Jesus-Ascension

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Faith in the Bible: How important is faith?

We see it painted on walls, written on bookmarks, and in picture frames: the word faith. Most people don't even give it a second thought. But how important is faith?

Well I want to share with you what God has shown me recently! It started maybe 2 weeks ago or so, when I was reading the book of Matthew and God really drew my attention to something. It was a verse that I've read and heard many times before, but on this day it took a whole new meaning. I knew God was teaching me something very important. The verse was Matthew 9:20-22;

"And behold, a woman who had suffered from a discharge of blood for twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, for she said to herself, 'If I only touch his garment, I will be made well.' Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, 'Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.' And instantly the woman was made well."

What an amazing story! Notice what Jesus said; "your faith has made you well". So did Jesus choose to heal her based on her level of faith? 

The Faith of the Centurion

Matthew 8:5-13

 When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. 

“Lord,” he said, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.”

  Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?”

  The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed.  For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

  When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Truly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith....

  Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” And his servant was healed at that moment.

Again, notice how Jesus accepted the Centurion's plea based on his faith? Could faith be more important than we thought it was? Could it be that if we have faith in what we ask, it shall be done based on our level of faith? Ponder on the following verses....


And the Lord said, “If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you." (Luke 17:6)

"For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matthew 17:20)

Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and it will be done." (Matthew 21:21)

Remember Peter! 

We all know the famous story of how Jesus walked on the water, but how many really thought about what happened to Peter? Peter stepped out onto the water..and walked on it! But what happened that caused him to fall? Matthew 14:31 says; "Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?" This is very important! If Peter hadn't doubted, he wouldn't have fallen into the water now would he? Next time you pray and have doubt, remember Peter!

I'll conclude with these verses:

"Having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead." (Colossians 2:12)

"We live by faith, not by sight." (2 Corinthians 5:7)

"This inheritance is kept in heaven for you,who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time." (1 Peter 1:4,5)

And of course, never forget this: "And without faith it is impossible to please God." (Hebrews 11:6)

So what shall we do then brothers and sisters? Simple: Have faith! :]

