A Heart For God
Jeremiah: 17:9-10 The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? 10 “I the LORD search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.”
God looks to our hearts to judge us. What is truly in our heart, not the outside facade we put forward to others, is what really matters to God. That is why Jesus rebuked the religious people of His time, as they acted pious and holy but inside were evil mongers lusting after their own pleasures. There is nothing done in secret that will not be revealed and is already known by our Sovereign Lord. In fact we need to understand that God tests us constantly to see what we are made of, what is in our heart. He tested Jesus in the wilderness and He will test you and me until the day we leave this body. What is in your heart is determined by what we do, not by what we say.
The vast majority of professing believers live the lie that they cannot stop sinning, that they shouldn’t even try and that it doesn’t even matter to their salvation. They are saved by Grace they are told but the Grace they know is a perverted license to sin as the Bible warned us would happen. They are worshipping another Jesus. I pity the wolves in sheep clothing that stand before these believers and teach these lies about God but know vengeance is the Lord’s. They will wish they had millstones around their neck and are thrown into the sea versus the punishment they will endure for scattering the true sheep of God.
Without a new heart, all kinds of sin and evil will come forth.
Mark 7:21-23 “What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean.’ 21For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. 23All these evils come from inside and make a man ‘unclean.’ “
I recently blogged about how God will judge us by our deeds, not our faith. While scripture is absolutely clear about this, this truth rocks people’s universe as it goes against the conventional doctrines of apostate Christianity. Those that teach Faith Alone or those that teach a simple belief in Jesus is all we need or must do to have eternal life, must not read the same Bible I do. It hit me that what is really being judged is our heart. If our heart is right with God, our deeds will follow suit. If our heart is wrong with the Lord, our deeds will not reflect a saving faith and not bear witness to the light that is God.
Jesus explained that the foremost commandment of God is to Love the Lord thy God with ALL your heart. I wrote what I believe to be one of my better posts on this topic long after I wrote this particular post. I encourage you to read that post called God’s Foremost Commandment by clicking the highlighted hyperlink.
HOW TO GET A NEW HEART
In order to get a new heart, a heart of flesh not the heart of stone we are born with, we must first repent of our sins. This isn’t a simple confession as apostasy teaches but a sincere heartfelt turning away from sin and turning towards God, walking the narrow and difficult path that Jesus spoke of. Many have accepted Christ at rallies, revival meetings or even in Sunday church; yet never repented of their sins. They are not saved and have been deluded by false teaching. Jesus said Repent or you too shall perish. Getting a new heart is part of being BORN AGAIN. Jesus said in John 3:3 “unless one is Born Again they cannot see the Kingdom of God”. The new heart, will be evidence that one is truly Born Again.
The prophet Ezekiel explains how God gives us a new heart and the evidence of having one.
Ezekiel 11: 18-21 “They will return to it and remove all its vile images and detestable idols. 19 I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. 20 Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God. 21 But as for those whose hearts are devoted to their vile images and detestable idols, I will bring down on their own heads what they have done, declares the Sovereign LORD.” Here God tells Ezekiel to preach His truth, which says, that if one truly turns away, then and only then, does God put His spirit inside of us and the evidence of this is that the people WILL obey His commandments. It our hearts are continually focused on sin (vile images and detestable idols), there will be no escaping the wrath of God just because you “believed”. Later in the Prophets Book, God makes it even clearer the process of how we get the new heart.
Ezekiel 18:30-32 ”Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge you, each one according to his ways (deeds), declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. 31 Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel? 32 For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live! So we as Christians, must rid ourselves of sin, we must turn away from it, WE MUST REPENT FIRST. There is indeed a choice we must make. Choose obedience to His commands and live or choose disobedience and die. The Prophet said in verse 20, not shown here, “the soul that sins shall die”. God does not change, the rules of life are the same today as they were before Christ brought forward the New Covenant. The New Covenant brought us new and better promises from God and the means to readily meet His conditions for entering the Kingdom of Heaven. Nowhere do those promises tell us sin no longer matters as part of God’s conditions for eternal life. Only the false teachers of Grace, the wolves in sheep’s clothing teach this other gospel, a counterfeit and one based on the very same lie told to Eve that “you shall surely not die if you sin”.
Listening to many alter calls over the years, it seems we rarely hear the truth of God proclaimed. Imagine if this was said before an altar call in one of your churches — “Before you come to this alter, you must decide to live for God and repent of your sins as otherwise God cannot come into your life and He cannot take up residence with you. Until you turn from your sin, you are wasting your time coming to this altar. Now come all that are ready to suffer and deny themselves for Jesus.” Oh my, the congregants would be in shock and many would walk out. Instead the churches make sure their preachers tell them what their itching ears want to hear. The Apostles gave us many examples of how to win converts, conversions that would be real and evidenced by transformed lives. Here are just a few things they said in the New Testament Epistles.
Galatians: 6-7-8 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. This verse speaks for itself and doesn’t leave any room for misinterpretation. Sadly those that mis-teach on Galatians, erroneously tie our requirement to OBEY GOD to the rituals, ceremonies, observances (the Mosaic Law) that were not required from us any longer. You are not under law but grace, YES, BUT, God told us in no uncertain terms that obedience was essential to salvation and a relationship with Him.
Col 3:5-7 Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, 7 in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them. Paul admonishes the Colossians who were backsliding and reminds them about the wrath of God that comes upon those who DO NOT OBEY HIS COMMANDS.
When God gives us our new heart, part of the features include the writing of His law and commandments upon the heart and also in our mind. This is part of His amazing grace, as He wants nobody to perish. So we have His Spirit inside of us, His Law on our heart and in our mind. We have all that we need to overcome temptation and obey Him. We can indeed ”do all things, through Christ Jesus who strengthens us”.
