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Not all of the doctrines have been harvested yet (915 pages so far). Sometimes a doctrine is taken from NB1, but not NB2 (and vice versa). Sometimes only one doctrine of several has been taken from one of the notebooks. However, most of the doctrines were taken from both notebooks. There are many doctrines which need to still be added to this collection. I should be able to check through some of these and figure out where that has happened.

A. Introduction. In this dispensation only, God has provided forty things for the believer at the moment of faith in Christ. These are grace gifts from God at salvation. You receive these forty things at the very moment of salvation before you have had a chance to do anything! Therefore, you obviously receive these things by grace; you don’t earn or deserve them.

1. The omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit makes the Gospel perspicuous in common grace. Then we receive the divine call, the divine invitation by God the Father to believe in Jesus Christ. When we believe in Jesus Christ, the ministry of God the Holy Spirit makes our faith effective for salvation. Ephesians 1:13, “In whom also, when you heard the message of truth, the Gospel of your salvation [common grace]; in whom also, when you believed [efficacious grace], you were sealed by means of the Holy Spirit.”

2. So the first thing given to you at the moment of salvation was the fact that the Holy Spirit made your faith in Jesus Christ valid.

1. The Holy Spirit gave a signature guarantee at the very moment you believed in Jesus Christ. Sealing is the signature guarantee of God the Holy Spirit. He guarantees four things: His ministry in common and efficacious grace, eternal salvation, eternal security, your portfolio of invisible assets.

2. Since the sealing ministry of the Holy Spirit is a guarantee of other things, it is considered a separate ministry from efficacious grace.

3. It is documented in Ephesians 1:13, “In whom also, when you heard the message of truth, the Gospel of your salvation [common grace]; in whom also, when you believed [efficacious grace], you were sealed by means of the Holy Spirit.” Ephesians 4:20; 2Corinthians 1:22, “Who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our right lobes as the guarantee.”

1. At the moment we believe in Christ, we receive an inheritance which is eternal. We become the heirs of God. We can’t earn or deserve it.

2. Ephesians 1:14, “Who is the guarantee of our inheritance for the release of your assets for the praise of His glory.” Ephesians 1:18; Romans 8:17; Galatians 3:29, 4:6-7; Ephesians 3:6; 1Peter 1:4, 3:7; Hebrews 9:15.

3. 1Peter 1:4, “We have an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled, that fades not away, reserved in heaven for those who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time.”

4. Hebrews 9:15, “And for this reason, He is the mediator of a new covenant, in order that since a death has taken place for the redemption of the transgressions [committed under the first covenant], those who have been called [divine invitation] may receive the promise of eternal inheritance.”

1. Regeneration is the ministry of God the Holy Spirit at the moment of salvation whereby He creates a human spirit for the purpose of the imputation of eternal life.

2. At the moment of physical birth, we receive the imputation of human life to our soul. But at the moment we believe in Jesus Christ, God the Holy Spirit creates a human spirit to which God the Father imputes eternal life. Just as we have soul life forever, we have eternal life forever.

3. This is what it means to be “born again.” It is not a physical birth, like Nicodemus thought (Jn 3). It is a spiritual birth accomplished by the Holy Spirit. We did not earn it or deserve it or do anything for it.

4. Once we receive a human spirit, we become trichotomous having a body, a soul, and a human spirit.

1. If you’re going to live with God forever, you must have the life of God, which is eternal life. At the moment of faith in Jesus Christ, God the Father imputes eternal life to our human spirit.

3. Eternal life is imputed to us forever. We don’t earn or deserve it. The unbeliever has soul life, which is everlasting life, in the lake of fire forever. But spirit life is eternal. Eternal life is living in the presence of God forever. Everlasting life is living in the lake of fire forever.

1. If you are going to live with forever, you must be as good as God is; therefore you must have the righteousness of God.

2. This is documented in Romans 3:22; 1Corinthians 1:30; 2Corinthians 5:21; Philippians 3:9.

3. Romans 3:22, “Even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe.”

4. 2Corinthians 5:21, “He who knew no sin was made sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.”

1. With the righteousness of God imputed, we are justified, Romans 3:28, 4:1-5, 25, 5:1-2, 9, 8:30; Galatians 2:16, Titus 3:7.

2. Galatians 2:16, “Nevertheless, knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no person will be justified.”

3. Romans 3:28, “For we maintain that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law.”

4. Titus 3:7, “That being justified by His grace, we might be made heirs on the basis of the confidence of eternal life.”

1. Reconciliation is the work of Jesus Christ on the cross that removes the barrier between God and man.

2. Therefore, with the barrier removed, our faith in Jesus Christ causes us to simply step over the line into eternal salvation. We were reconciled to God at the moment we believed in Christ.

3. 2Corinthians 5:19, “Namely that God, by means of Christ, reconciled the world to Himself by not imputing their sins to them.”

4. Romans 5:10, “For if, while we were enemies [spiritual death], we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more now being reconciled, we shall be delivered by His life.”

5. Colossians 1:20, “And through Him [JC] to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of the cross.”

6. Reconciliation is ratified at the moment of faith in Christ. Colossians 1:22, “Yet He has now reconciled you in the body of His flesh through death [substitutionary spiritual death], in order to present you before Him holy, blameless, and beyond reproach.”

1. While reconciliation is directed toward mankind, propitiation is directed toward God.

2. Propitiation means that God the Father is satisfied with the work of Jesus Christ on the cross. God the Father is only satisfied with one person in history: Jesus Christ, because He remained impeccable throughout the thirty-three years of his life and while bearing our sins on the cross.

3. When we believe in Jesus Christ, we are the beneficiaries of that propitiation. Since God the Father is satisfied with the work of Christ on the cross, and since we believe in Christ who performed it, therefore God the Father is satisfied with us as individuals positionally.

