Chains – Is, Was and Will Be – The Unknown Character of Christ and His Word https://www.iswasandwillbe.com Revelation 1:8 "I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty Thu, 04 May 2023 15:10:49 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/cropped-headerlogo-32x32.png Chains – Is, Was and Will Be – The Unknown Character of Christ and His Word https://www.iswasandwillbe.com 32 32 Acts 12:1-25 The Lord Hath Sent His Angel to Deliver Me https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/acts-121-25-the-lord-hath-sent-his-angel-to-deliver-me/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=acts-121-25-the-lord-hath-sent-his-angel-to-deliver-me Sun, 16 Apr 2023 05:09:48 +0000 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=27469

Acts 12:1-25 The Lord Hath Sent His Angel to Deliver Me

[Study Aired April 16, 2023]

Act 12:1  Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church.
Act 12:2  And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.
Act 12:3  And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.)
Act 12:4  And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people.
Act 12:5  Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.
Act 12:6  And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison.
Act 12:7  And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands.
Act 12:8  And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me.
Act 12:9  And he went out, and followed him; and wist not that it was true which was done by the angel; but thought he saw a vision.
Act 12:10  When they were past the first and the second ward, they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city; which opened to them of his own accord: and they went out, and passed on through one street; and forthwith the angel departed from him.
Act 12:11  And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews.
Act 12:12  And when he had considered the thing, he came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many were gathered together praying.
Act 12:13  And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken, named Rhoda.
Act 12:14  And when she knew Peter’s voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate.
Act 12:15  And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel.
Act 12:16  But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened the door, and saw him, they were astonished.
Act 12:17  But he, beckoning unto them with the hand to hold their peace, declared unto them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, Go shew these things unto James, and to the brethren. And he departed, and went into another place.
Act 12:18  Now as soon as it was day, there was no small stir among the soldiers, what was become of Peter.
Act 12:19  And when Herod had sought for him, and found him not, he examined the keepers, and commanded that they should be put to death. And he went down from Judaea to Caesarea, and there abode.
Act 12:20  And Herod was highly displeased with them of Tyre and Sidon: but they came with one accord to him, and, having made Blastus the king’s chamberlain their friend, desired peace; because their country was nourished by the king’s country.
Act 12:21  And upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them.
Act 12:22  And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man.
Act 12:23  And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.

Once again, the order of events is important. Herod was “eaten of worms [first] and [then he] gave up the ghost”.

Act 12:24  But the word of God grew and multiplied.
Act 12:25  And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem, when they had fulfilled their ministry, and took with them John, whose surname was Mark.

Verse 25 is connected to everything that occurred in this chapter. Everything we just read happened when and while Barnabas and Saul of Tarsus took the relief from the church in Antioch up to the apostles and the leaders of the church at Jerusalem.

The timing of the events of this chapter becomes very clear by placing the last verses of chapter 11 together with the last verse of this chapter:

Act 11:27  And in these days came prophets from Jerusalem unto Antioch.
Act 11:28  And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the Spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar.
Act 11:29  Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judaea:
Act 11:30  Which also they did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.

This is the first verse of chapter 12:

Act 12:1  Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church.
Act 12:2  And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.
Act 12:3  And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.)

The phrase “about that time” refers back to the last verses of chapter 11 which we just quoted telling us that the church in Antioch had determined to help the poor saints in Jerusalem and that they had sent their relief “by the hands of Barnabas and Saul”. Then, because the holy spirit wants to make the timing of all these events very clear this is the last verses of this 12th chapter concerning the martyrdom of James, the imprisonment and deliverance of Peter, and the death of Herod:

Act 12:23  And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him [Herod], because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.
Act 12:24  But the word of God grew and multiplied.
Act 12:25  And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem, when they had fulfilled their ministry, and took with them John, whose surname was Mark.

The last verses of chapter 11 and the last verse of chapter 12 both tell us that this trip back to Jerusalem is the end of the fourteen years Paul speaks of in Galatians 2:1, and these two verses tell us that all these events of this twelfth chapter occurred while Barnabas and Saul were right there in Jerusalem. Herod killed James, the brother of John, and intending to kill Peter, he had him apprehended and imprisoned. The night before Peter was to appear before Herod, the Lord miraculously delivered him from prison. The prison guards were interrogated and put to death because they could not account for Peter’s disappearance. Shortly after this, Herod gave an oration that was so powerful that the people called him a god and not a man. When that happened the Lord smote Herod to death, and he was eaten of worms, and then and only then:

Act 12:25  And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem, when they had fulfilled their ministry, and took with them John, whose surname was Mark.

Verse 25 is the last verse of this 12th chapter. This is the second time Paul went up to Jerusalem after his conversion in Damascus.

Therefore, when Paul says in Galatians:

Gal 2:1  Then fourteen years after I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and took Titus with me also.
Gal 2:2  And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain.
Gal 2:3  But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised:
Gal 2:4  And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage:
Gal 2:5  To whom we gave place by subjection, no, not for an hour; that the truth of the gospel might continue with you.
Gal 2:6  But of these who seemed to be somewhat, (whatsoever they were, it maketh no matter to me: God accepteth no man’s person:) for they who seemed to be somewhat in conference added nothing to me:
Gal 2:7  But contrariwise, when they saw that the gospel of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter;
Gal 2:8  (For he that wrought effectually in Peter to the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was mighty in me toward the Gentiles:)

“He that wrought effectually in Peter” and in Saul was the “one Lord Jesus Christ” (1Co 8:6).

Gal 2:9  And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.
Gal 2:10  Only they would that we should remember the poor; the same which I also was forward to do.

That “fourteen years” began from the time Saul of Tarsus left Jerusalem to return to Tarsus, and it ended when he went up to Jerusalem again for the first time in fourteen years with Barnabas and Titus, both of whom he had been ministering in Antioch.

The fact that Paul here in Galatians tells these Galatians:

Gal 2:2  And I went up by revelation, and communicated unto them that gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but privately to them which were of reputation, lest by any means I should run, or had run, in vain.
Gal 2:3  But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised:
Gal 2:4  And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage:

“That gospel which I preach among the Gentiles” does not necessitate that Paul had already begun his first missionary journey because there were without doubt some Gentiles there in Antioch, even though the church was mostly Grecian Jews. Titus, a Gentile, went up with Barnabas and Saul ahead of Barnabas and Saul before they had even begun their first missionary journey.

The point Paul is making is that Paul had been told by the Lord from the time Ananias had come to give him back his sight, that the Lord was going to send him to the Gentiles:

Act 9:10  And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord.
Act 9:11  And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth,
Act 9:12  And hath seen in a vision a man named Ananias coming in, and putting his hand on him, that he might receive his sight.
Act 9:13  Then Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard by many of this man, how much evil he hath done to thy saints at Jerusalem:
Act 9:14  And here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name.
Act 9:15  But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel:
Act 9:16  For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name’s sake.

The point Paul is making in both cases is that His doctrine is not of men, but his gospel came directly from Christ Himself.

Paul reiterates this very important point in:

2Co 12:4  How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.

The Greek word translated as “unspeakable” in Second Corinthians 12:4 is:

This word appears just one time in the New Testament. ‘Unspeakable’ is not the proper English translation of this Greek word ‘arrhetos’. It is the combination of the negative particle and the Greek word:

This word also appears just one time in:

1Ti 4:1  Now the Spirit speaketh expressly [G4490: ‘rhetos’, distinctly], that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;

2 Corinthians 12: 4 would obviously be better translated as:

2Co 12:4  How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard… words [which had never before been distinctly expressed], which it is not lawful for a man to utter.

Act 10:28  And he said unto them, Ye know how that it is an unlawful thing for a man that is a Jew to keep company, or come unto one of another nation; but God hath shewed me that I should not call any man common or unclean.

Which is just another way of saying:

Joh 16:12  I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.
Joh 16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will [distinctly express and ] guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come [which are “not (yet) lawful for a man to utter”].

Peter’s vision at the house of Simon the tanner, resulted in Peter being the first apostle to take the gospel to the house of the Gentile Cornelius. That, too, was “unlawful for a man to utter” before that time. Peter’s vision in Joppa, and him being told to go into the home of the Gentile centurion, Cornelius, all took place while Saul of Tarsus was preaching in the synagogues of Damascus. Saul of Tarsus may or may not have heard of Peter being sent to the house of the Gentile, Italian centurion, but if he did hear of that event then it would have simply served to confirm the words of Ananias concerning what the Lord had told Saul about “bearing [the Lord’s] name before the Gentiles, and kings and the children of Israel”. Saul of Tarsus was the only apostle who had been called into the Lord’s service outside of the nation of Israel… “as… he came near Damascus [Syria]”. He is the only apostle, besides John in the Book of Revelation, to give us the timeline of events which brings us to the consummation of the eons and God being “all in all”. These are just some of the things which, under the law of Moses, were “unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter” (2Co 12:4).