Jeremiah 31:33-34 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”
Inevitably, our flesh may get the best of us and we will slip and fall and commit sin. Some conquer sin totally on this side of the grave. I believe it is rare but not impossible as with God nothing is impossible. I am not going to debate that point here but know we are told we are to aim for perfection, strive to be perfect, Be Holy as Our Father In Heaven Is Holy and suffer in the flesh to cease from sinning. I am not ashamed to say that I am striving to obey Him 100%. That is indeed what He called us to do. Why would one try if it were impossible? Why would Jesus say we had to do it if it were impossible? The only ones, the very few that will enter thru the narrow gate to Heaven are the ones earnestly striving to do this. Wake up my brethren, the judge comes quickly.
The Line of Delineation
There is a fine line that only God knows that is in our hearts, where the separation of sheep from goats is defined. This where the rubber meets the road of life. If we PRACTICE SIN, we are told we are not Born Again and we are liars as it relates to our faith and relationship with God. Jesus said He will tell the “many” that called Him Lord Lord on judgment day “I never knew you, Depart from me, you who practice sin“. So how do we know if we are on the right side of the line? The Bible tells us we will know it by His Spirit, that will tell us directly if we are truly His. If we don’t hear from His Spirit when we sin, we are not His plain and simple as Paul said in Romans 8:9. If we are His, the Spirit of Truth will convict us when we sin, we will know it instantly and the same Spirit will guide us in all truth.
1 John 3:24 Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us
1 John 4:13 Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit. In my last post I showed that if we do not obey His Commands; God will not reveal Himself to us and will not make His abode with us.
If we are sinning the question is did we stumble or are we instead practicing sin? The answer will come from the Holy Spirit that will guide us in all things. If in doubt, pray and ask God to show you. He will. The fact that someone would even be asking this question to themselves is a very good sign about where their heart is!!! It is the ones that don’t ask this question, feel no guilt, have no remorse about their sin that I worry about.
If we discover that we don’t have His Spirit (ie don’t hear from Him, don’t get convicted of sin) then we need to start back at the top and REPENT of ALL SIN and ask God to give us a new heart. Pursuit of a new heart from God, is choosing life. If we love our sins and do not repent and seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness, we have only one expectation and that is eternal condemnation from the wrath of God on the last day. Don’t rationalize sin, God Hates It and has not changed. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forevermore. The wages of sin have always been and remain to this day death.
Jesus said that people who take pleasure in their sins would be blind to His truth. They could study the bible and the scriptures, always be learning but never discerning. Paul said the same thing and also spoke of the God sent delusion to those that take pleasure in sins and refuse to repent. With their pious attitude and refusal to repent their sins, their hearts become hardened (calloused in this version).
Matthew 13:13-17 This is why I speak to them in parables: “Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: ” ‘You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. For this people’s heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.
I believe most people who like to attack messages like the one I am preaching about obedience, calling me a legalist, know not the truth of God and that they have been blinded to the truth because of their unrepented sin.
Repentance for Fallen Christians
King David sinned mightily before God. He committed not only adultery but murder, two sins we are specifically warned will put us into hell. But David stumbled mightily but asked God to clean his heart of all impurity and restore him. That same deal is for all Christians, so no matter how egregious you think your sins have been, cry out to God as David did in Psalm 51. There is no better minister to others than someone who has overcome sin by trusting in God and His Spirit to lead them.
Psalm 51:10-13 Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me. 11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. 13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you.
I leave you with a parable that to me defines both 1) current state of Apostasy and 2) the hope that it is not too late for a Prodigal Son like repentance and entry into the kingdom of God. Being religious on the outside means absolutely nothing to God. He wants the inside, in fact He demands your whole heart.
Matt. 21:28-31 “What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, `Son, go and work today in the field. I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went. Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, `I will, sir,’ but he did not go. “Which of the two did what his father wanted?” “The first,” they answered. Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you.
Which of the two sons are you? Did you say you would follow Jesus but really haven’t? If you are following Jesus, you are paying a price, you are denying yourself, you must be obeying His commandments otherwise He is not your Lord. Just as Jesus rebuked the Pharisees in this parable for their phony faith, He is calling all of us to DO WHAT HE HAS COMMANDED, in spirit and in truth. John told us in 1 John 3 that if we practice sin, we are a child of the devil no matter what you believe or publically proclaim.
On the contrary, are you someone who has never said they would follow Jesus? The door is still open for you to repent and turn and follow the Lord. Jesus came to call sinners to repentance. Have you answered that call? Time is short but there is still time. Like the Prodigal Son, who was born into the family but by his disobedience strayed off the path, he woke up to his plight and repented and went back to his Father. The Father welcomed him back with open arms and forgave ALL his sins restoring him to a place of honor in the family. I pray you will earnestly seek Him but know you must first repent of your sin. Without a new heart from God, you have no chance of enduring to the end and overcoming the lusts of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life.
If I can help you in any way, please email me directly or make a comment (which I will not make public) and I will pray for you and call you if that is your wish.
MAY GOD BLESS YOU RICHLY!!!!!
Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart.
By all means yes, and thank you Charles.
Agape
Bill
Bill,
Whatever revelations that further imparting Gods living WORD to the spirit of man that are from this article, if he is leading you to use them, then by all means do so. Messages about Spiritual regeneration, and how it is accomplished need to be shared out of compassion, because it is a matter of life or death for the spirit of man : if that is our purpose for sharing
God bless, Charles
short follow up
Mark 16-12 After that he appeared in another form unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the country.
These 2 men were a part of all the rest that were present that morning in Luke 24-9, along with the other 11 disciples which had departed unto their own homes that day (John: 20 10).
The eleven disciples who did not believe the witness of Mary Magdalene that morning actually knew Jesus when they saw HIM that night, but these 2 men who where at the tomb with the diciples in Luke 24 did not. After Jesus broke bread and revealed himself to these 2 men, He then disappeared and reappeared to His 11 dicipes who had gatherd toghether for fear of the Jews in John 20:19,20.
Bill
brother Charles I was extremely edified by your study. I want to thank you very much for sharing this spiritual revelation from the Holy Ghost. I went back to study these 2 men on the road to Emmaus in Luke 24. Because of your excellent writing I was moved to study this chapter of which you revealed a great bit more understanding to me. I was moved to do a show on this chapter in the future. (God bless you brother). As I went back to study these 2 men on the road to Emmaus in Luke 24 I received more clarity of their identities.