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HE WAS WOUNDED

Wounds, according to the definition of the surgeon, are divisions of the soft parts of the body by a mechanical force applied externally, and they are classified by their different characteristics as (1) contused, (2) lacerated, (3) penetrating and (5) incised wounds. It is remarkable that in the simple statement, "He was wounded" (Isa. 53:5), there is included each kind of wound, as we may readily see from the examination of the scriptural records concerning the sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(1) The contused wound, a wound produced by a blunt instrument. Such would result from a blow by the rod, as foretold in Micah 5:1, "They shall smite the Judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek," and fulfilled, as recorded in Matthew 26:67, "They smote Him with rods" (Newberry margin), Matthew 27:30, "they took the reed, and smote Him on the head," and John 18:22, "one of the officers struck Him with a rod" (Newberry margin).
(2) The lacerated wound, a wound produced by a tearing instrument. Laceration of the tissues was the result of scourging, and scourging had become a fine art among the Romans at the time of the Lord's submission to its infliction. The Roman scourge was a many-tailed lash, each thong tipped with metal or ivory, so that, in the hands of a cruel expert, the sufferer might truly say, "The plowers plowed upon my back. They made long their furrows" (Psa. 129:3). The torture, the laceration, and the consequent loss of blood, often resulted in the death of the victim, but scourging, while part of our Lord's sufferings, was not to be the means of His death. Thus the prophetic word of Isaiah 50:6, "I gave my back to the smiters," finds its fulfilment as recorded in Matthew 27:26, and in John 19:1, where we read, "Then Pilate therefore took Jesus and scourged Him." And let us remember that upon His back, thus lacerated, the cross was laid as he went forth to the place called Calvary.
(3) The penetrating wound, a deep wound caused by a sharp pointed instrument. This we have exemplified in the wounds upon the head, produced by the crown of thorns. The Jerusalem thorn, from which
that 'victor's crown' was platted, bore spicules four inches long, and, as the soldiers pressed down that cruel crown upon His head (Matt. 27:29; John 19:2), a circle of wounds insued, wounds which were deepened by the blow of the reed when they smote Him on the head (Matt. 27:30).
(4) The perforating wound, from the Latin word, meaning to 'pierce through,' "They pierced My hands and My feet" (Psalm 22:16). The iron spikes were driven between the bones, separating but not breaking them. Crucifixion was not practiced as a means of capital punishment among the Jews, and the words of Psalm 22 must even have puzzled the writer, but at that early date, God was thereby 'signifying what death He would die,' for to Him, who knows the end from the beginning, the Roman subjugation of the Jews at the time of Messiah's advent, and His 'cutting off' by the excruciatingly painful death of crucifixion, were all foreknown. Yea, and to our Lord by anticipation and at last in fearful reality, "The decease which He should accomplish at Jerusalem" was a matter of perfect knowledge. The prophetic words of Isaiah 53 were ever before Him, "He was wounded... He was bruised," and thus we can truly sing,
"T'was love that sought
Gethsemane,
or Judas ne'er had found Him;
T'was love that held Him
to the tree,
or iron ne'er had bound Him."
(5) The incised wound, A cut produced by a sharp edged instrument. "But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced His side, and forthwith came there out blood and water" (John 19:34). This wound was inflicted after the death of the Lord Jesus, inflicted by the practiced hand of the Roman soldier to make certain that whatever vestige of life was present would be extinguished, but while it did not cause death in His case, it is an assurance to all men that death had actually occurred, and it is also a fulfilment of the Scripture which saith, "They shall look on Him whom they pierced."
From that wound, so large that Thomas could have thrust his hand into it, "Came there out blood and water. And he that saw it bear record and his record is true." This wonderful sight awakened surprise and deep interest in John and may surely engage our attention also, namely the water that flowed from the pericardium and the blood that flowed from the heart. The pericardium is a closed sac encasing the heart and lubricated by a small amount of fluid (about a teaspoonful) to facilitate the motion of the heart. How could John, it may be asked, distinguish such a small quantity of water? In answer, let me quote a significant statement from a standard work of pathology, "The normal amount of the pericardial fluid is about a teaspoonful, but it may be increased to 100 c.c. (24 teaspoonfuls) where the death agony is prolonged." Here then is a possible explanation. The water bears mute testimony to the intense suffering of our Lord Jesus Christ. And what shall we say to the fact that, contrary to nature, blood flowed from One who had died? Is it not to show that in death, "He vanquished death and did not see corruption?" Thus the last wound, the last indignity offered to the body prepared for Him, proclaims both purification and redemption for, "The very spear that pierced His side, drew forth the blood to save."
Israel is described in Isaiah 1:6 as exhibiting to God's eye "From the sole of the foot even unto the head... wounds," and our Lord Jesus Christ, in submitting to this perfection of wounding from head to foot, was made in this sense like unto His brethren and 'perfect through sufferings' (Heb. 2:10).
May the contemplation of these wounds, whereby His body was broken and His blood was shed, deepen our love for Him who was "wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our iniquities," and cause each of us, like Thomas, to worship and acclaim Him as "My Lord and My God" (John 21:28).
"It was the sight of Thy dear cross
First weaned my soul from earthly things,
And taught me to esteem as dross
The mirth of fools, the pomp of kings." 


BY H.A. CAMERON

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WITH THE GLANCE OF YOUR EYES

