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How to Behave Yourself in the House of God

[Study Aired April 5, 2026]

1Ti 3:14  These things write I unto thee, hoping to come unto thee shortly:
1Ti 3:15  But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

The first thing we need to notice in this study is that nowhere in all of scripture are we told that Peter, or any other single man, “is the pillar and ground of The Truth.” What this verse, along with “the sum of Thy word” (Psa 119:160) teaches throughout scripture is that “the church of the living God… is… the pillar and ground of The Truth.”

In the first epistle of John we are told this most powerful Truth:

1Jn 4:13  Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.
1Jn 4:14  And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.
1Jn 4:15  Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.
1Jn 4:16  And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
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.

We know and believe the love God has toward us to such an extent that Christ Himself calls us “…Jesus of Nazareth whom you persecutest.”

Act 22:7  And I fell unto the ground, and heard a voice saying unto me, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?
Act 22:8  And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said unto me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest.

Christ had already taught this very doctrine earlier when He told us:

Mat 25:37  Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
Mat 25:38  When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
Mat 25:39  Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?
Mat 25:40  And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

The same principle applies to those who persecute Christ and His body:

Mat 25:41  Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:
Mat 25:42  For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink:
Mat 25:43  I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not.
Mat 25:44  Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee?
Mat 25:45  Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.

Those are but a few of the scriptures which clearly state that Christ identifies with His church. Not once does He confer His identity upon any one man. It is always conferred upon His body, the church.

Who exactly is Christ of whom we are told “as He is” (1Jo 4:17)? The gospel of John has exactly seven ‘I Am’ statements which tell us who Christ is and therefore who we in Him are:

1. “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35) Are we bread? Nowhere are we called ‘the bread of life’, but if Christ is in us and if we share His Word with others then we are indeed “as He is in this world” (1Jo 4:17)

2. “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12) Are we the light of the world. In this case Jesus comes right out and tells us that if He is in us then we too are “the light of the world” (Mat 5:14 and 1Jo 4:17)

3. “I am the gate for the sheep” (John 10:7) Are we, in Christ ‘the gate of the sheepfold? No, we are not overtly called the gate. Christ alone has that title, but He in us will certainly ‘stand at the door and knock” simply because we are as He is in this world (1Jo 4:17).

4. “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:11) Are we shepherds of the Lord’s flock? Yes, we are explicitly called ‘shepherds of the Lord’s flock (Joh 10:2;1Pe 5:2 and 1Jo 4:17)

5. “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25) This title belongs to Christ alone. Nevertheless we are still told that like Him ‘from our bellies will flow rivers of living waters’:

6. “I am the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6) This title belongs exclusively to Christ. Nevertheless through Him within us, we can show others that Christ is ‘the way, the Truth and The Life’ (1Jo 4:17).

7. “I am the true vine” (John 15:1) Are we “The True Vine”? Of course not, not of ourselves. But we are branches on The True Vine and as such we must bring forth much fruit” through feeding the bread of life to others. (Joh 15:5).

Joh 15:8  Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
Joh 15:9  As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.
Joh 15:10  If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love.
Joh 15:11  These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.

We should indeed be rejoicing in our calling even as we are “hated of all men” (Mat 10:22, Rom 9:18).

We are also called ‘the body of Christ’ of which body He is ‘The Head’:

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.

We are not ‘The Head of the body’, but we are “His body which is the church”, as Paul reveals in this same chapter just six verses later:

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

Exactly who is part of His body which “fills up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ”? The answer to that question must be decided by each of us, and we must surely count those with whom we fellowship to be that ‘body.’ If we do not consider each other to be Christ, then why are we fellowshipping together? If indeed we do count His church to be Christ Himself, then we must never “lean to our own understanding” when differences arise in our midst over doctrinal matters. That is what we are commanded to do, and that is the example we are given by the Lord’s original apostles when the question arose about the need for circumcising Gentile converts.

Pro 3:3  Let not mercy and truth [“The church is the pillar and ground of The Truth] forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:
Pro 3:4  So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man.
Pro 3:5  Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
Pro 3:6  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Pro 3:7  Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.
Pro 3:8  It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.

1Ti 3:15  But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

Here is how we are expected to behave ourselves in the house of God when we disagree with others in the Lord’s body which is the church:

Act 15:1  And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.
Act 15:2  When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.

Why did the church at Syrian Antioch decide to “go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question?” They decided to do so because they knew what the scripture taught concerning how we are instructed to handle difficult decisions. Here is the earliest Biblical instructions on the proper, godly way of settling hard questions within the Lord’s house:

Deu 17:8  If there arise a matter too hard for thee in judgment, between blood and blood, between plea and plea, and between stroke and stroke, being matters of controversy within thy gates: then shalt thou arise, and get thee up into the place which the LORD thy God shall choose;
Deu 17:9  And thou shalt come unto the priests the Levites, and unto the judge that shall be in those days, and enquire; and they shall shew thee the sentence of judgment:
Deu 17:10  And thou shalt do according to the sentence, which they of that place which the LORD shall choose shall shew thee; and thou shalt observe to do according to all that they inform thee:
Deu 17:11  According to the sentence of the law which they shall teach thee, and according to the judgment which they shall tell thee, thou shalt do: thou shalt not decline from the sentence which they shall shew thee, to the right hand, nor to the left.
Deu 17:12  And the man that will do presumptuously, and will not hearken unto the priest that standeth to minister there before the LORD thy God, or unto the judge, even that man shall die: and thou shalt put away the evil from Israel.
Deu 17:13  And all the people shall hear, and fear, and do no more presumptuously.

It is the Lord who picks our leaders by having us to bring before him men who are “known among you” as men of integrity, to be our leaders:

Deu 1:13  Take you wise men, and understanding, and known among your tribes, and I will make them rulers over you.

You are all well aware of all the years of unpaid service which has been given for your sakes by every one of our elders. Each of us is aware of the solemn requirements of our calling. James warns us:

Jas 3:1 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. (BSB)

Hebrews 13:17 instructs us to obey our leaders because “they are keeping watch over your souls as those who must give an account.”

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. (CLV)

In Acts 20 Paul warns the Ephesian elders to pay close attention to yourselves and to the flock over which the holy spirit has made us overseers, because grievous wolves will enter in among us not sparing the flock. He even warned us of what we have experienced more than once about men among our own elders arising and speaking perverse things:

Act 20:28  Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
Act 20:29  For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
Act 20:30  Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.
Act 20:31  Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.

Here is what Peter commands the Lord’s elders to do:

1Pe 5:1  The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:
1Pe 5:2  Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;
1Pe 5:3  Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.
1Pe 5:4  And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.

Christ Himself warns us:

Luk 12:48  But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.

The Lord had told the apostles, through His Word, to take ‘matters of controversy within your gates to the priests and judges that be in that day.’ Nowhere in all of scripture are doctrinal matters decided by just one man’s judgment. One man may indeed speak for the priests and judges but only after “the apostles and elders came together for to consider this matter”:

Act 15:6  And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter.

Every one of the apostles and elders gave their input before James declared what the holy ghost had told them to do about this question at this time:

Act 15:7  And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.

“When there had been much disputing” is speaking about disputing between the apostles and elders… “the judges in that day” who all stepped up and shared with the other elders what the Lord had given them to contribute to the settling of this “controversy with thy gates.” It was thoroughly discussed by ‘wise and understanding men’ who are known among you and have been placed among you by the Lord Himself.

Deu 1:13  Take you wise men, and understanding, and known among your tribes, and I will make them rulers over you.

“Take you wise men… and I will make them rulers over you” means that it is the Lord Himself who is working within His body ‘both to will and to do of His good pleasure… after the counsel of His own will’:

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

Php 2:12  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
Php 2:14  Do all things without murmurings and disputings:

“Do all things without murmurings and disputings” does not mean that the elders cannot express differing views on the ‘controversy with our gates’. They most assuredly did express their differing views. Nevertheless this was the consensus of the apostles there in Jerusalem, and Peter, Paul and Barnabas were very zealous to be obedient to these decrees:

Act 15:28  For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things;
Act 15:29  That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.

What Philippians 2:14… “Do all things without murmurings and disputings,” is telling us is that once a consensus is reached we are to “share it with the churches”, which is exactly what Paul and Silas did immediately following that conference in Jerusalem concerning whether the Gentiles were required to be circumcised.

This is how careful Paul and Silas were to abide by “the decrees of the apostles and elders which were at Jerusalem”:

Act 16:1  Then came he [He and Silas] to Derbe and Lystra: and, behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timotheus, the son of a certain woman, which was a Jewess, and believed; but his father was a Greek:
Act 16:2  Which was well reported of by the brethren that were at Lystra and Iconium.
Act 16:3  Him would Paul have to go forth with him; and took and circumcised him because of the Jews which were in those quarters: for they knew all that his father was a Greek.
Act 16:4  And as they went through the cities, they delivered them the decrees for to keep, that were ordained of the apostles and elders which were at Jerusalem.

Paul was so careful to abide by ‘the decrees of the [consensus] of the apostles and elders which were at Jerusalem’ that He circumcised Timothy, whose mother “was a Jewess”.

Peter, Paul, and Barnabas were all very careful to accept the judgment of the judges.

Deu 17:11  According to the sentence of the law which they shall teach thee, and according to the judgment which they shall tell thee, thou shalt do: thou shalt not decline from the sentence which they shall shew thee, to the right hand, nor to the left.

That is what “Lean not to thine own understanding” looks like.

Pro 3:5  Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
Pro 3:6  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Pro 3:7  Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.

Anyone who refuses to seek the counsel of the elders of the church cannot in any way claim to be “acknowledging [God and His Word]” and that person’s path is not being directed by Christ, rather it is being directed by his father the devil (Joh 8:44).

Anyone who refuses to seek the counsel of his elders is nothing but “wise in [his] own eyes and is not at all ‘fearing the Lord and departing from evil’, because this is what the Lord admonishes us to do:

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.

Moses had made it clear that all males in Israel must be circumcised, and no one in the conference at Jerusalem was openly and overtly demanding that the Jews had to forsake that ritual to be saved. The early church was still under the law of Moses as James made so very clear in Acts 21, many years after the Jerusalem conference of Acts 15:

Act 21:17  And when we were come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly.
Act 21:18  And the day following Paul went in with us unto James; and all the elders were present.
Act 21:19  And when he had saluted them, he declared particularly what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry.
Act 21:20  And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord, and said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law:
Act 21:21  And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs.
Act 21:22  What is it therefore? the multitude must needs come together: for they will hear that thou art come.
Act 21:23  Do therefore this that we say to thee: We have four men which have a vow on them;
Act 21:24  Them take, and purify thyself with them, and be at charges with them, that they may shave their heads: and all may know that those things, whereof they were informed concerning thee, are nothing; but that thou thyself also walkest orderly, and keepest the law.
Act 21:25  As touching the Gentiles which believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from fornication.
Act 21:26  Then Paul [Because Paul was also keeping the law at this time] took the men, and the next day purifying himself with them entered into the temple, to signify the accomplishment of the days of purification, until that an offering should be offered for every one of them.

Every single elder at that conference in Acts 15 agreed that the Gentiles did not need to be circumcised to be saved. Notice carefully that Peter, Paul and Barnabas had made clear to the other elders that in their minds the Lord “put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith… we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we [Jews] shall be saved even as they.” Notice that Peter did not say ‘they shall be saved even as we [by practicing ritualistic outward circumcision]. What Peter, Paul and Barnabas concluded was not at this time the consensus of the other apostles and elders. They all agreed that the Gentiles were not required to be circumcised, but they absolutely did not agree at that time that the Jews did not need to keep the law of Moses.

Notice how James included the teachings of the synagogues to be the teachings of Moses which he and all of the apostles except Peter, Paul, and Barnabas considered as necessary for Jewish Christians to observe and keep:

Act 15:20  But that we [The apostles at Jerusalem] write unto them [Gentile Christian converts], that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood.
Act 15:21  For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.

Verse 21 in the minds of the apostles at this time was not a negative thing. James and the apostles all expected all Jewish converts to continue attending the synagogues in their area and to be “zealous of the law.”

What now were Peter, Paul and Barnabas to do? Should they argue with the consensus of the elders or should they submit and keep the law of which Peter had just said:

Act 15:7  And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.
Act 15:8  And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us;
Act 15:9  And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.
Act 15:10  Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?
Act 15:11  But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they. [By grace through faith (Eph 2:8) and not by the works of the law]

The Jerusalem apostles no doubt felt they had scripture on their side because this is what the Lord had indeed told Abraham:

Gen 17:10  This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised.
Gen 17:11  And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you.
Gen 17:12  And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed.
Gen 17:13  He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.
Gen 17:14  And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.

We may think at some point, that the apostles had come out from under the law because of all the changes and reforms Christ had instituted in Matthew 5-7. Time and again He would quote the law of Moses and then follow what He had just quoted with the words… “But I say unto you…” and the “…But I say unto you” would invariably be the exact opposite of what the Law of Moses dictated:

Mat 5:38  Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth:
Mat 5:39  But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

‘Resist not evil’ is the exact opposite of ‘An eye for an eye’.

Mat 5:43  Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy.
Mat 5:44  But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

“Love your enemies” is the exact opposite of “hate thine enemy.” Yet the Lord had shown Peter, Paul and Barnabas that he had begun the “time of reformation”, and the law of Moses was “fading away” and being replaced by “the law of the spirit of life” (Rom 8:2). Fortunately for the church of that day, the apostles Peter, Paul, and Barnabas knew the Lord’s words of:

Deu 17:8  If there arise a matter too hard for thee in judgment, between blood and blood, between plea and plea, and between stroke and stroke, being matters of controversy within thy gates: then shalt thou arise, and get thee up into the place which the LORD thy God shall choose;
Deu 17:9  And thou shalt come unto the priests the Levites, and unto the judge that shall be in those days, and enquire; and they shall shew thee the sentence of judgment:
Deu 17:10  And thou shalt do according to the sentence, which they of that place which the LORD shall choose shall shew thee; and thou shalt observe to do according to all that they inform thee:

Peter, Paul and Barnabas were all familiar with the three times repeated admonition to submit to the multitude of counsellors:

Pro 11:14  Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.

Pro 15:22  Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counsellors they are established.

Pro 24:6  For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in multitude of counsellors there is safety.

It is for our admonition, and as an example to all of us that Peter, Paul, and Barnabas were “persuaded of their leaders and deferred to them” rather than to lean to their own understanding, even as the Lord had shown them what would be the accepted truth at a later date. It was much like David acknowledging Saul as “the Lord’s anointed” even though he had already been anointed to become King Saul’s replacement. King David was anointed by Samuel, the same judge and prophet who had anointed King Saul.

Peter, Paul, and Barnabas, were being told at that conference over the question of Gentiles being required to be circumcised in order to be saved, that their doctrine would replace the law of Moses even for the Jews. Like David, they would have to wait for the Lord to reveal when He would make that replacement obvious to all. It took time for Israel to submit to David as their new king, and it took time for the doctrine that the Lord had put no difference between the Jews and the Gentiles to be accepted as the new Truth. It became impossible to live by the law of Moses when the temple was finally destroyed in 70 A. D.

Very shortly before the destruction of the temple the holy spirit made this revelation to Paul while he was still a prisoner at Rome:

Eph 2:11  Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;
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 between us; [The Jews must continue living under the law of Moses as agreed to in Acts 15]
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 growth 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.

When the Lord destroyed King Saul it became evident that David was now the king, and when the holy spirit decided to make it clear it became evident that the Jewish Christians were no longer under the law of Moses.

This is very good advice for anyone who claims to tremble at the Lord’s Words:

Ecc 5:1  Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil.
Ecc 5:2  Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.

In conclusion when “a… controversy within [our] gates arises” let us all be obedient to the law and “be persuaded of our elders and defer to them”:

Deu 17:8  If there arise a matter too hard for thee in judgment, between blood and blood, between plea and plea, and between stroke and stroke, being matters of controversy within thy gates: then shalt thou arise, and get thee up into the place which the LORD thy God shall choose;
Deu 17:9  And thou shalt come unto the priests the Levites, and unto the judge that shall be in those days, and enquire; and they shall shew thee the sentence of judgment:
Deu 17:10  And thou shalt do according to the sentence, which they of that place which the LORD shall choose shall shew thee; and thou shalt observe to do according to all that they inform thee:

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.

If we tremble at those words and are obedient to them, then we will reap the benefits of the peace and joy that comes with these words:

Psa 133:1  A Song of degrees of David. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!

Eph 4:1  I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called,
Eph 4:2  With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love;
Eph 4:3  Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Let us all behave ourselves in the house of God, the pillar and ground of The Truth.

]]> Acts 1:9-26  Jesus Shall Come in Like Manner as Ye Have Seen Him go Into Heaven https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/acts-19-26-jesus-shall-come-in-like-manner-as-ye-have-seen-him-go-into-heaven/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=acts-19-26-jesus-shall-come-in-like-manner-as-ye-have-seen-him-go-into-heaven Sun, 27 Nov 2022 15:35:35 +0000 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=26632 Audio Download

Acts 1:9-26  Jesus Shall Come in Like Manner as Ye Have Seen Him go Into Heaven

[Study Aired November 27, 2022]

Act 1:9  And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
Act 1:10  And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;
Act 1:11  Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
Act 1:12  Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day’s journey.
Act 1:13  And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James.
Act 1:14  These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren. 
Act 1:15  And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)
Act 1:16  Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus.
Act 1:17  For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.
Act 1:18  Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.
Act 1:19  And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The field of blood.
Act 1:20  For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishoprick let another take.
Act 1:21  Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,
Act 1:22  Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.
Act 1:25  That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.
Act 1:26  And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

These are the words of the Lord with which we ended our last study:

Act 1:6  When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?
Act 1:7  And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.
Act 1:8  But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

The disciples knew the resurrection of their master was a miracle, but they had no idea at this point what was to come upon them as the Lord’s elect. Truly, if they had known, they would not have been able to bear it at this point. We know this is true because Christ had told them the night of His being apprehended by the Jews:

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 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.

