Know the Lord

Years ago, I heard a famous radio talk show host say "the Bible is easy, a fifth-grader could understand it". In that statement, he revealed that he had no clue what the Bible says. That which is written in the Bible is written in spiritual language, which can only be revealed by the Holy Spirit. The Bible cannot be understood by the carnal mind. God has a distinct purpose in this. All who come to know the truth revealed in His word must develop ears to hear what the Spirit says. Jesus declares that His sheep hear His voice, and the voice of a stranger they will not follow. Jesus also said that if we have seen Him, then we have seen the Father. God wants to reveal Himself to us; but we must come to Him on His terms, not our own.

The key to understanding the Bible is having a right relationship with God; the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This relationship starts with being born again, but you must continue on the path that leads to life if you are to receive all that He has to give you. This path can only be walked as you are led by the Holy Spirit, Who will lead you to know Jesus, Who will lead you to know the Father. You cannot find life any other way. No flesh shall glory in the presence of God, therefore you must be changed by having your mind renewed through His process of breaking and humbling you so that you are no longer conformed to this world, but transformed into His image. If you will allow Him, He will lead you to enter into His rest where you become one with Him; and it is no longer you who live (even though you are still living), but it will be Christ living in you.

Few in the church understand these concepts of which I speak. Jesus said that few would find the path that leads to life. There is a broad path that leads to destruction on which many walk. Think not that the way that leads to life is for Christians and the broad path that leads to destruction is for the world. The broad path that leads to destruction is walked by those Christians who are deceived into thinking that they have all they need by virtue of being born again. These carnal Christians do not understand that they must lose their life in order to find it. I speak of the life that pertains to the carnal nature, not the physical life.

I am hopeful of better things for you since you are reading this book. You are seeking to know truth and that is the beginning of finding it. I encourage you to lay down all that you have previously been taught by man and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal truth to you. Seek the face of the Lord, which means to know Him even as you are also known. Realize that your carnal mind is your worst enemy and put no confidence in the flesh. Put all your trust in the Lord and let Him have His way in you. In so doing, He will make you to be an overcomer of all that is in this world and He will do mighty works in and through you. I pray that you will be blessed by the reading of this book and that by it you will be consumed in your desire to know the Lord.

Genesis 1:1 – "In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth."  In creating the heaven and the earth, God created both good and evil. In the beginning only good things were seen, evil was not yet revealed. Heaven was, and is, and always will be beautiful beyond description for it is the abode of the Godhead; the Most High God in the persons of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. God created angels, the heavenly host, as ministering spirits to worship Him and continually minister to Him. Like heaven, they also are beautiful beyond description. God created three archangels to oversee matters in heaven; Michael, Gabriel, and Lucifer. Each of these commanded a third of the heavenly host. There was peace, tranquility, and order in heaven. All was good.

Yet in the infinite capacity of the loving heart of God this was not enough. God yearned for a depth and an intimacy in relationship that the angels are incapable of providing. The angels are created to be obedient, only doing as they are instructed by God or led by those placed by God in leadership of them. God desired to have fellowship with others like Himself; but since there was no one else like Him these beings would have to be created. God is able to do anything with nothing being impossible to Him; therefore He was able to do this in any manner which He chose. In the brilliant mind that is God's alone, He chose to invite selected vessels to walk in His image as a result of choice. Lucifer was the first to receive this opportunity to enter into 'sonship'.

When God created the earth, He created a stunningly beautiful place in the image of heaven called Eden; the garden of God. I believe that this garden was given to Lucifer for oversight. Lucifer was given wisdom and beauty above the others. "You seal up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. You have been in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, the workmanship of your tabrets and of your pipes was prepared in you in the day you were created. You are the anointed cherub that covers; and I have set you so; you were upon the holy mountain of God; you have walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire" (Ezekiel 28:12-14). Lucifer had been given much and had been entrusted to oversee much by God. God chose to open Lucifer's eyes to give him understanding of all that God had given him.

"You were perfect in your ways from the day you were created, until iniquity was found in you" (Ezekiel 28:15). Lucifer was given understanding of who he was in God's eyes; he saw his beauty and all of that which he had been given power to oversee. He was now faced with a choice which he didn't see as a choice at the time. All he knew was that he felt different. He felt good about himself. He felt pride. For the first time, Lucifer was experiencing the effects of evil that had been in existence in creation. He now had knowledge of good and evil. Lucifer could have been humbled by what he now realized about himself and could have chosen to be thankful to God for His goodness. He could have chosen to worship God, bowing the knee to God as an act of obedience and gratitude. By doing so, God would have received him as a son; and would have given Lucifer a renewed mind with understanding of His thoughts and His ways. Lucifer would have been transformed by the renewing of his mind and would have become one with God; enjoying intimate fellowship with Him.

This was not the choice Lucifer made. "Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty, you have corrupted your wisdom by reason of your brightness: I will cast you to the ground" (Ezekiel 28:17). "How are you fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! For you have said in your heart, I will ascend into heaven (from earth), I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also on the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High" (Isaiah 14:12-14). Because Lucifer chose to be prideful and arrogant, he led a revolt in heaven leading the third of the heavenly host he commanded and was cast out by God. Jesus said, "I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven" (Luke 10:18). Lucifer lost all he had including his mind. The mind that was full of wisdom was darkened as God gave him over to a reprobate mind. "Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient" (Romans 1:21,28).

Genesis 1:2 – "And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." The deep (tehom) is the Hebrew word meaning abyss, which comes from the root word (huwm) which means to agitate greatly or destroy. All that Lucifer was and possessed was destroyed and thrust into darkness. He was 'cast to the ground' (earth) into the abyss.  The Spirit of God was now moving upon the face of the waters (mayim), a Hebrew word that means 'a flood of waste water'; much like sewer water. God did not create the earth this way in the beginning. Earth was beautiful and made in the image of heaven. When Satan fell, that of which he had oversight also fell. Now God was about to restore the earth in preparation for an invitation such as Lucifer received to be given to another.

Genesis 1:3, "And God said, Let there be light: and there was light." Light was not created here; God commanded the light He had already created to be released back into the earth to drive out the darkness brought upon it by Satan's rebellion. Then God commanded all that He had created to bring forth life; to drive out the refuse which was the fruit of Satan's disobedience. He commanded the waters He created to bring forth life in the seas (Genesis 1:20) and the ground to bring forth all manner of plants and trees, every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air. (Genesis 2:9,19). Also out of the ground God formed man. "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul" (Genesis 2:7). God created man male and female; "And God blessed them, and God said to them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moves upon the earth" (Genesis 1:28).

God gave a second command to man saying, "Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat: but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat of it: for in the day that you eat thereof you shall surely die" (Genesis 2:16-17). Look at what Genesis 2:9 reveals: "And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil." God said that man could eat freely of every tree; except the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Man was given permission by God to eat of the tree of life. Adam could have inherited eternal life right there. He could have had his mind opened to understand the ways of God and His thoughts. He could have become a son of God. He had a choice. For whatever reason, Adam did not take advantage of that which God had offered.

Meanwhile, Satan helplessly observed all that was happening. He recognized what God was about to do. God was about to offer man that which he had foolishly rejected. He could not stand idly by and let this happen. He had to thwart God's plan. In Genesis chapter 3, Satan appeared to the woman and questioned her regarding the commandment to not eat of the tree in the midst of the garden. The woman answered, "God has said, you shall not eat of it, neither shall you touch it, lest you die" (verse 3). Satan had full understanding of what he was doing when he replied saying "you shall not surely die: for God knows that in the day you eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." (verses 4-5) He had already experienced the effect of knowing good and evil, and hoped that man would rebel the same way he did and join him in his kingdom of darkness. Since God had given man authority in the earth, Satan knew that if he could get man to obey him and rebel against God, then he could regain the authority in the earth that he had lost in his rebellion against God. His plan succeeded and both the woman and the man ate of the tree and their eyes were opened, committing the first sin and bringing evil into the earth. Satan was now the 'god of this world'. The lie Satan used in the garden to persuade man to disobey God and which allowed him to become the god of this world was based on this statement: "you shall be as gods" (Genesis 3:5). He has perpetuated this lie throughout the history of mankind. His evil intent is to steal, kill, and destroy all that the Most High God has created on earth. He has been tenaciously pursuing his goal of destruction ever since he was cast out of heaven.

To understand the Bible, we need to understand that God does not change. "Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever." (Hebrews 13:8). From Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 22:21 there is a revelation of Jesus Christ that is consistent and profound. God offered the opportunity to be like Him and to know Him intimately to both Lucifer and Adam. Each was presented a choice between good and evil. Both made the wrong choice which gave an opportunity for you and me to make the right choice. We have the potential to know God intimately. We can abide (live or dwell) in that place of intimacy in our relationship with the Lord now and for all eternity.

After Adam and Eve were driven out of the Garden they produced offspring. All who would be born into this world would be born under the curses pronounced upon man in the Garden. All would know good and evil and therefore have a choice; to serve God or serve sin. From the beginning, the Lord Jesus Christ has been preparing His Bride; those who choose to place their trust in Him and allow Him to purge out all that is carnal in them through walking out the way that leads to life. Also from the beginning, the Harlot has been made manifest through those who choose to put their confidence in the flesh rather than God.

The Bride and the Harlot are not New Testament entities. Salvation is not a New Testament concept. The New Testament is the fulfillment of the Old Testament foundation. Jesus said, "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill." (Matthew 5:17) Jesus is the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world (Revelation 13:8), so all who have chosen to serve Him with all their heart are part of His Bride. "And I say to you, that many shall come from the east and the west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." (Matthew 8:11-12) In this scripture, Jesus is revealing the Bride and the Harlot. The Bride includes all who have served Him from the beginning. The Harlot includes the 'children of the kingdom' who have refused to mature in His ways, have refused to seek Him and follow Him, and have therefore refused His invitation to know Him.

We see the Bride and the Harlot in Cain and Abel, the first offspring of Adam and Eve, in Genesis 4:1-12. "And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bore Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord". Eve thought that having a man child was the fulfillment of what God said in the Garden regarding 'her seed' that would bruise the head of the serpent. "And she again bore his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof." Notice that both Cain and Abel knew of the Lord's commandment for sacrifice to Him, and therefore understood the concept of sin and the need for the atonement of sin.

"And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had no respect. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. "And the Lord said to Cain, Why are you angry? and why is your countenance fallen? If you do well, shall you not be accepted? and if you do not well, sin lies at the door. And unto you shall be his desire, and you shall rule over him." To understand God, you must understand his goodness and mercy which is extended to all. Here God is explaining to Cain that all who obey His commandments are acceptable to Him. Cain understood that without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin. God Himself performed the first sacrifice to clothe Adam and Eve with animal skins. Cain knew this, but came to God on his own terms and was rejected. He was angry because he was not accepted according to that which he thought was right. "There is a way that seems right to a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death." (Proverbs 14:12)

"And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. And the Lord said to Cain, Where is Abel your brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?  And he said, What have you done? the voice of your brother's blood cries to me from the ground. And now are you cursed from the earth, which has opened her mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand; When you till the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto you her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shall you be in the earth."

I believe Abel was the first of the Bride of Christ. The Bride is righteous, not of herself, but righteousness is imputed to her through her submission and obedience to the Lord's commandments. The Bride trusts the Lord with all her heart and does not try to figure things out apart from seeking the wisdom of the Lord. The Bride puts no confidence in the flesh, but seeks after the Spirit of the Lord. "By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaks." (Hebrews 11:4)

Cain was the opposite. Although he had relationship with God and knew His commandments, Cain was led by his flesh and did that which was right in his own eyes. God gave him an opportunity to confess the sin of killing his brother, but he chose to act as if he had no knowledge of what had happened to his brother. He followed the pattern of his mother and father, who chose to blame another for their sin instead of taking responsibility and confessing their sin to God. Had each of them sought to overcome their sin by giving it over to God, their outcome would have been much different. Adam and Eve were thrust out of the Garden, and Cain became a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth. There is no record in the Bible that any of these three repented and sought after God. They were the beginning of the Harlot.

And Adam knew his wife again; and she bore a son, and called his name Seth: For God, said she, has appointed me another seed instead of Abel, whom Cain slew. And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the Lord. (Genesis 4:25-26) God did indeed appoint Eve another seed instead of Abel, a righteous seed in Seth through whom a godly lineage was started that would lead to the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. But as God was building His kingdom through men who called upon His name and sought to know Him, Satan was building his kingdom; the world system.

"And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose. And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be a hundred and twenty years. There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bore children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown. And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repents me that I have made them." (Genesis 6:1-7)

In his quest to destroy God's creation, Satan assigned demons to pervert that which God created through genetic engineering. Giants were birthed in man and in the animal kingdom. Dinosaurs were on the earth during this time. Wicked children were born. Wickedness abounded with no restraint. God had no choice but to wipe out His creation. But God found righteousness in Noah, through whom He would rebuild His creation.

"And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth." "But with you will I establish my covenant; and you shall come into the ark, you, and your sons, and your wife, and your sons' wives with you." (Genesis 6:13,18) Noah did as God commanded and built an ark to house him and his family; 8 souls in all. Eight is the number of new beginnings. God commanded the animals of His choosing to come into the ark to be preserved. Every clean beast by sevens and every unclean beast by twos. No dinosaur was on the ark, for they were part of the perversion that God had to wipe out to cleanse the earth.

The earth had not seen rain until this time, for God caused water to come forth from the earth to water the plants and trees, as it was in the Garden. Now it would rain for forty days and forty nights. "And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man: All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died. And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark."  (Genesis 7:21-23)

In this manner, God cleansed the earth of all wickedness. A new beginning was established through Noah, his wife, his 3 sons, and his son's wives. "And Noah built an altar unto the Lord; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the Lord smelled a sweet savor; and the Lord said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done. While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease."  (Genesis 8:20-22)

So God established His covenant with Noah and vowed to never again destroy the earth while the earth remains. The earth will remain until the end times, when a new heaven and a new earth will be established. Some speculate that we are still dealing with remnants of that which took place before the flood. This is nonsense. The seed of wickedness that was planted in the pre-flood era was wiped out by the cleansing of the flood. Those demons that were participants in this rebellion have been eternally bound. "And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day."  (Jude 6)

Although God's creation was again established in righteousness, man began to do as God had said, "for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth". The Harlot made a reappearance. “And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter. And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach to heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men built. And the Lord said, Behold, the people are one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech. So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the Lord did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the Lord scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.” (Genesis 11:1-8)

Man has an innate desire to know God, but how he ‘finds’ God can take many different twists and turns with varied results if man leans to his understanding and seeks God on his terms. These men were seeking God, but were not seeking to know Him according to His ways. They devised a plan to build a tower that would reach to heaven itself. This sounds preposterous, but God said they could accomplish this because they believed they could and were all in one accord. Jesus said, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him that believes.” (Mark 9:23) No one comes to Jesus but by the Holy Spirit, and no one comes to the Father but by Jesus. God will not allow Himself to be revealed in any manner other than the way He has set forth. God confused the language of these men and caused them to scatter all over the earth so they could no longer accomplish their mission in their understanding.

The word Babel means ‘confusion’. It applies to the Babylonian Empire and to the Babylon of the end times. It comes from a root word balal, which means to mix or mingle. Babylon, which is the Harlot church, is led by Satan. Satan, the author of confusion, has brought strange doctrines into the church which have been widely accepted by man. He has brought confusion to the church. This account of Babel shows the pattern of the Harlot trying to reach God on her terms, but is rejected by God. Confusion is a mark of the carnally minded who serve the author of confusion.

God created each of us in three parts: spirit, soul, and body. Accordingly, there are three types of people in the earth: spiritual, soulish, and fleshly. I describe these people as the Bride, the Harlot, and the world. I will define these types according to New Testament standards since this applies to those of us living today.

