Tag: second death

Articles

The Resurrection of Christ Within Us

Pete

Moving from Spiritual Death unto Newness of Life

Passing from spiritual death unto life in the Spirit is being accomplished within us the day we are given ears to hear the truth and the faith to believe.  Henceforth, we begin the process of being resurrected from the spiritual dead.

Joh 5:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. 

Joh 5:25  Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. 

That day is TODAY; the resurrection of the remnant of saints is ONGOING NOW; it is not a past or future static experience.  The spiritually dead the Lord is choosing, a small remnant indeed, is hearing His voice and arising to newness of life.  While these John 5 verses have an outward application and certainly apply to the billions of physically dead human beings, they most aptly are applicable NOW, in this age, for those few given the gift of faith and the requisite hearing (understanding).

Being raised up together in the heavenlies is an ongoing process of coming alive into the life of Christ from being carnally minded and dead in our sins. Paul speaks of this numerous times in his letters.

Col 2:12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen [already, NOW, risen = resurrected] with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him [Christ in you] from the dead. 

Col 2:13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, [=the better resurrection, an ongoing process] having forgiven you all trespasses; 

He is Risen!  Like all prophecies, we mistakenly only see them and the resurrection as an outward only future event versus a living and active event we are experiencing now in this age.  He is risen within you if He is come unto you.

Our resurrection from the spiritually dead is the resurrection of Jesus Christ within us.  Rather than be a static event that happens all at once it is an ongoing event as the unclean old man decreases and Christ in us increases.

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 [i.e. resurrected] in our body. 

Eph 2:6 And hath raised us up together, […an ongoing process of coming alive into the life of Christ..]  and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

Let’s consider some more writings from Paul on death and resurrection.  We begin to see the two sides of the same topic speaking of the same one process.  Dying to our flesh and carnal mind is newness of life and is the ongoing process of our being resurrected.

Rom 6:4  Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 

Rom 6:5  For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

Paul does not contradict himself.  He consistently shows that dying to death (the carnal mind) is one side of the same process as being raised by Christ.

Col 3:1  If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. 

Col 3:2  Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. 

Col 3:3  For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. 

Paul is telling the saints they ARE RISEN (not “will be” risen) with Christ right now.  This rising is in earnest, but it is being resurrected (risen) now nonetheless.  The more we die daily (planted in the likeness of his death), the other side of that same coin is us being raised up in His likeness.  It is simply the other side of the same event and process.  Thus we have another of the myriads of witnesses to what a two-edged sword, the WORD, is doing in our lives.  Paul is not contradicting anything, and he harmonizes the truth that the rest of the Apostles and the Gospels record for our learning.

The sum of Paul’s words shows that we do not experience the fullness of the resurrection in Spirit now while we are in clay vessels.  But he is saying that he has given up things carnal men esteem so he can know Christ and die to death (the carnal mind) right now.  It is an active and living event (it IS) if we belong to Christ and our time of reformation is at hand.  We press onward and upward in hopes the Lord will complete His work in this age, even knowing He will complete it in the end for all humanity.

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

Php 3:11  If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.

What is the Resurrection?

We need not guess who or what the resurrection to eternal life is.  Jesus Christ Himself IS THE RESURRECTION and the life.  It is not an outward or physical dynamic; our eyes should be turned inwardly.  Let’s look again at some powerful words of the Lord.

Joh 11:25  Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: 

Joh 11:26  And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.  Believest thou this? 

Jesus Christ, among other spiritual symbols, is the WORD, The TRUTH, the WAY, the VINE, the DOOR, and the RESURRECTION.  This is because what is being resurrected is HIS WORD, HIS TRUTH, HIS WAY,  as we grow in the faith and His commandments [words] arise within us.  The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the raising up of His commandments.  The very commandments are His Words, which are spirit and eternal life.

Joh 6:63  It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you are spirit and life. 

We have a wonderful promise in verse 11:26.  Once Christ is raised in us (whos0ever liveth) and continues in the faith (believeth), shall never spiritually die again.

When His words take hold and rise in us, a new spiritual body, Jesus Christ, within us, is being created and matured.  Note that there are two kinds of bodies, and our purposefully marred flesh natural body of corruption is never destined to be resurrected.

1Co 15:44  It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body.  There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. 

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. 

Our remaking is the resurrection, creating new spiritual sons and daughters made into His image and likeness, exhibiting His glory.

2Co 3:18  But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. 

In the first half of our walk with the Lord, we remain dead in our sins abiding in what is called spiritual Sodom or Egypt.  But a time comes, the day of the Lord for every man, when we enter into the last woe, the third day in which we are being perfected as we are called up hither by the Lord.  This is how Jesus Christ is revealed within us.

