1 Samuel 6:1–21 The Philistines Return the Ark

[Study Aired February 9, 2026]

Introduction

Today, we shall look at how the Philistines sent back the ark with rich gifts to the Lord, to make an atonement for their sin. The study also looks at the reaction of the men of Beth shemesh in Israel when the ark came to them. Finally, the study focuses on the judgment of the Lord on the men of Beth shemesh for looking inside the ark. 

The Ark Returned to Israel

1Sa 6:1  And the ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philistines seven months. 

The ark being in the possession of the Philistines for seven months indicates the time our flesh or the beast is given power over us to continue for forty-two months. This forty-two months is the complete period of time (significance of the number seven) in our lives when we are under the dominion of our flesh. In other words, it is the complete time that our flesh symbolized by the Philistines, sits in our hearts and minds claiming himself to be God.  

The number forty-two in the negative context signifies our spiritually dead state when we are under the dominion of our flesh, as shown in the following verses:

2Ki 2:24  And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the LORD. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them.

2Ki 10:14  And he said, Take them alive. And they took them alive, and slew them at the pit of the shearing house, even two and forty men; neither left he any of them.

Rev 13:5  And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.
Rev 13:6  And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. 
Rev 13:7  And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. 
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.

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. 

1Sa 6:2  And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do to the ark of the LORD? tell us wherewith we shall send it to his place. 
1Sa 6:3  And they said, If ye send away the ark of the God of Israel, send it not empty; but in any wise return him a trespass offering: then ye shall be healed, and it shall be known to you why his hand is not removed from you. 

The Philistines calling for the Priests and Diviners means that when we are overcome by the flesh, during our time in Babylon, we tend to seek direction of how to worship the Lord from our leaders in Babylon. It is insightful to note that the response of priests and diviners is that being healed is through our giving to the Lord. This is the mantra of the church system of this world or Babylon, that is, we must always offer something to the Lord to be healed. However, we know from the word of the Lord that this is false doctrine. Rather, it is the Lord who first gave to us and is always giving to us. 

Joh 3:16  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 

2Co 9:8  And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work: 
2Co 9:9 (As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth forever. 

Php 4:19  But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

The Lord is not our enemy, He is the enemy of sin in our lives and will stop at nothing to destroy the flesh within us His elect first, and the people of this world in an age to come.

Job 19:26  And after my skin (flesh) has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, 
Job 19:27 whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me! 

1Sa 6:4  Then said they, What shall be the trespass offering which we shall return to him? They answered, Five golden emerods, and five golden mice, according to the number of the lords of the Philistines: for one plague was on you all, and on your lords. 
1Sa 6:5  Wherefore ye shall make images of your emerods, and images of your mice that mar the land; and ye shall give glory unto the God of Israel: peradventure he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land. 

According to the word of the Lord, a trespass offering involves a sacrifice of a ram which represents Christ. It is the blood of Christ which cleanses us from our sins. 

Lev 5:14  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Lev 5:15  If a soul commit a trespass, and sin through ignorance, in the holy things of the LORD; then he shall bring for his trespass unto the LORD a ram without blemish out of the flocks, with thy estimation by shekels of silver, after the shekel of the sanctuary, for a trespass offering: 
Lev 5:16  And he shall make amends for the harm that he hath done in the holy thing, and shall add the fifth part thereto, and give it unto the priest: and the priest shall make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering, and it shall be forgiven him. 

1Jn 1:7  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 

As we can see, the Philistines’ trespass offering was not in accordance to the word of the Lord, but according to their own intuition. For example, the Lord has stated categorically that mice are unclean, and therefore the golden mouse image created by the Philistines to appease the Lord is still abhorrent to Him.

Lev 11:29  “The following swarming creatures that move on the ground are unclean for you-moles, mice, and all types of lizards: (GW)

Isa 66:17  People make themselves holy and prepare themselves for their garden rituals. They go into the garden and devour pork, disgusting things, and mice. “They will come to an end at the same time,” declares the LORD.

When we are full of the flesh, we do not do things according to the rules of the Lord. In our imagination, we think that giving is a substitute for a guilt or trespass offering. Many think that as long as they are giving to the church through the money they offer or the services they render to the church, the Lord will override their sins. It is the blood of Christ which cleanses us of sin. As Paul stated, if we are to compete, then we must compete according to the rules. We must come to see who we really are – that we are beasts before the Lord, before the Lord comes to cleanse us from all righteousness through His blood shed for our sake.

Psa 73:22  So foolish was I, and ignorant: I was as a beast before thee. 

2Ti 2:5  And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully. 

1Sa 6:6  Wherefore then do ye harden your hearts, as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? when he had wrought wonderfully among them, did they not let the people go, and they departed? 

A key indicator of our spiritually dead state in some time past is the stubbornness of our hearts and minds as portrayed by the Pharaoh and the Egyptians when they were oppressing the people of Israel and would not let them go. When we are under the dominion of our flesh as symbolized by the capture of the ark by the Philistines, it takes the Lord’s mighty hand to release us from our bondage. This mighty hand involves the judgment of the Lord on our flesh. 

Exo 3:20  And I will stretch out my hand, and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go. 
Exo 3:21  And I will give this people favour in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty:
Exo 3:22  But every woman shall borrow of her neighbour, and of her that sojourneth in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters; and ye shall spoil the Egyptians.

As shown in Exodus 3:21, through the suffering that we endure, we not only learn righteousness as our flesh dies, but we are spiritually enriched in Him as our eyes of understanding are enlightened, just as the Israelites left Egypt enriched with gold, silver and raiment. 

Deu 5:24 And ye said, Behold, the LORD our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth.

1Sa 6:7  Now therefore make a new cart, and take two milch kine, on which there hath come no yoke, and tie the kine to the cart, and bring their calves home from them: 
1Sa 6:8  And take the ark of the LORD, and lay it upon the cart; and put the jewels of gold, which ye return him for a trespass offering, in a coffer by the side thereof; and send it away, that it may go.

When we are full of the flesh, symbolized by the Philistines in possession of the ark, we worship the Lord according to what our carnal minds say as we see the Philistines laying the ark of the covenant on a cart instead of the shoulders of Levite (Kohathite) men. However, when the Lord comes to us with the spirit of His mouth and His brightness into our lives, those times of ignorance, the Lord ignores.

Act 17:30  The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 
Act 17:31 because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”  (ESV)

Exo 25:14  Put the poles through the rings on the sides of the ark in order to carry it.
Exo 25:15  The poles must stay in the rings of the ark. Never remove them. 

It is important to note in verse 7 that the new cart to carry the ark was to be drawn by two young dairy cows that have never been yoked. These two young dairy cattle are beasts and since we are beasts, these two cattle represent false witnesses of Christ who parade in the church system of this world or Babylon, supposedly feeding the Lord’s flock with milk.

Psa 73:22  So foolish was I, and ignorant: I was as a beast before thee. 

A yoke is a wooden beam used to connect two oxen, allowing them to work together as a team to pull heavy agricultural loads like plows or carts. The fact that these young cows have never been yoked means that these supposed men of God are not given to working with one another. In other words, they work as individuals and do not work as a team. We see this in the churches of this world where their leaders work alone. Although some of these churches have elders, they only play an advisory role which these pastors override according to their whims. These men of God do not play according to the rules that the Lord has established in His word as seen in verse 8 where the Philistines take the ark and place it upon the cart drawn by the cattle. The Book of Joel gives a glimpse of the characteristics that these supposed men of God are capable of.

Joe 2:3  Fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them, but behind them a desolate wilderness, and nothing escapes them.
Joe 2:4  Their appearance is like the appearance of horses, and like war horses they run.
Joe 2:5  As with the rumbling of chariots, they leap on the tops of the mountains, like the crackling of a flame of fire devouring the stubble, like a powerful army drawn up for battle. 
Joe 2:6  Before them peoples are in anguish; all faces grow pale. 
Joe 2:7  Like warriors they charge; like soldiers they scale the wall. They march each on his way; they do not swerve from their paths. 
Joe 2:8  They do not jostle one another; each marches in his path; they burst through the weapons and are not halted. 
Joe 2:9  They leap upon the city, they run upon the walls, they climb up into the houses, they enter through the windows like a thief. 
Joe 2:10 The earth quakes before them; the heavens tremble. The sun and the moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining. 

As we shall see later in this study, the ark on the cart, driven by the two young cattle was being taken to the people of Israel. This shows that everything is for our sake with the end result being for our good. 

1Co 3:21  Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are yours
1Co 3:22 Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours; 

The cart with the jewel of gold in it shows us that even in our deplorable state where we are overwhelmed by our flesh in which we are not playing according to the rules, are all ordained of the Lord for our sake. In other words, our flesh occupying the place of God in our hearts and minds is to give the Lord the occasion that He is seeking to come with His judgment, resulting in us learning righteousness and also being endowed with the keys of the kingdom of heaven symbolized by the jewels of gold accompanying the ark.

1Sa 6:9  And see, if it goeth up by the way of his own coast to Bethshemesh, then he hath done us this great evil: but if not, then we shall know that it is not his hand that smote us: it was a chance that happened to us. 
1Sa 6:10  And the men did so; and took two milch kine, and tied them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home: 
1Sa 6:11  And they laid the ark of the LORD upon the cart, and the coffer with the mice of gold and the images of their emerods. 
1Sa 6:12  And the kine took the straight way to the way of Beth shemesh, and went along the highway, lowing as they went, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left; and the lords of the Philistines went after them unto the border of Beth shemesh.

Beth shemesh is a border town of Israel with its Philistine neighbors. The name means house of the sun. It therefore signifies the church of the firstborn. Being a border town with the Philistines, it means that it signifies our journey with Christ where we are still grappling with sin as we come to know Christ. It must be noted here in these verses that although the means of transporting the ark of the covenant was not according to the Lord’s prescribed method of carrying the ark, the ark went in the direction of where it belongs – to Israel or the Lord’s elect. This is to let us know that in our initial stages of our walk with Christ as His elect, our flesh, denoted by the Philistines, helps us. This is clearly demonstrated by Abraham, a symbol of the Lord’s elect, being brought close to the land of Canaan (Haran) by his father Terah, when the Lord first appeared to Abraham to leave Mesopotamia. 

Act 7:2  Stephen answered, “Brothers and fathers, listen to me. The God who reveals his glory appeared to our ancestor Abraham in Mesopotamia. This happened before Abraham lived in Haran. 
Act 7:3  God told him, ‘Leave your land and your relatives. Go to the land that I will show you.’ 
Act 7:4 “Then Abraham left the country of Chaldea and lived in the city of Haran. After his father died, God made him move from there to this land where we now live. (GW)

Gen 11:31  Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot (son of Haran), and his daughter-in-law Sarai, wife of his son Abram. They set out together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan. When they came as far as Haran, they stayed there. (GW) 

Another witness to this is the following verse:

Isa 60:16  Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings: and thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob. 

The Ark Returns to Israel

1Sa 6:13  And they of Bethshemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley: and they lifted up their eyes, and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it. 
1Sa 6:14  And the cart came into the field of Joshua, a Bethshemite, and stood there, where there was a great stone: and they clave the wood of the cart, and offered the kine a burnt offering unto the LORD. 
1Sa 6:15  And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD, and the coffer that was with it, wherein the jewels of gold were, and put them on the great stone: and the men of Bethshemesh offered burnt offerings and sacrificed sacrifices the same day unto the LORD. 