5. Romans 3:24-25, “Being justified as a gift by His grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus; whom God the Father has publicly displayed by His blood as the mercy seat through faith in Christ for a demonstration of His integrity, because of the passing over of previously committed sins, because of the clemency of God.”

a. The blood was sprinkled twice on the mercy seat on the Day of Atonement, once for the priest and once for the people.

b. The mercy seat was constructed of wood and gold. Inside were three items that spoke of the sins of Israel. On each side was a gold cherub: one represented the righteousness of God; one represented the justice of God.

c. When the high priest came into the Holy of Holies twice on the Day of Atonement, he sprinkled blood over the top of the ark or mercy seat. That blood represented the saving work of Christ on the cross.

d. The righteousness of God looked down and was satisfied because Jesus Christ was perfect in His humanity. The justice of God judged those sins, and God the Father was satisfied with His own judgment.

6. Therefore, propitiation means that God the Father is satisfied with one offering only, the efficacious offering of our Lord Jesus Christ.

1. Unlimited atonement means that Jesus Christ was judged on the cross for all personal sins in the history of the human race, from the first sin of Adam to the last sin committed in the Millennium.

2. Unlimited atonement means that salvation is open to anyone who will believe in Christ. Only those who believe in Christ become the beneficiaries of unlimited atonement.

3. This is documented in 2Corinthians 5:14-15, 19; 1Timothy 2:6, 4:10; Titus 2:11; Hebrews 2:9; 2Peter 2:1; 1John 2:2.

1. Redemption views salvation from the standpoint of our being in a slave market of sin. We are born into the slave market of sin. Jesus Christ paid for our freedom by His substitutionary spiritual death on the cross.

2. Therefore, redemption means that at the moment of our salvation, we are freed from the slave market of sin. We have now been liberated from slavery to Satan and to the old sin nature.

3. While reconciliation is directed toward man and propitiation is directed toward God, unlimited atonement and redemption are directed toward sin.

4. This is documented in Galatians 3:13; Ephesians 1:7; Titus 2:14; 1Peter 1:18-19.

1. At the moment of personal faith in Jesus Christ, God the Holy Spirit takes every new believer and enters him into union with Christ.

3. 1Corinthians 12:13, “By means of one Spirit, we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks [Gentiles], slaves or free, and we were all made to drink into one Spirit.” 4. Galatians 3:26-27, “You are the sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile [no racial distinctions in Christ]; there is neither slave nor free [no social distinctions in Christ]; there is neither male nor female [no sexual discrimination], and we are all one in Christ.”

a. The new racial species of the Jew began when Abraham was circumcised at age 99.

b. The Church Age believer, at the moment of faith in Christ, becomes a new spiritual species. This is never true in any other dispensation.

3. 2Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new spiritual species. The old things have lost their power; behold, new things have come [ten unique factors of the Church Age].”

4. Galatians 6:15, “For neither is circumcision anything, nor uncircumcision; but a new spiritual species.”

a. Our Lord’s first royal patent is divine royalty as God, John 1:18, 6:46; 1Timothy 6:16; 1John 4:12; Romans 1:4. These passages indicate He is the revealed member of the Godhead. His royal family is God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. His royal title is Son of God, Romans 1:3.

b. Our Lord’s second royal patent is His human royalty, which began at his birth. His title is Son of David. His royal family is the dynasty of David.

c. Our Lord’s third royal patent is the victory of the great power experiment of the Hypostatic Union, 1Timothy 6:15, 1:17; Revelation 17:14, 19:16. His royal title is King of kings and Lord of lords. When God the Father said to God the Son after His ascension, “Sit down at My right hand, and I will make Your enemies Your footstool,” He was speaking to the humanity of Christ, and at that point gave Him His third royal patent. However, our Lord had no royal family. Therefore, the Church Age was inserted into history for the purpose of calling out a royal family of God.

4. Royalty should conduct itself in a certain way, i.e., according to the protocol plan of God. The sooner you learn to function as royalty, the better. We must learn grace and how to function graciously; we do not come by it naturally.

5. Ephesians 1:5, “By means of virtue-love, He has predestined us for the purpose of adoption to Himself through Jesus Christ on the basis of the grace purpose of His will.”

a. In the Roman custom, adoption was the means by which a Roman aristocrat would select someone, often someone other than his own son, to become his heir.

b. Likewise, we are royal family by adoption, not by birth. Since adoption took place at the new birth, we’re royal family by new birth.

1. There is only one thing in life that makes all people equal, and that is what God does for each believer at the moment he believes in Christ.

2. At the moment of our salvation, we are given equal privilege and equal opportunity.

3. The computer asset of election is the expression of the sovereign will of God for the Church Age believer. Equal privilege is provided in the royal priesthood; equal opportunity is provided in logistical grace.

4. The computer asset of predestination is the provision of the sovereign will of God for the Church Age believer. Equal privilege is provided in positional sanctification; equal opportunity is provided in the operational-type divine dynasphere.

a. Positional sanctification is union with the person of Jesus Christ at the moment of salvation.

c. Ultimate sanctification refers to when we receive our resurrection bodies at the Rapture.

2. Positional sanctification makes every believer in union with Christ positionally higher than angels, Hebrews 1-2.

3. Positional sanctification removes all the barriers related to arrogance, prejudice, antagonism, and discrimination. Positional sanctification removes: racial prejudice, cultural differences, social distinctions, personal antagonisms, economic barriers, ideological differences, sexual discrimination, environmental subjectivity, pre- salvation religious prejudice.

1. Only in this dispensation is every believer appointed a priest at the moment of salvation, 1Peter 1:5,9; Revelation 1:6, 5:10, 20:6.

1. At the moment of salvation, each one of us is appointed a royal ambassador. This is unique to the Church Age.

2. 2Corinthians 5:20, “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making His appeal through us. We invite you, on behalf of Christ, become reconciled to God.”

3. Since you are an ambassador, a part of your responsibility is witnessing for Jesus Christ. It is your responsibility to make the issue clear, for God the Holy Spirit is the sovereign executive of personal witnessing.