I had just always assumed in the past that these two men were disciples, but they actually were not. One of them name was Cleopas “aka” Alphaeus or the husband of Mary (John 19:25) and the Father of the apostle James the less (Mark 15:40.). The Hebrew form of this name is Alphaeus or Cleopas, or Clopas. Alphaeus was also the father of Matthew Levi, (Mar 2:14). who was the son of Mary and Alpheus of family of Cleophas. Matthew and James the less were brothers. The second Mary (Mary the mother of James) at the tomb with Mary Magdalene was the mother of the Apostle James “aka” James the lesser the brother of matthew Levi. Cleopas who was James the lesser’s father, he was a multitude who perceived Jesus to be a prophet as he walked with the Savior on the road to the village of Emmaus on the 3rd day of the feast of unleavened bread. (the 17th day of the month). These men along with the other diciples had departed unto their own homes taht day (John: 20 10).
Emmaus was about a 7 mile walk from Jerusalem. When Jesus broke bread with them just shortly before evening on the 17th day of the 1st month, it was the first meal that Jesus had partaken of in 72 hours. It was exactly 72 hours after the passover meal with his disciples at the very end of the preparation day late on the 14th day of the 1st month. In our time it would have been approx 5:30 to 6:00 PM.
I feel your essay written here is very edifying, and with your permission I would like to possibly post this on another forum for spiritual enlightenment.
your brother in Christ
Bill
Apologize for the large amount of text on the below article: I hope that it benefits Gods true body of beleivers. God Bless
Bringing Forth
Gods Hidden Man of the Heart
Introduction
If this is the day of the unveiling of Christ, and the joining together of the Body of Christ in these last days, then it is also the day of the UNVEILING OF THE HIDDEN MAN OF THE HEART , the recreated born again spirit within Gods true believers. It is also the time for the manifestation of the hidden things of darkness that lie concealed in the hearts of God’s people. God knows what each and every one of his children need, and he as a good Father is preparing a furnace of affliction to temper / mature this hidden man of the heart within his growing Children.
Most literal minded Christians only want to know about physical happenings outside of them: very rarely do they consider looking within themselves, and try to understand what the functions of the spirit, soul / mind, body are about. If the functions of mans, spirit, soul / mind, body are truly understood, it would clarify, and reveal the internal battlefield that we fight in from day to day: it would also reveal how the recreation of man’s spirit is accomplished by Gods Holy Spirit indwelling the believer in oneness through the internal formation of his “Living WORD”, Christ Jesus. We need to understand that Gods focus is on restoring, recreating and birthing forth the spirit of man into a well pleasing, full statured Son. If this restoration of mans spirit that God sent his Son to die for is his main focus, shouldn’t be ours also? The following comments will try to provide an internal look into man’s being, and will attempt to identify how the restoration / leadership of the recreated spirit within man takes place. These writings I hope will show an anointed king coming forth in the spirit of man, to rule over the person of mans being similar to the Old Testament stories of David, and Joseph: they are Old Testament examples / shadows of first establishing Gods word within themselves as ruler / Lord, and then outwardly manifesting his lordship as an earthly kingdom ruler. God in these end days is establishing his “living” WORD, Christ Jesus within the spirits of his elect first, in order for them to go forth in power in these last days to do the ministry of Jesus Christ, Gods living WORD. This power / authority within the spirit of the believer are not only for the development of the believer, it is also for the purpose of bringing his government to this physical earth. When Gods Living WORD, Christ Jesus is established as ruler in both realms: first within the spirit of man, and then outwardly in this natural earth, it will bring about the unification of the spiritual and physical realms. “I believe” the millennium is part of the transition process of Gods will controlling the two realms (spiritual and physical) , and that it will prepare the way for a final unification process after the powers of darkness are totally destroyed. As we sometimes struggle to unify the spirit, soul / mind, and the physical body in action, word and deeds in Gods will, we must realize that the goal is to bring the Living WORD of God, Christ’s loving presence down into the spirit first as Lord, in order for us to become eternal. Jesus said “ Heaven and earth shall pass away but my WORDS ( The LIVING WORD) shall never pass away: this is our opportunity in these natural bodies to convert the literal scripture word of God, into the LIVING WORD, Christ’s loving presence formed spiritually within us . God’s unification process between the spiritual realm and this physical earth seems very distant because of the extreme darkness that covers this earth, but it must first occur within us. What we are experiencing now inwardly and outwardly are all part of labor pains that all creation groans for, the manifestation of the sons of God as Kingdom rulers within the body of Christ, the Living WORD of God. These labor pains could be likened to the birth of Jacob and Esau: their first is a separation internally of the Man of God and the son of perdition, and then there is an outward manifestation of Gods Government on this earth through Jacob / Israel. When Gods government is established on this earth, it will then become an answered prayer regarding the scripture prayer “Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is on heaven”.
Let us look at this recreated, born again spirit or “Hidden Man of the Heart” whose existence and emergence as a ruler within the body of Christ has been made possible through by his sacrifice: this hidden man is described in the following verse: First Peter 3; 4: “But let it be the “hidden man of the heart”, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price”.