Jesus describes these types of people in the parable of the sower. "Behold, a sower went forth to sow; And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them up: Some fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered away. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprung up, and choked them: But other fell into good ground, and brought forth fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold. Who has ears to hear, let him hear.

"And the disciples came, and said to him, Why do you speak to them in parables?  He answered and said to them, Because it is given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. For whosoever has, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever has not, from him shall be taken away even that he has. Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, which says, By hearing you shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing you shall see, and shall not perceive: 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." Matthew 13:3-15)

What Jesus says in between speaking the parable and giving understanding of the parable is most important that we understand. The parables are spiritual language, as is most of the Bible. God is a Spirit, "and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth." (John 4:24) The only way we can know the truth is for truth to be revealed to us by the Spirit of Truth; the Spirit of the Lord; the Holy Spirit. The Harlot does not understand this and is therefore in darkness because she leans upon her understanding instead of seeking wisdom that is from above. The Harlot's heart is waxed gross, her ears are dull of hearing, and her eyes have closed because she trusts in her carnal thinking and reasoning more than she trusts the Lord. She worships God in vain. She honors Him with her lips, but her heart is far from Him.

"But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. For truly I say to you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which you see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which you hear, and have not heard them. Hear you therefore the parable of the sower. When any one hears the word of the kingdom, and understands it not, then comes the wicked one, and catches away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side." (verses 16-19)

Jesus is describing those of the world. When those of the world hear the word of God but do not receive it, then they are not born again. They remain in the flesh and therefore remain in the full control of the god of this world. They are not mindful of God or have any desire to fellowship with Him.

"But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that hears the word, and anon with joy receives it; Yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while: for when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, by and by he is offended. He also that received seed among the thorns is he that hears the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful." (verses 20-22)

These are of the Harlot. They have received the word of God and have been born again, yet their experience with the Lord is not the way they think it should be. The first does not think he should have to suffer anything because he was told that all he had to do was believe and he would receive eternal salvation; the free gift. He had it easier in the world, so why not go back to acting like the world so he can fellowship with the world without struggle? The second was wooed by the world and drawn away by the lusts of that which the world offers. Both were fruitful at first, then became unfruitful.

"But he that received seed into the good ground is he that hears the word, and understands it; which also bears fruit, and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty." (verse 23) This is the Bride. The Bride shows forth righteous fruit from her relationship with the Lord and her submission to His lordship. She seeks to be a profitable servant to Him and a vessel of honor fit for His use. She realizes that she is bought with the precious blood of Jesus and that she owes her all to Him. She separates herself from the world and touches not the unclean thing. There are varying degrees of maturity in the Bride as shown forth by the varying degrees of fruitfulness shown in this parable. But no matter the level of maturity, the Bride's heart is right with the Lord.

One can only produce good fruit if one abides in Jesus, or lives in continual fellowship with Him as shown in John 15:1-8: "I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that bears not fruit he takes away: and every branch that bears fruit, he purges it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Now you are clean through the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can you, except you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches: He that abides in me, and I in him, the same brings forth much fruit: for without me you can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done to you. Herein is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit; so shall you be my disciples."

Notice the Bride and the Harlot revealed in this scripture. The Bride and the Harlot are both branches in the Lord Jesus Christ. They are both born again and part of the body of Christ. The difference between them is fruit. A branch cannot bear fruit of itself; it must be attached to the vine. The Harlot separates herself from the Lord by doing that which is right in her own eyes. She is unfruitful. She is withered. Her end is not the glorious eternity with the Lord to which she feels entitled and is her belief, but her end is eternal separation from the Lord.

The Bride abides in the Lord and produces fruit. The Father prunes her through suffering and affliction to be more Christlike and produce more fruit. As she matures, she will come to a place of which the Harlot is unaware; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. I will reveal this concept in great detail later in this book. The Bride glorifies the Father by her fruit. She is a disciple of Christ and follows Him wherever He leads. She is of the remnant, the few that find life. She is the tithe to the Lord in the body of Christ.

“We have met the enemy, and he is us.” This quote is from a comic strip character named Pogo, who was created by Walt Kelly, and was used on a poster for Earth Day back in 1970. Although the poster was speaking out against man polluting his environment, the quote is quite accurate in revealing our true spiritual enemy: the carnal mind. “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” (Romans 8:5-7)

Satan loves the carnal mind since he can influence it and it is not subject to the law of God and is incapable of being subject to the law of God. The carnal mind is in total opposition to all that is of God. Therefore, Satan appeals to the carnal thinking of man to manipulate and control him. The carnal mind of man is Satan’s hidden ally. As a devious master of subtlety, Satan introduces thoughts that sound true but contain a little ‘leaven’ or that which is untrue, knowing that a little leaven leavens the whole lump. In other words, a little lie mixed in with truth equals a lie. That which is truth is truth; that which is a lie is a lie.  And the father of lies knows this well and uses this knowledge to devour all who come into agreement with his deception.

The spiritual mind is the opposite. The spiritual mind is submitted to God and seeks to know His thoughts. The spiritual mind rejoices in the truth. The spiritually minded humble themselves before God and do not trust in their thinking. They immediately seek to know what the Lord is saying when a decision is placed before them. The spiritual mind is subject to God in all things and acknowledges God in all ways. The spiritual mind rejects that which is not truth. The spiritually minded, therefore, are a tremendous threat to Satan. He cannot overcome those who seek to be led by the Holy Spirit since they will not follow the voice of the stranger.

The focus of Satan is to keep those who are carnally minded from becoming spiritually minded. “Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.” (Genesis 3:1) Subtlety is Satan’s modus operandi. “And he said to the woman, Yea, has God said, You shall not eat of every tree of the garden? You shall not surely die. For God does know that in the day you eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” (Genesis 3:1,4,5) Notice that he came to Eve as a friend. In one brief summation of the commandment of God he brought confusion concerning what God had said, doubt concerning God’s truthfulness, and temptation by a revelation of what could be attained by rebelling against God.

He uses this same tactic with all of us. His weapons of warfare are carnal, but can only impact the carnal mind. His weapons are very effective with those who lean to their understanding and allow Satan to have influence through their carnal mind. The carnally minded yield their obedience to the lusts of the flesh and are led by the desires of the flesh. We must realize that being led by our flesh is submitting to Satan and being subject to him instead of the Lord. We do not have to fulfill the lusts of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. We can walk after the Spirit and learn to be led by the Spirit. “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds; Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.” (2 Corinthians:10:4-5)

Satan's main tactic in the church is to divide and conquer, knowing that a house divided against itself cannot stand. He has been most successful in getting the church to argue over doctrine instead of seeking truth. The first century church which was in unity and was a demonstration of the love and power of God, became powerless ‘churches’ as Satan appealed to the carnal mind of man and showed man how to be in charge instead of God. The carnal mind is the instrument that Satan is using to defeat the church and destroy mankind.

“To be spiritually minded is life and peace”. (Romans 8:6) “For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work” (James 3:16). Notice the stark contrast in these two scriptures. The church has been divided by envying and strife created by disagreement over doctrine. Through leaders that fall prey to his deception, Satan has convinced most that this present church system is of God. Somehow all of our various churches, denominations, and ministries; all working on their own, begging for support, and bringing varied messages regarding truth is better than the pattern God gave in the book of Acts for the building of His Church. As man leans to his understanding, he is most vulnerable to deception. The carnal mind is a fruitful field for the author of confusion.

Becoming spiritually minded is a process. It takes time for the Lord to develop the spiritual mind in us as this process requires our cooperation. The amount of time that is required differs for each of us since we each are fearfully and wonderfully made and are unique in our makeup. The amount of time that is required, however, may be shortened if we develop relationships in our lives with those who are spiritually mature. If we allow intimate relationships to develop with those we trust, are willing to be open and transparent with them, are willing to become vulnerable to them by not hiding anything that is going on in our lives, and are therefore willing to be accountable to them; then the length of time that it takes to become spiritually minded and overcome the carnal mind may be shortened considerably. We need intimacy in relationship. We were created for this purpose; to have intimate relationship with our Creator. We need to have intimate relationship with God so that we may have intimate relationship with each other. We are called as a body. We are connected. We need each other. “If a man say, I love God, and hates his brother, he is a liar: for he that loves not his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? And this commandment have we from him. That he who loves God love his brother also.” (I John 4:20-21)

The church should be known by our love one for another. Yet we are so lacking in this fruit. The present church system does not provide a way for intimacy in relationship; truly getting to know one another. The present church system is built upon meetings where people gather together, do some praise and worship led by a person or group, hear a message by a speaker, then go home to continue life as usual. There is no ‘church life’ in this system. There is no ‘iron sharpening iron’ because within this system each participant is allowed to carry a facade of spirituality while the innermost struggles with sin are carefully protected. People can appear to be spiritual giants on Sunday morning and Wednesday evening while being no different from the world the rest of the time. The carnal mind can still be in control while appearing spiritual under this system. An appearance of spirituality does not necessarily mean that the spiritual mind is in control or even in operation.

In III John:2, the apostle John states: “Beloved, I wish above all things that you may prosper and be in health, even as your soul prospers”. This scripture is rich in providing understanding of the enemy we face and God’s method of overcoming the carnal mind. The word prosper is only used once in the New Testament, whereas it is used 48 times in the Old Testament with four different Hebrew words revealing different aspects of its meaning; speaking of God’s provision, protection, and direction. The Greek word for prosper used in third John, euodoo, adds another meaning which is consistent with what God is speaking in the entirety of His word.

Euodoo comes from two root words – eu, meaning ‘well done’ and hodos, meaning ‘road’ or ‘journey’. In Matthew 7:13-14, hodos is the Greek word used for ‘way’. “Enter you in at the small gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leads to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because small is the gate, and narrow is the way, that leads to life, and few there be that find it.” There are two ways or journeys; one leads to destruction and the other to life. In Matthew 25, Jesus speaks of the kingdom of God in a parable which speaks of the end of these journeys. This parable, beginning in verse 14, is about a man (the Lord) who calls His servants (us) and entrusts them with His goods.  The Lord goes away; and upon His return He demands an account of what was done with the goods entrusted to each of His servants. The ones that invested and properly used that which they received were given more so that they could produce more (John 15, the vine and the branches: the branches that produce fruit are pruned to produce more fruit) and were also rewarded with the words “Well done you good and faithful servant”. The same Greek word, eu, is used here in connection with their reward. The end of the journey of the good and faithful servant is reward or eternal life. The end of the journey for the wicked and slothful servant is destruction.

From the combination of eu and hodos we get a clearer understanding of euodoo as used in III John:2 which means: to help on the road, to succeed in reaching (your potential or goal), to succeed in business affairs, and to have a prosperous journey. I would define the word prosper as used in this scripture as: achieving victory over all obstacles and attaining the provision, protection, and direction of the Lord as we walk as His disciples. He will lead us to life and that more abundant if we faint not as we walk the path that leads to life. True prosperity comes from learning to be led by the Spirit.

The Greek word used for health, hugiaino, means: sound health, well in body, being safe and sound, whole, being uncorrupt (true in doctrine). In Luke 5:31-32, Jesus says “They that are whole (hugiaino) need not a physician, but they that are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance”. The righteous are spiritually whole; sinners are spiritually sick. The righteous are made spiritually whole as they overcome sin. The righteous overcome sin by repentance; turning away from sin and not continuing in it as they embrace Jesus as their Lord and allow Him to have His way in and through them. Your mind will be progressively renewed as you seek after the Holy Spirit who is the Spirit of Truth. He will lead and guide you into all the truth as you continue to follow Him. Jesus said in John 8:31-32 “If you continue in my word, then are you my disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free”. I would define the word health as used in this scripture as: being made whole or complete, as we allow ourselves to be living sacrifices and to be transformed by the renewing of our minds through the Holy Spirit, who will lead and guide us into all the truth, coming to know Jesus who is The Truth, that we may be free from sin and all entanglements with the world. For he whom the Son sets free is free indeed.

What does the word of God reveal about the sinner? The Greek word used for sinner in every scripture of the New Testament is hamartolos, which means sinner; but comes from a base of the word hamartano which has a meaning that gives greater understanding: to miss the mark (and so not share in the prize). If we examine the two Hebrew words used for sinner in the Old Testament we get an even greater understanding. Chata is used 8 times and means: to miss, to forfeit, lack, loss, trespass; but also contains meanings of expiate, repent, offer reconciliation, and purify oneself. Chattaah is used only once and means: an offense (as in habitual sinfulness) and its penalty, sacrifice or expiation, and purification of sin or a sin offering.

Notice these definitions of sinner reveal both the consequences of sin and the means of dealing with sin. One might assume the word sinner refers to those in the world. However, those in the world have no means of dealing with sin. They have no relationship with the One who forgives sin. They are in the flesh and therefore cannot please God. Therefore, the word of God does not refer to a sinner as one that is of the world, but one who is in the kingdom of God. “Again, the kingdom of God is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind. Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.” (Matthew 13:47-48)

The sinner acknowledges Jesus as Savior; the righteous embrace Him as Lord. The sinner is comfortable in the knowledge that his sins are forgiven as he confesses them; the righteous is a living sacrifice to the Lord that He (the Lord) may increase in his life and that he (the righteous) may decrease as a result. The sinner is comfortable in his life because he remains so much like the world; the righteous is in this world but not of it. The sinner does not abide in the Lord and therefore does not produce righteous fruit; the righteous abide in the Lord and bear righteous fruit, and the Father prunes him so he will bear even more righteous fruit. The sinner is carnally minded; the righteous is spiritually minded. The sinner is in Christ by the new birth; the righteous allow Christ to be formed in him as Lord.

All scriptures in the New Testament use the same Greek word for soul (psuche) which refers to the heart, life, mind, or soul. Psuche comes from three other Greek words. 1) Psucho, which refers to breathing gently and voluntarily, or a reduction in temperature by evaporation. 2) Pnuema, which refers to a more forceful current of air, a blast or breeze, which references the spirit or the mind. 3) Zoe, which is life; the kind of life that the Lord gives; godly, eternal. When Jesus appeared to His disciples after His resurrection, He breathed on them and said “Receive you the Holy Ghost” (John 20:22). When the Holy Ghost came to earth in Acts 2:2 “there came a sound from heaven as of a mighty rushing wind”. “The Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul” (Genesis 2:7). This pattern of God breathing life or bringing judgment (“by the blast of God they perish, and by the breath of his nostrils they are consumed” (Job 4:9), is consistent throughout the word of God. With this understanding it is easier to see the connection of our spirit to the breath of God.

When Peter said “let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price” (I Peter 3:2), he was referring to the heart as a combination of our soul and our spirit. When we are born again, we are born again of the Spirit, the breath of God that fills a void that previously had no connection to the spirit realm. We are now ‘in Christ’. “Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things become new” (I Corinthians 5:17). When something is new, you have no knowledge of it or any understanding of how to operate in it. The spirit realm is foreign to us in the beginning. Our spirit now enjoys the presence of God and the connectivity to the spirit realm, but our soul is largely unchanged; the only change being whatever influence the spirit is having on the soul. The soul is now in a tug-of-war battle between the spirit and the flesh. Flesh is flesh and can never be changed but it can be subdued, overcome, and not allowed to exert any more influence on us if we will submit to God’s process. The soul will submit to whichever influence is stronger; spirit or flesh. We will continue to be soulish or carnal until our soul becomes submitted to our spirit.

“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit” (Hebrews 4:12). If our spirit remains connected with our soul, then the ‘hidden man of the heart’ or the ‘incorruptible seed’ (I Peter 1:23) cannot function without the influence of our carnal nature. “Know you not that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven, that you may be a new lump.” (I Corinthians 5:6-7).

