"And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD'S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it." Isa 2:2
To further shine more light on what the "New order" of things are for believers in Christ, the prophet Isaiah said some "things" are surely going to happen, that is, come to past. And the prophet also gave the time frame of when these things will come to past -i.e, the time of the Messiah. The prophet said this prophesy is definitely going to unfold or happen in the time of Jesus Christ, "And it shall come to past...". The prophesy as we all know is about the kingdom of God, the kingdom of heaven, and the house of God. So did the prophesy come to past?
"For it is at hand".
Mat 3:1-3 a confirmation of the time of the prophesy of Isaiah says that "In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea, And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight." Even John the Baptist was in the prophesy of Isaiah concerning the last days when the prophesies will come to past. So John the Baptist was a proof of Isa 40:3, establishing the time of "the last days". "Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel." (Mar 1:14-15). When the Baptist was imprisoned, Jesus preached the gospel of the time of the kingdom of God, that the "waiting period" is over. He said people should repent and believe that the time of the kingdom of God on earth making all things new, is now!
At His betrayal, Jesus said the hour is at hand in Mark 14:41-43,"And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise up, let us go; lo, he that betrayeth me is at hand. And immediately, while he yet spake, cometh Judas, one of the twelve, and with him a great multitude with swords and staves, from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders." The scriptures said "while He yet spake, cometh Judas", and He couldn't finish the talk on the time at hand when it came to past.
So now it is for us to read and understand to "see" all that has come to past for us in these last days, since the time of Christ. For Christ knew very well the time of the fulfilment of the prophesies of Isaiah, when He gave us the prayer on the mount, Mat 6:9-10 "After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." ... for it is until the kingdom of God comes before His will can be done perfectly as it's done in heaven. "Are you saying that God's kingdom must first come for His will to be done on earth as it is in heaven?" Yes. His kingdom brings in on the earth the New Order of things. It makes the earth heaven to all those that have access to it. This is what is called " heaven on earth". It is a must to all that believe in the fulfillment of the time prophesied by the prophets of old, to have access into God's kingdom in order to experience heaven on earth today. And if you don't, you must repent and believe the gospel(Mar 1:14-15).
In conclusion, we have to repent and believe the gospel of God, in that He has made all things new. The prophets prophesied all that God will do (and has done through Christ), to make all things new, and Christ and the Baptist came to call all to repentance. The kingdom of God that we are talking about is here right now, making all things new, and it's only if we believe. All God said will happen when His kingdom come in Isaiah 2:2-4,65:17-25 are all fulfilled. We have to believe this gospel and access the kingdom of new beginnings!
Are you seeking for the Truth? Do you know Him that is the Truth (John 14:6)? "And ye shall know the truth, and the Truth shall make you free." John 8:32.
New Heavens and Earth.
For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. (Isa 65:17-18).
God through prophet Isaiah declared in this prophesy concerning Israel, thousands of years ago that "I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind." God said it because He was going to make all things new in and through Christ Jesus, and that when believers realize this, that truly things are different through their renewed mind, all things will become new for them and then none will even remember how bad it used to be. But this is not what is being emphasized and taught in most churches today. Instead, we fight against everything, even prosperity, healing, miracles, signs and wonders, etc. This is so because our understanding and conclusion has always been on "till we get to heaven". Why have we settled for this? Isn't God able to do what He said thousand of years ago? From our understanding of the creation of the heavens and earth in the book of Genesis, we clearly "see" that God did finish all the works of "Creation and Formation", which I recommend you read before continuing.
Re-creation?
God said," I create new heavens and a new Earth..behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy". Many of us today take only a part of the meaning and conclude that this is when the end comes, and not now (i.e, since the Cross). We have concluded over the years that everything God promised in this chapter 65 is to be at the second coming of Christ. But right in verse 20, God said "There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed." Did God say people will still die? and what of sinners He compered with the saints?? Yes He did, and He wasn't talking of "the Day of the Lord", i.e, the Judgement day.And this is why I said we took a part ( i.e, the spiritual aspect) of the meaning and concluded that the remaining part( i.e, the physical aspect) is to come when God re-create everything.