It is significant to note that the people of Bethshemesh were reaping the wheat harvest in the valley when the ark came to them. As indicated, the people of Bethshemesh represent our initial walk with the Lord when we were babies in Christ. The people of the Philistines being judged because of the ark of the covenant in their midst is to let us know that our judgment starts while we are full of the flesh in Babylon. However, when we come to the house of the sun or the church of the Lord’s elect, we are still grappling with sin. The time of the wheat harvest signifies the time for us to know our sins and be judged as our eyes are being opened to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven.

Num 32:23  “If you don’t do all these things, you will be sinning against the LORD. You can be sure that you will be punished (judged) for your sin. 

The following verses show us that the time of wheat harvest is the time of knowing our sins:

Jdg 15:1  But it came to pass within a while after, in the time of wheat harvest, that Samson visited his wife with a kid; and he said, I will go in to my wife into the chamber. But her father would not suffer him to go in.

1Sa 12:17  Is it not wheat harvest to day? I will call unto the LORD, and he shall send thunder and rain; that ye may perceive and see that your wickedness is great, which ye have done in the sight of the LORD, in asking you a king.

Mat 13:30  Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

In Judges 15:1, Samson’s father-in-law’s refusal to let Samson see his wife brought about a chain of events which made Samson aware of the wickedness of the Philistines (our flesh), and this happened during the time of the wheat harvest.  In verse 13, the people of Beth Shemesh rejoiced when they saw the ark. It is a time of rejoicing, when the Lord comes to us with the spirit of His mouth and His brightness to destroy our flesh. 

Isa 25:9  And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, and he will save us: this is the LORD; we have waited for him, we will be and rejoice in his salvation. 
Isa 25:10 For in this mountain shall the hand of the LORD rest, and Moab shall be trodden down under him, even as straw is trodden down for the dunghill.

Moab to be trodden down in Isaiah 25:10 means that when the Lord comes to us, our flesh shall be destroyed. Joshua means ‘Jehovah saved’ and therefore, the ark coming to rest in the field of Joshua implies that when the Lord comes to us with the spirit of His mouth and His brightness, that is the beginning of the process of us being saved. The people of Beth Shemesh offering a burnt offering and sacrifices unto the Lord in verses 14 and 15 means that when the Lord comes to us, our response is to offer our bodies as living sacrifices to 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.

1Sa 6:16  And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day. 
1Sa 6:17  And these are the golden emerods which the Philistines returned for a trespass offering unto the LORD; for Ashdod one, for Gaza one, for Askelon one, for Gath one, for Ekron one; 
1Sa 6:18  And the golden mice, according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, both of fenced cities, and of country villages, even unto the great stone of Abel, whereon they set down the ark of the LORD: which stone remaineth unto this day in the field of Joshua, the Bethshemite. 

The negative application of the number five means famine of the word of the Lord which brings us to spiritual poverty. Therefore, these five lords of the Philistines represent our domination by our flesh which brings us to spiritual poverty through the famine of the word of the Lord. 

Gen 45:11  And there will I nourish thee; for yet there are five years of famine; lest thou, and thy household, and all that thou hast, come to poverty.

The names of the cities of these Philistines give us insight into what happens to our lives when we are dominated by our flesh. Ashdod means ‘a ravager’ or ‘a destroyer.’ We know that the devil is the destroyer. This implies that when we are overwhelmed by our flesh, we are under the control of the devil who powers our flesh.

Joh 10:10  The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. 

Rev 13:4  And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him? 

Gaza means ‘strong.’ Our flesh is stronger than our will as he is empowered by the devil. This implies that even though we desire to do good, our flesh overpowers us to do the wrong things. 

Rom 7:18  I know that nothing good lives in me; that is, nothing good lives in my corrupt nature. Although I have the desire to do what is right, I don’t do it. 
Rom 7:19 I don’t do the good I want to do. Instead, I do the evil that I don’t want to do. (GW) 

Askelon means ‘weighing place.’ When we are of the flesh, it is like coming to a weighing place and finding out that we do not measure up to the standard of the Lord. 

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? 

Gath means ‘winepress.’ It stands for the Lord’s judgment. The Lord will not relent in dealing with our flesh until He has destroyed it. Because of our flesh, we face intense, multi-directional pressures as the Lord’s hand of judgment becomes heavy on us. However, through the grace of the Lord, we are sustained by His power to endure without being completely destroyed. All of these pressures are to bring us to learn righteousness so that we will be in Him.

2Co 4:8  We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 
2Co 4:9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;  

Ekron means ‘eradication.’ The purpose of the ark becoming possessed by the Philistines is to give the Lord the occasion for Him to come and judge our flesh with the purpose of eradicating or completely destroying our flesh. 

The Lord Smote the Men of Bethshemesh

1Sa 6:19  And he smote the men of Beth shemesh, because they had looked into the ark of the LORD, even he smote of the people fifty thousand and threescore and ten men: and the people lamented, because the LORD had smitten many of the people with a great slaughter. 
1Sa 6:20  And the men of Beth shemesh said, Who is able to stand before this holy LORD God? and to whom shall he go up from us? 
1Sa 6:21  And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kirjath-jearim, saying, The Philistines have brought again the ark of the LORD; come ye down, and fetch it up to you. 

As indicated earlier, the men of Beth shemesh represent our early walk with Christ. The men of Beth shemesh looking into the ark signifies our inclination to validate the presence of the Lord instead of walking by faith, at this point in our walk. This is to give the Lord the occasion He is seeking to come and judge us, with the view of destroying our old man or flesh. Most versions of the Bible record seventy men as those killed by the Lord’s judgment. The number seventy in the negative context signifies the Lord’s judgment which leads to the destruction of our flesh.

Jdg 9:56  Thus God rendered the wickedness of Abimelech, which he did unto his father, in slaying his seventy brethren: 

2Ki 10:7  And it came to pass, when the letter came to them, that they took the king’s sons, and slew seventy persons, and put their heads in baskets, and sent him them to Jezreel.

The sending to Kirjath-jearim for them to come and fetch the ark is an indication of our inability to see that the Lord’s judgment brings righteousness. Therefore we want to avoid the Lord’s judgment just like our brothers and sisters in the churches of this world who shun the Lord’s judgment. When we have this mentality, we suffer in vain. 

Gal 3:1  O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? 
Gal 3:2  This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 
Gal 3:3  Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh? 
Gal 3:4 Have ye suffered so many things in vain? if it be yet in vain. 

May the Lord grant us the grace not to suffer in vain. Amen!

  The Spiritual Significance of Numbers:  The Number Six-Part 1

In order to understand what the number six means in biblical terms, it would be best to see its most important connection to the pinnacle of God’s physical creation mankind.

Gen 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

God’s word reveals in Ecclesiastes 3:19 “For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity.”

We see God wants man to have preeminence or dominion over all the creation, but in the next breath we are told that we are just like the beasts and have no preeminence above them. So which is it, and how do we come to the point where we actually have dominion over all flesh as Genesis 1:26 claims we will have?

Rev 13:18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

The word for man in this verse is anth’-ro-pos and refers to mankind, not just any man, but all men and women.

From G435 and ωψ o ps (the countenance; from G3700); manfaced, that is, a human being: – certain, man.

God has told us that if we want wisdom and understanding about mankind we should count the number of the beast which is 6-6-6. By doing so we should come to see how our dominion over all flesh will come by way of a process which is to be understood as having dominion over the spirit realm by bringing our own marred flesh into subjection to Christ by way of the holy spirit which He gives to us.

Jer 18:4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.

So without any further ado, I hope the scriptures will convict those who read this, if they have not already been convicted, that man was created as an incomplete  marred vessel for a glorious purpose. The number six denoted that which is not yet complete, and it has much to say about the process of reaching the ultimate perfection which flesh and blood cannot obtain nor inherit.

1Co 15:50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

Firstly, the number is not just the single number six hundred sixty-six. The original Greek is to be understood as a series of three sixes showing us there is a process to be learned from this 6-6-6 series of the same number:

The number 3 can be shown in God’s word to represent process, especially the process of being judged, which process is always closely tied to the destruction of the flesh.

This article an mp3 audio file will bring out the truth of this matter in God’s word.

Spiritual significance of the number three

The symbolism in the Garden of Eden reveals right from the beginning that all flesh, including Christ’s flesh, is sinful flesh and is tied to the earth. The symbolism in the Garden of Eden will help us establish more clearly the connection between the number 6 and the earth, the church, mankind and Christ himself. Hopefully, we will see the broader sense of its meaning wherever we come across it in the word of God revealing to us both the negative and positive points surrounding the number six.

The next part of this study on the number 6 is taken from Mike Vinson’s article, “After the Counsel of His Own Will, Does Mankind Have Free Will?”

… and is added to help us see the connection the number six has to the earth and everyone including Christ, who was also in an earthen vessel.

The quote from this article can be found in the “After the Counsel of His Own Will” article:

“Few people notice that the tree of the knowledge of good has the same root as the tree of the knowledge of evil. Consequently they are confused as to why Cain’s offering to God was rejected: After all, Cain “brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord” (Gen 4:3).

Few indeed are given eyes to see that it was God Himself who planted the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Fewer still see that both good and evil HAVE THE SAME ROOT.

However, there is much more revealed here in chapter two of Genesis:

Gen 2:9 And OUT OF THE GROUND [dust] made the Lord to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

The truth which seems to be the least understood of all is that even the tree of life is ‘made to grow out of the ground.’ The truth of this simple statement gives the lie to Satan’s “you shall not surely die” untruth (Gen 3:4). Satan convinced the first Adam of a lie which has been ensconced in Adam’s children from the beginning. In effect, what Satan told our parents, and is still telling us today, is ‘you will never surely die.’

Christ tells us: “I am the resurrection and the life…” (Joh 11:25). That is why Christ had to come in the flesh and partake of our earthy, dust composition. “OUT OF THE GROUND made the Lord to grow… the tree of life” (Gen 2:9).

Both trees grow ‘out of the ground’. What this tells us about ourselves is: “that they [mankind] might see that they themselves are beasts” (Ecc 3:18). Paul puts it like this:

1Co 15:46 Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.
1Co 15:47 The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.

Clearly “that which is natural” is not the completed product. “That which is spiritual … the second man… the Lord from heaven” is the completion of the Lord’s creation.

God’s word shows us that the number six is tied to the redemptive process by way of the flesh [THE EARTH].”  (END QUOTE)

Speaking of the church in the wilderness, we read in the book of Jeremiah:

Jer 22:1 Thus saith the LORD; Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and speak there this word,
Jer 22:2 And say, Hear the word of the LORD, O king of Judah, that sittest upon the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people that enter in by these gates:

In the same chapter this statement in verse 29 “the king of Judah… and thy people” are three times referred to as “earth, earth, earth.”

Jer 22:29 O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD.

The holy spirit calls “the king of Judah… and thy people who enter in by these gates… earth, earth, earth.” The fact that the word ‘earth’ is repeated three times reveals to  us that there is a three-step process of judgment for all flesh, including Christ’s flesh which is connected to the ground, to the earth.