“For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: that the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Romans 8:3-6). We each are products of our decisions and that of which we choose to meditate upon in our thoughts. This is our part in our relationship with our Lord. We choose to obey or disobey, to submit or rebel, to agree with that which is truth or agree with that which is a lie. There are no grey areas; it is one or the other. Life or death, blessing or cursing; it is ours to choose. Moses said “I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both you and your seed may live: that you may love the Lord your God, and that you may obey his voice, and that you may cleave to him: for he is your life, and the length of your days: that you may dwell in the land which the Lord swore unto your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.” (Deuteronomy 30:19-20)

If we consistently choose to obey the flesh or the carnal mind, then the psucho which is a gentle influence of the spirit will have less and less impact. To obey the flesh or walk after the flesh is to empower the flesh and give it more and more control. The stronger the flesh, the weaker the spirit’s influence on our decisions. Psucho also has a meaning of ‘reduction in temperature by evaporation’ which suggests one begins to ‘wax cold’. “And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold” (Matthew 24:12). This is illustrated in the parable of the sower. He that received seed into stony places did not have “root in himself, but endures for a while; for when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, by and by he is offended”. He that received seed among the thorns allowed the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches to choke the word, and he became unfruitful. (Matthew 13:20-22) One that gives attention to the carnal mind will not only remain carnally minded, but will grow in carnality which ends in spiritual death. “And then will I profess to them, I never knew you: depart from me, you that work iniquity” (Matthew 7:23)

If we consistently choose to obey the Spirit and seek to be spiritually minded, then the pneuma which has a more forceful impact will be released to cleanse us from the inside. The word of God has much to say about suffering, persecution, affliction, chastisement, and judgement. If we come to know God as He really is, according to His goodness, then these terms take on a positive connotation rather than a negative one. These experiences that were once so undesirable because we didn’t understand why we had to endure such pain and discomfort, are now seen as tools in the hands of a loving Father who is diligently working to shape us into vessels of honor fit for His use. The pneuma will continue to break us and humble us to the place where we can say “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). This where zoe is released, because the spirit is released and has come into dominion; the vessel now being led by the Spirit. Being led by the Spirit, the vessel is now a son of God; “for as many as are led of the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God” (Romans 8:14). And a son will say, just as the Son said when He was on earth, “The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he sees the Father do: for whatsoever things he does, these also do the son likewise” (John 5:19).

III John: 2 is saying that we can enjoy prosperity and health; in direct proportion to the degree that our soul has prospered, or in other words, to the degree that we allow Jesus to be Lord of our lives. The words prosperity and health when used in spiritual terms do not have the same meaning as they do in natural terms. This is where many are deceived. They assume that because they have gathered worldly goods and do not contend with any major physical problems that this is proof that they are blessed of God and are pleasing to Him. Remember, the Father “makes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust” (Matthew 5:45). Outward appearance is nothing; it is the condition of the heart that matters. God does not look upon man as men do, according to the outward appearance, but God looks upon the heart.

“According as his divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that has called us to glory and virtue: whereby are given to us great and precious promises: that by these you might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust” (I Peter 1:3-4). “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that comes to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). The ways which God rewards those who diligently seek Him are beyond our ability to comprehend. “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for them that love him” (I Corinthians 2:9).

The carnal mind has two children: unbelief and sin. Unbelief is a product of our carnal thinking and sin is a product of our carnal action. Apistia is the most commonly used Greek word for unbelief in the New Testament, which means unfaithfulness, disobedience, and being untrustworthy. One must have a relationship with someone in order to be unfaithful, disobedient, or untrustworthy. Therefore, this very definition declares that when the word of God speaks of unbelief, it speaks of those who have relationship with Christ. “Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God” (Hebrews 3:12).  This is a warning for all of us to heed. Please continue to humble yourself in the sight of God and trust Him with all your heart. This path that leads to life is only secure as we seek to know Him and continue to lay down all that is carnal in our lives that we may know Him.

Hamartia is the most commonly used Greek word for sin in the New Testament, which simply means offense. Any action that is offensive to God or any action contrary to His will is sin. “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempts he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.  Then when lust has conceived, it brings forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, brings forth death.” (James 1:13-15) Our thoughts are not sinful; it is when we meditate upon ungodly thoughts and then decide to act upon them that sin comes forth. So sin is connected with the carnal mind through unbelief, but sin itself is an action.

There is no security in the Lord apart from faithfulness and submission to Him. The Cross of Christ does not represent a place of acceptance of sin for it is a place of death to all that is of sin. All those who seek righteousness must be crucified with Christ and overcome sin through death to all that is of our selfish or carnal nature. It is only through death to self that we may be raised up in the power of His resurrection, and it is only as we are resurrected from death that we may know Him and abide in Him and He in us, being one with Him.

If you will submit yourself to the Lord as to a faithful Creator, He will do the work necessary to bring you to life and that more abundant. Keep your eyes fixed on the author and finisher of your faith and He will complete His work in you and make you an overcomer of all that is of the world. Cease fighting Satan on his terms and labor to enter into the rest that God has for you. Realize that all that has hindered you and frustrated you, all that has brought fear, doubt, confusion, and unbelief came from the same source, which is your carnal mind. Satan is rendered impotent without the use of our carnal thinking. Stop feeding him by walking after the flesh and overcome him by feeding your spirit as you walk after the Spirit.

“If you then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sits on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For you are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall you also appear with him in glory. Mortify therefore your members which are on the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: For which things' sake the wrath of God comes on the children of disobedience: In the which you also walked some time, when you lived in them. But now also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that you have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all. Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering; Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do you. And above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfectness. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also you are called in one body; and be you thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatsoever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.” (Colossians 3:1-17)

“Enter you in at the small gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leads to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because small is the gate, and narrow is the way, that leads to life, and few there be that find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14)

There are two paths which we may walk, each with vastly different destinations. The path that leads to life is a narrow way that few find. The reason few find this narrow way is because few are willing to pay the price that is required. The price is the laying down of all that pertains to your carnal nature. The reward is more than you could ever imagine possible. “By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that comes to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:5-6) God’s ways are brilliant and will produce wonderful things in your life if you will only believe and cast all your care on Him.

“And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? And Jesus said to him, Why call you me good? there is none good but one, that is, God. You know the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honor your father and mother. And he answered and said to him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said to him, One thing you lack: go your way, sell whatever you have, and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions. And Jesus looked round about, and said to his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answered again, and said to them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved? And Jesus looking on them said, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible. Then Peter began to say to him, Lo, we have left all, and have followed you. And Jesus answered and said, Truly I say to you, There is no man that has left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel's, But he shall receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.” (Mark 10:17-30)

Jesus is revealing that it is not enough to seek to be obedient to God in your strength and understanding. We also must let go of every attachment to this world. No man can serve two masters; we will either serve the Lord or serve ourselves. The path that leads to life is one of serving the Lord. The broad way that leads to destruction is one of serving the flesh. The blood of Jesus is available for forgiveness of sins along the broad path that leads to destruction, but the blood of Christ in and of itself will not bring you eternal life. We must enter in at the small gate, the Cross of Christ, where we are crucified with Him and die to self, and are raised up in the power of His resurrection; for one must die before being resurrected. There is no resurrection power available to those who walk after the flesh.

Most of the Church will not continue on the path that leads to life because they love the world more than they love Christ. They will seek to save their lives (soul life or self life) and will thereby lose their lives (eternal death), instead of losing their lives that they may find life (the abundant life, now and for all eternity). (Mark 8:35) One must be walking on the path that leads to life to attain eternal life.

Let’s look at the letter to the church of the Laodiceans. Keep in mind that the Laodicean Church is part of the Church; the body of Christ. “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot: I would that you were cold or hot. So then because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue you out of my mouth. Because you say, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and know not that you are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.” (verses 15-17) Jesus is speaking to those in His Church; those of His body. This confuses carnally minded Christians; but the spiritually minded understand that Christ is not marrying His own body, but a Bride prepared for Him; a Bride without spot or wrinkle.

Jesus is speaking to the Harlot who thinks that trusting in the Lord with all your heart simply means trusting Him to forgive sin. Certainly our sins are forgiven through confession but the root of the sin is not dealt with in any other manner than the tools God uses to enable us to overcome sin and come to true repentance (not continuing in the same sin). “My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when you are rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loves he chastens, and scourges every son whom he receives. If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chastens not? But if you be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are you bastards, and not sons.” (Hebrews 12:5-8) There is no way to overcome sin without the chastening of the Lord, and sonship requires being scourged. The word scourge is likened to the brutal whipping Jesus endured before He was made to carry His Cross.

“I counsel you to buy of me gold tried in the fire (His chastening, His refining fire that purifies us to bring us forth as fine gold), that you may be rich; and white raiment (robe of righteousness), that you may be clothed, and that the shame of your nakedness (not being clothed with a robe of righteousness, but darkness of the flesh exposed) does not appear; and anoint your eyes with eyesalve (the touch of the Holy Spirit to remove the scales from your eyes), that you may see.” (verse 18) He explains His process in verse 19: “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. You must be willing to reject all that is of this world and be obedient to the Lord if you are to inherit all that He has for you. You will not find His treasure in any manner other than your flesh being crucified.

“Nevertheless the foundation of God stands sure, having this seal, The Lord knows them that are his. And, let every one that names the name of Christ depart from iniquity. But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honor and some to dishonor. If a man therefore purge himself from these (wood and earth = the carnal mind and the works done by following the flesh), he shall be a vessel unto honor, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work.” (2 Timothy 19-21) The ‘great house’ mentioned above is His house, His body, that carries His Spirit.

“Be you not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship has righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion has light with darkness?  And what concord has Christ with Belial (Satan)? Or what part has he that believes with an infidel? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God; as God has said, I will dwell in them, and walk with them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be you separate, says the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father to you, and you shall be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18)

Christ desires to manifest Himself to the world and He has chosen us as vessels through which He may appear. He cannot do so if our flesh hides Him. The flesh must be crucified so that we become pierced as He was pierced and His light shines through us. We must “endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ” (2 Timothy 2:3), that we may be used by Him to destroy the works of the devil; first in us, then in the Church and the world. We must overcome the world through death to self that we may be seated with the Lord in heavenly places, and walk in His power and authority. “And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. (Romans 8:10) Notice the ‘if’ Christ be in you. Christ can only be in us as we invite Him into our soul and receive Him as Lord; allowing the Spirit of Christ to mature us, to become submitted to Him, and be obedient to His every command. Then we can enter into a new, exciting, adventurous, and life-changing walk with the Lord as we come to know Him personally.

“Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? Or who shall stand in his holy place? He that has clean hands, (his actions are righteous) and a pure heart; (the pure in heart shall see God, Matthew 5:8) who has not lifted up his soul to vanity, (evil, idolatry, pride) nor sworn deceitfully. He shall receive the blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of his salvation. This is the generation of them that seek him, that seek your face, O Jacob. Selah. Lift up your heads, O you gates; and be you lifted up, you everlasting doors; and the King of Glory shall come in.” (Psalm 24)

“For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the seas.” (Habakkuk 2:14) This scripture will be fulfilled by a sold out generation of believers who will sell all they have to obtain the pearl of great price; knowing the Lord. (Matthew 13:45-46) We cannot know Him unless He is in us. And He cannot be in us if we do not submit to His lordship and seek to obey Him in all things. But if He is in us and we do not faint along the way as we follow Him, we will be vessels of honor through whom He will manifest to reach a lost and dying world.

“Elijah was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit. (James 5:17-18) The word passions refers to being influenced by the flesh and the lusts thereof. We are all the same; born into this world as carnal, willful, selfish beings that desire to have our way and covet the things of this world. Most of the Church testifies that they are ‘only human’ and worse yet, that they are ‘sinners saved by grace’. Although there is a degree of truth to these statements, we have established that a lie, no matter how small, that is woven into the truth makes the whole thing a lie. These beliefs do not stand the test of truth, when God has made a way for each of us to overcome our carnal nature, our sin, and the world. God is no respecter of persons. We all come into the world the same way and we all have the same potential in Christ given to us to know Him and be used by Him to do great exploits and to destroy the works of the devil; if we will submit to His will and seek to know His ways.

“For, brethren, you have been called to liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; You shall love your neighbor as yourself. But if you bite and devour one another, take heed that you be not consumed one of another. This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that you cannot do the things that you would. But if you be led of the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” (Galatians 5:13-25)

No other pattern in the word of God reveals the process of God to bring us to maturity more than the tabernacle of Moses. Twice Moses spent forty days and forty nights alone with God on Mount Sinai. There he received instructions of all things concerning the law. The tabernacle that was to be the place of worship for God’s people was revealed in intricate detail. God commanded Moses: “And you shall rear up the tabernacle according to the fashion thereof which was shown you in the mount”. (Exodus 26:30) There are three parts to the tabernacle; each one directly relating to a person of the Trinity. The outer court is the place of the Holy Spirit. When we are born again, we are born again of the Holy Spirit and it is He that we first come to know if we will seek truth and pursue relationship with Him. The outer court is the place where the people would come to bring their sacrifices for forgiveness of their sins, a foreshadowing of the present day where we confess our sins and receive forgiveness of sins based on the shedding of Christ’s blood on the Cross.

Sadly, most believers never grow out of this cycle of confession and repentance, thinking that is all there is to living the Christian life. I call this the revolving door; where people file into the presence of God to confess their sins, then file back out into the world to continue life as usual without being changed. This is the pattern of the Harlot, who walks the broad path that leads to destruction. She feels that she is cleansed and justified because her sins are forgiven. She is free to live life on her terms, making decisions that seem right to her while assuming she is being led by the Spirit in her thinking. She lives most of her life outside the tabernacle of God, instead of abiding in Him.

The task of the Holy Spirit is to bring us into an intimate relationship with Jesus. We do not know Jesus automatically when we are born again. Jesus does not reside in the outer court, He resides in the inner court or Holy place where only priests can enter. To grow into priesthood and enter into the Holy place, we have to allow the Holy Spirit to mature us and become obedient to His leading. Jesus said that the Holy Spirit does not speak of Himself but only speaks of Him (Jesus). If we allow the Holy Spirit to speak to us in our 'outer court' experience, He will draw our attention to the brazen laver and the brazen altar. The laver is where the priests would wash before ministering, and it is here where the Holy Spirit spiritually draws us to look into the laver and see our reflection; to see the impurity of our countenance and see our need to be delivered of our carnality. We see the spots and blemishes that are still there even though our sins have been forgiven. The Holy Spirit uses this observance to give us revelation that although the sin is forgiven, the root of the sin remains, which will continue to produce after its own kind until it is overcome. He then draws our attention to the brazen altar where the priests would burn the sacrifices. As we focus on the brazen altar, the Holy Spirit will give us understanding of our need to become living sacrifices, which is our reasonable service. The refiner’s fire can now begin its work to deliver us from that which is attached to the world.

As we grow and mature, allowing the Holy Spirit to purge us of much of our carnal thinking, He will spiritually change our garments (clothe us in righteousness) and we will enter into priesthood. He will bring us into the Holy place where the priests minister to the Lord. The Holy place is the place of the golden lamp stand, the table of shewbread, and the altar of incense; all signifying the person of Jesus. The golden lamp stand represents Jesus as the light of the world and also represents the Holy Spirit in His fullness; the seven-fold flow of the spirit of the Lord, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, and the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord (Isaiah 11:2). We will come into a full revelation of the Holy Spirit as we learn to be led by Him. The golden lamp stand consists of a main pipe and six branches all flowing from the main pipe. This represents Jesus as the vine and us as the branches in John 15. The lamp stand is filled with oil (the Holy Spirit) and produces the light of truth which is Jesus (the Way, the Truth, and the Life). This light of truth, by way of the leading of the Spirit of Truth, will bring us to the table of shewbread where we enter into a more intimate relationship with Jesus and know Him as the bread of life; our source of life.  Here we taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalms 34:8).

