Letters

The Promises of Jesus Christ

The Many Blessings of the Lord

Rohnel, and my beloved husband, Peter, servants of Jesus Christ, separated unto the Gospel of God, to the strangers throughout the world, Grace unto you, and Peace, be multiplied. Speaking to the Church of God to comfort, edify, and exhort you and ourselves in these latter days, the Day of the Lord.

1Th 4:13  But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. 

1Th 4:14  For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 

1Th 4:15  For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 

1Th 4:16  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 

1Th 4:17  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 

1Th 4:18  Wherefore comfort one another with these words. 

Keep My Commandments

Before we read this letter, let us be reminded to know, remember, and do the Commandments of Christ Jesus, the Power of God.

Deu 5:29  O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever! 

Mat 19:17  And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments. 

The Faith of Christ, that is to say, the true Gospel of Christ, is what we are standing upon in these latter days. Little by little, every earthly and heavenly thing we have trusted in is being taken away. Chastening Grace, in proportion to our Faith, is how salvation comes to us and how every man is being made anew in the likeness of Christ. The purpose of our many tribulations in the Lord’s plan is to ensure that the only thing we trust in is the unshakable Faith of Christ, laying our lives down, keeping His Commandments. The Commandments of Christ is His Spirit, which gives Life [John 6:63]. Therefore, we strive to keep and obey them.

Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 

Eph 2:9  Not of works, lest any man should boast. 

Eph 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. 


Heb 12:27  And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. 

Heb 12:28  Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:

Heb 12:29  For our God is a consuming fire. 

The Promises of God

This road less travelled and journey in the Lord’s hand is difficult, and much suffering and affliction is part of this process, as the Lord is making us over. Taking heed of Christ’s many promises strengthens and helps us endure our trials, keeping our eyes focused on the hope to come to all who believe in Him, now and in the ages to come. Abide in Hope that Christ will come to make His abode in us, and to those already obtaining the Comforter, hope that He will appear more and more to us as we walk out our journeys in clay vessels.

Php 3:13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead

Php 3:14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.


Rom 5:1  Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 

Rom 5:2  By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 

Rom 5:3  And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 

Rom 5:4  And patience, experience; and experience, hope:

Rom 5:5  And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. 

All the Promises of God are yeah and yeah in God, and come to pass in the times appointed beforehand for every man, as we live out every Word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. The character of God is unchangeable, and our faithful Creator cannot lie. As the true Israel of God, those who are receiving the true circumcision of their hearts, we are being strengthened, knowing the One who began a good work in us will complete it on His declared schedule. We now have a better Covenant with better Promises. Judah and Jerusalem are symbolic of the true Israel of God.

Tit 1:2  In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began; 

Deu 10:16  Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiffnecked. 

Jer 4:4  Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings. 

Psa 89:34 My covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.

Heb 8:6  But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises. 

Our faith in all of Christ’s Promises gives us the necessary Hope that is saving us in our latter days, which are now on the House of God because the Gospel has been preached, and the end IS COME for our natural, carnal man [Matt 24:14]. This is the acceptable year of the Lord, hearing and keeping His Commandments.

Rom 8:24 For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?

Rom 8:25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.


2Co 7:1  Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. 


Luk 4:18  The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,

Luk 4:19  To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. 

Promise of God, our Sins are Forgiven

In our Day of the Lord, “everything else” but the Faith of Christ is being removed and is being burned up in the Lord’s fire, a fiery process to the end. In the Day of the Lord, the Faith of Christ heals us, and our sins are forgiven. We can see clearly now, and our Faith in the Gospel, which is the Commandments of Christ, saves us. This is a precious Promise few can receive. The carnal man cannot receive the things of the Spirit. Below are examples of our sins being forgiven because we believe in Christ, that is to say, we receive our sight.

Mar 2:4  And when they could not come nigh unto him for the press, they uncovered the roof where he was: and when they had broken it up, they let down the bed wherein the sick of the palsy lay. 

Mar 2:5  When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee. 


Luk 18:41  Saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight. 

Luk 18:42  And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee. 

Luk 18:43  And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God. 


Rom 3:21  But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; 

Rom 3:22  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: 

Rom 3:23  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 

Rom 3:24  Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 

Rom 3:25  Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; 

Rom 3:26  To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. 

We keep on moving towards the prize of being completed in Christ. The rewards are certain when and if we endure. Sin has no dominion over us anymore in this Day of the Lord. The Lord is redeeming us from our carnal mindsets, which are the lies and the idols of our hearts, the work of our hands, within.

2Co 4:18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.


Rom 6:7  For he that is dead is freed from sin. 

Rom 6:8  Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: 

Rom 6:9  Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. 

Rom 6:10  For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. 

Rom 6:11  Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

We are promised freedom or liberty in Christ. We are being freed from the law of carnal reasoning, the law of the Gentiles, but also being freed from the power sin has over us. To sin means to have carnal thoughts, but the Commandments of Christ make us free from the law of sin and death [carnal reasoning]. Sin is the man of lawlessness, sitting on God’s throne in our hearts and in our minds.

Joh 8:36 Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.


Rom 2:14  For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: 

Rom 2:15  Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another;) 

Rom 2:16  In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel. 


2Co 3:17 Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

Gal 5:13 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.

The Lord works all things, even our sins, for His purposes [Isa 63:17, Isa 64:8, Jer 2:19, Jer 10:23, Eph 1:11, Rom 9:19-20, Phi 2:13]. We do not turn this truth into a license to sin, but remembering the Lord does it all, we work out our salvation with fear and trembling. We believe the Gospel, doing all we can to stand in this Day of Judgment.

Php 2:12  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 

Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. 


1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Heb 8:12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.

We are promised strength to overcome sin and the world [within and without]. The world within are our carnal minds. The Power unto salvation is not our own power; it is the Power of God given to us by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. If we belong to Him and have Christ’s Spirit, we are His sons and have this Power dwelling within us to overcome and be His witnesses to the ends of the earth.

Act 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Isa 13:3  I have commanded my sanctified ones, I have also called my mighty ones for mine anger, even them that rejoice in my highness. 

Gal 5:16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.


Gal 4:6  And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. 

Gal 4:7  Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

Promise of God, Eternal Life

We are promised aionios [eternal] life now in down payment in these vessels of clay. This is attaining a spirit-filled and godly life now in this age, if the Lord has ordained it to be so. Not many are saved in every age, but all of humanity will be saved in the coming age because many are called, few are chosen, and even fewer still are faithful to the end, in this age. Eternal life is to know the Father and the Son [John 17:3].

1Jn 2:25 And this is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life.

Joh 10:10 I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

Joh 4:14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

Numerous other Promises of God, our Father, through Christ, are derived from the pivotal promise of eternal life. Our Faith in the Lord and these Promises are essential to stand firm in the Day of the Lord and to endure the many afflictions and temptations that befall us in this Day.

Eph 6:14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth [Thy Word, Thy Promises are Truth], and having on the breastplate of righteousness;


Heb 3:5  And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after; 

Heb 3:6  But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end. 

The Promise of aionios life is our guaranteed inheritance that is incorruptible, waiting in the heavens for us. It is our reward when the Comforter comes to us. The Lord comes little by little, appearing to us more and more in this Day of the Lord. We are glorified in Him and see Him face to face. Eternal life, inheritance, and reward are intertwined; that is to say, these words mean the same thing.

Col 3:23  And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; 

Col 3:24  Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. 


Eph 1:12  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. 

Eph 1:13  In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, 

Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory. 


Rom 8:18  For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 

Rom 8:19  For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. 

For some of us, Christ and the Father IS COME and is now dwelling in our hearts and minds. For now, we have a down payment, an earnest deposit, of the Spirit of God. Yet in due time, as His work is being completed and we shed these earthen vessels, we will receive a full reward, having the mind of Christ, in fullness, Lord willing. It is a pivotal Promise that helps us endure to the end of our lives. Having Them live in us is eternal life. We are being established in the Promised Land. David is a symbol for God’s elect.