1. At the moment of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, God the Father indwells every Church Age believer, John 14:23; Ephesians 4:6; 2John 9.

a. It is related to the glorification of His protocol plan, Ephesians 1:3, 6, 12.

1. At the moment of salvation, God the Son comes to indwell the body of every believer; this is unique to the Church Age, John 14:20, 17:22-23; Romans 8:10; 2Corinthians 13:5; Galatians 2:20; Colossians 1:27; 1John 2:24.

b. As the Shekinah Glory, His residence in us guarantees our portfolio of invisible assets.

c. As the depositary and escrow officer, Jesus Christ’s indwelling is the guarantee of the irrevocability of our escrow blessings for time and eternity.

e. It is the basis for assigning #1 priority to Bible doctrine under the principle of occupation with the person of Christ.

1. At the moment of salvation, the Holy Spirit indwells the body of the Church Age believer, Romans 8:11; 1Corinthians 3:16, 6:19-20; 2Corinthians 6:16.

a. To provide a temple for the indwelling of Jesus Christ as the Shekinah Glory.

b. To provide a base of operations for the utilization of His omnipotence in the execution of the protocol plan of God inside the divine dynasphere. Gate #1 of the divine dynasphere is the filling of the Spirit.

1. At the moment of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, we have three categories of divine power available. This is an unprecedented extension to every believer. Available to us is:

a. The omnipotence of God the Father related to our portfolio of invisible assets.

b. The omnipotence of God the Son related to the preservation of the universe and the perpetuation of human history.

c. The omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit providing the enabling power for the perception of Bible doctrine, and related to the divine dynasphere, the power base for executing the protocol plan of God.

2. The fact that this divine power is available at salvation does not imply that most believers today ever utilize this power. In fact, most believers are powerless and useless through ignorance of Bible doctrine.

Z. The Unique Protocol Plan of God. We enter this protocol plan at the moment of faith in Christ.

1. This occurs for the first time at the moment of salvation through faith in Christ.

2. At the moment we believe in Christ, God the Holy Spirit picks us up and enters us into gate #1 of the divine dynasphere, the filling of the Spirit.

3. The first time the believer sins, he is outside the divine dynasphere. He can only recover through the use of the rebound technique.

1. At the moment you believe in Christ, God the Holy Spirit provides for you at least one spiritual gift.

2. The initial distribution of spiritual gifts in the first generation of the Church Age was made by God the Son, Ephesians 4:7-11.

3. Subsequently, God the Holy Spirit provides the spiritual gifts, based on His sovereign decision. Never complain about your spiritual gift; it is based on the wise decision of God the Holy Spirit.

1. At the moment of your salvation, all judgment is removed. You are never again subject to the Last Judgment or the lake of fire.

2. John 3:18, “He who believes on Him is not judged, but he who does not believe is judged already because he has not believed in the unique person of Jesus Christ.”

3. Romans 8:1, “There is, therefore, now no judgment to those who are in Christ Jesus.” Hebrews 9:27-28.

4. The believer is no longer subject to the Great White Throne Judgment and the lake of fire, due to one simple act of faith in Jesus Christ.

1. At the moment you believe in Christ, you are delivered from the authority of darkness. Colossians 1:13a, “For He delivered us from the authority of darkness.”

2. At the moment we believe in Christ, salvation removes us from cosmic involvement. All unbelievers are in the cosmic system under spiritual death and the control of the old sin nature.

3. For some who are demon possessed, salvation through faith in Christ removes demon possession. For others who are demon influenced, salvation through faith in Christ removes demon influence.

1. At the moment of our salvation, we are transferred into the kingdom of God. Colossians 1:13b, “And He transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.”

2. Therefore, everything that happened to us before salvation that could be a handicap in our lives has been eliminated. This includes whatever we were and however we failed.

3. Therefore, the only way that anything that happened to you before salvation can be a handicap is if you make it so by ignorance of Bible doctrine and ignorance of God’s policy of grace.

FF. We are a gift from God the Father to God the Son. We are a gift in that we are formed as the royal family of God, John 10:29, 17:2, 6, 9, 11.

1. This concept is found in Romans 2:29; Philippians 3:3; Colossians 2:11; Ephesians 4:22ff.

2. At the very moment we believe in Christ, we are delivered from the power and the authority of the old sin nature.

3. As soon as we choose to sin, we get back under the authority of the old sin nature. But the rebound technique is the means by which we can escape from being under the authority of the old sin nature.

HH. We are given access to God. At the moment we believe in Christ, we start having access to God (in prayer), Romans 5:2; Ephesians 2:18; Hebrews 4:14, 16, 10:19-20.

2. Scar tissue of the soul is a total hindrance to any form of permanent happiness or peace or blessing of any kind. Therefore, that scar tissue must be removed before we have can divine blessing.

3. At the moment we believe in Christ, scar tissue is removed, Isaiah 43:25, 44:22.

4. Through cosmic involvement, the believer can again accumulate scar tissue on the soul.

1. We are the recipients of escrow blessings at the moment we accept Christ as Savior. That is when our escrow blessings become applicable.

2. Billions of years ago, God the Father as the Grantor deposited into escrow greater blessings for us. In His omniscience, He knew we would believe in Christ. So He deposited into escrow greater blessings for both time and eternity.

3. These blessings are irrevocable. We are Church Age believers are the grantees. At the moment we believe in Christ, these blessings become applicable or available.

4. By growing in grace after salvation to spiritual maturity, we receive our escrow blessings for time. Then at the Judgment Seat of Christ, we will receive our escrow blessings for the eternal state.

5. All Church Age believers have equal privilege and equal opportunity to advance to spiritual maturity and receive these greater blessings.

6. However, many believers are losers instead of winners, in that they fail to use these opportunities. They are not consistent in post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation. Therefore, their escrow blessings remain on deposit in heaven forever. Since the blessings are irrevocable, they either remain on deposit for losers, or they are distributed to winners.