Here in 2 Corinthians 12 is the only other time Paul mentions ‘fourteen years.’ In this case Paul says “above fourteen years ago”:

2Co 12:1  It is not expedient for me doubtless to glory. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord.
2Co 12:2  I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven [the very mind of Christ].
2Co 12:3  And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;)
2Co 12:4  How that he was caught up into paradise [the very mind of Christ], and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.
2Co 12:5  Of such an one will I glory: yet of myself I will not glory, but in mine infirmities.
2Co 12:6  For though I would desire to glory, I shall not be a fool; for I will say the truth: but now I forbear, lest any man should think of me above that which he seeth me to be, or that he heareth of me.
2Co 12:7  And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.
2Co 12:8  For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.
2Co 12:9  And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
2Co 12:10  Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.

Notice that this was “above 14 years ago,” and this is in 2 Corinthians which was written after Paul’s second missionary journey in which the church at Corinth was founded. When Paul said he went up to Jerusalem “after fourteen years” in Galatians 2, he was referring to the first time he had returned to Jerusalem after having fled for his life when he had returned to Jerusalem after fleeing for his life from Damascus where he had been converted and from whence he had gone into Arabia for a season before returning to Damascus, where he spent three years from his conversion preaching in the synagogues of Damascus.

When Paul did return to Jerusalem, even after preaching the gospel for three years to the Jews in Damascus, the Jewish Christian apostles and disciples were so afraid of him that they would not fellowship with him until Barnabas, who somehow knew about Saul’s conversion and the fact that he had been teaching in the synagogues of Damascus for three years, brought Saul to Peter, with whom Saul spent a mere three weeks before he had to flee Jerusalem for his life. The only other apostle Saul met while he was in Jerusalem during his three weeks with Peter was “James the Lord’s brother”. The point being that he had neither time nor opportunity to glean any new doctrines from Peter or James in those three weeks which were spent speaking to and being rejected of the Grecian Jews there in Jerusalem. Nevertheless, Saul had been instructed by Christ Himself that he was to take the gospel to the Gentiles. It was Christ Himself who had shown Paul that all men would be saved through Christ just as all men had been born into a dying body of clay via their father “the first man Adam” (1Co 15:45):

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

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

It was the Lord Himself, and not any of the other apostles, who revealed to Paul that this universal salvation would come to mankind via a three-step method through which death itself would be destroyed:

1Co 15:23  But every man in his own order: [1] Christ the firstfruits; afterward [2] they that are Christ’s at his coming.
1Co 15:24  Then cometh [3] the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.
1Co 15:25  For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.
1Co 15:26  The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

“The end” is not a reference to the false doctrine of eternal torment, nor does it refer to the slightly less offensive false doctrine of annihilation in the lake of fire. “Then cometh the end” refers to the final harvest of the souls of mankind “at the end of the year”:

Exo 23:14  Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year. [Typifying the three harvests of the souls of “all in Adam” (1Co 15:22)]
Exo 23:15  Thou shalt keep [1] the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty) [With the accompanying offering of the Passover Lamb, typifying Christ as the first of the firstfruits]:
Exo 23:16  And the feast of harvest, [2] the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field [typify: and [3] the feast of ingathering],  which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.

Now we come to the events of this 12th chapter of Acts, which will serve to humble Paul and remind him that he must “be persuaded of” the older apostles even if they are not yet aware of the full extent and impact of the revelations given to Saul of Tarsus.

Heb 13:17 Be persuaded by your leaders, and be deferring to them, for they are vigilant for the sake of your souls, as having to render an account, that they may be doing this with joy, and not with groaning, for this is disadvantageous for you.

The reference to “after fourteen years” and “above fourteen years” ago, places all these revelations given Saul of Tarsus, either during the three years at Damascus, during which he spent time in the wilderness of Arabia, or during the ten to thirteen years he spent at Tarsus before the “full year” spent with Barnabas preaching in Antioch. It was at this time that Barnabas and Saul went up to Jerusalem again, to witness the death of the apostle “James the brother of John”, the imprisonment and miraculous deliverance of Peter, and the miraculous death of Herod:

Act 12:1  Now about that time [the time Barnabas and Saul went up from Antioch to Jerusalem] Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church.
Act 12:2  And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.
Act 12:3  And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.)
Act 12:4  And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter [G3957: ‘pascha’, Passover] to bring him forth to the people.

The Greek word ‘pascha’ is an obvious reference to the Jewish feast of the Passover. ‘Easter’ is a ridiculous translation which the King James translators chose in an attempt to simply erase any Jewishness from the early church. ‘Easter’ is an abominable translation of the Greek word ‘pascha’.

Act 12:5  Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.

Like us, the church prayed for Peter’s release, but could not believe that the Lord had actually done so, as we will see.

Act 12:6  And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison.
Act 12:7  And, behold, the angel of the Lord came upon him, and a light shined in the prison: and he smote Peter on the side, and raised him up, saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains fell off from his hands.

There is not one word about how all this affected the “four quaternions of soldiers” or the “two soldiers… between [whom] Peter was sleeping”. It is immaterial to what the Lord is doing for His elect.

Act 12:8  And the angel said unto him, Gird thyself, and bind on thy sandals. And so he did. And he saith unto him, Cast thy garment about thee, and follow me.
Act 12:9  And he went out, and followed him; and wist not that it was true which was done by the angel; but thought he saw a vision.
Act 12:10  When they were past the first and the second ward, they came unto the iron gate that leadeth unto the city; which opened to them of his own accord: and they went out, and passed on through one street; and forthwith the angel departed from him.

That gate had about as much ‘free will’ as you and I have. That gate “opened to them of His own accord”, meaning of Christ’s own accord.

Act 12:11  And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews.

The same was true for Christ, even though He died upon the cross, because death was also defeated at the cross, and Christ was the first person ever to  be raised from the dead and given a spiritual body which is “like the wind”:

Joh 3:7  Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
Joh 3:8  The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit [In “the redemption of the purchased possession” sense (Eph 1:14).

Heb 5:7  Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared; [Christ feared God more than men]

Act 12:12  And when he had considered the thing, he came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many were gathered together praying.
Act 12:13  And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken, named Rhoda [Greek: rose].
Act 12:14  And when she knew Peter’s voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate.
Act 12:15  And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel.

We simply cannot help ourselves. We are all locked into this physical realm and cannot believe it when the Lord performs a miracle, even when we are petitioning Him for a miracle.

Act 12:16  But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened the door, and saw him, they were astonished.
Act 12:17  But he, beckoning unto them with the hand to hold their peace, declared unto them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, Go shew these things unto James, and to the brethren [Including Barnabas and Saul]. And he departed, and went into another place.

This is not what happened when Peter had earlier been imprisoned with the other apostles at the hands of the Sanhedrin. At that time, they were all told to return to the temple and speak to the people the words of the gospel of Christ:

Act 5:19  But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said,
Act 5:20  Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.
Act 5:21  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.
Act 5:22  But when the officers came, and found them not in the prison, they returned, and told,
Act 5:23  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.
Act 5:24  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.
Act 5:25  Then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the men whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple, and teaching the people.

That is not what the spirit told Peter to do this time. Instead Peter, after showing himself to all those who had been praying for him in the home of “Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark… departed and went into another place”.

Act 12:18  Now as soon as it was day, there was no small stir among the soldiers, what was become of Peter.

These soldiers knew they were as good as dead if Peter did not show up.

Act 12:19  And when Herod had sought for him, and found him not, he examined the keepers, and commanded that they should be put to death. And he went down from Judaea to Caesarea, and there abode.

The holy spirit had either put all sixteen soldiers in a deep sleep or a trance while Peter was taken from among them. Herod held them accountable, and the Lord will have Herod to give an accounting of His lack of mercy on these sixteen soldiers whom the holy spirit sacrificed for Peter’s sake. This is just how precious we are to the Lord as His elect:

Isa 43:2  When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.
Isa 43:3  For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee.
Isa 43:4 Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life.

Act 12:20  And Herod was highly displeased with them of Tyre and Sidon: but they came with one accord to him, and, having made Blastus the king’s chamberlain their friend, desired peace; because their country was nourished by the king’s country.
Act 12:21  And upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them.
Act 12:22  And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man.
Act 12:23  And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.
Act 12:24  But the word of God grew and multiplied.