At the table we have deep communion with the Lord and fall in love with Him, desiring nothing more than His continual presence. It is like enjoying a romantic candlelit dinner with our Beloved. This is the place where we allow Christ to be in us. We open the door to our soul in response to His knocking and He comes in and becomes Lord. Jesus is not only our Savior; He must be our Lord. We must surrender the throne of our hearts, our souls, to the lordship of Jesus Christ if we are to become His. It is not enough to be in Christ, He must be in us.

“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock”. Jesus is standing at a door. What door? The door to your soul. He has already gained entrance into your life through your spirit, but that is not enough. Jesus wants to rule and reign in your soul. He wants to change you so that you may overcome the world and all that is in it so that He may be the Lord of your life. He gives you free will; to ‘hear’ and ‘open the door’ which gives Him permission to come in and fellowship with you and you with Him, or to ignore the knocking and keep that door closed. Opening the door will give Jesus permission to ‘rebuke and chasten’ and lead you to overcoming sin and the world, thereby bringing you to the fullness of all that God has for you; life and that more abundant, the manifestation as a son of God, being a partaker of the ‘great harvest’, and all the eternal rewards that go with this blessing. Keeping the door closed will keep you in your carnal thinking, which leads to death and separation from the Lord. The Laodiceans ‘had need of nothing’ because they were content in what they thought to be godliness and what they thought would work to their salvation without having to pay the price of the fellowship of His sufferings and the crucifying of their flesh. This is the character of the Harlot church.

This teaching is contradictory to the prevalent message of today. Most teach about grace and present it in a way that says that grace will take care of your sin without you having to do anything but confess your sins and ‘trust Christ for the forgiveness of your sins’. But the word of God does not teach this. We are to overcome sin, not continue to allow sin to be our master. The true gospel is one of the empowering of a believer and the overcoming of sin in a people that choose to lay down their lives so that they can become the image of God, fellowshipping with Him now and for all eternity with unfathomable joy and peace that the world cannot comprehend, and being a demonstration of the love and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that will lead many to repentance and knowledge of our Lord.

“Even the mystery which has been hidden from ages and generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: 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: Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus” (Colossians 1:26-28). Perfection comes as you receive this revelation of the mystery of ‘Christ in you, the hope of glory’, and walk it out. The incorruptible seed will lay dormant unless it ‘falls to the ground and dies’, but if you die to self you will bring forth much fruit. The process of dying to self is accomplished through the opening of the door to your soul for Christ to come in. When you open that door (which is opened by revelation of your need for Him to be Lord over all of your life and your agreement to let this happen), then Christ will truly be in you.

You are ‘in Christ’ when you are born again, but you will not enter into maturity and show forth Christ-likeness until Christ is ‘in you’. This was the problem Paul was encountering with the Galatians. He asked, “having begun in the Spirit, are you now made perfect by the flesh?” (Galatians 3:3) He goes on to write to the Galatians in chapter 4, verse 19; “My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you”. The Galatians to whom he was writing were born again and ‘in Christ’, but Christ had not yet been formed in them. They had not yet opened the door for Christ to be in them.

Once you have opened the door for Christ to be in you, then you must be like John the Baptist who said “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30). The process that the Lord will take you through is one of breaking the ‘outer man’ that covers the incorruptible seed with carnality; bringing your carnal nature into submission. As you yield more and more to the lordship of Jesus Christ in your life, He will occupy more of your internal structure and you will increasingly become more like Him. He will accomplish this by bringing you through many hardships and sufferings that require you to trust Him. Each step along the way you will face the decision to either trust Him and press on, or rebel and turn back to your way of dealing with things. It is truly the road less traveled. However, “I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18). It is through suffering and the fellowship of His sufferings that we grow and abound to a place where the glory resident in the incorruptible seed bursts through that which had previously hidden the glory of the Lord and we become vessels that manifest His glory wherever we go.

Attaining this place of His glory being made manifest in our lives is His desire for each one of us. He never leaves us or forsakes us along the path that leads to life. Sadly, many choose to leave Him and enter back onto the broad path that leads to destruction; yet He still abides faithful. He will continue to reach out to those who have ceased abiding in Him, just as He did the Laodiceans, and try to woo them back to Him. He is a holy, righteous, and perfect God who deserves nothing less than our all. We have nothing of ourselves and are nothing of ourselves, but He chooses to give us access to all He has for us if we will love Him, honor Him, and seek Him with all our hearts. We are bought with a price so that we are no longer our own. We must come into the revelation that we have no rights and it is our reasonable service to do His will. In return, He will “do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20).

The process of God is ‘the refiner’s fire’, which is like the progression used by metalsmiths to purify gold. The gold must be heated and cooled several times to get out all the impurities. But the last heating is an intense, white-hot heat, that must be only for a specific time. If left in too long, the metal becomes brittle and useless. So it is in God’s perfecting of us. We must go through many trials and afflictions to drive out the impurities in us. God’s goal is to bring us to perfection: becoming one with Him through the crucifying of the flesh to the place where it is no longer we who live. “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20)

At the appointed time, Jesus, as our Great High Priest, will then take us into the Holy of Holies by way of the altar of incense. According to the law, once a year the high priest would “take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the Lord, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the veil: And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the Lord, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony” (Leviticus 16:13-14).

In Matthew 21: 42-44, Jesus presents Himself as the stone which the builders rejected which is become the chief cornerstone and said “whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder”. In the process of the outer court, we are broken and humbled as we become living sacrifices. But at the altar of incense Jesus ‘falls on his chosen servant’; grinding His servant to powder (the servant is the incense).  He then takes of the coals from the altar and puts them into the golden censer. He then waves the golden censer before the veil as our Great High Priest and enters into the Holy of Holies. He sprinkles His chosen servant on the burning coals in the censer and that servant becomes a sweet fragrance that fills the mercy seat that is upon the ark of the covenant. This is how one becomes spiritually presented to the Father, and he now abides under the shadow of the Almighty. This is the place of transfiguration where one fully dies to self and the glory of the Lord is revealed in him; the Lord's nature and character being seen not the servant's. Notice in scripture that Jesus always points to the Father, for it is His job to bring us into relationship with our heavenly Father. At this point, the servant now knows the fullness of the Godhead: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Since no flesh shall glory in His presence, this step requires death to all that is of the servant's carnal nature. It is a place of intimacy and entering into His rest; where one ceases from his works and does only that which he sees the Father do and speaks only that which he hears the Father say. It is a place of being a manifest son of God, led by the Holy Spirit and no longer fulfilling the lusts of the flesh. The perfected servant is now able to walk as Jesus walked in this earth in power and dominion, destroying the works of the devil and setting the captives free.

The promises of God are yes and amen to all who trust in Him with all their heart. God promises victory and provision to those who are utterly dependent on Him and refuse to place any confidence in the flesh. We see this promise of victory and overcoming in Leviticus 26:3-9: “If you walk in my statutes, and keep my commandments, and do them; then I will give rain in due season, and the land shall yield her increase, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit. And your threshing shall reach to the vintage, and the vintage shall reach to the sowing time: and you shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely. And I will give peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid: and I will rid evil beasts out of the land, neither shall the sword go through your land. And you shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword. And five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword. For I will have respect to you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, and establish my covenant with you."

The Bible is a revelation of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the way that leads to life. Therefore, the Bible is an instruction book regarding knowing the Lord Jesus Christ through an intimate walk with Him in this life. It takes time to get to know someone in this world, how much more so to get to know Jesus? Yet so many in the body of Christ are deceived into thinking they know the Lord just because they are born again.

Becoming born again is the beginning of the path that leads to life. The end of the path is knowing Him even as we also are known. "For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known." (I Corinthians 13:12) We can know the Lord intimately if we will press on to allow Him to overcome the flesh in us, make us spiritually minded, and receive the mind of Christ. "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it does not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is." (I John 3:2) John is not speaking of seeing Him and being like Him after leaving this world, but accomplishing this in this life. He who has ears to hear, let him hear what the Spirit says.

There are progressive degrees of maturity along the path that leads to life, and the Bible shows these in patterns of threes. We have already discussed two of these in the tabernacle of Moses regarding the outer court, the inner court or Holy Place, and the Holy of Holies, and the parable of the sower; the thirty, sixty, and hundredfold which are varying degrees of fruit manifest in the life of a believer. Now let's look at other patterns of threes that reveal the path that leads to life.

Hosea 6:1-3: “ Come, and let us return to the Lord: for he has torn, and he will heal us; he has smitten, and he will bind us up. After two days he will revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight. Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the Lord: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come to us as the rain, as the latter and former rain to the earth.”

Here we see three days which are the three stages of entering into the fullness of relationship with God, or completion. In day one we are torn and we are healed, we are smitten and our wounds are bound up. This describes the process that the Holy Spirit takes us through to break us and humble us so that we become obedient, learn to walk by faith and not by sight, and begin to mature in the things of the spirit; allowing our carnal nature to be dealt with in our ‘outer court’ experience. In day two He will revive us. In this stage we are quickened and made whole as we come into intimate fellowship with Jesus and we receive ministry from Jesus and learn to minister to Him as priests in our ‘inner court’ experience. In day three He will raise us up and we will live in His sight. In this stage we are fully transformed, raised up in the power of His resurrection, become manifest sons of God, and enter into the presence of God the Father. We now spiritually live in His presence in the Holy of Holies.

“I saw by night, and behold a man riding upon a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle trees that were in the bottom; and behind him there were red horses, speckled, and white. Then said I, O my lord, what are these? And the angel that talked with me said to me, I will show you what these be. And the man that stood among the myrtle trees answered and said, these are they whom the Lord has sent to walk to and fro through the earth.” (Zechariah 1:8-10)

Since time began, the Lord has been sending His messengers to walk to and fro through the earth. There are three types of horses mentioned here which represent degrees of maturity in Christ or fruit according to the parable of the sower. The red horses are immature believers who are seeking to know the Lord, are covered by the blood of the Lamb, and are the thirtyfold. The speckled are more mature believers who are growing in their relationship with Christ and are being purged of their carnal nature, shown here as speckled because there is much that has been purged out of their lives (shown by white) but still have darkness/carnality in them to be overcome (shown by specks of darkness) which are the sixtyfold. The white horses represent mature sons; the manifest sons of God clothed in robes of righteousness. They are obedient to His every command and are used by Him to fulfill His will. These are the hundredfold. In I John, the apostle John describes these as children, young men, and fathers.

We also see this pattern in Revelation 4:6-7 with the four beasts around the throne. The first beast was like a lion which represents the Bride (as a corporate body) who has become like the Lion of the Tribe of Judah; perfect, without spot or wrinkle. Then we have the next three which follow the patterns above. The second beast was like a calf, representing immature, but fruitful believers who are the red horses, the thirtyfold, and ‘little children’. The third beast had a face as a man which represents greater maturity. In I Corinthians 13:11 Paul says, “when I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things”. The man represents the speckled horses, the sixtyfold, and the ‘young men who have overcome the wicked one’. The fourth beast was like a flying eagle representing the white horses, the hundredfold believers, and the ‘fathers’. The flying eagles are the sons of God. Whereas the calf and man are earthbound, still overcoming carnality, the flying eagles are free to soar in the heavenlies and are no longer limited by the flesh. They seek to do the will of the Father and be about the Father’s business; since as sons of the Most High that is their heart’s desire.

Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life; which is another pattern of three which reveals the path that leads to life. The way is found through the blood of the Lamb, being born again, and being translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. The way is led by the Holy Spirit, who will lead you into all the Truth, which is Jesus Himself. The way is marked by much suffering, affliction, persecution, and rejection, as the enemy of your soul tries to discourage you from continuing along this path and convince you that God's ways make no sense. Satan wants you to go back to trusting in yourself and dealing with all things in your own strength and understanding. But if you continue on to seek the truth, then the Holy Spirit will reveal Jesus to you and you will know Jesus as the Truth and the Truth will make you free. "Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If you continue in my word, then are you my disciples indeed; And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." (John 8:31-32) Notice that you have to continue in His word, continue on the path that leads to life in order to be His disciple. But if you continue, you shall know Him and walk in freedom. "If the Son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed." (John 8:36)

Life and that more abundant is found by continuing on to being ground to powder with every last vestige of carnality in you overcome. Eternal life is given to all who walk and remain on this path, no matter what degree of maturity. The fullness of your potential in this life, however, is a matter of overcoming this world, being led by His Spirit, and entering into His rest. Entering into His rest is a matter of ceasing from your works and walking as Jesus walked this earth, doing nothing but what you see Him do and speaking nothing but that which you hear Him say. Jesus came to provide us an example of how we are called to walk.

“For even hereunto were you called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow his steps: Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth. Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judges righteously: Who his own self bore our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes you were healed. For you were as sheep going astray; but are now returned to the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.” (I Peter 2:21-25)

Jesus is the example of how we should walk; without sin, innocent, not rendering evil for evil, and wholeheartedly trusting God. Jesus gave us instructions regarding the accomplishment of this great task. First, you must deny self or the carnal nature by walking after the Spirit and not after the flesh. If we walk in the Spirit, we will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh; we will not sin. “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” (Galatians 5:16) Second, you must take up your cross daily. The servant is not greater than the Master, so the same path Jesus walked is the path we must follow if we are to find life. The good news is that Jesus walks this path with us. We must be crucified with Christ. We must die to the things of this world to be raised up in the power of His resurrection. We cannot know Him if we do not embrace the Cross of Christ in our own lives and make Jesus our personal Lord. We cannot be eternally saved if we do not seek to know Him. Third, we must follow Jesus. He will lead us to the Cross; that through death to self and the crucifying of the flesh we may be raised up in the power of His resurrection and know Him. It is in this process that we find life and that more abundant.

The popular teachings of today are in stark contrast to the statements made above. The church is greatly deceived on many fronts. In my opinion, the two greatest deceptions lie in the understanding of the humanity of Jesus and the true message of salvation. If we understand what the word of God is saying about these two doctrines, then everything else begins to make sense. We must understand that Jesus came to this earth as a human; not as God. He is our example of sonship, our demonstration of what that looks like, and the revealing of the way in which sonship can be attained in our lives. We must understand the true gospel of Jesus Christ and what eternal salvation is all about; otherwise we will continue to walk in apathy as does most of the church.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came to his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: which were born, not of blood, nor the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth.” (John 1:1-3, 10-14.)

Jesus was willing to come to earth as a man to be the Lamb of God; the perfect sacrifice that would deliver man from his sins. He willingly offered Himself on the Cross to die so that the shedding of His blood would pay the price for the redemption of sin. Through His sacrifice He regained the authority that was given to man prior to man’s fall and took the keys of death and hell away from Satan. He made the way, through faith in Him, that would allow man to be born again by the Holy Spirit and give man the opportunity to know God and overcome his carnal nature, taking on the nature and mind of Christ, thereby becoming like Him (His image). It is not enough to understand that Jesus came into this world to offer Himself as the propitiation for our sins. We must understand that He became flesh. He was not born of earthly parents and therefore was not born into the sin nature as we are, but was born of the Holy Spirit through an earthly vessel who was a virgin. This is an important aspect of His coming into the world. But we must also understand the humanity of Jesus if we are to get the full revelation of what He truly accomplished here on earth.

Before the foundations of the world were laid, God planned this most pivotal event to produce Their (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) desire; a creation that would be just like Them, the image of God. In the brilliant mind of God, Jesus was sent to be the demonstration of sonship and the means through which man could become like Him. The plan depended upon Jesus being successful in living a sinless life as a man thereby fulfilling the law's requirement that a sacrifice had to be perfect to be accepted. He demonstrated the power and wisdom of being led by the Holy Spirit and laying down His life in obedience to God. He willingly went to the Cross, was crucified, laid in a tomb, and then resurrected. He provided the example and made the way for us to die to our carnal nature and the attachment to this world by and through the power of the Holy Spirit to then be raised up in the power of our Lord’s resurrection and be led by the Holy Spirit just as Jesus was here on earth.