Eze 37:25  And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children’s children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever. 

Psa 65:4  Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and causest to approach unto thee, that he may dwell in thy courts: we shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house, even of thy holy temple. 

Rev 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

Promise of God, Salvation

We are promised salvation. In the Day of the Lord, we are walking by Faith, the substance of what our carnally minded senses cannot see, and which is also foolishness to the world and its way of thinking. God has chosen the foolish things to confound the things that are mighty. Salvation [The Father and Christ] IS come to us, and now we are learning and continuing to progress by taking all contrary thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ, by keeping His Commandments.

1Co 1:27  But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; 


2Ti 2:25  In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; 

2Ti 2:26  And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will. 


Eph 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. 

Suffering and tribulations are for our benefit, and we rejoice and give thanks to the Lord. With these sacrifices, the Lord is well pleased. The Lord Himself comforts us, and our tears make place for gladness, joy forever more because of the many blessings of His Presence.

2Co 4:15 For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.

2Co 4:17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;


Isa 51:3  For the LORD shall comfort Zion: he will comfort all her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the LORD; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody. 

Psa 51:11  Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. 

Promise of God, Peace

We are promised peace, this is not the same peace the world defines, as Christ coming to us turns everything upside down. When the Prince of Peace comes to live in us, we have a peace that surpasses all understanding. Peace, because we have been delivered from our enemies within. The Lord makes a full and swift end with His enemies within. Please refer to the study “The Wonderful and Dreadful Day of the Lord” on the truthinscripture.com website. This study describes in great detail how the Lord deals with His enemies through the fire of His jealousy for Zion, His people.

Isa 26:3 Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.

Joh 14:27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Joh 16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

Php 4:7  And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. 

Isa 66:14  And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb: and the hand of the LORD shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies. 

Promise of God, Rest

We are promised to enter into His rest, which is closely linked to abiding in peace. With the living commandments now growing in us, the fowls of heaven, all of our carnal thoughts, and the father of sin come to rest in the branches of the Tree of Life that is Christ in us, the hope of glory. We are finally able to quit kicking against the pricks and contending with what the Lord is working in our lives. Christ is the Head of His Church, and we are mere clay in His awesome hands. Settling on these truths brings a rest [a cessation] of our carnal works to save ourselves. Keeping His Commandments is how we enter into His rest. This is the true Sabbath of the Lord. The Lord causes us to enter into His rest; boasting is excluded.

Mat 11:28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.


Heb 4:10 For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.

Heb 4:11 Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.


Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 

Eph 2:9  Not of works, lest any man should boast. 

Eph 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. 

Promise of God, Fruit

Having patience and suffering long is part of the lessons we are learning, which produces the fruit of the Spirit. The Lord’s delays are not His denials and are a test of faith. Christ cannot and will not be unfaithful to His or His Father’s promises. Christ is the One comforting us, His Spirit is called the Comforter, which the Father sends us in our Day of Visitation.

Joh 15:26  But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me: 

Joh 15:27  And ye also shall bear witness, because ye have been with me from the beginning. 


2Ti 2:13 If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself.


Jas 1:2  My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; 

Jas 1:3  Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. 

Mercy of the Lord triumphs over judgment, and in due time, peaceable fruit of righteousness shoots forth. In due time, we become the Tree of Life.

Isa 27:6  He shall cause them that come of Jacob to take root: Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit. 

Jer 17:8  For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. 

Mat 13:23  But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 

Promise of God, Comfort

Our sins are forgiven, our enemies are being defeated. The Lord’s anger is turned away, and we are in peace and rest. Knowing this comforts us greatly when the trials and temptations come. We are comforted by the Lord’s great mercy towards us.

Isa 40:1  Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. 

Isa 40:2  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. 


Isa 51:12  I, even I, am he that comforteth you: who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the son of man which shall be made as grass; 

Mic 7:18  Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. 

When we seek Christ, He promises to help. He is always there in times of trouble and provides what we need to endure and to be strengthened. He is always with us, and when we turn our faces to the Lord, He is there to minister and comfort us. God, our Father, is the God of all comfort. Father and Son live in us. They make known to us the way of Life, which is to keep Their Commandments. We are not in want; we know the Way to go.

Mat 7:7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

Psa 46:1 God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble.

Pro 15:24  The way of life is above to the wise, that he may depart from hell beneath. 


2Co 1:3  Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; 

2Co 1:4  Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. 

Promise of God, Ask and Receive

Having the Faith of Christ, laying our lives down for our brethren, keeping Christ’s Commandments, we have boldness to enter unto His throne of Grace. If we ask, and we do not ask amiss, consistent with the Lord’s will [our sanctification], we are promised it is done. We ask for the Holy Spirit to come, and we ask more of His Grace as we proceed in this Day of the Lord. We believe and receive.

Mar 11:23 For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.

1Jn 4:17  Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. 


Heb 10:19  Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, 

Heb 10:20  By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; 


Rev 22:20  He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. 

We are in this world and have many needs to survive and live in the flesh, but more important we trust our faithful Creator to save us from such a great spiritual death. We ask for spiritual riches in Him and are learning to be content in all circumstances by trusting in Him.

Php 4:19 But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

Mat 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

2Pe 1:3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:


Mat 6:25  Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 

Mat 6:26  Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 

Mat 6:27  Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 

Mat 6:28  And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 

Mat 6:29  And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 

We pray as Christ taught us, whilst He was on earth, and do not pray for vain things. We believe and do not doubt, asking for wisdom from above. This is a precious Promise of God when we know that we are heard. The Lord does not hide from us anymore.

Joh 14:14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.

Mat 21:22 And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive.


Jas 1:5  If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. 

Jas 1:6  But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. 

Jas 1:7  For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. 


1Pe 5:7  Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. 

Promise of God, He will not Forsake Us

Christ promises never to leave or forsake us. In spite of our struggles in this world and our fleshly weaknesses and doubts, we know that His anointing stays in us. We have been sealed with the Comforter, and nothing can separate us from the love of God and Christ. The Lord causes us to keep His Commandments.

Deu 31:6 Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.”

Psa 37:25 I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.


Rom 8:38  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 

Rom 8:39  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. 


Heb 13:5  Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. 

Promise of God, when He forsakes us a little while, it will not be Forever

When the Lord forsakes us for a little while because of our unfaithfulness, forgetting Him and His Commandments, feasting as we go, He comes back after an appointed spiritual seventy years. We are now being raised up to be spiritually minded and mind the things of the Lord. To be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life. We do not trust in the man of sin [lies within] ourselves in this Day of the Lord.

Psa 94:14 For the LORD will not cast off his people, neither will he forsake his inheritance.


Isa 54:7 For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.

Isa 54:8 In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer.


Joh 16:16  A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me, because I go to the Father. 

Christ never changes,  and does not fail for His Name’s sake. Being our faithful High Priest, He comes to us. It pleases the Lord to make us His people. He is coming and IS COME back for us. We see Him once again.

Deu 7:9 Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations

Heb 10:23 Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; for he is faithful that promised;

2Ti 2:13 If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.

1Sa 12:22 For the LORD will not forsake his people for his great name’s sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people.

Holding dear to Christ’s character, who changes not, sees us through the tough times necessary for salvation.

Psa 91:4 He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

Mal 3:6  For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. 

Isa 45:7  I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things. 

After a while, we live, and Christ turns our hearts back to Him. He is not angry forever. We are promised to find Him and live if we seek Him. We know His Name and that is His Commandments, which raise us up in our latter days. His faithfulness to His people remains steadfast.

Eze 37:5  Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: 

Mat 7:8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

Psa 9:10 And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD,


Psa 89:30 If his children forsake my law, and walk not in my judgments;

Psa 89:31 If they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments;

Psa 89:32 Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.