Rev 11:8  And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. 

Rev 11:11  And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them [us, the two witnesses lying dead in the streets], and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them. 

Rev 11:12  And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them. 

Christ is inseparable from the Word as He is the Word made manifest to us.  Jesus Christ is the resurrection rising within us and working righteousness. This ongoing process from spiritual birth unto maturity is what IS raising us from being spiritually dead and manifests newness of life.

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.

So long as we abide in faith, we shall never die again, although our fleshly bodies will undoubtedly die.  That is why Christ is come, and it is the work of God within us.  We are living out the book and fulfilling the Scriptures in our appointed time.  In the latter times, this is about the raising of Jesus Christ from the dead within us, which begins our transformation into a new being.

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 [raising Christ from the dead within] that dwelleth in you.

1Co 6:14  And God hath both raised up the Lord, and will also raise up us by his own power.

The Word of God is the fire that is killing off the flesh, the old man, the lies (false prophet), the beast, and even the mind of Satan, our carnal mind.  As Christ is raised within (increased), our old man is being decreased.  Living out the Scriptures is the process of being resurrected from the spiritually dead.  However, we must know that process will never be fully completed in this age while we only have an earnest deposit of His Spirit.

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

2Co 1:22  Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts. 

The longer we dwell in our day of the Lord, the more we groan for the promised fullness of the spirit to come and complete our redemption.

Rom 8:23  And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. 

The resurrection from the dead is the resurrection into spirit, not a fleshly body.   We are given little to understand what this means and how this compares to physical life, yet we are told it is far more glorious.  As the Scriptures declare, our fleshly vile bodies are destined for destruction and will return to dust.  That process begins today for those the Lord has chosen.

Two Edges of the Sword

As we read the Scriptures, we always hold to some basic principles to ensure we are rightly dividing the Word of Truth.  Some fundamental tenets include these below:

  • The sum of thy Word is truth
  • No prophecy of Scripture is of its own interpretation
  • The Word is a two-edged sword of opposite sides of the same event
  • His Words speak of spiritual things, and they are Spirit
  • We learn by applying spiritual to spiritual, not looking outwardly
  • Man must live by every Word God spoke in their appointed times
  • The Lord calls things that are not now as if they are [Rom 4:17]

Many things in the Scriptures are spoken about differently from opposite sides, yet they speak of the same event and process.  Such is the case with our dying and our being resurrected.  This well-known verse from Paul is an excellent verse speaking to just one side of the same process that is raising us up with Christ.

1 Cor 15:31 I die daily, I protest by your glory, brethren, which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Dying to the flesh is the same as Christ within being resurrected.  Here Paul speaks from the other side of the same event.

Eph 5:14  Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead [i.e. be resurrected], and Christ shall give thee light. 

Another dynamic principle regarding the Word is remembering that the Word of God, Jesus Christ,  IS, WAS and WILL BE to come.  If we are the Lord’s in this age, our focus is on the IS which is the here and now.  I am constantly correcting my writing, “The Lord WILL do this, or we WILL do that”.  NO, the Lord IS doing this, and we ARE doing whatever is in discussion NOW.  It is not somewhere out there in the future, it IS.

The Lord IS come to those who are keeping those prophecies now in this age.  He will eventually come to all in their appointed time which may be in the age to come.  For some, right now, the time is at hand, it IS.

Rev 1:3  Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand. 

 If we are the Lord’s, we are NOW living out this Word, and the tense of our experience is on the IS.  The Lord is come to our flesh, and we do not deny it.  I am fulfilling those prophecies written in the book right now!  This experience is not the fullness of what is promised but only in the promised down payment form.

Looking for the Glory to be Revealed:

Indeed, our resurrection is not yet come in its fullness, yet we look forward to that glorious event in great hope as John writes.

1Jn 3:2  Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. 

1Jn 3:3  And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. 

We are being perfected now.  The process is not over, and it will never be over while we are alive in the flesh body.   Peter spoke of the living hope we have already been given while we wait for the fullness of our resurrection to come.

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.

Overcoming death [physical and spiritual] is only possible through the power of God raising us from the dead.  In our day of the Lord, the Word that lives within us will not fail.  We will begin to be resurrected and get overcoming over our sins.  Again only in down payment form now, but we rejoice and hope for the full attainment when we finish our race.

1Jn 2:13  I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning.  I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one.  I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father.

1Jn 2:14  I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning.  I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the Word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.