As God, Jesus knew He would be successful in accomplishing His mission. As a man, He did not know if He would be successful. He had to walk it out facing the same trials, disappointments, rejections, and frustrations that we do in addition to facing more pain and suffering than we could ever comprehend all because of His love for us. As a man, He was the demonstration of what we were created to be and the demonstration of our potential in Him if we will be obedient to follow where He leads.

He was “despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief” (Isaiah 53:3) because he was the forerunner to establish the path that we would walk to overcome our carnal nature and be conformed to His image. Yet He was the expression of the fullness of joy and peace, demonstrating that “the joy of the Lord is our strength” (Nehemiah 8:10). “And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient to death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:8), just as we are called to humble ourselves and be obedient to death; dying to all that is worldly in us. “Truly, truly, I say to you. He that believes on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do because I go to my Father.” (John 14:12) We will do the same works He did if we will walk in belief. The greater works to which Jesus refers relates to the development of a corporate body through whom He will work on a mass scale. “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13).

Luke 2:41-52 gives us insight into the life of Jesus as a youth. “Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. And it came to pass, that after three days they found him sitting in the temple, sitting in the midst of doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said to him, son, why have you thus dealt with us? Behold your father and I have sought you sorrowing. And he said to them, How is it that you sought me? Know you not that I must be about my father’s business? And they understood not the saying which he spoke to them. And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them: but his mother kept these sayings in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man”.

This is the only glimpse we have of the childhood of Jesus. It was another eighteen years before He was released into His ministry. This scripture is very key to our understanding of the humanity of Jesus. Jesus was not born into this world having already overcome the things pertaining to this life. He had to grow and develop just as we do. Here we see Jesus wrestling with His understanding of how He would accomplish that which His Father had placed on His heart. His desire was to go out and share all the wonderful things He had come to know about His Father and lead others to know Him in the same way. At this moment, Jesus didn’t understand that it was not yet time for His release into His ministry and that there were many things yet to be learned. God designed our world to have authorities placed in it and we must obey the authorities placed over us if we are obedient to God. It was no different with Jesus. He quickly submitted to His earthly parents and continued to be subject to them until He was sent in the proper season.

Notice that He increased in wisdom and stature and also increased in favor with God and man, just as we will do if we will keep our eyes fixed upon the author and finisher of our faith and obediently follow Him wherever He leads. Hebrews 4:15 says that Jesus was “in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin”, which again shows the humanity of Jesus and the pattern established for our example.“But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust has conceived, it brings forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, brings forth death” (James 1:14-15). Sin is not committed because one is tempted. Sin comes forth when one meditates on the temptation and brings it to fruition, resulting in action contrary to obedience to God, instead of “casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ” (I Corinthians 10:5).

Jesus accomplished this perfectly, not because He didn’t experience the fullness of the lust and desire that is part of our carnal nature, but because He so loved the Father and so desired to please Him that He refused to bow the knee to sin. It is also because He so loved us that He was willing to endure all things for our example and our deliverance from sin. James 1:13 says that “God cannot be tempted with evil”. This scripture shows us that Jesus was fully human and therefore tempted like we are.

Hebrews 5:7-8 gives further evidence of the humanity of Jesus. Verse 8 says “Though he were a son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered”. When the word of God speaks of obedience it refers to obedience to God or that to which He has ordained that we must be obedient. God does not need to learn obedience to Himself, only man has this need. Verse 7 says “Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears to him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared”. This passage refers to the time when Jesus was in the garden of Gethsemane praying to the Father. He said in Matthew 26:39 “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as you will”. Jesus did not know if it were somehow possible for Him to escape what He was about to face. He was in great fear and consternation.

But what was it that He feared?  Most would answer that He knew the hideous type of death He was to face and He feared the suffering or questioned His ability to withstand the pain. I believe it was much more than this. I believe Jesus feared what we humans fear most: the unknown. Jesus knew the type of death that awaited Him and He knew He was to be the ‘Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world’ because the Word who became flesh knew and understood the scriptures. Jesus knew He had to take upon Himself the sins of the world. But here was the problem: Jesus had never known sin. He had no idea how this would affect Him or if He could withstand the effect of sin when the fate of the whole world rested upon His shoulders. He didn’t know if He was going to be able to accomplish this gargantuan task. He was human and only knew that which the Holy Spirit revealed to Him. And the Holy Spirit was not revealing what lay ahead. Jesus faced the Cross with no idea of the outcome.

Soon after Jesus finished praying, Judas and a great multitude came. They laid hands on Jesus and took Him. Peter attempted to fight for Jesus but only accomplished cutting the ear off a servant of the high priest. Jesus said to Peter in Matthew 26:53 “Think you that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?” Jesus was saying that He had a choice in this matter. By position, Jesus was God. But to fulfill the scriptures, be the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and take back the authority in this earth from Satan, Jesus had to go to the Cross as a sinless man.

God had given man authority in the earth and man lost that authority through the fall of the first Adam, but now the last Adam was positioned to take back that authority. But He could only do that as a sinless man. God is spirit and He is eternal. God, therefore, could not die for our sins. Jesus could have very well decided to not go through the task at hand and return to His state as God. But praise God He did not! He chose to be obedient even to the horrific death He experienced. He did it because of the love He has for us. “For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings” (Hebrews 2:10).

The fact that Jesus had a choice regarding going to the Cross only magnifies His accomplishment. Likewise, the fact that He did so as a human. He was humiliated and accused yet He didn’t open his mouth in defense. He was beaten beyond recognition then whipped with strips of leather with embedded sharp stones and glass that clawed out chunks of flesh each time they landed, yet was silent. In an account given by the Roman soldier that nailed Jesus to the Cross, the soldier was astounded that Jesus did not cry out. Jesus just looked at him peacefully. After all this torture, then came the onrush of pain as His Cross was dropped into a hole and gravity now forced His bodyweight on His wrists (He was nailed at the wrists, not the hands, for not a bone of Him was broken) and feet while His shoulders were being pulled out of their sockets. Crucifixion was a slow and terribly painful death. Yet that was not the worst that Jesus faced.

At the appointed time, the sins of the world were unleashed upon Jesus; “who his own self bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes you were healed” (I Peter 2:24). It is impossible to imagine what Jesus was going through at this point. Then the situation turned even worse. At the ninth hour (3:00 pm) Jesus cried with a loud voice, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”. God the Father had turned away from His Son and now Jesus was alone in the midst of His greatest suffering. He had never known separation from the Father (He was with Him by the Holy Spirit while here on earth) and had no idea that this was part of the plan. Yet He so trusted the Father that He persevered, cried out with a loud voice, and said “Father, into your hands I commend My spirit” (Luke 23:46). After having said this, He died.

During the forty days after He was resurrected by the Holy Spirit, Jesus walked the earth in His resurrected body and was now truly both God and man. In the beginning He was God only and while on earth (prior to His resurrection) He was fully man. Only now after He has accomplished the greatest act of love, courage, obedience, and faithfulness ever witnessed is He both God and man.

There are three reasons why Jesus had to come to this earth in the flesh as a human. Philippians 2:5-8 says: “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross”. Jesus’ foremost mission was to go to the Cross as the sacrificial Lamb of God to pay the penalty for our sins. According to the Mosaic law a sacrifice had to be without blemish. Blood was the only thing that could cover sin. God is certainly perfect, but God does not have blood to shed for our sins. Therefore, a sinless man, perfect and without blemish, was the only sacrifice that God could accept to redeem all mankind.

The next reason is relative to the intimate relationship we can enjoy with Him if we will only embrace Him as Lord. By submitting Himself to the plan of God and suffering all that He did on our behalf, He became our great High Priest. Unlike the high priests of the Old Testament that went in yearly for the atonement of sins, first for his own and then for the people’s, Jesus did this once when He offered up Himself. And in so doing, we now have a high priest who can be touched with the feelings of our infirmities because He has experienced every one of them and therefore understands what we are going through. He understands your every need and your every feeling because He has already been there. There is no pain or circumstance He has not already experienced and overcome and will lead you to overcome if you will only allow Him to do so. “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).

The third reason provides the way for us to attain our potential in Christ. Jesus demonstrated what it looks like to be a manifest son of God in the flesh. It is this manifestation that will accomplish the fulfillment of God’s plan for man to become His image and accomplish His commandment to be fruitful and multiply, and establish righteousness in the earth. Jesus was the demonstration of what we are all called to be; sons of God. Even though He was without sin and had a perfect relationship with the Holy Spirit and His heavenly Father, Jesus was still thirty years in preparation before being released into His ministry. When He first appeared, Jesus came to John the Baptist at the river Jordan to be baptized. John was puzzled because he didn’t understand why Jesus would need to be baptized. Jesus said in Matthew 3:15 “suffer it to be so now: for thus it becomes us to fulfill all righteousness”. What Jesus was saying was that for Him to lay the foundation for us to follow Him it was necessary for Him to do all the things He requires of us to receive righteousness.

What a wonderful Lord and Savior; who says to each of us that He won’t ask us to do anything that He wasn’t willing to do Himself! So Jesus was baptized, symbolic of our sins being washed away. Then the heavens were opened to Him and the Spirit of God descended upon Him like a dove, symbolic that we too must be clothed upon by the Holy Spirit and filled with Him. In Matthew 4:11, John the Baptist stated that Jesus would baptize with the Holy Ghost and with fire. This fire, the refiner’s fire, is essential to our being purged of sin; which if we will embrace and allow it to thoroughly deal with our carnal nature we will die to self, overcome sin in our lives, and become sons of God.

The plan of God for your life is a process that entails much suffering, the fellowship of His sufferings, to overcome your carnal nature and release you into resurrection life. The Holy Spirit came to Jesus as a dove since He was without sin. In John 5:18-20, the Jews were angry with Jesus because He said that God was His Father; making himself equal with God. Jesus answered “truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of himself, but what he sees the Father do: for whatsoever things he does, these also do the Son likewise. For the Father loves the Son, and shows him all things that He himself does: and he will show him greater works than these that you may marvel”. Notice that Jesus said He could do nothing of Himself. He was affirming His humanity but also demonstrating to us what it looks like to be led by the Holy Spirit.

We are called to be sons of God like the one true Son of God. The Holy Spirit will never lead you into sin, therefore being led by the Spirit means overcoming sin. Notice that Jesus said that the Father would show Him greater works (future tense) showing that Jesus did not see all things at all times as God. One other foundation that Jesus laid was the demonstration of total dependence upon God, which we also must learn to do if we are to enter into sonship. Without Jesus we can do nothing. (John 15:5)

Israel was the first church God planted in the earth. Israel was planted by the righteous seed of Abraham. “Now the Lord had said to Abram, Get you out of your country, and from your kindred, and from your father's house, to a land that I will show you: And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless you, and curse him that curses you: and in you shall all families of the earth be blessed. So Abram departed, as the Lord had spoken to him; and Lot went with him: and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran. And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all their substance that they had gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came. And Abram passed through the land to the place of Sichem, to the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land. And the Lord appeared to Abram, and said, To your seed will I give this land: and there built he an altar to the Lord, who appeared to him.” (Genesis 12:1-7)

Abram heard God, and believed Him, and journeyed to a land where he was a stranger and a sojourner. “By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing where he went. For he looked for a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” (Hebrews 11:8,10) Abram was given the promise of a son, who would be heir to all God would give him; for God said: “To your seed will I give this land".

Although Abram believed God, his carnal mind led him to try to figure out how God would fulfill His promise. God said he would have a son, but ten years had now passed. God had assured him that his heir would come forth from his bowels. In his carnal reasoning, Abram listened to the counsel of his wife Sarai. “Now Sarai Abram's wife bore him no children: and she had a handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar. And Sarai said to Abram, Behold now, the Lord has restrained me from bearing: I pray you, go in to my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai. And Sarai Abram's wife took Hagar her maid the Egyptian, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to her husband Abram to be his wife. And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And Abram was eighty-six years old, when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.” (Genesis 16:1-4,16)

By leaning to his understanding, Abram made a huge mistake that plagues us to this day. The son of the bondwoman was not to be the heir but was to be cast out. “For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman. But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise. Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which genders to bondage, which is Hagar. For this Hagar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answers to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all. For it is written, Rejoice, you barren that bear not; break forth and cry, you that travail not: for the desolate has many more children than she which has a husband. Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now. Nevertheless what says the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman. So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.” (Galatians 4:22-31) Had Abram waited on the Lord, there would only have been the son of promise. We also, if we do not wait on the Lord and lean to our understanding, will produce ‘Ishmaels’ in our own lives.

The son of promise did come at the appointed time. God also changed Abram’s name to Abraham, and Sarai’s name to Sarah. “And the Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did to Sarah as he had spoken. For Sarah conceived, and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son that was born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him. And Abraham was a hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born to him. And Sarah said, God has made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me. And she said, Who would have said to Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age. And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned. And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born to Abraham, mocking. Wherefore she said to Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac. And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because of his son. And God said to Abraham, Let it not be grievous in your sight because of the lad, and because of your bondwoman; in all that Sarah has said to you, hearken to her voice; for in Isaac shall your seed be called. And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is your seed.” (Genesis 21:1-13)

God laid the foundation of Israel according to the pattern He established in the beginning. Two children; one born after the flesh and one born after the Spirit: Cain and Abel, Ishmael and Isaac, Esau and Jacob. Two covenants: one of bondage and the other of freedom. Two choices: death and cursing, or life and blessing. Two peoples within His Church; the Harlot and the Bride. "But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now." The Harlot will always persecute the Bride.

“Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his brethren; and the lad was with the sons of Bilhah, and with the sons of Zilpah, his father's wives: and Joseph brought to his father their evil report. Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colors. And when his brethren saw that their father loved him more than all his brethren, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably to him. And Joseph dreamed a dream, and he told it to his brethren: and they hated him yet the more. And he said to them, Hear, I pray you, this dream which I have dreamed: For, behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf. And his brethren said to him, Shall you indeed reign over us? or shall you indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words. And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it to his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said to him, What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall I and your mother and your brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to you to the earth? And his brethren envied him; but his father observed the saying.” (Genesis 37:2-11)

Because of their jealousy, the eleven brothers conspired to do away with Joseph. “And when they saw him afar off, even before he came near to them, they conspired against him to slay him. And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer comes. Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit, and we will say, Some evil beast has devoured him: and we shall see what will become of his dreams. And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and said, Let us not kill him. And Reuben said to them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again. And it came to pass, when Joseph was come to his brethren, that they stripped Joseph out of his coat, his coat of many colors that was on him; And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it. And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a company of Ishmeelites came from Gilead with their camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt. And Judah said to his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood? Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmeelites, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brethren were content. Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt.” (Genesis 37:18-28)

The eleven brothers of Joseph, led by the flesh, persecuted Joseph in their jealousy of him. They conspired to do away with him, but did not kill him because God did not allow them to do so. God sent Joseph to Egypt to suffer and be afflicted in the same manner He prepares all his servants. Because of his obedience to God, Joseph was raised up to a place of power second only to Pharoah and was used by God to be the deliverer of Israel in a time of great famine. Israel would have surely perished if it were not for the goodness of God and His hand of mercy extended to Israel through the righteousness of Joseph. Joseph forgave his brethren, realizing that God had purposed all this for good. God is merciful, and always gives those that are rebellious to Him, the Harlot, every opportunity to repent and turn back to Him.