It is in the Lord’s great and infinite mercy that He does not show us things we simply cannot yet bear. However, in His time and on His schedule, He will “guide [us] into all Truth”. There was no way these spiritual “babes in Christ” (1Co 3:1) could have received these words at the time they saw the Lord ascend into heaven:

Rom 2:28  For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
Rom 2:29  But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

Christ was a wise reformer, and He knew just when to give His apostles more of His mind on any subject, and He decided when to wait to give them more of His mind. This earliest part of His reformation is not the time He chose to open their minds to the fact that their physical pedigree was no longer ‘counted for the seed’ and that all that mattered now was a new creature in Christ:

Gal 3:26  For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
Gal 3:27  For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
Gal 3:28  There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
Gal 3:29  And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

This was the time of reformation, and that reformation was nowhere near complete, and for most it still is nowhere near being complete because most Christians think that God still has a people who are His physical elect. ‘Physical elect’ is not a Biblical phrase, nor is it a Biblical doctrine in the New Testament. For those who can see it, the Jewish Christian church was living under the law of Moses throughout the timeframe covered by the book of Acts. For those Jewish Christians, including the apostles themselves, the depth of the meaning of these words had not yet been revealed:

Heb 9:6  Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God.
Heb 9:7  But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people:
Heb 9:8  The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing:
Heb 9:9  Which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience;
Heb 9:10  Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation.

A reformation does not take place overnight. One might well say that “the time of reformation” began with the ministry of Christ, but as Christ Himself affirmed the same night He was apprehended by the Jews:

Joh 16:12  I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.

After Christ’s resurrection, when the apostles asked Him, “Will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel” they still could not bear the depth of the reformation of the doctrines of Christ. The fact is that decades later, after Paul had finished his third journey, he was taken by the Jews who were in the process of beating him when the Romans saved his life and took him prisoner. The Jews attacked Paul just as he was about to enter the temple to offer five lambs, one for his own sins and four others for the sins of four other men who had made a vow. It was all according to the law of Moses under which the apostles were still living all those decades later.

This first chapter ends with the apostles asking Christ if He would at that time restore the physical kingdom to His physical nation. That they did not understand the time was coming when neither at Samaria nor at Jerusalem would they worship God, rather God wanted to be worshiped in spirit and in truth. This question from the apostles was another display of how the apostles were still unaware of the many things the Lord could not tell them because they could not yet bear them (Joh 16:12).

Joh 4:21  Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.
Joh 4:22  Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.
Joh 4:23  But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
Joh 4:24  God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
Joh 4:25  The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things.
Joh 4:26  Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto thee am he.

“The hour [was] coming” but it was not yet here, and Christ told His apostles to wait in Jerusalem until they were given the gift of the holy spirit.

Act 1:9  And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
Act 1:10  And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;
Act 1:11  Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

Is this true? Will the disciples standing there watching Christ ascend into heaven really see “the Lord Himself so come in like manner as [they saw] Him go into heaven?” We happen to have a verse which qualifies the fact that Christ “Himself” will indeed come again in like manner as He ascended into heaven:

1Th 4:14  For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also that are fallen asleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
1Th 4:15  For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we that are alive, that are left unto the coming of the Lord, shall in no wise precede them that are fallen asleep.
1Th 4:16  For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven, with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first;
1Th 4:17  then we that are alive, that are left, shall together with them be caught up in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
1Th 4:18  Wherefore comfort one another with these words. (ASV)

The promise that Christ Himself will appear again is intended to comfort us in our struggles, and indeed it does. The “cloud [which] received them out of their sight” and in which He will return symbolizes the saints “God… will… bring with Him” and with whom He will rule this world:

Job 36:28  Which the clouds do drop and distil upon man abundantly.
Job 36:29  Also can any understand the spreadings of the clouds, or the noise of his tabernacle?
Job 36:30  Behold, he spreadeth his light upon it, and covereth the bottom of the sea.
Job 36:31  For by them judgeth he the people; he giveth meat in abundance.

Mar 13:26  And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.

1Th 4:17  Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

Heb 12:1  Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

The two men in white apparel (Act 1:10) signify the witness and the righteous lives of those who will freely give the gospel to others as they serve as witnesses of His Words:

2Co 13:1  This is the third time I am coming to you. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.

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.

The Lord knows that His apostles cannot yet bear the loss of any of the physical benefits of being the physical progeny of Abraham, therefore He simply commands them to return to Jerusalem, which is indeed where both the physical and the spiritual church will have its birth in Him. The church must ‘come out of Babylon’ just as both Israel and Christ had to be called out of Egypt, and Jerusalem signifies the great harlot, Mystery Babylon the great of whom we must come out:

Isa 1:21 How is the faithful city [Jerusalem] become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers.

Hos 11:1  When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt.

Now notice how the New Testament writers handle this verse of scripture, Hoseah 1:11, which refers to “Israel”:

Mat 2:13  And when they [the three wise men] were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.
Mat 2:14  When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt:
Mat 2:15  And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son.

That statement originally and outwardly concerned the time before Israel had become a nation in the promised land. Christ, through Moses, led Israel out of Egypt. Christ had to go into Egypt to physically fulfill that prophecy, and now, in this verse of Acts 1:12, the New Testament church has to fulfill the prophecy of coming out of Mystery Babylon, by returning to Jerusalem which the scriptures reveal as a type of ‘Mystery Babylon… the mother of harlots’:

Isa 1:21  How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers.

Act 1:12  Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day’s journey [“A sabbath day’s journey”, demonstrates that the apostles are still very cognizant of the law of Moses].
Act 1:13  And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James.
Act 1:14  These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.

Luke uses the phrase ‘the women’ as if everyone knew who they were. Who are “the women”? They were the women who had followed Christ and “of their substance” had supported His ministry:

Luk 8:1  And it came to pass soon afterwards, that he went about through cities and villages, preaching and bringing the good tidings of the kingdom of God, and with him the twelve,
Luk 8:2  and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary that was called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,
Luk 8:3  and Joanna the wife of Chuzas Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others, who ministered unto them of their substance.

In scripture ‘women’ typify the church. The fact that “certain women… ministered unto them of their substance” typifies how the church is to support Christ and His ministers:

1Co 9:13  Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar?
1Co 9:14  Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel.

Paul confesses that he ‘lived of the gospel”, but he refused to take anything of the Corinthian church because of those there who were accusing him of preaching the gospel for the money that was in it:

2Co 11:7  Have I committed an offence in abasing myself that ye might be exalted, because I have preached to you the gospel of God freely?
2Co 11:8  I robbed other churches, taking wages of them, to do you service.
2Co 11:9  And when I was present with you, and wanted, I was chargeable to no man: for that which was lacking to me the brethren which came from Macedonia supplied: and in all things I have kept myself from being burdensome unto you, and so will I keep myself.
2Co 11:10  As the truth of Christ is in me, no man shall stop me of this boasting in the regions of Achaia.
2Co 11:11  Wherefore? because I love you not? God knoweth.
2Co 11:12  But what I do, that I will do, that I may cut off occasion from them which desire occasion; that wherein they glory, they may be found even as we.
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.

Those telling the Corinthians that Paul was preaching the gospel for personal gain were “false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ”, and Paul was determined to “cut off occasion from them which desire occasion”.

“The women” of Acts 1:14 are the same women of Luke 8:1 who supported Christ’s ministry and who had followed Him to the cross just a few weeks earlier:

Mat 27:55  And many women were there beholding afar off, which followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering unto him:
Mat 27:56  Among which was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s children.

Mar 15:40  There were also women looking on afar off: among whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome;
Mar 15:41  (Who also, when he was in Galilee, followed him, and ministered unto him;) and many other women which came up with him unto Jerusalem.

Luk 23:27  And there followed him a great company of people, and of women, which also bewailed and lamented him.

Joh 19:25  Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.
Joh 19:26  When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!
Joh 19:27  Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.

‘The women’ are mentioned in all four gospels as a type of the church which ministers to those who minister to the Lord’s body. Paul said He would rather die than to be guilty of preaching for personal gain:

1Co 9:15  But I have used none of these things: neither have I written these things, that it should be so done unto me: for it were better for me to die, than that any man should make my glorying void.

All the apostles are present in the upper room but Judas, and we will now see how the early apostles used the Words of the Old Testament to deal with Judas’s replacement by Mathias, and how the apostle Peter handled the Word of God in seeking that replacement.

Act 1:15  And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)

The apostles were twelve 12 which signifies foundations. Here is the link to the study on the number 12:

Spiritual Significance of Numbers – The Number Twelve

Twelve signifies foundations both in a positive and in a negative sense. The first mention of this number concerns the twelve princes of Ishmael, the rejected seed of Abraham. It is not a coincidence that the two greatest religions on earth today spring from the seed of Abraham, through whom they both claim the promises made to Abraham. Those two religions are the Christian and Muslim religions, and both began with twelve patriarchs, the twelve sons of Ishmael and the twelve sons of Jacob.

Christ’s church also began with twelve apostles as its foundation and Christ “is the chief cornerstone“ and the head of the foundation of His Church:

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

1Pe 2:7  Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner,

The one hundred twenty disciples who were present in the upper room on the day of Pentecost when the church was founded is ten times twelve, signifying the foundation of the physical church “in earthen vessels” with Christ as “the head of the corner”.

2Co 4:7  But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, [signified by the number ten] that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.

Here is the link to the number ten:

Spiritual Significance of Numbers – The Number Ten

The church was not founded by Peter, and Peter was not “the first Pope”. Christ is the first and only ‘Pope’ other than His Father, and it is Christ who is building His Church on the same ‘rock’, the same ‘petra’ on which He admonishes us to build our house (Mat 7:24-25). Christ does not admonish us to build our house on a ‘petros’, a small pebble.

Mat 16:18  And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter [G4074: ‘petros’, a pebble, a small rock], and upon this rock [G4073: ‘petra’, a massive rock] I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. [He is building His church upon Himself, a massive rock, the same word used when He admonishes us to build our house upon a rock, (G4073: ‘petra’) instead of building it on the sand or a ‘petros’, a pebble (Mat 7:24-25)].

These are the words of Christ:

Mat 23:9  And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.

On the other hand, Christ is called our spiritual ‘Everlasting Father’:

Isa 9:6  For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

The church of Christ does not need another ‘head’ because it already has a head, and that ‘head’ and that ‘Father’ is Christ Himself, not some carnal man:

Eph 5:23  For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.

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.

Peter is inspired by the holy spirit to maintain this foundation of twelve apostles:

Act 1:16  Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus.
Act 1:17  For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.
Act 1:18  Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.

The field was purchased with the money that belonged to Judas. Even if the priests did the actual purchase, they did so with his money, and it was therefore his field, “the field of blood”.

Mat 27:3  Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders,
Mat 27:4  Saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that.
Mat 27:5  And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself.
Mat 27:6  And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of blood.
Mat 27:7  And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter’s field, to bury strangers in.
Mat 27:8  Wherefore that field was called, The field of blood, unto this day.
Mat 27:9  Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was valued, whom they of the children of Israel did value;
Mat 27:10  And gave them for the potter’s field, as the Lord appointed me.

All of this was common knowledge “unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem” and everyone called the field that was bought with the thirty pieces of silver “the field of blood.”

Act 1:19  And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The field of blood.

All these events being common knowledge in Jerusalem at that time accords with the reaction of the two men on the road to Emmaus the day of Christ’s resurrection:

Luk 24:15  And it came to pass, that, while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near, and went with them.
Luk 24:16  But their eyes were holden that they should not know him.
Luk 24:17  And he said unto them, What manner of communications are these that ye have one to another, as ye walk, and are sad?
Luk 24:18  And the one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days?

Now let us learn from the apostle Peter how to properly handle the Word of God:

Act 1:16  Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus.
Act 1:17  For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.
Act 1:20  For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishoprick let another take.

Here are the verses Peter references in the book of Psalms:

Psa 69:25  Let their home be made desolate; let no one dwell in their tents.

Does that sound like King David had Judas in mind? Notice that in verse 20 Peter uses the singular pronoun ‘his habitation”, while Psalms has this in the plural, “their home”. Then without explanation Peter jumps over to:

Psa 109:8  Let his days be few; and let another take his office.

Since the pronouns are apparently added in the English, there is no contradiction at all, but how does Peter know that Psalm 69:25 and Psalm 109:8 are speaking of the same person? The answer to that question is that the Lord had made Peter to understand that anything in the Old Testament which typifies “our Lord and His Christ”, will also have the same application to its anti-type in the New Testament. Therefore if King David, a type of Christ, is being persecuted in the Old Testament, King David typifies Christ and His Christ in the New Testament. Psalms 69:25 specifically refers to King David’s enemies:

Psa 69:19  Thou hast known my reproach, and my shame, and my dishonour: mine adversaries are all before thee.
Psa 69:20  Reproach hath broken my heart; and I am full of heaviness: and I looked for some to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none.
Psa 69:21  They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
Psa 69:22  Let their table become a snare before them: and that which should have been for their welfare, let it become a trap.
Psa 69:23  Let their eyes be darkened, that they see not; and make their loins continually to shake.
Psa 69:24  Pour out thine indignation upon them, and let thy wrathful anger take hold of them.
Psa 69:25  Let their home be made desolate; let no one dwell in their tents.

The phrase “mine adversaries are all before thee” justifies the use of the plural pronouns, but whether it is singular or plural is immaterial to the message that the Lord’s elect are being persecuted by their enemies. That is how Peter can jump from Psalm 69:25 to Psalms 109:8 and apply both to the betrayal of Christ by Judas. We should learn to do the same.

Act 1:21  Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,
Act 1:22  Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.

The qualification for being one of the twelve original apostles was that this man had to have “accompanied [Christ and His apostles] all the time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us. Beginning from the baptism of John unto the same day that He was taken up from us.”

The very fact that there were two men chosen who had those exacting qualifications informs us that there are many details that we have not been given about the logistics of the ministry of Christ.

Act 1:23  And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.
Act 1:24  And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen,

The apostles were very prayerful about who they laid hands on to replace Judas. They knew that if they laid their hands on an unqualified candidate, they would actually be taking part in that person’s lack of qualification.

Here is Paul’s admonition to Timothy whom he had ordained as an elder in the church in Ephesus. This is how we are to deal with elders in our midst:

1Ti 5:19  Against an elder receive not an accusation, but before two or three witnesses.
1Ti 5:20  Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear.
1Ti 5:21  I charge thee before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and the elect angels, that thou observe these things without preferring one before another, doing nothing by partiality.
1Ti 5:22  Lay hands suddenly on no man, neither be partaker of other men’s sins: keep thyself pure.

Elders are afforded the same consideration as anyone else in the body of Christ. We are instructed that we are not to believe any accusation against an elder “but before two or three witnesses”. Those “two or three witnesses comprise the commandment our Lord gives us in Matthew 18:

Mat 18:15  Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.
Mat 18:16  But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
Mat 18:17  And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican.

The decision in Acts 15, concerning the question of circumcision being essential for the salvation of the Gentiles, was decided by “the apostles and elders”, and it was expected of the church to stand with and be persuaded by their leaders (Heb 13:17 CLV).

Whether the offence is moral sins stemming from the weakness of our flesh (1Co 5:1-5), or if the offence is spiritual sin stemming from a lying spirit that wants to spread a false doctrine within the body of Christ (1Ti 1:19-20), both will “leaven the whole lump” if left to fester within a congregation.

“Tell it to the church” is the same as “them that sin, rebuke before all” because Paul reminds us that God is no respecter of persons, and elders are no more or less deserving of our mercy and of our judgment.

1Co 2:15  But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.
1Co 2:16  For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.

Paul was not doubleminded, and he feared God rather than men. Therefore, he charges Timothy and us:

1Ti 5:21  I charge thee before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and the elect angels, that thou observe these things without preferring one before another, doing nothing by partiality.

Elders are never to be given any special treatment just because they are elders. To avoid such situations we are commanded by the holy spirit:

1Ti 5:22  Lay hands suddenly on no man, neither be partaker of other men’s sins: keep thyself pure.

The eleven apostles were given the wisdom to be careful to let the Lord Himself choose who would replace Judas:

Act 1:25  That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.
Act 1:26  And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

How “they gave forth their lots” is immaterial, whether it was the toss of the dice or the drawing of straws or any other way of ‘casting lots’, because this is the fact of how the lots will fall:

Pro 16:33  The lot is cast into the lap; but the whole disposing thereof is of the LORD.

We do not ‘cast lots’ to settle important matters today because we have the completed Word of God to guide our decisions, and as these same apostles demonstrated at the Jerusalem conference concerning the question of whether the Gentiles should be circumcised and keep the law of Moses, it was a matter to be revealed in its time by a multitude of counselors and by the leaders whom the Lord had placed within His church.

Act 15:2  When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.

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. (CLV)

]]> The Book of Hebrews – Heb 13:11-25 “Obey Them That Have the Rule Over You, and Submit Yourselves” https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/the-book-of-hebrews-heb-1311-25-obey-them-that-have-the-rule-over-you-and-submit-yourselves/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=the-book-of-hebrews-heb-1311-25-obey-them-that-have-the-rule-over-you-and-submit-yourselves Thu, 13 May 2021 20:15:50 +0000 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=23546

Heb 13:11-25 “Obey Them That Have the Rule Over You, and Submit Yourselves”

[Study Aired May 13, 2021]

Heb 13:11   For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp.
Heb 13:12  Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate.
Heb 13:13  Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.
Heb 13:14  For here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come.
Heb 13:15  By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.
Heb 13:16  But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.
Heb 13:17  Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.
Heb 13:18  Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly.
Heb 13:19  But I beseech you the rather to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner.
Heb 13:20  Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,
Heb 13:21  Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Heb 13:22  And I beseech you, brethren, suffer the word of exhortation: for I have written a letter unto you in few words.
Heb 13:23  Know ye that our brother Timothy is set at liberty; with whom, if he come shortly, I will see you.
Heb 13:24  Salute all them that have the rule over you, and all the saints. They of Italy salute you.
Heb 13:25  Grace be with you all. Amen.