Psa 89:33 Nevertheless my lovingkindness will I not utterly take from him, nor suffer my faithfulness to fail.

His mercy endures forever. Mercy means to open our eyes to see and our ears to hear Him. He is the God of great mercies.

Lam 3:31 For the Lord will not cast off for ever:

Lam 3:32 But though he cause grief, yet will he have compassion according to the multitude of his mercies.


Mat 11:4  Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: 

Mat 11:5  The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. 

Mat 11:6  And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me. 

Promise of God, not to lose Anybody

All given to aionios [eternal life], which is every man in his or her predetermined order, will be saved and is being saved. One is either saved in this age [the called, chosen, and faithful], or one will be saved in the age to come. Our progress or lack thereof at times should not have us doubting the Promises of God. The Lord finishes what He has started in us, and nobody or nothing is going to take us out of His hands. He does it all.

Deut 32:39  See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand. 

Joh 10:28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

Joh 6:39  And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. 

We make our calling and election sure, as we are commanded to do, as if it depends on us. There is no free will; we are clay in the Potter’s hand. We work while it is Day after Christ’s example. This is a parable, that is to say, we obey and deal our Bread to the hungry, whilst we have Christ, who is the Light. We know that we are His people; nevertheless, we do all we can to stand in this Day of the Lord.

2Pe 1:3  According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: 

2Pe 1:4  Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. 

2Pe 1:5  And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; 

2Pe 1:6  And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; 

2Pe 1:7  And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. 

2Pe 1:8  For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.


Joh 5:17  But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work. 

Promise of God, our Teacher of Righteousness

Christ promises to teach us the way of righteousness. Learning righteousness is the same process as being saved from our sins [it is the salvation of our souls]. To do right, we are caused by the Lord to err [Isa 63:17], and by the subsequent chastening of His judgment, we are being taught the right way.

Psa 32:8 I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.

Heb 12:6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth [teaches], and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.

Isa 42:16 And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them.


Isa 30:20  And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers: 

Isa 30:21  And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left. 

Promise of God, that no harm will come to Us

We overcome day by day and are not being harmed by abiding in the Lake of Fire. Standing on the Promises of God and trusting them fully is how we endure in the Lake of Fire, that is to say, we endure in age-abiding judgment. We do not fear man or what they can do to us. Spiritually speaking, man is a lie. We do not fear lies; we have the Truth, which is the knowledge of Christ.

Isa 43:2 When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.


Luk 21:16  And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death. 

Luk 21:17  And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake. 

Luk 21:18  But there shall not an hair of your head perish. 

Luk 21:19  In your patience possess ye your souls.

Walking by the Faith of Christ requires us to be despised and hated by a carnal world [with and without] that has no faith. The resulting spiritual fires this brings in our lives bring forth gold tried in the fire. Christ appears in the fire with us; we see Him more and more as He appears in the fire.

Dan 3:25 He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.

Zec 13:9  And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The LORD is my God. 

Rev 3:18  I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. 

Our time in the “Lake of Fire” is the ordained process that brings about the death of our carnality; hence, it is also known as the second death [our first death being found dead in our sins and trespasses]. Experiencing the second death is the other side of the same coin as the blessed and holy First Resurrection. This is how we are being saved from ourselves and our enemies. Trusting in the promise of no harm shall come to us gives us much-needed encouragement when we stand on the Faith of Christ, which is His glorious Gospel.

Hos 13:14  I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes. 


Php 3:9  And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: 

Php 3:10  That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; 


Rev 2:11 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death.”

Promise of God, a Crown of Glory

The Hope of getting our crown of righteousness is to be a partaker of His Divine nature, which we obtainby  having the mind of Christ. Faith and overcoming is a gift of God.

Isa 28:5  In that day shall the LORD of hosts be for a crown of glory, and for a diadem of beauty, unto the residue of his people, 

Isa 28:6  And for a spirit of judgment to him that sitteth in judgment, and for strength to them that turn the battle to the gate. 


2Ti 4:7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

2Ti 4:8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.


2Pe 1:4  Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. 

Pe 5:4  And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away. 

A Crown and glory go hand in hand. Glory is when we overcome and are obedient in keeping His Commandments. Christ promised the anointing we have received will always be there. The anointing is the Commandments. We are sealed with the Holy Spirit of Promise.

Psa 139:7 Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?

Psa 139:8 If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.


1Jn 2:27  But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.

Christ promised us grace and glory. To obey God is the glory that all will see. The carnal mind [sin] is not ruling us anymore in this great Day of the Lord. The Commandments are the Glory of the Lord. Everything good befalls us in this great Day.

Psa 84:11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

Isa 40:5  And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it. 

Rom 5:21  That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Rom 6:14  For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. 

Promise of God, partakers of the First Resurrection

We are promised to be children of the First and Blessed Resurrection, the biggest event and honour in any man’s life. Those so blessed have lost their old life and now have gained a new life in Christ. This takes place on the third day, which is the same as a thousand symbolic years [2Pe 3:8].

Rev 20:4  And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. 

Rev 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. 

As children of the resurrection, we reign and rule with Christ on twelve thrones. We are being made quickening spirits, ministering to those who obtain salvation. We are the seven angels of the seven churches in the Book of Revelation, and we sound the trumpets. These are spiritual words.

Mar 12:24  And Jesus answering said unto them, Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God? 

Mar 12:25  For when they shall rise from the dead, they neither marry, nor are given in marriage; but are as the angels which are in heaven. 


Mat 19:28  And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. 

Rev 8:2  And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets. 

Promise of God, we will Hunger and Thirst no More

The Lord promises we will never hunger or thirst again. He has given us a resting place and is also providing us with food and clothing. Our righteousness is our clothing, and the Commandments are the food our souls desire. Christ leads us to streams of Living Waters.

Psa 107:9  For he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness. 

Luk 6:21  Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh. 

Deu 6:25  And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the LORD our God, as he hath commanded us. 


Isa 33:21  But there the glorious LORD will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams; wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gallant ship pass thereby. 

Isa 33:22  For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us. 


Rev 22:17  And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. 

Promise of God, He is making everything New

We wait for a new heaven and a new earth, that is to say, we are having a new mindset, and we are overcoming and have a new life. The scene of this world is passing away.

2Pe 3:13  Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. 


Isa 43:18  Remember ye not the former things, neither consider the things of old. 

Isa 43:19  Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert. 


Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Conclusion

We have these many precious Promises of God in earthen vessels. Our merciful God knows that we need these. We believe these Promises of God; nothing in the world can compare to it. Blessed are we if we know them.

Deu 4:30 When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the LORD thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice;

Deu 4:31 (For the LORD thy God is a merciful God;) he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them.


Deu 29:29  The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law. 

Mar 5:36  As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe. 

The admonition is not to forsake the Lord as long as we live. Keep My Commandments and live, says the Lord.

2Ch 15:2 The LORD is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.

Jos 24:20 If ye forsake the LORD, and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt, and consume you, after that he hath done you good.


2Ti 2:12  If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us: 

2Ti 2:13  If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself. 

For those children waiting for the Promise of God, trust in Him and be assured that He has not and will not forget His own children and creation. Hold fast to Christ’s Promises. For those who received the Promise of the Holy Spirit, we wait for the Lord as He appears more and more and stand fast in this Grace.

Isa 49:15 Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee.

Isa 49:16 Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.


Act 2:38  Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. 

Act 2:39  For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call. 

The Lord will come, IS come, and will not tarry. Trust in the Lord and know the Lord is faithful to His children.

Act 2:27 Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.


Psa 16:9  Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope. 

Psa 16:10  For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. 

Psa 16:11  Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. 

We are being saved by our Hope in the Promises of the Faithful One. We treasure this Hope in our hearts.