We are so blessed to our being made holy by fulfilling those prophecies and beginning to reign with Christ in His temple.  These widely mistranslated verses speak of both sides of the sword as we endure our day of the Lord and live out the prophecies.

Rev 20:5  But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished.  This is the first resurrection.

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.

The second death [destruction of Satan, beast, false prophet in us] and the first resurrection are the same event, just opposite sides of the same coin.  When death [carnal mind] is destroyed in the lake of fire (death to death or aka the second death), then Christ in us is being resurrected.  Blessed and holy are those given to partake of this now in this age.  Once raised in the heaven and earth within us, Christ will reign until the last enemy is destroyed.

1Co 15:25  For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. 

1Co 15:26  The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

The last enemy to be destroyed is SPIRITUAL DEATH, not physical death.  The enemies of God that keep us dead are all burned up in His consuming fire, that is His Word and His commandments.    When the carnal mind that is death is destroyed then we are fully alive with Christ.  We will see the fullness once we depart our clay vessels and receive the promised crown.

No matter where we are on the Lord’s timeline, our dying to death and being raised to new life will continue until it is completed.  We are being resurrected with Christ every day as we die every day to our carnal ways.  Rejoice, for the Lord is faithful and will finish the good work He has already started.

Php 1:6  Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: 

Articles

Dying to Death – The Second Death

Pete

The issues of life and death, like all Scriptures and truths of the Lord, are hidden from those not yet given the gift of faith and the accompanying eyes to see and ears to hear.  Becoming grounded on some basic principles, such as the topic of death,  is essential to growing in understanding.  May these words help those few the Lord may lead to read them.

Pete & Ronel

Dying to Death

All men are PURPOSEFULLY born in marred vessels of clay so the Lord can remake us into a new mold in His image on His timeline.   Nothing we experience is wasted, it is all the work of the potter.

Jer 18:3  Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. 

Jer 18:4  And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. 

Jer 18:5  Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 

Jer 18:6  O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the LORD. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel. 

We are born into sin and thus begin the lives of every man.  As clay in the potter’s hand, the false doctrine of free will is readily destroyed by the truth.

Psa 51:5  Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. 

Rom 3:12  They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. 

We will naturally remain this way until our time of reformation comes and we begin our transformation into the image of God.  This is the process of salvation and the same said as being “our journey from death unto life”.  Paul’s words of the helplessness of Romans 7, expressing every man’s journey to be righteous under their own strength (i.e the law) segues into the freedom and new life described in Romans 8.  Abiding in death, stuck in a prison, and bound to the law we first await Christ.

Rom 7:5  For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death. 

When Christ comes He delivers us and sets us free from the law and the death that the law of sin and death (carnal mindedness) brings.

Rom 8:2  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. 

The law of sin and death is the same as the law of Moses and also the same as the law of the Gentiles.  Simply put, this law is what all carnally minded people are under.  Yet do not despair because all mankind is ignorant and oblivious to their plight until the Lord comes and sets them free from the resulting bondage that is also spiritual death.

Heb 2:14  Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; 

Heb 2:15  And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. 

We begin to be transformed from death and having the mind of our father the devil, unto newness of life, having the mind of Christ.  This is our salvation and takes a three-day spiritual journey to complete.  The last enemy to be destroyed to complete the transformation is death.  This is the death of our carnal mind that has kept us in bondage all our lives.

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

1Co 15:25-26  For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.  The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

The Lord who holds the keys to life and death, considers physical death to be the same as sleeping [Joh 11:11, Dan 12:2, etc].  The Lord’s words are Spirit and life and speak to great mysteries that only few are given to understand.

1Co 2:10  But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. 

Joh 6:63  It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life. 

Our dying to the Lord is our dying to death.  This is subjecting our carnal mind to the will of God and following the Spirit by the law of faith.  That is how newness of life is found and how we are being raised with Christ in the resurrection.  Christ speaks and acts in parables but most like Martha are only able to see the physical or outward application.

Joh 11:25  Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: 

Joh 11:26  And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? 

Dying to death is also known as the “second death” which every man will fulfill in their appointed time.  We experience and fulfill all the Scriptures, living by every word.  All those experiences are indeed ours [1Cor 3:21] to fulfill and many err by taking things out of the book as not applicable to them.  Dying to death comes to a head in our day of the Lord, when the Lord comes a second time for judgment and salvation.

Heb 9:27  And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: 

Heb 9:28  So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

The consummation of salvation is our being given our crowns which is the mind of Christ that is peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.  When the Lord first comes to us, we will be found dead in our sins and trespasses. This is the fate of all men naturally born in marred bodies of flesh that cannot help but sin.  The Lord has His ways to correct us and remake us through the fiery experience of His judgments.