"Who is this that grows like the dawn, as beautiful as the full moon, as pure as the sun, as awesome as an army with banners?" Song of Solomon 6:10
In the swirl of prophetic events, of fearsome realities and unrestrained freedoms, the Lord seeks a people whose eyes and hearts desire only Him. Yet, as Christians, we are more comfortable celebrating what Jesus has done for us than accepting who He desires to be to us. We will dance before Him, sing of His victories, and teach of His mercies. Yet, rarely do we quiet our hearts and surrender to His Presence; we want Him without becoming vulnerable to Him. For us, it is enough to serve Him through the types and shadows of religion.
But it is not enough for Him. Consider His warning,
Many will say to Me on that day, "Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?" And then I will declare to them, "I never knew you." Matthew 7:22 23
As awesome and liberating as it is to know what Jesus has done for us, until we actually give ourselves to Him our religion will never be more than a "history lesson" and a commitment to be good. I will say it again: knowing what He did is not enough. Jesus wants to also know us.
You say, "But He does know us!" In His omniscience, He knows everything about us. Yes, but in His love, He seeks to know us as a bride whose passion is to exist in a living union with Him. He has purchased the rights to our souls, our secrets and our dreams. He wants the person we are when no one else is looking. Yet, He will not force Himself. This is not the way of love.
This interpenetration of our lives in Him and His life in us is the only destiny with which the Father is content. At the end of the age, everything short of oneness with Christ will appear as sin.
God is Love
I know the fear of the Lord. It is the beginning of true knowledge. But I have also "come to know and have believed the love which God has for us" (1 John 4:16). God is love. The apostle who fell before Jesus as a dead man on the Isle of Patmos now tells us with assured revelation:
"There is no fear in love" (1 John 4:18).
The Lord knows our fear of Him is a strong deterrent from sin and a wonderful ally in walking uprightly. Yet, to draw near to Him we must know more than the fear of God; we must know His love.
God's love is perfect, so much so that it
"casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love" (v. 18).
When it comes to entering the Presence of God, it is to be expected that fear, guilt or shame should seek to hold us hostage. But as we believe in the love God has for us, in the brightness of His mercy, the shadows of our failures and shame cannot exist.
The Heart of God
"My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag. Behold, he is standing behind our wall, he is looking through the windows, he is peering through the lattice" (Song of Sol 2:9).
Right now the Spirit of the Lord, His living Presence, is actually standing behind our walls of fear, indifference and shame. As you are reading this, the Lord is peering through the lattice of our worldly entanglements and over-extended commitments. If you knew He was behind the door, just in the next room, would you enter? What would keep you from drawing near to Him?
Perhaps fear or shame or the memory of unrepentant sin keeps us isolated. If we are honest, we know of the things that keep us from Him, and they are things we can remove. We know the excuses of our hearts, but we do not know His heart.
The moment we accept the thought, even the intention of drawing near to Him, of seeking Him for no reason other than Himself, something within His heart responds to our desire. He says,
"You have made my heart beat faster, my sister, my bride; you have made my heart beat faster with a single glance of your eyes" (Song of Sol. 4:9).
Your glance, even if it was no more than the briefest anticipation of being with Him, made His heart beat faster. The King James Version reads,"Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes."
Jesus is not returning simply to destroy wickedness; He is coming for a bride. At the end of the age our task is not simply to prepare for the rapture or the tribulation, but for Christ! You see, there is nothing more important to Jesus Christ than His bride, the church. He died for her. He lives to make intercession for her. His love proved itself capable and worthy of winning our full redemption. Our most noble task is to surrender to the love that, even now, is reaching to us.
It is such an amazing thought, that we were created for His pleasure (Rev 4:11 KJ).

This moment is His gift to you;

Your loving response is your gift to Him. 

Indeed, the glance of your eyes, has made His heart beat faster.

Lord Jesus, forgive me for being so dissipated by issues, trials and distractions. 
Lord, You have promised that if I draw near to You, You would draw near to me. 
Lord, I come to You because You have bid me to come, and I love You with the very love with which You first loved me. 
Keep me near to Your heart, holy Lord. Keep me near to Your heart.

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God’s Eternal Purpose

God's central purpose in creation was to bring many sons unto glory. This theme is picked up in the Bible in great generalizations that take into account eternity past and eternity future. Jesus Christ, bom at Bethlehem, was the first and only begotten Son of God (John 3:16, Colossians 1:15-17). Jesus Christ, the man, has a unique relationship to God. The man is the begotten son and heir of God. Jesus is the Son of God, a filial (family relationship) Son. Forget for a moment that Jesus Christ is actually God Himself manifest in Flesh. Instead, view Jesus as a man born in history, that is, as a historical figure. View God as the unique being that He is. He is God Almighty who created the heavens and the earth who was invisible and immortal. See Him as God, the sovereign, unique being with no equals, no compatriots, no relatives.