For further clarification on this point, please see the following article:

Three days and three nights in the grave

Heb 9:15 For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant. (NIV)

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.

This process of bringing forth much fruit by the seed falling into the ground and dying is another way of saying the hope of glory which is within us and that is experienced day to day as we die daily and go from glory to glory.

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:

1Co 15:31  I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.

2Co 3:18  But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, [even] as by the Spirit of the Lord.

“The riches of the glory of this mystery [which is being] made known… among the Gentiles” is that being the physical seed of Abraham does not complete the Lord’s creation. What does complete the Lord’s creation is “the second man… the Lord from heaven… Christ in you the hope of glory.”

1Co 15:46  Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.
1Co 15:47  The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.

Flesh and blood must be put off and replaced by a new creation which is formed in the weakness of the first creation by way of a process (number 3) of the destruction of the flesh (number 6) stated as such in this verse in Ecclesiastes.

Ecc 1:13 I applied my heart to inquiring and exploring by wisdom concerning all that is done under the heavens: it is an experience of evil Elohim has given to the sons of humanity to humble them by it. (CLV)

Again, in Ecclesiastes 3:19 we are reminded that this experience of evil, and the accompanying wisdom and process of being judged, is connected to mankind and can be derived by understanding the symbol 6-6-6.

Ecc 3:19 For that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity.

All things in the flesh, by God’s estimation, ‘shortly come to pass’ seeing our life is but a vapor in His sight.

Jas 4:14  Whereas ye know not what [shall be] on the morrow. For what [is] your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.

We live by every word of God, and the primary way to look at all scripture is in the inward application or the present application of that word inwardly within each of our own lives. Then we can gain a greater appreciation for the sum of God’s signified word on the subject of the number six.

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:

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

The earth is cursed from the Garden of Eden

The scriptures demonstrate that man is a beast, connected to the earth and redeemed out of it by Christ who started the redemptive process by being that preeminent seed of Adam to die and redeem us by His death, and all of this is declared from the foundation of the world.

Heb 4:3  For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

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.

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.

Christ had to be in beastly Adamic flesh in order to reconcile us to our Father, but Christ goes on to tell us that unless He is resurrected, we will remain in our sinful fleshly condition and not be able to receive the comforter, which will finish this process of redemption by entering into our flesh to work a process which finds its fullness or perfection in the resurrection (the third day).

Joh 16:7  Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

Luk 13:32  And he said unto them, Go and say to that fox, Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I am perfected.

This is “the hope of glory”, and 6 cannot go on to completion, which is the symbolic meaning of the number 7, unless there is a perfecting agent within us, namely Jesus Christ. Christ within us is the hope of glory, not the fullness of that glory but the hope of it which will eventually save all men by giving us dominion over all the beasts of the earth within us.

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:

Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

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

1Ti 4:10  For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.

1Jn 2:2  And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

Gen 1:26  And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

The earth is cursed from the beginning of the creation; it is marred in the hand of the potter and shapened in iniquity. The number six is not seven and not complete, but not completely without hope either. As the story progresses for mankind, God uses the temple itself as a shadow of the great hope of glory which is Christ in the temple, which temple we are.

The number six comes up in this regard among many other shadows in God’s holy temple, and these shadows are showing us the process through which flesh must go in order to be justified and glorified by God.

Rom 8:30  Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.

I have emboldened every verb in Romans 8:30. Every verb in that verse is in the Greek aorist tense which signifies a process which is not yet complete.

One example of this being used is the eleven curtains in the temple of God. The curtains represent our flesh, and a few scriptures to confirm this point can be found at:

Heb 10:25  By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;

Mat 27:51  And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and [that] the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

The curtain, which symbolizes flesh, is rent in two, and the number two symbolizes the witness of Christ within us Who makes a way for us to enter into the holy of holies by destroying the old man, the sinful nature and everything which separates us from God.

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.

This study below shows more clearly the spiritual significance of the eleven curtains in the tabernacle. The number 11 spiritually signifies the ruin and death of the flesh. It is through that death that we have the hope of life.  5+6=11. Here is the link to the study on…

The Number Eleven

There is a temporary tabernacle which precedes a more permanent temple, but do not think that even the temple is not to be vigilantly purged and purified.

Exo 26:7  And thou shalt make curtains of goats’ hair to be a covering upon the tabernacle: eleven curtains shalt thou make.

Heb 9:22  And almost all things are by the law purged with blood [death]; and without shedding of blood is no remission.
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 [must be purified] with better sacrifices than these.

Eleven curtains covered the temporary tabernacle. This tabernacle first received the tables of the first covenant “for the lawless” (1Ti 1:9). It endured the trials of the wilderness and the lawless days of the judges. It was covered with eleven curtains.

Deu 1:2 There are eleven days journey from Horeb by the way of mount Seir unto Kadeshbarnea.

Twelve days would have taken Israel right into the promised land. Eleven is one day short of twelve, and therefore Israel at this point is not well founded. Korah and his 250 famous men of renown have yet to raise their ugly heads.

We can also note that the Num 6 + 5 = 11 and shows that the number eleven carries with it the mark of the beast 6 and 5 for grace and faith, which is how all men will be saved and brought to the foundation of Jesus Christ, who is represented by the number twelve. Here is the link to our last study on the spiritual significance of the number 5: https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/the-spiritual-significance-of-numbers-number-5/

The last two kings of Israel reigned for eleven years and did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. Again, God is showing us that as long as we are in earthen vessels, we will not be considered complete.

The porch of the temple is also eleven cubits, and we will need to be perfected until this verse is fulfilled outwardly.

Rev 21:22 And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.

Christ and The Body of Christ can be Connected to the Number Six

We will pause our study at this point, and in our next study we will learn how the number six is connected to the body of Christ.

So often I read Genesis 1:26 up to …after our likeness and then just gloss over the remainder.

Foolish me. I skip over a powerful, realm changing promise!

Joh 3:6  That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

…and let them have DOMINION…

Gen 1:26  And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

The beast I (we) war with daily is not flesh and blood, this ruling, well-entrenched beast is spiritual.

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

This beast (powered by the god of this world) desires to keep me in darkness, blind to the light of the glorious gospel of Christ.

2Co 4:4  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

Receiving and exercising this dominion (light of the gospel of Christ) over spiritual wickedness in my (our) earth and my (our) heaven/firmament is the process of “Gen 1:26 … let us (be making) make man in our image.

2Co 4:4  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

Col 1:15  Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: 

I cannot make myself in the image go God, neither can I give myself dominion over (my own beastly) spiritual wickedness, but I (we) have a high priest that can and is doing both.

Heb 4:15  For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.
Heb 4:16  Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

I (we) shall be like Him (the image of the invisible God)!

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

YBIC,
A____

Hi A____,

What a wonderful revelation the Lord has given you!

“The first man Adam” (1Co 15:45) has never possessed the dominion he is prophesied to obtain in these verses:

Gen 1:28  And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

The fact is that Adam, of himself, and without Christ, “can do nothing”, much less have dominion over all his flesh:

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.

This revelation you are sharing with us accords with and confirms the fact that our corruptible, sinful, old man is simply the necessary first step in the work being done by the One who is “working all things after the counsel of His own will” (Eph 1:11).

This revelation also accords with the fact that instead of saying:

Gen 2:17  But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

“In the day you eat thereof you shall surely die”, in the Hebrew actually says:

Gen 2:17 Yet from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you are not to be eating from it, for in the day you eat from it, to die shall you be dying.

Adam and Eve were created “to die”. Adam and Eve did not die because they ate of the forbidden fruit, rather they ate of the forbidden fruit because of their naked, earthy, sinful, dying, marred composition “in the hand of the Potter”:

Psa 51:5  Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.

Jer 18:4  And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.

Adam’s sin was just as much a work of the Potter’s hand, as was the destruction of Job’s possessions, and as was Job’s affliction with boils. We are plainly to that both  were the work of “Thy hand”:

Job 1:11  But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face.
Job 1:12  And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the LORD.

Job 2:5  But put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face.
Job 2:6  And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand; but save his life.

The scriptures demonstrate that all that Satan does is no more or any less than what God sends him forth to do, and the same is true of Adam and all who are in Adam because:

Pro 16:4  The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.

Eph 1:9  Having made known to us the mystery of his will according to his desire, which he purposed within himself.
Eph 1:10  for an administration of the fullness of the times. To gather together all things in the Christ, things in the heavens and things upon the earth,
Eph 1:11  in him in whom also we obtained an inheritance. Having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the deliberation of his will. (ACV)

“All things” must, of necessity include “yea, even the wicked for the day of evil”, and a wicked Adam and Eve who, by His design, disobeyed their Creator.

It is “the Christ” only who will be given the power to “gather together all things in the Christ”,and be granted the dominion over all flesh which God has promised to “the last Adam”, as the Lord has revealed to you in these verses:

Gen 1:26  And God said, Let us make man in our image–after our likeness–and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that

So the conclusion is that God’s creation is a work in progress, which is what the Hebrew actually reveals in the very next verse:

Gen 1:27 And creating is the Elohim humanity in His image. In the image of the Elohim He creates it. Male and female He creates them.

The first Adam has never been ‘made in the image of God’. “The first man, Adam”, is but the first step toward making mankind into “the image of God”. Only “the Christ” has been made into that “express image” thus far. “Creating is Elohim humanity in His image”.

2Co 4:4  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

Col 1:15  Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:

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;

In the end “all in Adam… will bear the image of the heavenly… second Adam”.

1Co 15:22  For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
1Co 15:23  But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.

1Co 15:45  And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.
1Co 15:46  Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.
1Co 15:47  The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.
1Co 15:48  As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
1Co 15:49  And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly. 
1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

There it is! Corruptible flesh and blood was never intended to inherit the kingdom of God, and yet all in Adam, each in his own order will, “bear the image of the heavenly”, and will be given the dominion you so rightly pointed out he has never yet possessed:

Gen 1:28  And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. 

Your brother who appreciates every crumb and every nugget of His Words,

Mike

Alleged Contradictions In Scripture – Part 8

Not For That We Have Dominion Over Your Faith” Versus “Obey Them That Have The Rule Over You”

2Co 1:24  Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand.

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.

Introduction

Christ has made it abundantly clear that His ministers are not to lord it over His flock or take advantage of His flock in any way.

Mat 20:25  But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them.
Mat 20:26  But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister;
Mat 20:27  And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant:
Mat 20:28  Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

If Christ’s children are not to “exercise authority upon” those in their charge, why then are those in the the Lord’s flock told to “submit [them]selves [to]… them that have the rule over you”? How can a leader “have the rule”, without “hav[ing] dominion over” others?

What does “have the rule over you ” mean? Does not that word ‘obey’ actually mean ‘be persuaded’? The answer is, yes, as Strong’s definition tells us:

G3982
πείθω
peithō
pi’-tho

A primary verb; to convince (by argument, true or false); by analogy to pacify or conciliate (by other fair means); reflexively or passively to assent (to evidence or authority), to rely (by inward certainty): – agree, assure, believe, have confidence, be (wax) content, make friend, obey, persuade, trust, yield.