1. We are instantly on a secure foundation at the moment of our salvation, 1Corinthians 3:11, 10:4; Ephesians 2:20.

LL. We are related to God the Son by Biblical analogy. At the moment of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, the Church Age believer becomes related to God the Son through eight special Biblical analogies or relationships.

2. The Head and the body. As body of Christ, we are in union with the Head, the Lord Jesus Christ.

a. The logical approach, Romans 8:32, “If God [the Father] spared not His own Son on the cross, but delivered Him over to judgment, how shall He not with Him freely give us all things?” All things includes a security that neither we nor God can break.

b. The positional approach says that once we are in union with Christ, we can’t break the union.

c. The experiential approach is found in 2Timothy 2:13, “Though we deny Him, He cannot deny us.”

d. The family approach is taught in Galatians 3:26, “We are children of God through faith in Christ Jesus.” At the point of our salvation, we were born into the family of God; we cannot be unborn from God’s family. Once a son; always a son. You will always be a child of God.

3. There is nothing God the Father, Son, or Holy Spirit can do to cancel our salvation after we believe in Jesus Christ, and there is nothing we can do either. There is no renunciation, no system of sin, no evil, no failure or blasphemy on our part that can ever cancel our salvation.

1. At the moment anyone believes in Jesus Christ, he is guaranteed a resurrection body, a perfect body forever.

2. John 11:25, “Jesus said to her [Martha], `I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me shall live, even if he dies.’”

3. Dying does not keep us from having a resurrection body; only unbelief in Christ does that.

1. At the moment we believe in Christ, whatever problems we have had in the past, and whatever our inadequacies, God makes available to us problem solving devices.

2. Like the other forty things, we are not aware of these problem solving devices at the point of our salvation. Awareness comes through consistent post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation.

a. The rebound technique is the only way we can recover fellowship with God after we have sinned. We simply name our sins, and according to 1John 1:9, “ If we acknowledge our sins, He is faithful to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Rebound is all grace; no human works, human merit, or penance can be added. This is because in rebound, you are simply citing, naming, or acknowledging a sin already judged on the cross.

c. The faith-rest drill mixes the promises of God with your faith. This is how you develop a strong faith by meeting your problems with promises you find in the Bible.

e. Doctrinal orientation is the constant need to put doctrine first in your life and to function under perception, metabolization, and application of Bible doctrine.

g. Impersonal love for all mankind is your functional virtue, the only way in which you can handle people problems.

4. Again, these problem solving devices are available at the moment of your salvation, but they are not usable apart from post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation.

1. The believer should be made aware of these forty things as soon as possible after salvation, so that he can express his options for spiritual growth and glorification of God.

2. These forty things which we receive at salvation are the basis for grace orientation, experiential sanctification, execution of the protocol plan of God, and glorification of God in the great power experiment of the Church Age.

1. An ambassador does not appoint himself. He is appointed by the nation he represents, the king he represents, the person he represents. As ambassadors we are appointed by God the Father because God the Father was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself. Christ is now at the right hand of the Father through ascension and we are now His personal representatives on this earth. Our appointment is a grace appointment at the moment of salvation.

2. An ambassador doesn't support himself. This is not talking about man working by the sweat of his brow, we are talking about the sustaining, the surviving, the protection through catastrophe and disaster as well as in time of prosperity, the fact that we are a part of a spiritual warfare, the fact that we are in the intensification of the angelic conflict, and the fact that we are totally and completely sustained, preserved, protected by God the Father. We are in His plan and cannot be removed from this world as long as God's purpose for your ministry continues.

3. An ambassador does not represent himself. Once you accept Jesus Christ as saviour the door is open to the greatest happiness in the world. That happiness comes from the daily intake of Bible doctrine. That happiness gives the capacity to love God: category #1, capacity to love a member of the opposite sex: category #2, capacity for friendship: category #3. That same doctrine gives the ability to master the details of life, to enjoy them when you possess them and when you lose them to still have inner happiness and stability. As this door is opened we have to remember that our purpose in life has now radically changed. Our purpose in life is to represent the Lord Jesus Christ, to enter into the spiritual conflict which exists in this earth, as well as the historical conflict. And since it is a spiritual conflict we no longer represent ourselves but we represent the Lord Jesus Christ. And since we are His representatives everything is in His hands. Therefore, we have been given techniques, such as faith-rest, in order to put difficulties and problems and pressures in his hands, in order to stay cool under fire, or to have poise when things are difficult. He has provided all of this.

4. He doesn't belong to the country to which he is sent. There is a sense in which we are now the citizens of heaven although we are the citizens of this country. There is a sense in which our highest responsibility belongs to the Lord,. although it is wonderful to know that as in Romans 13 we can enter into the service of our country and do it as unto the Lord under our type, of government.

5. All ambassadors have instructions in written form. We have our instructions in written form - Bible doctrine.

6. An ambassador representing his country does not treat any insult as personal. This has to do with the relaxed mental attitude in the soul from the inhale of Bible doctrine.

7. When the ambassador is recalled from a country that is tantamount to a declaration of war. When we are recalled through the Rapture of the Church then there will be the most fantastic warfare, spiritual and otherwise, during the Tribulation. Ephesians 1391 4/3/91; Ephesians 104 9/1/85; Romans #361 03/12/1978

1. An ambassador is a high ranking minister of state or of royalty sent to another state to represent his sovereign or country. By analogy we are spiritual aristocracy as members of the royal family of God, and Christ is the King who has sent us into a foreign country, the cosmic world.

2. At salvation, every believer enters the royal family of God through the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and at the same time he becomes a representative of the Lord Jesus Christ on earth. Ambassadorship stems from being in union with Christ, caused by the baptism of the Spirit.

3. Each Church Age believer is royal family of God representing the King of kings and Lord of lords during his tenure on this earth.