Exo 32:33  And the LORD said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book. 

In our day of the Lord, the new man is brought forth as the old man and our carnal way of thinking dies under the fire of God’s jealousies.  All men have sinned without exceptions and thus are blotted out from spiritual life until their appointed time comes.    The time comes for our day of the Lord when we find ourselves in the lake of fire, experience the second death, and thus are being saved!

Rev 20:14  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. 

Rev 20:15  And whosoever was not found written in the book of life[i.e. all who sin who have been blotted out at first] was cast into the lake of fire. 

The second death and our resurrection are one in the same event we experience.  Think of a two-sided coin and know that the Scriptures are speaking about His two witnesses which are the old man and the new man.  Both the carnal old man and the spiritual new man are clay in the potter’s hands.  He is molding and shaping us on His schedule and by this process, we die to death at the same time newness of life is brought forth.

Rom 6:4  Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 
Rom 6:5  For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: 

In this consuming fire [Heb 12:29] that is the Lord, we are being quickened and in due time are overcoming our flesh.  As we progress, we are able to look behind ourselves and see our deliverance from the ways of the world which is ruled by the spirit of Satan or said another way carnal mindedness.

Eph 2:1  And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 

Eph 2:2  Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 

Our flesh does not go willingly to its death.  It resists the ways of the Spirit until it is brought into subjection.  The Lord prevails when our time has come and we are freed from the law of sin and death and separated from the carnally minded by our faith.

Gal 5:17  For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. 

Gal 5:18  But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. 

We should earnestly pray that we grow in the faith.  The challenges of living in this carnal world but not being of it, get bigger the further we walk, yet the Lord will equip us with the faith and temperament to bear it.

Articles

Water Turned Into Wine

Pete

“Water Turned Into Wine”

We cover the first “miracle” of Christ in this study. The word translated as miracle in our Bibles is from the Greek word “dunamis” or Strong’s G1411. Dunamis is primarily the word for POWER as it is most often translated.  All the miracles depict the power of the Lord at work in the lives of His people.  This outward miracle of water being turned into wine is also the first inward miracle the Lord works within us that brings us into faith [believing upon Him] and thus begins our being transformed by grace into the kingdom of God.

Joh 1:17  For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. 

The entire scriptures are written in parable using spiritual language and dark sayings to hide the meaning of the Scriptures and keep all but the chosen few in darkness.  Here is just one of the many witnesses to this truth.

Mat 13:10  And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 

Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 

Mat 13:12  For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. 

Mat 13:13  Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. 

Ears to hear and eyes to see are indeed a blessing only the Lord can give that comes to very few in the appointed times (Mat 13:16, Mat 22:14).  Another layer of the Lord’s cloaking is that it’s not just the words but the events themselves that are done in parables.

Mar 4:11  And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: 

Let’s keep these truths in mind as we search for the application and spiritual significance to us of the Lord’s actions.  Here is this event, both a parable and a miracle as foretold in the Gospel of John.

Joh 2:1  And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: 

Joh 2:2  And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. 

Joh 2:3  And when they [the disciples] wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. 

Joh 2:4  Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. 

Joh 2:5  His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it. 

Joh 2:6  And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece. 

Joh 2:7  Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. 

Joh 2:8  And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. 

Joh 2:9  When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, 

Joh 2:10  And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now. 

Joh 2:11  This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him. 

Let’s begin by noting that this miracle takes place on the third day after John the Baptist tells [us] of the coming of the Lord, the one who comes after him.  We are gathered to Christ on the first day (John 1:35-40) and then on the second day, all the disciples begin to walk with Christ and were told of the many miracles and great things to soon come (John 1:43-51).   These three days symbolize our entire walk, the entire process with Christ that culminates at the wedding feast on the third day.  It is at this wedding where we begin to eat and drink with Him in the kingdom of God. This is our day of perfection when we partake of the true bread of life and the new wine and are being raised up to new life with Christ.

Luk 13:32  And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to day and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.

Hos 6:2  After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. 

Christ shows us in parable that eating his body and drinking His blood was the wine [faith and grace] of the new testament, the essence of eternal life.  New life comes only by death and that is what the living waters do when our time and hour for judgment is come when grace and truth meet us.

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. 

We are raised to life through death as we drink with our Lord in His kingdom within us (Luk 17:21).  The gathering of the disciples and the mother of Jesus at this wedding feast represents “the day of the Lord” when we begin to eat of His flesh and drink of His blood [the wine, the cup of His indignation against our flesh. i.e. the scourging grace]  the very things necessary to die to death [the second death] in order to live with Christ.

Joh 6:53  Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. 