This section of Hebrews reveals to us how we can avoid being “carried about with divers and strange doctrines” (Heb 13:9), and one of the main points that will be made over and again to prevent this from happening is our being persuaded (Heb 13:17) of our need to remember them that have the rule over us, mentioned three times in just this one chapter of Hebrews (Heb 13:7, Heb 13:17, Heb 13:24).

The scriptures we will look at in this study show us the sound pattern God has given us, which is realized through judgment upon our sinful flesh (1Pe 4:17, 1Jn 4:17).

When we go outside the camp with Christ (Heb 13:13) we are doing so in order to cease from sinning, livingG980[G5658 = aorist] the rest of our time in this flesh not to the lusts of men, but to the will of God where there is no condemnation in Christ because we no longer walkG4043 [G5723 = present (today)] after the flesh but in the spirit (1Pe 4:1-3, Rom 8:1-2). When we obey them that have the rule over us and follow each other as we follow Christ, we are in fact setting our “affection on things above (Eph 2:6), not on things on the earth” knowing and being persuaded that “your life is hid with Christ in God” which is what it means to have eternal life which we now have in earnest (Col 3:2-3, Joh 17:3, the world’s earnest expectation – Rom 8:19, the body of Christ’s earnest of our inheritance – Eph 1:14).

Our Father in heaven is likened to a husbandman (Jas 5:7-8). and the fruit that is first manifested in the lives of God’s elect is what He is producing, which will result in our being able to “walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time” (Col 4:5-6). We are walking in wisdom when we “obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves”, and the fruit of that spiritual endeavour is described for us as well in 1Thessalonians 5:16-18.

Jas 5:7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.
Jas 5:8  Be ye also patient[Luk_21:19]; stablish your hearts [1Pe 5:10, 1Pe 4:12] :for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.

Col 4:5  Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time.
Col 4:6  Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.

1Th 5:16  Rejoice evermore.
1Th 5:17  Pray without ceasing.
1Th 5:18  In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Heb 13:11  For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp.

What of these beasts whose bodies are brought into the sanctuary by the priest for sin? What does this represent, and why must this be burned “without (outside) the camp“?

These beasts represent us, and the knowledge of who we are as beasts does not come about unless the Lord makes that knowledge manifest (Ecc 3:18).

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.

The manifold wisdom of God which makes it possible for us to come to know God and Jesus Christ (Joh 17:3) is being made known or manifest through the church (Eph 3:10, Rom 1:19, 2Co 2:14) and no man can come unto Christ the High Priest who is in the temple that we are (1Co 3:16, Col 1:27), unless the Father drags us there (Joh 6:44).

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

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,

Rom 1:19  Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them [“by the church”].

2Co 2:14  Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.

Joh 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me drawG1670 = “drag” [G5661 = aorist] him: and I will raise him up at the last day.

This dragging process is being talked about when it says “whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin“. It is our Adamic sinful flesh that is on trial, and we are all guilty of all and therefore, like our Lord, we are “burned without the camp” as we overcome through Christ being nourished by the very living sacrifice we have become through Him (Lev 4:1-21, Heb 13:13, Rom 12:1, Gal 2:20).

Lev 4:3  If the priest that is anointed do sin according to the sin of the people; then let him bring for his sin, which he hath sinned, a young bullock without blemish unto the LORD for a sin offering.

[The anointed priest in this instance is the elect, and the bullock represents Christ who is the sin offering.]

…Lev 4:5-7  And the priest that is anointed shall take of the bullock’s blood, and bring it to the tabernacle of the congregation: And the priest shall dip his finger in the blood, and sprinkle of the blood seven times before the LORD, before the vail of the sanctuary. And the priest shall put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar of sweet incense before the LORD, which is in the tabernacle of the congregation; and shall pour all the blood of the bullock at the bottom of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.

…Lev 4:11-12  And the skin of the bullock, and all his flesh, with his head, and with his legs, and his inwards, and his dung, even the whole bullock shall he carry forth without the camp unto a clean place, where the ashes are poured out, and burn him on the wood with fire: where the ashes are poured out shall he be burnt.

Lev 4:13  And if the whole congregation of Israel sin through ignorance [Rom_3:23], and the thing be hid from the eyes of the assembly, and they have done somewhat against any of the commandments of the LORD concerning things which should not be done, and are guilty;
Lev 4:14  When the sin, which they have sinned against it, is known, then the congregation shall offer a young bullock for the sin, and bring him before the tabernacle of the congregation.

[The young bullock represents Christ, who is sacrificed for the sins of the whole congregation, representing all the worldJoh_3:16]

Lev 4:15  And the elders of the congregation shall lay their hands upon the head of the bullock before the LORD: and the bullock shall be killed before the LORD.
Lev 4:16  And the priest that is anointed shall bring of the bullock’s blood to the tabernacle of the congregation:
Lev 4:17  And the priest shall dip his finger in some of the blood, and sprinkle it seven times before the LORD, even before the vail.
Lev 4:18  And he shall put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar which is before the LORD, that is in the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall pour out all the blood at the bottom of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
Lev 4:19  And he shall take all his fat from him, and burn it upon the altar.
Lev 4:20  And he shall do with the bullock as he did with the bullock for a sin offering, so shall he do with this: and the priest shall make an atonement for them, and it shall be forgiven them.
Lev 4:21  And he shall carry forth the bullock without the camp, and burn him as he burned the first bullock: it is a sin offering for the congregation.
Heb 13:13  Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach. [Col 1:24]

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

Gal 2:20  I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. [We lay down our lives for each other (Joh 15:13), 1Jn 3:16)]

Heb 13:12  Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate.
Heb 13:13  Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.

Suffering “without the gate” or being “burned without the camp” are the same thing, and it represents our coming out of the knowledge of this world, the wisdom of men, as we begin to live by the power of God (1Co 2:5, Pro 9:10, Luk 12:5) that tells us we must lose our life in order to gain it (Mat 10:39) and suffer “without the gate” with Christ who is represented by the bullock that is burned outside the camp (Pro 24:7, Col 1:24, Exo 29:14). Christ “gave himself for [us]” so we could live the rest of our lives “by the faith of the Son of God”, and that is what happens when we die daily and are “born of God”(Gal 2:20, 1Jn 5:4).

1Co 2:5  That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

Pro 9:10  The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.

Luk 12:5  But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.
Pro 24:7  Wisdom is too high for a fool: he openeth not his mouth in the gate.

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

Exo 29:14  But the flesh of the bullock, and his skin, and his dung, shalt thou burn with fire without the camp: it is a sin offering.

1Jn 5:4  For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.

The rich young ruler does not want to give up his knowledge, his own righteousness, by going outside the camp with Christ by selling all he has so he can then obtain the true riches and wisdom that comes with suffering, with the people of God who are being “born again” (Mat 19:21, Luk 13:32, Heb 11:25-27, Joh 3:3, Luk 17:21).

Heb 11:25  Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;
Heb 11:26  Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.
Heb 11:27  By faith he forsook Egypt [the riches of the world], not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.

That “strait gate” God’s elect are blessed to enter into and are heading toward is described for us in this parable of Christ found in Luke 13:22-33. Christ has to direct and control the foal of an ass in order for it, the beast, to enter into the gate, which again represents the wisdom of Christ toward which He directs us by giving us eyes to see and ears to hear (Mat 13:11). Otherwise we would continue to be ever searching and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth (Mat 21:5, Joh 12:14-16, 2Ti 3:7).

Luk 13:22  And he went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem.

[Regarding God’s sovereignty, we are told we are journeying toward a city (Heb 11:10), which in the elect’s case is the city called “Jerusalem above, the mother of us all” (Jas 4:13-15, Heb 6:3, Gal 4:26]

Luk 13:23  Then said one unto him, Lord, are there few that be saved? And he said unto them,
Luk 13:24  Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able [Mat 22:14].
Luk 13:25  When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are:
Luk 13:26  Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence [Isa_4:1], and thou hast taught in our streets.
Luk 13:27  But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity. [Php 3:9]
Luk 13:28  There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out.

[‘When the world finally sees the spiritual completion through judgment (3) 1Pe 4:17) that God’s elect have gone through, represented by this parable of three men “Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob“, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’]

Luk 13:29  And they shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God.
Luk 13:30  And, behold, there are last which shall be first, and there are first which shall be last. [Mat 22:14]
Luk 13:31  The same day there came certain of the Pharisees, saying unto him, Get thee out, and depart hence: for Herod will kill thee [Luk_12:5].
Luk 13:32  And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to day and to morrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.
Luk 13:33  Nevertheless I must walk to day, and to morrow, and the day following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem. [Gal 4:26]

[We cannot die daily unless we are blessed to be bound to the altar (Psa 118:27) pursuing our dying daily relationship with Christ (1Co 15:31) as we journey toward Jerusalem which is above (Gal 4:26) through Christ (Php 2:12-13) being blessed to be raised in this heavenly place where we must perish or die daily outside the camp or the gate.]

Heb 13:14  For here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come.
Heb 13:15  By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.
Heb 13:16  But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.

We have so much to be thankful for when we can believe in the faithfulness of the one to whom we have committed our souls (1Pe 4:19) who tells us that “here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come” (Heb 11:10, Psa 127:1). We are finding that “one to come” through Christ “by him” being accepted in him (Eph 1:6).

1Pe 4:19  Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.

Heb 11:10  For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

Psa 127:1  A Song of degrees for Solomon. Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.

Eph 1:6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

How much praise, how much thankfulness should be on our lips? The answer is: “therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name” as also confirmed with these verses: (1Th 5:16-18).

1Th 5:16  Rejoice evermore.
1Th 5:17  Pray without ceasing.
1Th 5:18  In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.
1Th 5:19  Quench not the Spirit.
1Th 5:20  Despise not prophesyings.
1Th 5:21  Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.

The context is relevant here in 1Thessalonians 5:16-18, reminding us that when we are not continually thankful, we will in fact quench God’s spirit within, but if God is working with us it will be through judgment that we will learn to appreciate more and more the fruit which this judgment brings about as we pass from death to life and grow in our ability through Christ to love and encourage each other as a healthy joint in Christ’s body (1Jn 3:14, Eph 4:16).

Luk 17:13  And they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.
Luk 17:14  And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.
Luk 17:15  And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice glorified God,
Luk 17:16  And fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan.
Luk 17:17  And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?
Luk 17:18  There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger.
Luk 17:19  And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole [1Jn 5:4].

Heb 13:17  Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.

It is important to understand in these last few verses of the book of Hebrews what is being told to us when we are commanded to “Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves“.

We all must give an accounting to God today if we are His elect, and those who are in leadership positions are to look well to themselves and to the flock “over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God” (Act 20:28).

Act 20:28  Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

That looking well to ourselves is accompanied with the knowledge that “we shall receive the greater condemnation” or judgment so that we can properly call ourselves leaders not just in name but by being a tree that is known by the fruit of our life (Mat 7:16, 1Ti 3:1-7) that God’s judgment upon us will bring about (Jas 3:1, Joh 15:1-8).

Jas 3:1  My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnationG2917.

Joh 15:1  I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
Joh 15:2  Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit [Heb 12:6].
Joh 15:3  Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
Joh 15:4  Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
Joh 15:5  I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing [1Co_3:14].
Joh 15:6  If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned [1Co_3:15].
Joh 15:7  If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
Joh 15:8  Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

That word condemnationG2917 in James 3:1 is the same Strong’s number found in Romans 2:2-3 translated as “judgment”.

Jas 3:1  My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnationG2917.

Rom 2:2  But we are sure that the judgmentG2917 of God is according to truth against them which commit such things.
Rom 2:3  And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgmentG2917 of God?

As long as we do not despise “his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance”, we will be blessed by that process of judgment which is upon all of us so that our love may be made perfect (1Pe 4:17, 1Jn 4:17-18).

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?

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.
1Jn 4:18  There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

God’s leaders are held to a very high standard as “they watch for your souls, as they that must give account [of both themselves and the little flock], that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you“. We should have joy in our hearts, and that joy of the Lord is our strength which we pray will never leave us (Neh 8:10, Php 4:4).

Neh 8:10  Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.

Php 4:4  Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.

They are helpers of your joy (2Co 1:24) and should always want to bring that good report to our Father which brings great joy as we labour in the word that does not perish, and see the fruit of that labour reflected in the desire of our family to want to walk in the truth (3Jn 1:4). So with this all in mind, let’s look at the meaning of the words obeyG3982 and submitG5226 in this verse:

Heb 13:17  ObeyG3982 them that have the rule over you, and submitG5226 yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.

Php 1:6 Being confidentG3982 [“obeyG3982“] of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

Heb 10:35  Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward.
Heb 10:36  For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.

Heb 13:7  Remember them which have the rule over G2233,[esteemG2233 1Th 5:13] you who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.

“Them which have the rule over”G2233 hēgeomai hayg-eh’-om-ahee Middle voice of a (presumed) strengthened form of G71; to lead, that is, command (with official authority); figuratively to deem, that is, consider: – account, (be) chief, count, esteem (1Th 5:13), governor, judge, have the rule over, suppose, think.

Heb 13:24  Salute all them that have the rule over youG2233, and all the saints. They of Italy salute you.

1Th 5:13  And to esteemG2233 them very highly in love for their work’s sake [Php 2:12-13, 1Co 11:1, 2Co 1:24]. And be at peace among yourselves.

Php 2:12  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyedG5219 [hupakouō hoop-ak-oo’-o = to listen, to harken] not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

1Co 11:1  Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.

2Co 1:24  Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand [Rom 3:27, 1Co 3:6, Eph 2:8, 1Jn 5:4, 1Co 3:5].

There is safety in a multitude of counsellors (Pro 11:14) and the spiritual battles we fight in this life are established with wise counsel as that counsel helps us make sense of the process of maturing that we are all going through so we can go on to perfection by being stablished, strengthened and settled by God through Christ (Pro 20:18, 1Pe 5:10).

1Pe 5:10  But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; [Gal 2:20] and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

Being persuaded of someone and finding safety in a multitude of counsellors means that we are trying the spirits upon the word of God (1Jn 4:1-6). God will reveal His mind through our obedience to that word (Act 15:28), which is what it means to be led by the spirit of God that convicts us that we are His sons. (1Co 14:37-40, 1Co 2:16, Rom 8:14-16).

1Jn 4:1  Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
1Jn 4:2  Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God:
1Jn 4:3  And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.
1Jn 4:4  Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world [Col_1:27 , Exo_29:14].
1Jn 4:5  They are of the world: therefore speak they of the world, and the world heareth them.
1Jn 4:6  We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God hearethG191=akouō ak-oo’-o not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.

Act 15:28  For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us [‘the multitude and consensus‘], to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things;

1Co 14:35  And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church [Rom_1:20].
1Co 14:36  What? came the word of God out from you? or came it unto you only?
1Co 14:37  If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord.
1Co 14:38  But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant.
1Co 14:39 Wherefore, brethren, covet to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues [1Co 14:3].
1Co 14:40  Let all things be done decently and in order.

1Co 2:16  For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ. [‘a mind that does things decently and in order‘]

Rom 8:14  For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
Rom 8:15  For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
Rom 8:16  The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: [“For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us” (Act 15:28)]

All that we just read is how we “walk in the truth” of 3John 1:4.

3Jn 1:3  For I rejoiced greatly, when the brethren came and testified of the truth that is in thee, even as thou walkest in the truth.
3Jn 1:4  I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

Heb 13:18 Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly.

We all need each other’s prayers, but Paul in this instance in regards to maintaining “a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly“, asked the brethren to “pray for us“, the elders, just like Christ prayed for Peter who He knew Satan wanted to sift like wheat (Luk 22:31-32, Mat 26:31). When we don’t “obey them that have the rule over you”, we are in essence smiting the shepherd “and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad”, so we need to obey that commandment to pray for one another that we can be healed (Jas 5:16).

Luk 22:31  And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:
Luk 22:32  But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.

Jas 5:16  Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

We are all weak and have infirmities and God is making his strength perfect through that weakness (2Co 12:9), and it is by the fervent continual prayers of the righteous that we are all held up. When we pray for our leaders, we are in effect praying that the Lord will not let their faith fail so that they may continue to do the work of strengthening the brethren: “when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren” (Jas 5:16).

Those prayers are needed “for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly” (Mat 26:41). We want to continue to trust Him by putting off our flesh as we help each other bear the burdens of this life which we need in order to keep us humble and under our body (1Co 9:26-27).

1Co 9:26  I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air:
1Co 9:27  But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.

Heb 13:19 But I beseech you the rather to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner.

Paul goes on to say what he believes these prayers will accomplish, by simply saying: “But I beseech you the rather to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner“.

His desire was to “be restored to you the sooner” just as we desire the coming together of the saints every chance the Lord provides. So we should continue to pray that God will make a way for that to happen (Mal 3:16, Heb 10:25).

Mal 3:16  Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.

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.

Heb 13:20 Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,
Heb 13:21 Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

These closing statements and blessings of God’s apostle Paul pronounced upon the church of his day is being pronounced in our lives right now through Christ who is “the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever” (Heb 13:8).

What more reassuring words could be uttered that remind us of Romans 5:10-11 by stating how great God’s power is that will accomplish what He has ordained from the foundation of the world by saying, “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant make you perfect in every good work to do his will, (Php 2:12-13) working in you that which is wellpleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.“

Rom 5:10  For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
Rom 5:11  And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.