After the passing of Joseph, “there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph. And he said to his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we: Come on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falls out any war, they join also to our enemies, and fight against us, and so get them up out of the land. Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses. But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew.” This is a pattern with God; for God is a God of increase. The more we allow ourselves to be afflicted, the more we will abound because we grow spiritually and become less and less carnal. However, we must come into the understanding of His purpose for the affliction and embrace it with an attitude of thanksgiving; otherwise we will tend to see the affliction from the selfish perspective of its unfairness to us and try to deal with it in our strength and understanding, which tends to lead to bitterness. “And they were grieved because of the children of Israel. And the Egyptians made the children of Israel to serve with rigor: And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in mortar, and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field: all their service, wherein they made them serve, was with rigor." (Exodus 1:8-14)

God was preparing a people to serve Him in obedience through His chosen means of suffering. At the appointed time, God sent a deliverer who had also been prepared through much suffering. Moses was brought up in the house of Pharaoh, and undoubtedly would have become a great man in Egypt by serving the world. But something stirred in Moses as he saw his brethren being mistreated by the world and intervened at his own peril. He was faced with a choice between denying his heritage and God’s call and thereby enjoying the pleasures of this world, or forsaking the world and embracing the Cross of Christ. “By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect to the recompense of the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.” (Hebrews 11:24-27) Moses made the right choice, and was sent by God to Midian where he was prepared for forty years to become a vessel fit for God’s use.

“Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. And he said, Do not come nigh: put off your shoes from off your feet, for the place whereon you stand is holy ground. Moreover he said, I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. And the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good land and a large, to a land flowing with milk and honey; to the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come to me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh, that you may bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt. And Moses said to God, Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?” (Exodus 1-11)

During his forty years of being broken by God, Moses had become a very humble man. He had no ‘self’ confidence. Although this is a good thing, God must also repair us from our brokenness to be used by Him. Remember, He wounds us and binds up our wounds in our 'first day' experience. "Come, and let us return to the Lord: for he has torn, and he will heal us; he has smitten, and he will bind us up." (Hosea 6:1-3)  At the appointed time, God met with Moses and gave him instructions regarding his call. Moses responded with carnal thinking; he questioned his ability to do what God had called him to do rather than accepting God’s command according to truth; that God Himself would perform His word through His chosen vessel. It is “not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, says the Lord of hosts”.  (Zechariah 4:6)

God succeeded in equipping Moses to be His vessel to deliver Israel from Egypt, and God delivered Israel with a mighty hand. “And the children of Israel did according to the word of Moses; and they borrowed of the Egyptians jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: And the Lord gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they lent to them such things as they required. And they spoiled the Egyptians.” (Exodus 12:35-36)

God was raising up a people that He could call His own. According to His way, He had allowed Israel to suffer under the hand of the Egyptians for over four hundred years. Now came the wilderness experience which was meant to teach His people to trust Him in the midst of that which appeared to the flesh to be lack and hopelessness. Israel is  our example. As we see their response to adversity, we must realize this is the same thing God allows in our lives and we tend to respond in the same manner of unbelief. Only those who were steadfast in their obedience to God saw the promised land. This holds true for us as well. If we are wise, we will recognize this and embrace the wisdom and opportunity that we see in the lives of those who have gone before us and received the inheritance that will be ours if we faint not along the way. “Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward you goodness, if you continue in his goodness: otherwise you also shall be cut off.” (Romans 11:22)

We must walk through that which Israel walked. When we are born again, we are still worldly and must be broken and humbled through adversity and suffering. We are called to come out of the world, and be separate, and touch not the unclean thing. We are then led into the wilderness (just as Jesus was driven into the wilderness), where we experience all manner of lack and things that make no sense to our carnal minds. God's purpose is to teach us to trust Him and to not respond to the appearance of things, so that we are not moved by anything but that which we sense He is leading us to do and believe. Then we enter into the promised land. The place of entering into His rest. But before we can enter into His rest, we must possess the land, which is our heart. We must drive out all the inhabitants, which are those fleshly things of our soul, and experience the release of our spirit from connection with our soul, and attain the mind of Christ. God speaks this into existence when He has fully prepared us. "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." There are two primary Greek words which are translated “word” in the New Testament. The first, logos, refers principally to the total inspired word of God and to Jesus, who is the living Word. The second Greek word translated “word” is rhema, which refers to the spoken word. Rhema literally means an utterance (individually, collectively or specifically). This is the 'merismos'; the Greek word meaning to cleave asunder or separate. At the appointed time, God speaks His rhema word to perform the merismos dividing our spirit from our soul so that our soul comes under the dominion of our spirit and we attain the mind of Christ.

Israel was rebellious throughout her history. Israel was a Harlot. She broke the marriage covenant with God. "And it came to pass, when Samuel was old, that he made his sons judges over Israel. Now the name of his firstborn was Joel; and the name of his second, Abiah: they were judges in Beersheba. And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judgment. Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah, And said unto him, Behold, you are old, and your sons walk not in your ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations. But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed to the Lord. And the Lord said to Samuel, Hearken to the voice of the people in all that they say to you: for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them. According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also to you. Now therefore hearken to their voice: howbeit yet protest solemnly to them, and show them the manner of the king that shall reign over them." (I Samuel 8:1-9)

Israel was given a wicked king in the person of Saul, then a righteous king in the person of David, who was a man after God's own heart. Even though David sought to serve the Lord with all his heart, he still fell prey to the flesh which led to the demise of the first Church; Israel. After Solomon's reign, Israel became divided, and a house divided against itself cannot stand. God works all things together for good; to them that love Him and are the called according to His purpose. Throughout Israel's history, righteous men stood in condemnation of Israel's wickedness. Prophets declared that a Messiah would come, which prophecy was fulfilled in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. The foundation was laid for the second church; the New Testament church.

In Acts chapter 2, on the day of Pentecost, 120 disciples were praying together in one accord. None of them had any idea of what was about to take place. “Suddenly, there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven. Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What means this?  Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine.” (Acts 2:2-6, 12-13)

This multitude was comprised of Jews that had come from all over the world. They had traveled great distances to come to the land of their forefathers to join in a great annual celebration. There were probably 500,000 or so that had jammed into the one square mile that was Jerusalem. This was in addition to the usual 100,000 residents. There was undoubtedly great commotion as this great crowd was trying to make its way through the streets. Suddenly everyone stops as their attention is turned to an ear-shattering roar that has seemed to come out of nowhere and then disappears into a room on the second story of a house on the edge of the temple grounds. Every eye must have been on that second story room. Then came the sound of jubilant shouting of praises to the Lord and words proclaiming that the Messiah has come! The people were in shock. Someone came up with an explanation that these men were drunk. That probably got a few laughs, but it was not enough to explain these strange happenings.

Peter, by revelation of the Holy Ghost, knew what was happening. The people needed an explanation. This moment could not be wasted. The last few minutes were some of the most spectacular that history would ever record. And history was now being made by the minute. Only a few moments before, the very Spirit of the Lord had come to earth and clothed man. As Peter went out into the crowd, I’m sure he only intended to say a few things in explanation. Little did he realize he was about to give the greatest evangelistic message of all time.

The last 3½ years of Peter's life had been preparation for this moment. This man that was about to address the crowd was changed from the filthy-tongued, shallow, loud-mouthed braggart that he had been before he met Jesus. Now Peter was a meek, broken, tenderhearted man who was being sent by the Lord. As he opened his mouth, he started with a simple explanation that these men are not drunk as you suppose. He went on to explain that this was the fulfillment of prophecy by the prophet Joel. He probably would have liked to have stopped there, but the crowd was hanging on every word. Something was loosed in Peter and he was compelled to continue as the message of Christ burst forth from him like a flood. The crowd stood in awe. His words struck like arrows and pierced many hearts. Suddenly someone shouts out; “What must we do to be saved?” Without missing a beat, Peter replies; “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:38). “And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation” (Acts 2:40). The result of this Spirit-led proclamation was three thousand new born-again disciples of Jesus Christ. The new testament church was born.

This was all very exciting, but then reality set in. What were they to do now? The apostles needed to come up with a plan of action fast. The new converts had a bigger decision to make. Do they go back to their homes or do they give up everything to stay on at Jerusalem where they have no place to stay or any means of support? Answers came as fast as problems appeared. The apostles decided they would meet daily on Solomon’s porch in back of the temple where there was room for the people to gather. There was no agenda needed for they would trust the Lord to lead. Each meeting must have had a different flavor to it as the church learned to flow with the leading of the Holy Spirit. The new converts that did not live in Jerusalem decided to stay and trust the Lord to meet their needs. The residents that were believers opened their homes to house as many as possible. They began to seek jobs and use the money made to buy food and provide support for the church. They began to have all things common with no greed or selfishness as motivation, just the joy of giving and the excitement of fellowship that flowed from the love of God that was so evident in each one of them. “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. And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus; and great grace was upon them all. Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, and laid them down at the apostle’s feet: and distribution was made to every man according as he had need.” (Acts 4:32-35)

Ananias and Sapphira, by influence of their flesh, hatched a plan to partake of the church’s generosity to meet all their needs while they held on to some savings for themselves. Peter asked Ananias why he had lied about how much money he received for the property they had sold. Peter told Ananias “you have not lied to men, but to God”. When Ananias heard these words he fell down dead. Ananias’ wife, Sapphira, came in later not knowing what had just happened. She was asked if the price for which they sold the land was the same amount that she and her husband claimed it was and she said yes. “Then Peter said to her, How is it that you have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? Behold, the feet of them which have buried your husband are at the door, and shall carry you out” (Acts 5:9). Sapphira died along with her husband “and great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things.” (Acts 5:11) Just as Israel played the Harlot and yet many righteous were raised up within her, so the early church which walked after the Lord as His Bride had those who were of the Harlot within her.

“And at that time there was a great persecution against the Church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles” (Acts 8:1). The church had been quietly and steadily growing for about ten years. God was laying a strong foundation for His church. God was building His church in His way. The people were taught of the Lord by the teaching of those who had walked with Him for over three years. They lived and breathed church life as they fellowshipped together most of the day every day. They learned how to worship the Lord in spirit and in truth. They learned to love one another despite their flaws as ‘iron sharpened iron’ in their interaction with each other. They exhorted and encouraged each other and considered others needs greater than their own. They did not have ‘Bible studies’ since the Bible as we know it was not in existence. They were learning relationship; loving God and loving each other. They were taught and led to be ‘living sacrifices’.  No sacrifice was too great because of their love for the Lord. They didn’t ‘do’ witnessing, because they were witnesses by the purity of their lives, the light on their countenances, and the presence of the Lord that was with them wherever they went. They were being prepared for the various things that God had called them to do. But like a fine wine, God took His time in raising them up. Now that the foundation was laid, God expanded His church by sending His disciples out using a tool called persecution.

“Therefore they that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word” (Acts 8:4). Notice that they preached ‘the word’. This is because they knew the Living Word in the person of Jesus Christ and learned to be led by the Holy Spirit. They understood that the pathway to life was through the laying down of their lives; decreasing so that Jesus could increase in their lives. We have missed so much in the present day because we have allowed the doctrines of men to pervert the word of God and allow the present church system to lead us away from an intimate relationship with the Lord.

As disciples met one another in other towns, they followed the same pattern of fellowship they had learned in Jerusalem. New churches were birthed but did not go their own way; they stayed in contact with the apostles in Jerusalem for counsel and direction. The concept was unity in the church. The church began experiencing new giftings and callings. Philip was the first to demonstrate what an evangelist looks like. Agabus was the first to demonstrate what a new testament prophet looks like. The church grew and experienced many new things, yet they maintained order through unity. It is not too difficult to understand how this worked when the new churches were in Judea and were comprised of Jews who knew Jewish tradition and understood how Jesus fulfilled the promise of the Messiah. But it became very interesting when the church hit Antioch; a Gentile city. The Jews quickly learned that these new Gentile converts loved the Lord just as they did, but they could not expect them to follow the customs and tradition of Jewish law. So they made it simple for them; “abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if you keep yourselves you shall do well” (Acts 15:29). God built His church in the Gentile cities while maintaining a flow and order in the same way He had in the beginning of the church. It was the Gentiles that led the Jews away from trying to ‘keep the law’ and instead ‘obey the law written on their hearts’.

The key to the power and success of the early church is the same key that God is using today. The early church understood intimacy in relationship, first with God then with one another. Intimacy in relationship is not possible when self rules and reigns. Self, or the carnal nature, will always prefer itself above all others and will always seek its desires at the expense of others. A way of looking at this is that the carnal nature is a god. The Lord commands that we have no other gods before Him, therefore we are in rebellion when we allow the flesh to rule and reign. When the flesh is crucified it is dethroned and has no more impact on us unless we foolishly feed it. With the flesh subdued, we are then able to love the Lord our God with all our heart, be led by the Holy Spirit, enter into His rest, and cease from our works; thereby allowing the Holy Spirit to work in and through us without hindrance. We will walk in profound wisdom, knowledge, and understanding, and we will be fruitful in all things, doing all things well, and walking in a manner that is pleasing in His sight. Our desire will be to do His will, doing only those things that we see the Father do and speaking only those things which we hear the Father say. This is how the church should look and operate; being known by our love for our Lord and our love for one another. We should be following the pattern God gave us through the early church.

Peter had denied the Lord three times before His crucifixion. No doubt, Peter was crushed by the weight of what he had done. After boldly proclaiming “I will lay down my life for your sake” (John 13:37), Peter saw who he was when he was apart from the Lord. By the Lord’s side in the garden of Gethsemane, Peter took a sword and tried to take the head off of the high priest’s servant who was named Malchus (John 18:10). He was bold as a lion when he was with the Lord. Apart from Him he was weak, even refusing to acknowledge that he was one of Jesus’ disciples for fear it would cost him his life.

Peter had received the Holy Spirit when Jesus breathed on him (John 20:22), but it was when Peter was filled with the Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecost that he gained understanding of all that the Lord had said to him and began to walk with power. He was once again walking in the presence of the Lord. He was used by God to heal the lame man at the temple. “And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us. And he gave heed to them, expecting to receive something of them. Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.” (Acts 3:4-7) The news of this spread throughout the city and Peter and John were called into question regarding this matter. “And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, By what power, or by what name, have you done this? Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said to them, You rulers of the people, and elders of Israel, If we this day be examined of the good deed done to the impotent man, by what means he is made whole; Be it known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him does this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is no other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:7-12)

Peter answered the leaders with boldness by the Holy Spirit. Since there was nothing the leaders could say in denial of this great event, they resorted to threatening Peter and John, demanding that they no longer speak or teach any man in the name of Jesus. This just fueled the fire for the apostles and disciples to go forth in even greater boldness in the name of Jesus. “And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people; and they were all with one accord in Solomon's porch. And of the rest dared no man join himself to them: but the people magnified them. And believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women. Insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that at the least the shadow of Peter passing by might overshadow some of them. There came also a multitude out of the cities round about Jerusalem, bringing sick folks, and them which were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed every one. Then the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him, (which is the sect of the Sadducees,) and were filled with indignation, And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison. But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said, Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life. And when they heard that, they entered into the temple early in the morning, and taught. But the high priest came, and they that were with him, and called the council together, and all the senate of the children of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought. But when the officers came, and found them not in the prison, they returned, and told, Saying, The prison truly found we shut with all safety, and the keepers standing without before the doors: but when we had opened, we found no man within. Now when the high priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these things, they doubted of them whereunto this would grow. Then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple, and teaching the people. Then went the captain with the officers, and brought them without violence: for they feared the people, lest they should have been stoned. And when they had brought them, they set them before the council: and the high priest asked them, Saying, Did not we straitly command you that you should not teach in this name? and, behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man's blood upon us. Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.” (Acts 5:12-29) This is how the church should be operating; in boldness and defiance to the world and in opposition to the worldliness in the present church system.

