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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: (Hebrews 8:10) |
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The prohibition against eating shellfish is part of the Law of Moses but is not carried forward into the new covenant regardless of what issues of health may or may not be involved—category three. I love crabmeat but I have to be careful what I eat these days! |
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Moses and Aaron began the Day of the Law. Never before had such a divinely inspired moral code been given to mankind. The issuing of the Ten Commandments marks one of the greatest milestones in human history. This is the Torah of the Jews. The Ark of the Covenant means the Ark containing the Covenant, the Ten Commandments. |
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The Law of Moses was given to the Jews (and to all mankind as well) making the whole world a prisoner of sin. The Law of Moses served as the ancient slave who conducted children to school. So it is that the Law of Moses brings us to the greatest Schoolmaster, Christ. |
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Jesus Christ kept perfectly every aspect of the Law of Moses so He might be free to assign the righteousness of the Law to whomever He chooses. |
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Christ is the very embodiment of the eternal moral law of God, the law that is written in the heart of the Christian. |
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The awesome error of Evangelical thinking is that the Christian is not under any law. While the Christian is not under the Law of Moses he or she is most assuredly under the commandments issued by Christ and His Apostles. These commandments hold us steady while Christ, the eternal moral law of God, is being formed in us. As soon as Christ has been formed in us we will keep the eternal moral law by nature. |
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But if we do not keep the commandments of Christ and His Apostles, supposing that "grace" has rendered these commandments incompetent, immaterial, and irrelevant, Christ will not be formed in us. We will be judged at the Judgment Seat of Christ according to our actions in the world and will receive the fruit of those actions. Make no mistake. The Apostle states we shall reap what we sow. There is a day of reckoning coming for all of us. |
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In the day of resurrection we shall be clothed with the fruit of a godly, righteous, obedient life or with the fruit of an ungodly, unrighteous, disobedient life. There is no truth more in need of propagation in the United States in the present hour. We have been deceived for many years! |
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So we can call the third eternal day the Day of the Law without any problem. |
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Now we have three days operating simultaneously: the day of form, the day of the Church, and the day of the law. What's next? |
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The Day of Light, of Revelation. |
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Who are the two witnesses? The Father and Jesus Christ. |
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It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two men is true. I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me. (John 8:17,18) |
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I'm getting excited by this time as I'm driving along. I'm safely past Lake Hodges by now. |
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Yeah! That's right! The Father and Jesus were seen as one Man but two Men were working. Far out! |
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To be continued. |
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(For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) (I John 1:2) |
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The two witnesses of the fourth day, the day of light, or revelation, are the Father and Jesus. |
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Sometimes we don't think about how much light Jesus actually brought into the world. If Christ had not come do you see how ignorant of God we would be? The Law of Moses was a tremendous light in its day but nothing like the grace and truth that came through Jesus Christ. |
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Four eternal days working: the day of form, the day of the Church, the day of the law, and now the day of light. |
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What is the fifth day and who were the fifth set of two witnesses? |
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The fifth day is the Day of Life and the two witnesses were the Apostles and the Holy Spirit. This gave me pause when it entered my mind but then a passage came to remembrance: |
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And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him. (Acts 5:32) |
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There was no eternal life until the Holy Spirit was given from Heaven. In those days the Spirit was given by the laying on of the hands of the Apostles. This was the beginning of the day of life. |
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Can you see that the day of form issued from Adam and Eve and continues to this hour? Can you see that Adam and Eve revealed in themselves the coming eternal day? |
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Can you see that the day of the church issued from Abraham and Sarah and continues to this hour? Can you see that Abraham and Sarah revealed in themselves the coming eternal day? |
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Can you see that the day of the law issued from Moses and Aaron and continues to this hour? Can you see that Moses and Aaron revealed in themselves the coming eternal day? |
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Can you see that the day of life issued from the Apostles and the Holy Spirit and continues to this hour? Can you see that the Apostles and the Holy Spirit revealed in themselves the coming eternal day? |
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Cool! |
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Now we come to the sixth day and the sixth set of witnesses. |
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The sixth set of witnesses is Christ and His Body, the two golden lampstands ministering under a double portion of God's Spirit (the two olive trees). |
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The sixth day might be termed the Day of the Kingdom. |
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Following the previous five sets of witnesses, the sixth day, the Kingdom Age, should proceed from Christ and His Body. Following the previous witnesses, Christ and His Body should reveal in themselves what the world can expect to experience during the Kingdom Age. |