Another point I will like to bring in is the issue of "qualifying" things based on clean/unclean; new/old, and so on. Isn't it God that decree and declare things clean/unclean and new/old? Quoting from Isa 66:23 "And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD." Is it not the same moon that according to the set time by God, that is becoming new every designated season? Things only get renewed at every set time/date ordained by God. So right since the Perfect sacrifice of the Lamb of God, the heavens and the Earth has become new to every believer in Christ Jesus. Our Jerusalem is the new Jerusalem shown to apostle John in Rev 21:1-5;
"And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful." and is this not exactly what Isaiah 65:17-18 saying? Isaiah prophesied before Christ, while John was after Christ.
The New Order.
"But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy." God is saying He has created and made all things new for His children in Christ. And we are to be living in this state of mind for ever. The Price, the Lamb of God has paid with His Blood, for a new beginning that started at the cross forever. But why are we still waiting for the end of everything before things become new for us? Why?! The heavens above us has been made new and the earth we reside also. The devil has forever been defeated absolutely at the Cross! We all have a lot of studying to do to claim all that belong to us in this "New Age" we live in till Christ come again for the final judgement of this world. Our churches need to teach this again and again till all the saints triumph over the works of the devil. The new age is for the saints of God and not the children of the devil. We are already under new heavens, new earth, and a new Jerusalem (i.e, the Holy City).
Are you still in doubt?
The new heavens and earth God promised in the books of Isa 65,66 and Rev 21,22 got completed since the triumph of Christ on the Cross! Believers are now blessed anywhere and everywhere they are according to the blessings in Isa 65:13-25, which we have to decree and confess (i.e, personalized) over our lives, over and over again till they are actualised.
So therefore receive the blessing of the new covenant/age as decreed by God in Isa 65:19-25;
"And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and
God through prophet Isaiah declared in this prophesy concerning Israel, thousands of years ago that "I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind." God said it because He was going to make all things new in and through Christ Jesus, and that when believers realize this, that truly things are different through their renewed mind, all things will become new for them and then none will even remember how bad it used to be. But this is not what is being emphasized and taught in most churches today. Instead, we fight against everything, even prosperity, healing, miracles, signs and wonders, etc. This is so because our understanding and conclusion has always been on "till we get to heaven". Why have we settled for this? Isn't God able to do what He said thousand of years ago? From our understanding of the creation of the heavens and earth in the book of Genesis, we clearly "see" that God did finish all the works of "Creation and Formation", which I recommend you read before continuing.
Re-creation?
God said," I create new heavens and a new Earth..behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy". Many of us today take only a part of the meaning and conclude that this is when the end comes, and not now (i.e, since the Cross). We have concluded over the years that everything God promised in this chapter 65 is to be at the second coming of Christ. But right in verse 20, God said "There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed." Did God say people will still die? and what of sinners He compered with the saints?? Yes He did, and He wasn't talking of "the Day of the Lord", i.e, the Judgement day.And this is why I said we took a part ( i.e, the spiritual aspect) of the meaning and concluded that the remaining part( i.e, the physical aspect) is to come when God re-create everything.
Another point I will like to bring in is the issue of "qualifying" things based on clean/unclean; new/old, and so on. Isn't it God that decree and declare things clean/unclean and new/old? Quoting from Isa 66:23 "And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith the LORD." Is it not the same moon that according to the set time by God, that is becoming new every designated season? Things only get renewed at every set time/date ordained by God. So right since the Perfect sacrifice of the Lamb of God, the heavens and the Earth has become new to every believer in Christ Jesus. Our Jerusalem is the new Jerusalem shown to apostle John in Rev 21:1-5;
"And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful." and is this not exactly what Isaiah 65:17-18 saying? Isaiah prophesied before Christ, while John was after Christ.
The New Order.