4. Therefore, two commissions are given the believer at salvation: the royal priesthood, which is a part of the equal privilege of election; and the royal ambassadorship, which is a part of the equal privilege of predestination. We represent ourselves before God and we represent God before men.

5. Ambassadorship emphasizes that every believer is in fulltime Christian service. However, there are different services.

6. Differences of function depends on differences of spiritual gifts, stages of spiritual growth, historical circumstances (prevalence of positive or negative volition), and environment at any given moment.

7. Common functions and services are all commanded by the Scripture, so there is no confusion between what your spiritual gift demands and those functions which are common to all believers, such as witnessing, prayer, and perception of doctrine. Ambassadorship is the fulfillment of the imperatives of production in the Bible.

8. In addition to the mandates of Scripture, there are many avenues of expressing your ambassadorship, such as utilizing the faith-rest drill and virtue-love as a problem solving device with emphasis on spiritual self-esteem. Spiritual self-esteem becomes the maximum expression of ambassadorship, a result of consistent residence in the divine dynasphere under the enabling power of the Holy Spirit and momentum from metabolized doctrine.

1. An ambassador does not appoint himself. We are appointed by God Himself at the moment we believe in Jesus Christ. God also gives use the power and ability to handle the job.

2. The ambassador does not support himself. The Church Age believer, as an ambassador for Christ, is provided by logistical grace.

3. The ambassador's instructions are always in written form, so he has no doubt as to what he should do. We have the policies, problem solving devices, instructions, principles, doctrines, and concepts in written form in the Scripture.

4. The ambassador does not belong to the country to which he is sent. Our citizenship and home is in heaven. We are also citizens of a client nation to God.

5. The ambassador does not live in the foreign country for his own personal interest. We live here on earth solely to serve in the interest of our Lord. Therefore, we subordinate all personal interest to the function of our ambassadorship, which includes the attainment and function of the spiritual skills-filling of the Spirit, cognition of Bible doctrine, and execution of the protocol plan of God. Our production skills, which include our ambassadorship, are in place as of the moment of salvation, but are not effective until we develop spiritual skills.

6. The ambassador does not treat any insult to himself as personal. This is the royal ambassador's function in both spiritual self-esteem and impersonal love for all mankind. We tolerate others and hold no grudges. When you are insulted, treated unfairly, or ridiculed, you have tremendous problem solving devices. You have to have the spiritual strength to use these problem solving devices to leave the matter in the Lord's hands.

7. When an ambassador is recalled, his recall is tantamount to a declaration of war. This is analogous to the Rapture of the Church. The Tribulation is analogous to the period of war.

C. The royal ambassadorship is specialized and intensified in the gift of pastor-teacher.

1. All communication gifts (evangelists, apostles, pastor-teachers) become critical and specialized functions of the royal ambassadorship because they communicate spiritual truth. This is why Paul said in Ephesians 6:20, "on behave of which [gospel] I am an ambassador in chains, that in this [proclaiming the mystery doctrine], I might communicate with confidence as I ought to speak."

2. There is a special need for those who communicate doctrine to do so with confidence. That confidence cannot exist unless they are occupied with the person of Christ and have spiritual self-esteem, because they will be faced with constant negative volition from indifferent people. But with spiritual self-esteem the communicator speaks with confidence no matter what the attitude of his listeners.

1. 2Corinthians 5:20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ as though God were making His appeal through us. We invite you on behalf of Christ: become reconciled to God.

2. This is the function of every believer who witnesses and is the special function of the believer with the gift of evangelism. We are to witness through verbal communication of the Gospel of the Word of God. We are not to witness only through our lifestyle. That's cowardice.

E. The royal ambassadorship mandates the function of spiritual self-esteem and impersonal love, Philemon 9 Yet for love's sake, I rather appeal to you, since I am such a person as Paul, the ambassador, and now a prisoner of Jesus Christ.

1. Virtue-love is the greatest of all problem-solving devices. When your momentum takes you to personal love for God, you now have spiritual self-esteem. With this spiritual self-esteem comes impersonal love for all mankind. This is the giant step in the Christian life.

2. While personal love for God is the function of our royal priesthood, spiritual self-esteem and impersonal love for man are the function of our ambassadorship.

3. Everything the believer does in life becomes a part of his modus operandi as a royal ambassador. Every believer, therefore, makes a pulpit out of his circumstances in every area of life.

4. Your ambassadorship is basically made up of two factors: how you live, and what you say as a result of what you think. In private, you function under your priesthood; in public, you function under your ambassadorship.

1. The Church Age believer is not only an ambassador to human creatures but to angels as well. You are a royal ambassador being watched right now. Angels observed our Lord, 1Timothy 3:16. They observe and rejoice over the conversion of one person, Luke 15:7-10. Fallen angels are organized to resist and oppose your ambassadorship and your growth in grace, Job 1:6, 2:1-3; Ephesians 6:12.

2. The fact that angels are watching you as an ambassador is found in 1Corinthians 4:9. "For I think God has exhibited us apostles last of all as men condemned to death [last ones into the Colosseum], for we have become an amphitheater to the world, both to angels and to men."

3. Eph 3:10, "In order that the manifold wisdom of God might be made known through the church to rulers and authorities in the heavenlies [angels]."

4. 1Timothy 5:21, "I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of His elect angels to maintain these doctrines without bias; do nothing on the basis of partisan strife."

1. While the priesthood of the believer emphasizes the daily function of GAP and advance to spiritual maturity, the ambassadorship of the believer emphasizes the production of the Christian way of life. Each has a different source. As you learn to distinguish between your priesthood and ambassadorship, you will learn to distinguish between the functions of each. The priesthood is the means by which you advance to maturity; the ambassadorship is for the purpose of production and it is not for blessing.

2. This ambassador service can be a function of one's spiritual gift or obedience to a command of the service-function as taught in the Word.