If there is any doubt that this word means ‘to be persuaded’, let’s just look at how it is normally translated:

G3982
πείθω
peithō
Total KJV Occurrences: 58
persuaded, 16
Mat_27:20, Luk_16:31, Luk_20:6, Act_13:43, Act_14:19, Act_18:4, Act_19:26, Act_21:14, Act_26:26, Rom_8:38, Rom_15:14 (2), 2Ti_1:5, 2Ti_1:12, Heb_6:9, Heb_11:13
trust, 7
Mar_10:24, 2Co_1:9, 2Co_10:7, Phi_2:24, Phi_3:4, Heb_2:13, Heb_13:18
confidence, 6
2Co_2:3, Gal_5:10, Phi_1:25, Phi_3:3, 2Th_3:4, Phm_1:21
obey, 5
Rom_2:8, Gal_3:1, Gal_5:7, Heb_13:17, Jam_3:3
believed, 3
Act_17:3-4 (2), Act_27:11, Act_28:24
confident, 3
Rom_2:19, Phi_1:6, Phi_1:14
persuade, 3
Mat_28:14 (2), 2Co_5:11, Gal_1:10
trusted, 3
Mat_27:43, Luk_11:22, Luk_18:9
obeyed, 2
Act_5:36-37 (2)
persuading, 2
Act_19:8, Act_28:23
agreed, 1
Act_5:40
assure, 1
1Jo_3:19
friend, 1
Act_12:19-20 (2)
made, 1
Act_12:20 (2)
persuadest, 1
Act_26:28
put, 1
Heb_2:13
waxing, 1
Phi_1:13-14 (2)
yield, 1
Act_23:21

22 of the 58 total entries, almost 50 percent of the total entries are some form of the English word ‘persuade’. The word ‘obey’ accounts for only 7 entries, which would better be translated as ‘persuaded of’ as these verses demonstrate:

Act 5:36  For before these days rose up Theudas, boasting himself to be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves: who was slain; and all, as many as obeyed [Greek: peitho – persuaded of] him, were scattered, and brought to nought.
Act 5:37  After this man rose up Judas of Galilee in the days of the taxing, and drew away much people after him: he also perished; and all, even as many as obeyed [Greek: peitho – were persuaded of] him, were dispersed.

But what do we make of the Greek word translated ‘rule’ in Heb 13:17 if Christ’s followers have no dominion over anyone?

Heb 13:17  Obey [Greek: peitho] 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 [Greek: peitho] we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly.

Is not this Greek word best translated as ‘leaders’ in this verse? The answer is that it is best translated as ‘leaders’, if indeed we esteem our leaders as such.

Here is Strong’s definition of the Greek word which is translated as ‘rule’ in Heb 13:17:

G2233
ἡγέομαι
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, governor, judge, have the rule over, suppose, think.

Here are all 28 entries for this Greek word ‘hegeomai’:

G2233
ἡγέομαι
hēgeomai
Total KJV Occurrences: 28
count, 7
Phi_3:8 (2), 2Th_3:15, 1Ti_6:1, Jam_1:2, 2Pe_2:13, 2Pe_3:9
chief, 3
Luk_22:26, Act_14:12, Act_15:22
counted, 3
Phi_3:7, 1Ti_1:12, Heb_10:29
rule, 3
Heb_13:7, Heb_13:17, Heb_13:24
esteem, 2
Phi_2:3, 1Th_5:13
governor, 2
Mat_2:6, Act_7:10
think, 2
Act_26:2, 2Pe_1:13
thought, 2
2Co_9:5, Phi_2:6
account, 1
2Pe_3:15
esteeming, 1
Heb_11:26
judged, 1
Heb_11:11
supposed, 1
Phi_2:25

It is clear to anyone with the mind of Christ that the essence of this Greek word ‘hegeomai‘ is ‘esteem’ in the sense of ‘accounting’ someone as an esteemed ‘chief’, ‘leader’, ‘ruler’, or an esteemed ‘judge’.

Here is Heb 13:17 in the Concordant Version:

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.

We will all “give account [of] every idle word”, (Mat 12:36, Mat 18:23, Luk 16:2, Act 19:40, Rom 14:12, Heb 13:17 (2), 1Pe 4:5), and we will also “render an account” of how we have served as overseers of the Lord’s flock. If we are not vigilant to “beware of the leaven of the Pharisees”, it will be none other than Christ Himself to whom we will “render an account” for how slack we have been in being “vigilant for the sake [of each other’s] souls”.

The next verse has this same Greek word, ‘peitho‘, translated as ‘obey’ in the King James, but notice it is not translated as ‘obey’ in this verse:

Heb 13:18 Pray concerning us, for we are persuaded [‘peitho‘, translated as ‘trust’ in the KJV] that we have an ideal conscience, in all wanting to behave ideally.” (CV)

This point was made in Tony’s study Thursday night:

Psa 91:11  For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
Psa 91:12  They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. 
Psa 91:13  Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.

Who has God given charge over His flock? We just read the answer to that 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.

Paul gave this warning to the leaders and elders of Ephesus:

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.

Then he gives this admonition to Timothy:

1Ti 3:2  A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;
1Ti 3:3  Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous;
1Ti 3:4  One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity;
1Ti 3:5  (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)

1Ti 5:17  Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine.

If we are not to have dominion over each other as the Gentiles, how are we to understand “a man know[ing] how to rule his own house” as a qualification for “tak[ing] care of the church of God”? Once again, the Greek has a different meaning than what the translators chose to express the mind of the spirit.

Here is Strong’s definition of the word translated as ‘rule’ here in 1 Timothy:

G4291
προΐ́στημι
proistēmi
pro-is’-tay-mee
From G4253 and G2476; to stand before, that is, (in rank) to preside, or (by implication) to practise: – maintain, be over, rule.

Here is the definition of G4253:

G4253
πρό
pro
pro

A primary preposition; “fore”, that is, in front of, prior (figuratively superior) to. In compounds it retains the same significations: – above, ago, before, or ever. In compounds it retains the same significations.

This is the definition of G2476:

G2476
ἵστημι
histēmi
his’-tay-mee

A prolonged form of a primary word στάω staō (of the same meaning, and used for it in certain tenses); to stand (transitively or intransitively), used in various applications (literally or figuratively): – abide, appoint, bring, continue, covenant, establish, hold up, lay, present, set (up), stanch, stand (by, forth, still, up).

Putting these two definitions together in the context of a proper head of a fellowship in the body of Christ or of a head of a household who ‘[has] his children in subjection with all gravity”, it is clear that Greek word ‘proistemi‘ literally means that a leader, whether in his home or in the house of God is to stand firm in the doctrine of Christ, “with all gravity”, just as he deals with his children, “with all gravity”.

What kind of leader of the house of God would let his own children disrupt a fellowship with loud, disruptive, rude and selfish behavior? Any so-called ‘leader’ who would allow such behavior in either his home or in the house of God is no one to trust with the “gravity” of the doctrines of Christ.

Speaking to Titus, Paul tells us this:

Tit 2:7  In all things shewing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine shewing uncorruptness, gravity.

The Greek word translated a ‘gravity’ here in Titus 2:7, is the same word translated in the same way in:

1Ti 3:4 One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity; [Greek: semnotēs – sincerity, G4587]

It is the doctrine of Christ that is the subject in both Timothy and Titus. How a man’s children behave is simply an indication of whether that man is qualified to be an overseer of the Lord’s flock and whether he is qualified to detect and deal with “seducing spirits and doctrines of devils”, as Paul instructs Timothy in the very next chapter:

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

“Carnal babes”, physical or spiritual, are never to be allowed to disrupt the fellowship of the body of Christ.

Rom 14:1  Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations.

A Godly, Biblical elder and a Godly leader knows he must “[be] vigilant for the sake of your souls, as having to render an account [to] the Chief Shepherd, and he is vigilant to protect his Lord’s flock from “grievous wolves” who rise up from within the flock 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.

This is what Paul has warned us about through his admonition to the same Ephesian elders  who he admonished to “look well to yourselves, and to the flock over whom the Lord has made you overseers”:

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.

Paul’s three-year warning was ‘three years’ because God wants us to know that “watch [against] grievous wolves… of your own selves… speaking perverse things” is a process that continues to this day.

But if we have no dominion over the faith of our brothers and sisters in Christ, how will we be able to be good “overseers” of the Lord’s flock? To answer that question, let’s go back and see what had happened that caused Christ to tell his disciples they were not to exercise dominion over each other as the Gentiles do.

Here is what had happened between His apostles which provoked these verses of admonition:

Mat 20:20  Then came to him the mother of Zebedee’s children with her sons, worshipping him, and desiring a certain thing of him.
Mat 20:21  And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom.
Mat 20:22  But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, We are able.
Mat 20:23  And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father.
Mat 20:24  And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against the two brethren.

The truth was that the apostles had all argued among themselves who would be the greatest among them in Christ’s kingdom as Mark reveals:

Mar 9:33  And he came to Capernaum: and being in the house he asked them, What was it that ye disputed among yourselves by the way?
Mar 9:34  But they held their peace: for by the way they had disputed among themselves, who should be the greatest. 
Mar 9:35  And he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all.
Mar 9:36  And he took a child, and set him in the midst of them: and when he had taken him in his arms, he said unto them,
Mar 9:37  Whosoever shall receive one of such children in my name, receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me, receiveth not me, but him that sent me.

Matthew adds a few more details of what Christ expects of those He sends as ministers of His flock:

Mat 18:1  At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? 
Mat 18:2  And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them,
Mat 18:3  And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 18:4  Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 

Paul tells us he had no dominion over the faith of those who God gave to him to serve as their overseer:

2Co 1:24  Not for that we have dominion [Greek: G2961, kurieuō] over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand.

…and finally Peter tells us this:

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 [G2634 katakurieuō] over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.

The alleged contradiction

If Christ’s ministers are not to lord it over the Lord’s flock, and if Christ Himself tells us we are not to exercise dominion over each other as the Gentiles do, then what is the function of the elders and ministers within the body of Christ? Did Christ have any authority over His apostles? Was Christ given any power over those who followed Him? Do Christ’s ministers have any power or authority over the Lord’s flock?

To answer these questions, let’s examine a few of the verses which appear to contradict the doctrine that God’s ministers have no “dominion over [your] faith”:

We are told this of Christ’s own style of teaching:

Mat 7:24  Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
Mat 7:25  And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
Mat 7:26  And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
Mat 7:27  And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
Mat 7:28  And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine:
Mat 7:29  For he taught them as one having authority, [Greek: exousia, G1849] and not as the scribes. 

‘Hear and do these sayings of mine and you are building on a rock. Hear and do not these sayings of mine and you are building upon the sand.’ Christ certainly did speak as if He had great authority over all who heard His sayings.

Here is Strong’s definition of the Greek word which is translated as ‘authority’ in Mat 7:29:

G1849
ἐξουσία
exousia
ex-oo-see’-ah

From G1832 (in the sense of ability); privilege, that is, (subjectively) force, capacity, competency, freedom, or (objectively) mastery (concretely magistrate, superhuman, potentate, token of control), delegated influence: – authority, jurisdiction, liberty, power, right, strength.