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You can see now the need for the plagues administered by the two witnesses of the eleventh chapter of the Book of Revelation. The Kingdom Age will be the rule of the rod of iron. All resistance to the rule of Christ and His saints will be smashed. |
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This will be an eternal day. The Kingdom will last forever, as testified by Daniel and Isaiah. |
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To be continued. |
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Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular. (I Corinthians 12:27) |
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As was true of Adam and Eve, one of the two witnesses (of Revelation Eleven) will be created from the other. Eve was created from Adam. The Body of Christ is being fashioned from Christ Jesus' own body and blood. |
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As was true of Abraham and Sarah, the witness will come by grace as the true wife waits on the promise of God. The testimony of the two witnesses of the end of the Church Age will not be the work of man's ambitions. "Hagar," the babylonish (man-centered, man-directed) churches, will have nothing to do with it, will not be an heir with it. |
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As was true of Moses and Aaron, the two witnesses (of Revelation, Chapter Eleven) will be brothers. We are being created the brothers of Christ Jesus. |
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As was true of the Father and the Son, Christ will be in His Body. There will be the two witnesses—Christ and His Body; but the two will be one as the Father and Christ are One. |
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As was true of the Holy Spirit and the Apostles, the two witnesses will be God and God-filled people. |
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As will be true of the Father and His eternal tabernacle (the two witnesses that will appear at the beginning of the new heaven and earth reign of Christ and herald the day of rest), the two witnesses of the eleventh chapter of the Book of Revelation will be Christ and His eternal tabernacle—the Body of Christ. |
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As was true of Joshua and Caleb, the two end-time witnesses (of Revelation Eleven) that bring in the Kingdom Age will go into the land of promise before the remainder of Israel and bring back the fruit of the coming Kingdom Age for Israel to behold, while the Lord's people still are wandering in the wilderness of the world. |
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As was true of Elijah and Elisha, the two witnesses of Revelation Eleven will be a portion and a double portion of the Spirit of God manifested among men. |
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We see then that we are in the time when the sixth set of two witnesses (Christ and His Body) is being prepared to bear witness to the eternal Day of the Kingdom. The day of the Kingdom will proceed from Christ and His Body, and Christ and His Body will reveal in themselves the nature of what the world is facing in the future. |
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What a day to be alive! Right? |
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We now have six eternal days running concurrently: |
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* The day of form—Adam and Eve. |
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* The day of the Church—Abraham and Sarah. |
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* The day of the law—Moses and Aaron. |
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* The day of light and revelation—the Father and Jesus. |
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* The day of eternal life—the Apostles and the Holy Spirit. |
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* The day of the Kingdom—Christ and His Body. |
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Have you noticed some of the parallels between the six eternal days and the six days of creation? |
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The first day, the giving of form to the creation. |
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The second day, the separating of the waters. |
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The third day, the dry ground, meaning that the moral law of God puts a foundation under our feet. Apart from the law of God we are adrift, having no stability in life. We are the victim of every pressure and circumstance. |
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The fourth day, the sun, moon, and stars to give light. |
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The fifth day, the beginning of animal life. |
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The sixth day, man in the image of God, being male and female, having fruitfulness and dominion. This is what God has planned for the Kingdom Age. We will learn the importance of being married to Christ. It will be a time of fruitfulness and dominion for the saints. |
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To be continued. |
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Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. (Hebrews 4:1) |
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Finally, the seventh day, the day of rest. |
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The last of the eternal days is the Day of Rest. The two witnesses are God and His Tabernacle. |
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And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. (Revelation 20:3) |
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The day of rest will proceed from God and His Tabernacle, which is Christ and His Body, the Church, the Israel of God, the new Jerusalem. |
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God and His Tabernacle reveal the nature of eternity. |
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I was at the church by this time. As I said, I was so astonished at what was whispered to my mind I didn't preach on it that Sunday. Would you have? |
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But as time went on I could see there was nothing unscriptural about the idea and, in fact, it made a great deal of sense. |
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I hope it proves to be a blessing to you. |
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Let me conclude this discussion of the two witnesses with the closing paragraphs of the book, The Kingdom of God Is at Hand. |