3. Since maximum production involves spiritual maturity, it is obvious that the attainment of spiritual maturity results in maximum effectiveness in the area of your royal ambassadorship.

4. The filling of the Spirit is an absolute necessity in the function of the ambassador.

5. Any Christian service or works apart from the filling of the Spirit is human good, the enemy of the modus operandi of the royal ambassador.

6. Everything the believer does in life becomes a part of his ambassadorship, for in effect the believer makes a pulpit out of his circumstances. Every believer is in full-time service; this is a decision God made at the moment of salvation, not one that you make.

7. The Lord uses ambassadors in business, professions, homes, academic life, and in local churches. Your circumstances are your full- time Christian service whether you work in the military, in labor, or in management.

8. In the Roman Empire, many believers fulfilled their ambassadorship as slaves. They were not to break out of this situation. In application, you don't straighten out society; you serve the Lord. It is not up to us to change society. We do not function in conspiracies or revolutions against our nation.

9. Therefore, believers as ambassadors are the personal representatives of the Lord Jesus Christ.

10. Every believer is in the plan of God and lives his life under the principle of full-time Christian service.

11. The vocation of every believer is representing Christ as a royal ambassador. The avocation of every believer is making a living as per Philemon.

12. Paul was as much an ambassador in prison as when he was a traveling missionary. You always represent Christ.

1. The weeping ambassador expresses the regrets of wrong thinking and the failure of the believer to orient to history. Disorientation to history means distraction from the Christian way of life. Isaiah 33:6-7 And He [Lord Jesus Christ] will be the stability of your times, a wealth of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge. Behold their brave men [army of Israel] cry in the streets, the ambassadors of peace weep bitterly.

a. In this passage, the ambassadors of Israel had made a deal with the Assyrians and assumed they were safe. When the Assyrians prepared to attack, the ambassadors of peace who cut back the military wept bitterly.

c. These ambassadors fail to understand the doctrine that all freedom comes through military victory.

d. Such a person fails to believe that all freedom is purchased on battlefields, not through the empty words of politicians.

e. To maintain that freedom, there must be universal military training, plus the constant development and maintenance of the profession of the military. Luger, Maxim and someone else were all Americans who developed great weapons of war, but are associated with Europe. There must be an officer corps with high standards, an honor code, and higher patriotic motivation.

f. The invader in Isaiah 33 had found the nation Israel unprepared. The ambassadors told the Assyrians they were setting the pace for disarmament.

g. The doves then are ambassadors to the invading nation. They had depended on peace treaties and had announced disarmament rather than military preparation.

h. They had failed to evaluate history in the light of the Word of God and had failed to apply doctrine to history even though they were believers.

i. Therefore, the weeping ambassador represents the failure of believers to think divine viewpoint in the interpretation of history.

2. Prov 13:16-17 Every wise believer acts with knowledge of doctrine, but a fool [believer] spreads foolishness. An evil messenger falls into adversity [the law of volitional responsibility], but a faithful ambassador brings healing. The faithful ambassador is the effective witness for Christ.

1. The person must be saved. Salvation appoints the individual to the status of royal ambassador.

2. There is no appointment to such ambassadorship until the person has believed in Christ. At that point, you are commissioned as an ambassador.

3. Therefore, at salvation the believer becomes a member of the royal family of God and a royal ambassador through the baptism of the Spirit.

4. Ambassadorship automatically enters the believer into full-time Christian service. Romans 12:11 says there are two prerequisites for service of the ambassador: he cannot be negligent in applying doctrine and he must be zealous with reference to the Holy Spirit when serving.

5. The royal ambassador must be fulfilled in the filling of the Spirit. This means alertness with regard to the rebound technique, the grace means of soul control by the Holy Spirit. Only doctrine perceived can be applied to the ambassadorship.

6. So the third prerequisite is the daily function of GAP whereby doctrine is stored in the human spirit and soul.

7. In summary, royal ambassadorship demands salvation, the filling of the Spirit, and the residency of doctrine. Thus, experiential sanctification is its prerequisite.

8. On the negative side, the royal ambassadorship can't function when the believer is in the devil's triangle of sin, human good and evil. All service in the devil's triangle is human good and evil. If we fail to apply doctrine we are in the devil's triangle.

1. The resurrection body of Jesus Christ was capable of space travel, and the ascension is space travel - John 20:17.

2. Once arriving in heaven Jesus Christ is seated at the right hand of the Father. This is called the session of Christ - Psalm 110:1; Romans 8:34; Ephesians 1:20; Colossians 3:1; Hebrews 1:3,13; 8:1; 10:12; 12:2; 1Peterer 3:22.

3. The ascension and session of Christ formed the basis of victory in the angelic conflict - Hebrews 1:3-13.

4. The ascension and session of Christ began a new sphere of the angelic conflict - Ephesians 1:20-22; 4:7-10. Therefore the believer of the Church Age is involved in the intensified stage of the angelic conflict.

5. The ascension and session of Jesus Christ begin operation footstool, prophesied in Psalm 110:1 and quoted in Luke 20:42,43; Acts 2:33,34; Hebrews 1:13.

6. The second advent of Christ will conclude operation footstool - Daniel 7:13,14; Zechariah 13:2; Colossians 2:15; Revelation 20:1-3.

7. The ascension and session of Christ completes the glorification of Christ in His hypostatic union - Acts 2:33; 5:31; Philippians 2:9; 1Peterer 3:22.

8. The ascension and session of Christ explains the uniqueness of the Church Age and the importance of having a royal family in this dispensation only - John 7:37-39.

9. The ascension and session of Christ is the key to victory in the angelic conflict - Hebrews 1:4.

10. The ascension and session of Christ after resurrection make possible the second high priestly function of our Lord, namely intercession or praying for all members of the royal family on earth - Hebrews 7:25.

a. The ascension is that doctrine of Christology pertaining to the change of residence of Jesus Christ after the resurrection when He went from earth to heaven in resurrection body.

b. The session is that doctrine of Christology pertaining to the glorification of Jesus Christ in hypostatic union being seated at the right hand of the Father.

c. These doctrines are closely related to and based on the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

e. These two doctrines form the climax of the strategic victory of Jesus Christ in the angelic conflict.