"But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy." God is saying He has created and made all things new for His children in Christ. And we are to be living in this state of mind for ever. The Price, the Lamb of God has paid with His Blood, for a new beginning that started at the cross forever. But why are we still waiting for the end of everything before things become new for us? Why?! The heavens above us has been made new and the earth we reside also. The devil has forever been defeated absolutely at the Cross! We all have a lot of studying to do to claim all that belong to us in this "New Age" we live in till Christ come again for the final judgement of this world. Our churches need to teach this again and again till all the saints triumph over the works of the devil. The new age is for the saints of God and not the children of the devil. We are already under new heavens, new earth, and a new Jerusalem (i.e, the Holy City).
Are you still in doubt?
The new heavens and earth God promised in the books of Isa 65,66 and Rev 21,22 got completed since the triumph of Christ on the Cross! Believers are now blessed anywhere and everywhere they are according to the blessings in Isa 65:13-25, which we have to decree and confess (i.e, personalized) over our lives, over and over again till they are actualised.
So therefore receive the blessing of the new covenant/age as decreed by God in Isa 65:19-25;
"And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people: and
- the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her, nor the voice of crying.
- There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath not filled his days: for the child shall die an hundred years old; but the sinner being an hundred years old shall be accursed. And
- they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, and another inhabit; they shall not plant, and another eat: for as the days of a tree are the days of my people, and
- mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands. They shall not labour in vain, nor bring forth for trouble; for they are the seed of the blessed of the LORD, and their offspring with them. And
- it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.
- The wolf and the lamb shall feed together, and the lion shall eat straw like the bullock: and dust shall be the serpent's meat.
- They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain, saith the LORD."
Oneness in Love.
" That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me." (John 17:21-23)
I will strongly recommend you read the whole chapter of John 17 to fully understand what I am about to share. At the very beginning of this beautiful chapter marking the last hour that Christ would be glorified through the death on the cross, He lifted up His eyes to heaven and prayed for the body of believers He is leaving behind. Surely this prayerful chapter would be "loaded up" as expected.
My attention is drawn to the focus of His prayer in this chapter, which is about "Oneness". This chapter therefore speaks solely about being one. From verse 21-23 Christ made mention of this oneness in His request to God before His disciples, and it shouldn't be neglected. The question now is, why is this oneness this important?
The Trinity.
Every bible believing church and believer knows about the Father,Son and Spirit. Our gospel message of John 3:16 isn't a strange one to true believers. And also that the One only God Almighty revealed Himself to us in Trinity, showing and demonstrating eternally, the oneness in the bond of love. I believe God through the Trinity has given us a big clue to what is required of us. God through the Trinity is expecting from us this same bond of love, that is oneness, in order to make us perfectly fit for bonding with God Himself in the Trinity.
All we have been reading about in the scriptures concerning the Great day of the Lord; the wedding feast; and so on; is about the Trinity bonding with the Church forever.
The Bridegroom (i.e, Christ, the Representative of & the Link between God/Trinity and man) is coming back for His bride/Church, and the bride must be made perfectly ready for the Bridegroom. And the only way proposed to us is to bond together in love as a body, the Body of Christ. It is the same gospel of John 3:16; that God gave from Himself a Saviour to make a Way by His blood back to God. And it's also a demonstration of the bond of love in God/the Trinity.
The Church.
They are the Body of Christ represented here on earth. They that believes in His name and message, and are the ones referred to in this chapter as those that have eternal life. " And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." (John 17:3 ). This is "the Bride" being made ready for the marriage of the Lamb(Mat 22 and 25). There is a marriage and it is absolutely necessary that everyone that name the name of Christ be present. This is the "bonding" of God and the redeemed Church. At this wedding feast, God is going to finally bond to the redeemed, who then shall be transformed to look like the glorified Christ!? I mean this Day that Joel 2:16 spoke of will be the Day of making God-like people, that is, sons and daughters of God, 1John 3:1. I mean gods! And will they be able to receive worship? This is a hard saying, but I will say yes. "To be like" is no small thing (1 John 3:2).
Our readiness is what is keeping this Day from being now, and it's never the devil, but us coming together in oneness, in the bond of love, demonstrating that we love God and Whom He has sent. You can click on Loving God to read more on this.
The Ready Church.