Php 2:12  Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

Heb 13:22 And I beseech you, brethren, suffer the word of exhortation: for I have written a letter unto you in few words.
Heb 13:23 Know ye that our brother Timothy is set at liberty; with whom, if he come shortly, I will see you.

This final salutation in this book of Hebrews is a confirmation of Christ’s words to possess our souls patiently found in Luke 21:19 as Paul beseeches us to “suffer the word of exhortation” because in doing this we will be blessed to hear those words of encouragement and exhortation which help us understand our liberty in Christ (2Co 3:17, Joh 6:63).

Luk 21:19  In your patience possess ye your souls.

2Co 3:17  Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

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

Paul knew “Yet in the church I had rather speak five words with my understanding, that by my voice I might teach others also, than ten thousand words in an unknown tongue”. This is the good fight of faith to which we are all called, and Paul was reminding the church to know those who labour among you by saying of Timothy, who was like a son unto Paul, “Know ye that our brother Timothy is set at liberty; with whom, if he come shortly, I will see you“. That liberty came about by Timothy learning from Paul, having the humility to be teachable like a son to a father, suffering “the word of exhortation” (Php 2:22, 1Ti 1:2).

Php 2:22  But ye know the proof of him, that, as a son with the father, he hath served with me in the gospel.

1Ti 1:2  Unto Timothy, my own son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.

Heb 13:24 Salute all them that have the rule over you, and all the saints. They of Italy salute you.
Heb 13:25 Grace be with you all. Amen.

Finally, going back to the title in this study, “obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves“, we are again reminded of the same admonition with these similar words “Salute all them that have the rule over you, and all the saints. They of Italy salute you.“

God’s favour or “Grace” will truly be upon us if we can be blessed to learn to “Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit [ourselves]“.

Grace be with you all. Amen.

]]> Prophecy of Isaiah – Isa 66:15-19 By Fire and by His Sword Will the Lord Plead with All Flesh https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/prophecy-of-isaiah-isa-6615-19-by-fire-and-by-his-sword-will-the-lord-plead-with-all-flesh/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=prophecy-of-isaiah-isa-6615-19-by-fire-and-by-his-sword-will-the-lord-plead-with-all-flesh Sun, 01 Nov 2020 03:45:35 +0000 http://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=21663

Isa 66:15-19 By Fire and by His Sword Will the Lord Plead with All Flesh

[Study Aired November 1, 2020]

Isa 66:15  For, behold, the LORD will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire.
Isa 66:16  For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many.
Isa 66:17  They that sanctify themselves, and purify themselves in the gardens behind one tree in the midst, eating swine’s flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, shall be consumed together, saith the LORD.
Isa 66:18  For I know their works and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come, and see my glory.
Isa 66:19  And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles.

Our last study ended with the Lord informing us that “when… [we] shall be comforted in Jerusalem… our heart shall rejoice… and the hand of the Lord shall be known toward His servants, and His indignation toward His enemies.

Isa 66:13  As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem.
Isa 66:14  And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb: and the hand of the LORD shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies.

Knowing ‘the hand of the Lord’ is to know and believe that His Words are sure:

Num 11:23  And the LORD said unto Moses, Is the LORD’S hand waxed short? thou shalt see now whether my word shall come to pass unto thee or not.

Ecc 8:4 Where the word of a king is, there is power: and who may say unto him, What doest thou?

Luk 4:32 And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power.

Heb 1:3  Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;

Our study today begins with the work of the Lord’s “right hand… by the Word of His power:

Isa 66:15  For, behold, the LORD will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire.
Isa 66:16  For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many.

These last verses of Isaiah transition back from the subject of comfort to informing us of how the Lord is dealing with our flesh which was “made to be taken and destroyed”:

2Pe 2:12  But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption;

“Know[ing] the hand of the Lord toward His servants” (Isa 66:14) is speaking of the faith of His servants in His Word. The Lord’s enemies are always those who withstand Him and His doctrines. The rebellious carnal mind in each of us has ‘spoken evil of the things we did not understand.’ To “know… the hand of the Lord” is to experience its fiery work in purifying our inward heavens. The sword with which “the Lord… will… plead with all flesh”, including first and primarily with the flesh of His elect, is His Word:

Eph 6:17  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

Having the understanding and knowledge required to “know the hand of the Lord toward His servants, and [to know] His indignation toward His enemies” will be the focus of our study today. The knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven is given only to those who are being dragged to the Lord by His fiery words:

Jer 5:14  Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.

“The hand of the LORD shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies” is reiterated “line upon line and precept upon precept upon precept” in:

Mal 3:16 Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.
Mal 3:17 And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.
Mal 3:18 Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.

The “book of remembrance” is just another name for “the Lamb’s book of life”:

Rev 13:8  And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

Rev 21:10  And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
Rev 21:11  Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;
Rev 21:27  And 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.

As the overcomers of “this present time” (Rom 8:18) produce seed to the Lord, our children will become our family and will through our mercy (Rom 11:30-31) enter into the New Jerusalem.

Isa 53:1 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?

Isa 53:8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.

Act 8:33 In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.

Isa 61:9  And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the LORD hath blessed.

Rom 11:30  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.

That ‘mercy’ will not be shown to them until after the great white throne judgment begins. ‘Jerusalem’ in Isaiah 66 is speaking specifically of “Jerusalem above, the mother of us all”, and it is “Jerusalem above” which is “the apple of [the Lord’s] eye”. It is certainly not “the son of the bondwoman… Jerusalem which now is and is in bondage with her children.”

Here in Malachi “Jerusalem above” is called “My jewels… [My] own son”. In Isaiah 66:14 we are told that ‘when we are comforted by Jerusalem [above] then the hand of the LORD shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies.’ “Knowing… the hand of the Lord toward His servants [contrasted with] His indignation toward His enemies” is expressed here in Malachi as the spiritual ability to “discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serves God and Him that serves Him not.” Such discernment comes only through being spiritually matured through “having [our spiritual] senses exercised to discern good and evil,” to “know [what is] the spirit of Truth and [what is] the spirit of error” (1Jo 4:6).

Such critical discernment is not left to individual preferences. Doctrinal differences from time to time are inevitable. The Lord uses our hunger for more of Christ and His Truth to let the adversary tempt us into believing a lie and thinking above what is written. When that happens, our pride identifies with our thoughts which are “above that which is written”. At that point “the pride of life” and the tribulation of being humiliated before men causes us to “believe a lie” and believe the idols of our own hearts. This is an essential and integral part of “the hand of the LORD be[ing made] known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies.”

Paul tells us we must live out this experience:

1Co 11:19  For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.

Look at this verse again with its Strong’s numbers:

1Co 11:19  ForG1063 there mustG1163 beG1511 alsoG2532 heresiesG139 amongG1722 you,G5213 thatG2443 they which are approvedG1384 may be madeG1096 manifestG5318 amongG1722 you.G5213

Notice that four English words are used: “they which are approved”, to translate the one Greek word ‘dokimos’ G1384. This word appears seven times in the New Testament. Two examples will demonstrate that the English word ‘approved’ is indeed a proper translation:

Rom 16:10  Salute Apelles approved [G1384: ‘dokimos’] in Christ. Salute them which are of Aristobulus’ household.

2Ti 2:15  Study to shew thyself approved [G1384: ‘dokimos’] unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

I was surprised to find that this is also the Greek word found in a verse we all quote quite frequently:

Jas 1:12  Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried [G1384: ‘dokimos’, approved], he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

Knowing that four English words were used for the single Greek word ‘dokimos’, and knowing that ‘dokimos’ is translated as ‘tried’ in James 1:12,  and knowing that ‘dokimos’ means ‘approved’ is all very interesting, and it helps us to more fully understand what the Lord is telling us. However, it does not change the fact that heresies reveal heretics and the fact that seeing what is a heresy also contrasts that heresy with what is the Truth.

Let’s read this placing the emphasis on the heresy and see if it changes anything:

1Co 11:18  For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it.
1Co 11:19  For there must be also heresies among you, that [that] which [is] approved may be made manifest among you.

The emphasis is taken from the heretic and placed upon the heresy. Either way we translate verse 19, an unrepentant heretic is revealed if he refuses to humble himself and to be persuaded by the consensus of the multitude of the counsel of our leaders by whom we are commanded to be persuaded.

If we are granted the humility to “tremble at… every… word of God” then we can, and we will, fear and tremble to fail to obey these words:

Pro 11:14  Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is [physical and spiritual] safety.

Pro 15:22  Without counsel [physical and spiritual] purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counsellors they are established.

Pro 24:6  For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy [physical and spiritual] war: and in multitude of counsellors there is safety.

Isa 66:2  For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.

Heb 13:17 Be persuaded by your leaders [the consensus of your elders], 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.

Eph 4:3 Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

The word “leaders” is in the plural because the apostles demonstrated by their example that the way they kept “the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace [was and is to] defer to [the counsel of our] leaders.” That is what they did concerning the question of whether the Gentiles were commanded to be circumcised and keep the law of Moses in Acts 15. Such a humble spirit is in accord with this spirit:

Pro 3:5  Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

Such doctrinal questions are to be settled by the consensus of “your leaders” who are mature enough, experienced, and knowledgeable enough to know how to “try the spirits [to see] whether they are of God”:

1Jn 4:1  Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.

A false prophet is a false prophet because he is bringing false doctrines into the church of God, which is the Lord’s house. “Believe not every spirit [doctrine] but try the spirits [doctrines] whether they are of God: because many false prophet are gone out into the world”.

The Lord Himself warns us of this experience in these words:

Joh 10:1  Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door [The Truth of Christ and His doctrines] into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
Joh 10:2  But he that entereth in by the door [knows and teaches The Truth] is the shepherd of the sheep.
Joh 10:3  To him the porter [the holy spirit] openeth; and the sheep hear his voice [Mat 16:17]: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.
Joh 10:4  And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.
Joh 10:5  And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.

Mat 16:17  And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

The only way “the sheep hear His voice” is if the holy spirit of the Father has “given [us] ears that hear”. What we are being told is that those who are the true “Jerusalem above” will know which doctrines agree with the ‘voice’ of the Shepherd and which doctrines are the ‘voice’ of a stranger who does not know and cannot hear the ‘voice’ of the true Shepherd. Knowing what is the voice of the true Shepherd is itself extremely comforting, because that means we have already experienced His fiery wrath upon all the lies of “the voice of a stranger”, and we have “through much tribulation… dying daily… presenting our bodies a living sacrifice, and being crucified with Christ’ and we have now come to “know His voice” and will not follow a stranger.

Which leaders are to persuade us if our leaders are themselves divided? The holy spirit knew this question would arise and has given us two examples of what we are to do when that happens. That is exactly what happened in the reign of Rehoboam and in Acts 15.

In the case of Rehoboam, the lesson we learn is that we are to listen to the older counselors:

1Ki 12:6  And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people?
1Ki 12:7  And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever.
1Ki 12:8  But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, and which stood before him:

This happened to Rehoboam, and it is written for our admonition (1Co 10:11). Following the counsel of the younger counselors led to the disastrous breaking up of the kingdom. The older counselors had given good counsel, but it was ignored by King Rehoboam.

Acts 15 deals with a doctrinal matter which arose within the church. Peter, Paul and Barnabas believed that being physically circumcised and keeping the sacrifices and holy days was all fulfilled in Christ and that now the Lord “Puts no difference between [the Jews] and [the Gentiles].

These are Peter’s words before all the apostles and elders in Jerusalem:

Act 15:8  And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us;
Act 15:9  And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith.
Act 15:10  Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?

The apostle “James the brother of John” had been killed by Herod by this time:

Act 12:2  And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.

Peter was speaking for Paul and Barnabas. The twelve, minus James who had been martyred by Herod, and Peter who was agreeing with Paul and Barnabas, means there were ten apostles who believed that the Jews were still required to be circumcised and keep the law of Moses:

Act 21:17  And when we were come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly.
Act 21:18  And the day following Paul went in with us unto James; and all the elders were present.
Act 21:19  And when he had saluted them, he declared particularly what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry.
Act 21:20  And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord, and said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law [of Moses]:
Act 21:21  And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs.
Act 21:22  What is it therefore? The multitude must needs come together: for they will hear that thou art come.
Act 21:23  Do therefore this that we say to thee: We have four men which have a vow on them;
Act 21:24  Them take, and purify thyself with them, and be at charges with them, that they may shave their heads: and all may know that those things, whereof they were informed concerning thee, are nothing; but that thou thyself also walkest orderly, and keepest the law.
Act 21:25  As touching the Gentiles which believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from fornication.
Act 21:26  Then Paul took the men, and the next day purifying himself with them entered into the temple, to signify the accomplishment of the days of purification, until that an offering should be offered for every one of them.

Notice what the multitude did while the apostles were in the process of discussing this question of who was required to keep the law of Moses:

Act 15:12  Then all the multitude kept silence, and gave audience to Barnabas and Paul, declaring what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles by them.
Act 15:13  And after they had held their peace, James answered, saying, Men and brethren, hearken unto me:

The multitude of the church were not involved in the discussions of the apostles and the elders. This is all being said “after there had been much disputing” among “the apostles and the elders”:

Act 15:6  And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter.
Act 15:7  And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe.

Notice that the ten apostles, while agreeing with Peter, Paul, and Barnabas that the Gentiles need not be circumcised and that the Gentiles did not need to keep the law of Moses, most certainly did not agree that the Jews need not do so:

Act 15:13  And after they had held their peace, James answered, saying, Men and brethren, hearken unto me:
Act 15:14  Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name.
Act 15:15  And to this agree the words of the prophets; as it is written,
Act 15:16  After this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I will set it up:
Act 15:17  That the residue of men might seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles, upon whom my name is called, saith the Lord, who doeth all these things.
Act 15:18  Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world.
Act 15:19  Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not [with the law of Moses] them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God:
Act 15:20  But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood.
Act 15:21  For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.

“Moses… being read in the synagogue every sabbath day” to the ten apostles was a very positive thing for the Jewish believers. Therefore, James concludes that a letter must be sent to the Gentiles to let them know that only the Jews are required to keep the law of Moses.

Act 15:22  Then pleased it the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; namely, Judas surnamed Barsabas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren:
Act 15:23  And they wrote letters by them after this manner; The apostles and elders and brethren send greeting unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia:
Act 15:24  Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom we gave no such commandment:
Act 15:25  It seemed good unto us, being assembled with one accord, to send chosen men unto you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,
Act 15:26  Men that have hazarded their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Act 15:27  We have sent therefore Judas and Silas, who shall also tell you the same things by mouth.
Act 15:28  For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things;
Act 15:29  That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.

What now were Peter, Paul and Barnabas to do? Ten apostles agreed the Jews must still be circumcised, keep the weekly sabbath and all the annual holy days, eat only clean meats, and even continue to offer sacrifices at the temple. Should Peter, Paul and Barnabas say, “I do not care about ‘consensus’. I am right and you are wrong.” As we all know, that would have split the church just as it was beginning to grow in numbers. No, such a spirit would have to ignore the example of Rehoboam placing the counsel of the younger above the counsel of the elders, and they would have had to ignore the consensus of a multitude of counselors.

The Truth is that it was simply not yet God’s own appointed time for the ten apostles to see the truth of Peter’s words acknowledging that there is no difference between a Jew and a Gentile in Christ. For the time:

Act 15:28  For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things;

For the Jews it was not so because:

Act 15:21  For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath day.

This is all reiterated in Acts 21 where we learn that all this time the ten apostles who had never left Jerusalem were still offering physical blood sacrifices as if Christ’s sacrifice was not quite enough to forgive our sins:

Act 21:26  Then Paul took the men, and the next day purifying himself with them entered into the temple, to signify the accomplishment of the days of purification, until that an offering should be offered for every one of them.

Having experienced the Lord’s wrath, knowing we are no more under the wrath of the law, we are now in a position to be used by the Lord to pour out that same fiery wrath of the Truth of His Words upon our adversaries, within ourselves and within His body.

Rom 4:15 Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression.

It is not yet time to take revenge on the outward kingdoms of this world, but if we are faithful and patient that day will come:

2Co 10:3  For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
2Co 10:4  (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of [spiritual… doctrinal] strong holds;)
2Co 10:5  Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
2Co 10:6  And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.

The Lord is not far off anywhere. He is right here, right now “working all things after the counsel of His own will”:

Deu 30:11  For this command which I am commanding you today is not too wonderful for you, nor is it too far off.
Deu 30:12  It is not in the heavens that you should say, Who shall go up into the heavens for us, and bring it to us, and cause us to hear it, that we may do it?
Deu 30:13  And it is not beyond the sea that you should say, Who shall cross over for us to the region beyond the sea and take it for us, and cause us to hear it, that we may do it?
Deu 30:14  For the Word is very near to you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it.

Notice how the holy spirit has Paul to understand these words:

Rom 10:6  But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above: )
Rom 10:7  Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead.)
Rom 10:8  But what saith it? The word [Christ] is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;

Christ really is alive and well living within His elect, and at the appointed time, after we have been “through much tribulation [then] He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still. Christ has subdued the rebellious kingdoms within us, and we have “endured… fiery trials… to the end”… then “the kingdoms of this world “are [and will] become the kingdoms of our Lord and His Christ.”

Rev 11:15  And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

“The kingdoms of this world… becoming the kingdom of our Lord and His Christ” is in down payment form ‘being brought to our desired haven’ of:

Psa 107:29  He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.
Psa 107:30  Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven.

Psalms 107, as we will see, agrees with the revelation of Jesus Christ in telling us that “great tribulation” must  precede the joy and peace that comes to us when we are comforted in Jerusalem above, comforted by the Lord through His body.

The work of “the seventh angel” is “the great and marvelous… seven last plagues”:

Rev 15:1  And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.