Herod died in Caesarea, but it appears to have happened before Barnabas and Saul left Jerusalem to return to Antioch.

The Lord gave the life of Herod for the sake of His elect, and Barnabas and Saul of Tarsus, who had never yet made their first missionary journey, were witnesses of all these things while they were there in Jerusalem to deliver the relief to the apostles for the poor Jewish saints who were suffering from the prophesied drought:

Act 12:25  And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem, when they had fulfilled their ministry, and took with them John, whose surname was Mark.

This is ‘John’ the son of ‘Mary’ to whose house Peter had gone when he was taken out of prison by the angel. Mary was apparently a sibling of Barnabas because we are told this in:

Col 4:10  Aristarchus my fellowprisoner saluteth you, and Marcus, sister’s son to Barnabas, (touching whom ye received commandments: if he come unto you, receive him)

This is the same ‘John whose surname was Mark’ who will accompany Barnabas and Saul through a part of their first missionary journey as we will learn in our next study:

Act 13:13  Now when Paul and his company loosed from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia: and John departing from them returned to Jerusalem.

It is on this first missionary journey that without explanation we are told in the verses preceding this 13th verse:

Act 13:9  Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him,
Act 13:10  And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?
Act 13:11  And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand.
Act 13:12  Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord.

That will all be covered in our next study. What we should glean from this study is that Saul of Tarsus, whose name is changed to Paul the apostle, was taught by Christ and that he was made aware of many new doctrines while he was in Damascus and in the wilderness of Arabia, and while he was in Tarsus, before Barnabas came to take him with him to Antioch. It was during that period of his life, “above fourteen years ago”, before he went to Antioch with Barnabas, that Saul was shown by Christ things which had never been precisely expressed and which were unlawful to speak, according to the law of Moses. It should also be obvious from this study that both Paul and Barnabas witnessed the miraculous events of this 12th chapter and thereby were made aware of the respect the honor which the Lord had placed upon the apostles who preceded Paul and Barnabas. Seeing how the Lord worked with Peter and the other apostles, prepared Barnabas and Saul to be persuaded of their leaders and to defer to them in the matter of the Gentiles not needing to be circumcised while the Jews were for a time continuing with being under the law of Moses as we will see in chapter 15.

]]> Study of the Book of Kings – 1Ki 6:13-22 “I Will Dwell Among the Children of Israel, and Will not Forsake my People Israel” https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/study-of-the-book-of-kings-1ki-613-22-i-will-dwell-among-the-children-of-israel-and-will-not-forsake-my-people-israel/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=study-of-the-book-of-kings-1ki-613-22-i-will-dwell-among-the-children-of-israel-and-will-not-forsake-my-people-israel Thu, 14 Oct 2021 20:21:18 +0000 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=24555 1Ki 6:13-22 “I Will Dwell Among the Children of Israel, and Will not Forsake my People Israel”
[Study Aired October 14, 2021]

1Ki 6:13  And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.
1Ki 6:14  So Solomon built the house, and finished it.
1Ki 6:15  And he built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar, both the floor of the house, and the walls of the cieling: and he covered them on the inside with wood, and covered the floor of the house with planks of fir.
1Ki 6:16  And he built twenty cubits on the sides of the house, both the floor and the walls with boards of cedar: he even built them for it within, even for the oracle, even for the most holy place.
1Ki 6:17  And the house, that is, the temple before it, was forty cubits long.
1Ki 6:18  And the cedar of the house within was carved with knops and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stone seen.
1Ki 6:19  And the oracle he prepared in the house within, to set there the ark of the covenant of the LORD.
1Ki 6:20  And the oracle in the forepart was twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height thereof: and he overlaid it with pure gold; and so covered the altar which was of cedar.
1Ki 6:21  So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold: and he made a partition by the chains of gold before the oracle; and he overlaid it with gold.
1Ki 6:22  And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until he had finished all the house: also the whole altar that was by the oracle he overlaid with gold.

God’s faithfulness was witnessed to Israel and pronounced with this verse: “I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel“.

The spiritual fulfillment of this statement for God’s elect today, who are the Israel of God (Gal 6:16), is realized through the faith of Christ which is a gift of God (Eph 2:8). It is the faithfulness of Christ within us doing the work of God both to will and to do (Php 2:12-13) that Christ’s body, which is the church (Col 1:24), comes to learn of “at that day”, as we become persuaded of His faithfulness to finish what He has started in us and that nothing can prevail against His purpose for God’s elect (Joh 14:20-22, Mat 16:18, Rom 8:38-39).

Joh 14:20  At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.
Joh 14:21  He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.

1Ki 6:13  And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.

Notice in John 14:21 and our first verse of 1Kings 6:13 where the same pattern arises telling us that keeping God’s commandments is the reason why God and Christ abide with us and make their abode with us, or manifest themselves to us.

Israel’s relationship with God and their obedience or lack of obedience was for our sakes and was never meant to bring about conversion, only to be a type (1Pe 1:12) of the relationship God’s elect would now have with our Father and Christ where we worship them in spirit and in truth (Joh 17:3, Joh 4:23).

Joh 14:20  At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.
Joh 14:21  He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him [possible with Christ].

1Ki 6:12  Concerning this house which thou art in building, if thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I perform my word with thee, which I spake unto David thy father [not possible without Christ]:

1Ki 6:13  And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.

As we look further into these verses in the book of Kings which speak about the various parts of the temple representing the body of Christ (1Co 3:16), we will see, Lord willing, how this temple was all fitly framed, with the exact measurements and materials needed, along with the exact design, all to give us hope that we are a many-membered body of Christ. As such we are able to grow in our care and love for one another because of the workmanship we have become in His hands being fitted to do the works He has set before us “prepared unto every good work” (2Ti 2:21). We are knit together in this relationship through our Father and Christ so that “whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it” (1Co 12:12-26).

This relationship we share is being accomplished “by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God” that makes it possible for us to help each other come into the same unity of faith (Eph 4:13-16, 1Jn 5:4). That gift gives us the ability to overcome the world by bearing each other’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ (Eph 2:8-10, Gal 6:2-10).

Eph 4:16  From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9  Not of works, lest any man should boast.
Eph 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Gal 6:2  Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.
Gal 6:3  For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.
Gal 6:4  But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another [Joh 21:22].
Gal 6:5  For every man shall bear his own burden [“every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love”].

With the mind of Christ which we have been given, a direct correlation can be drawn from all of the workmanship that is found in Solomon’s temple of what we are becoming through Christ as we’re given to remember that “he that is spiritual judgeth all things” (1Co 2:15-16). Judging all things means comparing spiritual things with spiritual (1Co 2:13-15) by using the physical creation, and especially the temple of God that tells us so much about Our Father and Christ and each of us who make up that temple.

1Co 2:13  Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
1Co 2:14  But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
1Co 2:15  But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.

In this study we will look further into those correlations and connections throughout the physical temple that reveals who we are in Christ (1Co 3:16), bearing in mind that it is only possible for us to know what we know because of the mercy God has extended to us by giving us eyes to see and ears to hear (Mat 13:11-13) that make it possible for us to know our first verse tonight which says “I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel” and is a reminder to God’s elect that He is faithful who has begun this good work in you and will accomplish it (Php 1:10-11, Php 1:6, Rom 8:9).

Php 1:10  That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ;
Php 1:11  Being filled with the fruits of righteousness,  which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.

Php 1:6  Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will performG2005 [G5692 = future tense] it until the day of Jesus Christ.

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

1Ki 6:13  And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel.
1Ki 6:14  So Solomon built the house, and finished it.

God is dwelling among us right now in this earnest relationship we have in these marred vessels of clay (Eph 1:14) in which He tells us He is going to finish a work, through our hope of glory Jesus Christ who is working within each joint that is supplying that love of God, as is shown in these verses in 1Corinthians 12:12-14. These verses explain what it means to be one body with the same spirit).

1Co 12:12  For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.
1Co 12:13  For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
1Co 12:14  For the body is not one member, but many.

That is what we can take from this encouraging opening verse that uses the life of physical Israel to remind us what God is going to accomplish in the lives of “the Israel of God” (Gal 6:16) whom He will not forsake: “I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel” (Col 1:27, Heb 12:2-3, Heb 13:5, 2Ti 2:13).