This can only happen when we become one as the Body of Christ/Lamb, then we shall all proclaim with the Holy Spirit as in Rev 22:17 " And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." These are the redeemed the Holy Spirit is making ready for the Bridegroom today. Our response to the prayer for oneness in John 17 is what heaven is waiting for to happen. Our readiness is in our bonding as a body worldwide as heaven citizens and not earthly. Clearly Christ said that He is not of this world, and likewise His body for " They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world." ( John 17:16). As heaven citizens, we have been giving this commandment to love one another above anything else on this earth, thereby showing and declaring that we know God and His Christ.
In conclusion, I believe you've seen how critical it is for true believers to stretch far and wide towards other believers and bond in divine love, as demonstrated by the Trinity. The Trinity is already eternally One, and they want to bond with us (i.e, the church) as one, eternally.
This is the making of gods!
"Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not." (1John 3:1), and the only thing keeping many of us from manifesting this sonship status today is oneness in love for each other. [Note: your church is not limited to your chapel building, but part of a bigger and wider church all across the world, with diverse culture. And this shouldn't be a stumbling block to you. Intercessions and interactions among believers from all nations of the world within the church must not be stunted.]
I will strongly recommend you read the whole chapter of John 17 to fully understand what I am about to share. At the very beginning of this beautiful chapter marking the last hour that Christ would be glorified through the death on the cross, He lifted up His eyes to heaven and prayed for the body of believers He is leaving behind. Surely this prayerful chapter would be "loaded up" as expected.
My attention is drawn to the focus of His prayer in this chapter, which is about "Oneness". This chapter therefore speaks solely about being one. From verse 21-23 Christ made mention of this oneness in His request to God before His disciples, and it shouldn't be neglected. The question now is, why is this oneness this important?
The Trinity.
Every bible believing church and believer knows about the Father,Son and Spirit. Our gospel message of John 3:16 isn't a strange one to true believers. And also that the One only God Almighty revealed Himself to us in Trinity, showing and demonstrating eternally, the oneness in the bond of love. I believe God through the Trinity has given us a big clue to what is required of us. God through the Trinity is expecting from us this same bond of love, that is oneness, in order to make us perfectly fit for bonding with God Himself in the Trinity.
All we have been reading about in the scriptures concerning the Great day of the Lord; the wedding feast; and so on; is about the Trinity bonding with the Church forever.
The Bridegroom (i.e, Christ, the Representative of & the Link between God/Trinity and man) is coming back for His bride/Church, and the bride must be made perfectly ready for the Bridegroom. And the only way proposed to us is to bond together in love as a body, the Body of Christ. It is the same gospel of John 3:16; that God gave from Himself a Saviour to make a Way by His blood back to God. And it's also a demonstration of the bond of love in God/the Trinity.
The Church.
They are the Body of Christ represented here on earth. They that believes in His name and message, and are the ones referred to in this chapter as those that have eternal life. " And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." (John 17:3 ). This is "the Bride" being made ready for the marriage of the Lamb(Mat 22 and 25). There is a marriage and it is absolutely necessary that everyone that name the name of Christ be present. This is the "bonding" of God and the redeemed Church. At this wedding feast, God is going to finally bond to the redeemed, who then shall be transformed to look like the glorified Christ!? I mean this Day that Joel 2:16 spoke of will be the Day of making God-like people, that is, sons and daughters of God, 1John 3:1. I mean gods! And will they be able to receive worship? This is a hard saying, but I will say yes. "To be like" is no small thing (1 John 3:2).
Our readiness is what is keeping this Day from being now, and it's never the devil, but us coming together in oneness, in the bond of love, demonstrating that we love God and Whom He has sent. You can click on Loving God to read more on this.
The Ready Church.
This can only happen when we become one as the Body of Christ/Lamb, then we shall all proclaim with the Holy Spirit as in Rev 22:17 " And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." These are the redeemed the Holy Spirit is making ready for the Bridegroom today. Our response to the prayer for oneness in John 17 is what heaven is waiting for to happen. Our readiness is in our bonding as a body worldwide as heaven citizens and not earthly. Clearly Christ said that He is not of this world, and likewise His body for " They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world." ( John 17:16). As heaven citizens, we have been giving this commandment to love one another above anything else on this earth, thereby showing and declaring that we know God and His Christ.