Act 26:6  And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers: 

Act 26:7  Unto which promise our twelve tribes, instantly serving God day and night, hope to come. For which hope’s sake, king Agrippa, I am accused of the Jews. 

Act 26:8  Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead? 


2Co 4:8 We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;

2Co 4:9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;

2Co 4:10 Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.

Keep the Lord’s Commandments and do not covet spiritual riches without Him. He is the fullness that fills all in all. Christ is the end of our faith and the fulfilment of the Law. We have everything we need to be saved in this present wicked age.

Heb 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.


Eph 1:20  Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, 

Eph 1:21  Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: 

Eph 1:22  And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, 

Eph 1:23  Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. 


Rom 10:4  For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. 

Rom 15:13  Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost. 

Receive ye the Gospel, receive ye the Holy Spirit. Grace and Peace be unto you.

Articles

The Living Grace of God that Saves

What is the Grace of God?

Blessed be the Lord and Father of all mercies.  We salute those the Lord has drawn near and who wait for the Promise to come and the appearing of our Saviour in all their works.

The grace of God is not at all what we first learn.  Understanding the true grace of God is understanding the Gospel, and it is what we must grow into to complete the journey of being saved from our sins. The grace of God is indeed God’s loving favor toward those He loves and has chosen for salvation. All humanity being saved is the most fundamental truth, and it comes to pass in every man’s appointed time, determined by God the Father.

1Co 15:22  For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. 

1Co 15:23  But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. 

Definition:  The grace of God is the eternal Living Commandments of the Father that come to live inside of us. The grace of God is also called the Gospel; it is the good news that lives with us and saves us from our sins. Grace is the coming of Jesus Christ, the Living Word of the Holy Commandments of the Father.

Joh 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 

Joh 1:2  The same was in the beginning with God. 


Joh 12:49  For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. 

Joh 12:50  And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak. 

The grace of God is the laws of God, the Holy Commandments, which are promised to dwell within us and be written into our minds and our hearts. Grace is not a thing; it is the living God, the lively hope, now dwelling in us and saving us.

Heb 8:10  For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: 

The Word of God, Jesus Christ, is a living or quickening Spirit, also known as the Spirit of Grace. The Spirit of Grace works righteousness and holiness into all our being and behaviour through many tribulations.  The Lord promises to pour out the Spirit of Grace unto those of the seed o David, the inhabitants of spiritual Jerusalem.

Zec 12:10  And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

When the living Spirit of Grace has come, the stakes are raised, and we are severely punished if we willfully disobey the commandments that live in our hearts. The Spirit of Grace teaches us the fear of the Lord.

Heb 10:29  Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?

The word quicken or quickening is the same as living or alive. The Lord Jesus Christ is a living Spirit or a quickening Spirit, and this Word saves every man from their sins, in the appointed time.

1Co 15:45  And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.

Psa 119:50  This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me. 

The function of the Living Word, or God’s grace, is turning us from abiding in death, being carnally minded, into eternal life, being spiritually minded. Romans 8 speaks well of this transition from death unto life.

Rom 8:6  For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

Rom 8:7  Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. 

Rom 8:8  So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. 

Rom 8:9  But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. 

Rom 8:10  And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 

Rom 8:11  But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. 

The living grace of God, which quickens us to life, is foretold throughout the Old Testament, especially in the Psalms.

Psa 119:88  Quicken me after thy lovingkindness; so shall I keep the testimony of thy mouth.

Psa 119:107  I am afflicted very much: quicken me, O LORD, according unto thy word.

The living Christ is the glory of the Father and is the mechanism by which we are glorified for His name’s sake in our appointed time. The Elect of God are being saved now in this generation by the coming of the Living Christ, the grace of God, to make His abode within us.

Eph 1:4  According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: 

Eph 1:5  Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, 

Eph 1:6  To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. 

When Christ comes the second time to every man for salvation, He comes as the Holy Spirit, also known by scores of other names, including the Promise, Comforter, Spirit of Truth, and the Spirit of Grace. This study, The Hidden Mystery of the Promise, reviewed many different terms for the Living Grace of God. The true grace of God is part of the hidden mystery of the Gospel now being revealed to the saints.

The coming of Christ to dwell inside of us is how the throne of grace is established in our hearts and minds. When salvation comes to us, the Lord dwells in heaven, meaning our mind as our high priests, and we have access to Him at any time of need.

Heb 4:14  Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. 

Heb 4:15  For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. 

Heb 4:16  Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. 

The grace of God, that is, the Spirit of Christ and the living commandments, chastens us and teaches us righteousness. Grace causes us to obey the Lord, which is how salvation from sin and perfection are accomplished.

Joh 16:7  Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. 

Joh 16:8  And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 

The Living Christ and the living commandments teach us how to walk and bring the right way to our memory.

Joh 14:26  But the Comforter, which is the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. 

The chastening and scourging of our heavenly Father, now dwelling in our heavens, now judges us and brings the necessary corrections, the result being salvation from all sin.

Tit 2:11  For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 

Tit 2:12  Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; 

The grace of God is the Living Word, the same as the two-edged sword now living in those in whom Christ has come into their flesh.

Heb 4:12  For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 

Until the Spirit of Grace, the Holy Spirit, comes when the Promise comes, we are not yet the sons of God. The Lord comes to those He loves, and the result is our chastening by the living grace, the commandments that now live in our hearts and minds. This is the true grace of God.

Heb 12:6  For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. 

Heb 12:7  If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? 

Heb 12:8  But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. 

When the grace of God has come to live in us, in time, we overcome all sin.    Where sin abounds, grace abounds even more, as the Lord shall not fail to finish His work and save those so chosen for salvation from their sins.

Rom 5:20  Moreover the law entered, that the offence might abound. But where sin abounded, grace did much more abound: 

Rom 5:21  That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Grace is a Gift

We are saved from our sins by the grace we receive through the gift of the Lord’s faith. We receive a measure of Christ’s faith, and the Spirit of grace planted in us is what burns our sins out of our lives in time. Salvation is none of ourselves. Our faith is not our faith but a measure of His faith. There is no boasting as salvation is all the Lord and none of man’s effort.

Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 

Eph 2:9  Not of works, lest any man should boast. 

Eph 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. 

Carnal minds pervert the grace of God to justify the continuation of living and practicing sin. Jesus Christ is not a minister for sin, and we deceive ourselves when we turn His grace into a lascivious attitude, also known as a license to sin. Do not do this; the Lord brings harsher judgments upon those who willfully disobey the leadings of His Holy Spirit of Grace. Once in the true faith, we are to earnestly contend for the faith and beware the many false teachers and antichrists already in the world. Do not be deceived.

Jud 1:3  Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. 

Jud 1:4  For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Jud 1:5  I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not. 

The true Gospel of Jesus Christ and truth in the Scriptures is found here on this website. We recommend you read the Gospel and Essential Doctrines and the many studies in the Commandments section on the main menu. Here are the links to take you there:

One True Gospel

Essential Doctrines of Christ

Commandments Menu

Receive ye the Gospel of the Living Commandments, the true grace of God. May the peace and grace of God be multiplied within you

Servants and labourers in the Gospel,

Peter and Rhonel

 

 

 

Letters

Growing in Grace and Knowledge

The Glorious Appearing of Christ

Blessed be the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ for their enduring mercy given to the church called by His name. Peace and grace to the brethren, and may these words encourage all to grow in the grace and knowledge of God.

The coming of Jesus Christ with the Promise precedes and is distinct from the appearing of Jesus Christ in our walk. The second coming of the Lord for salvation initiates a new day, the third day, also called the day of the Lord, that we endure to finish our race and be perfected. There is great wisdom in understanding this, as nobody has arrived until we take our last breath in these clay vessels. We follow the example of Paul, who had the Living Christ working mightily in him, and he pressed toward the high calling of perfection.

Php 3:12  Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. 