It is a fact that God deals with the inward man instead of the outer man. God’s spiritual living WORD, Christ’s presence within the born again spirit, is revealed in this hidden man of the heart. The secret of the divine life is to learn how to live in the spirit realm, how to have one’s lamp filled with the oil of Gods living WORD, Christ’s indwelling loving presence within in total oneness. The only way to know God the Father, and Jesus the living WORD of God, is through the indwelling power of his Holy Spirit. The born again believer / overcomer indwelt with the Holy Spirit is the Bride of Christ, and as this marriage grows in loving oneness between the bride (born again believer), and the bridegroom (Christ), a spiritually recreated son of God is birthed forth from this union (Revelation 12th chapter, woman travailing in child birth): he is this heavenly “hidden man of the heart”. God can now impart his messages to this recreated spirit; it is where we can communicate / fellowship with God the Father within the “Garden” of our restored heart. This is where we can pray without ceasing, and be in constant communication with the Father, and we don’t even have to move our lips: it is an internal spiritual relationship of loving oneness. During the process of spiritual regeneration through faith in the living WORD, Christ, this heavenly Son of God has gained authority over his self will, senses, carnal intellect, and emotions. This spiritually recreated Son “within” our “own “Kingdom of Heaven “is ruled by the living WORD of God, Christ by faith, which in turn destroys the old nature or internal son of perdition through the brightness of his presence coming into the spirit: this relationship can be likened to a Father controlling, protecting, and instructing an obedient Son with his loving words. Can this process of the destruction of this old nature or internal son of perdition occur in every aspect of our lives; it is a predesigned battle by God for the development of Gods image in man, they must grow together until the end like the wheat and tares.We have been given many outwardly examples of this internal struggle between the image of God within us and this son of perdition: it can be seen in David and Goliath, Moses and the Egyptians, Samson and the Philistines, Jacob and Esau, etc: these are simply shadows of the spiritual reality of this internal struggle. This living, consuming WORD of God, Christ’s loving presence spiritually indwelling the true believer, makes available the life force of all creation to the eternal spirit to destroy this old nature or son of perdition: it brings realization and clarity that we must fill ourselves with Gods LIVING WORD, Christ’s presence within to obtain victory spiritually just like Joshua and the children of Israel did outwardly as an example. Heaven and earth shall indeed pass away, but his Living WORDS will never pass away: this is our one and only opportunity to put as much of the living WORD of God within our spirits, so that we can become eternal.
The difference between the literal word, and the Living WORD
Let us at this point make a distinction between the literal word of God contained in the scriptures, and the Living WORD of God that is Christ’s loving presence formed / residing in spiritual oneness within the born again spirit. We must understand that the physical bible filled with the literal word of God will fall apart: the pages will become brittle and yellow, the bindings will crack, it is not the living spiritual WORD of God, Christ, that endures throughout all eternity (Matt. 24:35).Knowing this we then must desire the eternal Living WORD, Christ living in us, in preference over the literal word that professing believers may only be retained in their mind / soul. Many professing believers have only completed half of this two step process, they have only memorized the literal scriptural word and committed it to the region of the mind / soul and have not brought it down into the spirit in order for it to be converted into the Living WORD, Christ’s loving presence formed spiritually within. Many professing believers have not understood this concept of converting the literal word from the mind / soul into the Living WORD, Christ presence spiritually indwelling the believer because satan has diverted attention away from the premier focus of all creation, the restored / recreation of Gods image within man. These professing believers have only read, and committed the literal scripture to memory within the soul / mind, and have not consumed or brought it down into the spirit in order for it to provide life giving sustenance to the eternal spirit: if Gods literal word is only retained in the mind / soul it would be like physically putting food in your mouth and chewing it, but never “swallowing” : in order to bring life giving nutrients to the body, Gods Living WORD, Christ , it must be brought down into the spirit to sustain life just like eating natural food and “swallowing” it down into the body to sustain “Life”. God’s literal word needs to be brought down or “swallowed” into the spirit, in order to communicate, fellowship, and become one with the Godhead. God continually calls for an open heart, so we need to find out why: the answer is so that we can allow for the formation of Christ’s loving presence within. We must open the “heart” by faith in God and meditate with him upon the literal word in order for it to be transformed into the eternal Living Word of God, Christ’s loving presence within. Jesus said that he marveled at the hardness of the Pharisee’s hearts: he marveled because they knew the literal word of God, but refused to convert it within their spirits into the life giving LIVING WORD of God. Let us reflect on the parable of the soils, and how the fertile “receptive” ground (open heart /spirit) received the seed (literal word of God) and how it cultivated nurtured within the ground (Spirit) until it was converted from the seed into life above the ground through the root, the living WORD of God. The same example is in Jesus coming in a literal, physical body (literal word) and being crucified and buried in the earth, and springing up as the eternal, living, Glorified WORD of God. If this conversion or regeneration process is not followed, it will not allow for the spiritual coming or formation of Christ, the living WORD of God to take place within the spirit. The two men on the Emmaus road are examples of the literal word being transformed into the Living WORD, Christ’s presence within their spirit. As they walked discussing the events of the crucifixion of Christ they could not understand with their literal knowledge of the scriptures what had been done to bring life to the eternal spirit of man They knew through the literal word of God in the scriptures, that a deliver or Messiah would come that they thought would deliver them from roman ruler ship. They believed in their soul / mind that the literal word of God had not been fulfilled in Jesus as the promised messiah / deliverer, and were completely unaware of the victory gained for the restoration of the spirit within man. They started their walk with the literal word of God until the Living WORD of God joined them on their “walk”. This “walk’ is a story of how the literal word of God got converted into the Living WORD of God within the hearts / spirits of these two men. Let us look at a few scriptures regarding these two men and Christ on the Emmaus Road
Luke 24: 25 – 32
25 Then he said unto them, O fools, and “slow of HEART (Spiritual awareness, transformation of the literal to living WORD of God)” to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Jesus called these people fools because they were slow in understanding the spiritual meanings of the scriptures because they had not converted and conformed the literal word within their minds / souls into the LIVING WORD of God, Christ indwelling presence. This “walk” with Jesus is our walk: it is the only way to truly understand and bring life to the eternal spirit
26 Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? Their natural minds interpreted or perceived through the literal word that the messiah would deliver them physically from Roman ruler ship like Moses delivered the children of Israel from Egypt: they could not see the spiritual life giving liberation from sin and then allowing the life force of all creation ( Gods Living WORD, Christ) to be received within the spirit for eternal life. They only saw the physical death of Christ body as defeat.
27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. Jesus explained the literal scripture that they just had head knowledge of concerning himself, and started converting it into the living spiritual WORD of God within their eternal spirits.
28 And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and he made as though he would have gone further.
29 But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them. These two people for the first time in their lives, were receiving living waters of life for their spirits, Gods Living WORD, Christ. Life was being pumped into their eternal spirits and they were not going to let this man who had resuscitated them spiritually, and had called them fools get away from them, “Hallelujah.”