Rev 15:7  And one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever.
Rev 15:8  And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.

If we are granted by the Lord to accept and endure the seven last plagues of His wrath as a “great and marvelous… sign… [in our] heavens” then we will be comforted by ‘Jerusalem above’ and we will rejoice in knowing that it is all “the hand of the Lord… toward His servants” separating our new man from our old man who is His enemy to whom His indignation is directed:

Isa 66:13  As one whom his mother comforteth, so will I comfort you; and ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem.
Isa 66:14  And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like an herb: and the hand of the LORD shall be known toward his servants, and his indignation toward his enemies.

Inwardly, these verses are the seven last plagues doing their marvelous work within us. Outwardly, they will be fulfilled when the Lord makes manifest the sons of God at the very beginning of His kingdom over the kingdoms of this world, and dispensationally these words will have their final fulfillment in the great white throne judgment/lake of fire/second death:

Isa 66:15  For, behold, the LORD will come with fire, and with his chariots like a whirlwind, to render his anger with fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire.
Isa 66:16  For by fire and by his sword will the LORD plead with all flesh: and the slain of the LORD shall be many.

These words and the following verses are not in the future tense. Hebrew has a future tense, but that is not the tense conveyed to us by the holy spirit. This is all in the Qal stem which conveys the is, was and will be nature of what is being said. The emphasis must always primarily be on the ‘is’ application of His words or there will be no personal application. Our natural inclination is to place the Lord’s words off into the future and into some distant place away from ourselves.

However, these words apply primarily and first to me and to you:

Isa 66:17  They that sanctify themselves, and purify themselves in the gardens behind one tree in the midst, eating swine’s flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, shall be consumed together, saith the LORD.
Isa 66:18  For I know their works and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come, and see my glory.

“Eating swine’s flesh and the abomination and the mouse” are imbibing of all the false doctrines of Babylon. “All nations and tongues” include first and primarily the Lord’s elect who are all dragged out of ‘Babylon’ by the fiery trials of the seven last plagues as we are plainly told in:

Rev 14:6  And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,
Rev 14:7  Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come [1Pe 4:17]: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.
Rev 14:8  And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.
Rev 14:9  And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
Rev 14:10  The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:

1Pe 4:17  For the time [“the hour of His judgment”] 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?

While the whole world is teaching that the seven last plagues are to be experienced only by those who are destined to be cast into the lake of fire, and are to be avoided by the Lord’s elect, this is what the Lord’s elect and His own words teach us about this “marvelous work”. This is the Truth about who must endure the wrath of the Lord:

Rev 15:8  And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.

That is what makes these seven plagues such a marvelous work! It applies to all men of all time:

Rev 15:1  And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.

The judgment of the religions of this world must first take place within us. Then at the appointed time, following the thousand-year reign, they will in time include the masses of Babylon who are not granted repentance in this age:

Rev 16:17  And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done.
Rev 16:18  And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great.
Rev 16:19  And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon [the religions of this world] came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.

There is one doctrine upon which all religions agree and thereby placing the beast, the man of sin, upon the throne in the hearts of all men. That doctrine is the false doctrine of mankind having a free will. That spirit will be judged and that “wicked one” who promotes that lie, is being destroyed within us “in this present time” and will be destroyed in “all in Adam” only by the coming  of Christ into our hearts to dethrone and “destroy” that beast which is residing within every one of us at first:

2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

It is the Truth of the Lord’s words which constitute and precipitate this “great earthquake, such as was not since [I] have been upon the earth”, which begins to destroy the man of sin who has ruthlessly ruled over my entire life before the coming of Christ within me. It is my old man who is this ‘earth’ which is being shaken so violently that nothing is left standing before the Lord.

“The spirit of His mouth, and… the brightness of His coming” are one and the same thing. They are both the fiery truths of the fiery Word of God:

Jer 5:11  For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have dealt very treacherously against me, saith the LORD.
Jer 5:12  They have belied the LORD, and said, It is not he; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see sword nor famine:
Jer 5:13  And the prophets shall become wind, and the word is not in them: thus shall it be done unto them.
Jer 5:14  Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.

This statement, “I will make my words in your mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them” is expressed again is this way:

Rev 16:20  And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.
Rev 16:21  And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.

This is the function of this “great hail[storm]”:

Isa 28:15  Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
Isa 28:16  Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.
Isa 28:17  Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.
Isa 28:18  And your covenant with death shall be disannulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.

It is through the words of those who have endured all these fiery judgments ahead of us that we have endured these fiery trials, this great earthquake and this great hailstorm, and it will be through our words that others will come to the Lord. That is what is being said in our last verse of our study today:

Isa 66:19  And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles.

We are those who are being ‘comforted by Jerusalem above, the mother of us all. Lord willing we are the body of Christ which builds itself up in love’, we are those by whom the Lord’s glory will be “declared among the Gentiles”, and it will be through us “and [our] seed]” that those who have never known our Lord will hear of His glory.

Isa 61:9  And their seed shall be known among the Gentiles, and their offspring among the people: all that see them shall acknowledge them, that they are the seed which the LORD hath blessed.

That is our study for today. Here are the verses for our next study:

Isa 66:20  And they shall bring all your brethren for an offering unto the LORD out of all nations upon horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules, and upon swift beasts, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, saith the LORD, as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the LORD.
Isa 66:21  And I will also take of them for priests and for Levites, saith the LORD.
Isa 66:22  For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.
Isa 66:23  And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD.
Isa 66:24  And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcases of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.

]]> Prophecy of Isaiah – Isa 33:13-18 – Who Will Dwell Comfortably in the Eonian Burnings? https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/prophecy-of-isaiah-isa-3313-18-who-will-dwell-comfortably-in-the-eonian-burnings/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=prophecy-of-isaiah-isa-3313-18-who-will-dwell-comfortably-in-the-eonian-burnings Sun, 16 Dec 2018 04:00:49 +0000 http://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=17821
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Isa 33:13-18 - Who Will Dwell Comfortably in the Eonian Burnings? - Discussion

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Isa 33:13-18 - Who Will Dwell Comfortably in The Eonian Burnings?

Who Will Not Be Hurt of The Second Death?

Isa 33:13  Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; and, ye that are near, acknowledge my might.
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?
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;
Isa 33:16  He shall dwell on high: his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.
Isa 33:17  Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off.
Isa 33:18  Thine heart shall meditate terror. Where is the scribe? where is the receiver? where is he that counted the towers?

The Lord wants all men of all time, near and far away, to "acknowledge [His] might" and to know what He is doing:

Isa 33:13  Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; and, ye that are near, acknowledge my might.

The short answer to the questions posed in the title I have given this study is to be found in verses 15-16:

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;
Isa 33:16  He shall dwell on high: his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.

The righteous of verse 15 is the same as "they that have done good" in these words of our Lord:

Joh 5:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
Joh 5:25  Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. [in the first resurrection to life].
Joh 5:26  For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;
Joh 5:27  And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man. [both now and in the second death]
Joh 5:28  Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
Joh 5:29  And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation [Greek: judgment].
Joh 5:30  I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.

Those who will be the judges in the lake of fire, "the everlasting burnings", were already judged when 'judgment first began at the house of God' (1Pe 4:17). They were judged, and their rebellious old man "fell into the ground and died" while they were yet in bodies of mortal flesh. The judges who will judge all who are cast into the lake of fire will also seek only the will of the Father which has sent [them]. Again, it is important that we understand that the only reason these blessed few are not "raised up unto judgment" is that these judges were the first to be judged while they were in bodies of mortal flesh, where judgment first began at the house of God:

2Co 4:11  For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.

1Pe 4:12  Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:
1Pe 4:13  But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.

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?
1Pe 4:18 And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?
1Pe 4:19  Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator.

"Where shall the ungodly and sinner appear?" Do those words lead you to believe that Peter expected to "experience the purifying fire of the second death"?

"Fiery trials", yes, but in no way associated with "where the ungodly and sinner [will] appear". The ungodly and sinners who are not judged first in this age as the house of God and who are not yet dying to their old man while in a body of mortal flesh, will be placed under the power of the second death in the second group; "the rest of the dead who are to be judged and "hurt of" the second death.

Not so for those who are judged now "at the house of God... beginning first at us":

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.

Rev 20:1  And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
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.
Rev 20:4  And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Rev 20:5  But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Rev 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

It is judgment "in our bodies of mortal flesh... beheaded for the witness of Jesus and for the word of God" which distinguishes these two resurrections.

The righteous who dwell in "the everlasting burnings" are the same judges who ruled and reigned with Christ for a thousand years, and they will now be also "judging angels" here in this "devouring fire [of] the lake of fire/white throne judgment", but they will not experience the purifying fires of the second death", because they were purified of the fires of the first death, which began at the house of God when they were yet "in ... bodies of mortal flesh".

1Co 6:2  Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? ["a thousand years" (Rev 20:1-6)] and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
1Co 6:3  Know ye not that we shall judge angels? ["in the everlasting burnings [of] the lake of fire" (Isa 33:14-15)] how much more things that pertain to this life?

This 33rd chapter of Isaiah deals with both resurrections. The first "resurrection unto life" and rulership, and the second resurrection of the rest of the dead, who "come forth unto the resurrection of judgment".  This chapter of Isaiah reveals to us the blessings of the first resurrection having already been through the fiery judgments of God while "in our [bodies of] mortal flesh".  The fact the righteous "dwell in everlasting burnings" tells us they are judging those who are in the second resurrection, "the resurrection to judgment" and punishment of the second death/lake of fire/great white throne judgment. This chapter fills in many of the details of the parable of Lazarus and the rich man, as we are about to read.

Last week's study on the first twelve verses revealed that judgment in both the judgment of Lazarus and the judgment of the rich man is "a fearful looking for of fiery judgment...out of [our] own mouths":

Heb 10:26  For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
Heb 10:27  But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.
Heb 10:28  He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:
Heb 10:29  Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
Heb 10:30  For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.
Heb 10:31  It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

The Lord pours out His "fearful... judgment and fiery indignation... upon all unrighteousness of men".

Rom 1:18  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

When "God's wrath is revealed from heaven against all the ungodliness and unrighteousness" within us, it is the same as "the brightness of [the] coming of Christ":

2Th 1:7  And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,

2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
2Th 2:9  Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,

Let's be clear that the words "fearful... judgment and fiery indignation" apply to all men and to "all unrighteousness [of] every man" in both resurrections. But "a crown of life", ruling with Christ a thousand years [and being] promised "not [to] be hurt of the second death" have absolutely no application to those who are cast into the lake of fire. "Let no man take your crown" with a false doctrine which teaches that everyone gets a crown of life. There is a great difference between being given life and being made a ruler with Christ, or being "brought forth unto the resurrection of judgment". That "great gulf", and the differences between the two resurrections, is what this chapter of Isaiah is all about. Those who are ruled over are not rulers. Conversely those who rule are not ruled over by those they rule. Living by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God has to do with being judged by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. It was never intended to tell us we had to force the second judgment upon the first and the first judgment upon the second.

A couple of "basic principles", which when ignored will lead to error, are the basic principles of "be persuaded of your leaders" and "in the multitude of counselors there is safety". Those are "basic principles" which have helped us to apply these verses to this body of believers for many years now:

1Co 1:10  Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.

The basic principles which keep the Lord's elect "perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment" have been recently ignored and thrown under the bus in order to maintain an idol of the heart, which meant ignoring the principles which keep the body of Christ joined together and in the same mind.

Yes, indeed "when basic principles are ignored it leads to error", you begin to be taught things like the first resurrection is after the thousand year reign. Things like, "You must be resurrected before you can be an overcomer" and things like "every man will experience the purifying fire of the second death". One and all are total heresy and "the error of the wicked".

Notice how these verses are worded:

1Co 3:13  Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.
1Co 3:14  If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
1Co 3:15  If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire. [Whether we are the first to die to our old man while in bodies of mortal flesh, or if we are the second to do so in the second death. That is why it is called the second death. It is the second group who die to their carnally minded old man and are "saved by fire". No mention here of the fire of the second death. All we read hear is the word 'fire'. Those who are the first to be judged are hurt of the fire of the first death]

The adversary has been given a job to do, and that job, as the book of Job demonstrates, is to come between us and our Creator. The story of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden and the book of Job both demonstrate that Satan has always been coming before God along with the sons of God:

pJob 1:6  Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them.

Satan still comes among the Lord's sons looking for and seeking an opportunity to devour the Lord's lambs and His sheep:

Job 1:7  And the LORD said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.

The Lord is not asking Satan where he came from because the Lord doesn't know from where Satan came. Satan is a part of the Lord's creation, and the Lord knows what Satan's predestined function is in the work He is doing with mankind.  Any time the Lord asks a question, He does so for our benefit and edification, not because He does not already know the answer.

Job 26:13  By his spirit he hath garnished the heavens; his hand hath formed the crooked serpent.

Try to make that verse accord with the doctrine of Satan of his own free will rebelling against His Creator and being cast out of heaven. Here in Job, and throughout scripture, we see Satan and his angels appearing in heaven to be instructed by the Lord to go forth and, as a servant of the Lord, to tempt mankind to disobey and rebel against their Creator (1Sa 16:14 and 1Kg 22:22).

1Sa 16:13  Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah.
1Sa 16:14  But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him.
1Sa 16:15  And Saul's servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.

1Ki 22:20  And the LORD said, Who shall persuade Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramothgilead? And one said on this manner, and another said on that manner.
1Ki 22:21  And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the LORD, and said, I will persuade him.
1Ki 22:22  And the LORD said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also: go forth, and do so.
1Ki 22:23  Now therefore, behold, the LORD hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the LORD hath spoken evil concerning thee.

Again, when the Lord asks the evil spirit how he intends to get Ahab to "go up and fall at Ramothgilead", He gives us these details for our benefit and edification. The Lord already knew what that spirit would do, but He asked the spirit what it planned to do for our sakes. The Lord wants us to know it is He who sends evil spirits to His people to try their faith.

The Lord has also sent an evil spirit into this fellowship to tell us to believe that 'living by every word of God' means that God's elect must therefore share their blessings of being chosen by Christ to be the first to trust in Him and to be the first to die to their rebellious old man and the first to overcome the wicked one, the first to be judged and to be in the blessed and holy first resurrection to life; all these blessings must be shared with those who were not chosen to receive all those blessings. This false doctrine tells us that because Matthew 4:4 says mankind must "live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God", and because Ecc 9:2 tells us there is "one event to all", those two statements are a basic principle which the consensus of your elders have thrown under the bus to cling to our doctrine.

As is always the case, when you point your finger at your elders, you have three fingers pointing back at you, and we discover that is the case with the four dissident elders, and all who were swept away with their error, who have ignored the basic principle of 'safety in a multitude of counselors, and of being persuaded by your leaders'. Here are the only basic principles which have indeed been thrown under the bus, for the sake of the pride of four dissident teachers:

Pro 11:14  Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.

Pro 15:22  Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counsellors they are established.

Pro 24:6  For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in multitude of counsellors there is safety.

All three of these inspired warnings have been rejected as 'bad counsel' by four teachers and by all those the Lord gave to succumb to the temptation to ignore these basic principles of the words which have proceeded out of the mouth of God.

It is always a great temptation to ignore the multitude of counselors when their counsel is contrary to what you want to do or believe. Our own ways of seeking safety, establishing our purposes, and making war always seems better than that of our counselors. And if another counselor, or two or three or four, agree then the temptation to ignore the other seven is simply irresistible for many who have not been given to tremble at the very words by which they are insisting all men of all ages must experience. Are we to live by the words 'second death' but not by the words "in the multitude of counselors there is safety"? Are we to experience the second death because those words came out of the Lord's mouth, but ignore the words "Be persuaded by your leaders"? Just some spiritual food for thought.

Of course the truth is that ordinal events proceed from the mouth of God which do not require that we be the fowls of heaven of the fifth day of creation as well as the beasts of the sixth day. In the same way, if we judge ourselves first, and if judgment begins first with us, then we will live by every word first and the second death will then have no power over us, and will not hurt us because that was all experienced by us while in bodies of "mortal flesh", and we partook of the first resurrection. It is the word 'resurrection' which all men must live by. They need not be resurrected twice to "live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God".

This strong delusion requires that all the blessings of being the first to be judged, and the first to die to our old man, and the first to overcome the wicked one while in bodies of mortal flesh, are not enough to fulfill the requirement of 'living by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God'. This evil spirit wants us all to buy into an insidious doctrine which teaches that 'if you see anything as ordinal, then you cannot see the inward meaning of any scripture'. The conclusion is then drawn that therefore the blessings of the first resurrection must be shared with those in the second death, and all the curses that come upon those who are not overcomers and are not judged while in bodies of mortal flesh must also be shared with those who were in the first resurrection. This evil spirit is teaching that being the first to experience the 'one event to all men' is not sufficient to fulfill those words of God, and that those who are given a crown of life must share their crown of life with the masses of mankind who did not overcome while in this life, and who were never promised a crown of life for not overcoming while in a body of mortal flesh.

Ask yourself, "How is it possible, spiritually or physically, to apply these verses to those who are being purified the second death, in spiritual bodies along with Satan?"

2Co 4:11  For we which live ["in our mortal flesh"] are alway delivered unto death [dying daily - 1Co 15:31] for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. [There is no "mortal flesh" in the second death/lake of fire/great white throne judgment/resurrection to judgment, all one and the same. There is no "mortal flesh" in the second death]

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. ['The Devil' is being purified in the second death, and cannot cast anyone into prison at that time]

After the short season of rebellion which follows the thousand year reign of "our Lord and His Christ", Satan and all of his angels are cast into the lake of fire/second death to be purified along with all His children from this age:

Joh 8:43  Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word.
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.
Joh 8:45  And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not.
Joh 8:46  Which of you convinceth me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me?
Joh 8:47  He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.

