Eph 520, 4/8/87 5/25/75; 8/6/75; Phil 2/18/76; Rom 3/2/78

DOCTRINE OF THE ROYAL FAMILY OF GOD

A. The Basis for the Royal Family of God.

1. A royal family is the family of a king, here our Lord. 2. Jesus Christ is divine royalty as God.

a. He is a sovereign king as part of the Trinity, possessing all the attributes of divine essence.

b. As the manifest person of the Trinity, our Lord wears the crown of divine royalty. He is the only person of the Trinity ever seen, as taught in Jn 1:18, 6:46; 1 Tim 6:16; 1 Jn 4:12.

c. His royal title is “Son of God.” The members of His royal family are God the Father and God the Holy Spirit with whom he has eternal and infinite coexistence.

3. Because of the virgin birth, our Lord was born Jewish royalty.

a. The virgin birth introduced the humanity of Christ into the world, at which point Jesus Christ became Jewish royalty.

b. He is descended from lines of two of the sons of David by Bathsheba. The line of royal descent from Solomon ends with Joseph (not the real father of our Lord), listed in Matthew. The line of royal descent from Nathan, given in Luke, comes down to Mary, our Lord’s real mother.

c. His royal title is “Son of David,” and His royal family is the dynasty of David. As Jewish royalty, our Lord fulfills the Davidic covenant at the Second Advent.

4. As a result of our Lord’s resurrection, ascension and session in Hypostatic Union, our Lord received His third royal patent. By virtue of His strategic victory in the great power experiment of the Hypostatic Union, our Lord received His battlefield royalty as the strategic victor in the angelic conflict.

a. By the humanity of Christ remaining inside the prototype divine dynasphere, He remained impeccable, which qualified Him to go to the cross and be judged for our sins.

b. As a result of His saving work on the cross, our Lord became the winner in the great power experiment of the Hypostatic Union.

c. His victory was confirmed by His resurrection, ascension, and session at the right hand of the Father, where He received His third royal patent: “King of kings, Lord of lords, the Bright Morning Star.” The “many crowns” of Rev 19:12 refers to this third warrant. Rev 19:16, “He has a royal title written on His robe, `King of kings and Lord of lords.’”

d. When our Lord received His third royal patent, He had no royal family to accompany it. A third royal family therefore had to be formed. Therefore, God the Father interrupted the dispensation of Israel and inserted the Church Age for the calling out (formation, election) of a royal family to accompany our Lord’s third royal title.

e. The mechanics for the formation of this royal family is the baptism of the Spirit, begun on the Day of Pentecost, which enters all believers of the Church Age into union with Christ.

f. Some results of the baptism of the Holy Spirit is the new spiritual species for the use of maximum divine power available, the creation of a royal family to complement our Lord’s strategic victory, and the provision of equal privilege in that royal family for the execution of the protocol plan of God.

g. When the royal family is completed, it will be resurrected, as per the Rapture of the Church.

B. Definition and Description of the Royal Family of God.

1. The royal family of God is defined as every Church Age believer, regardless of his antecedence, background, race, classification, etc. All distinctions are erased at the point of salvation and reconciliation.

2. Whatever we were before, we are now royal family of God. This is a permanent royalty that will last forever. Our royalty is eternal and secure since it is related to our regeneration. This means all Church Age believers are in full time royal service for Christ as royal priests and royal ambassadors.

3. Under the computer assets of election and predestination, every member of the royal family of God has equal privilege and equal opportunity for the execution of God’s plan, will, and purpose for his life.

a. Under election, every believer has the equal privilege of his royal priesthood, and the equal opportunity of logistical grace support.

b. Under predestination, every believer has the equal privilege in Christ by means of the baptism of the Spirit, and equal opportunity from life inside the divine dynasphere. 4. There are seven results of the baptism of the Spirit.

a. Extension of the great power experiment of the Hypostatic Union into the Church Age.

b. Creation of a new spiritual species to use divine power.

c. Election of the royal family of God.

d. Positional sanctification.

e. Every believer is the heir of God and joint-heir with Jesus Christ.

f. Eternal security.

g. Equal privilege under predestination.

5. The nomenclature for the royal family of God is:

a. “Church,” emphasizing the function of the royal family of God during this dispensation.

b. “Body of Christ,” emphasizing the utilization of the same divine omnipotence used to sustain the humanity of Christ during the great power experiment of the Hypostatic Union.

c. “Bride of Christ,” emphasizing the royal family of God after resurrection.

d. “Temple,” Eph 1:20.