Christ will remain our faithful high priest accomplishing the saving work of grace through faith (Eph 2:8) that will drag us to that altar to which we are bound in this life as the body of Christ (Psa 118:27). He cannot deny Himself in this process of bringing the elect to see that this is a true statement, and therefore, through Christ, we are told we are more than conquerors despite all the tribulations and fiery trials we are promised in this life. In fact it is those fiery trials we go through that glorify God and give witness to the fact that we are more than conquerors through Him (Joh 6:44, Rom 8:34-36).

God does dwell among His people Israel, but not all Israel believed then, and not all of those who claim to be the Israel of God believe now (Heb 4:1-2, Rev 2:9-11). So, in type and shadow, the lives of the ancient Israelites are an admonition for us to be vigilant and sober (1Co 10:2-10) as their actions, or lack of actions, in their walk in the wilderness are written for our sakes upon whom the end of the ages have come (Rom 11:25-26, 1Co 10:11-12).

Heb 4:1  Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.
Heb 4:2  For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.

[Where there is a lack of faith there is a lack of fear, but the faith of Christ working in the elect, along with the chastening and scourging by which we are received of God who demonstrates His love through that correction, keeps us and preserves us unto salvation (1Jn 5:4, 1Co 15:57, Heb 12:6, 1Pe 4:12, Rom 2:4)]

Rev 2:9  I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know  the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.
Rev 2:10  Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.
Rev 2:11  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

1Co 10:2  And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;
1Co 10:3  And did all eat the same spiritual meat;
1Co 10:4  And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ [Heb 6:1-6].
1Co 10:5  But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness [Mat 22:14]
1Co 10:6  Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.
1Co 10:7  Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.
1Co 10:8  Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand [Heb 4:1].
1Co 10:9  Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents [Heb 4:1].
1Co 10:10  Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.

Rom 11:25  For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; (forgetting that God has blinded Israel’s eyes and opened our eyes and ears to His righteousness and (Php 3:9, Luk 12:19, Isa 22:13), that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.
Rom 11:26  And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:

1Co 10:11  Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.
1Co 10:12  Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall [“lest ye should be wise in your own conceits“].

If we are granted to truly seek the kingdom of God first and His righteousness, the spirit will bear witness that we are sons and daughters of this “household of faith” (Rom 8:14-16, Gal 6:10) who are labouring to enter into His rest by dying today (1Co 15:31), and not tomorrow in the lake of fire where humanity will die to their iniquities then (Mat 6:33-34, Psa 127:1, Heb 10:25).

Mat 6:33  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
Mat 6:34  Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

Heb 10:25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching [“and will not forsake my people Israel“].

1Ki 6:15  and he builds the walls of the house within with beams of cedar, from the floor of the house unto the walls of the ceiling; he has overlaid with wood the inside, and covers the floor of the house with ribs of fir. (CLV)

The boardsH6763 of cedar that covered the stone wall  and ceiling were like a plank overlay for this area of the temple.

The “planks of firH1265” that covered the floor along with cedar that we find in this verse was also used in the ships of Tyrus that represent our time in the churches of Babylon in (Eze 27:3-5).

The mast of the first ‘mother ship’ we are called out of as His people (2Co 6:17) has us being driven about by every wind of doctrine (Eph 4:14) with a mast that is made of cedar. The cedar that covers the ceiling of the temple of God is the positive use of that material representing our new purified minds of Christ that are raised in heavenly places (Eph 2:6) and led by the spirit of God (Rom 8:14).

The floor of the ship like the floor of the temple is made of firH1265 telling us that in our original state of walking with the Lord we were not the salt of the earth but rather those who defiled the word of God and said, “Lord, Lord” but did not do the things which He said, being driven about by our own lusts and worshipping Him in vain (Luk 6:46,  Mar 7:7). Christ’s words were not accompanied with God’s spirit, so those words could not be salted within us and became “good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men” trodden under foot in the massive ships of Tyrus which represent the false religions of Babylon out of which God blessed us to exit (Mat 5:13).

Eze 27:3  And say unto Tyrus, O thou that art situate at the entry of the sea, which art a merchant of the people for many isles, Thus saith the Lord GOD; O Tyrus, thou hast said, I am of perfect beauty.
Eze 27:4  Thy borders are in the midst of the seas, thy builders have perfected thy beauty.
Eze 27:5  They have made all thy ship boards of fir trees of Senir: they have taken cedars from Lebanon to make masts for thee.

Mat 5:13  Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.

Our nobility in this life comes from knowing God and Jesus Christ, our noble King (1Co 1:26, Joh 17:3) through whom we become part of that nobility through the holy spirit that makes it possible for us to be measured or judged (1Pe 4:17, Rev 11:1, 1Pe 2:9). When we judge ourselves we will not need to be judged in the second resurrection (1Co 11:31). Our walk or our conversation or our way of life is symbolized by those fir planks that covered the floor of the temple which are fitly framed and measured as a result of Christ working in our heavens, a desire both to will and to do of our Father’s good pleasure which is to sanctify and purify us so that our walk or way of life is pleasing to Him (Php 2:12-13). We only have to look at the entries of the word “noble” to see what our Father in heaven considers to be noble. What we will find is that it is those who fight a good fight of faith, and labour in the word today who God is using to lay the floor of the temple of God with fir planksH1265. God’s elect must be measured and fitted which is what is happening when we are given to judge ourselves now. That judgment creates the humble and contrite spirit we need to be placed in the body where it pleases God, where we will operate in the measure of faith given to us (1Co 11:31, 1Co 12:18, Rom 12:3).

Act 17:11  These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.

1Co 1:26  For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:

2Ti 2:15  Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

[Rightly dividing those old false doctrines represented by the fir planks that made up the ships of Tyrus which represent our taking God’s word and wrapping it around the idol of our hearts instead of becoming teachable children, which is what brings about the nobility of Christ’s life in us that must increase as we decrease (Mat 18:3)]

1Ki 6:16  And he builds the twenty cubits on the sides of the house with ribs of cedar, from the floor unto the walls; and he builds for it within, for the oracle, for the holy of holies. (CLV)

Now we are speaking about “the sides of the house” where cedar is used “from the floor unto [or to] the walls” (CLV, YLT, LITV) or “from the floor as far as the cross-beams” (Rotherham). KJV is a poor translation using the word ‘both’ in this instance (“both the floorH4480 H7172 of the house, and the walls of the ceiling” of verse 15 and “bothH4480 the floorH7172 and the walls with boards of cedar” of verse 16), contradicting verse 15 where we are specifically told that planks of fir are used for the floor.

Cedar was also used to build the mast, which is the highest part of the ship (Eze 27:5), representing our high and lofty thoughts while we are in Babylon that must be humbled by “the sides of the house“.

Eze 27:5  They have made all thy ship boards of fir trees of Senir: they have taken cedars from Lebanon to make masts for thee.

The idea of being humbled in the presence of God is a theme that runs throughout God’s word, and the fir flooring reminds us that God resists the proud but gives grace unto the lowly (Jas 4:6-7). When we come to the oracle, or the holy of holies, we learn of the true nature of our Father and Christ which is grounded in humility which is represented by the fir flooring (Joh 10:30-31, Isa 53:7, 1Pe 5:6, 1Jn 4:17). We are truly one with our Father and Christ when we are humbled in this life (Luk 18:19, Joh 10:30). God gives us an experience of evil in Babylon that humbles us, symbolized by the fir planks on the floor of the ships of Tyrus. The planks of fir in the oracle on the floor are the positive use of fir that represents our new conversation or walk in the Lord that has been humbled by the fiery trials of this life which represent the floors that are covered with gold. While ‘walking the planks’ in Babylon’s mother ship we really are dead men burying dead men! Pun intended!

Joh 10:30  I and my Father are one.
Joh 10:31  Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him.

Isa 53:7  He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

1Pe 5:6  Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:

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

1Ki 6:17  And the house, that is, the temple before it, was forty cubits long.

“And the house, that is, the temple before it, was forty cubits long” describes the part of God’s temple that is before the most holy place and it is “forty cubits long“, twice as long as the most holy place which has a length and breadth of twenty cubits (1Ki 6:20).

The word “before” is Strong’s number H3942 defined as ‘before, to the face of‘ in this verse and helps us unravel what these dimensions symbolize for us. We are to “come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” while we are in these earthen vessels (Heb 4:16). That grace or favour is found through Jesus Christ who is “the faithful witness” and our Great high priest (Rev 1:5, Heb 4:14-15). The dimensions of the holiest place symbolize that point, twenty cubits length and breadth, pointing to the faithful witness (2) that Christ is, was and will be (2Ch 3:8, Heb 13:8).

2Ch 3:8  And he made the most holy house, the length whereof was according to the breadth of the house, twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits: and he overlaid it with fine gold, amounting to six hundred talents.