It was not only the apostles who were doing great signs and wonders in the early church. “Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ to them. And the people with one accord gave heed to those things which Philip spoke, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. For unclean spirits, crying with loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them: and many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed.” (Acts 8:5-7)

“And a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man, and mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus. This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spoke and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John. And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him to them, and expounded to him the way of God more perfectly. And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him: who, when he was come, helped them much which had believed through grace: For he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publicly, showing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ.” (Acts 18:24-28)

Apollos knew the word of God, and was instructed in the way of the Lord; yet he lacked power. Aquila and Priscilla were used by God to introduce Apollos to the baptism of the Holy Ghost. “For John truly baptized with water; but you shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence; you shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and you shall be witnesses to me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and to the uttermost part of the earth.” (Acts 1:5,8) After receiving the baptism of the Holy Ghost, Apollos walked in power; mightily convincing the Jews.

"For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." (2 Timothy 1:7)  Notice that of the three manifestations of the spirit God has given us, power is listed first. One of the seven characteristics of the Holy Spirit listed in Isaiah 11:2 is the Spirit of might; which is power. Those that seek to know the Lord will walk in the power to destroy the works of the devil and do mighty works in the name of Jesus. "Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you." (Luke 10:19)

God established the pattern of building His Bride church in the book of Acts. God Himself was the overseer of the early church. Even the Apostles did not seek to lead; but gave themselves to serving the people, seeking the Lord and ministering to the Lord, and speaking of Jesus. The people were brought into one accord by God’s leadership. He provided for them. He instructed them. He matured them in His wisdom and His ways. They had all things common and there was none among them that lacked. Believers began to exhibit gifts and walk in offices in which God had placed them. When the Church was dispersed through persecution, the church grew according to the same pattern established in Jerusalem. When the Gentiles were brought in, who knew nothing of Jewish law or custom, the same pattern successfully continued because God was in leadership. New converts were instructed in the ways of the Lord; in righteousness, in obedience, in trusting the Lord with all their heart, in seeking to be led by the Holy Spirit, and having love one for another as the love of Christ exuded from them.

All this was lost when man took over and excused God from leadership. The god of this world, the subtle serpent, appeared to men as an angel of light and appealed to their carnal nature by showing them how they could be leaders that could make the people of God dependent upon them by making them less dependent upon God. Satan infused the world system into the church while retaining a spiritual appearance. The conduit that God created was stopped by man embracing the counterfeit. This began happening about four or five hundred years after the passing of the first apostles.

"For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears." (Acts 20:29-31) Paul's warning came to pass as 'religion' entered the church and God became a commodity for sale in the businesses calling themselves churches that arose for their own profit. Perverse doctrines have pervaded the church through self-appointed leaders who utter all their mind, but not according to truth.

The church did not heed Paul’s warning and Satan was successful in taking that which God had established in the early church and perverted it with the traditions of men, making void the word of God. Organized religion was the result; empowering men to be in control while doing that which was right in their own eyes. The church became a house divided with all manner of denominations, traditions, customs, and beliefs. The Harlot was manifest on a grand scale with a spiritual appearance. The church fell into a deep sleep and has been asleep for some fifteen hundred years.

But just as God caused a deep sleep to come upon the first Adam, so he allowed a deep sleep to come upon the body of the last Adam and for the same purpose: to create a Bride. “That he might present to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish” (Ephesians 5:27).  The Bride of Christ will be without spot or wrinkle; not because her sins were forgiven through confession, but because she overcame sin by not loving her ways even to death to self and by embracing Jesus as Lord. God allowed this deep sleep to come upon His people so that He could separate those who would embrace the Harlot and fornicate with the world from those who would embrace the lordship of Jesus and would allow themselves to be shaped and conformed to His image.

The plan of Satan is to seek whom he may devour through deception. His message is ear tickling and appeals to the flesh; the gateway of sin. The plan of God is to deliver His people from sin through suffering, affliction, persecution and rejection, which are all part of the ‘fellowship of His sufferings’, and are tools in the hands of a loving God to shape and conform His people to His image as we decrease that He may increase. The ways of God make no sense to the carnal mind; for the carnal mind is the enemy of God. God has made a way for us to be spiritually minded; to “let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5). We have the choice; to let or allow ourselves to become spiritually minded through obedience to Him and the laying down of our will, or to remain carnally minded through obedience to the flesh.

"And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that you be not partakers of her sins, and that you receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities. Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which she has filled fill to her double. How much she has glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she says in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow." (Revelation 18:4-7) The 'her' to whom God refers here is the new testament Harlot, who is Babylon, who is the present church system.  Not all churches are bad; there are many that seek after truth and seek to serve the Lord with all their heart. It is the system that is corrupt. Ask the Lord to lead you to those who are walking in righteousness that you may have fellowship with light and not darkness. "This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sin." (I John 1:5-7)

"But the hour comes, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeks such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth." (John 4:23-24)

The true worshippers are of the Bride, who worships God in spirit and in truth. God is a Spirit. Is it any wonder that He speaks in a spiritual language? He does so that His people must seek Him to know the truth. The truth is hidden to those who walk after the flesh and use their carnal mind to gain understanding. The truth, however, is made manifest to those who walk after the Spirit and seek to be spiritually minded. Therefore, the Harlot cannot know the truth because she puts her confidence in the flesh, whereas the Bride knows the truth as it is revealed to her by the Holy Spirit.

"Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written, Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God has prepared for them that love him. But God has revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searches all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knows the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knows no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teaches, but which the Holy Ghost teaches; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receives not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness to him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judges all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ." (I Corinthians 2:6-16)

We have the mind of Christ, or rather, we have access to the mind of Christ. Only those who enter into His rest fully attain His mind. Until then, we are in the process of overcoming the carnal mind by taking our thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ. Christians are the only ones who can be double-minded. Only those who are born again have access to the mind of Christ; the world does not. We must not give place to the carnal mind by leaning to our understanding, but in all things seeking the wisdom of the Lord as we seek to know him.

"My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into different temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith works patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that you may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that gives to all men liberally, and upbraids not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavers is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways." (James 1:2-8)

I call Proverbs 3:5-6 the mini version of the Bible.  "Trust in the Lord with all your heart; and lean not to your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths."

Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Do not trust in anything that is of you. Put no confidence in the flesh. The appearance of circumstances will always be deceiving. Don't think you know what is happening in your life. Know that the Lord will work all things together for your good, so it doesn't matter what trial you face or what suffering you are enduring. Trust the Lord that all will work out for your benefit and your blessing. Satan can only do what God allows him to do, which is for your good, so Satan is not your worst enemy. Your carnal mind is your worst enemy. Learn to view all your situations as opportunities to trust the Lord, depend upon Him, and grow closer to Him in each circumstance of life you overcome by His strength.

Lean not to your own understanding. Your understanding comes from the carnal mind. Trying to figure things out in your strength and wisdom feeds the carnal mind. Continuing to do so entrenches you in carnal thinking, which is bondage to the flesh. You will walk after the flesh and will never come to know the Lord. The only way you can be free in this life is to lay down all that is of you and give it to the Lord. This is the laying down of your life, your self-life, which is how you find life. Reject the carnal mind. Exercise your spiritual mind by spending time with the Lord, and much of that listening that you may develop ears to hear what the Spirit says. This is how you learn to be led by the Spirit and overcome the carnal mind.

In all your ways acknowledge Him. "Whether therefore you eat, or drink, or whatsoever you do, do all to the glory of God." (I Corinthians 10:31) Christ is your life, therefore your life must be centered around Him, otherwise you have no life even though you are part of His body. How can you say that you have relationship with the Lord if He is not part of everything you do?  We are known by our fruit, and the fruit of our lips must be praise and thanksgiving to Him in all things, even the sacrifice of praise in difficult times. "And whatsoever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him. (Colossians 3:17)

And He shall direct your paths. He will oversee your life. He will guide you, provide for you, and protect you. He will truly be a Father to you. He will raise you up as a son. "The light of the body is the eye: if therefore your eye be single (your focus is on the Lord), your whole body shall be full of light. But if your eye be evil (fleshly, carnal), your whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you be darkness, how great is that darkness! No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon (the flesh). Therefore I say to you, Take no thought for your life, what you shall eat, or what you shall drink; nor yet for your body, what you shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit to his stature? And why take you thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say to you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knows that you have need of all these things. But seek you first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you. Take therefore no thought for tomorrow: for tomorrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof." (Matthew 6:22-34)

The Bible is clear if we seek to understand by revelation of the Holy Spirit. There are countless deep mysteries that are revealed if we will only seek to know them through the process of knowing our Lord. It is knowing the Lord that is the basis of salvation. Our walk with Him is that upon which we will be judged.

“Not everyone that says to me Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name? And in your name have cast out devils? And in your name done many wonderful works? And then I will profess to them, I never knew you: depart from me, you that work iniquity” (Matthew 7:21-23). Notice that those speaking to Jesus call him Lord, Lord. Two is the number of witness; so they are attempting to add credibility to their confession that Jesus is Lord to them. “No man can say Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost” (I Corinthians 12:3). This identifies these people as believers. We have further evidence of their being believers since they claim to have prophesied, cast out devils, and done many wonderful works all in the name of Jesus. They showed forth the signs of a believer that are discussed in Mark 16:16-18.

Jesus said they would say those things ‘in that day’. Compare this to Ephesians 1:13-14: “In whom (speaking of Jesus) you also trusted, after that you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that you believed, you were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise. Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory”. Also look at Ephesians 4:30: “And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby you are sealed unto the day of redemption”. When we are born again we are given the gift of the Holy Spirit, the indwelling of the fullness of God, the Spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ; to lead and guide us into all the truth and to work in us to perfect us as we submit to His leading. We are sealed with the Holy Spirit meaning that we become His, a member of His family, the body of Christ, and we enter the kingdom of God by being translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. There is nothing that will change that once we are born again. "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give to them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one." (John 10:27-30)

Realize that "if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: Of how much sorer punishment, suppose you, shall he be thought worthy, who has trodden under foot the Son of God, and has counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and has done despite unto the Spirit of grace? For we know him that has said, Vengeance belongs to me, I will recompense, says the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." (Hebrews 10:26-31)  This sealing of the Holy Spirit is not forever, it is for a season: ‘until the redemption of the purchased possession’.

We were bought with a price, the precious blood of Jesus, so we are not our own. We are His possession. We are sealed until the day of redemption. A definition of redemption is to set free, rescue, save. So it remains that we become eternally saved. The Holy Spirit is the earnest of our inheritance. Earnest may be defined as ‘part given or done in advance as a pledge for the rest, or to bind a bargain’. Whether we understood it or not, we made a bargain with the Lord when we were born again. We vowed to make Jesus our Lord and Savior, to turn from our wicked ways and to allow Him to change us into what He has called us to be. He gives many great and precious promises to us, but His promises are conditional; meaning we have to hold up our end of the bargain. If there were no such bargain, then there would be no need for judgment; but since one exists we must be judged. “For we all must appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that everyone may receive the things done in his body, according to that he has done, whether it be good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10). It is at the judgment seat that we will either be redeemed or not redeemed, told “well done, good and faithful servant, enter into your reward” or “depart from me you worker of iniquity, I never knew you”. There will be a separation of the wheat from the tares, the sheep from the goats, the obedient from the disobedient, the righteous from the sinner.

The parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25:1-12 paints a vivid picture of what we are discussing. “Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened to ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish, took their lamps, and took no oil with them: but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold the bridegroom comes; go you out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Truly I say to you, I know you not.”

The parables of Jesus, like most of the word of God, are written in a spiritual language. The virgins represent born-again believers who have been washed from their sins. They each possess lamps which represent Jesus, who is the Light of the world. The lamps have oil which represents the Holy Spirit. The foolish virgins took no oil with them for their lamps and ran out of oil. They are no longer sealed by the Holy Spirit in the day of redemption. They now stand before the Lord with their heart of darkness exposed from a lack of relationship with the Lord. No amount of pleading will rescue them from the fate they have brought upon themselves by walking after the flesh.

The five wise virgins took oil in their vessels with their lamps. This means that the wise virgins maintained an intimate relationship with Jesus. The time for the Bride of Christ to be married has come and it is announced that the Bridegroom (Jesus) is coming. A separation is taking place between the wise and the foolish. The wise were ready and went in with Jesus to the marriage. The foolish, to their horror, discovered that they were not prepared and frantically tried to find a way to justify themselves. As a last resort, they call upon the name of Jesus and cry Lord, Lord, but they are told to depart because Jesus never knew them. They were not redeemed. Although they thought they walked in the light of the Lord He never became Lord to them, and they found themselves judged in their true state of darkness.

Jesus said in Luke 11:35 “Take heed that the light which is in you be not darkness”. We will not be in darkness if we will only follow Jesus and not our flesh. “I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” (John 8:12). The foolish virgins chose to walk after the flesh and in their understanding, thereby receiving the reward for those who receive Jesus but do not seek him with all their heart. God is just and His judgment is true. God has provided everything we need to receive the fullness of His blessing on our lives in our lifetime as well as eternal life with Him. But we must choose to do it His way. Do not lean to your understanding. Seek wisdom from above and seek the One who gives wisdom liberally to those who will ask.

I believe that all of the church is in agreement that there will be a second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord has promised that He will return to this earth in ‘the great and terrible day of the Lord’ to which we refer as the tribulation period. But how will He return? In Matthew 26: 63-64, the high priest said to Jesus “I adjure you by the living God, that you tell us whether you be the Christ, the Son of God.  Jesus said to him, ‘You have said: nevertheless I say to you, Hereafter shall you see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven.” The word for hereafter in Greek is interpreted henceforth or from this present time forward. Jesus was saying that from now on you will see Me coming.

If Jesus was referring to His second coming, then His saying that He would be coming from that time on would make no sense. We must discern between the use of literal meanings and figurative meanings. Most of the word is composed of figurative meanings. If we see how figurative meanings are used elsewhere in the Bible, then we can better understand the use in the scripture we are seeking to understand. In this case, we need to see how the word cloud or clouds is used elsewhere in scripture, since Jesus said He was coming in the clouds of heaven. “And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud, to lead them in the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night: He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people” (Exodus 13:21-22). In the light (day) Jesus leads His people by His presence and glory (cloud). In the darkness (night) the refiner's fire burns away that which is of darkness. “And it came to pass, as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and, behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud” (Exodus 16:10). “And glory of the Lord abode upon Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days: and the seventh day he called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud” (Exodus 24:16).

The Lord met with Moses on the mount in a cloud. When the tabernacle was finished, a cloud covered the tent of congregation and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. When Solomon finished the temple and all the preparations were made, the priests came out of the holy place and “the cloud filled the house of the Lord so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord” (1 Kings 8:10-11). On the mount of transfiguration, God appeared in a cloud and spoke out of the cloud saying, “This is my beloved Son: hear him” (Luke 9:35).

Acts 1:9-11; “And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; which also said, you men of Galilee, why stand you gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as you have seen him go into heaven.”

"And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." (Revelation 21:2) This is how Jesus comes in "like manner as you have seen him go into heaven." In the middle of the tribulation period, after the end of the church age, the marriage supper takes place in the second heaven, the Garden of Eden, and the Bride is joined with the Bridegroom. For three and a half days, according to the pattern of Jesus being in the grave for three and a half days, a great celebration will take place. Afterward, a great cloud of witnesses comes down out of heaven in the person of the Wife of the Lord Jesus Christ who is now one with Him. She will go forth to manifest the Lord to the world who is not yet born again with the same message she gave to the Harlot; know the Lord.

When we see cloud or clouds in scripture we also see the appearing of the Lord and a manifestation of His glory. He was not seen physically, but He appeared in a physical manifestation. Hebrews 12:1 says “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which does so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us”. Here we see cloud used in conjunction with a group of saints (the Bride) that has already finished their race and are cheering us on to finish the work here on earth that they may join us. Revelation 1:7 says “Behold, he comes with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him, and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen”.