2. The capabilities of the resurrection body. The resurrection body of Christ was capable of horizontal and vertical travel. In horizontal travel He could go through walls or open doors. The atomic structure of the resurrection body is of such a nature that it passes through walls or closed doors without any trouble. Vertically the resurrection body has unlimited ability to travel anywhere in the universe without any damage to body at all. Our Lord Jesus Christ travelled through the outer atmosphere, the stellar universe, and then entered the third heaven, the throne room of the Father, the abode of God.

a. The first significance has to do with the prophecy of the session. It was so important that it was prophesied in the Old Testament as an integral part of the angelic conflict. The prophesy is found in Psalm 110:1 - "The Lord said unto my Lord," - the first use of Lord is for deity, the second use of Lord is for deity - "Sit down at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool." This particular prophecy indicates the strategic victory of angelic conflict, so the session is related to that.

b. The session and the authority of Jesus Christ - Romans 8:34, "Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is he who died, yes rather, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us." The Lord Jesus Christ seated at the right hand of the Father is the only one who has the ability to condemn. We stand or fall through Jesus Christ . He has appointed the scripture as the means of giving us standards whereby as believer priests, members of the royal family of God, we can condemn ourselves, which is what we do every time we use the rebound technique.

c. The session and the ministry of the Holy Spirit - Ephesians 1:20, "Which power [of the Holy Spirit] has been operational in Jesus Christ" - Jesus Christ was indwelt by God the Holy Spirit in His humanity during the first advent, during the time of His hypostatic union on earth - "the Father having raised him from the dead, and having seated him at his own right hand in the heavenlies." The ministry of God the Holy Spirit is related to the death, burial, resurrection and session of the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, since God the Holy Spirit sustained the humanity of Christ during all of these things there is a relationship between the session of Christ and the ministry of God the Holy Spirit. In fact it sets the pattern for the royal family in relationship to the Holy Spirit in the dispensation of the Church.

d. The session and mental attitude - Colossians 3:1,2, "If, therefore, you have been raised in Christ, keep on desiring to possess and endeavouring to obtain the above things" - referring to doctrine - "where Christ is sitting at the right hand of the Father. Keep thinking about above things [doctrine], not things on the earth." Due to the fact that Jesus Christ is seated at the right hand of the Father we have the privilege of mental attitude dynamics divine viewpoint, and this of course is related to doctrine.

e. The session and the celebrityship of Jesus Christ - Hebrews 1:3, "Who being the radiance, the flashing forth of the glory, and the exact image of his essence, also sustaining all things by the verbal expression of his power, having himself accomplished purification of sins, was caused to sit down at the right hand of the majesty in high places." In other words, the Lord Jesus Christ is portrayed during the period of His hypostatic union the manifestation of the members of the Godhead, He was deity, He was the exact image of His essence, He sustained all things by His verbal expressions. While He was on earth he held the universe together, He accomplished eternal salvation at the cross, finally entering into the heavens and the very presence of God, and was seated. All of this is related to His celebrityship.

f. The session and the angelic conflict - Hebrews 1:13, "But to which of the angels has he said at any time, Sit down at my right hand until I appoint your enemies the footstool for your feet?" No angel was ever told to be seated at the right hand of the Father, once again the significance of the doctrine of session. Jesus Christ was seated at the right hand of the Father as a man and the moment He was He became superior in His humanity to all angels. As deity He is infinitely superior to all of the angelic creatures, and as humanity He was raised to that high station and at that point He became superior forever to the angelic hosts. Because of this we are members of the royal family of God and in our resurrection bodies we will be superior to angels also. At the present time we are inferior creatures to the angelic hosts but all of that is going to change in resurrection.

g. The session and the priesthood - Hebrews 8:1, "Now the main point on what is being communicated is this: We have such a category of high priest who is sat down at the right hand of the throne of the majesty in the heavens." In that particular passage Jesus Christ is pointed out to be superior to all Levitical priests of the past and all high priests. They dealt with shadows; He dealt with the reality. They could only offer animal sacrifices; He offered Himself. They never sat down in the tabernacle, and therefore Jesus Christ by sitting down is pointed out to be infinitely superior to all. So the session is used to show the superiority of Jesus Christ as our high priest.

h. The session and the sacrifice - Hebrews 10:12, "But this one [Jesus Christ], when he had offered a unique sacrifice on behalf of sins for all time, sat down on the right hand of God." To indicate that the sacrifice of Christ was totally efficacious and that it is the only way of eternal salvation the Lord Jesus Christ was seated at the right hand of the Father. This demonstrates the principle "it is finished," and indicates the fact that what was finished was totally and completely efficacious, so that anyone at any time in any part of the world who believes in the Lord Jesus Christ immediately enters into the palace forever. The baptism of the Holy Spirit makes every believer a member of the royal family of God forever.

j. The session and strategic victory - 1Peterer 3:22, "Jesus Christ who is at the right hand of god, having gone into heaven after the angels and authorities and powers had been subordinated to him." All angelic forces, evil type, all types of demons, have been subordinated to Him. The Lord Jesus Christ is infinitely superior and has dominion over all creatures. This is demonstrated by the session.

5. The session, therefore, confirms the celebrityship of Jesus Christ. The ascension and session of Jesus Christ completed His glorification and the second person of the Trinity in hypostatic union has received the maximum glory - Acts 2:33, "Therefore, having been exalted to the right hand of God." Acts 5:31, "He is the one exalted at his right hand the Prince and saviour." Philippians 2:9, "Therefore also, the God has highly exalted him and given him a name which is above every name." As eternal God Jesus Christ is pre-eminent. As the God-Man at the right hand of the Father Jesus Christ is unique, overwhelming. He has the distinction of highest nobility and the most illustrious of all celebrityships. His eminence and prominence defy hyperbole.