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The termination of the day of the Kingdom in chaos and war marks the conclusion of the physical universe. God's plan has been carried out to perfection and the material creation now is tossed aside as a soiled garment. |
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Christ Jesus speaks the word. The earth and the firmament vanish in a galactic explosion. |
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Then Christ speaks again. There comes into being a new heaven and a new earth. His Wife, the elect angels, and the saved of mankind behold from their various positions in the spirit realm what Christ has created. |
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To the astonishment and unparalleled delight of the saints, the holy angels, and the saved of mankind, they find themselves gazing on a new heaven and a new earth so much larger, so much more glorious, than the old heaven and earth that even their redeemed and expanded consciousness is not able to comprehend the dazzling beauty of the new universe. |
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Then the Lamb will turn and look at the face of His Bride to see if she is pleased with what He has spoken into being. |
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Now the new earth is ready for the eternal ministry of God and His Christ, His eternal Tabernacle. God's Tabernacle, His house, is the Lord Jesus plus those who have become one with Him. |
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The nations of saved peoples of the earth stare in amazement at the most glorious spectacle of all. Down from the new heaven is descending the Father's house, which is the Lamb and His Wife. She is His glory. Her beauty and radiance illumine the new earth. God the Father is moving from Heaven to the earth, there to dwell among His beloved creatures forever. |
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The Wife of the Lamb has attained total image, total union, total fruitfulness, and total dominion, during the Kingdom Age. Now she is ready, and Christ in her, and God in Christ, to be the manifestation of God among men, to be Immanuel—God with us. |
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To be continued. |
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And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. (Revelation 21:5,6) |
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Heaven has come to earth. The nations no longer will pray to God in Heaven. Rather, they will go up to the new Jerusalem to receive what they need from God in the saints. |
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Every creature has been brought into subjection to Christ. Christ now turns back the creation to His Father so God can be All in all. Obedience to the Father was perfected first in Christ, then in the firstfruits, then in all Israel, and finally will be perfected in every member of the nations of the saved. |
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God now can dwell in all His creatures, loving and blessing each one in untroubled rest and joy. It is the purpose of Christ in the Church to bring the rule of God into the personality of every saved person on the earth. This is the work of the Kingdom—the bringing about of the doing of God's will in the earth as it now is performed in Heaven. |
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The day of form has found its fulfillment in the new heaven, the new earth, and the new creatures who dwell therein. |
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The day of the Church has found its fulfillment in the wall of the holy city, the wall that separates God's elect from the remainder of mankind. The nations of saved peoples of the earth will live forever in the light of the new Jerusalem—the Wife of the Lamb. |
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The day of the law has found its fulfillment in the holy city and the rulership that goes forth from there. This is the city that has foundations. |
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The day of light has found its fulfillment in the Glory of God and the Lamb now residing in the Wife of the Lamb. |
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The day of life has found its fulfillment in the pure river of the Water of Life flowing from the Throne of God and of the Lamb. |
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The day of the Kingdom has found its fulfillment in the fact that God is All in all in His creation and the Lord Jesus has become the Center and Circumference of all. The saints will go forth from the new Jerusalem to govern the saved nations of the earth. |
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In the day of rest, all the other days find their significance and fulfillment. |
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All that is worthy will die and be raised in Christ and brought into the new world. All the creation will reveal Christ, having been glorified and made new in Him. |
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This is the beginning of the eternal reign of the Kingdom of God. |
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And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Amen. |
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Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. (II Corinthians 5:16,17) |
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It is clear from Galatians 3:2: |
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This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? |
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And Galatians 4:19: |
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My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you, |
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That to be saved and filled with the Spirit is one matter but to have Christ formed in us is something else again. |
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The Galatians had received Christ as Savior and had also received the Holy Spirit. But Christ had not been formed in them as yet. Paul knew this because they were so easily led back into the Law of Moses. |
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Today a great multitude of people have received Christ as Savior. A lesser number have received the Holy Spirit to the extent of speaking in tongues and prophesying. |
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But we know that Christ has not been formed in many believers to any great extent because of the ease with which they are led astray into obviously unscriptural teachings such as the so-called prosperity message. |
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There is a time and season for all things. The latter rain has been falling since the days of the Protestant Reformers, as we understand it, and little by little Christ has been formed in the believers. |