Heb 13:8  Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.

Our relationship in the flesh, and Christ’s relationship with our Father while he was in the flesh, is also a witness (Rev 11:3) of an earnest relationship (Eph 1:14) which needs to go through much tribulation, symbolized by the forty cubits, in order to go onto perfection (Act 4:26-28, Luk 13:32). The day will come when God’s elect will no longer see through a glass darkly, which is the earnest relationship we are experiencing now with the treasure of Christ’s life hidden in these earthen vessels (2Co 4:7, Col 1:27). “For now we see through a glass, darkly [40 cubits]; but then face to face [20 cubits]: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known” (1Co 13:12).

1Ki 6:18  And the cedar of the house within was carved with knops and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stone seen.

“No stone seen” is another way of saying we are hidden in Christ the rock upon which the temple is built (1Ki 6:7, Col 3:3, Mat 16:18).

1Ki 6:7  And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither: so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.

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

Mat 16:18  And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

And “the cedar of the house within was carved with knopsH6497 and open flowersH6731” tells us that within the hearts and minds of Christ’s bride a new heart is being fashioned by God (Eze 36:26) who is skillfully directing our lives according to the counsel of his will (Eph 1:11), which Will has been predetermined from the foundation of the world to bring forth fruit as God’s kind of first fruits (Jas 1:18) symbolized by these “knopsH6497” that are accompanied with “open flowersH6731” which is a symbol of the righteousness of Christ, that has been supernaturally given to us, as was also foreshadowed with Aaron’s rod that budded making it possible by the power of God’s holy spirit typified by Aaron’s rod to see “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” (Num 17:8, Rom 8:28).

1Ki 6:19  And the oracle he prepared in the house within, to set there the ark of the covenant of the LORD. 
1Ki 6:20  And the oracle in the forepart was twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height thereof: and he overlaid it with pure gold; and so covered the altar which was of cedar.

The “oracle he prepared in the house within” represents that holiest place of all where Christ went so that we could be redeemed by our high priest (Joh 16:7, Joh 20:17). Redemption is a process that happens when we are judged of God and so “the oracle in the forepart was twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height thereof” to symbolize that process of judgment (3) that is being accomplished through Christ (20) who is the true witness accomplishing these works within us (Rev 3:14, Php 2:12-13).

Joh 16:7  Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
Joh 20:17  Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.

As we just read, “to set there the ark of the covenant of the LORD“, the holiest place has to be prepared and Christ being our high priest is prepared now to strengthen, settle and establish us in this life (1Pe 5:10). He is preparing His bride unto every good work now having been raised as our high priest for that purpose (2Ti 2:20-21, Joh 14:12, Heb 4:14-16). The “ark of the covenant of the LORD” houses these items spoken of in (Heb 9:4) that represent His power within us, the spiritual word of God that has been purified through the trials of this life that bring “the ark of the covenant” that represents our life in Christ, to be set there in “the oracle“. Said another way “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock [“the oracle“] I will build my church [“the ark of the covenant“]; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it”(Mat 16:18).

The oracle that represents the holiest place where Christ  abides was overlaid “with pure gold; and so covered the altar which was of cedar” reminding us that Christ was also delivered from His sinful flesh and identifies with His creation (Heb 4:15) as symbolized by the altar made of cedar that was ‘overlaid with pure gold’. Cedar represents the flesh of any and all men, however Cedar that has been covered “with pure gold” represents a life that has suffered and been made ready to rule (Php 2:8-9).

Php 2:8  And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Php 2:9  Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:

1Ki 6:21  So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold: and he made a partition by the chains of gold before the oracle; and he overlaid it with gold.
1Ki 6:22  And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until he had finished all the house: also the whole altar that was by the oracle he overlaid with gold.

The outward adorning of the temple is being positively reflected through stages of growth symbolized by the stone layer then a wood layer and then the gold layer that was overlaid on the wood. The gold is beaten and thinned out so much that it can be worked with in a manner where it can cover or be overlaid with this precious gold (Act 14:22). The symbolism is hard to miss seeing we know gold in the positive use of the word represents the righteousness of Christ with which God’s elect are granted to be arrayed (Rev 19:8). The process that purifies the beaten gold so it can be overlaid, or arrayed, if you will, on Christ’s bride is found in these verses (Rev 3:18-19, 2Ti 2:21).

Rev 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

Rev 3:18  I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
Rev 3:19  As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent [Heb 12:6].

2Ti 2:21  If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, and prepared unto every good work.

Gold that has been purified and used to overlay the various parts of the temple of God represents Christ’s righteousness which is given to us as a gift from God. The bride, as we mentioned earlier, is adorned, and because we know the temple represents the body of Christ which represents the church which is his body and the bride of Christ (Col 1:24), we can therefore say that the adorning of the bride is the adorning of the temple. The temple is adorned with purified gold which represents the righteousness of Christ, as does the linen with which the bride of Christ is covered is the righteousness of the saints (Php 3:9, Rom 5:17, Rev 19:8).

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

Rom 5:17  For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.)

Rev 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

With these points in mind, we can now look at what was specifically covered with gold overlay. What we learn is that “Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold; and he overlaid it with gold” and “the whole house he overlaid with gold, until he had finished all the house” and “the whole altar that was by the oracle he overlaid with gold“.

These were the three major areas that were covered with gold telling us that there is an ongoing process of judgment in this life that is needed in order to bring every thought into subjection to God (2Co 10:5). When we bring our thoughts “into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ”, those words are purified and become fitly spoken words that are as apples of gold in pictures of silver that cover the temple that we are (Pro 25:11).

This last point regarding the “partition by the chains of gold before the oracle” ties into the title taken from the first verse that reads, “I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake my people Israel“. God promises us that the son of God will set us free (Joh 8:36) and that no one can take us out of His hand (Joh 10:28), and that we are bound to the altar (Psa 118:27). All these powerful promises of overcoming the bonds of sin are why there is “a partition by the chains of gold before the oracle; and he overlaid it with gold“.

The judgment that comes upon God’s people is what is represented by the first time the word “chain” is used in the bible in Ezekiel 7:23-24.

Eze 7:23  Make a chain: for the land is full of bloody crimes, and the city is full of violence.
Eze 7:24  Wherefore I will bring the worst of the heathen, and they shall possess their houses: I will also make the pomp of the strong to cease; and their holy places shall be defiled.

All the violence in the land represents our own sinful nature that cannot be overcome except the Lord delivers us (Psa 127:1). God can always and does delivers us from the bondage of sin through Christ (1Jn 2:1, Gal 2:20), and Satan can always sift us like wheat (Luk 22:31). However, if we are God’s elect in this age, Christ has prayed for us and inspired us to pray for each other that our faith fail not, and that is how we “Make a chain: for the land is full of bloody crimes, and the city is full of violence” and overcome together as the body of Christ (Ecc 4:12, 1Co 12:18-20).

God declares the end from the beginning and speaks of things that are not as though they were (Isa 46:10, Eph 1:11, Rom 4:17), telling us that regarding His kingdom, which is within God’s elect now (Luk 17:20-21), “There shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life” (Rev 21:27). This “partition by the chains of gold before the oracle” represents that separation from those who know God in the spirit and those who have not been blessed to cross that threshold yet and partake of the altar, which is the cross (Heb 13:10).

God’s elect are blessed to read, hear, and keep the sayings of the prophecy (Rev 1:3), which our first man Adam could not do because of the bondage of sin and our inability to consider ourselves to be dead to sin and alive in Christ (Rom 6:11). When we are blessed to have eyes that see and ears that hear, then we can become that son who hears the instruction of our Father, and forsakes not the law of our mother, knowing “they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck” (Pro 1:8-9). Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, but Christ, our hope of glory within, is writing our books to the end that we will be used to judge the rest of the books of humanity who have not yet come to know God and Jesus Christ through judgment (Joh 17:3, 1Jn 4:17, 1Pe 4:17, Oba 1:21, Rev 20:12)

Pro 1:8  My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother:
Pro 1:9  For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.

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

Rev 20:12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

]]> The Kings Prisoners Part 2 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/the-kings-prisoners-part-2/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-kings-prisoners-part-2 Thu, 28 Jan 2010 05:00:01 +0000 http://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=4603 Audio Links

Video Links

Download Part 1

The King’s Prisoners – Part 2

In part 1 of this topic, we studied various aspects of who are the “King’s prisoners” and what it means to be in this position, but we only covered this is a little detail. As a recap, I will re- iterate some of the details as were discussed in part 1.