6. The time of the royal family of God is the Church Age, which is the dispensation of intercalation, inserting a historical period for these reasons.

a. The extension of the great power experiment of the Hypostatic Union.

b. The necessity for the formation of a royal family of God to complement our Lord’s third royal patent.

c. To provide a rebuttal argument against Satan in the historic appeal trial of the angelic conflict.

d. To provide an invisible impact on human history, unique to the Church Age. As goes the Church Age believer, so goes human history; this phenomenon is true only during the Church Age.

7. The Church Age is the only dispensation having both a royal family of God and a new spiritual species.

8. The plan for the royal family of God is not the ritual plan of the dispensation of Israel. That has been superseded by the protocol plan of God which calls for maximum utilization of divine power by the royal family of God.

a. The protocol plan of God is related to an unprecedented provision in human history: the indwelling of all three members of the Trinity, making our bodies a temple.

b. The protocol plan of God provides the believer with two royal commissions.

(1) The royal priesthood by which we represent ourselves before God.

(2) The royal ambassadorship by which we represent God to all mankind.

c. The protocol plan of God has three categories of spiritual adulthood.

(1) Spiritual self-esteem at gate #5 of the divine dynasphere.

(2) Spiritual autonomy at gate #6 of the divine dynasphere.

(3) Spiritual maturity at gate #8 of the divine dynasphere.

d. The protocol plan of God has three unique systems of suffering for blessing that have never existed before. The Church Age believer can actually suffer for blessing in spiritual adulthood, having happiness and being able to attach full meaning to that suffering.

(1) Providential preventative suffering for spiritual self- esteem.

(2) Momentum testing for spiritual autonomy.

(3) Evidence testing for spiritual maturity.

e. The protocol plan of God has ten unique problem solving devices: rebound, filling of the Holy Spirit, faith-rest drill, grace orientation, doctrinal orientation, personal love for God, impersonal love for all mankind, +H or sharing the happiness of God, a personal sense of destiny, and occupation with Christ.

9. Both winners and losers as believers have eternal security.

10. The assets of the royal family of God are contained in our portfolio of invisible assets which God the Father prepared for each of us in eternity past. These assets include escrow blessings for time and eternity, and many more.

11. The objectives (to glorify God) of the royal family of God:

a. To advance to gate #8, spiritual maturity, inside the divine dynasphere.

b. To receive the conveyance of escrow blessings for time.

c. To pass evidence testing.

d. To receive the conveyance of our escrow blessings for the eternal state.

e. All these are summed up in “to glorify God.” All the other priorities in your life are really not important.

12. The Scriptural declaration of our royalty is found in 1 Pet 2:9, “But you are an elect race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, that you may proclaim the virtues of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”

C. The Setting of the Royal Family.

1. The First Advent of Christ occurred in the dispensation of Israel. This includes Christ’s death, burial, resurrection, ascension, and session.

2. Ten days after the session, the Age of Israel was interrupted in order to insert a new dispensation into history for the purpose of calling out a royal family.

3. Jesus Christ was royalty by birth, by deity, and by His spiritual victory on the Cross.

4. The spiritual royalty of Christ occurred as a result of His spiritual victory over Satan on the cross and His acceptance by God the Father at the session.

5. Being seated at the right hand of the Father, he has a new title, “King of kings, and Lord of lords.” Therefore, as the God-man, He is a new type of royalty: superior, permanent and spiritual royalty. Thus He must have a royal family to share His reign.

6. The Age of Israel had to be interrupted in order to introduce a dispensation in which the specific objective is to form a royal family for Christ. “The Church” and “the body of Christ” are synonyms for the royal family.

D. The Documentation for the Royal Family. Documentation is found in the entire books of Ephesians, Hebrews, Romans, and Colossians.

1. Ephesians emphasizes the position of the royal family forever.

2. Hebrews emphasizes the priesthood of the royal family forever.

3. Romans emphasizes the objectives of the royal family.

4. Colossians emphasizes the lifestyle of the royal family.

E. The Formation of the Royal Family.

1. The royal family is formed by the baptism of the Holy Spirit at salvation.

2. This is the work of God the Holy Spirit which began at Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost to the eleven disciples and about 200 others. The Holy Spirit entered these believers into union with Christ.

3. Everyone celebrated by using some temporary spiritual gift such as healing, miracles, or tongues. But these gifts all ended with the completion of the Canon.