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Many doctrines and experiences have been restored to the churches since the days of the Reformers. The latest has been that concerning the ministries and gifts of the Spirit of God. Speaking in tongues, prophecy, the supernatural healing of the sick, the working of miracles, words of wisdom and knowledge, the gift of discernment, are fairly common in numerous congregations. |
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As soon as God plants an increase in doctrine and experience and they begin to be established and grow, God moves ahead to new doctrine and experience. When He does there is a good deal of shuffling around as people adjust to change. |
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Today the earth is bringing forth by handfuls, so to speak. Doctrine and corresponding experience are being added to the church that are making the Bible come alive to us. Of particular interest and value is the renewing of the original Gospel, the Gospel of the Kingdom of God. The concept of salvation being for the purpose of bringing the believer to the spirit Paradise to live forever in a mansion of material wealth is giving way before the actual Gospel of the Kingdom, which is the preparation of the Church for its role of returning with Jesus Christ and establishing justice and order on the earth. |
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In addition to the restoration of the Gospel of the Kingdom of God we have the doctrines concerning the role of the Body of Christ as the Servant of the Lord, the necessity for obeying the commandments of Christ and His Apostles rather than trusting in "grace" to do all the work for us, and the spiritual fulfillment of the feast of Tabernacles—a step past the spiritual fulfillment of the feast of Pentecost. |
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The central and most important feature of the work of restoration is the increase of Christ in the members of His Body. The gifts and ministries of the Spirit and all the other aspects of healthy church life are scaffolding contributing to the growth of Christ in the believers. |
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To be continued. |
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To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: (Colossians 1:27) |
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The pattern of the fall and spring rains of the land of Israel reveals God's plan for bringing forth Christ in the Church. There is the fall, planting rain, sporadic winter rains, and then the growth and maturing of the wheat in the spring as a result of the spring rains. |
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We now are in the days of the spring, latter rain. We are to ask the Lord for rain in the time of the spring, harvest rain. |
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The harvest is Christ—Christ in the believers. He has been small in us but is to become great in our day. |
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Paul spoke that his life was over and now it is Christ who is living in him. This is our goal--that we may decrease and Christ may increase. Is this your goal? I'm sure it is. |
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Zechariah urges us to ask for rain in the time of the latter, spring rain. There is a time for Christ to come to maturity in His Church. That time is now! |
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The twelfth chapter of the Book of Revelation portrays the ruling Son being born of the woman. Satan stands before the woman to kill the Son the moment he appears. Remember that Satan is not seriously worried about our church activities. His concern is that the woman will bring forth the Son. This is a terrifying prospect for the workers of darkness. |
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Michael and his angels will not be empowered by the Father to cast Satan from heaven until the Son has been brought forth in the believers. |
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I would like to pause for station identification. The Book of Revelation is filled with the most fantastic pictures and symbols. I want you to know that all these fantastic pictures and symbols are but fancy clothes put on the most ordinary and practical of circumstances. There is no book in the Bible more down home, more practical than the Book of Revelation. |
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All that the twelfth chapter of Revelation means is there will come a time when Christ will be brought forth in the believers to a greater extent than we have known. When He is brought forth in us all kinds of good things will happen. |
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When Christ is formed in us He is caught up to the Throne of God in Heaven. Sometimes we experience this upward thrust as a kind of travail of spirit as we are determining to leave all and follow Christ. There may come a breakthrough in our prayers that causes us to sing and rejoice. We know God has heard us and that the world is under our feet. |
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Of course Christ is in us now if we are a genuine Christian. But the forming of Christ in us will prove to be much greater than we have realized. |
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It is time now for a much greater experience of Christ in us than we would have thought possible. |
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I would like to add one word at the risk of confusing the reader. |
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There is a difference between Christ being formed in us and Christ coming to dwell in us. Galatians 4:19 speaks of Christ being formed in us. John 14:23 speaks of the Father and the Son coming to dwell in us. These are not the same experience. |
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Christ being formed in us has to do with the death and resurrection of our own personality in Christ. It is a transformation of what we are by being impregnated with the Divine Nature of Christ. It is an eternal blend of Christ and us. It is a new creation because never before has there been an eternal blend of Christ and us as a person. We are being changed! It is still us and yet it is Christ and yet it is us. It is a new creation formed on human stock by the Divine Nature of Christ. |
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As this program of re-creation is taking place, the actual Father and Christ of Heaven through the Holy Spirit come to us. They dwell in the new creation. So now Christ has been formed in us and then the Christ of Heaven with the Father come and make their eternal abode in the new creation that has been formed in us. |
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To be continued. |
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