We saw Joseph being imprisoned by his master and being put where the King’s prisoners are kept, and we saw that even while being a prisoner everything was working for the good of Joseph because  in Gen 39:9 we see that there was none greater than Joseph in Potiphar’s house.

Gen 39:9  There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?

 

We also came to see that as this was happening Potiphar’s wife, the church in this spiritual type and shadow, tries to seduce Joseph to lie with her. Joseph refuses of course, and Potiphar’s wife “calls on the men of the house” to boast that the master has called this “Hebrew” unto us to mock us.

This type and shadow lends itself to teaching us exactly what happens with us and the master’s wife. Day by day we are tempted by what the church can offer us. It is then that we spiritually go into our master’s house to do OUR business.

We think it is the Lord’s business, but it is OUR business. This very thing makes us vulnerable enough that our garment, our righteousness is able to be snared and taken by this adulterous wife and then later used to boast to the rest of the “men of the house” how this Hebrew, no doubt an insult of the day, is not really worthy to have the power he does in the master’s house. It is the same mindset we see this woman having in Pro 30:20.

Pro 30:20  Such is the way of an adulterous woman; she eateth, and wipeth her mouth, and saith, I have done no wickedness. 

As a result we see in just a few more verses that this was all orchestrated for our good so that we would become the Kings prisoners, but what do the King’s prisoners gain by being here? We see the start of the answer in Gen 39:21 – 23:

Gen 39:21  But the LORD was with Joseph, and shewed him mercy, and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison.

Gen 39:22  And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners that [ were] in the prison; and whatsoever they did there, he was the doer [ of it].

Gen 39:23  The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing [ that was] under his hand; because the LORD was with him, and [ that] which he did, the LORD made [ it] to prosper.

There is much more that was spoken about in Part 1, so I implore you all to visit the site and read or listen to part 1 if you haven’t already done so. Now, we will start from this point and use it as the foundation for what it means to be the King’s prisoner.

Prisoners of Jesus Christ

I am very often amazed at how weak my flesh is. Knowing what I have been given and blessed to know, it is inspiring to know that there is so much more than what this flesh can handle and know when we are given the fullness and not only the down payment.

 

Paul was an extremely inspiring apostle to me simply because he endured a ton of fleshy physical suffering and counted it all but dung, and yet we know his flesh is and was no different than ours so we can be 100% confident that his flesh did not ENJOY going through the things that he had to suffer.

 

Regardless, he often spoke as if these things were almost none- mentionable to him except he used them to edify, exhort and comfort those around him. It was this knowledge and understanding and I dare say this gospel that made Paul a “King’s prisoner”, a prisoner of Jesus Christ. We can see this truth captures in Eph 2.

 

Eph 2:12  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:

Eph 2:13  But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.

Eph 2:14  For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;

Eph 2:15  Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;

Eph 2:16  And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:

Eph 2:17  And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.

Eph 2:18  For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.

Eph 2:19  Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;

Eph 2:20  And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;

Eph 2:21  In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:

Eph 2:22  In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

 

            Eph 3:1  For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles,

Eph 3:2  If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you- ward:

Eph 3:3  How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words,

Eph 3:4  Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)

 

Just what mystery was Paul alluding to though? Well, Paul does go on to detail what he is speaking about and we just read that this is a revelation made known to him and he is sharing this knowledge of the mystery of Christ with the Gentiles.

 

I hope I will be used to help you all know how this revelation is made known to me.  Sometime back, I did a study on perception and what it is to know something. Not just hear it but to truly have knowledge of what you hear. This only comes by the gift that God either gives us to hear or see with or He doesn’t. Hey, Steven what does this have to do with being the King’s prisoner or just a prisoner?

It has EVERYTHING to do with the difference between the two. Recall that we just read:

Gen 39:22  And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners that [ were] in the prison; and whatsoever they did there, he was the doer [ of it].

So, there are prisoners and there are the overseers of the prisoners, but before we get any further let me submit that this is spiritually speaking about what is within us primarily and also about that which is without us but within others.

We are talking here about two men. We are talking here about Abel and Cain, Esau and Jacob, King Saul and King David, old man and new man, flesh and spiritual, that which is natural and that which is spiritual. We are talking about Christ in you, your HOPE AND GLORY.

Chains and Shackles

I recently have had a lot of things going on in my life which I can honestly submit that I believe most people, including myself, would naturally buckle under. I have a dearly loved Grandfather in the hospital with heart problems, a wife and newly forming baby which are at high risk according to medical science and an overly exertive amount of pressure that I am dealing with in my job which has required me to spend many, many hours on my job well above the normal salaried amount of hours I am paid for.

I haven’t spent nearly the amount of time I want to or should with my aging parents or grand- parents, and my wife needs me a lot now where I am not able to provide her my time and support as much as I would love to during this time in her pregnancy.  Not to mention, I have two wonderful children who I love to be with and be around.

I also have an almost explosive need and want to share the Word of God with my brothers and sisters and I have simply not been given the time by the Lord to do so even though it is most assuredly what I have planned to do…as you have witnessed with these studies being given time slots on the website which seem to just come and go as quickly as I have placed them on the website announcement.

And what do I think of it all? PRAISE THE LORD! Thank you for these trials. Thank you for showing me your miraculous mercy!

My burdens and trials could be so much more than they are, but they aren’t and they could be so much less than they are, but they aren’t.  There is a season for everything, but this is the season I must endure, but why am I sharing this with you all?

Firstly, I have been given what I know is a large amount of faith which I recognize and acknowledge as such. Praise the Lord. I have never had this in my life until the Lord came knocking, and it only seems to continue to increase as I am tried, endure and placed through more trials.

Again, Steven what are you getting at? Well, I am getting at this. I have a mindset, and it came and can only be obtained by being the Lord’s and more specifically being His body.

I can share an example of this by sharing a conversation I had with someone I love. We were talking about death and being prepared to die. As we were talking and the conversation progressed we arrived at a point where this person told me they were “prepared to die”. Of course they are Christian, and they had a pointed meaning to this statement. Their point was that they were “saved” and ready to meet their maker.

Shortly after ending this part of the train of thought in the conversation the conversation moved to someone who wasn’t only not saved, but who also should be “put in a firing squad and executed”. This statement was made about the Detroit plane bomber who attempted to blow up a plane and kill innocent people in the process.

The immediate thought that came to my mind is how we are all not as ready to meet our maker as we think we are.

Looking back though, this is exactly the type of mindset and rule of justice that I lived by in the not so distant past. It is as natural to our flesh to think this way as it is to breathe.

Eph 4:17  This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind,

Eph 4:18  Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart:

Eph 4:19  Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.

Eph 4:20  But ye have not so learned Christ;

Eph 4:21  If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:

Eph 4:22  That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;

Eph 4:23  And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;

Eph 4:24  And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

 

I inject that we praise the Lord for His wonderful mercy, for it is the chain and shackles of the flesh and it’s dominion of us that we have been freed from and it is the light and easy yoke that has been placed upon us which allows the old man to be put to death and the new man to be given work to do as a overseer of His prisoners.

We are freed from the bondage of death and made new in the life and light of Jesus Christ.

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

Rom 6:6  Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

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

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

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

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

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

 

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

 

Rom 7:1  Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth?

 

I submit to you all now, that you pray heartedly that you be given the ability to judge yourselves and that old man be burned out of you…. that you and me alike DIE that we no longer be under dominion of our flesh and it’s sins.

 

I submit to you the admonitions we are given in the end of Rom 6 which further lend itself to our understanding of who we are, why we are, where we are, what we are, and when we are the prisoners of the Lord.

 

Rom 6:17  But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.

Rom 6:18  Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

Rom 6:19  I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.

Rom 6:20  For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.

Rom 6:21  What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.

Rom 6:22  But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.

Rom 6:23  For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

 

Oh what bountiful treasure we have!

Joh 17:2  As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.

Joh 17:3  And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

 

We have been given freedom to KNOW God the Father and Jesus Christ who He has sent into us! We have been given the yoke which causes us to be the workers, the servants, the prisoners, the ambassadors, and many, many other things of the Lord. We must be prisoners to the flesh to be given freedom and we must die to that prison in order to be free from it. Naturally speaking, if we are physical prisoners then death wouldn’t mean freedom it would mean death but spiritually speaking death is our freedom!

Why am I putting so much emphasis on this in relation to being a King’s prisoner? I hope you are starting to spiritually hear and see what is being told to us. We are prisoners to death, but by dying daily to the death we are also raised into the yoke of His bondage which leads us to being given dominion over that prison and that can only happen because the yoke is below the head on the neck of the body. Amen and amen.