In conclusion, I believe you've seen how critical it is for true believers to stretch far and wide towards other believers and bond in divine love, as demonstrated by the Trinity. The Trinity is already eternally One, and they want to bond with us (i.e, the church) as one, eternally.
This is the making of gods!
"Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not." (1John 3:1), and the only thing keeping many of us from manifesting this sonship status today is oneness in love for each other. [Note: your church is not limited to your chapel building, but part of a bigger and wider church all across the world, with diverse culture. And this shouldn't be a stumbling block to you. Intercessions and interactions among believers from all nations of the world within the church must not be stunted.]
Loving God.
"He that hath My commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth Me: and he that loveth Me shall be loved of My Father, and I will love him, and will manifest Myself to him." ( John 14:21).
As usual this statement of Christ is very loaded. Reading through the whole chapters of John 14,15 & 16 we might have a glimpse of this manifestation Christ is talking of of Himself.But the question before us is on how to love Him:
How do we love Him we can't see? How should we love Him? How do we know we truly love Him? and so on.
In other not to leave us clueless,Christ Himself demonstrated the love He has for the Father Who sent Him. And this is what He said to His disciples when He washed their feet; "For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you." (John 13:15). "I hope Christ didn't really mean it" is what is ringing in the heads of some believers. To do as Christ as done to ourselves!? Do you wonder what many "high-classed" believers are saying ignorantly in their hearts; "that is absurd and beneath me". Many can't even imagine doing that to fellow believers they consider "less humanly intelligent". This is a serious issue in the hearts of some in the church today. They keep "a safe" distance and deliberately clutch unto their bags in the presence of these little humans, pretending that all is well, and it's very coded of course. Let us ask ourselves,Will Christ love this way? And how dare we call him/she whom God had made clean by His own blood,unclean?!
So what example did Christ give of this love?
In our assignment is our commandments, which we must observe to always do accordingly.
The summary of Christ's assignment is in John 3:16, that says that the Father gave Christ is only begotten Son for the world He love so much, to raise-up "a royal lineage of priests and kings" unto God. This we all know that Christ gave His life for till the end(John 13:1). Christ laid down His life for us in demonstration of the love He has for His Father,Who loved the world so very much. The commandments Christ received of the Father is to save as many from the world of death. This was the focus of Christ ministry, and He didn't turn back from all of it's consequences - shame, persecutions, hatred, etc. But you might be asking that are we also given same assignment of Christ? No. But Christ has given to us a different but similar assignment to His.
What is our assignment and commandments?
"This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."(Joh 15:12-13)
As I have said, our assignment defines and clarifies our commandments from God, which is to love ourselves as one big family. To love ourselves, as believers to the point of laying down our lives for each other, in the service of building up ourselves and not bringing down. In helps, time, patience,long suffering, counsel, "washing of feet", etc. This is simply to die to self daily, which is our cross in similarity to that of our Lord Jesus.
Should I love everybody the same?
We should love everyone equally and much more our brethren in Christ, but never forget this: "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." Eph 6:12. We have to be very careful not to be unequally yolked in principle. Their ways and thoughts diver greatly from ours in all things pertaining to God. This are just few of the reasons why we must attract them to us by loving each other as fellow believers as Christ did for us. I intentionally did not go into different love classifications, but love (agape). [ It's all the same agape within the family of believers and in the world(our neighbours, Luke 10:30-37). You preach and win souls for Christ by loving your fellow believers with your life.]
Note that this is just a third part of the statement quoted above in John 14:12, "He that hath My commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth Me:...".
In summary, we have received an assignment from our Lord Jesus, which is similar to His in commandments. Our cross is to die to self daily for the sake of other believers (family members) redeemed by the Blood of Jesus. This thing called love can overcome anything in this world. This is our cross.
As usual this statement of Christ is very loaded. Reading through the whole chapters of John 14,15 & 16 we might have a glimpse of this manifestation Christ is talking of of Himself.But the question before us is on how to love Him:
How do we love Him we can't see? How should we love Him? How do we know we truly love Him? and so on.