Jesus Christ, the historical figure, was conceived and bom as the literal Son of Almighty God, the immortal, omniscient, omnipresent unique being. He has, therefore, an exclusive relationship with God. He is the only Son, one of a kind; and there is no other relationship like it. The relationship is not only exclusive, it is reciprocal. The Father is related to the Son as father; the Son is related to the Father as son. Hebrews 1:5: I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son. Notice "will be, shall be" which indicate a relationship thatcame into being and was not, therefore, eternal. Notice "to Him, to Me" which indicate a relationship that is mutually reciprocal. No others possessed this particular relationship. As a result of this mutual relationship, and as a result of the death of Jesus Christ for our sins, believers can now receive the Spirit of the Son and can actually also become sons of God.

Jesus chose a word never used before to address God. He called him, "Abba," meaning, Father (Mark 14:36). The Pharisees wanted to stone him to death for it (John 10:29-39). In his book entitled I Believe In The Holy Spirit, Michael Greene, rector of St. Aldate's parish at Oxford University of the Episcopal Church, quotes Joachim Jeremias frequently. Jeremias states that nowhere in pre-Christian literature does anyone dare to call God by this intimate, family word, better translated as "daddy" or "dear father...Abba." Along with "amen' and "maranatha," they are the three Aramaic words which appear untranslated in the KJV Bible. It is a mimetic word, an imitative word, a babble word. It is the way that the Aramaic speaking fathers related to their children. We also speak in baby talk to our children, saying "da da," or "ma ma." In the same way, Aramaic fathers would say "ab ba, ab ba." It was a word for the intimacies of the family, not used in Old Testament times for the worship of God. Jesus, the one set apart by the Spirit as the Son of God, dared to call God by this name. In fact, he never addressed God by any other name. It was always Abba. Jesus alone has the right to speak so, for he alone enjoyed the intimate relation of Sonship with God, his Father.

Abraham was not a son of God. David was not a son of God. Moses was not a son of God, nor was Enoch or Isaiah or anyone else in the Old Testament. While Adam and the angels were "sons by creation, and David was considered a "son" in a special sense as royalty, not one human being in all of history was truly a Son of God in the familial sense until Jesus Christ was born. It is this Sonship into which his life and sacrificial death make it possible for us, through the Spirit of Christ the Son of God, to enter. He enables us to pray the Lord's prayer and say simply, "Abba, Father." It is the indwelling Spirit of Christ which makes it possible for us to be adopted Sons of God, which enables us to cry the Abba of little children to our Father and to be, literally, a member of the family of God. You have received the Spirit which makes you sons (Galatians 4:6). When we cry, Abba, Father, it is the Spirit himself bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him (Romans 8:15).

It is the incredible privilege and status of the Christian to possess the Spirit of God's Son which makes him a son of God and enables him to utter the family cry to God, "Abba." Well may Jereniias conclude that the whole of the good news is concentrated in that single word, Abba. Even though Jesus before his death told his disciples to pray, "Our Father," it was at that time only anticipatory. It was not until they had been born again into the family of God through receiving the Spirit of the Son that they were truly "Sons." In fact, one is not a son, cannot be a son, without the Spirit of the Son living in them. Romans 8:9-11,14: But ye are not in the fiesh, 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. 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. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. Galatians 4:6, 7: Andbecause ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father. Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

The central theme of the Bible is that God's eternal purpose to bring many sons unto glory! Romans 8:9 tells us that without the Holy Ghost in us one cannot be one of those sons. Romans 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. In Ephesians 1:13 and 14, the Holy Spirit is called the earnest of our inheritance. It is this firstfruits of the Spirit which makes sonship possible. Romans 8:26: Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. The Spirit that is in us is both human and divine, God and the Son of God. Not two divine persons, but one who is at once God and man, human and divine, historical figure and unique being. The Spirit that is in us, the Spirit of Christ, human and divine, Son and Father, can at the same time intercede for us and reward that intercession! The Son can intercede with the Spirit of God, with the most endearing terms, and say "Abba, Father." Romans 8:27: And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God. Romans 8:28: And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. What is his purpose? To bring many sons unto glory. Romans 8:29: For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

God determined from the foundation of the world that there would be people on earth at sometime who would become his sons, adopted into his family through the Spirit of the Son. "For whom he did foreknow," he knew it from the beginning, "he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son." To be like him is to suffer. If we suffer with him, we shall reign with him. "That he might be the firstborn among the many brethren." God wants to bring many sons unto glory. He wants the church to be prolific, to be a fostering mother and collaborate with God in bringing many sons unto glory (Hebrews 2:10 and Romans 9:29).