These are the New Testament entries for that word exousia:

G1849
ἐξουσία
exousia
Total KJV Occurrences: 103
power, 61
Mat_9:6, Mat_9:8, Mat_10:1, Mat_28:18, Mar_2:10, Mar_3:15, Mar_6:7, Luk_4:6, Luk_4:32, Luk_5:24, Luk_10:19, Luk_12:5, Luk_22:53, Joh_1:12, Joh_10:18 (2), Joh_17:2, Joh_19:10-11 (3), Act_1:7, Act_5:4, Act_8:19, Act_26:18, Rom_9:21, Rom_13:1-3 (3), 1Co_7:37, 1Co_9:4-6 (3), 1Co_9:12 (2), 1Co_9:18, 1Co_11:10, 2Co_13:10, Eph_1:21, Eph_2:2, Col_1:13, Col_2:10, 2Th_3:9, Rev_2:25-26 (2), Rev_6:8, Rev_9:3 (2), Rev_9:10, Rev_9:19, Rev_11:6 (2), Rev_12:10, Rev_13:4-5 (2), Rev_13:7, Rev_13:12, Rev_14:18, Rev_16:9, Rev_17:12, Rev_18:1, Rev_20:6
authority, 28
Mat_7:29, Mat_8:9, Mat_21:23-24 (3), Mat_21:27, Mar_1:22, Mar_11:27-29 (4), Mar_13:33-34 (2), Luk_4:36, Luk_7:8, Luk_9:1, Luk_19:17, Luk_20:2 (2), Luk_20:8, Luk_20:20, Joh_5:27, Act_9:14, Act_26:10, Act_26:12, 1Co_15:24, 2Co_10:8, Rev_13:2
powers, 8
Luk_12:11, Rom_13:1 (2), Eph_3:10, Eph_6:12, Col_1:16, Col_2:15, Tit_3:1
right, 2
Heb_13:10, Rev_22:14
authorities, 1
1Pe_3:22
jurisdiction, 1
Luk_23:7
liberty, 1
1Co_8:9
strength, 1
Rev_17:13

This word ‘exousia‘, meaning power and authority, is used in connection with both God’s witnesses as well as the beast, each in his own predestined turn:

Rev 11:6  These [two witnesses] have power [exousia] to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power [exousia] over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all [seven – Rev 16] plagues, as often as they will.

Rev 13:7  And it was given unto him [the beast] to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.

So Christ tells us that ‘exercising dominion and authority upon others as the Gentiles do’, “shall not be so among you”, and yet we find that He Himself “spoke as one having authority”, ‘exousia‘, which is most often translated as ‘power’.

Mat 20:25  But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion [G263 katakurieuō] over them, and they that are great exercise authority [G2715: katexousiazō – pronounced kat-ex-oo-see-ad’-zo] upon them.
Mat 20:26  But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister;

Mat 7:29  For he taught them as one having authority [exousia, G1849], and not as the scribes.

Notice that the Greek word translated ‘authority’ in Mat 20:25, which “shall not be so among you”, is a different word from the word translated ‘authority’ in Mat 7:29.

Before we expose the fact that there is no contradiction at all in these two statements, let’s look at a few other of the places where this word ‘exousia‘, which is translated as ‘authority’ in Mat 7:29, appears:

Mat 9:1  And he entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into his own city.
Mat 9:2  And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee. 
Mat 9:3  And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This man blasphemeth.
Mat 9:4  And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts?
Mat 9:5  For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk?
Mat 9:6  But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power [Greek: exousia – authority] on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house.
Mat 9:7  And he arose, and departed to his house.

1Pe 3:22  Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities [G1849, exousia] and powers [Greek: dunamis, G14111] being made subject unto him.

Here is Peter telling us plainly that this ‘exousia‘, this ‘power’, this ‘authority’ given Christ, places the “angels and authorities and powers… subject unto [Christ]”.

The question now becomes, has Christ given this same power and authority to His children? What does Christ Himself tell us?

Luk 10:19  Behold, I give unto you power [Greek: exousia, G1849] to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

This brings us back to those verses brought up in Tony’s Thursday night study:

Psa 91:11 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
Psa 91:12 They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
Psa 91:13 Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.

Nothing empowers “the enemy” more than his lies and false doctrines, typified throughout scripture by the serpent, the adder and the dragon.

Mat 15:9  But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

Col 2:22  Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men?

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

Heb 13:9  Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein.

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

Now if one of these “doctrines of devils” is injected into the body of Christ, Christ Himself has given His children power over all such powers and authorities, whether those powers are coming from without or from within His body.

How is it possible to have “power… over all the power of the enemy” and not have dominion over the faith of a brother or a sister? The answer to that question is:

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.
Mat 18:18 Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

Christ is not just us as individuals. We are indeed Christ, but we are Christ only as a “many member[ed] body”:

1Co 12:14 For the body is not one member, but many.
1Co 12:15 If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?
1Co 12:16 And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?
1Co 12:17 If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling?
1Co 12:18 But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.
1Co 12:19 And if they were all one member, where were the body?
1Co 12:20 But now are they many members, yet but one body.
1Co 12:21 And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you.

Here is how Peter asserts this power and authority over all the powers and authorities when external governments attempt to affect the actions of the body of Christ from without:

Act 5:27  And when they had brought them, they set them before the council: and the high priest asked them,
Act 5:28  Saying, Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name? and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.
Act 5:29  Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.

Peter did not claim to be an infallible Pope, and he used the pronoun “We”. In other words, Peter asserted his power over the governments of this world in the same way Christ exercised that same power. Christ always spoke for His Father:

Joh 14:10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works.

Christ and Peter were both willing to give up their physical lives for spiritual life. As Christ told Pilate:

Joh 19:9  And went again into the judgment hall, and saith unto Jesus, Whence art thou? But Jesus gave him no answer.
Joh 19:10  Then saith Pilate unto him, Speakest thou not unto me? knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee?
Joh 19:11  Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no power [G2634 katakurieuō] at all against me, except it were given thee from above: therefore he that delivered me unto thee hath the greater sin.

Paul demonstrates the power and authority we all have, and with which we are to deal with the doctrines of devils which attempt to infect the body of Christ from within or from without:

1Ti 6:3  If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness;
1Ti 6:4  He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings,
1Ti 6:5  Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.

2Ti 1:13  Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. 
2Ti 1:14  That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us. 
2Ti 1:15  This thou knowest, that all they which are in Asia be turned away from me; of whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes.

The apostle John tells us the same:

2Jn 1:9  Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son.
2Jn 1:10  If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: 
2Jn 1:11  For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.

The difference between ruling the house of God in this age and ruling the nations during the millennium

In Rev 2:27 we are told what is promised to those who have been overcomers in this age. These promises would include those who have fallen “asleep in Christ” over the past two thousand years, as well as those saints who will still be living in these earthen vessels at the time of the first resurrection. This is what is promised to those who are granted to partake of that “blessed and holy… first resurrection” (Rev 20:6):

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. 

The word translated ‘rule’ in this verse has much in common with what we read about a Godly ruler in this age, but it is a different word. Here is this Greek word, and here is Strong’s definition of this word:

G4165
ποιμαίνω
poimainō
poy-mah’ee-no
From G4166; to tend as a shepherd (or figuratively superviser): – feed (cattle), rule.

Here are all the entries for this word:

G4165
ποιμαίνω
poimainō
Total KJV Occurrences: 12
feed, 4
Joh_21:16, Act_20:28, 1Pe_5:2, Rev_7:17
rule, 4
Mat_2:6, Rev_2:27, Rev_12:5, Rev_19:15
feeding, 2
Luk_17:7, Jud_1:12
cattle, 1
Luk_17:7
feedeth, 1
1Co_9:7

This word actually appears only eleven times, because the word ‘cattle’ is a double count of ‘feeding cattle’ in Luk 17:7. Of these 11 entries it is 7 times translated as ‘feed, feeding, or feedeth’.

So the word obviously is associated with feeding God’s people. Whether they are converted or not, they are still His, and He feeds them all.

Eze 18:4  Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.

The difference between feeding God’s children at this time and during the millennium is the same as the difference between feeding God’s children for forty years in the wilderness and feeding them at this time. In other words Christ is in the process of gathering His elect under His wings as a hen gathers her chicks at this time, whereas that is contrasted with being ruled with “a rod of iron” during the time of the millennium.

The phrase “a rod of iron” appear four times in the Bible, and three of them are in the book of Revelation:

Psa 2:9  Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel. 

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.

Rev 19:15  And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.

So the feeding of that period of “a thousand years” is for an entirely different purpose than the feeding of God’s flock at this time. The manchild of the woman of Rev 12 is given to rule the nations with a rod of iron, and we are told when that will take place:

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.

The overcomers of Rev 2:27 are the woman’s manchild who will rule with Christ with a rod of iron for a thousand years. The feeding of those who will be living at that time will not produce an overcomer because there will be no ‘wicked one’ to overcome during that period. Read this link for much more on this point:

http://www.iswasandwillbe.com/gods-purpose-for-the-millennium/

Conclusion

To conclude this study, I will again quote what Christ has commanded us to avoid:

Mat 20:25  But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them.
Mat 20:26  But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister;
Mat 20:27  And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant:
Mat 20:28  Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. 

Mat 23:8  But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.
Mat 23:9  And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.
Mat 23:10  Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.
Mat 23:11  But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.
Mat 23:12  And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.

…and Paul’s doctrine accords with Christ’s words:

2Co 1:24  Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand.

Yet we are told by the same Lord:

Luk 10:19  Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.

So there is no contradiction in telling us that we have no dominion over each other’s faith, while at the same time telling us that we are to submit ourselves to our leaders who must render an accounting of how they have been overseers of the Lord’s flock. While we have no dominion over each other’s faith, if we are in Christ, we do have “power… over all the power of the enemy”, and we have power and authority over all of His lying serpents and scorpions, and we are commanded to tread upon those lies, even if they are coming from “any man who is called a brother”, and we are to follow our instructions in Matthew 18:15-18, and cast him and his lies out of our fellowship before his leavening lies leaven the entire body of Christ:

1Co 5:11  But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat. 

When we follow the commandments given 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.
Mat 18:18  Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

…we will not be dominating each other’s faith because “the church” itself as a united and healthy body of one man, “the man Jesus Christ”, and He is dictating what is and what is not Truth, as we are instructed:

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.

If Christ is living His life within us, then we will have His mind and…

1Jn 1:6  If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
1Jn 1:7  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

If indeed we are lying and are not in the Truth, then we have been given power over all the power of the enemy, and the gloves are off. It is incumbent upon every leader in the body of Christ, as the Lord’s angels (messengers), to “tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon”

Psa 91:11  For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
Psa 91:12  They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
Psa 91:13  Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.

If we are Christ’s, then we are also His angels:

Rev 17:1  And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:

Rev 19:10  And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

Rev 22:8  And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things [same angel as the angel of Rev 19:10]
Rev 22:9  Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.

“If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another”, and there will be no desire to attempt to dominate one another’s faith. If ever there is such a desire on the part of any brother, obedience to our instructions in Matthew 18, will purge us of the rebels:

Eze 20:38  And I will purge out from among you the rebels, and them that transgress against me: I will bring them forth out of the country where they sojourn, and they shall not enter into the land of Israel: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

When the rebels are purged we will then “have fellowship with Him”, and we will be “of the same mind” to the extent that we will be able to say with the rest of the body of Christ:

1Jn 4:6  We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.

Video Links

Awesome Hands – part 41

“ The children of Israel were fruitful”

At the end of the book of Genesis, we looked into the meaning of the experience of forty days and forty nights and applied that to our “beginnings” with Christ.