It was the four teachers who could not and would not hear nor abide by the words of God which counsel us all to seek a multitude of counselors. It is the seven teachers who pointed out these words of God:

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.

You will not hear those words taught by those four men because they do not live by them. If they do mention these words of God, then they will be judged out of their own mouths.

And they will also now condemn themselves if they ever again refer to these very bold words:

1Jn 4:6 We are of God. ["We" who live by the words 1) 'try the spirits, 2) seek a multitude of counselors', and who are willing to 3) be persuaded by our leaders, three basic principles ignored by these four men and by all who followed their lead]  He who knows God is hearing us. He who is not of God is not hearing us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of deception. (CLV)

Yes, indeed, when basic principles are ignored it leads to error and to deception. The consensus of the teachers and counselors of the body of Christ was not acceptable to these four men nor to any of those who have been taken away with their strong delusion. Being nothing more than a modern version of the camp of Korah, the earth has opened up its mouth and has swallowed up them and all that pertains to them.

Notice the parallels between the story of Korah and what the Lord has done in our midst in this dispensation:

Num 16:1 Korah son of Izhar, son of Kohath, son of Levi, arose along with Dathan and Abiram, sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth (sons of Reuben);"
Num 16:2 they arose before Moses with men from the sons of Israel, two hundred fifty princes of the congregation, those called to appointment, men of renown.
Num 16:3 They assembled against Moses and against Aaron and said to them: Enough of you! For the whole congregation, all of them are holy, and in their midst is Yahweh; so for what reason are you lifting yourselves up over the assembly of Yahweh? (CLV)

Korah was a "son of Levi". That information tells us is he was a teacher in Israel. This is almost exactly what has taken place in our fellowship. Teachers who were "men of renown" among us, leading men, have falsely accused those whom God has demonstrated are those He has chosen to lead His people until this time. They have demonstrated for many years that they fear and tremble at His Word, and have humbled themselves and have never once lorded themselves over the Lord's flock and have never taken advantage of anyone or ever asked anything of anyone. Those who have been faithful the longest are accused of dividing the flock by those who are dividing the flock and are seeking diligently to "draw away disciples after themselves". It is just as Paul warned us:

Act 20:25  And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more.
Act 20:26  Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men.
Act 20:27  For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.
Act 20:28  Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
Act 20:29  For I know this, that after my departing shallgrievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
Act 20:30  Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.
Act 20:31  Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.
Act 20:32  And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.  [The "perverse things" being spoken in this case is that your inheritance is not just "among them which are sanctified" but it is also among them who are not being sanctified in this dispensation, and if you believe otherwise you are "exalting yourself above the Lord's people". 'If you believe there is any advantage to your being in the first resurrection, and that the first resurrection is a better resurrection than the second death "resurrection to judgment", then you are exalting yourself above others']
Act 20:33  I have coveted no man's silver, or gold, or apparel.
Act 20:34  Yea, ye yourselves know, that these hands have ministered unto my necessities, and to them that were with me.
Act 20:35  I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.
Act 20:36  And when he had thus spoken, he kneeled down, and prayed with them all.
Act 20:37  And they all wept sore, and fell on Paul's neck, and kissed him,

These men who "of our own selves have arisen" have refused to be persuaded by their leaders. They instead accuse their leaders of dividing the flock, which is exactly what they have done by throwing their own counselors under the bus and ignoring their teachers and refusing to listen or to be persuaded by their leaders. They have refused to listen to those of us who know God and who have the Truth and who know the voice of the True Shepherd and who know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.

Is there any truth to the doctrine which teaches 'All men will experience the purifying experience of the second death' while at the same forked tongue saying we will not be hurt of the second death? What does the Word of God say?  We have tried that spirit, that doctrine, and we have found it wanting of any truth.

Is there any truth to the doctrine that the first resurrection is after the thousand years are finished? Is there any truth whatsoever in a doctrine which teaches that "the rest of the dead" of...

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

...is somehow referring to sins which are still besetting those who overcame their old man and the wicked one while in bodies of mortal flesh, and were resurrected to life to rule the kingdoms of this world as "the Christ" of our Lord, at the beginning of the thousand year reign which 'reign' is the very subject of the verses before and after Revelation 20:5:

Rev 20:1  And [at the beginning of the thousand years] I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
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.
Rev 20:4  And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Rev 20:5  But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Rev 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

I most definitely do not hear the voice of the True Shepherd in any of those false doctrines! Without hesitation or doubt, without regard to the persons of men, what I do hear in every one of those doctrines is "the voice of a stranger" from whom I am commanded to flee without hesitation:

Joh 10:4  And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.
Joh 10:5  And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.

Will those in the second death be given a crown of life to rule over us? How would such an absurdity be accomplished? Yet it is insisted by this insidious spirit that just as those in the first resurrection must "experience the purifying fires of the second death", those in the second resurrection must experience the blessings of the first resurrection or all men do not experience "one event" and are not "living by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God".

To be consistent with that spirit we must also be "the great red dragon, that old serpent the devil and Satan... the father of lies". Did not those words proceed out of the mouth of God? It is manifestly not possible to be rewarded with ruling with Christ for a thousand years and also be cast into the lake of fire.

We are about to see that this chapter 33rd chapter of Isaiah gives us what is the true mind of God on this subject, and what we will see is that the two resurrections in the parable of Lazarus and the rich man are the same two resurrections of which Christ spoke in John 5.

Joh 5:24  `Verily, verily, I say to you--He who is hearing my word, and is believing Him who sent me, hath life age-during, and to judgment he doth not come, but hath passed out of the death to the life.
Joh 5:25  `Verily, verily, I say to you--There cometh an hour, and it now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and those having heard shall live;
Joh 5:26  for, as the Father hath life in himself, so He gave also to the Son to have life in himself,
Joh 5:27  and authority He gave him also to do judgment, because he is Son of Man.
Joh 5:28  `Wonder not at this, because there doth come an hour in which all those in the tombs shall hear his voice,
Joh 5:29  and they shall come forth; those who did the good things to a rising again of life, and those who practised the evil things to a rising again of judgment. (YLT)

The second death is the "rising again of judgment". Those who already have been made elect and have died "do not come... to judgment" in the second death. When we get that doctrine firmly established in our minds, then we will see clearly that "between us and you [those in the second death] there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you [in the second death] cannot; neither can they pass to us [who are in the first resurrection], that would come from thence [from the second death].

It has been alleged that the 7 of our 11 teachers who have refused to accept this nonsense as Biblical doctrine were guilty of rejecting the basic Biblical principle of living by every word of God. What utter nonsense! Where have any of those who are part of the consensus of 7 of our teachers of this body of Christ ever denied that we do not live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God? It was this body of believers who were blessed of the Lord to give this Biblical principle to those four brothers and to those who have received their lies as truth. It was not they who taught us. It so happens that of the seven teachers who have been faithful to the basic principles which maintain unity in the body of Christ, with only one exception, it is we who have the seniority in this part of the body of Christ, and it is we who have been faithful to the words of admonition to avoid schisms in the body of Christ. Rather like Moses and Aaron having seniority in the Lord's service over Korah and company, and proving to the Lord's humble servants, we were also not seeking preeminence as were those their accusers.

Now let's read the parable of Lazarus and the rich man where we are told that a great gulf is fixed between the resurrection of Lazarus and the resurrection of the rich man. Let's read that parable and see if we can understand what is that "great gulf fixed" between the two resurrections, and if it is possible under any circumstance to bridge that gulf.

This is the voice of the True Shepherd concerning the nature of the two resurrections:

Luk 16:19  There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
Luk 16:20  And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,
Luk 16:21  And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
Luk 16:22  And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;
Luk 16:23  And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
Luk 16:24  And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
Luk 16:25  But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.
Luk 16:26  And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
Luk 16:27  Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house:
Luk 16:28  For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
Luk 16:29  Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
Luk 16:30  And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.
Luk 16:31  And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded [by their leaders, nor], though one rose from the dead.

The Greek word 'hell' in this verse is 'hades', meaning the grave the place of the dead, of which we are specifically told:

Ecc 9:5  For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.
Ecc 9:6  Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun.

I mention this only to demonstrate that this a parable. "Abraham's bosom" is symbolic of those who are "asleep in Christ". The fire tormenting the rich man is a symbol of the purifying words of God in the mouths of those who dwell in the devouring fire:

Jer 5:14  Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.
Jer 5:15  Lo, I will bring a nation upon you from far, O house of Israel, saith the LORD: it is a mighty nation, it is an ancient nation, a nation whose language thou knowest not, neither understandest what they say.
Jer 5:16  Their quiver is as an open sepulchre, they are all mighty men.
Jer 5:17  And they shall eat up thine harvest, and thy bread, which thy sons and thy daughters should eat: they shall eat up thy flocks and thine herds: they shall eat up thy vines and thy fig trees: they shall impoverish thy fenced cities, wherein thou trustedst, with the sword.

The spiritual application of these words has been experienced by all who are dying daily and being crucified with Christ to their old man. This is just another way of saying:

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

The parable gives life and meaning to the spiritual condition of these two dead men. One is dead in Christ, having been already judged in a body of mortal flesh, the other has died in a body of mortal flesh having never been judged in this age. That is the meaning of "ye that are far off", the second death, the rich man, and "ye that are near", the first resurrection, Lazarus, both of whom will in time "acknowledge [His] might".

Isa 33:13  Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; and, ye that are near, acknowledge my might.
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?
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;
Isa 33:16  He shall dwell on high: his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.
Isa 33:17  Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off.
Isa 33:18  Thine heart shall meditate terror. Where is the scribe? where is the receiver? where is he that counted the towers?

To 'meditate terror' is not to endure terror. We are those who have already experienced the fiery trials which have made it possible to "dwell with the everlasting fire [and to] dwell with the devouring burning" (vs 14-15). These who are 'meditating terror' have the defense of the munitions of rocks and have bread and waters given them. 'Meditate terror' refers to the work of the lake of fire which is administered by those who dwell comfortably in that fire, just as Joseph no doubt meditated on how to punish his brothers for the evil they had done to him in selling him into slavery. Punishment is a very biblical New Testament doctrine:

Mat 25:46  And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

2Co 2:6  Sufficient to such a man is this punishment, which was inflicted of many.

Heb 10:29  Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
Heb 10:30  For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.
Heb 10:31  It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

"It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" who will take vengeance and will recompense the rebellions of our old man. It all works together for good to them who love God and are those called according to His purpose:

Rom 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Joseph loved his brothers much too much to fail to treat them justly and not "meditate terror" which 'terror' is essential to righteous judgment. After all, in the lake of fire, Satan and all of his angels will themselves be in that 'lake' being purified by the terror meditated by God's elect, and it will be the Lord's elect who will meditate how best to accomplish that Herculean task. Shall we accuse them of being spies? Shall we accuse them of stealing our silver cup? These things all take thought and meditation to exact the desired outcome of righteous and equitable judgment.

Gen 42:9  And Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed of them, and said unto them, Ye are spies; to see the nakedness of the land ye are come.

Gen 44:1  And he commanded the steward of his house, saying, Fill the men's sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put every man's money in his sack's mouth.
Gen 44:2  And put my cup, the silver cup, in the sack's mouth of the youngest, and his corn money. And he did according to the word that Joseph had spoken.
Gen 44:3  As soon as the morning was light, the men were sent away, they and their asses.
Gen 44:4  And when they were gone out of the city, and not yet far off, Joseph said unto his steward, Up, follow after the men; and when thou dost overtake them, say unto them, Wherefore have ye rewarded evil for good?
Gen 44:5  Is not this it in which my lord drinketh, and whereby indeed he divineth? ye have done evil in so doing.

And what is the meaning of the last part of this verse?:

Isa 33:18  Thine heart shall meditate terror. Where is the scribe? where is the receiver? where is he that counted the towers?

God's elect rule through both the thousand years and through the  lake of fire. It is they who will ask these questions. These are military questions concerning the ability to wage war against Christ. Where is the scribe who keeps the records, where is the receiver, where is the man who pays the bills for the soldiers wages and for all the logistics of war?

The Hebrew word translated 'receiver' is H8254, shaqal. It is most commonly translated as the English word 'weighed'. However, when looking at the context it is most always used in relation to weighing silver and gold as money in payment for something.

Here is the first time this word appears in scripture:

Gen 23:16  And Abraham hearkened unto Ephron; and Abraham weighed [H8254, shaqal] to Ephron the silver, which he had named in the audience of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, current money with the merchant.

Here are all 21 entries for this word:

H8254
שׁקל
shâqal
Total KJV Occurrences: 21
weighed, 12
Gen_23:16, 2Sa_14:26, Ezr_8:25-26 (2), Ezr_8:33, Job_6:2, Job_28:15, Job_31:6, Isa_40:12, Jer_32:9-10 (2), Zec_11:12
pay, 4
Exo_22:17, 1Ki_20:39, Est_3:9, Est_4:7
weigh, 2
Ezr_8:29, Isa_46:6
receive, 1
2Sa_18:12
receiver, 1
Isa_33:18

The only two times it is translated as 'receive' and 'receiver', as in this 18th verse if Isaiah 33, both also have to do with money, as the word 'receive' in 2nd Samuel demonstrates:

2Sa 18:12  And the man said unto Joab, Though I should receive [H8254, shaqal] a thousand shekels of silver in mine hand, yet would I not put forth mine hand against the king's son: for in our hearing the king charged thee and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Beware that none touch the young man Absalom.

"Where is he that counted the towers", meaning he who sees to it that the fortifications are all manned with soldiers.

Paul poses this same question in the New Testament, and this is the answer:

1Co 1:19  For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.
1Co 1:20  Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
1Co 1:21  For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe.
1Co 1:22  For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom:
1Co 1:23  But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;
1Co 1:24  But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.
1Co 1:25  Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
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:
1Co 1:27  But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;
1Co 1:28  And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:
1Co 1:29  That no flesh should glory in his presence.
1Co 1:30  But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:
1Co 1:31  That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

God's elect have no physical power in this age and at this time, but when the kingdoms of this world become the kingdom of our Lord and His Christ, that will all change in very short order because when He was before Pilate, Christ told us it would:

Joh 18:33  Then Pilate entered into the judgment hall again, and called Jesus, and said unto him, Art thou the King of the Jews?
Joh 18:34  Jesus answered him, Sayest thou this thing of thyself, or did others tell it thee of me?
Joh 18:35  Pilate answered, Am I a Jew? Thine own nation and the chief priests have delivered thee unto me: what hast thou done?
Joh 18:36  Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.
Joh 18:37  Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.

The day is not far off when the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdom of our Lord and His Christ:

Rev 11:15  And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

Then we will fight for our King, and there will be absolutely no question concerning the outcome of that battle. Then is when we will meditate terror and sarcastically ask concerning the whereabouts of those who would attempt any form of resistance:

Isa 33:18  Thine heart shall meditate terror. Where is the scribe? Where is the receiver? Where is he that counted the towers?

"Everyone that is of the Truth... knows [Christ's] voice". They also know when they are hearing "the voice of a stranger... and will flee from him".

Joh 10:4  And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.
Joh 10:5  And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.

Does not the natural man precede the spiritual man?

1Co 15:46  Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.

Even so, those who are the first to "fall into the ground and die" to their old man while yet in "bodies of mortal flesh", will precede those who are in the group known as "the second death". What else, pray tell, do the words "second death" mean?

Heb 9:27  And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
Heb 9:28  So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

The salvation of those who dwell comfortably in the devouring fire and the everlasting burnings comes through being the first to die to their old man and be judged as the house of God in this age while in bodies of mortal flesh. It most definitely does not come through being second to do so:

Jas 1:18  Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

Rev 14:4  These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.

The very purpose for these blessed and holy "firstfruits" is to become the administrators of "the second death" and, as the body of Christ, to bring all those who are not firstfruits to God, that God might be "all in all":

Eph 1:22  And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
Eph 1:23  Which ["the church", us as His firstfruits] is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

Next week we will continue to see the blessings of dwelling in the devouring fire and the everlasting burnings of the lake of fire, and we will learn more of the blessings of having part in the blessed and holy first resurrection.

These words are addressed to us:

Isa 33:19  Thou shalt not see a fierce people, a people of a deeper speech than thou canst perceive; of a stammering tongue, that thou canst not understand.
Isa 33:20  Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.
Isa 33:21  But there the glorious LORD will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams; wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gallant ship pass thereby.
Isa 33:22  For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us.
Isa 33:23  Thy tacklings are loosed; they could not well strengthen their mast, they could not spread the sail: then is the prey of a great spoil divided; the lame take the prey.
Isa 33:24  And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity.

]]> Revelation 5:7-10 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/rev-5_7_10/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rev-5_7_10 Fri, 31 Jul 2009 12:47:00 +0000 http://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=4007 Audio Links

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Revelation 5:7-10  He Took the Book

[Updated April 9, 2024]

Rev 5:7  And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.
Rev 5:8  And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

Introduction

We have already covered what the spiritual significance is of each of these three symbols in great depth in our earlier studies of Revelation 4 where we went into great detail to demonstrate the Biblical definitions of these symbols as they were described to us in the first and tenth chapters of Ezekiel. We will not repeat all these symbols as they are described in Ezekiel 1 and 10, but we will review what the throne of God is, and what these four beasts and four and twenty elders are. What we will also do is remind ourselves that this book, and all of Christ’s other parables, are “signified” to us by His servants, and we are commanded by God to “keep those things which are written therein.”

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 signified it by his angel unto his servant John:

Rev 1:2  Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.
Rev 1:3  Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

John also tells us “the time is at hand” to keep these words which are “signified… and written therein.” “Keeping those things which are written therein” is the very meaning of “He came and took the book out of the right hand of Him that sat upon the throne.” Christ did not just take the book and stand there with it. He opened its seven seals. What that means is He is now living and “keeping the things written therein “in my flesh, for His body’s sake, which is the church.” When Christ opens the seals to that book, we find out that because He is living in us, we therefore “fill up what is behind of the afflictions of the Christ.” That is why and how the “Lion” becomes “a Lamb, as it had been slain.”