Php 3:13  Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 

Php 3:14  I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. 

One cannot hear the call to perfection and warnings against sloth and lasciviousness enough, given the weight of Scripture on those who fell away. Being called and chosen is a tremendous blessing, but now, if we are the elect of God, we press onward to be found faithful in our day of the Lord after receiving the Promise. A recent study on the Essential Doctrines of Christ revealed that the Hebrews in whom Christ had come were languishing and did not move on towards perfection and maturity. They should have already been teachers but were acting as babes in Christ, unable to partake of the strong meat that is the fiery trials and persecution that come from being holy and set apart in obedience from the world. It is a warning against apostasy for them and for us today, who have received Christ.

Heb 5:12  For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. 

Heb 5:13  For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. 

The Lord gives us parables to teach us the ways of the Kingdom of God, which is the same as the Kingdom of Heaven. Two of these parables are particularly applicable to the time and process needed to grow into the fullness and maturity of Jesus Christ. The ways, wisdom, and mysteries of God are revealed in these parables to those given spiritual eyes and ears.

Mat 13:31  Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field: 

Mat 13:32  Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof. 

Mat 13:33  Another parable spake he unto them; The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took, and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened. 

The Holy Seed, the Living Spirit of Christ, the Commandments, once planted in the good soil prepared by the Baptism of John, grows into a mighty tree that represents the Kingdom of Heaven within us. The growing of the Living Christ in us is the growing of this tree and the spreading of the yeast throughout the whole lump. The growth of Christ in us is the growth of the Living Commandments and their manifestation or appearing in all our thoughts and behaviours. Bringing all to maturity in the faith is the role of those the Lord appoints as the elders in the congregation who serve the flock. Their labor is to bring everyone along unto the perfect man, no longer being deceived by the multitude of false doctrines.

Eph 4:13  Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 

Eph 4:14  That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 

Eph 4:15  But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 

Whether or not we move on to maturity is up to the Lord. However, we work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, pressing into what the Lord is given us. Once we taste the heavenly gift, there is no coming back in this age if we fall away and do not enter the promised land.

Heb 6:3  And this will we do, if God permit. 

Heb 6:4  For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, 

Heb 6:5  And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, 

Heb 6:6  If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. 

The Scriptures liken us to trees, and time is needed to grow a tree to maturity in the natural and the spiritual. Likewise, the parable of the leaven and flour meal speaks of the time and process required for the dough to rise. The Spirit of Christ takes time to germinate, sprout, and mature. The Living Word accomplishes the purposes for which it was sent to those prepared to hear the Gospel. The trees of the field clap their hands and sing praises unto the Lord in due time. No longer will the promised land bear thorns and briers, but trees that bear witness to the Lord.

Isa 55:11  So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. 

Isa 55:12  For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. 

Isa 55:13  Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off. 

Our baptism of Christ, the receiving of the Holy Spirit of Grace, is not the end of the race; it is only the beginning of the true trials and tribulations, as those so blessed have entered their day of the Lord. The Holy seed, the Living Christ, the Commandments, now live in us, and henceforth the Kingdom of God is continually expanding as our carnal minds and thoughts [the fowls of the air] come to rest in obedience to the King who now sits in heaven. The Prince of Peace, who is the Living Christ, brings all carnal reasonings to rest, being in subjection to the Commandments of the Father. Here is Luke’s version of the parable.

Luk 13:18  Then said he, Unto what is the kingdom of God like? and whereunto shall I resemble it? 

Luk 13:19  It is like a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and cast into his garden; and it grew, and waxed a great tree; and the fowls of the air lodged in the branches of it. 

Mustard plants are famous for growing very quickly, and so it is with the Spirit of Christ when He comes to save us from our enemies. The Lord, being a jealous God, makes a quick work upon the earth, as the Holy Spirit is greater in Power than the carnal thoughts and habits [the fowls of heaven] that have kept us in bondage our entire lives.  When Christ IS come, our earth is being judged in righteousness, and the end of all things is at hand.

Rev 19:11  And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. 

Rev 19:12  His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. 

Rev 19:13  And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. 

Rev 19:14  And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. 

Properly planted seed germinates and grows unto maturity in the natural, and so it is with the spiritual regarding the Holy seed of the Living Christ. The coming of the Promise that rebirths us is just the beginning of the race that ends with us becoming mature in Christ, having His mind, and receiving the fullness of our crown, according to the measure of our faith, before we depart these clay vessels. We preach the Gospel, the mystery now being revealed, which takes root and brings forth newness of life in the Spirit of the commandments. The elders labour to grow all the flock unto maturity and present them perfect in Christ Jesus.

Col 1:26  Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: 

Col 1:27  To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: 

Col 1:28  Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: 

Col 1:29  Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily. 

This parable of the Mustard Seed appears in all the Gospels except John and teaches us the vital lessons of growing into maturity. Here is Mark’s version, which offers a few more details.

Mar 4:30  And he said, Whereunto shall we liken the kingdom of God? or with what comparison shall we compare it? 

Mar 4:31  It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when it is sown in the earth, is less than all the seeds that be in the earth: 

Mar 4:32  But when it is sown, it groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it. 

Mar 4:33  And with many such parables spake he the word unto them, as they were able to hear it. 

As Christ, the Living Commandments in us increase, the fowls, representing our carnal thoughts, come to rest in the branches of the Tree of Life, which is the Living Commandments now growing in us. This is the peace of God that transcends all understanding coming into our heavens. The tiny mustard seed, representing the seed of Christ, grows to become greater than all herbs, as there is nothing more valuable to our spiritual health and sustenance than eating the Gospel, the Commandments that are the Living Christ. By eating the Gospel and given time, we grow in His knowledge and grace, and are weaned off the milk as we mature and learn to eat the strong meat of the Living Word.

Heb 5:14  But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. 

Strong meat is the suffering, reproach, and persecution we endure for standing for Christ and obeying the Commandments, being set apart from the world and its ways.

The tests of our faith and our proving faithful are what grow the tree and its branches unto the fullness of Jesus Christ. The great ones in the Kingdom of Heaven have humbled themselves by the hand of the Lord and put the fowls to rest, ceasing from their carnal works.

Mat 23:12  And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted. 

Mat 18:4  Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.      

The Lord finishes the work He started and remakes us into His Holy Temple until all things are made new. The living Christ works in us until all enemies are subdued and become a footstool under His feet. This is the process by which we are being perfected by the Spirit of Christ now dwelling in us. The Living Christ works in the Father’s Kingdom, molding, shaping, increasing our faith, building the Temple, where He and the Father dwell forever.

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 

We grow in the Spirit of grace as the Lord expands His occupancy within us. God’s grace, which is the Living Commandments now making their abode with us, uncovers all our hidden sins and secrets and burns them up. Nothing remains hidden; it all comes to the light in due time. As Christ increases, our old ways decrease, and we become holy in all of our behavior. Our remaking into the image of the Son is being accomplished. We are being made holy in all manner of our conduct, forgetting what was past.

1Pe 1:14  As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: 

1Pe 1:15  But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; 

1Pe 1:16  Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. 

Peter’s call to holiness was quoted from Leviticus and a chapter regarding the laws about our spiritual food, specifically the law of beasts. Many habits and ingrained behaviours are being changed as the seed of Christ germinates and grows into a Tree of Life. We stop eating, meaning taking into our minds unclean thoughts and inputs that defile us. In modern parlance, these are things that the world esteems that occupy our minds, taking our focus off obeying the Commandments. All these fowls of heaven come to rest, and we no longer spiritually eat them.

Lev 11:44  For I am the LORD your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 

Lev 11:45  For I am the LORD that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy. 

Lev 11:46  This is the law of the beasts, and of the fowl, and of every living creature that moveth in the waters, and of every creature that creepeth upon the earth: 

Lev 11:47  To make a difference between the unclean and the clean, and between the beast that may be eaten and the beast that may not be eaten. 

