter 4:12-19 must precede Revelation 19:7,8. The believer must be made manifest at the Judgment Seat of Christ before being presented to the universe as the Wife of the Lamb. It is not possible we can be clothed with bodily immortality and after that stand before Christ and receive the bad things done in our body (II Corinthians 5:10).
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Thursday, October 07, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #8
And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; (II Corinthians 5:18)
The Reconciliation Stage
It was not necessary for Eve to go through the second stage, the reconciliation stage, because she never had been in rebellion against Adam. Each of us who believes in Christ is, at the time we commence our pilgrimage, filled with rebellion and lawlessness. Whether or not we know it, our hearts are desperately wicked.
Our conflict with the Nature of the Lamb is in three areas: love for the world, the appetites of our flesh, and self-love and personal ambition. These are our three principal idols. We are involved in the spirit of the world, we break God's moral laws, and we are self-willed.
After we are covered by the blood of the Lamb, have been born again, and some progress has been made in the forming of Christ in us, the Lord Jesus Himself comes to us through the Holy Spirit. He is ready to wage war against the wickedness that is in us. He reveals before His judgment seat what we are and what we do. If we follow Him through judgment He works with us until we have been delivered and healed.
The coming in the Spirit in personal judgment is a real coming of the Lord. It is an important part of the personal, secret coming of Jesus to those who are seeking the Lord, to those who belong to Him.
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. (John 14:3)
"I will come again."
He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. (John 14:21)
"Will manifest myself to him."
As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. (Revelation 3:19)
The coming of the Lord to His people in judgment was announced by the Hebrew Prophets.
Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. (Malachi 3:1)
"The Lord, . . . shall suddenly come to his temple."
This is a coming of Christ to His royal priesthood, not to the world but to the dedicated believers-as set forth in John 14:18-23.
And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness. (Malachi 3:3)
This passage from Malachi is speaking of the cleansing of the royal priesthood of God, whether Jewish or Gentile by natural birth.
The Lord Jesus will come suddenly to each member of the royal priesthood, whether Jewish or Gentile by physical birth, and refine by fire the believer's redemption (silver) and his faith (gold).
I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; . . . . (Revelation 3:18)
We Christians have been baptized with the Holy Spirit. Now we must be baptized with the purifying fires 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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The Reconciliation Stage
It was not necessary for Eve to go through the second stage, the reconciliation stage, because she never had been in rebellion against Adam. Each of us who believes in Christ is, at the time we commence our pilgrimage, filled with rebellion and lawlessness. Whether or not we know it, our hearts are desperately wicked.
Our conflict with the Nature of the Lamb is in three areas: love for the world, the appetites of our flesh, and self-love and personal ambition. These are our three principal idols. We are involved in the spirit of the world, we break God's moral laws, and we are self-willed.
After we are covered by the blood of the Lamb, have been born again, and some progress has been made in the forming of Christ in us, the Lord Jesus Himself comes to us through the Holy Spirit. He is ready to wage war against the wickedness that is in us. He reveals before His judgment seat what we are and what we do. If we follow Him through judgment He works with us until we have been delivered and healed.
The coming in the Spirit in personal judgment is a real coming of the Lord. It is an important part of the personal, secret coming of Jesus to those who are seeking the Lord, to those who belong to Him.
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. (John 14:3)
"I will come again."
He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. (John 14:21)
"Will manifest myself to him."
As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. (Revelation 3:19)
The coming of the Lord to His people in judgment was announced by the Hebrew Prophets.
Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. (Malachi 3:1)
"The Lord, . . . shall suddenly come to his temple."
This is a coming of Christ to His royal priesthood, not to the world but to the dedicated believers-as set forth in John 14:18-23.
And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness. (Malachi 3:3)
This passage from Malachi is speaking of the cleansing of the royal priesthood of God, whether Jewish or Gentile by natural birth.
The Lord Jesus will come suddenly to each member of the royal priesthood, whether Jewish or Gentile by physical birth, and refine by fire the believer's redemption (silver) and his faith (gold).
I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; . . . . (Revelation 3:18)
We Christians have been baptized with the Holy Spirit. Now we must be baptized with the purifying fires 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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Wednesday, October 06, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #7
That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. (Ephesians 5:27)
Would there appear before Him the treasure for which He has been waiting for so many thousands of years; for the touch of whose hand the creation waits in its chains of futility?
Or would He be facing the typical assortment of unchanged believers who serve Him when it is convenient for them to do so, whose understanding of Jesus is that He is their servant and their "ticket" to everything they want?