Thus believers are in a familial (as in the family) relationship with God. Believers can call God, "Abba, Father." No one was ever a son of God before Jesus was the Son of God. Though for various reasons designated "Sons of God," neither the angels, Adam nor any of his descendants were ever Sons of God in this particular sense. Michael Greene, mentioned earlier, sees that the central message of the New Testament is that "Jesus was a Son of God and therefore we can, through him, become sons of God." He writes, "Take first the question of Sonship. Now there is a very obvious difference between us and Jesus. He was born by the express agency of the Holy Spirit. We are not. He was the Son of God by right (Hebrews 1:5). We are sons only by adoption (Romans 8). Nevertheless, it was the possession of the Spirit that set Jesus apart as the Messianic Son of God" (John 5:18).

According to our text, God's eternal purpose of bringing many sons to glory was, therefore, his motivation for the plan of salvation before the world began. 2 Timothy 1:9: Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began. Titus 1:2: In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began. Ephesians 3:9: And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ. 10 To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God. 11 According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord. 1 Peter 1:19: But with the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. 20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you. Romans 8:30:Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called; and whom he called, them he also justified; and whom he justified, them he also glorified. That is the whole scheme of things that God will do for and with his sons. He calls them, he justifies them and then he glorifies them, making them like the glorified Christ, the only begotten Son of God. Romans 8:31: What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?

God is for us! Why? Because it is his eternal purpose to bring many sons unto glory. God's eternal purpose is more powerful than the Niagara River. When someone gets caught up in it, it is only with great difficulty that he can get out. If you get into this Niagara River, and if you yield to the eternal purpose of God, you will be carried to an eternal relationship in the family of God. The Bible says, "If God be for us who can be against us?"

Romans 8:32: He that spared not his own Son but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? What does that mean? God has already shown what he will do in order to have a son. Jesus was declared to be the Son of God with power, by the resurrection from the dead (Romans 1:3). He went through suffering unto death, was raised from the dead with power in order to be glorified and exalted. If God put his own human-born Son through that so that he might be glorified, "how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?" The baptism with the Spirit is the earnest of this eternal inheritance. It would be like buying a $120,000.00 home making a down payment of a $119,999.99 as earnest money. Who would walk away from that house and not complete the purchase for one cent? God's down payment on our sonship was every drop of blood that was in his body, every breath of life that was in him. If he spared not his own Son, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? If God paid that much for our sonship, when we say to God, "I am discouraged, I need your help," he will give encouragement. "God, I'm perplexed. I don't know how to solve this problem." He will help solve the problem. If he spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not also with him freely give us all things. That is his eternal purpose. The privilege to be a Son of God is extended to everybody on earth.

Romans 8:33: Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Once in a city where there was a Coca Cola bottling plant, I stood by the window looking at the bottles as they went by. They were all glistening and shining, but every once in a while there was a mechanical arm that would reach out and knock one of those bottles off the conveyor before it was filled with Coca Cola. I watched that for awhile before I inquired as to the function of the arm I was told that even though the bottles are washed and sterilized during the cleansing process, once in a while a little speck or chip in the glass will miss detection until an electric eye discovers it before the bottle is filled. The electric arm will come out and knock it off so that every bottle is acceptable before being filled. God, the judge of all men, might be related to the electric eye. He is the one that can see any spot or wrinkle or blemish. When we go to heaven, I will not have to stand in judgment by you and you will not have to stand in judgment by me. We will all have to stand before God's omniscient eye, before God who can discern the thoughts and the intents of the heart and before whom all things are naked and open.

What this verse says is that God, through the sufferings of Christ, has been able to transfer to the Christian the righteousness and purity of Christ. God has been able to remit sins through simple obedience to the word of God and water baptism, pouring the spirit of the Son into hearts, making men sons of God, justified, righteous, ultimately, glorified. Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifies. When God sees his sons coming into glory, he says, "They are my sons; there is no spot in them. There is no wrinkle in them; they are conformed to the image of my only begotten Son. They are as holy as Jesus was holy. There is no fault in them." The devil, the accuser of the brethren, cannot accuse the Sons of God of faults. He can raise no accusation. Why? Because we appear in the very radiance of God's glory, in the very presence of his all-seeing eye and he looks at us and he says, "They are justified! They are pure. They are clean. They have no spot or wrinkle or any such thing. They are holy and without blemish." Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifies.