30 And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. What had happened within their spirits regarding receiving Christ the eternal bread of life, Gods living WORD was outwardly manifested in Christ breaking and distributing the bread.
31 And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight. When the living WORD of God was truly revealed and taken inside in spiritual oneness, Christ’s physical presence was no longer needed.
32 And they said one to another; did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures? This is truly heartburn at its highest degree. The scriptures were opened and converted from literal head knowledge of the scriptures into the living WORD, Christ’s indwelling presence spiritually formed within them.
When Jesus picked up the book of Isaiah in the synagogue to read from the black and white pages, it perplexed those who simply had head knowledge of the scripture: it confused them because the literal word was read by the Living WORD, which made it come alive. These people were so perplexed by this living WORD coming forth to read the literal scriptures that they had to confirm among themselves, and catalog Jesus in their natural carnal minds as the physical son of Joseph. Their understanding had never went beyond the realm of their literal understandings of the scripture, they were confused and allowed religious pride to rise up in their hearts instead of embracing the Living WORD of God, Christ Jesus. These religious phonies wanted only their literal, soulish realm of thinking to go forward as so many professing Christians of today do. If Gods literal scriptural word is not transformed into the loving presence of Christ within the spirit, it produces an intellectual, , carnal or literal type of understanding only within the mind / soul; at this point, the literal word needs to be brought down into the spirit in order for it to be transformed into the presence of Gods living WORD , Christ: this transformation from the literal word into the living WORD can only take place within the spirit through the revelation / fellowship of Gods Holy Spirit. This method of forming Christ spiritually within was described by Paul to the Galatians 4: 19 because they had been bewitched by literal minded supposed religious leaders, sound familiar? Paul wanted these Galatians to be focused on recreating the spirit, and forming Christ’s presence within it. After removing sin from the spirit through the acceptance of Christ, it is then all about putting” Living Waters” of life described by Jesus to the woman at the well within the spirit or internal Kingdom of Heaven within man (Matt. 24:15). When this happens the believer is born again, and is brought back to life in unification /oneness with the Godhead because the tree of life (Christ, the living WORD of God) has been made available once again within the garden / kingdom of mans heart or spirit. If the literal Word is just simply retained by the mind / soul, and not brought down into the spirit for the formation of the living , loving WORD, Christ’s indwelt presence within, it is usually reflected in the following outward “ religious” appearance: this man is a hearer of Gods WORD, and not a doer, fellowship with true born again believers cannot be achieved because of his soulish / literal understandings are in conflict with the Living WORD of God, he continually quotes literal scripture retained by the mind as a form communication with others, and is lacking revelation , insight, and direction from Gods Holy Spirit, he is more often a flowerily philosopher of Gods literal Word, he accuses those who have the living WORD of life within their spirits as people who over spiritualize Gods WORD, they are usually involved in hours upon hours of lengthy bible studies that only fill their souls / minds with the literal word of God for memorization but never bring it down into the spirit for the formation of the living WORD, Christ. This explanation of who these people are is not an attack or judgment upon them: it is for the purpose of identifying them to those who are truly seeking the living, loving WORD of God in order that they are not bewitched as Paul told the Galatians. There are many literal minded people who are in this spiritual condition: they tend to hold themselves out as teachers, leaders, instructors because of the religious pride within them and do absolutely little or nothing in regards to helping or imparting the living WORD of God to the spirit because they themselves do not have it within them. If these described people had Christ as a physical neighbor, they would accuse him of being too spiritual when he talks, they would avoid him, unlike those on the Emmaus who desired this transformation of the literal word into the Living WORD of God, Christ’s formation within them. These literally minded people say they desire his physical return to this earth, but they would not have a clue of who he really was because they cannot see him in his true spiritual body of believers. This described man who spends hours upon hours of memorizing the literal word of God, cannot project the loving presence of Christ from within him because he has not been converted spiritually into the living WORD of God, Christ’s indwelling presence within: he may now all the words, but he only has a shallow appearance of godliness. Anyone who speaks beyond the literal interpretation of Gods word is rejected by this described man, because this fellowship / communication are foreign to him: he thinks that he has received the baptism of the Holy Spirit because he speaks in tongues, but he denies Gods spirit because he rejects the living WORDS of God and its formation in him. What is enjoyed by this representative of Christ who displays the outward formation of the living WORD of God cannot be considered by this man because of religious pride, self will that takes the place of Gods Living WORD, Christ within the spirit. This literal minded man is confused by his lack of spiritual understandings, and rejects those who have sacrificed their own self will, religious pride, and who have come to the Father by faith. Why so much writings about this literal, carnal minded charlatan, because he stops the born again process from going forward within the spirit of man, enough said.
Gods entire focus is upon the recreation of mans spirit, creating life within it by the formation of Christ, the living WORD of God. Gods Holy Spirit is the actual presence of the Godhead coming “Alive” and residing in the born again believer: those who have taken these “living waters of life” down into their spirits in oneness are those who love the most, are humble, meek , but bold in representing Christ formed in them. In comparison between the Living WORD, Christ and literal word, we should now understand that it is better to have one verse of the literal scriptures converted from the soul / mind and brought down into spirit as the living WORD of God, Christ’s loving presence within, than to have memorized the scriptures literally from Genesis to Revelation. The Fathers focus is all about breathing life back into the spirit of man through his living WORD, Christ’s indwelling formation within our spirit or Kingdom within. This process of recreating the spirit through Gods living WORD brings the scripture in focus that says we must decrease (old nature or son of perdition), and Christ spiritual formation in us must increase. In closing out these writings comparing the literal word to Gods living WORD, Christ, I would say this to those who have trapped themselves in this natural, soulish realm of the mind with only just their literal knowledge of the scriptures: Open your Heart to God, and ask him if what has been written about this recreation process of the spirit of man is true. If God reveals to you that it is true then it needs to be a first and foremost concern in your life, because it most definitely Gods main focus.. No other form of Gods creation was given his Son as a living sacrifice in order for us to receive spiritual restoration of his image within us: we are the apple of his eye. If we get this spiritual coming of Gods living WORD, Christ, formed within our spirits, then his physical coming / appearance to this natural earth will most certainly be a joyous day, if not, it could be an eternal disaster. All creation groans for the manifestation of the Sons of God, this unveiling of the “Hidden man of the Heart”. In the light of these writings, we will close out this topic by leaving the following verses without commentary for your conversion from the literal word, to the living WORD of God, Christ Jesus formation within
John 6: 48 – 58
48 I am that bread of life.
49 Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.