This gathering at the wedding in Cana [meaning “the branches”] is the gathering together of the church who are also the disciples of the Lord and collectively known as His mother and the brethren.

Mat 12:49  And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! 

Mat 12:50  For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother. 

This first parable foretells of things that are not yet (Rom 4:17) as Christ reveals His secrets to His prophets (Amo 3:7) beforehand.

Joh 2:3  And when they [the disciples] wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. 

Joh 2:4  Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. 

This feast is a shadow of us being gathered with Christ.  As His disciples, the Lord puts into us zeal and desire to know Him and seek His ways.  That is how we are drugged to Him.  That is what the wine will bring about and why we are given a desire to drink it at first not knowing the judgment it entails.  The wine the Lord serves is the faith of Christ which is far more than just knowledge of the Scriptures.  Drawn disciples want to know Him not know about Him.  This gift only comes and grows by eating His body and drinking of His wine [His cup].

Water is a symbol for the Word of God but is differentiated from wine.  Wine denotes the cup of the New Testament, also known as the cup of wrath of God against all our flesh and sins that we must drink to enter into the Kingdom.  There is no escaping our drinking this cup of wine (Jer 25:28) it is the one baptism of fire by which we are saved in the times appointed.

Mat 20:23  And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with…

The law and the prophets bring us to a point but they do not convert us.  To be transformed, faith is needed that brings with it the grace and truth that will save us.  When the living Christ is come, then the water is turned into wine and we grow in understanding which is transforming and healing us.

Mat 13:15  For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. 

Turning water [knowledge of the scriptures] into wine [knowing the Lord in spirit and in truth] symbolically is what happens in the day of the Lord in the hearts and minds of every man.  It is by going through “this hour” that the spiritually dead are risen and come to know the Lord receiving the great reward of His mind and His holiness.

Joh 5:25  Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. 

Joh 4:23  But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. 

Christ’s time or “hour” had not yet come as He answered His mother as the 3.5 years of walking and preparing His disciples was not finished.  Later when His time to suffer drew nigh, the Lord tells us what to expect when He comes again in Spirit and in Truth and meets us again in the kingdom of God within.

Luk 22:14  And when the hour was come, he sat down, and the twelve apostles with him. 

Mat 26:27  And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; 

Mat 26:28  For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. 

Mat 26:29  But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom. [the kingdom within you]

It is during this hour of judgment that we will be healed of all our spiritual infirmities and come to know the truth casting out all lies and defiling spirits of Spiritual Babylon (Luk 7:21, Rev 18:10).  This hour is the hour of our dying the Second Death as our Lord led the way.

Joh 12:23  And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified. [and how is that accomplished]

Joh 12:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. 

It is this judgment, this scourging grace that comes with our faith that is the word in action that becomes wine.  This wine makes the new man merry as we rejoice more and more as Christ is revealed in us.

Psa 104:15  And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man’s heart. 

Zec 10:7  And they of Ephraim shall be like a mighty man, and their heart shall rejoice as through wine: yea, their children shall see it, and be glad; their heart shall rejoice in the LORD. 

It is the Lord’s angels (aka His Messengers, the very Elect) who preach the everlasting gospel (Rev 14:6) and bring the wine to the gathered disciples.  The purpose of this wine is proclaimed by these same angels.

Rev 14:10  The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation [the wine of the gospel]; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: 

Rev 14:11  And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. 

The instructions of Christ to the servants to bring forth new wine is instructive when we can see with spiritual eyes.

Joh 2:6  (NKJV) Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. 

Joh 2:7  (NKJV) Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. 

Joh 2:8  (NKJV) And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. 

The six stone vessels represent us in our carnal unconverted state.  The six vessels like the number six symbolize man and specifically man’s flesh (666).  We are likened unto stones, hard-hearted and it is by this miracle of destruction by the Word [i.e. judgment, every stone is thrown down – Mat 24:2], that we are being made new and become the lively or precious stones (Rev 21:19) that make up the wall of the great city spiritual Jerusalem.

1Pe 2:5  Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. 

Our unconverted vessel is first filled with the water representing the Word of God. That water is then converted into wine that brings about the destruction of death within us and the remaking of a new vessel or temple.

Rom 9:22  What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: 

Rom 9:23  And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory, 

Two or three firkins (KJV) or “twenty or thirty gallons” as the NKJV translates, speaks to the differences in measures of faith between the unique vessels that comprise the Body of Christ.  Everyone gets the same water of the Word yet the measures of faith and what we can bear in manifold temptations and trials are different as determined by God.

Rom 12:3  (NKJV) For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. 