I must be careful to point out that it is not that God the Father, first person of the trinity, is justifying us through the works of God the Son, second person in the trinity. These terms and concepts are neither found in the Bible nor do they describe precepts which are explained in the Bible. As was mentioned earlier, Almighty God, the unique being, is livingin and as the man Christ Jesus, the historical figure. All humanity can be justified and glorified by one sinless human being to the one true God.

Have we been glorified yet, actually, as it seems to say in Romans 8? No. But in his plan we are already glorified, God can speak of his plan as though it had already happened. He called those things that be not as though they were (Romans 4:17). He calls our glorification as though it has already happened.

When one receives the baptism of the Holy Spirit he has the spirit of Jesus Christ in him, bearing witness with his own spirit, allowing him to call out to God, "Abba, Father," to join God's family and become an heir of God, joint heirs with Jesus Christ. Jeremias, quoted in the selection from Michael Greene, calls sonship the central message of the New Testament. It has been God's eternal purpose before the world began to bring many sons into glory through Christ Jesus our Lord.

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A Prayer to Let Go of the Past-I Choose to let go...

Dear Father in Heaven,

I come to You today, humbling myself before You. This day I choose to let go of my past, and I count it all as nothing compared to the gift You've given me in Christ Jesus. Forgive me Lord of my past sins, hidden sins and my cherished sins. I choose to let them go and hold on to them no longer Lord.

I choose to feel the fullness of Jesus Christ by sharing in His sufferings, and awaiting the glorious day when I shall take part in the joyous resurrection of Your saints, and the awesome day of Christ Jesus, when at His command every tongue will confess He is Lord, and every knee will bow!

I thank You Lord for my sufferings, so that I may be humbled before You. For when I am weak, then I am strong. Lord, I choose to put all my trust and hope in You, believing that by not leaning on my own understanding, You Father, will direct all my paths and make them straight.

I claim complete healing of my heart, soul and mind. I bind all evil spirits who have been working on breaking me down, making me feel guilt, resentment, depression, loneliness, insecurity and all other negative feelings not of the Lord, that have distracted me from You Father.

In Jesus mighty name I rebuke all the evil/demonic spirits making a case against me and I bind them all by the blood of my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. He that is within me is greater than he that is in the world. For the  Lord has given me the right to become a child of the Most High God, the day I accepted Christ Jesus as my Lord, and was sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, I became a child of God!

The Creator of heaven and earth said, "Behold, I give unto you power to trample serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you."

In Jesus name I pray, amen.

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The Creator Became Part of Creation

Genesis 1:1. In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. God was in no way a part of the creation. He was absolutely external to the created universe. The Hebrew word translated "created" is "bara" (baw-raw') which means "made from nothing." The Bible says the things which are seen were not made of things which do appear, Hebrews 11:3. That means that everything in the universe is made from nothing. The Bible says Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God (Hebrews 11:3).

The best guess the scientists can make about the origin of the universe is the "big bang" theory. This theory holds that there was a time when all the matter of the universe was at one time condensed into a single particle which is hypothesized to be infinitely smaller than that of an electron. An electron is a very minute particle of matter. It cannot be photographed and it cannot be seen. It is infinitely small. The electron is so fast it travels as fast at the speed of light around the nucleus of an atom. So fast, scientists say it is literally every place at once. This ability to be every place at once allows it to form a so-called "shell" on the outside of the atom. Scientists say the mass of the universe was once condensed into a single particle infinitely smaller than an electron. The scientific world basically agrees that everything that is, was made from nothing. There were no raw materials.