Coming out and being separated from the carnal world requires us to stand and rest in the Commandments. As we grow in Christ, we grow in understanding and knowledge of Him and the narrowness of the way of life.

All Wait, Learning Patience

Everyone who calls on the Lord is learning patience and waiting for Him in some capacity. No matter where one is in our walk of faith and our maturity, all wait and hope in what is yet to come or be revealed.

Psa 130:5  I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.

Some wait for the Promise, which is the Lord coming to make His abode in them. Others, born again by the Spirit, wait for Christ to appear in all of their behavior. We all share in the wait and learning of patience. The waiting is part of the trials that prove our faith, whether we wait for Christ to come or for Christ to be revealed. Every one of the flock abides in the hope of what they do not yet see to come and be revealed to them and us.

Rom 8:24  For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? 

Rom 8:25  But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it. 

We have to be reminded often of the need to wait and endure because growing weary led many to depart from the faith and fall away into disobedient pursuits of spiritual lusts, fornication, and murmuring. Take heed, stand, and wait [See all 1 Cor 10].

1Co 10:11  Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the age are come. 

1Co 10:12  Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. 

Those waiting on the Promise are espoused to be married to Christ when the Bridegroom comes. Most of the epistles were written to churches where the flock was waiting for Christ to come, and thus their focus was on making themselves ready for the wedding feast. The church at Thessalonica is growing in faith and learning patience as they wait for the Son’s appearance from heaven.

1Th 1:3  Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father; 

1Th 1:10  And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come. 

This letter spoke in detail about the waiting:  Quietly Waiting for the Promise

Our faith establishes the hope of the Lord’s coming glory into our heavens. The Hebrews waiting for the Promise were reminded to finish their preparations, being washed by the Commandments, and be patient as they tarried in Jerusalem.

Heb 10:36  For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. 

Heb 10:37  For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. 

Waiting for His Appearing, growing in Christ

Once the Promise comes, we are born again into the living hope of Jesus Christ, now dwelling within. We now grow into the mature man of Christ, being holy and blameless in all our behaviour. We do this by increasing in the peace and grace that lives in us. The Prince of Peace and glory of the Lord’s grace is multiplied within us, Lord willing.  We are warned about not remaining steadfast but rather to grow onwards into maturity.

1Pe 2:2  As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: 


2Pe 3:17  Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness.

2Pe 3:18  But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.

We get to know the Lord intimately in the whirlwind of judgment when the Living Commandments abide in our hearts, and the manifest trials perfect us. Those who have received the Promise, even the Apostles, wait for the fullness of Christ’s appearing in them as the race needs to be run to the end. The seed of Christ grows to maturity, and the Spirit that represents the yeast expands throughout the whole lump. The Apostles and elders wait for the Lord Jesus Christ to appear as they grow in the grace and knowledge taught by the anointing, the Holy Spirit that now lives in them.

Heb 6:11  And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end: 

Heb 6:12  That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. 

The salvation of our souls is the end of the race, the completion of the Lord’s work in remaking the marred vessel into a vessel of honour in which He dwells. For Christ to be revealed to us, we have lots of growing and many tribulations to endure. Yet our incorruptible inheritance, salvation, is reserved for us in heaven, a Promise of God who cannot lie. We remain steadfast in the Gospel, the Living Commandments, and we fail not.

1Pe 1:3  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 

1Pe 1:4  To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, 

1Pe 1:5  Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

Proving ourselves faithful to the Commandments reveals Christ in our lives. Thus, the Lord brings us trials to prove our faith in the fire of many trials. When Jesus Christ appears, we receive God’s praise and manifest His Glory.

1Pe 1:7  That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing [revelation] of Jesus Christ: 

1Pe 1:8  Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: 

Peter exhorted the elders who feed the flock through the preaching of the Gospel, telling them to faithfully execute their duties so they would become partakers of Jesus Christ’s appearing in glory. Glory is the appearance of the Chief Shepherd, Jesus Christ, who appears when we are obedient to His Commandments.

1Pe 5:1  The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed: 

1Pe 5:2  Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; 

1Pe 5:3  Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. 

1Pe 5:4  And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away. 

The Apostle Paul always spoke of the hope of the fullness of the Promises yet to be revealed. We are to hold these beliefs close and rejoice not only in what we have already been given but also in the promises and hope yet to be revealed. We strive to not become slothful, but continue to abide and work in the kingdom of God.

1Ti 1:1  Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the commandment of God our Saviour, and Lord Jesus Christ, which is our hope; 

Heb 3:6  But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end. 

The revelation of the Lord’s glory follows seasons of our growing and maturing, which are marked by manifest trials and temptations. Our suffering for Christ precedes the revealing of His glory, which represents our obedience to the Father’s Commandments.

1Pe 4:13  But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. 

We learn by trials to be aware and steadfast to the wiles of the devil, who roams our earth looking for opportunities to have us fall. If we endure to the end, the tree of life grows mighty and strong in our hearts, and then the Lord gives us overcoming, strengthens, and settles us in the faith of Christ.

1Pe 5:8  Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: 

1Pe 5:9  Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. 

1Pe 5:10  But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. 

The grace of God, the living Commandments, are what bring salvation. God’s grace is the chastening that teaches us to do righteousness and be holy and blameless in all our behavior. As we learn through our chastening, our hope is realized more and more as Christ appears in us as we overcome sin in our day of perfection.

Tit 2:11  For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 

Tit 2:12  Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; 

Tit 2:13  Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; 

The appearing of Christ is our being clothed in the garments of righteousness. This signifies the mature man of Christ who is overcome their sin by the Power of God, the living Commandments by way of many trials and sufferings.

Rev 7:13  And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? 

Rev 7:14  And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 

Rebuilding a holy temple, wherein the Lord dwells forever, takes more than a 30-second prayer to accomplish. It takes many trials, tribulations, tests of faith, sufferings, and chastenings of our heavenly Father to bring about. Yet the Lord fails not to accomplish what He sets out to do. We were created to manifest the Lord’s glory, and that is precisely what He is bringing about in the appointed times.

Psa 102:16  When the LORD shall build up Zion, he shall appear in his glory. 

We are commanded to examine ourselves and measure the temple versus the Commandments [the plumbline] to see how we are doing and if we remain on track, walking in faith. Knowing the Lord is being a doer of His Commandments. The Spirit that dwells in us cannot lie, and we know where we stand and what work remains to finish the work of making us righteous and holy. Do we know Him? Are we in the Truth?

1Jn 2:3  And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. 

1Jn 2:4  He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 

1Jn 2:5  But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.

The mustard seed should grow rapidly into a fruitful tree as the Lord works quickly. Our carnal thoughts and behaviour change. We rest in the peace of the Holy Commandments, the true Sabbath rest of God. If we focus on the things of the Lord, the Commandments, we find the peace that transcends all understanding and come to know the Lord in Spirit and Truth.

Isa 26:3  Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. 

Hallowed be His Name that we pray daily means we hallow His Commandments and come to rest in them and do them. The mature in Christ is a man or woman of peace who has ceased from their own works and has grown in the knowledge and grace of the living Christ.

Eze 20:19  I am the LORD your God; walk in my statutes, and keep my judgments, and do them; 

Eze 20:20  And hallow my sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the LORD your God. 

Being justified by our faith, we rest in the peace of Christ living in us, standing in the grace [Commandments] of God, and rejoice in the hope of His glory yet to be revealed.

Studies

The Former and Latter Rain Is Come

The Lord’s Rain Brings Truth and Grace

The unseen spiritual things of the Lord are understood by the physical things seen in creation. The Lord shows us these truths in the physical creation to those who look to the Lord.