4. At salvation, the Holy Spirit enters us into union with Christ which makes us royal family. The baptism of the Spirit is identification with Christ as royalty, Jn 14:20; Acts 1:5, 2:3, 11:15-17; 1 Cor 12:13; Gal 3:26-28; Col 2:12.

5. The result of the baptism of the Spirit is positional truth. Positional truth means the believer is positionally with Christ at the right hand of the Father. We are accepted positionally as royalty just as Christ is accepted in fact as royalty. We share all that Christ is and has as royalty in union with Him.

6. Positional truth belongs to all believers regardless of their spiritual status or maturity level. All Church Age believers are royalty no matter how evil or sinful they might be.

7. Because the baptism of the Spirit is not an experience, our royal status is not seen or felt in any experiential way. It only becomes manifest to others when we reach spiritual maturity and manifest the character of Christ.

8. Because the baptism of the Spirit is a sovereign work of God, our royalty is not progressive. We cannot improve it by anything we do. Therefore our royalty is not related to our human ability, our good deeds, or any other human approbation system or works.

9. Since God is eternal, all that He does is eternal in nature. And since positional truth or the baptism of the Spirit is a work of God, it is also eternal in nature. Therefore since we become royalty by the work of God, our royalty is eternal in nature. There is nothing we can say or do to become “non-royalty."

10. Realization of our royal status can only occur through the daily metabolization of doctrine.

F. The Royal Family Relationship.

1. The spiritual royalty of Jesus Christ is unique. He is spiritual royalty at the right hand of God.

2. As the victor of the angelic conflict, Jesus Christ in Hypostatic Union was alone at the right hand of the Father. Therefore the Father interrupted the Jewish Age to insert the Church Age, the dispensation of the calling out of the royal family for Christ.

3. The royal family on earth is called “the body of Christ” and in heaven is called the “bride of Christ.”

4. After the Rapture of the Church, the royal family is prepared in heaven as the bride during the Tribulation, and then returns with Christ at the Second Advent as His bride.

5. The Church Age will only last as long as it takes to complete the royal family.

G. The Escutcheon of the Royal Family: the Indwelling of the Spirit.

1. The Spirit indwells us as a sign of royalty, 1 Cor 6:19-20.

2. The Holy Spirit also indwells the believer’s body (so that we can never be demon possessed) to provide a temple for the indwelling of Christ.

3. When we sin, we are still indwelt with the Spirit. Therefore we are still royal family even though out of fellowship.

4. As long as you are indwelt by the Holy Spirit you are royalty. You are indwelt forever, therefore are royalty forever.

H. The Security of the Royal Family.

1. Our security as royalty is based on the sealing ministry of the Holy Spirit. We are sealed by God Holy Spirit at salvation. This is a guarantee of our status as members of the royal family of God forever.

2. Our security is also based the character of God. God is perfect. His plan is perfect. There is no sin or evil we can commit that is greater than the grace of God.

3. God the Holy Spirit has put His seal on us. We are “sealed until the day of redemption,” i.e., the Rapture.

I. The Objective of the Royal Family on Earth.

1. The first objective of the believer is to take in doctrine on a consistent basis until he begins to have a personal love for God. This develops spiritual self-esteem.

2. Next, the believer must continue to grow spiritually by the intake of doctrine until he has developed spiritual autonomy, the virtue of impersonal love toward other members of the human race.

3. Then he must pass the momentum tests: people testing, thought testing, system testing and disaster testing.

4. Finally he must reach spiritual maturity, where he is blessed by undergoing evidence testing, thus becoming a witness against Satan.

5. At maturity, we receive our blessings which were deposited in escrow in Christ in eternity past (Eph 1:3-14). These blessings glorify God to the maximum. Then God may test us concerning these blessings as evidence against Satan. This is the objective of the royal family while on earth.

J. The Royal Family in Eternity.

1. After the Rapture, every member of the royal family will possess a resurrection body exactly like our Lord’s .It will be minus the old sin nature, human good, and evil.

2. Then the royal family will be evaluated at the Judgment Seat of Christ with regard to their attitude toward Bible doctrine and their advance to maturity. Members of the royal family who reach maturity will have great rewards for all eternity and will be blessed to a greater extent than those believers who failed in time. These eternal rewards will glorify God for all eternity. There is no equality in heaven.

3. Next the royal family will return with Christ at the Second Advent to observe His victory against Satan and all the fallen angels in the Armageddon campaign.

4. Finally the mature believers of the royal family will rule with Christ during His millennial reign and then throughout all eternity.

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