We learned that this process is not exclusive to the children of God, but is inclusive to all of mankind in the Lord’s timing. Judgment simply starts at the house of God.

In this study, we are going to start in the book of Exodus, and Lord willing, we are going to learn much about the process that the Lord is working in all of mankind in His own timing as we leave behind our beginnings and move towards our Exodus from our slave masters.

“The children of Israel were fruitful”

As we left we last study we saw that the Pharaoh, typifying God the Father, gave permission to Joseph to keep his oath to his father Jacob to go and bury Jacob among his father’s.

Of course prior to all of this the same Pharaoh had given Joseph the power of the pharaoh aside form the throne itself.

Gen 41:40 Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou.
Gen 41:41 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt.
Gen 41:42 And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck;
Gen 41:43 And he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee: and he made him ruler over all the land of Egypt.
Gen 41:44 And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I am Pharaoh, and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.

Additionally, Joseph was promised that no man in all the land of Egypt would be given the power to so much as lift his hand or foot up outside of Joseph.

Given that we have covered that Joseph is a type of Christ, then we know that Israel was redeemed and given salvation via what the Father had caused to happen in Joseph’s life.

By extension, all of Israel was given life because even as they did evil in the sight of the Lord, the Lord caused these things to happen because he “meant them for good”.

We actually saw this pattern happen in Genesis, and Exodus is simply going to expound and express this same process as we progress through the book.

Lord willing, we are going to see the workings of the awesome hands of the Lord in our lives. While the word “yad” or hand will nto specifically be mentioned in the first chapter, we will read this chapter today so that we can have the stage set for everything else that follows.

Notice, Joseph i. ee Christ, us told that “only in the throne will the Pharaoh be greater than Joseph”.

With Christ’s ministry, He reflected the same thought in the Spirit.

Joh 14:27 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
Joh 14:28 Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.
Joh 14:29 And now I have told you before it come to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might believe.

Just like Noah building the arc, we too are being built up with the Words that are spoken in the Word of God, and God is building up His spiritual temple so that He can sit on the throne of our hearts.

The arc represents the salvation that is going to be brought to God’s people, a generation that is being separated from those of the rest of the world and is no different than Joseph being used to “save much people alive” except in the quantity of the people being given salvation.

Bringing this thought back into focus as it pertains to Israel, notice what the Lord causes to happen with the children of Israel as they are living in Egypt under the Pharaoh’s rule.

Exo 1:5 And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls: for Joseph was in Egypt already.
Exo 1:6 And Joseph died, and all his brethren, and all that generation.
Exo 1:7 And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.
Exo 1:8 Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.

Likewise, what was Adam before him told?

Gen 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
Gen 1:28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
Gen 1:29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
Gen 1:30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.
Gen 1:31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

What did God tell Noah?

Gen 9:1 And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.
Gen 9:2 And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth, and upon all the fishes of the sea; into your hand are they delivered.
Gen 9:3 Every moving thing that liveth shall be meat for you; even as the green herb have I given you all things.
Gen 9:4 But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat.

Finally, we see a similar command given to Israel (the Father and the people).

Gen 35:10 And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: and he called his name Israel.
Gen 35:11 And God said unto him, I am God Almighty: be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins;
Gen 35:12 And the land which I gave Abraham and Isaac, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed after thee will I give the land.

We are reading a progression in how the Lord is dealing with all of mankind. It first starts with the Head and then moves to the body.

What starts at the Head can be seen in type in the first Adam, in that first God grows us up spiritually speaking, as babes in Christ. We start with the milk of the Word and progress to being able to digest more of the “afflictions of the Christ”.

The first Adam (and Eve) is told to be fruitful and multiply, replenish the earth, subdue it, and the green herb shall be meat for you. Also, have dominion over the fish of the sea, the fowls of the air, and the beasts of the earth.

Then, this type progress’ to Noah in that Noah and his sons are blessed with the same blessing and are told to multiply and replenish the earth, and also the FEAR and DREAD of you shall be upon the beasts, the fowls of the air and the fishes of the sea and in our HAND they are delivered.

Notice, we are given every moving thing that liveth to be meat for us. This includes the BEASTS of the field because in type, the things that happen to seem not so good for our flesh is actually NOURISHMENT for the spiritual new man.

Lastly, Jacob is renamed to Israel and is given the same blessing. Only this time, nations shall be among the fruit and the entire Land will be given to Israel AND those who are “of Israel’s seed”.

With all that in mind, who is Israel and why am I bringing this all up on context of this study on Exodus?

Mat 15:24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.

Luk 15:4 What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it?
Luk 15:5 And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing.

Act 5:31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.
Act 5:32 And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.

“Let us deal wisely with them”

When we are first truly dragged to God the Father in the Spirit, we are first nourished up as babes in Christ, who are given the sincere milk of the Word, but then as we mature we are given to eat herbs and then meat.

After milk, we are only given herbs because it takes a little while to learn to digest things which we are not accustomed to. Then, we are given meat and herbs together. The very beasts we eat also eat the herbs we are allowed to eat.

The “third type of consumption,” however, is going to be the very land itself but there must first come a very grievous Exodus from what we have known prior to this land being given to us.

Joh 6:47 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.
Joh 6:48 I am that bread of life.
Joh 6:49 Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.
Joh 6:50 This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.
Joh 6:51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
Joh 6:52 The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
Joh 6:53 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.

There is going to be a time come in all of mankind’s walk with God (whether in this age or the next), and it starts at the house of God, where God will take the situation and the circumstances He has caused in our lives, so that He will use them to the flip our worlds upside down.

When this happens, it will be the same experience which is befalling God’s called out people who have been CALLED into Egypt. With Egypt, we know that spiritually speaking it is equivalent to Babylon. With Babylon, we are called out of her.

So, when you connect the spiritual concept that Israel is called out of Egypt to make an Exodus, you will see that this is the SAME as God’s chosen people being called out of her so that they can go onto perfection and possess the land.

However, what must happen first?

We are Christ’s flesh and we are washed with His blood and in order to to have LIFE in us, we must eat of this flesh and drink of His blood. In other words, we must partake of the cup He drinks out of.

Joh 6:55 For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
Joh 6:56 He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.
Joh 6:57 As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.
Joh 6:58 This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.

Before you think I need to be shipped off to the looney bin like they Pharisees thought of Christ, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” (Joh 6:52), let’s see how this ties into how God actually makes this come about.

Exo 1:8 Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.
Exo 1:9 And he said unto his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we:
Exo 1:10 Come on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falleth out any war, they join also unto our enemies, and fight against us, and so get them up out of the land.
Exo 1:11 Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses.
Exo 1:12 But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were grieved because of the children of Israel.
Exo 1:13 And the Egyptians made the children of Israel to serve with rigour:
Exo 1:14 And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in morter, and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field: all their service, wherein they made them serve, was with rigour.

Hearkening back to how God has orchestrated this whole scenario, let us look at what He first told Adam.

Gen 3:18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;
Gen 3:19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.

Now we see another king of Egypt, one who doesn’t know Joseph i. e. Christ, who sets taskmasters over the children of Israel to afflict them but as they are afflicted they are more increased and grown up into the people of God.

Act 14:22 Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.
Act 14:23 And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed.

The Lord is building up His people because the Lord knows what is ahead as they are about to be called up and out of Egyptinto the wilderness and the wilderness will not be an easy experience for them.

However, in the “here and now” of what they are experiencing in Egypt at this time, they are made to serve with rigour of which it is easy to conclude that they did not ENJOY it.

This is not different than Joseph having to go through his man trials to get to the thrown. Now, in a different way of expressing this truth, we are shown that God’s people will go through this Exodus process from Egypt to eventually having their Savior placed on the throne of their hearts and minds.

This is the True Bread from Heaven, but it requires drinking of the cup of the wrath of God which is upon all flesh initially.

“The midwives feared God”

Once this union is made between the True bread from heaven and the children of God, there is only one thing that is left to attack by those who are “of the world” or of those who are not of God’s people.

When Christ is on the throne, there will be sons of God born. Not on that, but as those sons fo God grow, there will be fruit which comes about because of this union.

In the letter and on the surface, we are starting to talk about God’s people in Exodus chapter 1 as God works with them while they are being prepared to migrate from Egypt.

In the Spirit and within the kingdom of God, we know that these circumstances are admonishments for us in what God is doing with each and every one of His people.

What He is doing is uniting the bride of Christ with the Groom, and this produces much fruit despite what the world can throw at those who are in Christ and Christ in them.

Gal 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Gal 5:23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Gal 5:24 And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
Gal 5:25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Eph 5:8 For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:
Eph 5:9 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)
Eph 5:10 Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.
Eph 5:11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.

We haven’t arrived at the law of Moses being instituted, but we are building up to it and you’ll notice that the law is setup as a schoolmaster for us initially just like taskmasters are initially setup over us to PRODUCE growth.

Gal 3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
Gal 3:25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.
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.

After we are built up and multiply “in the Spirit”, the Fruit which is produced is the only thing that can possibly be attacked, but even that is futile for the flesh and carnal mind.

Exo 1:15 And the king of Egypt spake to the Hebrew midwives, of which the name of the one was Shiphrah, and the name of the other Puah:
Exo 1:16 And he said, When ye do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women, and see them upon the stools; if it be a son, then ye shall kill him: but if it be a daughter, then she shall live.
Exo 1:17 But the midwives feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the men children alive.
Exo 1:18 And the king of Egypt called for the midwives, and said unto them, Why have ye done this thing, and have saved the men children alive?
Exo 1:19 And the midwives said unto Pharaoh, Because the Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian women; for they are lively, and are delivered ere the midwives come in unto them.
Exo 1:20 Therefore God dealt well with the midwives: and the people multiplied, and waxed very mighty.
Exo 1:21 And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that he made them houses.

The Pharaoh ordered that Shiphrah, which means “fair” or “glisten” and Puah, which means “glitter” or “splendid” to kill the sons of the Hebrews.

However, if you recognize who these midwives are in Spirit, then you will understand why God orchestrated this whole event I order to admonish us by it.

Psa 56:3 What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.
Psa 56:4 In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.

Isa 41:13 For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.
Isa 41:14 Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and thy redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

2Co 7:1 Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Rev 14:7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.

Exo 1:17 But the midwives feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the men children alive.

It is through this very process, that a redeemer is sent to Israel, the people of God. God uses His “midwives” to bring forth the Truth of the Word of God as the pillars in His temple. As such, God BLESSES them with “houses,”…. Houses which are not built with a man’s hands! Amen

Exo 1:22 And Pharaoh charged all his people, saying, Every son that is born ye shall cast into the river, and every daughter ye shall save alive.

There is a King coming to us through this process, just as was told to us by one of those sons “cast into the river” and in type, baptized by the same, a river of water of LIFE and salvation.

Deu 18:15 The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken;

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.

Next study, we will continue to see how a child is born up despite “the ruler of the time” trying to kill him at a young age. This happens to Moses as he was born and this happens to Christ from king Herod as he is born.

However, God has blessed His elect to be able to know that their redeemer lives in His prophets and prophetesses and there is nothing we have to fear of what flesh can do to us.

We should all take great joy in knowing that we are used as “spiritual midwives” in this glorious plan of our Father in Heaven!