Rom 1:19  Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 

Rom 1:20  For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead

When our eyes are opened to see the hidden wisdom and the mystery of God in the Scriptures, we see that physical rain shows the workings of the power unto salvation and the Godhead, meaning the relationship between Christ, the Father, and us.  The common denominator in all of this is the Gospel and coming to know that Jesus Christ, the Living Word, is the Holy Commandments given to Him by the Father.  Rain falling from heaven onto the earth and bringing forth life is the Godhead being made manifest to us.

Joh 14:10  Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own; but the Father who dwells in Me [the commandments] does the works. 

Rain is the Spirit of God, which is His eternal words that never pass away.  Understanding spiritual rain confirms the mystery of the Gospel and expands our understanding of God’s hidden wisdom.  Spiritual rain is the Father’s eternal commandments given to Christ, now being sent [spoken] to us.

Joh 12:49  For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. 

God loved us when we were yet sinners, which means He sends the rain that nourishes us to both the just and the unjust.  We do the same.

Mat 5:44  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; 

Mat 5:45  That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust

The Scriptures speaking of rain reveal how the Spirit of Christ,  the living commandments, is either poured out or withheld from us in various seasons to mold and to shape us.  Earthen clay and rain are needed to make an earthen vessel in the hands of the Potter.  Hearing His Word is hearing His doctrine that the Lord speaks to both our heaven and our earth within.  This rain of the commandments first comes softly to us as we are first drawn to the Lord.

Deu 32:1  Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. 

Deu 32:2  My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass: 


Jer 22:29  O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD. 

Rain is the power upon high [the living commands] that we are told to patiently wait on and trust the Lord to bring to us as we gather in fellowship.

Jas 5:7  Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. 

Jas 5:8  Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. 

Natural rain comes in many seasons; it can rain hard or softly.  Rain replenishes the various earthly reservoirs, such as rivers, lakes, and groundwater, that are needed for life and to produce food.  In the spiritual, rain is needed to replenish our earthly reservoirs and satisfy our thirst for righteousness in the same way the bread of life satisfies our hunger.

Mat 5:6  Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. 

Rain also brings destruction and can come by storms, including thunder and lightning, which are the tribulations the Lord brings us to remake us into the image of the Son.  The Lord’s rain, the Word of God, is a two-edged sword and is both positive and negative. Rain, the commandments are used to test our faith, and the rain is used to bring judgment and destroy the wicked from our earth.

Trials of Faith:  Mat 7:25  And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. 

Judgment on Sin:  Luk 17:29  But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. 

Spiritual rain, the commandments of Christ, His Spirit, does not come to us all at once, as we are not able to bear it.  The rain comes in seasons, little by little, as we are being prepared for the latter rain.

Joh 16:12  I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. 

Joh 16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 

The power of God unto salvation, the living commandments within, is essential to run the race and not grow weary as the flesh is weak.  We wait for the rain that renews us and strengthens us, enabling us to rise above the worldly distractions and not tire of the race.

Isa 40:31  But they that wait upon the LORD [The Rain] shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. 

The commandments of rain are the holy gift and the manifestation of God’s love.  We are to do what Christ did and are commanded to love our enemies by obeying His commandments at every turn.  On our journey to the promised land [salvation], the Lord sends us lots of rain to confirm and strengthen us when we are weak and to confirm us as His people.

Psa 68:9  Thou, O God, didst send a plentiful rain, whereby thou didst confirm thine inheritance, when it was weary. 

We are blessed when the Lord gives us the measure of His faith, as then [the earth] can receive His rain and blessing.

Heb 6:7  For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God: 

Without rain, the seed of Christ in all of us does not germinate; it takes the living waters that are the commandments.   When we receive this Gospel of commandments, we now have these living waters flowing back out of our bellies as we preach the Gospel, sending rain to every ear that hears.

Joh 7:38  He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

The ways of the Lord are higher than our ways.  The Lord’s rain is inseparable from the life-giving bread that gives seed to those who sow it [preach the Gospel] and becomes life-giving food to those who receive the Gospel and thereby eat it.  The Lord’s rain, His Word, is sent to those being saved and successfully prospers those in whom it dwells.

Isa 55:9  For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. 

Isa 55:10  For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: 

Isa 55:11  So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. 

The Former and Latter Rain

While rain comes in all seasons, there are two primary “spiritual seasons of rain”, the autumn and the spring, where we get the blessing of rain.    These seasons of our lives are the two comings of Jesus Christ to every man.  They are known in the Scriptures as the former (early) and the latter rain in symbol.  They are the first baptism of John and also the second baptism by fire.  Being first drawn to Christ, we are given a measure of rain to prepare us for the latter planting in the spring.

Deu 11:13  And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the LORD your God, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, 

Deu 11:14  That I will give you the rain of your land in his due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and thine oil. 

Deu 11:15  And I will send grass in thy fields for thy cattle, that thou mayest eat and be full. [The living bread] 

We first get the rain when drawn to Christ and learn of Him and the commandments.  Being washed with truth, we do not yet possess the power unto salvation, being hearers of the Word only.  These are the living commandments put into our hearts that begin to turn us into doers of the Word.  This is the latter rain that precedes the summer, where the fruit of the Spirit grows in abundance. Christ comes as the rain on our earth twice by bringing the Father’s commandments.

Joh 14:3  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. 

The Lord returns to all in our appointed time, in our day of the Lord, with the latter rain to finish the work He has started. Here we know Him no longer in the flesh.  The first coming, the Lord, the Word comes unto us softly [meekly] sitting on a yet carnal beast.

Mat 21:5  Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass. 

The second coming or the latter rain is when the fire comes that begins our day of the Lord and coincides with the power of the Gospel, the living commandments taking root in our hearts.  Henceforth, the rain of God turns into a burning fire that saves us from our sins and makes us doers of the Word.  Zion is now being redeemed with judgment by the living Word.  The faith of Christ, the commandments, is the rain that comes by hearing from His mighty angels.

2Th 1:7  And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, 

2Th 1:8  In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: 

The prophet Joel prophesied to us, the elect of God, who followed centuries later, of the latter rain [Jesus Christ Words] that should come.

Joe 2:23  Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month

Joe 2:24  And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the fats shall overflow with wine and oil. 

The moderate [meek] former rain softens the earth and prepares us for the latter rain coming in the spiritual spring that initiates our day of the Lord. This ensures the farmer’s harvest of spiritual wheat, wine, and oil is bountiful.  The former rain washes [baptizes] us in truth, the latter rains bring the power that is the fiery grace that washes our feet.

Being alive in the Spirit by the rain, we now receive the promise of the Father and are reaping the promise of eternal life.  We are commanded to wait for the latter rain, trusting the Lord, learning patience by tarrying together in the upper room in spiritual Jerusalem.  We have the former rain having already been washed with truth, but we now wait for the power on high that is the Father’s eternal commandments living inside of us.

Luk 24:49  And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high. 

Truth and grace come by way of Jesus Christ, with the former rain bringing the truth and the latter rain the grace that changes our hearts.  The living Christ is both the first and the last rain. The time is at hand as the Lord’s rain is now pouring upon the earth, and to all who hear and receive the Gospel.  Now are the sons of God being made manifest.

Joh 14:21  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

When the time of reformation has come, Christ brings the latter rain upon our earth.  Asking for rain is praying for rain, which we are to do when we struggle to produce fruit of the Spirit, and the promised land within us is parched, devoid of the Spirit.

Zec 10:1  Ask the LORD for rain in the time of the latter rain. The LORD will make flashing clouds; He will give them showers of rain, Grass in the field for everyone. 


1Jn 3:22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.

Praying for rain is the same as praying for the heavenly bread of Jesus Christ.  The Lord taught us His prayer asking for daily bread. We know the Lord abides in us when we are given even more of His Spirit by prayer.

1Jn 3:24  And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit [living commands] which he hath given us. 

