Sonship

Children then heirs

Relationship

Born-again

Jesus came to reveal to us the Father heart of God. He said, “If you’ve seen me you’ve seen the Father.” Jesus was speaking to Old Covenant believers who were under the law. They for the most part related to God as if he was a stern task-master who would punish any disobedience. That was their concept of God.

Before the work of the cross, the Holy Spirit had not yet been sent. The Holy Spirit would come on some at times, such as kings, prophets and judges, yet these people were not born-again, but  they were in covenant relationship with God. To be included in this covenant you had to be born a Hebrew. Now there was some provision for the foreigner, but to be automatically included in this covenant, whether male or female, you had to be born a Hebrew. If you were a male, you had to be circumcised at a certain age, or you would be excluded from the covenant and all that the covenant provided.

For most of them, they related to God through temple service and rituals, striving to keep the law their hearts were often cold. Through the law is the fear of punishment. It’s hard to relate to someone or something that you think is watching and judging your every move. You’ll probably remain distant in heart.

God relates to people through covenants. Covenants are somewhat like agreements. If I feel as though I owe someone something and I can’t pay it back, I’ll probably avoid that person or feel guilty every time I’m near them. That debt would be on my mind, probably causing me to remain distant. If these Old Covenant Hebrews broke the Old Testament law, there was a prescribed offering or sacrifice that covered that sin until the next time they fell short, but their slate wasn’t clean for very long.

Their sin debt was always on their conscience. Under the Old Covenant, for the Hebrew it meant their obedience and their offering the prescribed sacrifice if they weren’t faithful to keep the law of Moses, or else judgment came. Once again, enter Jesus and parables like the prodigal son. He revealed a loving Father who longs for us, who accepts us just as we are.

The Bible tells us if we are born-again we are children of God through faith and we can give thanks to the Father who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of his holy people. Our sin debt has been wiped clean by the work of the cross and the Spirit we received brought about our adoption to son-ship.

Jesus Turned the Tables on the Enemy

It's recorded collectively in three of the four gospels that Jesus having made the 'triumphal entry,' soon after entered the temple area and began driving out those who were buying and selling. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, also forbidding anyone to carry any vessel through the temple.

John's gospel records Jesus earlier on, soon after performing the first of His miraculous signs, near the time of the Jewish Passover, entering the temple courts, making a whip out of cords and driving them all, along with sheep and cattle from the temple area, as He overturned their tables. John 2:17 states, "His disciples remembered that it is written: "Zeal for your house will consume me."

The accounts told in Matthew, Mark and Luke all similarly record Jesus as saying, "It is written, He said to them, 'My house will be a house of prayer; but you have made it a den of robbers." With this said, what can we learn from the zeal that Jesus demonstrated as He cleared the temple area, and how can we apply it to our Christian walk?

God's intent in these passages surely wasn't for us to become physically assertive and cause altercations every time we discover people or circumstances aren't what we would like them to be. We can see from such scriptures as James 1:20: 'For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God' and Ephesians 6:12: 'For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places,' where the real battle lies. It is in the spiritual realm.

We know as Christians that our body is the temple of God and God's Spirit now resides in us as born-again believers. We are to recognize the spiritual battle taking place in our lives. Jesus knew His ultimate goal was to go to the cross where He would really turn the tables on satan and all demonic principalities and powers. He accomplished this by what is found in the Word in Colossians 2:14-15 which states, "Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to His cross: and having spoiled principalities and powers, He made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it."

By taking away the tool the enemy used to condemn us with every time we fail to keep it (the law, see Rom. 7:6, Gal. 3:13) we are now free of condemnation (See Rom. 8:1, 34, 2 Cor. 3:7-17) and are free to walk in liberty. (See James 1:25, 2:12) We now, because of Christ, turn the tables on the enemy by instead of receiving condemnation, we now do as it says in Isa. 54:17, "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord."

Jesus cleared the temple early on in His ministry and near the end, before going to the cross. We too must always be on guard throughout our time here on earth. We can now conquer the trials and circumstances in our lives as overcomers just as the Apostle Paul wrote, "Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerers through Him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." in Romans 8:37-39, "

Now, instead of being robbed, we have those things that are freely given us. (See Romans 8:32)

God's Rainbow in the Sky

I always love seeing a rainbow in the sky.