Rom 12:4  For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, 

When we [each stone vessel] are filled to the brim with the Word of God, there is no room left for any lies (demons) to return and take root.  This is how a vessel of stone is sanctified and prepared for every good work.

Joh 2:9  (NKJV) When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. 

Joh 2:10  And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!” 

The master of this feast is you and me in our immaturity and lack of understanding of the ways of the Lord.  Until we ourselves draw of these living waters and drink this wine, we will not understand the ways of God until we ourselves begin to serve it to others.  The flesh and our carnal mind prefer the old wine of the law that has us responsible for our salvation and being justified by our own works. What flesh wants to be a slave and dependent upon the Lord for all things?

Luk 5:37  And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine will burst the wineskins and be spilled, and the wineskins will be ruined. 

Luk 5:38  But new wine must be put into new wineskins, and both are preserved. 

Luk 5:39  And no one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new; for he says, ‘The old is better.’ ” 

A new vessel is needed for the new wine and the wine itself will bring that new vessel forth!  The new wine of the gospel is the best wine because it is what is saving us as we drink it and put to death our carnal mind and learn to walk by faith.  Learning to drink this wine is part of the patience of the saints and how we are brought to the place to seek it knowing the death it works against our old man is bringing forth the blessing of God our new man.

Rev 14:12  Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. 

Rev 14:13  And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die [the second death] in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them. 

 Our being filled with this new wine is the beginning of our walking by faith embracing the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Faith, belief has now come!

Joh 2:11  This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him. 

The first outward miracle Christ performed is also the first inward miracle Christ performs in the kingdom of God within us.  Being filled with the knowledge of the Word that washes us, is then followed by that same water being turned into wine when our hour of judgment is come [the coming with fire].

Eph 5:26  That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 

It is through the water and the fire that we are given our reward and become rich in heavenly things.

Psa 66:10  For thou, O God, hast proved us: thou hast tried us, as silver is tried [in the fire]

Psa 66:12  Thou hast caused men to ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water: but thou broughtest us out into a wealthy place. 

The coming of Christ to us twice is revealed in hidden parable by first filling the stone vessels with water and then secondly transforming that water into wine.  The Lord begins preparing us from this very first miracle for service in His kingdom preaching the gospel unto all the world within and without.

Mar 16:15  And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. 

Mar 16:16  He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

This miracle within us (Mar 4:11 – all things are done in parable) is what brings us into true faith when we actually believe in the Lord.  With this belief, thus, begins our day of salvation with is likened unto a thousand years [2Pe 3:8] and which will culminate in the greatest blessing of all time as we are being made partakers of His Holiness by drinking the wine (Heb 12:10-11).

Joh 11:25  Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: 

Joh 14:20  At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.

Joe 3:18  And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the LORD, and shall water the valley of Shittim. 

Drinking the wine of the gospel is what gets us beyond knowledge and brings us into true understanding and intimacy with our Lord where we love Him.

Eph 3:19  And to know the love [obedience] of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. 

The end of the miracle is that the disciples begin to follow Christ as He did not stay still but began moving through all the cities and towns within Israel in the kingdom of God within you and me.

Joh 2:12  After this He went down to Capernaum, He, His mother, His brothers, and His disciples; and they did not stay there many days. 

Having been served this wine of the gospel, we are becoming spiritual wine stewards ourselves in service to Him.  Bringing the gospel to the rest of the dead within and without (i.e the Gentiles). The spiritually dead have never tasted of this new wine that is the very best the Lord makes. Yet a day, the last days for each, will come.  Faith will be followed with grace (wine) and all the dead (Gentiles) in the earth will be sanctified.

Rom 15:16  That I should be the minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Ghost.

We as the army of the Lord, speak the words of fire to those prepared to hear which is the same as serving our hearers a cup of wine that is working righteousness in them.

Rev 19:15  And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress [wine] of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. 

There are much more details and instructions on how we are to properly eat and drink in the kingdom of God and consume this wine.

1Co 10:21  Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils. 

There are indeed different tables and cups of wine and we best not mix the two up.  Lord willing those can be topics for future studies.

Sincere comments and questions are always welcome.  You can also email me directly at peterjwilson56@gmail.com

Articles

Go and Preach the Gospel

Pete

Introduction to Preaching the Gospel

The time of the end (our carnal age) is now at hand as the recent events have opened our eyes to greater vision and understanding of the Word of God.  The Lord grows us in His grace and knowledge through the fiery trials He is sending.  The Scriptures are truly being opened before our eyes as the Lord sifts His people and brings the remnant onward to maturity.

Dan 12:4  “But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.”

2Pe 3:18  but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.