"In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth," repudiates atheism because it says there is a God. It repudiates dualism, the theory that holds there are two creators at work in the universe. An evil creator, who is responsible for the things that are evil, and a good creator, who is responsible for the things that are good. Genesis 1:1 teaches one God created the heaven and the earth, repudiating polytheism. Elohim, the uniplural noun, is used with a singular verb, "bara" created. In the beginning God—one God! It repudiates materialism, which holds that matter is eternal. Some theories about the universe say that matter has always been. Astronomer Fred Hoyle said a hundred trillion tons of hydrogen are created from nothing in the universe every year. The phrase, "In the beginning God," repudiates the materialistic theory because it says God created ("bara" from nothing) the heaven and the earth. So matter is not eternal. There was a time when it was not.

This verse also repudiates uniformitarianism, the belief that everything is now doing what it has always been doing. In other words, everything is slowly evolving. Uniformitarians believe the matter of the universe is, and has always been, in a state of flux and change. Subtle changes are taking place in living creatures, and some day man will evolve into something else as he has evolved from lower forms.

Most importantly, Genesis 1:1 repudiates pantheism, the belief that God is in the creation and, is the creation. God is the tree; He is the rock. He is the building; He is the air. He is the creation as we see it. Pantheism holds that God permeates, and is all. Pantheism should not be confused with believing that God is omnipresent. God is omnipresent; He is everywhere. David could say that if I ascend up into heaven, thou (God) art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there (Psalm 139:8). But God is not the created world. In fact, He is completely external to the created world.

God is related to the world as a sculptor is related to his sculpture, or as an artist is related to his painting, and an author is related to his story. The sculptor is not the sculpture. The artist is not the painting. The writer is not the writing. The sculpture, painting, and writing are productions. They are produced by the one that creates, and what one creates, can be created again. Perhaps it will not be exactly the same. It may be better.

God is infinite; He existed before the world existed. He still exists, co-existing with the universe. The universe is finite, having a very definite beginning and ending. The universe will end. Scientists postulate that our sun will shine about five million more years. Then in a great burst of energy, it will swell up, engulf and consume the planets before shrinking into a white dwarf. They claim the sun will eventually burn itself out, and the whole universe come to a great cataclysmic end. Whether that is so or not, I do not know.

The Bible says that heaven and earth shall pass away (Matthew 24:35). It also states, the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, ...the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up (2 Peter 3:10). 1 Timothy 6:16 says that the Lord only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto.

God creator created everything just by speaking. It was not hard. "Let there be light and there was light" (Genesis 1:3). "Let the waters bring forth and they brought forth, Let the earth bring forth and it brought forth" (Genesis 1:20,24). God was not put to a test to make the universe. You say, "Mankind was a more difficult product." God formed Adam out of the dust of the ground; it must not have been too tough. He took a rib from Adam's side, spoke a word, and turned it into a woman. That was not too hard for God. This whole creation was not such a magnificent production so far as God is concerned. To us, it is absolutely unfathomable. With just a little word, it all came to be. It was really easy for the creator. The Bible says that in six days (Genesis 1:31), it all came to be, and simply through spoken words.

When God made this finite universe, He made man subject to death. He told Adam and Eve, "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die" (Genesis 2:17). Eating will bring an end to your existence. Thus there was a threat against humanity even in the original creation. The Bible says, "no man hath seen God at any time" (John 1:18). That means that Adam and Eve did not see Him. We read in the Bible that God walked with them in the cool of the day, and He spoke to them. When Satan came to Eve, it seemed to her that what he had to say was just as official and believable as what the Lord had said. Satan said, "Hath God said you will surely die. God knows that you will not die. God knows that if you eat this you will be as wise as He is" (Genesis 3:4, 5). Somehow those two bits of advice were played against each other, and the weight of evidence plus the attractive fruit, seemed to be on the side of the devil. So Eve actually partook of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Then the finiteness of humanity became evident.

The Lord met Adam and Eve and pronounced these words to them, Dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou return (Genesis 3:19). You are not permanent. You are not eternal. You will go back to the grave. God, peeved with His creation and aroused to pronounce a judgment upon it, said some things that were probably hard to listen to: "You are not going to have a happy life; you are going to earn your bread by the sweat of your brow; in travail you are going to bring forth children, in sorrow you are going to conceive and the ground is going to bring forth thorns and thistles unto you when you work the soil. It is going to testify to you that you are not going to live forever" (Genesis 3:15-18).