Hosea spoke of Israel’s revival on the third day.  This is our resurrection into newness of life as the Lord comes and brings the latter and former rain [the commandments] into our earth.  We are awakened by the commandment “to arise and come forth”  to new life in the Spirit of the commandments.

Hos 6:2  After two days He will revive us; On the third day He will raise us up, That we may live in His sight. 

Hos 6:3  Let us know, Let us pursue the knowledge of the LORD. His going forth is established as the morning; He will come to us like the rain, Like the latter and former rain to the earth. 

The latter rain is likened to the early rain, as Christ changes not. The eternal commandments, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forevermore.  A new day has dawned, the day of the Lord, as the day star has risen upon us.

Christ Comes as in the Days of Noah

The coming of the living commandments [The Lord] at His second coming at the end of the age is likened unto the days of Noah.  Noah’s story was the first time rain ever fell on the physical earth, and it rained for 40 days, bringing the great flood.   The earth had waxed wicked and it is the Lord’s purpose to make a new earth and thus rain, lots of it was needed.

Gen 6:5  And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

The first time it rains on “our earth”, is the first time we receive of the Gospel and believe in the Lord’s commandments.  The purpose of the heavy rain and resulting flood was to take the wicked away and create a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

Gen 7:23  And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark. 

So it is today when Christ, the living commandments come the second time with great power upon our earth.

Mat 24:37  But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 

Mat 24:38  For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 

Mat 24:39  and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 

The wicked are all of us in our time, and the entire world is feasting on knowledge [eating and drinking at the wrong table], being one [married] to the world.  We don’t heed the preaching of the commandments as Noah preached for 120 years.  Christ eventually came as the flood, and the wicked were swept away.  Only the new man in symbol is being saved, represented by the eight members of Noah’s family.

2Pe 2:5  And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness [Christ], bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly; 

The latter rain coming to us sweeps the wicked away from our earth [same as the lake of fire], leaving behind only the righteous who are the Christ who were in the ark, meaning they abided in the commandments, the ark of His testimony.  The Lord’s rain is the blessing of God, and we get more of it as we obey.  All our work is blessed when we obey.

Deu 28:12  The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations and borrow from none

In our abundance, we give to others, multiplying the talents the Lord has given.  We are given more faith and blessed even more as the parable of the talents shows.

Mat 25:29  For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. 

If we are faithful to the commands,  we are always given even more of the Spirit, more of the faith of Christ, to be even more productive.

Lev 26:3  If ye walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them; 

Lev 26:4  Then I will give you rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. 

Famine and Droughts of Rain

When we willfully disobey the Lord, He can shut off the rain.  This is the Lord’s strange work to bring us to repentance and turn us back to the commandments [Him], and then He restores the rain.  The Lord spoke to Solomon at the dedication of the first temple in Jerusalem [you are the temple of God], and here was His deal that is with us today.

2Ch 6:26  When the heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee; yet if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou dost afflict them; 

2Ch 6:27  Then hear thou from heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people Israel, when thou hast taught them the good way, wherein they should walk; and send rain upon thy land, which thou hast given unto thy people for an inheritance. 

When we know the truth and continue to sin willfully, the rain stops, and our land becomes parched as the Lord seeks repentance.  Thus, we see the purposes of God in the seasons of spiritual famine [Amo 8, 1Ki 17] of the Word that are used to return us to our first love, the holy commandments.

2Ch 7:13  If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people; 

2Ch 7:14  If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. 

David in OT type knew the Lord gives and takes away the Spirit of the living commandments needed to guide us into righteousness.  After being confronted with a major sin, David repents and prays fervently, asking the Lord not to take away His Spirit, that is, the rain.

Psa 51:10  Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. 

Psa 51:11  Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. 

 We come to the Lord’s feast, and eat at His table and partake of the Lord’s supper by eating His Body and drinking of His cup.  If we do not go to this feast and remain in the world [Egypt], our earth becomes parched.

Zec 14:17  And it shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, on them there will be no rain. 

Zec 14:18  If the family of Egypt will not come up and enter in, they shall have no rain; they shall receive the plague with which the LORD strikes the nations who do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. 

The Lord’s Witnesses Call Down Rain or Shut Up the Heavens

As the sons of God, we have the power to open the heavens to rain and to shut them off.

Rev 11:6  These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will. 

We open or shut heaven through our prayers and forgiveness, or in some cases, a temporary unforgiveness of sin. 

 Calling Rain Down By Prayer: 

Like physical rain that evaporates back to heaven and falls again, spiritual rain is likened to incense [Psa 141:2] that ascends up to heaven and falls back to our earth when requested.

Rev 8:3  And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. 

Rev 8:4  And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand. 

Rev 8:5  And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake. 

The prayers, the incense is cast back to the earth in the form of spiritual rain and smites the earth and works the work of righteousness by bringing the tribulations [grace] moving us further into the kingdom of God.  When we confess our sins and ask for strength, the Lord is faithful to forgive us and send more rain, a strengthening of the living commandments in us.

1Ki 8:35  When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee; if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou afflictest them: 

1Ki 8:36  Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people Israel, that thou teach them the good way wherein they should walk, and give rain upon thy land, which thou hast given to thy people for an inheritance. 

Our confessions and prayers for one another also cause the rain to fall from heaven and on those who hear us and receive the Gospel.

Jas 5:16  Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man [i.e. doing the commands] availeth much. 


Joh 14:13  And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name [by obeying the commands], that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 
Joh 14:14  If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it. 

Forgiving and Not Forgiving Open or Shut Heaven:

As sons of God, we have the power of Christ in us to forgive or to not forgive sins.   When we retain sins the heavens are shut on those impacted.

Joh 20:23  Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained. 

With one exception, we always forgive those who trespass against us, yet we rebuke them with the Word and wait for the Lord to give them repentance.

Luk 17:3  Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and if he repent, forgive him. 

All the stories of Israel, leaving Egypt and sojourning in the promised land we see the withholding of rain by way of prayer as the means to shut the heavens and bring the subject unto repentance.  King Ahab did evil in the sight of the Lord and Elias was sent to rebuke him and shut off the rain.

Jas 5:17  Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. 

The eventual famine of the Word comes and brought Israel back to repentance and the heavens were reopened.

Jas 5:18  And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit. 

We pray for rain for all sins of our brethren that are not the sin unto death.  But we do not pray for the rain if one has blasphemed the Holy commandments of the Lord.  The heavens are shut instead.  A recent study HERE explains this grievous sin of speaking evil against the commandments  in detail.

1Jn 5:16 If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it. 

The Latter Rain Bears Fruit in Due Season

When the rain falls hard upon us, sweeping the wickedness away, it is not pleasant or joyous to our flesh.  But the Lord has His plan, and our chastening by our heavenly Father through His living commandments yields the fruit of righteousness.

Heb 12:11  Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby. 

Once the rain comes, our earth begins to bear the fruits of the Spirit and the Word accomplishes the purposes for which it was sent.

Son 2:10  My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. 

Son 2:11  For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; 

Son 2:12  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; 

If we seek Him by spiritual prayer and spiritual fasting, we are finding Him.  It is time to ask the Lord for this latter rain, which is also the living bread of life.  If we ask in faith, we receive.

Hos 10:12  Sow for yourselves righteousness; Reap in mercy; Break up your fallow ground, For it is time to seek the LORD, Till He comes and rains righteousness on you. 


Mat 7:8  For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. 

Mat 7:9  Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? 

The Lord’s new covenant spoken by Ezekiel promises us these rain showers of blessing that yield the fruits and medicine that are the leaves of the trees. .

Eze 34:26  And I will make them and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing

Eze 34:27  And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves of them. 

Hearing and receiving the Gospel is a blessing.  It is the blessing of spiritual rain that is the living commandments falling upon our earth.

Eph 1:3  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: 

Eph 1:4  According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: 

May the Lord open the ears of His chosen ones to receive this Gospel.