The Wife of the Lamb will be formed by the Lord God until she is perfect-without spot or wrinkle. She will not be formed in righteousness at the last minute, according to the Scriptures. When the Lord is ready to appear with her in glory, the Bride will be clothed in the "white raiment" of righteous works.
The white raiment of the Bride is formed from the continuing process of death and resurrection she experiences throughout her pilgrimage (II Corinthians 4:17, Revelation 19:7,8). The Bride makes herself ready for the marriage by cooperating with the Holy Spirit as He delivers her from the lusts of the flesh, love for the world, and self-centeredness and personal ambition.
The formation stage of the marriage of the Lamb is of the greatest importance. It is during this stage that the Wife is created from the eternal Substance of the Lamb.
We stated before that it was not possible for Eve to choose not to marry, or to marry anyone other than Adam, because she was formed with the purpose of being the fullness of Adam.
The forming of Christ in us changes us from an individual who remains free to choose his own destiny into a person who has only one possible destiny. We no longer are individuals who roam about the universe according to our "free will." Rather, we are moving toward only one goal-that of being the completion, the fullness of the Son of God.
Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. (Ephesians 1:23)
It may be true that many contemporary Christians never will accept the formation stage of the marriage of the Lamb because the supreme virtue in the eyes of the "Laodicean" believer is his right to remain an individual and continue to make his own decisions. If receiving Christ cannot be a means of realizing one's potential, of bringing personal fulfillment and satisfaction, then Christianity is not a religion that has as its goal the "welfare of people." Therefore, (according to the Laodiceans) it is not in the best interests of people to embrace it-at least not to the degree of fervency Jesus advocated.
The preceding concept, that an acceptable religion or philosophy must have as its supreme goal the personal fulfillment and satisfaction of human beings, is the position of the humanistic believer of our day. It is an attitude that will increase until all that is of the Spirit of God is driven from the Christian churches.
In these days we must be listening carefully to hear what the Spirit of God is saying to the churches.
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Would there appear before Him the treasure for which He has been waiting for so many thousands of years; for the touch of whose hand the creation waits in its chains of futility?
Or would He be facing the typical assortment of unchanged believers who serve Him when it is convenient for them to do so, whose understanding of Jesus is that He is their servant and their "ticket" to everything they want?
The Wife of the Lamb will be formed by the Lord God until she is perfect-without spot or wrinkle. She will not be formed in righteousness at the last minute, according to the Scriptures. When the Lord is ready to appear with her in glory, the Bride will be clothed in the "white raiment" of righteous works.
The white raiment of the Bride is formed from the continuing process of death and resurrection she experiences throughout her pilgrimage (II Corinthians 4:17, Revelation 19:7,8). The Bride makes herself ready for the marriage by cooperating with the Holy Spirit as He delivers her from the lusts of the flesh, love for the world, and self-centeredness and personal ambition.
The formation stage of the marriage of the Lamb is of the greatest importance. It is during this stage that the Wife is created from the eternal Substance of the Lamb.
We stated before that it was not possible for Eve to choose not to marry, or to marry anyone other than Adam, because she was formed with the purpose of being the fullness of Adam.
The forming of Christ in us changes us from an individual who remains free to choose his own destiny into a person who has only one possible destiny. We no longer are individuals who roam about the universe according to our "free will." Rather, we are moving toward only one goal-that of being the completion, the fullness of the Son of God.
Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. (Ephesians 1:23)
It may be true that many contemporary Christians never will accept the formation stage of the marriage of the Lamb because the supreme virtue in the eyes of the "Laodicean" believer is his right to remain an individual and continue to make his own decisions. If receiving Christ cannot be a means of realizing one's potential, of bringing personal fulfillment and satisfaction, then Christianity is not a religion that has as its goal the "welfare of people." Therefore, (according to the Laodiceans) it is not in the best interests of people to embrace it-at least not to the degree of fervency Jesus advocated.
The preceding concept, that an acceptable religion or philosophy must have as its supreme goal the personal fulfillment and satisfaction of human beings, is the position of the humanistic believer of our day. It is an attitude that will increase until all that is of the Spirit of God is driven from the Christian churches.
In these days we must be listening carefully to hear what the Spirit of God is saying to the churches.
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Tuesday, October 05, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #6
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, . . . . (II Corinthians 5:17,18)
No element of our personality is permitted to remain unchanged. Flesh and blood never enter the Kingdom of God. All must become new in Christ.