 It is a miracle that this little flock of saints was all quickened to the same truth as we were awakened to the power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ within us.  From this point forward, great grace will be upon us as we die to death (the Second Death) on the cross with Christ.  This is our new way of life and the only way one can partake of the blessed and holy First Resurrection.  We have all witnessed already a renewed vigor and zeal to do righteousness and to serve our brothers and sisters, there being no head of the church except the Lord Jesus Christ.

 Act 4:32  And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.

We have entered into a new covenant with the Lord via the law of faith that is being worked in us by the fiery trials that are bringing about death to death within us which is the second death.

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:

Heb 8:11  And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.

This is the gospel that will henceforth be preached unto all the inward nations and cities as well as the outward when the Lord brings us people who hear His words.  The preaching of the gospel divides the city. Christ comes to bring division and we have seen this outwardly fulfilled by recent events.

Luk 12:49  I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled?

Luk 12:50  But I have a baptism to be baptized with (lake of fire/cross) and how am I straitened till it be accomplished!

Luk 12:51  Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division:

Luk 12:52  For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three.

Luk 12:53  The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father; the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother; the mother in law against her daughter in law, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.

The gospel and our preaching it separates us from brethren who can only walk so far with us

Rom 1:1  Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God

Being told we have to eat his flesh and drink His blood by dying on a cross with the Lord is not desirable to the flesh and hence many will not walk any further with Christ.

Joh 6:66  From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him

Carrying our cross requires that we leave spiritual brethren and family that we walked far with in order to follow Him.  We have already endured the natural of these Scriptures, but now we endure and live out the spiritual application. The greatest blessing imaginable awaits us if we endure and die the Second Death now in this age in the Lake of Fire.

Luk 18:25  For it is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye, than for a [spiritually] rich man [with knowledge] to enter into the kingdom of God.

Luk 18:26  And they that heard it said, Who then can be saved?

Luk 18:27  And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.

Luk 18:28  Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee.

Luk 18:29  And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left [spiritual] house, or [spiritual] parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God’s sake,

Luk 18:30  Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.

The way to live with Christ is to die with Him.  Hence, we walk willingly into the fiery furnace knowing it is saving us now in this age.

2Ti 2:11  It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him [death to death Heb 2:14], we shall also live with him: 

We hope these words and what we have witnessed will be received with joy because of the great blessing we have been given that comes to far fewer than we ever previously believed.

Mat 13:16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.

Mat 13:17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

Our former brethren strived to be righteous but were not given to see what we see.  Many still have sorrow in their hearts for those brethren who have been cut off for our sake.  We grieve yet that should turn to rejoicing as we take hold the promise of age-abiding life that has been given to us.

Rom 9:2  That I have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart.

Rom 9:3  For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh:

Rom 9:4  Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises;

Rom 9:5  Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen.

Rom 9:6  Not as though the word of God hath taken none effect. For they are not all Israel, which are of Israel: 

Rom 9:8  That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed.

Those we have contended over the truths of the gospel are now enemies of the cross saying we don’t have to live the Second Death which is the Lake of Fire.  They know not what they do or say and have been sacrificed for our sakes.  They will be saved in their appointed time as will all men and our role as priests of God will be to minister to them and forgive them their trespass against us.

Rom 11:28  As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sakes.

Rom 11:29  For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.

Rom 11:30  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:

Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.

Rev 3:9  Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.

Go and Preach the Gospel

We have been saved from the lie of the devil (Gen 3:4) that had us believing we need not partake of the Second Death in order to be saved. Knowing now what the Second Death really means and that the new man, Christ in us is the result of going through the Lake of Fire brings great clarity to what the Lord and the Apostles meant when they said go and preach the gospel.

Mar 16:15  And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

Mar 16:16  He that believeth and is baptized (with the fire in LOF) shall be saved; but he that believeth not (no LOF for me) shall be damned.

We are coming out of the baptism of John where we were given the water of the Word that washes us and caused to seek repentance of our hearts and minds.  But like Paul and all disciples, we are now being sent to preach the gospel and are no longer to be baptizing with water.   

1Co 1:17  For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.

1Co 1:18  For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.

1Co 2:2  For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him [His Body] crucified.

We all received the baptism of John in our time in the church in the wilderness which gives birth to the man-child in us.   But one greater than John, the Lord from heaven has now come and quickened our spirits and opened up the revelation of His Word.

Rev 12:5  And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

The one coming after John has come and has brought the lake of fire to us which is the very event that will henceforth save us and raise us with Christ.

Mat 3:11  I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:

Mat 3:12  Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

The coming of Christ the second time to open our eyes to see clearly brings the fire that is, was and will be saving us.