Death is Not The End……Just the Means

Being a prisoner stinks for anyone in real life but being a prisoner to our sin in our spiritual life only results in certain death.  Ironically, this death is needed so that new life, the life of Jesus Christ, can erupt in us. Along with this life, comes His mind; along with this mind comes a whole new world where all things are new. All things being new, presents us with a whole new outlook on just what life is and what it is about.

What we are presented with is this amazing truth, the truth that we no longer fear death but that death fears us. Rather, it fears the head and the body, it fears the union of the Christ together which has been given dominion over death and will make death its footstool thus abolishing it forever. Indeed, our physical death is temporary while death and sins dominion will be completely obliterated.

Yes, death fears Jesus the Christ.

Now, knowing this is not the end but it is only the beginning. Just as Paul says time and time again, he is now the prisoner of Jesus Christ. See, it is the head which directs the body and the body can do nothing without the head so we are indeed imprisoned to the mind of the Head…praise the Lord.

However, we are not a body without other members and that is what this whole new life is about. Throughout all the scripture, we see this paradigm shift continually happening from the old man to the new with the old always meeting it’s doom and being replaced.

This is continually happening within us all, Lord willing, right now and until the day we die, but just as importantly this life……this LIGHT…. is happening by us, through us, and to us via Jesus Christ in us.

Mat 5:14  Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.

 

Joh 8:12  Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

 

And this is where it all begins:

1Pe 4:17  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 ask you, if we are the light of the world, and judgment begins at us, we are the temple of God are we not also the instruments of the Lord’s warfare?

 

We are the light of the world WITHIN US primarily, but equally true we are the light of the world to others within themselves. What I mean is, we are judging the spirits within others as well. We are being used to spread the light, spread the Word of God Jesus Christ to the four corners of the earth within ourselves and others! This is only possible because it is not being done by us only, but it is being completely accomplished by the Will of God through Jesus the Christ… THE HEAD AND BODY!

 

This is the ambassadorship we have been chosen to. This is the prison we have been appointed over. Praise the Lord! We are called to spread the Good News that God is sovereign, that He is in control and what His mind is on any given topic. This should give our mindset an immense amount of freedom in knowing why and how everything comes about within and without us in the world.

 

Recently, there was an email posted on iswasandwillbe about horses in scripture. One thing that I noticed as I was reading that post was that the only difference between ho r se and ho u se is U. What in the world am I talking about?

 

The horse in scripture refers to warfare and specifically strength in warfare. However, there is a rider upon this horse. As true, there is a temple where God dwells. This is His dwelling, this is His house and the only difference in the two is that they are a reflection of you and how the Lord uses you and us all when we are in Christ and He is in us.

God dwells in us and also sits atop us as our head via Jesus Christ.

We just read in Eph 2 that we, combined with the foundation of the apostles… the body, the prophets… also the body, and Jesus Christ the chief corner stone, that we ALL fitly framed together GROW into the Holy Temple of the Lord, a habitation of God!

Eph 2:19  Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;

Eph 2:20  And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;

Eph 2:21  In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:

Eph 2:22  In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

See, being the King’s prisoner involves being imprisoned to His mind. His mind will be encompassing everything we do, see, think and hear. We simply see the Lord working in all things…. yes even all the evil and sin we see within ourselves and without ourselves in others and in the world.  We simply see the Lord working all things after the counsel of His own Will.

So, when we have situations like the conversation I had with my loved one, we are directly presented with a situation that was custom made to show me where I am or where I am not.  Where is my mindset when my loved one says this bomber should be executed in front of a firing squad? Do I agree with this mindset or have I judged it already with the mind of Christ?

When I am judging, am I judging the person who has spoken the words or the principalities,  powers, rulers of the darkness of this world which have spiritual wickedness in high places, the heavens of this persons mind? That is what I am a prisoner to. I am either the King’s prisoner who has been given authority of this fleshy carnal mind or I am still just the standard prisoner who is being dominated by it because I cannot judge the season, and I am NOT able to judge the sign of the times…which is in ME!

Jesus Christ in ME!

Just to bookend this, lets read this again and pay close attention to what we are being told because it is HUGE! It is the greatest mystery of all!

Eph 3:9  And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:

Eph 3:10  To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,

Eph 3:11  According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:

 

Where is Jesus Christ out Lord? Continuing we can see this:

Eph 6:11  Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

Eph 6:12  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Eph 6:13  Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

 

This should be coming together for us by now!

Col 1:16  For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:

Col 1:17  And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

Col 1:18  And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

 

Are you seeing it? Are you seeing how all these things, good or evil night or day are ALL FOR YOU?  Wait, didn’t we just read that all things were created by him and for HIM? Well, are you or are you NOT FITLY JOINED TOGETHER … A HEAD AND A BODY? Jesus the Christ?

In Titus, which I have noticed is vastly ignored in the scripture as a teaching block of scripture we see this thought come to a full fruition.

Tit 3:1  Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work,

Tit 3:2  To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men.

Tit 3:3  For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.

 

Tit 3:4  But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared,

 

Tit 3:5  Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

Tit 3:6  Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;

Tit 3:7  That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Tit 3:8  This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men. 

 

We all have lived exactly as is mentioned here in Titus. We have all had a mindset to do unto others as others do unto you.  We have all wanted desired and implemented an eye for an eye but these ALL RESULT IN DEATH.

But after that…

…. we were and are shown mercy to be saved…through Jesus Christ…. being made heirs according to the HOPE of ETERNAL LIFE!

This is why I am attempting and Lord willing succeeding in affirm with you now that this IS the GOOD WORKS we are to maintain, this is the prison we are put in, and this is the Life we are chosen to.

Having the mind of Christ in every situation we are faced with in our daily lives, we are now able to continually…. NO MATTER the situation or outcome, able to give God ALL THE CREDIT.

Praise the Lord!

Conclusion

We all, in times past were without the knowledge that we have shared together in today. In fact, until Jesus Christ was come all of mankind was never blessed to know such wonderful news. Now, we have been freely given many gifts which we all continue to struggle to fully grasp and understand.

As we continue to journey down this path, let us always pray that the Lord wills it in our mind that we give Him credit for all that we must endure or enjoy. Let us all be willing and bold in maintaining good works in acknowledging in our daily lives just who it is who is working all things after the counsel of His own will.

We must be conscious and aware that we are not given this Light, we are NOT given this Life to simply hide it under a bushel but we are in fact in a position that this Light and Life is the head of everything we do, think and act on. If we have this mind, we are set free from the mind that only produces death. We are set free from all that is in this world…. the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life.

Finally, just as Joseph was given to be head over all the other prisoners, we too are commissioned to lead and share this miraculous mystery with the rest of the prisoners of this world and in doing so faithfully, the Lord will be with us too.

Gen 39:22  And the keeper of the prison committed to Joseph’s hand all the prisoners that [ were] in the prison; and whatsoever they did there, he was the doer [ of it].

Gen 39:23  The keeper of the prison looked not to any thing [ that was] under his hand; because the LORD was with him, and [ that] which he did, the LORD made [ it] to prosper.

 

 

]]> Satan and The Carnal Mind https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/satan-and-the-carnal-mind/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=satan-and-the-carnal-mind Sun, 03 Oct 2004 19:00:00 +0000 http://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=4071

Dear Mike,

Thanks for your reply and your concern. I know that you are sincere and honest in what you believe. If I had not known this, I would never have even brought up the subject of Satan. Actually, as strange as it may sound, I can see it both ways – i. e. literal or symbolic. It seems to work the same either way. It took me a long time to notice that the angel of the Lord stood in the way of Balaam as an “adversary” (Hebrews’ Satan) and a little bit longer than that to realize the significance of it.

No, I don’t think that it was Balaam’s carnal mind. The Scripture says that the “adversary” (Heb. Satan) was the angel of the Lord. Num 22:22

You are most definitely right about God sending “evil spirits” to afflict a man or men or cities. I noticed in one place that He looked for a volunteer for the job. (I can’t remember the exact Scripture right off- hand, but you may remember to which I refer).

I’m not sure if these “evil spirits” are evil all the time or only in their certain mission at the time. Is the “angel of death” always the “angel of death”? Or was the angel only an “angel of death” for the job at hand (the death of the Egyptian first born)?

I also agree with you that men are “beasts”. I also think that the “beast” of Rev 13 is man or men. What is “the bottomless pit” though that the beast comes from and that Satan is imprisoned in?