As we compare these uses of the words cloud and clouds we can see a pattern, because the word of God has definite patterns. A cloud is a vessel in which the Lord appears, just as clouds are vessels (plural). When the Lord appears, His glory is made manifest. Jesus has been coming or appearing for two thousand years. He has been appearing or being made manifest in those vessels who were broken enough, humbled enough, submitted enough, and faithful enough to manifest His glory. “Even the mystery which has been hid from ages, and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: 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: Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ” (Colossians 1:26-28).

Jesus will come again in the tribulation period and every eye shall see Him because He will be seen in His Bride; His Wife. Whenever the glory of God is revealed in a person as a result of brokenness, humility, and intimacy of relationship with Jesus we are seeing His appearing. For now, this is happening in individual believers who are receiving this revelation. These believers are going forth and sharing this message of 'dying to self' and 'know the Lord' as they walk in the power and glory of His resurrection. I believe that soon and very soon these believers and those who embrace this message will manifest the glory of God in a measure not seen before in this earth. These people will bring judgment to the church; “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God, and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?” (I Peter 4:17). The church will be faced with a choice; “choose this day whom you will serve”. There will be no middle of the road (actually there never was one); it will be a matter of embracing the Cross and dying to self and thereby receiving life: or choosing to cling to your selfish desires and traveling the broad path that leads to destruction.

Another misconception concerning the tribulation period is the meaning of 666. Most errantly think that there will be an Antichrist who will rise up and rule the world; instituting a one-world government and a one-world religion. I like to ask those that have this belief, what is the most well-known scripture in the Bible? The answer is John 3:16. I then ask what does that scripture say? "For God so loved the world"; and then I say, stop! For God so loved who? If God so loved the world that He gave us Jesus to save us out of the world, then why would He plan a seven year period to turn His creation over to evil just so He could punish the world with all kinds of horrific events? The reason so many believe such foolishness is because that is what they have been taught by men who operate using the carnal mind. One who has received revelation of that which the word of God is declaring sees a much different scenario. A scenario that is in accord with the nature of God; His goodness.

Consider what Revelation 13:18 says. "Here is wisdom. Let him that has understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six." 666 or three sixes. As the scripture says 666 is the number of a man. Six is the number of man for man was created on the sixth day. Six refers to the carnal nature of man. Three is the number of completion. 666 means completely carnal.

In John chapter 6, Jesus spoke about being the bread of life. He spoke of the eating of His flesh and the drinking of His blood. "Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is a hard saying; who can hear it?" (verse 60) Jesus replied in verses 63-65; "It is the spirit that quickens; the flesh profits nothing: the words that I speak to you, they are spirit, and they are life. But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him. And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father."

John 6:66 says "From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him." It is no accident that this is written in chapter 6, verse 66. Many of His disciples no longer walked with Him. They were reviled by His words and rejected Him because they did not understand.. They did not understand because they were being led by the flesh. They became completely carnal as they failed to seek understanding by the Spirit. They chose to put their trust in the flesh. The spiritually-minded understand that what Jesus was revealing in these scriptures was Christ in you, the hope of glory. The carnally-minded are lost in their darkness.

Unbelief and sin, which both stem from the carnal mind, comprise the ‘mark of the beast’ which is so misunderstood by the Church. “And he causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads; And that no man buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that has understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is six hundred sixty-six (666).” (Revelation 13:16-18)

The ‘mark’ of the beast is not a literal tattoo since the spiritual language of the Bible is figurative. The right hand is the hand of blessing. Hand speaks of action. Therefore, the ‘mark’ in the right hand speaks of carnal action taken that produces sinful fruit by one who should have been a blessing by taking righteous action that would have produced righteous fruit. Those who walk after the flesh can be a stumbling block to those who might otherwise have been dramatically touched by the Lord; but instead offer confusion and deception to a lost and dying world. This happens through those that are a part of the Harlot church; who have a spiritual appearance, but their heart is darkened by their fleshly walk. “Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men: Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvelous work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid. Woe to them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the Lord, and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who sees us? and who knows us?” (Isaiah 29:13-15)

Forehead speaks of thought or mind, so the mark in their forehead means that they show forth carnality in their thinking. Revelation 7:2-3 says: “And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, Saying Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of God in their foreheads.” “And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree, but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.” (Revelation 9:4) The seal of God in the forehead is the mind of Christ. Those with the seal of God in their foreheads have been transformed by the renewing of their minds. They have ‘let’ this mind be in them which was also in Christ Jesus. They have allowed themselves to be crucified with Christ, have died to self and the things of this world, and have been raised up in the power of His resurrection and now know Him even as they also are known by Him. These are the manifest sons of God, that have entered into His rest and ceased from their works, and now walk as Jesus walked this earth doing nothing except they see Him do it and speaking nothing except they hear Him say it.

Those with the mark of the beast in their forehead are marked by their carnal thinking. This is a spiritual mark that reveals their love for the world which is greater than their love for the Lord. These folk are in the Harlot church, the church of the Laodiceans. The Lord says to these folk: “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot: I would that you were cold or hot. So then because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue you out of my mouth. Because you say, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and know not that you are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.” (Revelation 3:15-17) “Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but towards you goodness, if you continue in his goodness: otherwise you also shall be cut off.  And they also, if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be grafted in: for God is able to graft them in again” (Romans 11:22-23). The good news is that since this mark of the beast is not a permanent tattoo, those that have this mark of carnality are still able to overcome it through repentance and returning to the path that leads to life by walking after the Spirit.

“And that no man buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.” This buying and selling refers to doing business in the carnal church which is Babylon. “And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buys their merchandise any more. The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing. And saying, Alas, alas, that great city, that was clothed in fine linen, and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls! For in one hour so great riches have come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off.” (Revelation 18:1-3, 11, 15-17)

The word for merchant in Greek is megistanes, which means great men or lords in a royal court. These ‘great men’ are the pastors of mega churches and leaders of great ministries across the world. They are ‘merchants of the earth’ which means that their message is carnal and their objectives are carnal. They care little for the welfare of the people; for they hold the perspective that the people should support them and their ministries through tithes and offerings, but it is God’s obligation to take care of the needs of the people. The people they deceive are assured that they are giving to God and that God will bless them in return for their giving; but this is a false message and an empty promise. They care more for the size of their ministries than for the people.  They are deceived into thinking that ‘the end justifies the means’ and will use even overt deception to attain that for which they lust. Their ‘merchandise’ is listed in Revelation 18 and includes not only all goods precious to the world, but men’s souls as well. God is the commodity that they trade. The whole system is predicated upon convincing people that they walk in truth, so if one wants to really know what God is saying then one needs to attend their church and support their ministry.

This is contrary to the will of God regarding those who teach and lead the people.  Any minister that is a true servant of the Lord must have it foremost on his heart to point the way to Jesus and to lead people to an intimate relationship with Him, not to dependence upon their ministry. A true minister of the Lord will “feed the flock which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being examples to the flock.” (I Peter 5:2-3) How the Church needs true servants of the Lord to come forth who are examples of His goodness, His nature, His love, and His power.

“And I stood on the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads the name of blasphemy.” (Revelation 13:1) The “sea” in this scripture speaks of the heart of the church. The beast, which is the carnal nature of man, rises up out of the heart of the church in response to the message of the manifest sons of God declaring ‘know the Lord’. The beast has been operating in the church for over 1500 years, but now has to come out of hiding to protect that which has been so carefully manufactured. Satan has lured many an unsuspecting victim with his deception of the ‘saved by grace’ doctrine which has led the church into apathy and caused the church to become comfortable in her sin. The church has been asleep. Now the Lord is awakening those who desire to be His Bride to come out of their slumber and come out of the Harlot

The Beast is represented by seven heads. Seven is the number of perfection, giving the Beast a spiritual look. One of his heads is wounded. “And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.” (Revelation 13:3) This is when the Harlot, this present church system, rides the Beast which gives the appearance of seven heads, thereby restoring the appearance of perfection. The Beast has ten horns. Ten is the number of judgment. The Beast will initially judge the saints and try to ‘kill’ them, but ‘killing’ in spiritual terms is a good thing, for it speaks of death to self. The more the saints are ‘killed’, the more righteous they become, so the Lord uses Satan’s tactics against him to prepare His Bride. The Beast will ultimately turn on the Harlot as he is exposed and be used to judge her as she is destroyed as Babylon. The Beast has ten crowns. Crowns represent godly authority and judgement. The Beast that the Harlot rides upon will give the appearance to the world and the carnally-minded that she (the Harlot) is the one whom God loves and has been ordained to rule with Him, until it is time for her destruction.

“The Lord said, I will bring again from Bashan, I will bring my people again from the depths of the sea” (Psalms 68:22). Bashan means fruitful or plentiful. When the children of Israel were to possess the promised land; the children of Gad, Reuben, and the half tribe of Manasseh took their inheritance on the east side of Jordan, which was not part of the promised land God had given. Bashan is the place where the half tribe of Manasseh was drawn away by the appearance of the land, instead of trusting God to provide that which He desired to give them. Such is the case with carnally minded Christians; they seek after their natural desires while assuming that it is God that is leading them. But just as the Beast will be forced to come out of hiding, so will the hearts of all who are carnally minded be revealed as they refuse to take their place in the promised land: the 'New Jerusalem'.

The book of Revelation does not mention antichrist, but declares the book to be a “revelation of Jesus Christ”. This is why there is a blessing attached to this book. “Blessed is he that reads, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.” (Revelation 1:3) This blessing is contingent on three things: 1) Reading the book. Do not be dependent on someone else to explain things for you; read for yourself and seek to gain wisdom and understanding by asking the Holy Spirit to reveal the meaning of what you read. Continue to seek Him for meaning and don’t become discouraged in the process. Seek and you will find, for in so doing you will develop ‘ears to hear’ what the Spirit is saying as you develop an increasingly more intimate relationship with Him. 2) Hearing the words of the prophecy. The Greek word used here is akouo which combines understanding with hearing. You are blessed if you understand the book. To understand you must receive revelation by the Holy Spirit. To receive revelation by the Holy Spirit you need ears to hear what the Spirit says. Leaning to your understanding will lead you to all kinds of confusion. 3) Keeping those things which are written therein. You cannot keep those things which you do not understand. That is the purpose of my writing; to simplify what the word of God reveals and lead, exhort, and encourage you to submit yourself to the lordship of Jesus Christ and allow Him to transform you by the renewing of your mind as you allow Him to have His way in you.

By now, I am sure you understand that this is a process. Being crucified with Christ is not a popular message to those who love themselves more than Christ. It is foolishness to those who perish. But I pray that those of you reading this word will be stirred in your heart to lay down your life that you may find it. If these words witness to you, then be assured the Spirit of the Lord is inviting you to know Him in a much greater measure than you can imagine.

It is not the purpose of this book to explain the book of Revelation, or any scripture for that matter. The purpose of this book is to challenge your thinking and hopefully cause you to question what you believe and have been taught. It is my purpose to reveal that the truth can only come from the Spirit of Truth, the Spirit of the Lord, the Holy Spirit; who will lead and guide you into all the truth if you look to Him for guidance. He will lead you to know Jesus, and Jesus will lead you to know the Father; according to the pattern I have laid forth in this book.

I encourage each of you to seek the truth. Do not assume you know the truth. Do not even assume that I am speaking the truth. Seek the Holy Spirit and ask Him to reveal the truth to you. Our walk is all about relationship with God and dependence upon Him (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) and upon nothing or no one else. Beware of those you trust to teach you if they are attempting to persuade you to look to them for answers.  Question all that you hear and seek wisdom that is from above.

You cannot fulfill your calling if you do not enter into the fullness of relationship with Jesus. Do not take the Lord for granted. He is worthy of the best that you can give Him and He deserves no less than your best. The world seeks formulas for success. Success in the kingdom of God (which is the only true success) is found only through obedience in following the Lord. The Lord, however, does provide a ‘formula’ for success in Matthew 7:7-8; “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you: For every one that asks receives; and he that seeks finds; and to him that knocks it shall be opened”. Let’s take a closer look at each of these three keys to success.

1) Ask. The Lord wants us to come to Him for direction and provision. This is part of the wonderful relationship that He desires to have with us as a parent has with a child. The parent wants to give their children the best and see them happy and fulfilled. “What man is there of you, whom if his son asks bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?” (Matthew 7:9-11)

The key to receiving from the Lord is to ask according to His will: “And this is the confidence we have in him, that, if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us: And if we know that he hears us, whatsoever we ask, we know we have the petitions that we desired of him” (I John 5:14-15). For us to be sensitive enough to discern His will we must become spiritually-minded. Seek to know Him, to know His ways, and to know His will.

2) Seek. In I Chronicles 28:8-9 we read “Now therefore in the sight of all Israel the congregation of the Lord, and in the audience of our God, keep and seek for all the commandments of the Lord your God: that you may possess this good land, and leave it for an inheritance for your children after you forever. And you, Solomon my son, know you the God of your father, and serve him with a perfect heart and with a willing mind: for the Lord searches all hearts, and understands all the imaginations of the thoughts: if you seek him, he will be found of you, but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever”.

To know the Lord and His will for our lives, be shaped and conformed to His image, and walk in power, authority, and dominion in this earth we must seek the Lord. We must pursue Him with all our heart. Only one who loves another will pursue them. Only one who is dependent upon another will seek their wisdom and counsel. Only one who is submitted to another will lay down their will in preference of doing the will of the other. This is the purpose of the Lord in requiring us to seek Him, so that in the process we learn to love Him, trust Him, and serve Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. The result of His process is to honor us and make us kings and priests unto the Lord our God. As it says in Proverbs 25:2, “It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honor of kings is to search out a matter”.

3) Knock. When someone knocks on a door, they do so expecting the door to be opened. Sometimes the door is opened but entrance is refused. Sometimes no one is home and the process must be repeated at a later time. So it is in the kingdom of God as we walk through the process of finding the doors that the Lord will open in our lives to bring us new experiences in Him, both good and bad, but all working together for our good. We will encounter many closed doors. It is all a matter of tenacity, which the Lord develops in us so that we will persevere and overcome all obstacles. We are all called to be overcomers, but the Lord must train us and develop us to walk in this realm of dominion.

The Lord presents a parable that demonstrates this key of tenacity in Luke 18:1-8. “And he spoke a parable to them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint: Saying, there was in a city a judge, which feared not God, neither regarded man: And there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, Avenge me of my adversary. And he would not for awhile: but afterward he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor regard man; Yet because this widow troubles me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me. And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust judge says. And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night to him, though he bear long with them? I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man comes, shall he find faith on the earth?” When the Lord says ‘speedily’ keep in mind that one day is as a thousand years to the Lord and a thousand years as one day. He will deliver us in His time not ours. The timing of the Lord is always perfect, but rarely coincides with our understanding.

“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not” (Galatians 6:9). The Lord is calling you to come closer; to learn of Him. He wants to bring you to a higher realm of wisdom and understanding. He wants to promote you. He loves you more than you can imagine and desires to deliver you from that which is carnal in you. He has given you the right to choose. Either you choose to trust Him or you choose to trust in yourself, to obey His commandments or walk in disobedience, to love Him with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength or to love the world. You either will allow the Lord to be the Lord of all in your life and therefore permit Him to lead you as He sees fit (which will always be in your best interest) and find resurrection life by embracing the Cross, or you will seek to save your life by clinging to that which is carnal in you and pay the penalty for rejecting Him.

We all have to make the same decision. None of us are an exception. I hope that your eyes have been or are being opened to see your potential in Christ if you will let go of all that is of this world and embrace all that is of the Lord Jesus Christ. You can know joy beyond your imagination and the peace that passes understanding. You can be powerful beyond measure through Him in whom all power and authority is given. You can be a partaker in the greatest harvest of souls that the world has ever witnessed. You can be one with the Lord. “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come.  And let him that hears say, Come.  And let him that is athirst come.  And whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely” (Revelation 22:17).