Because of the current overemphasis on imputed (assigned) righteousness, and the error of stressing we possess an experience merely because the Apostle Paul stated the principle in the Scripture, passages such as the above are taken for granted by those who have "accepted" Christ.
They do not understand that God speaks of things that are not true as though they were true, not because His Kingdom exists in words alone, having no reality, but rather with the intention of bringing to pass what He has declared to be true. God affirms the vision He has concerning us, and then we must through faith grasp and follow the vision until it becomes reality. Otherwise the reality never comes into being.
God calls us new creations in Christ with the intention of making us new creations in Christ. He begins the new creation the moment we receive Jesus. Our life now is to be one of total diligence in following the Holy Spirit in putting to death the original personality and bringing forth the new creation-the Wife of the Lamb.
To insist we have all of salvation "by faith" (which is not faith at all but mental acceptance), and then continue in the world as usual while we are waiting for the wedding ceremony to take place in Heaven, is the error of contemporary Christianity. There is no understanding, in such an approach to salvation, of the Kingdom principle of cause and effect, of sowing and reaping.
Every molecule of Eve was fashioned from the rib of Adam. Every "molecule" of the Bride of the Lamb will be fashioned from the Lamb. All things will be new and all things will be of God.
Adam's reaction, on being presented with his complement, is interesting.
Adam did not exclaim about her beauty or express pleasure and thanksgiving to the Lord for giving him a companion.
Adam declared: "This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh."
Adam recognized immediately that Eve had not been formed from the red clay of the ground but from himself. Eve "was" Adam in another form.
Eve was a human being like Adam. She was the image of God. More than that, she was Adam. Adam was beholding himself in an external form, a part of himself that had been taken and formed into a fellow creature.
We realize, therefore, the importance of the formation stage of the creation of the Wife of the Lamb. We cannot just "accept Christ" and then wait until there is a wedding ceremony in Heaven.
If Christ were to bring into Heaven the believers of today, would He behold with delight a creation formed from His body and blood? Would He be viewing a spotless completion of Himself, created from the Substance of Divinity? Would Christ be seeing Himself in an external form, a part of Himself that complements Him, making it possible for Him to enter the fullness of His inheritance from the Father? (There might be many such pure believers from among the butchered Christians of Uganda but perhaps not too many from the Western nations of today.)
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
No element of our personality is permitted to remain unchanged. Flesh and blood never enter the Kingdom of God. All must become new in Christ.
Because of the current overemphasis on imputed (assigned) righteousness, and the error of stressing we possess an experience merely because the Apostle Paul stated the principle in the Scripture, passages such as the above are taken for granted by those who have "accepted" Christ.
They do not understand that God speaks of things that are not true as though they were true, not because His Kingdom exists in words alone, having no reality, but rather with the intention of bringing to pass what He has declared to be true. God affirms the vision He has concerning us, and then we must through faith grasp and follow the vision until it becomes reality. Otherwise the reality never comes into being.
God calls us new creations in Christ with the intention of making us new creations in Christ. He begins the new creation the moment we receive Jesus. Our life now is to be one of total diligence in following the Holy Spirit in putting to death the original personality and bringing forth the new creation-the Wife of the Lamb.
To insist we have all of salvation "by faith" (which is not faith at all but mental acceptance), and then continue in the world as usual while we are waiting for the wedding ceremony to take place in Heaven, is the error of contemporary Christianity. There is no understanding, in such an approach to salvation, of the Kingdom principle of cause and effect, of sowing and reaping.
Every molecule of Eve was fashioned from the rib of Adam. Every "molecule" of the Bride of the Lamb will be fashioned from the Lamb. All things will be new and all things will be of God.
Adam's reaction, on being presented with his complement, is interesting.
Adam did not exclaim about her beauty or express pleasure and thanksgiving to the Lord for giving him a companion.
Adam declared: "This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh."
Adam recognized immediately that Eve had not been formed from the red clay of the ground but from himself. Eve "was" Adam in another form.
Eve was a human being like Adam. She was the image of God. More than that, she was Adam. Adam was beholding himself in an external form, a part of himself that had been taken and formed into a fellow creature.
We realize, therefore, the importance of the formation stage of the creation of the Wife of the Lamb. We cannot just "accept Christ" and then wait until there is a wedding ceremony in Heaven.