50 This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.
51 I am the LIVING bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
52 The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
53 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have” no life “in” you”.
54 Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
55 For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
56 He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth “in me, and I in him”.
57 As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.
58 This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread “shall live for ever.”
If these writings touched your “Heart” as the truth, let me know, it is one section from a three part article that can be posted. My email address is cpeytonaasftwo@yahoo.com.
To God be all praise and Glory, Jer. 33:3
GALATIANS 2- 11 But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed.
12 For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision.
13 And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him; insomuch that Barnabas also was carried away with their dissimulation.
14 But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?
bILL
Dear Sandra,
I understand you very well by the words you have posted.
The “carnal mind ” is evil. Have the mind of Jesus in YOU.
You may phone me 845-832-3223
Jesus is the Loving God.
Love and Peace
Dear Charles,
The internet is very important for the Body of Jesus to come together in ONE mind and Spirit.
With it you have time to think about what you are to say, without the emotion of face to face contact. Look at how the dead men and women of the Bible communicate with US through writtings. So many people think that is the greatest thing going.without ever seeing them face to face. Jesus wants us to be 100% in agreement. This will take some sorting out through much back and forth writtings. Phone conversation would be the next step, then face to face talk. There are very few people on the earth today that are seeking the Will of Jesus, or willing to Do His Will.
Jesus is Clear on what He wants.
Love and Unity
Greetings and Peace be with you from our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ:
Pete, and Charles, I am at a loss for words, as I agree with both of you. This forum has been a blessing (speaking for myself) and I pray that it has helped others. We have indeed seen the POD’s come in with their false doctrines, but we have also seen a wealth of truth, and much edification. Charles, you are correct when you mention that the “carnal mind” tends to get involved when we post, it is hard to really know what someone is actually thinking, if you can’t see their reaction. For those who are able, getting out, and spreading the word, and helping others, this is a very good thing, “if you do this to the least of my bretren you have done it to me”, this is all part of the Love that Jesus wants us to share. Also, as you said, there are those that are not able to do this, and this forum has become a place to read post from others, and maybe help someone in a small way, (again, I include myself) I am not able to get out and communicate with others at the present time, I pray that the Lord will enable me to do so one day, but not my will, but His be done. Thank you Charles for sharing this, and May God Bless you always.
================================================
Bro. Pete:
No matter what you choose to do, know this, that I have learned much from you over this past year or so, and I consider you a friend, and brother in Christ. You will always be in my prayers. Walk with God always, and know that you are loved.
May His grace be with you as His spirit guides you,
With Love in Christ Jesus, Sister Sandra
Amen Pete, I saw pride and seeking the approval of men in my FB acct last spring. I had trouble pulling the trigger on the thing myself, but now can see the benefits of it’s demise. There’s a dangerous attraction to the internet, but I agree, the key is a BALANCE in the Lord. Be blessed.
I fixed the omitted word for you Charles. The benefits of being the moderator. LOL. Thanks again for the share.
Thank you Charles. I believe this is some profound wisdom in your comment. I have had my facebook account teed up ready to deactivate but chickened out. I have felt led to get off this stupid computer. My wife and I said we would stop doing it so we could spend time together, but it is so seductive to draw us in. There is a real ministry right in our neighborhoods, people that need love, prayer, food, financial assistance and the like. I hope to be seeing less of you online as the action needs to move to the streets.
I have noticed we generally attract people online that see it the way we see it (cheerleaders) or we find the naysayer that want to argue and debate over ever wind of doctrine. This promotes pride or contention as the case may be, and can sow the work of the enemy in our heart if not careful. Not saying it is all bad as I have learned much, learned to have thicker skin, but there must be balance and if we neglect the ministry of the streets and neighborhoods, I wonder if Jesus will be pleased with that?
I praise and thank our God, that He’s shown you your heart in this Charles, and thank you for your humble confession brother. That discernment between our will and His is one that’s beclouded at times and is critical to see.It is so encourageing to hear Him working in your life at this critical juncture. Thank you Lord. I stand with you as a witness to the danger in using this method, although it has it’s place, it can be a snare.”because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice: My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.” Peace.
On my last post it said that I am judging , it should read , I AM not judging. One word does make a difference. God bless Charles
Pete, brother’s, sisters
I saw your questions regarding my previous post, I will answer them indirectly. God has given me a message regarding spiritual regeneration within the heart of man and how that can be accomplished by faith in Gods WORD, Christ. I recently drifted away from sharing this message in preference to explore other topics in Gods WORD, that resulted in a “self made” search of exercising my own will over Gods. God gives us all different gifts and abilities in him for his glorification and not ours, when the latter occurs there is a price to pay. “I” wanted to speak about what “I “believe will happen during the millennial reign of Christ, how his physical coming to this earth will be accomplished, the day of the Lord, and many other things that would do absolutely nothing in the way of providing understanding in how we can continue our spiritual development /regeneration to its fullest possible level and bring defeat to the godless son of perdition. What would be said by me, just so that I could put forth my own beliefs, would only cause endless debate that would be unproductive bearing no fruit. I wanted to exercise “my will” in pursuing these topics’s, and have done so for the last two weeks up until the last two days. Over that two week period of exercising my will in my self willed pursuits, something happened, my fellowship with God was broken, I had grieved the Holy Spirit. I thank God that he let me see that, and have been allowed by his grace to resume my fellowship/ communication with him: he is most loving and forgiving.