In other not to leave us clueless,Christ Himself demonstrated the love He has for the Father Who sent Him. And this is what He said to His disciples when He washed their feet; "For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you." (John 13:15). "I hope Christ didn't really mean it" is what is ringing in the heads of some believers. To do as Christ as done to ourselves!? Do you wonder what many "high-classed" believers are saying ignorantly in their hearts; "that is absurd and beneath me". Many can't even imagine doing that to fellow believers they consider "less humanly intelligent". This is a serious issue in the hearts of some in the church today. They keep "a safe" distance and deliberately clutch unto their bags in the presence of these little humans, pretending that all is well, and it's very coded of course. Let us ask ourselves,Will Christ love this way? And how dare we call him/she whom God had made clean by His own blood,unclean?!
So what example did Christ give of this love?
In our assignment is our commandments, which we must observe to always do accordingly.
The summary of Christ's assignment is in John 3:16, that says that the Father gave Christ is only begotten Son for the world He love so much, to raise-up "a royal lineage of priests and kings" unto God. This we all know that Christ gave His life for till the end(John 13:1). Christ laid down His life for us in demonstration of the love He has for His Father,Who loved the world so very much. The commandments Christ received of the Father is to save as many from the world of death. This was the focus of Christ ministry, and He didn't turn back from all of it's consequences - shame, persecutions, hatred, etc. But you might be asking that are we also given same assignment of Christ? No. But Christ has given to us a different but similar assignment to His.
What is our assignment and commandments?
"This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."(Joh 15:12-13)
As I have said, our assignment defines and clarifies our commandments from God, which is to love ourselves as one big family. To love ourselves, as believers to the point of laying down our lives for each other, in the service of building up ourselves and not bringing down. In helps, time, patience,long suffering, counsel, "washing of feet", etc. This is simply to die to self daily, which is our cross in similarity to that of our Lord Jesus.
Should I love everybody the same?
We should love everyone equally and much more our brethren in Christ, but never forget this: "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." Eph 6:12. We have to be very careful not to be unequally yolked in principle. Their ways and thoughts diver greatly from ours in all things pertaining to God. This are just few of the reasons why we must attract them to us by loving each other as fellow believers as Christ did for us. I intentionally did not go into different love classifications, but love (agape). [ It's all the same agape within the family of believers and in the world(our neighbours, Luke 10:30-37). You preach and win souls for Christ by loving your fellow believers with your life.]
Note that this is just a third part of the statement quoted above in John 14:12, "He that hath My commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth Me:...".
In summary, we have received an assignment from our Lord Jesus, which is similar to His in commandments. Our cross is to die to self daily for the sake of other believers (family members) redeemed by the Blood of Jesus. This thing called love can overcome anything in this world. This is our cross.
All Honour.
"And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing." Rev 5:11-12.
A Fair Deal.
God is a Spirit (John 4:24). Before the creation of all things, He is a Spirit, and still is.
When God decided to create Heaven and Earth, He brought into existence visible/tangible and invisible/intangible things. He created and formed man with a "body". And He made plan for a body( Jesus) for Himself also. (Note: I didn't say He created Jesus). The news of His coming to save and dwell with us in bodily form, has never ceased to be a wonder.The angels of God and men can't even imagine what The Almighty God will look like. For ages we have been saying to ourselves: "You really don't mean it". "Is it possible?". "Oh,what a joy it will be to behold our Creator in Person!"; "How wonderful and glorious it will be to look into His eyes, to touch Him, kiss Him, hold Him,and hear Him speak!".
Now God Himself has come, and we still can't even "understand" even His humility - for He was born in a manger!? And so we are saying, "It can't be God. It's a joke. God hasn't come yet". And we are still waiting for His first coming. Every one that have heard about Jesus today, take Him for a just and extraordinary Man and not the long awaited God. Man for ages past have been having great difficulty in articulating this - that God Who made a Body for Himself was and is in Christ Jesus!
When you read the book of the revelation of Christ Himself, don't you wonder why the whole of heaven worship Him(Christ/Lamb)? Now let us compare what God and the Lamb both received in worship.