Mike,

Is dying to the flesh the same as being crucified with Christ? Through God’s will I am focusing on dying daily to the flesh; most of the lusts keep on bothering my body. My mind and my heart speaks of Christ, but I can’t seem to become what my inner being wants.

Please pray for me.
N____

Hi N____,

You ask if “dying daily, and being crucified with Christ, is one and the same?” The answer is yes, they are. We are crucified with Christ even as we live a life of dying daily.

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 do not even have the faith to be saved. The faith we are given for our salvation is “the faith of the Son of God.”
I identify completely with your quandary and your present situation. The time we spend in our lives while sin dominates us is symbolized by Joseph’s 13 years serving the lords of Egypt. We all live many years in slavery to Egypt, but then the day finally arrives when that which bears rule over us is made to tremble before the sovereign hand of the God of all.

Gen 41:8  And it came to pass in the morning that [ Pharaoh’s] spirit was troubled; and he sent and called for all the magicians of Egypt, and all the wise men thereof: and Pharaoh told them his dream; but there was none that could interpret them unto Pharaoh.

Only then do we make the changes that must be made. Only then do we “shave ourselves and change our clothes” and take our place with Christ upon the throne of all of Egypt.

Gen 41:14  Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon: and he shaved himself, and changed his raiment, and came in unto Pharaoh.
Gen 41:39  And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou [ art]:
Gen 41:40  Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou.
Gen 41:41  And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt.
Gen 41:42  And Pharaoh took off his ring from his hand, and put it upon Joseph’s hand, and arrayed him in vestures of fine linen, and put a gold chain about his neck;
Gen 41:43  And he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had; and they cried before him, Bow the knee: and he made him [ ruler] over all the land of Egypt.
Gen 41:44  And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I [ am] Pharaoh, and without thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt.

At long last we have been granted dominion. We are not rulers until we are ruling. Until that day comes, Potiphar’s wife, Potiphar and the keeper of the prisons of Egypt are our masters, and the most we can hope for is that they will grant us some degree of supervision of our fellow slaves, some degree of self- control.
It is a long hard trial getting to the time of our lives that we are actually ruling over those who have ruled over us, but when that time comes, it takes place in very short order, as if it were overnight. All of a sudden Potiphar’s wife, Potiphar himself, and the keeper of Pharaoh’s prisons, who have dominated our lives for many long agonizing years, are now our subjects, and must now bow before us.

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

As I hope you are aware, we do not get our revenge on Potiphar’s wife, Potiphar or the keeper of the prison. So it is with our flesh. We simply dominate that which once dominated us. Our flesh will be with us until the day we die. That is why we “die daily.”
But when at our own appointed time, we are given dominion over all our Egyptian slave masters, then the very thought of them holding dominion over us will make us nauseous. Wishing for that day does not make it so. We are all slaves until the day we are delivered from our slavery at the time appointed of the Father. At that day He sends His Son to live His life within us and make us to be the rulers of Egypt.
In time even our brothers in Christ, the seed of Abraham who have lived a life of lying to their Father, will come and worship at our feet and be tormented in the presence of the Lamb.

Rev 3:9  Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.
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:

We all endure and live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.

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

So we are all tormented in the presence of the Lamb, as I was and as you are and as Joseph’s brothers were.

Gen 42:8  And Joseph knew his brethren, but they knew not him.
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 42:17  And he put them all together into ward three days.
Gen 42:21  And they said one to another, We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us.
Gen 42:22  And Reuben answered them, saying, Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and ye would not hear? therefore, behold, also his blood is required.
Gen 42:23  And they knew not that Joseph understood them; for he spake unto them by an interpreter.

Every time we commit a sin we are killing our Lord, and “His blood is required” of us. Ever time we commit a sin, knowing we are a slave to our flesh, we are “tormented in the presence of the Lamb”. But it is not for us to decide when we will be delivered from this bondage. That date has been written in His book and will arrive at its appointed time.

Psa 139:16  Thine eyes did see mine unformed substance; And in thy book they were all written, Even the days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was none of them.

I read God’s Word and “resisted the devil” for many years before I realized that I was operating out of my own power, and it was not till I was forced to acknowledge that I didn’t even have the faith to be saved or even the power to choose to sin on my own, that I was finally given dominion over the rulers of Egypt within my own flesh.

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.
Rom 7:17  So now it is no more I that do it, but sin which 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 to do that which is good is not.
Rom 7:19  For the good which I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I practise.
Rom 7:20  But if what I would not, that I do, it is no more I that do it, but sin which dwelleth in me. (ASV)

You and I do not choose of our supposed free wills to sin. We are unwilling slaves to sin within our members, and that sin was placed there by a Potter who created us as “marred vessels ” in His own hand.

Jer 18:4  And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.

The new vessel will be “the Lord from heaven”, and “in due time” He will live within this vessel of clay if we are granted to rule Egypt ahead of the multitudes of our brothers.

Rom 5:6  For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
1Pe 5:6  Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
Gal 4:1  Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant [ Greek, a slave, a slave to sin], though he be lord of all;
Gal 4:2  But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.
Gal 4:3  Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:
Gal 4:4  But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
Gal 4:5  To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.
Gal 4:6  And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
Gal 4:7  Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

I hope this encourages you to wait upon the Lord, as did Joseph, and as we all must. “In due time Christ died for the ungodly” is a promise that you will be delivered at your own appointed time. “The time appointed of the Father” is a promise that Christ will come into you at the time when He is appointed to take the dominion of your flesh. Be patient. That day is as sure as the rising of the Sun, but it is in your patience that you possess your soul.

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

You remain in my prayers.
Your brother in Christ,
Mike

Hi Mike, Sorry about that mis- send last night.  My daughter came into the den to hook up a new router, and I sent instead of saving. 
 I would like to listen to the Bible studies.  What time will you begin them?  I look forward to it. Believing that I am being prepared is a thought I try to keep foremost in my mind.  I know we must go through these trials in order to reign with Christ.  Yesterday morning I was walking around the house thinking I can’t handle much more (I had just found out that I lost my second biggest contract), but I think the Lord disagreed.   Throughout the day, he continually added more and more, mostly little things, but when so much is going wrong, one’s perspective of what’s little and not so little is skewed.  I spoke to Him continuously, not necessarily thanking Him for the trials, but thanking Him for what the trials would accomplish and I found that I could indeed handle more.  He will not stop the trials, but He will give me the strength I need.    One other thing I wanted to mention to you is a very unsettling experience I have had on a number of occasions.  I wonder if you have ever experienced this.  Out of nowhere I remember something that I did or something I said years ago and the memory is as sharp and clear as if it happened yesterday.  It is a startling occurrence.  None of these memories are good, but they are all of things of which I had never repented (mostly because I didn’t remember them).  This is one of the more painful things I have gone through.  For a while, it was like being besieged.  To me, because I believe what we go through is a process, it seems to be a final severing of me from the old me.  That final slaying of the old man who thought he was a god and sat in a throne that never belonged to him.  Then, with heartfelt repentance, the inner turmoil caused by these memories is gone. Anyway, Mike, I appreciate you getting back to me and look forward to your ‘Revelation’ papers. Yours in Christ, J____

Hi J____,
No need to apologize for the “mis- send.” I cannot tell you how many times I have done the same thing. Sometimes I realize what I did and at other times it seems inexplicable. I always remind myself of the fact that God is working everything and then I go on in the assurance of that fact. God really is love, and all things will work to prove that love in His time.

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.

Now concerning your experience of remembering and repenting of past sins, I must confess that I do at times recall what a heel and a beast I have been in the past. This is common to us all. I find myself quoting these verses a lot in the past three years:

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.

“Ye” and “we all” proves that this is common to all mankind “each in his own order.” But just look at what comes next:

Eph 2:4  But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
Eph 2:5  Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
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.

We “are a kind of first fruits” who will be used to show Christ’s kindness to the rest of mankind.” What a gift! I know fully well this does not make the trial any less strenuous, but it certainly does give our trials purpose, and just knowing there is a purpose for suffering is an enormous help when we are enduring the fire of those trials. All things really do work together for good for us all. That is really the very meaning of “calling light out of darkness.”
Go ahead and thank God for the trial itself, and thank Him for His mercy in forgiving you all your past sins. It really is the ones who are forgiven most who love most:

Luk 7:40  And Jesus answering said unto him, Simon, I have somewhat to say unto thee. And he saith, Master, say on.
Luk 7:41  There was a certain creditor which had two debtors: the one owed five hundred pence, and the other fifty.
Luk 7:42  And when they had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?
Luk 7:43  Simon answered and said, I suppose that [ he], to whom he forgave most. And he said unto him, Thou hast rightly judged.
Luk 7:44  And he turned to the woman, and said unto Simon, Seest thou this woman? I entered into thine house, thou gavest me no water for my feet: but she hath washed my feet with tears, and wiped [ them] with the hairs of her head.
Luk 7:45  Thou gavest me no kiss: but this woman since the time I came in hath not ceased to kiss my feet.
Luk 7:46  My head with oil thou didst not anoint: but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment.
Luk 7:47  Wherefore I say unto thee, Her sins, which are many, are forgiven; for she loved much: but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.
Luk 7:48  And he said unto her, Thy sins are forgiven.

The Lord has shown me that we must come to see ourselves as “chief of sinners… guilty of the blood of all the prophets from Abel to Zacharias.” It is only those who do so who even understand the meaning of these words:

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

“Chief of sinners… guilty of the blood of all of the prophets” are words which have proceeded out of the mouth of God. Hard as it is for us to believe, Christ knew that all of this was in His Adamic flesh and blood:

Mat 19:17  (a) And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: 

Anyone who disagrees with this statement can take it up with Christ. These words too, have proceeded out of the mouth of God, and you and I will live every word. “There is none good, no not one.” If the risen Christ is not in us, we will not overcome sin in our lives.
But twice in Eph 2:2-3 Paul uses the phrase “in time past,” showing that we really are, in time, given dominion over sin in our flesh. Nevertheless it is a life- long dying process which continues daily up until the day we die.

1Co 15:31  I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.

So keep the faith. It is the chief of sinners who loves most. When our trials are all said and done, the glory revealed in us will far surpass all of our sufferings.

Rom 8:18  For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

Lest I forget, the bible studies that are broadcast from here are on the first through the fourth Sundays at 3 p. m.  If you go to IWWB, there will be directions on the home page how to do it.  And feel free to ‘stick around’ afterward for a question and answer and fellowship time.  That has proven to be very uplifting to us all as well. Other areas are beginning to broadcast as well.  Last Sunday Steve Crook led a bible study from the Indiana area.
Your brother in Christ,
Mike>

Hello,

First of all let me tell you I love your site.  I am stuck in a nondenominational church.  What do I mean by stuck?  I want out, but my husband doesn’t.  So to keep the peace in our home, I go with him.  There are many things being taught in this church that are totally wrong.

One of the things that concerns me most is the spiritual authority issue.  My pastor teaches that he is the divine authority, and if he doesn’t agree with something, then don’t ask any questions.  He told my husband that he could not go and preach in any other churches without asking him first, and if he says no, then it is no.
They also teach that if the pastor does not have certain spiritual gifts, then you don’t have them either.  It flows from the head down.  So we should pray that he receives the gifts first, then we will be able to receive.