If Christ were to bring into Heaven the believers of today, would He behold with delight a creation formed from His body and blood? Would He be viewing a spotless completion of Himself, created from the Substance of Divinity? Would Christ be seeing Himself in an external form, a part of Himself that complements Him, making it possible for Him to enter the fullness of His inheritance from the Father? (There might be many such pure believers from among the butchered Christians of Uganda but perhaps not too many from the Western nations of today.)
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Monday, October 04, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #5
My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you, (Galatians 4:19)
There are many believers today who have had the Substance of Christ conceived in them, but not all are pressing forward until every aspect of their personality has passed through the death and resurrection necessary for the formation of Christ in each element.
The Lampstand of the Tabernacle of the Congregation was hammered into shape from one mass of gold. So it is true that the Wife of the Lamb is hammered into shape from the Substance of Christ.
We live, but it is no longer we who are living but Christ who is living in us.
If we truly are following the Spirit of God, some aspect of our personality is being brought down to death each moment of our discipleship and is being raised again, through the body and blood of Christ, into newness of life in Christ. The "wood" of our personality is passing away while the "gold," which was begotten in us when we received Christ, is being hammered into the shape the Lord desires.
Let us say there is a person whom we despise. We carry bitterness and hatred in our soul toward that individual. We must come to understand two facts: one, the bitterness and hatred are coming from our original personality and are being intensified by Satan; and two, the hatred never will be accepted in the Wife of the Lamb. If we are to be a member of the Wife of the Lamb, we must get rid of the hatred toward another person no matter how justified we may believe our bitterness to be.
We go to the Lord. We confess our hatred. We ask the Lord to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness through His holy blood.
The Lord responds by forgiving us so we may remain without condemnation. Then He begins to remove this darkness from us. This is salvation. He may require us to perform some act of repentance or restitution. Or He may do the work Himself without any further action on our part. However, it is our responsibility to resist the enemy when he seeks to move us to continue in hatred. The Lord will help us resist if we ask Him.
God uses the body and blood of the Lord Jesus to form new Substance in us. Divinity is added to us. Change enters us from Heaven. New life comes forth while the old personality withers and dies. The finished product is a new nature. In this manner we continually are passing from death to life. We are washing our robes and making them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Every aspect of love for the world, the lusts of our flesh, and self-will that are in us are dealt with in this fashion. God keeps on bringing tribulations and enemies upon us in order to display the evil that is in us. We must cooperate with the Holy Spirit as He forms Christ in us. We ourselves must judge ourselves, as the Spirit directs us, and ask the Lord to cleanse us. The Wife of the Lamb is not formed in a moment.
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
There are many believers today who have had the Substance of Christ conceived in them, but not all are pressing forward until every aspect of their personality has passed through the death and resurrection necessary for the formation of Christ in each element.
The Lampstand of the Tabernacle of the Congregation was hammered into shape from one mass of gold. So it is true that the Wife of the Lamb is hammered into shape from the Substance of Christ.
We live, but it is no longer we who are living but Christ who is living in us.
If we truly are following the Spirit of God, some aspect of our personality is being brought down to death each moment of our discipleship and is being raised again, through the body and blood of Christ, into newness of life in Christ. The "wood" of our personality is passing away while the "gold," which was begotten in us when we received Christ, is being hammered into the shape the Lord desires.
Let us say there is a person whom we despise. We carry bitterness and hatred in our soul toward that individual. We must come to understand two facts: one, the bitterness and hatred are coming from our original personality and are being intensified by Satan; and two, the hatred never will be accepted in the Wife of the Lamb. If we are to be a member of the Wife of the Lamb, we must get rid of the hatred toward another person no matter how justified we may believe our bitterness to be.
We go to the Lord. We confess our hatred. We ask the Lord to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness through His holy blood.
The Lord responds by forgiving us so we may remain without condemnation. Then He begins to remove this darkness from us. This is salvation. He may require us to perform some act of repentance or restitution. Or He may do the work Himself without any further action on our part. However, it is our responsibility to resist the enemy when he seeks to move us to continue in hatred. The Lord will help us resist if we ask Him.
God uses the body and blood of the Lord Jesus to form new Substance in us. Divinity is added to us. Change enters us from Heaven. New life comes forth while the old personality withers and dies. The finished product is a new nature. In this manner we continually are passing from death to life. We are washing our robes and making them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Every aspect of love for the world, the lusts of our flesh, and self-will that are in us are dealt with in this fashion. God keeps on bringing tribulations and enemies upon us in order to display the evil that is in us. We must cooperate with the Holy Spirit as He forms Christ in us. We ourselves must judge ourselves, as the Spirit directs us, and ask the Lord to cleanse us. The Wife of the Lamb is not formed in a moment.