God's promise

And to think before the flood of Noah's day, it didn't rain, but the ground was watered from moisture that came up from beneath.

Scripture says, "In the 600th year of Noah's life, on the 17th day of the second month-on that day all the springs of the great deep burst forth, and the flood gates of the heavens were opened. And rain fell on the earth 40 days and 40 nights." Gen. 7:11-12

When the waters receded and all the living creatures were released from the ark, God made a covenant with Noah and said, Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth. And God set a rainbow in the clouds as a sign and a reminder saying, Whenever a rainbow appears it would remind Him of His covenant with Noah. [See Gen. 9:8-17] NIV

The flood of Noah's day is again spoken of in the 54th chapter of Isaiah. Here God is speaking of the New Covenant that is to come after Christ's death and resurrection. Here God says, "To me, this is like the days of Noah, when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth. So now I have sworn not to be angry with you, never to rebuke you again. Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,"  says the Lord, who has compassion on you. [Isa. 54:9-10] NIV

In these verses, God is saying of the born-again believer, who is under the New Covenant, that He has sworn not to be angry with you and never to rebuke you. These verses are preceded by chapter 53 of Isaiah, which of course speaks of Jesus on the cross. The work of the cross is where our Redeemer became the sacrifice for our sins. [See 1 John 2:2]

When God made the covenant with Noah, it was an unconditional covenant. It was not contingent on whether or not the people of the earth did good or bad, but it relied on God's promise. So it is for us who are born-again believers under the New Covenant of grace. The wrath that God held against mankind's sin was exhausted as it fell squarely on Jesus at the cross.

Romans 5:9 Since we have now been justified by His blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through Him! NIV

1 Thes. 5:8-9 But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, in the hope of salvation as a helmet. For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Examining the Parable of the Good Samaritan

In Luke's gospel, we find "On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" (vs. 26) to which Jesus replied, "What is written in the law?" "How do you read it?" (See vs. 27) He answered: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, Love your neighbor as yourself.'"

(vs. 28) "You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live." (vs. 29) But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"

In reply Jesus told the well known parable of the Good Samaritan. (See Luke 10:30-35)  Jesus followed the parable with His own question to the expert in the law, asking him (vs. 36) "Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?" To which the expert in the law replied, (see vs. 37) "The one who had mercy on him." At which Jesus said, "Go and do likewise."

Of the three in the parable who had opportunity to help the wounded man who had fallen into the hands of robbers; one was a priest, one a Levite and of course, the third was the Samaritan. In this parable spoken by Jesus, we're never told why the priest and the Levite side-stepped the man, avoiding him altogether, as they both chose to pass by on the other side of the road.

A parable is usually just a short simple tale, based on familiar things, meant to convey a moral or religious lesson, and it's even possible Jesus was recalling something that actually happened. But, I believe Jesus was trying to make the point that most of the religious priests and Levites of that time would have side-stepped this wounded man to avoid becoming defiled, as they were worried about their sin problem. They prided themselves in their effort to keep the law. Yet, they could never really keep it, and their hearts were often cold.

We don't have to be worried about our sin problem, because Jesus took our punishment at the cross, so we are truly free to help someone in need. And if you are born-again, then you've received His sacrificial gift.  He took your sin and gave you His righteousness. Righteousness means right-standing with God. So now, because of, or by the righteousness of One, Jesus Christ, the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life. (See Rom. 5:18)

So, it was fitting that when the so called 'expert in the law' asked Jesus "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" that Jesus answered him as He did by asking a question in return, "What is written in the law?" "How do you read it?" (See vs. 10:26)

Rom. 10:4 says, "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth."

Rom. 6:17-18; "But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. (vs. 18) You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness."

Rom. 5:5 goes on to say, "And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out His love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us."

Rom. 13:8-10 tells us, "Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellow man has fulfilled the law. (vs. 9) The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself." (vs. 10) Love does no harm to it's neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

Rom. 5:18; "Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men."

The Nature of God

As we approach summer, there will be many weddings taking place. Oftentimes during the wedding ceremony, you'll hear sections of 1 Cor. chapter 13 quoted; chapter 13 often being referred to as the 'love' chapter.

"Let's take a look at what the Bible reveals as the nature of God. There are many texts and verses in the Bible that could be drawn upon, but none to my knowledge so candidly conveys His nature as the Apostle John does in his epistle.