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think that Satan is the carnal mind of a man. The “serpent” is the carnal mind of a man. When this carnal mind becomes an “adversary” (as in the case of Peter being an adversary to Jesus) then it becomes “Satan”, i. e. sin manifested in the flesh. The devil is “the wicked one”, “the man of sin”, the part of us we have to overcome. The combination of all of these is the ” dragon” and the “beast” (man) is under its (his) influence.

The word, “adversaries” in 2Sa 19:22 is also translated from the Hebrew “Satan” and means more than one adversary and refers to men, not a spirit being.

I really doubt the importance of whether you believe me or not – and I highly recommend that you believe Scripture above anything that I have to say. But I would ask that you keep it in mind in your studies. I wish I understood all the symbols of the book of Revelation, but I don’t. What is the “great chain” (Rev 20:1)?

Sincerely,

C_____

Hi C____,

I think you know that I do not doubt your sincerity or your integrity, only your conclusions. Your whole premise seems to be based on the unscriptural belief that man is not a beast. Just because man can reason, does not separate him from the beast kingdom. He is definitely at the head of that kingdom, but he is still scripturally in it. Why should it be considered so fantastic for God to have Satan to speak through a serpent? As you point out, Adam and Eve had no reason to wonder since they had nothing about which to be surprised in their ignorance. Did God not at one time have another messenger to speak through an ass? And don’t resort to calling Baalam names to remain true to your theory. God sent an angel with a sword that appeared to Balaam’s ass, not to Baalam’s carnal mind. You keep coming up against these brick walls. Was Baalam smiting his carnal mind? Did his carnal mind cause his ass to crush his foot? Just asking and trying to get you to see that it is the “things that are not seen,” the things that are “in the heavens” that we are really “wrestling” with. Look where this human reasoning away of the things of the spirit will lead you. If Satan is merely the carnal human mind, it follows that Christ is simply the mind that resists the evil, but that is not so. Christ is a Spirit and so is His adversary. That is why the scriptures consistently talk about “evil spirits.” You see a lot, but for some reason you don’t seem to want to use scriptural words to express what you see when it comes to this particular subject. Why not simply agree and repeat the words of God, “An evil spirit from the Lord troubled Saul,” tempted David, afflicted Job, lied to Ahab’s prophets, etc.? Do you really think that being scriptural is that bad a thing?

Now look at what is wrong with your “man is not a beast” theory. Surely you are familiar with this scripture, so maybe you have already “perfected” an answer. But I will try anyway.

Ecc 3:18 I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts.
Ecc 3:19 For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all [ is] vanity.
Ecc 3:20 All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.

So are men beasts? Am I coming to this subject with an ‘idol of the heart?’ I am not questioning your character or motives.

It is true though that if either of us has such an idol of the heart that God has deceived that prophet and He will answer that prophet according to the idols of his heart.

Of course I don’t think that I am deceived, and I am sure that you don’t think that you are deceived. But one of us is not approaching God’s Word with an open mind. As you yourself point out, the vast majority of mankind does not believe that there is a devil. That gives the old adversary a lot of room in which to operate.

By the way, what did you decide what was the reason that Satan was cast into the abyss for 1000 years while the carnal mind of man is still in need of a “rod of iron?”

Eze 14:4 Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Every man of the house of Israel that setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet [ or the scriptures]; I the LORD will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols;

I too, have considered this both ways. Your way just almost seems to make sense. It seems that any time the adversary is mentioned it involves the reasoning of the carnal mind. So it is understandable why you see this as you do. But the adversary feeding on the carnal mind is not to say that the adversary is the carnal mind. In scripture, the carnal mind is the beast. But the beast is given great power by the serpent, who is the devil and the adversary:

Rev 12:9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

Yet man continues to rebel right on through the millennium, even though the rebellion is dealt with harshly and is always “broken as the vessel of a potter.”

This continues in spite of the fact that the serpent, the adversary, is no longer able to “deceive the nations until the thousand years are fulfilled.”

Rev 20:2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
Rev 20:3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.

The “seal” that keeps the adversary from deceiving the nations is the fact that the nations are not allowed to be deceived about who the adversary is and what he teaches. People are deceived today for the very reason that most do not believe that there is such a thing as a powerful spirit that is capable of deceiving them. It is the serpent himself that tells them that they themselves are a god that cannot really die. It is the adversary himself who had Joseph’s brothers thinking that everything they thought to do against Joseph was in reality their own idea. It wasn’t their idea. God sent an evil spirit to tempt them to sell Joseph into Egypt, just as surely as Ahab’s prophets thought that their prophecies were their own idea, when in reality God had sent an evil spirit to tempt them to prophesy lies and convince Ahab to go up to Ramoth- Gilead to die in battle. Every evil thought anyone has is the result of this ‘adversary feeding on dust’ principle. The solution is:

Jas 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Now since “all things are of God,” what you are really ‘resisting’ is someone who God Himself has created for the very purpose of being a trying adversary to suggest to the carnal mind that it really would be better off to rebel against God. So, of course Eve thought that she would be wise and would enjoy the taste of the forbidden fruit, not simply because she had thought of doing so, but because the serpent tempted her to do what she was already inclined to do. It was and is an inevitable tragedy, designed to need an already prepared Deliverer. The weak carnal mind of man is a chief element in this plan, but it is directed by a world of spirits headed up by one who scripturally is called Satan, that old Serpent the Devil. They are all names and titles of the one and same Adversary. This being the case does not exclude the fact that messengers are sent to be adversaries of the Adversary.

Jdg 1:9 Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee.

The word ‘ adversary’ is no more exclusive to Satan and his angels than the word ‘Savior’ is to Christ:

Neh 9:27 Therefore thou deliveredst them into the hand of their enemies, who vexed them: and in the time of their trouble, when they cried unto thee, thou heardest them from heaven; and according to thy manifold mercies thou gavest them saviours [ the different judges], who saved them out of the hand of their enemies.
Oba 1:21 And saviours [ those who compose the ‘lake of fire’] shall come up on mount Zion [ the kingdom of God] to judge the mount of Esau [ the world]; and the kingdom shall be the LORD’S.
Heb 12:22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,
Heb 12:23 To the general assembly and c hurch of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
Rev 3:12 Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.

The ‘saviors,’ the ‘New Jerusalem,’ the ‘144,000,’ ‘the lake of fire,’ the ‘elect,’ the ‘chosen,’ ‘the bride,’ the temple of God,’ the firstfruits,’ etc. are all one and the same. They are all the ‘eklectos,’ those chosen out of the many called.

There is coming a time when we, too, will be “Like these angels which neither marry nor are given in marriage,” but for now we are in the flesh, and without the mind of Christ in us, we will fall victim to the lies of these apparent “angels of light.”

2Co 11:13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
2Co 11:14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
2Co 11:15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.

You asked about the “great chain” of Rev 20:1. I believe that you can see that Revelation was “SIGNified by John.”

Rev 1:1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and sign ified it by his angel unto his servant John:

If the function of this chain is simply to keep Satan from deceiving the nations, then the truth being disseminated by the ruling elect of that day would itself fill the bill. The “abyss” and “outer darkness” are both typical of the darkness of believing a lie or many lies. Satan’s job is to lie and deceive. He dwells in darkness. But the beast himself is also said to “ascend out of the bottomless pit.”

Rev 17:8 The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

You are right; ‘the beast’ is mankind::

Ecc 3:18 I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts.

Mankind being the beast is not even a matter of conjecture. The fact that the beast “ascends out of the bottomless pit” should tell us that mankind eventually comes out from under that Dragon who gives him his “great authority and power” to deceive both himself and others. Satan never “fell.” “He was a liar and a murderer from the beginning.“

Joh 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

But when we finally are commissioned to “judge angels,” then Satan himself will be, not cast into prison as during the millennium, but he will at that time be cast into the ‘lake of fire,’ because it is now time for him, too to be purified by those who constitute that small ‘lake of fire.’

1Co 6:2 Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?

This is the millennial rule.

1Co 6:3 Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?

This is post- millennium, when we, just as our God is, will be “a consuming fire.”

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

What is He like?

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

And who is it that is not hurt of this fire? Who is it that is right at home in this lake of fire? Who is it that dwells there?

Isa 33:14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?

This is a good question. What is the answer?

Isa 33:15 He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil;

This, too, is the exact opposite from what the whole world teaches, so at least it has that going for it as a truth of the scriptures.

I appreciate your desire to know God’s mind. That is practically the definition of life eternal:

Joh 17:3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

You keep digging and so will I. In the meantime, I will close with a scripture that should be of comfort to both of us if indeed all we want is the mind of God:

Php 3:14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
Php 3:15 Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you.

Mike

]]>