He also does and says a host of other crazy things that I just can’t stand.  I know for a fact that he does not like me because deep down he knows that I know he is wrong!  I don’t kiss up to him, ask his advice or permission, and I know that he thinks that I am just being rebellious.  I hate that there are people in the church (including my husband) that allow this type of control.  They will not do what they know they are called to do because of fear.

Where in the bible does it say that we are under the pastor?  I have never found it.  I thank God that He opened my eyes to the truth.  Please pray along with me for my husband and the others.  God bless you all!  A___

Hi A____,

You are so very right. I feel that God has given me a great blessing in being able to see the Spirit in His Word. But I have no illusions about thinking of myself as being over anyone. This is exactly what Christ warns His followers against:

Mat 20:25  But Jesus called them [His disciples] unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them.
Mat 20:26  But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister;
Mat 20:27  And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant:
Mat 20:28  Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

This verse tells us who is the true spiritual Gentile and who is the true servant of God. This entire “from the top down” doctrine has not one verse in its support. If there were anything to it, then Paul would have had to have consulted with those in Jerusalem before he could have done anything. And he certainly would have been out of line when he corrected Peter at Antioch. But even Paul understood the truth of what Christ taught His disciples in Matthew 20. Here is how Paul debunks the false doctrine of church leaders having physical authority:

2Co 1:24  Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand.

“Not that we have dominion over your faith” means ‘we have not dominion over your faith.’  “It shall not be so among you…” I pray that God will open your husband’s eyes to these and many other scriptures.

In the meantime, you are doing well in submitting to his placing by God as your head. But acknowledging your husband as your head is no different than me acknowledging that God has also placed physical authority in the physical government to which I, too, must submit. Yet none of us are ever told to obey men rather than God. So be careful to submit to your husband in all things, and at the same time remember these words:

Act 5:29  Then Peter and the [other] apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.

There is a time when we are tested to see if we truly put God ahead of every thing in this earth. I pray that God will give you the grace and the wisdom to know when to obey your husband and when to put God and His word first.

Your brother in Christ,
Mike

Hey Mike,
I really enjoy reading everything you write. I recently have been given the eyes to see the things of the spirit, and my brother introduced me to your site. Question: Are all those who are given the ‘eyes to see’ God’s elect? Personally, I don’t think so, but from what I read, although I could be wrong, that is what you imply. Isn’t it possible to know the true meaty doctrines of Christ, but not follow through? I fear that may be me, I cannot seem to overcome any sin lately. Sometimes when I try to share the true Christ doctrines, I seem to have a prideful way of going about it instead of building up others out of love. I don’t know what to do.
Thanks
R____

Hi R____,

Thank you for your question. No, not everyone who is chosen “endures to the end.” It is not enough to be both called and chosen. There is also a third necessary ingredient. We must not only be called and chosen, but we must also be “faithful.”

Rev 17:14 These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful.

Judas was “chosen,” but Judas was not “faithful… to the end.”

Joh 6:70 Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?
Mat 22:8 Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden [ the “many called”] were not worthy.
Mat 22:9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.
Mat 22:10 So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests [ the “few chosen”].
Mat 22:11 And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment [ Judas and all who are chosen but do not “endure to the end”]:
Mat 22:12 And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.
Mat 22:13 Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Mat 22:14 For many are called, but few are chosen.
Mat 10:22 And ye shall be hated of all [ men] for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.

You need to become familiar with the purpose for which both Joseph and the apostle Paul spent thirteen years waiting to be “separated unto the work for which I have called them.”

Act 13:2 As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.

Like Joseph before him, Paul was not given the work he was promised until 13 years after his original calling. There is a very important reason for this. Read especially Rev 16. Be patient, and be faithful to the end.
If, as you say:

I cannot seem to overcome any sin lately.

… then you certainly don’t need to be attempting to force others to do what you can’t; that is, to be faithful to Christ. Wait for God to give to you “the dominion over sin” in your life, then you will be a profitable witness for Christ.

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

This is a process that takes years. In the meantime, you simply “blaspheme the name of God among the heathen” when you try to be a witness based only on new- found knowledge without experiential overcoming and understanding. Be patient. Patience is very important: This is just how important it is:

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

Mike >

I used to go to a Pentecostal church but stopped recently, because I didn’t like how the church was being run – the way they preach the Word of God, the way the people acted, how they treated the un- believers or those who are new in Christ or those weak in faith (social standings), etc., etc. The last time I went to the Pentecostal church was last week. I went there with a friend who was staying with me that day. She is a member of that church. So that explains why I went to their church this past week. I wanted to ask you something about what the preacher at the church preached about that day and to ask you some questions about something else. I think that the preacher was talking about that he has authority over the people at the church or something like that. Also, I think he said that he has the authority to send anyone that is repeatedly disobedient to the Word of God to Satan – I think that was what he said. I think what he meant is that if that person is someone going against the Word of God or anyone that is not of God or something – I am not sure of what he meant – but I think he meant to those unbelievers who are against the Word of God or those who are repeatedly disobedient to the word of God. That he has the authority to send them to Satan. Is that true? I am not sure if any preachers or anyone on this earth have any right to do that. I think he also said he has the right to rebuke anyone in front of the church, to those who are disobedient to the Word of God, and other things. I was bothered by this because I don’t think that anyone has any authority over men – not even preachers. I am not sure if any preachers or anyone on this earth has any right to do that. Please help me with this? I hope you understand what I am trying to say? Please help?

Also, my Pentecostal church believes that a person is required to have the Holy Ghost in order to be saved. Is that true? They said the sign that you have the Holy Ghost is when you speak in tongues. Please help. They also believe in dress code – that women should wear dresses and men should wear pants – that it is more proper. I don’t like to wear dresses – it’s not my style – you know? I can just wear something that is feminine – like wearing nice ladies’ pants, etc. I think the reasons they want to stick to their dress code are because they believe that dresses are for women to wear- and men to wear pants and the other reason is because that is how people identify women and men by their clothing. For instance, bathroom signs – they have two signs to identify women and men – by their clothing! And someone from the church explained that women used to wear dresses till sometime in the 1940’s. So they see men’s pants as a man’s clothing and dresses as a woman’s clothing. Please help. I think somewhere in the New Testament explains that we are not to try to be better than others, and I feel that if I try to do all this – dress code, etc – I may be breaking that spiritual law. Please help.

Thanks for taking your time to read this and write back.

Again, thanks

D____

Hi D____,

I hope I can be of some help. You seem to be interested in what the scriptures say as opposed to what the churches teach, so I will try to show you just what they do say in regards to the questions you ask. I am going to refer you to the articles and letters on my page to answer a couple of the questions you ask.

Here is your first question:

I wanted to ask you something about what the preacher at the church preached about that day and to ask you some questions about something else. I think that the preacher was talking about that he has authority over the people at the church or something like that- Also, I think he said that he has the authority to send any one that is repeatedly disobedient to the Word of God, to Satan- I think that was what he said? I think what he meant is that if that person is someone going against the Word of God or anyone that is not of God or something, I am not sure of what he meant- but I think he meant to those unbelievers who are against the Word of God or those who are repeatedly disobedient to the word of God. That he has the authority to send them to Satan. Is that true?

Let me assure you, neither I nor this minister, nor anyone else, has dominion over your faith. Here are the scriptures:

Mat 20:25 But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them.
Mat 20:26 But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister;
Mat 20:27 And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: Mat 20:28 Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

And again, Paul also makes this same point:

2Co 1:23 Moreover I call God for a record upon my soul, that to spare you I came not as yet unto Corinth.
2Co 1:24 Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand.

Paul tells us that he had no “dominion over your faith.” If Paul had no such dominion, where do today’s ministers believe that they have any such authority? Well, there are a couple of egregious and very harmful mistranslations in the book of Hebrews, that have produced many a Christian dictator, both in the political and the ecclesiastical fields over the centuries. Nothing has changed. It is the same today. The spirit of the Nicolaitans is as alive and healthy right in today’s church as it has been from the first century. To answer this question in depth, I am forced by my own time constraints to ask you to read the papers on my site that answer questions concerning the Nicolaitans. If you use the Google search feature we have on the site, and type in ‘Nicolaitans’, you will see a list of articles that will give answer to your questions on this group whose ways God says He hates. If you can see the truth therein, you will never again be brought under the dominion of anyone other than the one and only head of the church, Jesus Christ Himself.

On the other hand, there is scripture that admonishes a bishop to safeguard his flock from those who have no respect for, or fear of the Words of God as revealed in scripture. The fornicator of the Corinthian church was expelled from fellowship in that congregation “because a little leaven leavens the whole lump”. This is not a matter of a minister having dominion over a flock. It is a matter of God’s Word as shown to the congregation by the bishop, having already condemned fornication in the churches of God. The bishop or minister is simply commissioned to reiterate what the scriptures say in such cases. This then becomes an action taken by the entire congregation to purge itself of the corrupting influence of such shameful behavior. This is an entirely scriptural function of a humble servant minister.

Your next question has to do with the so called ‘gift of unknown tongues.’

Also- My pentecostal church believes that a person are required to have the Holy Ghost, in order to be saved? Is that true? They said the sign that you have the Holy Ghost is when you speak in tongues? Please help?

I deal with this subject in depth in a series of letters in the Tongues section of the letters on the site. These letters will answer any question you may have on this subject. Read these letters. If you still have a question, then get back with me. Click on the above link and check out all these letters on this subject.

Your last question has to do with a dress code in God’s church. I have not written specifically on this subject. It is true that scripture tells us that “it is a shame for a man to have long hair,” and that “if a woman is going to have short hair she might as well be shorn.” It should be obvious from these scriptures that a transvestite is not interested in seeking the mind of God on the subject of how a Christian should appear in public and as a representative of Christ. It is universally declared throughout the writings of the scriptures that those in whom Christ dwells are dying daily to this world and the things that are in it. Those who have Christ in them are never attempting to draw attention to themselves for the purpose of glorifying themselves. It will always be the goal of any who are truly seeking to please their creator, to glorify Christ and be an example of humility and obedience to the words of God. To take these principles of scripture and draw from them exactly how long a woman’s hair must be is not the concern of a minister. To take these principles and say that a woman’s slacks are equal to being a transvestite is absurd. Women’s slacks are both feminine and far more practical and modest than is a dress under certain circumstances. Modesty in dress and in all things is indeed a Biblical principle that has been thrown out the door in many churches desiring to look like the world today. Just because fashion now dictates that all young girls should show as much flesh as human law will allow, is no reason why anyone with the mind of Christ should either dress immodestly, or allow their children to do so. We can neither dictate to one another nor can we pull the wool over the eyes of our Creator. He isn’t even looking on the outward man or woman. He reads our hearts. We should, as his ambassadors, strive to represent Him in all humility both in our relations to one another and in our appearance as those in whom Christ dwells.

I hope this is of some help to you. Let me know if I can be of any further assistance to you.

I will close with two scriptures that I hope bring some balance to this subject:

2Co 10:7 Do ye look on things after the outward appearance? If any man trust to himself that he is Christ’s, let him of himself think this again, that, as he is Christ’s, even so are we Christ’s.

But also be aware of this truth:

Heb 12:6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
Heb 12:7 If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?

May God give you a whole- hearted desire to seek only to please Him.

Mike