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

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:
Col 1:25  Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God;
Col 1:26  Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
Col 1:27  To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

Paul doesn’t “fulfill the word of God… for you” or me. Paul was given the dispensation of God to reveal to us that “you [and I are to] fulfill the Word of God” by  “filling up the afflictions of the Christ.” That is the meaning of “For you to fulfill the word of God.”

Mat 4:4  But he answered and said, It is written, Man[kind] shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

Joh 17:6  I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.

Who is the throne?

Why do I say “who” instead of ‘what? Here is why? Here is what comes “out of the throne” of God:

Rev 4:5  And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.

Rev 19:5  And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great.

Rev 22:1  And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.

We are specifically told by our Lord Himself, who speaks His fiery, lightning-and-thunder words, and it is also Christ Himself who tells us from where this river of  waters of life actually flows?

Jer 5:14  Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.

Mat 10:40  He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.

Luk 10:16  He that heareth you heareth me; and he that despiseth you despiseth me; and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me.

Joh 7:38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.

We are also told where God dwells, and where His throne is and from where He speaks to all men:

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

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1Co 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

This vision is taking place in the throne room within the temple of God… “which temple you are.”

Rev 8:3  And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.

Where was the golden altar located within the temple of God?

Exo 40:5  And thou shalt set the altar of gold for the incense before the ark of the testimony, and put the hanging of the door to the tabernacle.

Exo 40:21  And he brought the ark into the tabernacle, and set up the vail of the covering, and covered the ark of the testimony; as the LORD commanded Moses.
Exo 40:22  And he put the table in the tent of the congregation, upon the side of the tabernacle northward, without the vail.
Exo 40:23  And he set the bread in order upon it before the LORD; as the LORD had commanded Moses.
Exo 40:24  And he put the candlestick in the tent of the congregation, over against the table, on the side of the tabernacle southward.
Exo 40:25  And he lighted the lamps before the LORD; as the LORD commanded Moses.
Exo 40:26  And he put the golden altar in the tent of the congregation before the vail:
Exo 40:27  And he burnt sweet incense thereon; as the LORD commanded Moses.

By whom does God speak to all? As little as it is appreciated, these are the irrefutable words of scripture:

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,

Mat 10:40  He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.

Mat 18:5  And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.

Luk 9:48  And said unto them, Whosoever shall receive this child in my name receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me receiveth him that sent me: for he that is least among you all, the same shall be great.

All men will be made to understand that “what is the fellowship of the mystery” means “the principalities and powers in the heavens” which will be made to know “the manifold wisdom of God by the church.” The church is “the voice” by which God speaks. The church, the body of Christ, is the throne in the temple of God from which the voice of God proceeds, which temple you are. It is out of the throne that the voice of God speaks to make known to “the principalities and powers in the heavens…the manifold wisdom of God.”

God the Father has chosen Christ as the channel through which to reveal Himself to mankind.

Mat 11:27 All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.

Christ, in turn, uses the church as His mouthpiece, both here and in the heavens; both now and in the coming ages.

Joh 20:21 Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.

Eph 2:6  And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly [places] in Christ Jesus:
Eph 2:7  That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in [his] kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

Christ is the Word of the Old Testament. Christ and His christ is the word of the New Testament. God sent Christ to reveal Himself, and Christ has sent us to reveal Himself to the world. Whether it is the voice from out of the throne, the four beasts, the four and twenty elders or the seven angels, they are one and all spiritual symbols “of your brothers the prophets, and of those who keep the sayings of the prophecy of this book.” They are those who have been “redeemed out of every nation to rule on earth.”

Why do the four beasts and 24 elders have “the prayers of the saints?”

So we are told:

Rev 5:8  And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.

“Every one of them” means both the “four beasts and the four and twenty elders.” We do not send our prayers by a heavenly postal system so strange heavenly creatures can deliver them before the throne of God. These creatures are us. We are God’s throne. They symbolize us. That is why they “have every one of them harps and golden vials full of odors which are the prayers of the saints.”

Why are “the prayers of the saints” mentioned at this point? Here is the reason:

Rev 5:7  And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne.

Taking the book out of the right hand of Him that sat upon the throne is for the purpose of opening the seven seals and revealing the Christ, and all that is part of the Christ to those to whom it is given to know Him and His father.

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

The revelation of Jesus Christ and His Father is in “this book”, and the revelation of Jesus Christ is the “keeping of the things written therein.” The “prayers of the saints” are most definitely needed if it is granted to them to be able to “keep the sayings of the prophecy of this book… and endure to the end.”

What is the spiritual significance of “harps and golden vials?”

“Harps and golden vials” are implements and vessels of the temple, to be handled only by the priests of God.

Num 4:15  And when Aaron and his sons have made an end of covering the sanctuary, and all the vessels of the sanctuary, as the camp is to set forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to bear it: but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation.

These implements and “vessels of the sanctuary” will be seen again throughout the revelation of Jesus Christ, and once again they are nothing more than types and symbols associated with God’s priests and kings who will rule on earth. Harps and golden vials (bowls) are associated only with God’s elect. Keep that in mind when we come to these verses later in this revelation of Jesus Christ in us.

Rev 14:1  And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.
Rev 14:2  And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps:

These 144,000 sound so different from the throne and the four beasts and the four and twenty elders because we are told these 144,000 sing a new song before the throne, the four beasts and the four and twenty elders. We can see plainly that this is just another type of those firstfruits who were “redeemed to God out of every nation on earth.”

Rev 14:3  And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.
Rev 14:4  These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.
Rev 14:5  And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.

Who are the 144,000?

Rev 14:4  These are they which were… redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.

Who are the four beasts and the four and twenty elders before whom the 144,000 sing their new song?

Rev 5:8  And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

Is that not an amazing coincidence? They are both singing the same “new song”, and they are both claiming to be the same “redeemed…firstfruit…rulers with Christ” people of God. There is no such thing as coincidence. These “four beasts and four and twenty elders, and these 144,000 firstfruits unto God and the Lamb” are the same “firstfruits unto God… redeemed out of every kindred, and tongue, and people and nation.”

Jas 1:18  Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

So much for the “older is better” theory concerning the Sinaiticus manuscript, which changes the word ‘us’ to ‘them’ in Revelation 5:9 and denies that these creatures symbolize God’s cherubims, God’s elect. “The sum of Thy Word” is much more reliable than the false doctrine of “the old is better.”

Luk 5:39 No [carnal minded] man also having drunk old wine straightway desireth new: for he saith, The old is better.

Psa 119:160 The sum of thy word is truth; And every one of thy righteous ordinances endureth for ever. (ASV)

There is one more verse which references these same “harpers harping with their harps.”

Rev 15:2  And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.

Those who had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark and over the number of his name are “the four beasts and the four and twenty elders, also know as, the 144,000 who are the firstfruits unto God and the Lamb, all who have the harps of God”.

Summary

We have seen that the throne on which God and His Son sit is the throne of our hearts and minds, and it is “out of the throne” that a voice speaks for God and for Christ. We have seen that the four beasts and the four and twenty elders both have the prayers of the saints, simply because they, too, are a symbol of those very saints whom we have seen are used by Christ and His Father to speak for them.

Mat 10:40  He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.

Mat 10:14  And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet.
Mat 10:15  Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city.

So we see that we speak for God and for His Christ, and yet we have seen that while the cities which do not receive our words will be in worse spiritual condition than Sodom and Gomorrah, yet we are told to “beware of men.”

Mat 10:16  Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.
Mat 10:17  But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues;
Mat 10:18  And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles.

It is obvious that this warning concerns bewaring of carnal-minded men and not those who are sent by Christ to represent Him and His Father.

We have seen that those who “had gotten the victory over the beast, and stand on the sea of glass mingled with fire, having the harps of God” are the same as those “four beasts, and four and twenty elders” and the throne on which our Lord and His Father sit. These four beasts and the four and twenty elders are in turn the same as the 144,000 firstfruits of God “redeemed to God out of every nation.” These 144,000 are the same as the “overcomers, harping with their harps, declaring that they shall reign on earth.”

Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

All these different symbols are only a few of the many signs and symbols of God’s elect which we have seen so far. Other titles used to describe Christ and His Christ are “seven angels of the seven churches, seven angels with seven trumpets, seven angels with seven golden vials.” They are also later in this revelation, referred to as “the New Jerusalem, as a bride adorned for her husband, and a river of water of life”, etc., etc. These are all titles and names of each of us, if Christ is indeed living His life of dying daily and being daily revealed within us.

Next week, Lord willing, we will finish chapter 5.

Rev 5:11  And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;
Rev 5:12  Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
Rev 5:13  And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever.
Rev 5:14  And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four [and] twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever.

Once again we are going to see many of the verses in the word of God which place us in the blessed position of partaking with Christ in the “honor and glory and power granted to Christ and those who are “seated with Him” on His throne and the throne of His Father (Eph 2:6).

Eph 2:6 and raised us up with him, and made us to sit with him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus:
Eph 2:7 that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus:

Rom 11:30 For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
Rom 11:31 Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.

]]> Revelation 4:10-11 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/rev-4_10_11/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rev-4_10_11 Sun, 28 Jun 2009 10:37:00 +0000 http://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=3981 Audio Links

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Revelation 4:10-11 …Cast Their Crowns Before the Throne

Rev 4:10  The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying,
Rev 4:11  Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.

Introduction

We have spent several weeks demonstrating that the 24 elders of Revelation 4:4 are the same as the four beasts of Revelation 4:8.

Rev 4:4  And round about the throne [were] four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.
Rev 4:8  And the four beasts had each of them six wings about [him]; and [they were] full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

Last week we showed that the seraphims are six winged serpents who are found to be serving the exact same function as the four cherubims who are later revealed in Revelation 4:8 to also have six wings, but are called “four beasts.” So both the four beasts and the seraphims have six wings, both say ‘Holy, holy, holy’ to the Lord, both the four living creatures and the seraphims are commissioned to handle the coals of fire, and both have ‘hands.’

Isa 6:3  And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.

Isa 6:6  Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar:
Isa 6:7  And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.

Eze 10:2  And he spake unto the man clothed with linen, and said, Go in between the wheels, even under the cherub, and fill thine hand with coals of fire from between the cherubims, and scatter them over the city. And he went in in my sight.
Eze 10:6  And it came to pass, that when he had commanded the man clothed with linen, saying, Take fire from between the wheels, from between the cherubims; then he went in, and stood beside the wheels.
Eze 10:7  And one cherub stretched forth his hand from between the cherubims unto the fire that was between the cherubims, and took thereof, and put it into the hands of him that was clothed with linen: who took it, and went out.

The point God is making is that His elect “live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.”  We are, one and all, of this earth. We all come “out of the ground” and were all “in time past, children of disobedience” who were brought ‘out of darkness into the light.’ We were ‘beasts of the earth’ and ‘of our father the devil’ before we became ‘the children of God.’ We all “abode in wrath” all the time we lived as “the children of disobedience… children of wrath, even as others.”

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.

2Co 4:6  For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to [give] the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
1Pe 2:9  But ye [are] a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

Eph 2:2  Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
Eph 2:3  Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

Col 3:5  Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:
Col 3:6  For which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience:
Col 3:7  In the which [disobedience and God’s wrath] ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.
Col 3:8  But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.

Joh 3:36  He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.

These “seraphims… four living creatures… four cherubims… four beasts… four and twenty elders,” plainly declare that they are those who were redeemed from among men and will “rule on earth.” Of that there can be no doubt.

Rev 5:8  And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

What is the spiritual significance of “four and twenty?

The only thing we have not yet covered is the spiritual significance of the number “four and twenty.” Why are there 24 elders instead of 12 or 144, etc? As always, all we can go by is the scriptures, and this number ‘four and twenty’ is found, just like the rest of these heavenly symbols, to have a very earthy connection in both Samuel and Chronicles.

2Sa 21:20  And there was yet a battle in Gath, where was a man of great stature, that had on every hand six fingers, and on every foot six toes, four and twenty in number; and he also was born to the giant.

1Ch 20:6  And yet again there was war at Gath, where was a man of great stature, whose fingers and toes were four and twenty, six on each hand, and six on each foot: and he also was the son of the giant.

So this number is four sixes, and in that sense it once again connects the redeemed of men to the whole of mankind on this earth. It is connected to the whole of mankind in the flesh as ‘the giants in the land.’

The number ‘four’ signifies the whole of whatever is under discussion:

The Spiritual Significance of the Number Four

The number six signifies the incomplete state of mankind:

The Spiritual Significance of the Number Six

Twenty-four thousand died in a plague which the Lord brought on Israel for committing fornication with the daughters of Moab and bowing down to the gods of the Moabites.

Num 25:1  And Israel abode in Shittim, and the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab.
Num 25:2  And they called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods: and the people did eat, and bowed down to their gods.
Num 25:3  And Israel joined himself unto Baalpeor: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel.
Num 25:4  And the LORD said unto Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up before the LORD against the sun, that the fierce anger of the LORD may be turned away from Israel.
Num 25:5  And Moses said unto the judges of Israel, Slay ye every one his men that were joined unto Baalpeor.
Num 25:6  And, behold, one of the children of Israel came and brought unto his brethren a Midianitish woman in the sight of Moses, and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel, who [were] weeping [before] the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
Num 25:7  And when Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw [it], he rose up from among the congregation, and took a javelin in his hand;
Num 25:8  And he went after the man of Israel into the tent, and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her belly. So the plague was stayed from the children of Israel.
Num 25:9  And those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand.

These are the negative applications of this number twenty-four in scripture. Where else do we see this number? What is its positive application?

1Ch 23:3  Now the Levites were numbered from the age of thirty years and upward: and their number by their polls, man by man, was thirty and eight thousand.
1Ch 23:4  Of which, twenty and four thousand were to set forward the work of the house of the LORD; and six thousand [ were] officers and judges:
1Ch 23:5  Moreover four thousand [were] porters; and four thousand praised the LORD with the instruments which I made, [said David], to praise [therewith].
1Ch 23:6  And David divided them into courses among the sons of Levi, [namely], Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

“Twenty and four thousand were to set forward the work of the house of the Lord,: assisting the priests in the work of the Lord’s offerings in His house.

Secondly, we see the use of this number in scripture again in connection with the peace offerings at the dedication of the altar of the Lord’s house.

Num 7:83  And for a sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen [from the head prince of each of the twelve tribes], five rams, five he goats, five lambs of the first year: this [was] the offering of Ahira the son of Enan.
Num 7:84  This was the dedication of the altar, in the day when it was anointed, by the princes of Israel: twelve chargers of silver, twelve silver bowls, twelve spoons of gold:

Num 7:88  And all the oxen for the sacrifice of the peace offerings were twenty and four bullocks, the rams sixty, the he goats sixty, the lambs of the first year sixty. This [was] the dedication of the altar, after that it was anointed.

God’s elect are those whose eventual understanding of His secret is reflected by the highest form of offering, a bullock of the herd. In dedicating the altar of the tabernacle there were twenty and four bullocks offered.

The next place we see this number is in the courses set up by King David to serve the king “in any matter of the courses,” in each month of the year, is again 24 thousand in all the courses.

1Ch 27:1  Now the children of Israel after their number, to wit, the chief fathers and captains of thousands and hundreds, and their officers that served the king in any matter of the courses, which came in and went out month by month throughout all the months of the year, of every course were twenty and four thousand.

The number 24 is two twelves. Twelve, whether it is the twelve dukes of Ishmael, the twelve sons of Jacob, or the foundations of the New Jerusalem, is always associated with what is foundational and orderly and of service.

The Spiritual Significance of the Number Twelve

King David had 24-thousand in the courses for the service of the king. There were 24-thousand Levites who were to “set forward the work of the house of the LORD.” In this capacity, they would be preparing for the work of the priests by cutting the sacrifices in pieces, washing them, preparing the meal and drink offerings, and working with the priests in the service of the tabernacle. In Christ all of these services are brought together in the christ of Christ. Here is the New Testament application of the spiritual foundation connected with the positive application of this number 24:

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of [the] Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

Christ’s “body” is our bodies, and in Christ we are to diligently present our bodies as a living sacrifice to God just as these 24-thousand Levites physically served in the tabernacle and “set forward the work of the house of the Lord.”

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what [is] that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

The New American Standard Bible translates this as “your spiritual service…”

Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. (NASB)

If we are granted to do that here and now, then we will be the four and twenty elders around the throne of God who proclaim, with the four beasts, that we are to rule with Christ in His kingdom. Here are the next few verses here in Colossians 1:

Col 1:25  Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God;
Col 1:26  [Even] the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
Col 1:27  To whom God would make known what [is] the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
Col 1:28  Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus:
Col 1:29  Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.

That is the spiritual application of “set forward the work of the house of the LORD,” and that is exactly what is being done and will be done by the “four and twenty elders around about the throne” of God in the heavens of our hearts and minds.

1Ch 23:4  Of which, twenty and four thousand were to set forward the work of the house of the LORD; and six thousand [ were] officers and judges:

Christ is in these four and twenty elders who are round about the throne of God and who have crowns of gold. They are just one more of the “many sided… patterns of the things of the true heavens.” In the “manifold wisdom of God” there are many patterns needed to show us Christ’s elect as those who serve Him around His throne. Christ is doing all His Father sent Him to perform, but He is doing it through His own Christ. He is doing it through those who are called the “four and twenty elders round about the throne” of God. Christ has sent us and is working through us just as His Father has sent Him.

Joh 20:21  Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.