........
God - Blessing, Glory, Wisdom, Thanksgiving, Honour, Power, Might ( Rev 7:12).
The Lamb - Power, Riches, Wisdom, Strength, Honour, Glory, Blessing ( Rev 5:12).
God/The Lamb - Blessing, Honour, Glory, Power ( Rev 5:13).
The LORD our God - Salvation, Glory, Honour, Power ( Rev 19:1).
........
We can see that God and The Lamb equally received same in worship. They are both worshipped as one God.
So how much honour should Christ Jesus receive?
Except you just don't want to agree with the scriptures, we shouldn't withhold any from the Lamb. He is worthy to receive all of worship.
Exodus 20:3-5 says: "Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them:..." then we should ask ourselves this question; "why are the host of heaven worshipping the Lamb that was slain? Is this Lamb/Christ Jesus our same God? This is exactly what the scriptures is saying about The only begotten of The Father.
Who's spirit is in you?
Do you honour Christ without restrictions? Or do you fight against those that call Him God in flesh? Are you running past Christ to get to God? This same Christ is the only way to The Father God. I know this is mind-blowing,but search the scriptures yourself and see if Christ is worthy to receive all in our worship of God. So let us give all honour to Whom its due.
We only have one God, Who is Jesus Christ in the flesh. Can you testify that this is true? Let us read other scriptures,
A Fair Deal.
God is a Spirit (John 4:24). Before the creation of all things, He is a Spirit, and still is.
When God decided to create Heaven and Earth, He brought into existence visible/tangible and invisible/intangible things. He created and formed man with a "body". And He made plan for a body( Jesus) for Himself also. (Note: I didn't say He created Jesus). The news of His coming to save and dwell with us in bodily form, has never ceased to be a wonder.The angels of God and men can't even imagine what The Almighty God will look like. For ages we have been saying to ourselves: "You really don't mean it". "Is it possible?". "Oh,what a joy it will be to behold our Creator in Person!"; "How wonderful and glorious it will be to look into His eyes, to touch Him, kiss Him, hold Him,and hear Him speak!".
Now God Himself has come, and we still can't even "understand" even His humility - for He was born in a manger!? And so we are saying, "It can't be God. It's a joke. God hasn't come yet". And we are still waiting for His first coming. Every one that have heard about Jesus today, take Him for a just and extraordinary Man and not the long awaited God. Man for ages past have been having great difficulty in articulating this - that God Who made a Body for Himself was and is in Christ Jesus!
When you read the book of the revelation of Christ Himself, don't you wonder why the whole of heaven worship Him(Christ/Lamb)? Now let us compare what God and the Lamb both received in worship.
........
God - Blessing, Glory, Wisdom, Thanksgiving, Honour, Power, Might ( Rev 7:12).
The Lamb - Power, Riches, Wisdom, Strength, Honour, Glory, Blessing ( Rev 5:12).
God/The Lamb - Blessing, Honour, Glory, Power ( Rev 5:13).
The LORD our God - Salvation, Glory, Honour, Power ( Rev 19:1).
........
We can see that God and The Lamb equally received same in worship. They are both worshipped as one God.
So how much honour should Christ Jesus receive?
Except you just don't want to agree with the scriptures, we shouldn't withhold any from the Lamb. He is worthy to receive all of worship.
Exodus 20:3-5 says: "Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them:..." then we should ask ourselves this question; "why are the host of heaven worshipping the Lamb that was slain? Is this Lamb/Christ Jesus our same God? This is exactly what the scriptures is saying about The only begotten of The Father.
Who's spirit is in you?
Do you honour Christ without restrictions? Or do you fight against those that call Him God in flesh? Are you running past Christ to get to God? This same Christ is the only way to The Father God. I know this is mind-blowing,but search the scriptures yourself and see if Christ is worthy to receive all in our worship of God. So let us give all honour to Whom its due.
We only have one God, Who is Jesus Christ in the flesh. Can you testify that this is true? Let us read other scriptures,
- 1Jn_2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.
- 1Jn_2:22 Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.
- 1Jn_4:3 And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.
- 2Jn_1:7 For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.