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Saturday, October 02, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #4
As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. (John 6:57)
Thousands had partaken of the five barley loaves and two small fish. They had followed Jesus and His disciples to Capernaum, hoping to have more free food.
Then, deliberately, the Lamb of God began to speak of His body and blood-of that by which the true Bride lives. The Bride of the Lamb is created from the body and blood of Jesus just as Eve was created from the bone of Adam. The bone became Eve. The body and blood become the Wife of the Lamb.
Jesus knew that all would leave except the twelve whom He had chosen. Even the twelve disciples had further refining to undergo; for there was self-seeking among them, and one of them (even though he had been chosen!) would betray Him and die separated from God.
Thus the true, eternal Bride of the Lamb finally will be distinguished from the multitude of Christ's followers.
The second and third chapters of the Book of Revelation are a love letter from the Lamb to His Wife. There are the seven churches, and then there are those who overcome all hindrances until they finally are revealed as the Wife of the Lamb.
Jesus gives freely of His holy body and blood to all who ask. The Bride is formed from those who choose to live by the inner life and strength that Christ provides. The majority of believers choose to maintain the life and wisdom of their original personalities and because of this do not enter the formative stage of the marriage of the Lamb.
When Christ created Adam, He observed that none of the other living creatures was suitable as a helper for the first man. He recognized also that He-Christ Himself-was alone. None of the angels of Heaven could be His helper because they are different in kind and unsuited as companions for Him.
Christ set about to create another human being who would be suitable for Adam, who would complete Him.
Christ caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, typifying His own death on the cross of Calvary. The Lord then took one of Adam's ribs, a part of Adam, and closed up the flesh in its place.
Then He built the rib into a woman.
And the rib, . . . made he a woman, . . . . (Genesis 2:22)
The rib (part of Adam) was made a woman. God did not use the rib as a nucleus and build Eve around it such that she was a separate person having one of Adam's ribs. Rather, the rib itself was built into a woman. This means that every part of Eve, from her hair to her toes, came from the substance of Adam. In this sense, Eve "was" Adam.
The same identification is true of the Wife of the Lamb. The Wife of the Lamb does not consist of individuals who have a piece of Christ in them. The Wife of the Lamb is made up of those who have been created from Christ just as Eve was created from Adam.
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Thousands had partaken of the five barley loaves and two small fish. They had followed Jesus and His disciples to Capernaum, hoping to have more free food.
Then, deliberately, the Lamb of God began to speak of His body and blood-of that by which the true Bride lives. The Bride of the Lamb is created from the body and blood of Jesus just as Eve was created from the bone of Adam. The bone became Eve. The body and blood become the Wife of the Lamb.
Jesus knew that all would leave except the twelve whom He had chosen. Even the twelve disciples had further refining to undergo; for there was self-seeking among them, and one of them (even though he had been chosen!) would betray Him and die separated from God.
Thus the true, eternal Bride of the Lamb finally will be distinguished from the multitude of Christ's followers.
The second and third chapters of the Book of Revelation are a love letter from the Lamb to His Wife. There are the seven churches, and then there are those who overcome all hindrances until they finally are revealed as the Wife of the Lamb.
Jesus gives freely of His holy body and blood to all who ask. The Bride is formed from those who choose to live by the inner life and strength that Christ provides. The majority of believers choose to maintain the life and wisdom of their original personalities and because of this do not enter the formative stage of the marriage of the Lamb.
When Christ created Adam, He observed that none of the other living creatures was suitable as a helper for the first man. He recognized also that He-Christ Himself-was alone. None of the angels of Heaven could be His helper because they are different in kind and unsuited as companions for Him.
Christ set about to create another human being who would be suitable for Adam, who would complete Him.
Christ caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, typifying His own death on the cross of Calvary. The Lord then took one of Adam's ribs, a part of Adam, and closed up the flesh in its place.
Then He built the rib into a woman.
And the rib, . . . made he a woman, . . . . (Genesis 2:22)
The rib (part of Adam) was made a woman. God did not use the rib as a nucleus and build Eve around it such that she was a separate person having one of Adam's ribs. Rather, the rib itself was built into a woman. This means that every part of Eve, from her hair to her toes, came from the substance of Adam. In this sense, Eve "was" Adam.