1Co 1:23  But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;

The Gospel is a Good News

The gospel is the Word of God living and operating within us.  It follows our baptism with the water which is the baptism of repentance. The gospel is the fire of God living and operating within you.  It is Christ in you the hope of glory performing His Work in us.  Such is how our mind is renewed and we put on the mind of Christ.  Good news for our new man is very bad news for the old man and the beast and false prophet that dwell within us.

Luk 2:10  And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

Nah 1:15  Behold upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace! O Judah, keep thy solemn feasts, perform thy vows: for the wicked shall no more pass through thee; he is utterly cut off.

The preaching of the cross is the preaching of the gospel.  If we believe in the Lord and die with Him we will be raised in His likeness.

Rom 6:3  Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

Rom 6:4  Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

Rom 6:5  For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his [second] death, we shall be also in the likeness of his [First] resurrection:

It is the cross and our abiding in the lake of fire that I the judgment necessary to destroy the man of sin within us and raise up Christ in his stead.

 The Angels of God Preach the Everlasting Gospel

It is the very Elect given who are not deceived by false doctrine that denies the Second Death and perverts the reward from the Lord along with the doctrines of the resurrections; who will faithfully be given to preach the gospel.  Life through the Second Death (the cross) is the heart of the good news that is the result of judgment in the lake of fire.  These angels pull people out of the strange fire that is Spiritual Babylon preaching life through the second death message which torments and ultimately kills the old man and carnal mind.

Rev 14:6  And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,

Rev 14:7  Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.

Rev 14:8  And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. (No lake of fire, no second death for me)

We are blessed indeed when we hear His voice from heaven and follow Him to death on the cross which is the Second Death.

Rev 14:13  And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.

We are certainly drinking of the wrath of God and die to death.  That is the everlasting gospel which is very good news to those given to receive it.  Now hearing this gospel of life through death, we must hunker down knowing what is already come upon our earth as we abide in the Lake of Fire in this age.

1Pe 4:1  Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin;

1Pe 4:2  That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God…..

1Pe 4:5  Who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the quick and the dead.

1Pe 4:6  For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are (spiritually) dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh (and die the Second Death), but live according to God in the spirit.

1Pe 4:7  But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.

It is a lonely road and few there be shall find the way.  The Gospel we preach is the same unchangeable gospel that always brings much contention from carnal men and the outwardly religious.  That setting has not and will not change.

1Th 2:1  For yourselves, brethren, know our entrance in unto you, that it was not in vain:

1Th 2:2  But even after that we had suffered before, and were shamefully entreated, as ye know, at Philippi, we were bold in our God to speak unto you the gospel of God with much contention.

1Th 2:3  For our exhortation was not of deceit, nor of uncleanness, nor in guile:

1Th 2:4  But as we were allowed of God to be put in trust with the gospel, even so we speak; not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts.

1Th 2:5  For neither at any time used we flattering words, as ye know, nor a cloke of covetousness; God is witness:

1Th 2:6  Nor of men sought we glory, neither of you, nor yet of others, when we might have been burdensome, as the apostles of Christ.

Our authority to preach the gospel is always challenged and rejected by the chief priests of Jerusalem who reject those that speak the truth in love and in turn persecute those that bring the gospel.

Luk 20:1  And it came to pass, that on one of those days, as he taught the people in the temple, and preached the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes came upon him with the elders,

Like the Lord, we will be rejected by our own brethren, the very people we have grown up together in the faith learning the oracles of God.

Mar 10:33  Saying, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man shall be delivered unto the chief priests, and unto the scribes; and they shall condemn him to death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles:

Mar 10:34  And they shall mock him, and shall scourge him, and shall spit upon him, and shall kill him: and the third day he shall rise again.

We will see and rejoice with our fallen brethren in due time.  But for now, they were given to reject truth and reject Christ that has been preached to them.

Mat 23:37  O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

Mat 23:38  Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.

Mat 23:39  For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

But our life is no longer about the flesh and knowing any man that way (2Co 5:21).  We are about doing the Lord’s work and obeying His commands to preach this gospel of life through death to our inward nations and all those who hear us.

2Co 4:3  But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:

2Co 4:4  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

2Co 4:5  For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake.

We should take heed the words of Paul about deceivers who come to us preaching another gospel that is nothing but a perversion and another jesus.

Gal 1:6  I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel:

Gal 1:7  Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.

Gal 1:8  But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.

I pray these words will strengthen all with ears to hear and help us grasp the blessing and high calling that has befallen us as preachers of the gospel.

Mar 16:20  And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.