The Word of God.
"And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and He that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and His name is called The Word of God." (Rev 19:11-13).
The Word of God is a Person.
First, who do you think fit's this description? From Rev 19:11-13, we see the Person(or Personality) behind the Word of God that we speak. It says The Word of God is Faithful and True.The Word of God is alive and riding on a white horse - judging and making war in Righteousness! This revelation also says that the Word of God is A Person with;
With this picture ever in our minds,we begin to be built up spiritually and physically. Faith then becomes automatic, and whatsoever we bind and loose here on earth is done in heaven(Mat 16:19) because of His Person."And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations:...And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS." (Rev 19:15-16).
This same Word of God we speak and confess through our mouths is a Person that comes "as a sharp sword" that will smite the nations of those that disobey Him. And His rank in the Kingdom of God is the KING of kings, and the LORD of lords! Kings and lords of the earth are subject to Him alone. He is the overall KING and LORD of all. And it is the same Word of God am talking about. The Word of God is the overall KING and LORD of all. If you don't "know" and then do the Word of God, you can't know His power.
His Presence.
I hope you know these scriptures refers to The Lamb of God, whose blood was shed for our sins. John 1:14 says:"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.". The same Words of God we utter in worship,praise,prayers,teachings, and even in witnessing "...the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." (John 6:63). The Words of God that we speak unto people are spirit and a life-giver. So are we very confident in The Word of God, Who is Faithful and True.
So let us therefore,never treat The Word of God with carelessness as many do today. These words represent the Person of the KING and LORD of the kingdom of God. The words of God we speak are not ours but of God and His Christ. Always speak the Words of God with boldness. Whenever we speak of/from the Word of God,we speak and testify of Him,even thou it is Him that is testifying of Himself in and through us.
And if His Words remain in us, He promised never to leave nor forsake us."Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee." Deut 31:6. All we need in our hearts to move around in today's world is The Word of God, for it is the sword of God. Our lives hangs on this simple truth.The Word of God is our daily Our Daily Bread of life we must eat to live, even forever.
The Word of God is a Person.
First, who do you think fit's this description? From Rev 19:11-13, we see the Person(or Personality) behind the Word of God that we speak. It says The Word of God is Faithful and True.The Word of God is alive and riding on a white horse - judging and making war in Righteousness! This revelation also says that the Word of God is A Person with;
- Eyes as a flame of fire,
- with many Crowns on His head, and
- Clothed in a vesture dipped in blood. Do you know Him?
With this picture ever in our minds,we begin to be built up spiritually and physically. Faith then becomes automatic, and whatsoever we bind and loose here on earth is done in heaven(Mat 16:19) because of His Person."And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations:...And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS." (Rev 19:15-16).
This same Word of God we speak and confess through our mouths is a Person that comes "as a sharp sword" that will smite the nations of those that disobey Him. And His rank in the Kingdom of God is the KING of kings, and the LORD of lords! Kings and lords of the earth are subject to Him alone. He is the overall KING and LORD of all. And it is the same Word of God am talking about. The Word of God is the overall KING and LORD of all. If you don't "know" and then do the Word of God, you can't know His power.
His Presence.
I hope you know these scriptures refers to The Lamb of God, whose blood was shed for our sins. John 1:14 says:"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.". The same Words of God we utter in worship,praise,prayers,teachings, and even in witnessing "...the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." (John 6:63). The Words of God that we speak unto people are spirit and a life-giver. So are we very confident in The Word of God, Who is Faithful and True.
So let us therefore,never treat The Word of God with carelessness as many do today. These words represent the Person of the KING and LORD of the kingdom of God. The words of God we speak are not ours but of God and His Christ. Always speak the Words of God with boldness. Whenever we speak of/from the Word of God,we speak and testify of Him,even thou it is Him that is testifying of Himself in and through us.
And if His Words remain in us, He promised never to leave nor forsake us."Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee." Deut 31:6. All we need in our hearts to move around in today's world is The Word of God, for it is the sword of God. Our lives hangs on this simple truth.The Word of God is our daily Our Daily Bread of life we must eat to live, even forever.
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