That has been our experience friends. There is not much evidence in this world to assure us that we are going to live forever. If you are looking for evidences of eternal life on this earth, you will look very, very hard. What you will find instead is cemeteries, full of people. I don't know anybody today that ever heard again the voice of a loved one after death has been final. Death is so permanent. The creation is all decay. The buildings decay. The cars break down and decay. There is very, very little hope of a resurrection in the Old Testament.

The Lord said to the devil in Genesis 3:15, I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. Who was He talking about? The seed of the woman! Who was this seed of the woman? He was talking about Himself! In the beginning was the Word. That is God's envisaging of what He Himself would be. God made the world, but He did not make it without a thought in His mind that someday He would come into the world, take up humanity, be born of a woman, be made of a woman and be made under the law. God determined that. The Logos, God's foreknowledge of Christ's coming, held this world together. The Bible says, by him all things consist (Colossians 1:17). That means "are held together." Jesus Christ is the glue. That is not a very good expression, but he was the glue that held the universe together. The thought of Christ (in God's mind) was what held it all together for four thousand years from Adam until Mary.

What a great day the resurrection was! Nobody had ever resurrected from the grave under his own power. Nobody had ever resurrected from the grave never to die again. Lazarus got called forth from the grave, but they eventually had another funeral in Lazarus' house. The widow of Nain's son was healed. But she also experienced another funeral. Death reigned. That first Easter was such a marvelous day because it was absolutely the first time any one ever raised Himself from the dead. The Bible says, "But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept" (1 Corinthians 15:20).

The God that made Adam was born, underwent generation and came into this world becoming a part of the creation. The uncreated one became a creature so that we created ones, could become eternal. Jesus came forth from the tomb alive! The angel said, Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen Luke 24:5. The Lord said, "I am alive forevermore" (Revelation 1:18).

The God of the Jews in Old Testament times was not part of creation. That would be precarious to have had a God who was a creator and not have had some concept of Him coming into the world. It would have been frightening to believe that He was just the creator. Who is to say He will not tire of the creation? get bored with it? get interested in something else? go off and leave it? He certainly could have, as great as He is. This huge universe of ours does not fill up all the expanse of God. For all we know it could be but an electron in comparison with the great God. It did not take Him much to make it. In comparison with God, we are not very important. The Bible says so. It says, "what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away" (James 4:14). We are like the grass. We grow up, and then we wither and then we die. 1 Peter 1:24. We do not live very long.

On the Day of Pentecost, the Spirit that moved on the face of the waters in the beginning and lived in the man Christ Jesus, took up residence in those that received the baptism of Holy Spirit. In John 14:23 Jesus said, we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. We. What did he mean by "we"? Are there two divine persons in the Godhead? No, but Jesus was a man born at Bethlehem. He had an identity. God, the creator, had an identity. There are aspects of the created one: He was an historical figure, born, possessed of finiteness, destined to die. Then there were aspects of the uncreated one, the unique being. He was eternal, never to die. God brought that eternal, uncreated unique being together with the created, historical figure who would die. He put them together in such a way that they are inseparable.

When one receives the Holy Ghost, they have the Spirit of the uncreated God abiding in them. However, it is the Spirit that took up permanent residence in the man Christ Jesus. Jesus was not a temporary abode for God. When you receive the Holy Ghost you get the Spirit of God, but the Spirit of God alone could never save you. You get the Spirit of the risen Christ. The Bible says, "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" (Romans 8:11). It was absolutely necessary that we got a "we" in us, that we got an "us" in us. It was not the "us" of two divine persons, but it was the "we" and the "us" of God and man. It was the "we" and the "us" of the child and the son, those are terms of finiteness. The mighty God, the everlasting Father, the one that had no beginning and will have no end—those are terms of infinity. John said, "Which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of Life" (1 John 1:1). That is what you receive. That is the One that came and made his abode in our hearts. It is a marvelous thing to receive the glorious baptism of the Holy Ghost. You do not get the Spirit of the second person of the Godhead. The Spirit of the Almighty God, who had lived in a body and overcame death, hell and the grave takes up residence in you. He rose from the dead and is alive forever more!!! The Creator became part of creation. Therefore, we can have the Spirit of God in our hearts. He has made us as though we were uncreated. He has made us eternal. He has made us like Himself. We will never die!

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