In 1 John 4:8, he states, "Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love." NIV And again, in 1 John 4:16, we read, "And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him." KJV

Lastly, I'll use the text found in 1 Cor. 13:4-8, NKJV, penned by the Apostle Paul under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. (vs. 4) "Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself; is not puffed up; (vs. 5) does not behave rudely; does not seek its own; is not provoked; thinks no evil; (vs .6) does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; (vs. 7) bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. (vs. 8a) Love never fails."

Often I've taken these verses out of 1 Cor. with the viewpoint that this is how God wants me to act, and I believe it is, but one day it really settled on my spirit that this too is also a descriptive of God's nature. I've found it very comforting to realize that this is how God feels toward me. We must understand and realize that who God is and how He acts are one in the same. God's name and His actions go together; God's name and His nature go together.
[Excerpt from 'The Union' from pages 35-36]

Now let's look at 1 Cor. 13:4-8 this way; Love (God) suffers long and is kind; love (God) does not envy; love (God) does not parade itself; (God) is not puffed up; (vs. 5) (God) does not behave rudely; (God) does not seek it's own; (God) is not provoked; (God) thinks no evil; (vs. 6) (God) does not rejoice in iniquity, but (God) rejoices in the truth; (vs. 7) (God) bears all things, (God) believes all things, (God) hopes all things, (God) endures all things. (vs. 8a) Love (God) never fails. And this is the way God looks at you. God bless.

Believing Faith

"The Old Covenant people were not born again. The nation of Israel was at that time [and remains] a physical kingdom with physical borders and with towns and cities.

We are born-again children of God and the kingdom of God is within us (see Luke 17:21.) Hearing the truth of the gospel is how we gained invitation and access into this kingdom. We received the Holy Spirit by the hearing of faith (see Gal. 3:2b). The book of Romans says it this way, "Consequently faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the Word of Christ." (Rom. 10:17 NIV) Some Bible translations say the message is heard through the Word of "God." Now we know that Jesus is God, but if you use the word "God" in this passage of scripture, that would encompass the entire Bible, including the Old Testament law, with it's curses. And we know the law is not of faith, but the message of the gospel, the hearing of Christ, brings faith (see Gal. 3:12)."
[Except from 'Gates:Thanksgiving Papers' page 77.]

If you study the original Greek word for "God" used in Romans 10:17, it is not 'Theos' for "God," but 'Christos' for "Christ." The word 'gospel' in the Greek simply means 'good news.' The good news of Christ is explained in Rom. 1:16-17, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith."

What does the good news of Christ speak of?

Well, "Remember, before you were born-again, you were on a fast track heading down the highway of life. You were trying to earn your way to heaven by your effort and performance. Then you heard the truth of the gospel, the message that said it wasn't your performance, but what Christ did on the cross that offered you His unconditional pardon, and you accepted His offer. He took your sin and gave you His righteousness. You accepted His sacrificial atonement." [Excerpt from 'Gates' pages 46-47]

This is the righteousness spoken of in Romans 3:21-22; "But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:"

Remember that 'righteousness' means 'right-standing with God.' You came into this right-standing with God the moment you believed the gospel and became born-again. That's when you accepted His unconditional love. Now, as Christians, we daily remain in right-standing with God apart from our performance. (see Rom. 8:1) That's the good news. God bless.

Imaginary vs. Reality

Zoo animals that have spent most of their lives in cages, pacing back and forth, when released into the larger open areas of a more modern zoo have been known to limit themselves to a small area the size of their former cage, pacing back and forth in the same restricted space, but it's an imaginary space. It's not reality. They could be free to roam about, but the years of confinement have shaped their mentality and therefore their behavior.  So it was for most who came out of Egypt.

Remember, when we were born naturally, we were born "spiritually dead" and we didn't know the things of God (see 1 Cor. 2:14). We didn't know the kindness of God. Some of us had some pretty good families with pretty good parents and siblings, but some of us did not. It can be a pretty cruel world out there with peer pressure and dysfunctional families and we all learn how to survive. Apart from God, it's a dog eat dog world and that's what we all were - we were apart from God. But now we have been brought near by the blood of Christ (see Col. 1:20, Eph. 2:13).  [Excerpt from Gates: Thanksgiving Papers, page 91-92]