We are to do nothing but what we see Him doing: we speak only what we hear Him saying:

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,

Here are these two verses in the Analytical Literal Translation:

Eph 3:9  and to enlighten all as to what is the administration of the secret, the one having been hidden from the ages in God, the One having created all things through Jesus Christ,
Eph 3:10  so that the many-sided [or, manifold] wisdom of God should be revealed now through the Assembly to the principalities and the authorities in the heavenlies [or, heavenly (realms)],

In Christ, and through His Word, we are enlightened to see that the administering of this secret, which has been hidden from the ages, is a many-faceted plan, which is to be revealed “through the church, to the principalities and authorities which have always dominated our hearts and minds. We are not being saved just for the sake of being saved. We are being saved so that we can become saviors:

Eph 3:16  That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;
Eph 3:17  That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
Eph 3:18  May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; [of Christ and His  Work in the saints]
Eph 3:19  And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God.
Eph 3:20  Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
Eph 3:21  Unto him [be] glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

Here is verse 21 from the Concordant Version:

Eph 3:21 to Him be the glory in the ecclesia and in Christ Jesus for all the generations of the eon of the eons! Amen! (CLV)

Oba 1:21  And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD’S [“and His Christ” (Rev 11:15)]

Just how broad, long, deep, and high is “the wisdom… [and] “the love of Christ” which the church is to administer?

Rom 5:18  Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life.

That is what Paul means when he makes these statements:

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:

Col 1:28  Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus:

The “administration of the secret” is broad, long, deep, high and many sided. It is for that reason that we are given all of these many patterns of the things of the true heavens, where God and Christ dwell “within us.” God has blinded those who forget that this is a book which has been signified to us and who ask,

Not so, Mr. Bullinger. Not according to the scriptures:

Heb 9:23  It was] therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.
Heb 9:24  For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:

The reason “the people of God are divided up into so many schools and parties” is the fact that Christ came to blind scholarly men who think they can see and understand the Word of God by simply reading the letter before them with no regard for the fact that we are told in the very first verse of this book that this is a book of signs:

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:

Joh 9:39  And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
Joh 9:40  And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?
Joh 9:41  Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

When reading a book that is full of parables and signs and symbols, which you are specifically told are intended for the very purpose of blinding the multitudes from seeing “the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven”, you still ask, “Why, when, in Revelation 4, we read of the twenty-four heavenly elders, are we to assume they are anything but what we read, vis., the leaders of the heavenly worship?” then you are indeed those who “say, We see, [and] therefore your sin remains.”

Summary

We have seen the negative application of this number in its connection to the giants in the land which must be conquered by God’s elect. We have also seen that both physical and spiritual fornication brought about the death of twenty-four thousand of God’s own people, when Israel committed fornication with the daughters of Moab and bowed down to their gods. These are the negative applications of this number 24.

In direct contrast to such a negative application, we saw that “Twenty and four thousand were to set forward the work of the house of the Lord” assisting the priests in the work of the Lord’s offerings in the Lord’s house.
Then we saw 24 bullocks offered at the dedication of the altar of the tabernacle. God’s elect are those whose eventual understanding of His secret is reflected by the highest form of offering, a bullock of the herd. In dedicating the altar of the tabernacle, there were twenty and four bullocks offered.

Then we saw that there were twenty-four thousand in the courses set up by King David to serve the king “in any matter of the courses” in each month of the year,

Finally, we saw how all of this spiritual, foundational, orderly service to the tabernacle and to the king is reflected in the true application of our bodies in service to God in the New Testament:

Rom 12:1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. (NASB)

We saw that those who are granted to present themselves as a living sacrifice to God will also be the Christ of Christ who will rule with Christ in His Father’s throne and be used as a light to all men in the oncoming eons.

Eph 3:9  and to enlighten all as to what is the administration of the secret, the one having been hidden from the ages in God, the One having created all things through Jesus Christ,
Eph 3:10  so that the many-sided [or, manifold] wisdom of God should be revealed now through the Assembly to the principalities and the authorities in the heavenlies [or, heavenly (realms)],

Rev 2:26  And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
Rev 2:27  And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.

Foundational, spiritual, orderly service in our hearts toward our Lord and His Christ is the spiritual meaning of the four and twenty elders who serve the heavenly tabernacle and its heavenly king.

Rev 4:4  And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.

Rev 4:9  And when those beasts give glory and honour and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who liveth for ever and ever,
Rev 4:10  The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne, and worship him that liveth for ever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying  [God’s elect know and willingly acknowledge the source of their power and authority],
Rev 4:11  Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.

The four and twenty elders are but another facet, or pattern of the things of the true heavens into which our Lord ascended when He came to take up an abode in the hearts and minds of His elect, His ‘temple… the heavens themselves” (1Co 3:15-16, Heb 9:23).

Next week, Lord willing, we will begin Revelation chapter 5.

 

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Rev 4:4-6 The Twenty Four Elders Around God’s Throne

Updated January 5, 2024

Rev 4:4 And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.
Rev 4:5 And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.

Introduction

The number “four and twenty” is simply a multiple of the number twelve. As such it is but a higher and more mature picture of the spiritual significance of the number twelve, which significance, as is demonstrated throughout scripture, is foundational and governmental. For example, Ishmael had twelve sons who formed the foundation of his kingdom.

Gen 17:20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation.

Jacob had twelve sons who became the founding fathers of the nation of Israel. Christ had twelve apostles of whom He made this statement:

Mat 19:28 And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Twenty four is a multiple of twelve and is a higher revelation of the foundations of the government of God in these ‘four and twenty elders, clothed in white raiment wearing crowns of gold.’

The only way to understand the significance of all the symbols of this heavenly scene, or any of the following signs and symbols of the book of Revelation, is to know what and where is heaven. If we know where heaven is, then we know what is the subject of these verses. Once we know and have established in our minds that “the kingdom of God is within you”, we can then understand where the throne of God is in that kingdom and where all of this heavenly vision concerning that throne is taking place.

Luk 17:20 And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation:
Luk 17:21 Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

Last week we established that “the kingdom of God is within you” if you are God’s elect and if Christ is sitting on His rightful, heavenly throne within you and in your heart and in your mind. What we might not have made clear last week is that the scriptures teach us clearly that both the throne of God and the temple of God are situated “within you.”  This is made clear by the scriptures which state that “the kingdom of God is within you” and that God’s throne is in the heavens.”

Where is This Throne of God?

Mat 5:34 But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God’s throne:

Mat 23:21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein.
Mat 23:22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.

If God’s throne is where He dwells, and if He dwells in His temple, then His throne is in His temple, “which temple you are” (1Co 3:16-17), and you are seated with Christ (Eph 2:6) in heaven where “He sits thereon.”

Eph 2:6 And hath raised us up together [aorist tense], and made us sit together [aorist tense], in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
Eph 2:7 That in the ages to come [Present tense] he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

Heb 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of [our] faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God

If the kingdom of heaven is within us and if the heavens are God’s throne and if God dwells in His temple and if we are that temple, then it stands to reason that the heavens and the temple and the throne of God are all a spiritual realm which we are told is “within you.” It is not just innately within mankind, but God comes into our hearts and  places His kingdom within us, and He calls  it forth out of the darkness which is innately within mankind.

2Co 4:6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Rom 7:17  Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Rom 7:18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.
Rom 7:19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.
Rom 7:20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.

This is all by God’s design to bring us to this point:

Rom 7:21 I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.
Rom 7:22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:
Rom 7:23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
Rom 7:24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
Rom 7:25 I thank God t hrough Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

That is our flesh until Christ dethrones the beast within our hearts and minds and sits upon His rightful throne, which He has designed to be called out of darkness and to bring to life through death.

1Co 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1Co 3:17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

The way we defile the temple of God is by having “the man of sin” sitting on the throne of God which ‘throne’ is within His temple “which temple ye are” (1Co 3:16-17).

2Th 2:3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for [that day shall not come], except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
2Th 2:4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

God’s throne is within His temple because we are told He dwells in His temple, and we are also told He dwells in the heavens, which we are told is His throne.

Satan Usurps Christ’s Throne Within Us

We have just covered this situation when we studied the sad situation of the angel of the church of Pergamos:

Rev 2:12 And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;
Rev 2:13 I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan’s seat [Greek: thronos, throne] is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas [was] my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.

It is a very revealing fact that we can be praised by the spirit for “holding fast Christ’s name, and not denying His faith” and in the same breath be told:

Rev 2:16 Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them [the Nicolaitans] with the sword of my mouth.

That is the subtlety which is an Adversary who “appears as an angel of light.” So much of what he says sounds so very true, but then you realize there is a very subtle twist to every word he speaks. This is the same condition in which the church at Corinth was found:

1Co 1:1 Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes [our] brother,
1Co 1:2 Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:

What more can be said about a child of God? Well, we could add these words:

1Co 1:5 That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and [in] all knowledge;
1Co 1:6 Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you:
1Co 1:7 So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:

With the same breath, we are told this of these same Corinthian saints:

1Co 3:1 And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.
1Co 3:2 I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.
1Co 3:3 For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?
1Co 3:4 For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?

As it is to this very day, these Corinthian “babes in Christ” wanted to be bottle-fed milk by Paul and Apollos and did not want to “go on unto perfection” and “search the scriptures daily to see whether these things are so.” Staying on milk when you should be on meat is the same as having Satan himself sitting on the throne of your heart. Let it not be so with you.

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.

Who are the Four and Twenty Elders, Clothed in White Ramiment – Who is Wearing a Golden Crown?

Rev 4:4 And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.

Now we know what and where ‘heaven’ is, what heaven does, and that the kingdom of God and the kingdom of heaven are one and the same and they are “within you”:

Psa 19:1 To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.
Psa 19:2  Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.
Psa 19:3  There is no speech nor language, where their voice [the heavens] is not heard.
Psa 19:4  Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun [“Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Col 1:27)]
Psa 19:5  Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber [the sun], and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race.
Psa 19:6  His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.

If God’s spirit opens your eyes to see these truths, then you will know that these four and twenty elders are exactly who they say they are:

Rev 5:8 And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
Rev 5:9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
Rev 5:10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

This is all taking place “in the heavens” where God dwells and sits on His throne and rules His kingdom. Where is that kingdom?

Luk 17:20 And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation:
Luk 17:21 Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

What is white raiment?

‘White’ is “the righteousness of the saints.”

Rev 19:7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
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.

The Lamb’s wife is the group of saints in whom the Lamb dwells. It is God’s elect who are “clothed in white linen.” An Old Testament type of God’s elect is Mordecai who was condemned to death just before the man who accused Mordecai was put to death on the same gallows he had prepared for Mordecai. Look at the raiment Mordecai is wearing:

Est 8:15 And Mordecai went out from the presence of the king in royal apparel of blue and white, and with a great crown of gold, and with a garment of fine linen and purple: and the city of Shushan rejoiced and was glad.

First and foremost, “white raiment” symbolizes the righteousness of God’s elect. That is the spiritual significance of ‘white raiment.’ Who in this prophecy is clothed in white raiment? We need not speculate about this:

Rev 3:4 Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.
Rev 3:5 He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.

Rev 19:14 And the armies [which were] in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.

Those who “have not defiled their garments… He that overcomes, and the armies in heaven” are all symbolic of God’s elect.. “The “white raiment” is just one of the symbols which reveal to us that these “four and twenty elders”, as well as the four beasts, are heavenly symbols of God’s elect, sitting with Christ on thrones at the right hand of His Father “clothed in fine linen, white and clean.”

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.

And they had on their heads crowns of gold.

Crowns are worn by kings and rulers. Who is promised to become kings and priests? Who alone is promised rule with Christ in His throne?

Rev 1:4 John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace [be] unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;
Rev 1:5 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, [and] the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,
Rev 1:6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him [be] glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Rev 2:26 And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
Rev 2:27 And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.

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

As we pointed out in our study of Revelation 1:5, part 2, the words “unto him that loved us” has but one Greek word behind it. That Greek word is ‘agapao‘ and would better read “who hath loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood.”

There is a great theological debate over whether these four beasts and these four and twenty elders are “simply heavenly creatures in charge of  heavenly praise” as E. W. Bullinger asserts in his book Numbers in Scripture, under his comments on the spiritual significance of the number 24. It is interesting that Bullinger sees the significance of this number dealing with “heavenly government and worship” and in the same breath denies that government has any application to this case here in Revelation 4:6. Apparently in Mr. Bullinger’s eyes, there is a great difference between government and worship. He certainly does not see that the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of God are within you. If he did, then he would understand that these twenty four elders signify those who have overcome in this present time and are granted to be the foundational rulers with Christ in His kingdom on this earth for a thousand years (Rev 11:15)

(Page 264) “Those who regard them as representing the redeemed have done so on the supposed authority of Rev 5:9; but they have been misled by some scribe who, in copying Rev 5:9, altered certain words either to make the passage conform to Rev 1:5, 6 (which is somewhat similar), or to support this very view.  Thus it has been handed down that these twenty- four elders were redeemed, and are therefore glorified human beings.”

Rev 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

Christ gives the revelation of His Father to whomever He wills, and only those He wants to understand will be given that understanding. Those who understand God’s Word do not manipulate the Word to make it fit their doctrines. If 24 is the number of government, then that will be its significance in every case, be it positive or negative government.

Rev 4:5  And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and [there were] seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.

This is exactly what Israel experienced at Mount Sinai when they were given the “law for the lawless.” This is how the judgment of the flesh is introduced.

Exo 19:16 And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled.

Exo 20:18 And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw [ it], they removed, and stood afar off.

Psa 77:18 The voice of thy thunder was in the heaven: the lightnings lightened the world: the earth trembled and shook.

It was all used to introduce forty years of trials and judgment of the flesh, culminating in the death of the old man and the entering of the new man into the land of promise:

Num 32:11  Surely none of the men that came up out of Egypt, from twenty years old and upward, shall see the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob; because they have not wholly followed me:

1Co 10:5  But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.

Heb 3:17  But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases fell in the wilderness?

The significance of the thunder and the lightning is to tell us that our old man cannot inherit the kingdom of heaven:

1Co 15:50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

That is the same significance the thunder and lightning have throughout this book of symbols. It all foreshadows and forebodes the judgment and death of our old man and the dying daily of the flesh as the new man increases within.

Rev 8:5 And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.

Rev 11:19 And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.

Rev 16:18 And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great.

The “fire, great hail, and… a great earthquake” are all symbols of great destruction, the destruction of the flesh and the destruction of our old man within.

And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.

We covered the seven spirits of God in our study of verse 4 of Revelation 1.

Rev 1:4 John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace [be] unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;

We must never lose sight of the meaning of these seven spirits. As we said in our study of Revelation 1:4, the number seven means spiritual completeness. So the seven spirits of God are the complete spirit of God’s one spirit:

1Co 6:16 What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh.
1Co 6:17 But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.

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.

Eph 2:18 For through him we both [Jews and Gentiles] have access by one Spirit unto the Father.

Eph 4:3  Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Eph 4:4  [There is] one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;
Eph 4:5  One Lord, one faith, one baptism,
Eph 4:6  One God and Father of all, who [is] above all, and through all, and in you all.

Php 1:27  Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;

To read and to suggest such unity of spirit today will get you labeled a fanatic and an unloving, elitist cult member. Nevertheless, let God be true and every man a liar. There is no trinity, no trinity of the trinity, and the seven spirits are merely the one complete spirit of God. In our next chapter these same seven spirits, here called seven lamps of fire, are there called “seven horns and seven eyes which are the seven spirits of God sent forth into all the earth:”

Rev 5:6  And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.

What is that spirit which is sent forth into all the earth? Here is what that spirit is:

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

It is God’s Words which are His spirit, and it is God’s Words which are “seven lamps” making up that “one spirit.”

Psa 119:105  NUN. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.
Psa 119:106  I have sworn, and I will perform it, that I will keep thy righteous judgments.

It is God’s Words which are “righteous judgments” and which are “fire from the altar” as quoted above.

Pro 6:23  For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life:

It is the spirit of righteous judgments, which serves as a lamp to our feet and which are “reproofs of instruction… the way of life.

1Jn 5:2  By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
1Jn 5:3  For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

God’s Word is love, a lamp; it is seven horns and seven eyes; it is spirit, and it is life. That is the seven spirits of the one spirit of God. That is the spirit God has given to Christ.

Summary

Rev 4:4  And round about the throne [were] four and twenty seats: and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of gold.
Rev 4:5  And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and [there were] seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.

We have seen that all of this heavenly scene are symbols of the invisible things of the true heavens wherein resides the kingdom of God.

Exo 25:40 And look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount.

Exo 26:30  And thou shalt rear up the tabernacle a ccording to the fashion thereof which was shewed thee in the mount.

Heb 9:23  It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these [You and I must be purified with better sacrifices than the blood of calves and goats].

Luk 17:20  And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation:
Luk 17:21  Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

We have seen the spiritual significance of the number 24, and we saw that 24 is a multiple of twelve, and that wherever we see this number twelve in scripture, it will always concern foundational government and rulership. We saw the examples of the foundations of the nations of Ishmael, the foundations of Israel, and the foundations of the church itself upon Christ and His twelve apostles. Twenty-four, being a multiple of twelve, is just a more mature meaning of twelve. It is, in this case, the number of the foundational first fruits of God and of the Lamb, redeemed to God out of every nation of men.

We saw that these twenty-four elders proclaim themselves and the four beasts to be the heavenly symbols of those who are redeemed to God out of every nation, tongue and people.

Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;

We have seen that white raiment is the righteousness of God’s elect who also are made kings and priest and who also wear crowns of gold.

Finally, we saw that the lightnings and thunderings of this heavenly scene, are the judgments of our old man and our flesh, which judgment is the Words of God, symbolized by the seven lamps of fire which are the seven spirits of God, which we have seen is simply the symbol of that “one spirit.”

Next week, Lord willing, we will examine the ‘sea of glass’:

Rev 4:6  And before the throne [there was] a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, [were] four beasts full of eyes before and behind.

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