God created a fear in my heart that I would loose this relationship/ communication with him, and I believe my relationship with him would have changed if I would have continued to pursue my self will in these matters.
Why am I sharing this , because when we operate using are own self will in unproductive research and debates regarding what translation of the bible to use, the trinity of God, and many other unproductive topics that bare no fruit, it in no way helps form Christ loving presence in us. If we think that these things are truly important then we must simply “ask God” for the answer, and leave it at that. Being believed by others is not all important, and if we think that it is then we must ask ourselves who is bringing this thought to our minds that we must be believed.
This New Year is coming friends, and I know we all want to do the ministry of Jesus Christ: praying for the sick, feeding the hungry, and operating in love whenever we get the chance. Getting out and doing these things will be very discomforting to the flesh man, more so than banging out sentences on a keyboard.
We must be hearers / doers of Gods WORD, and I for one have come to the realization that It cannot be done in front of a computer screen. A certain dark spirit can captivate us, and create an imbalance in our lives regarding this form of communication. If allowed, it can cause family division, depression, emotional swings, and other ungodly actions to come forth.
I also realize it is a limited form of fellowship that brings joy especially for those who do not have the opportunity to come into contact with very many people: but I believe there is no substitute for being directly in someone’s presence because you are not limited in your reaction to just typed out words on a computer screen. Don’t get me wrong, written words are powerful when inspired by Gods Holy Spirit, but words that are not can be destructive. I am NOT judging because I have done these things myself, and simply want everyone to be the best possible son / daughter for God that they can possibly be, this includes me by sharing this understanding.
There are a lot of hurting people in front of us to see if we only open our hearts, minds and eyes.
Lazarus the beggar boy was laid at the “GATE” (gate is symbolic of the mind, we can open or close it) of the rich man. We don’t even see an acknowledgement in the scriptures that Lazarus was even “thought of” or seen by the rich man. Our gate or mind must be open so that we can consider the poor, needy, sick, and homeless of this world that are placed in our presence. It says in this story that Lazarus was laid at the “Gate”, my question is who laid him at the “Gate”? The answer is as always, Christ Jesus, and he is laying the poor, needy and discarded of this world at are own gate if we have an open mind and eyes to consider them.. When we do for the least of these we render service to God.
No doubt we need to communicate electronically with each other when the spirit moves us to meet needs, but, we must ask ourselves are we satisfying our own self will or Gods every time we sit down in front of our computers.
God bless, Charles
Israel, In Mark 9 [I love this chapter, it's packed], a father,one of the multitude, brought his son to Jesus. This one had a dumb and deaf spirit which ofttimes cast him into the fire, and into the waters. Interesting, pretty radical extremes, fire and water. This foul spirit, that Jesus’ discilpes could not cast out, the one He said ” can come forth by nothing but by prayer and fasting”, I perceive is around today. Does anyone see this spirit in men today? How is this dumb and deaf spirit manifest in 2011? To HIM who has given us even the opportunity to exist, be the glory and thanksgiving always.
Our free will must be submitted unto >>>>>>>>>>>>Not my will…………..but thine be done.
Tis the perfect example for all to follow. God desires obdediance………thus always take heed unto the Spirit…………never the flesh, or carnal mind. For it ought be Gods will we desire………AMEN.
Dear Denise,
I don’t want you getting puffed up BUT, Jesus made Mankind in His image which includes lots of Power. Free will is very Powerful. Jesus has given us a will which He will not override. People can gain eternal Life by using their will to believe Jesus, or they can be eternally destroyed by their own will.
One message in Gen 32 is everyone should seek a blessing from Jesus as Jacob did.
Jesus is Serious
Love and Wisdom
I agree Bill. It’s impossible to wrap a finite mind around a concept like eternity. Just take your example–’For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past.” yesterday when it is past??yesterday is already past– Understanding ‘are but as’ is about as close as we can get. I’ve glimpsed His power in looking ahead and back to know Him now, in dreams. Totally smokes time. Walk in covenant with Christ Jesus.
Peter was making a figuative declaration by explaining “eternity” in leman terms to people who had know understanding of eternity.
Psalms 90
1 Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.
2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.
3 Thou turnest man to destruction; and sayest, Return, ye children of men.
Psalms 90:4 For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.
2 Peter 3:8 But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
The key phrase in Psalms 90-4 explaining the kyros time or eternety is which has no chronological existance, ot krono time. is “but as” in verse 2, this describes His existance as being everlasting without time. (from everlasting) (to everlasting)
The 1000 yrs reign is also a figuative time, just as “a thousand generations”, and “a thousand hills”.
Agape
Bill
@Pete about the 1,000 years – I thought – very simply – that when He tells us in Scripture that a day with the Lord is as 1,000 years and a 1,000 years is as a day means that in the Millenial Reign – which is the Day of the Lord – for Him it will be just as a DAY…because He appointed it that way….for us it will be as 1,000 years (to mankind..) no?
This was really much needed for my eyes, and SOUL…thank you very much! I have a question that I have pondered much about and am displaying it outwardly for anyone to comment – thank you. It has to do with that odd passage in Scripture where the Angel of the LORD appears as Man and fights with Jacob and LOSES……this has always pinched a nerve in my tiny brain to say how could this possibly have every happened? In my bible translation which is the NKJV, which I usually read (but also read from Amplified and KJV..) it states this about Jacob in Genesis 32:23 “He took them, sent them over the brook, and sent over what he had, (24) Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man (being that the “m” is capitalized, I take that to mean that He was the PRE-incarnate Lord, Jesus [Yahshua] ) – wrestled with him until the breaking of day. (25) Now when He (capitalized..the Lord..) saw that He did not prevail against him, (??? the Lord, God, Son of God was NOT prevailing???) He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him. And then reading further we all find out that the Lord changes Jacob’s name to Israel. Was this “so” because He had no other way to show Jacob that He was going to bless him other than be wrestling with him and lose? I know there is an important message here..pardon me for my ignorance!