The same identification is true of the Wife of the Lamb. The Wife of the Lamb does not consist of individuals who have a piece of Christ in them. The Wife of the Lamb is made up of those who have been created from Christ just as Eve was created from Adam.
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Friday, October 01, 2010
The Marriage of the Lamb, #3
Ask of me [the Father invited Creator Jesus], and I shall give thee the heathen [nations] for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. (Psalms 2:8)
The Father knew that Christ would have to pray, and then suffer exceedingly, before He would be able to possess people in the only manner in which they truly can be possessed. The Creator can create people in His image, but getting them to love Him with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength is another matter.
Human parents can have a child, but getting the child to truly love them requires much more than giving birth to them. We cannot obtain the love of our children by coercion, money, or by informing them of their obligations toward their parents.
The dictators of the world possess authority and power over the bodies of their subjects. But they have no authority or power over their hearts. Thus, the dictators possess flesh, "grass"-nothing of value.
God has created all the people of the world of today, but few of them truly love Him and gladly keep His commandments. God has made it possible for people to choose to give Him their love or to withhold their love from Him; to serve Him or to disobey Him.
The Father has added something else. The Father has planted in the Spirit of Christ the understanding that contained in the multitudes of the earth is a special prize-an elect who will become to Him what Eve was to Adam: that is, an enlargement and completion of Himself. With this understanding has come the fiery love of the Father into Christ-a love so intense, so consuming, that death itself cannot stand in the way; a love that finally brought Christ to the Garden of Gethsemane.
The Lord Jesus Christ is motivated by the most powerful of all motives. He never can be satisfied until His Eve is with Him. At the present time Christ is incomplete-the Lord God has made Him incomplete. Christ never again can live in peace and satisfaction until the day in which the Spirit proclaims, "The marriage of the Lamb is come"; until the second Adam can announce, "This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh."
The Song of Solomon gives us a faint idea of how the Lamb feels about His Bride.
It is the hope and desire for His Bride that moves Christ to keep on working with the Jews and with the other nations of the earth. It is the thought of His Bride that provides life and splendor to Heaven and earth. As far as Christ is concerned, the creation waits for the touch of her hand.
The formation stage of the marriage of the Lamb comes about as we partake of His body and blood, and then as we learn to live by His body and blood, by His indwelling Virtue.
The calling out of the Bride from the multitude of believers can be witnessed in the sixth chapter of the Gospel of John.
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The Father knew that Christ would have to pray, and then suffer exceedingly, before He would be able to possess people in the only manner in which they truly can be possessed. The Creator can create people in His image, but getting them to love Him with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength is another matter.
Human parents can have a child, but getting the child to truly love them requires much more than giving birth to them. We cannot obtain the love of our children by coercion, money, or by informing them of their obligations toward their parents.
The dictators of the world possess authority and power over the bodies of their subjects. But they have no authority or power over their hearts. Thus, the dictators possess flesh, "grass"-nothing of value.
God has created all the people of the world of today, but few of them truly love Him and gladly keep His commandments. God has made it possible for people to choose to give Him their love or to withhold their love from Him; to serve Him or to disobey Him.
The Father has added something else. The Father has planted in the Spirit of Christ the understanding that contained in the multitudes of the earth is a special prize-an elect who will become to Him what Eve was to Adam: that is, an enlargement and completion of Himself. With this understanding has come the fiery love of the Father into Christ-a love so intense, so consuming, that death itself cannot stand in the way; a love that finally brought Christ to the Garden of Gethsemane.
The Lord Jesus Christ is motivated by the most powerful of all motives. He never can be satisfied until His Eve is with Him. At the present time Christ is incomplete-the Lord God has made Him incomplete. Christ never again can live in peace and satisfaction until the day in which the Spirit proclaims, "The marriage of the Lamb is come"; until the second Adam can announce, "This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh."
The Song of Solomon gives us a faint idea of how the Lamb feels about His Bride.
It is the hope and desire for His Bride that moves Christ to keep on working with the Jews and with the other nations of the earth. It is the thought of His Bride that provides life and splendor to Heaven and earth. As far as Christ is concerned, the creation waits for the touch of her hand.
The formation stage of the marriage of the Lamb comes about as we partake of His body and blood, and then as we learn to live by His body and blood, by His indwelling Virtue.
The calling out of the Bride from the multitude of believers can be witnessed in the sixth chapter of the Gospel of John.
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 © 1997-2010 by Trumpet Ministries Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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