As I have never really had any “formal” study except that which I do and have done on my own (reading, studying, researching on computer, etc, watching webcasts..) I have never been able to process this in my head – it just doesn’t make sense to me – why would God show that He wrestled with a mere “man”….and not win. I have missed something here and this is why I can’t go any further with it…
@Charles Thank you for this it was very revealing. I attest of this battle on the inside and have come to understand Romans 7 and 8 much clearer. I have some questions about some of the things hinted at in this concerning the all creation and the literal transition period of 1,000 years. What is this one day? Isn’t that an individual experience for each believer or are you saying it is a set day for all people?
It’s not the number of your posts I’m edefyed with Charles, it’s the depth. Spirit filled Truth. Amen and thank you brother.
Pete, thank you for the truths contained within this article. Maybe the following can also help edify.
The Hidden Man of the Heart
In 1 Peter 3; 4 we are given a title for the recreated human spirit. “It is called The Hidden Man of the Heart”. It is a remarkable fact that God deals with the inward man instead of the outer man. Spiritual things are unveiled to this hidden man of the heart. The secret of the divine life is to learn how to live in the spirit realm, how to have one’s lamp filled with the oil of Gods living WORD, Christ’s loving presence.
The only way to know God the Father, and Jesus the living WORD of God, is through the indwelling power of his Holy Spirit. . God imparts his messages to the recreated spirit / hidden man of the heart; it is where we communicate with God. This is where we can pray without ceasing and be in constant communication with the Father, and we don’t even have to move our lips.
Until this recreated spirit / hidden man or kingdom within gains authority over your senses, carnal intellect and emotions, your faith in Gods WORD will never allow you to be strong enough to become an overcomer for God. We must ask ourselves what we are trying to overcome, the answer is our senses, carnal intellect, and feelings / emotions: these characteristics of mans makeup can be enemies against Gods WORD when they gain ascendency over the Fathers will. Eve is our first example in succumbing to the senses, carnal intellect, and feelings / emotions (Gen.3:6).
. The born again believer defeats these would be kings of our vessel when Gods WORD, Christ, is formed within our spirits in oneness ,and sits upon the thrones of our hearts as Lord. In the overcomer , Gods WORD will always be acted upon first: this reestablishes the correct order of submission within the person of man: that order is the recreated spirit telling the soul / mind what to do and then corresponding action of the body. Faith in Gods WORD is a product of the spirit, just as wisdom is a product of the spirit. Faith is developed and wisdom is enriched by meditation / communication with the Father through Christ, Gods living WORD. Faith is also produced / increased when we act upon Gods WORD more and more in our lives. Every time Gods WORD is acted upon, faith becomes stronger, and the old nature or the interior son of perdition decreases. When Christ’s fullness is complete within the Sons of God then this literal realm can experience the coming of Christ “In the clouds” ( not literal clouds) to establish his government here on earth.
When Gods WORD is made “alive” to do the ministry of Jesus Christ within the Sons of God, and the bride (two witnesses in Rev. 11) in oneness with the recreated spirit or hidden man of the heart, then his government can be established on earth: this will unite the spiritual and the material realms . God is now bringing forth this “Hidden Man of the Heart” as the anointed ruler in oneness with the Father and Son. He is coming forth manifesting the presence of Christ in all his glory and power like never before seen in these last days.
The Manifestation of the Sons of God – Romans 8:1-30
The apostle Paul wrote that the whole creation groans as it waits for the unveiling or “manifestation of the sons of God.” There is coming a public manifestation of God’s Sons to the whole world like never before seen. Paul taught that believers can be victorious over the sinful nature through the Spirit of God, and that one day their mortal bodies will be quickened by God’s Spirit to receive redemption. He described it as the “glorious freedom” of the “sons of God,” for which the whole of creation waits. Believers will be set free from the corruption of the mortal body with its carnality, sickness, pain, weakness and death. In that day nothing will be able to harm the believer. It will be a public display of God’s glory in the believers. At that time, the glory of the “Sons of God” will be evident to all, for it will be unveiled.
They will be conformed to the image of Christ and, as His brethren, will be the glorified “Sons of God” for the entire world to see. John the apostle confirmed this in I John 3:1, 2: “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him: for we shall see Him as he is.”
The statements that Paul makes in Romans chapter eight, cannot be fully appreciated unless they are placed in the context of chapter seven in which he describes the conflict within the believer between the carnal or sinful nature or son of perdition, and the desire to serve God. The sinful nature fights against the Spirit (Galatians 5:17). Paul says that he is “carnal sold under sin,” and describes the law of sin and death, which he is powerless to overcome.
This war is within the members of his body (Joshua / Israel fighting fleshly armies is a Shadow), and works in him to produce death. There is a tension within every believer between the carnal nature and the Spirit. In a very real sense the believer is caught between two ages. As a son of Adam, he is subject to the law: that in Adam all die. Spiritually however, he has passed from death to life. The day will come when in the new age of glory; the tension between the two ages will be past.
Paul cries out: “Who can set me free from the body of this death?” He longs to be free of this power working death in him, and it is this very question that he answers in chapter eight. It is through Jesus Christ that it is possible to be victorious, and be controlled by the law of the Spirit of life. Believers receive the first fruits, or pledge of the Spirit of God by which they know that one day they will receive the completed work (Romans 8:23, II Corinthians 5:5).
The infilling of the Holy Spirit is not the final work, but only a foretaste of it. Paul goes on to declare that one day there is coming a total release from the power of the law of death and corruption when the body itself will be set free into glorious liberty. The complete manifestation of this comes when; “He shall appear and we shall see Him as He is.”
There is coming a “day” when the world will enter a new era of blessing. Christ’s reign will last a thousand years and this is only a foretaste of eternity! It is a transitional period, and is an ever increasing growth of His power and glory through the whole world, when nations will submit to Him and even nature itself will share and benefit from the glorious liberty of God’s Sons and be brought into harmony and freedom. The entire creation will begin to enter into a new freedom from the suffering which came about by sin, and which brought decay and death. “The universe itself is to be freed from the shackles of mortality and enter upon the liberty and splendor of the children of God.” (Romans 8:21; Isaiah 11:4-10).
Jer. 33:3