6. The strategic victory of the angelic conflict. The ascension and session of Christ form the basis for strategic victory of the angelic conflict. Hebrews chapter one teaches this principle. Furthermore, the ascension and session of Jesus Christ begin a new sphere of the angelic conflict - Ephesians 1:20-22, "Which power has been operational in Christ, the Father having raised him from the dead, and having seated him at his own right hand in the heavenlies, over and above all principality [the super demons], and authority [the commissioned demon], and power [the gifted demons], and lordship [the ruling demon]," - in other words, Jesus Christ is superior and over all of these categories of demons - "and every name that is named [rank and file demons], not only in this age but also in the one to come; and he has subordinated all demons under his feet, and has given absolute sovereignty over all the royal family of God with reference to the Church." And there lies the intensification of the angelic conflict, the demons who have been strategically defeated and are still tactically resisting, and the Church, the royal family of God. The same concept is amplified in Ephesians 4:7-10. This means that the Church Age is the dispensation of the intensified stage of the angelic conflict. The royal family of God is therefore subjected to the most unusual types of pressures throughout this dispensation.

a. Jesus Christ is a resurrection body is seated alone at the right hand of the Father.

b. It is not good that the last Adam should be alone. This is what was said about the first Adam.

c. Therefore the Age of Israel is interrupted and a new dispensation is inserted or intercalated.

d. The Church Age is destined to call out the royal family of God so that in eternity the last Adam will not be alone. And the royal family is the basis for providing a bride for the last Adam.

e. In eternity the palace of heaven will be filled with royal family and/or the Church Age believers.

f. The royal family is formed by means of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, as mentioned by Jesus Christ in Acts 1:5.

g. For the first time in history, then, God the Holy Spirit actually takes up His residence in the body of every believer. That is because we are royal family of God - 1Corinthians 6:19-20.

a. The ascension and session of Christ abrogates the Levitical priesthood. The Levitical priesthood was a specialised priesthood, they had special holy days related to this priesthood, a lot of special activity, but they did not have the effectiveness that we have today.

b. The Levitical priesthood is replaced by the royal priesthood of the Church Age - 1Peterer 2:9, "You are a chosen race [a race of election], you are a royal priesthood, you are a holy nation, a people of God's own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvellous light " Cf. Revelation 1:6; 5:10; 20:6. Therefore the Lord Jesus Christ at the right hand of the Father is the new high priest - Hebrews 10:1-10 - and our high priest even makes intercession for us - Hebrews 7:25.

9. The ascension verifies the efficacy of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross - Hebrews 9:23, 24, "Of necessity, therefore, on the one hand that the copies [or models] of things in heaven be cleansed with shadows; but on the other hand the heavenly realities themselves with better sacrifices than these" - the work of Christ on the cross is superior to animal blood on the altar - "For Christ has not entered into a holy of holies made with hands [the tabernacle], a model of the reality [heaven], but into heaven itself to appear in the presence of God on behalf of us." The Levitical priesthood dealt with shadows; our priesthood deals with realities. However, these realities are not realities apart from Bible doctrine resident in the soul.

10. The ascension and the ultimate defeat of Satan. The ascension and session of Christ begin operation footstool, according to Psalm 110:1, quoted in Luke 2:42 and 43, and quoted again in Acts 2:33,34 and Hebrews 1:13. The quotation of the prophecy in those three passages indicates the fact that operation footstool began with the session of Christ. The second advent terminates operation footstool. Christ will superseded Satan as the ruler of the world at that time - Daniel 7:14 describes that, "And to him was given dominion, glory and sovereignty, that all peoples, nations and languages might serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away, furthermore his kingdom is one which shall not be destroyed." Zechariah 13:2, "And it will come to pass in that day, saith the Lord of armies, that I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered; furthermore I will also remove the false prophets and demons from the land." The removal of demons means that they are bumped off the earth as it confirmed by Revelation 20:1-3. Colossians 2:15 describes the same thing, "Having disarmed demon archons . he made a public display of them, having celebrated a triumphal procession over them by means of him [His victory]."

b. The great power experiment of the Church Age, A.D. 30 - Rapture, an indefinite period of time.

2. The resurrection, ascension and session of Jesus Christ divides the two Christological dispensations.

3. Both the ascension and session of Christ occurred in His resurrection body. His was the first resurrection in all of history.

1. The ascension is that doctrine of Christology pertaining to the transfer of our Lord’s true humanity from planet earth to the third heaven in a resurrection body.

2. The session is that doctrine of Christology pertaining to the glorification of our Lord’s humanity at the right hand of the Father. These definitions presume your understanding of the Hypostatic Union.

3. These doctrines are closely related to and based on the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. If Christ remained on earth, He would have a limited glory, but when He went to the third heaven He became superior to all creation, and therefore had unlimited glory.

4. As a result of the resurrection of our Lord’s humanity, He remained on earth for forty days before His ascension. The ascension of Jesus Christ occurred on day forty in His resurrection body. This period of time demonstrated the capabilities of the resurrection body. The resurrection body can eat food.

5. The ascension and session of Christ are predicated on the capabilities of the resurrection body.

a. It can travel horizontally and vertically at unlimited speed, and is capable of unlimited space travel.

b. Our Lord traveled horizontally during His forty days on planet earth, as well as moving through closed doors.

c. The ascension of Christ demonstrates the vertical travel of the resurrection body, moving with ease through the atmosphere of the earth, the galaxies of stellar universe, and the billions and billions of light years in an instant, and entering into the third heaven, the abode of God.

6. Upon arrival in the third heaven, our Lord was seated at the right hand of God the Father; this is the doctrine of the Session. Then He received His third royal patent and the title “King of kings, Lord of lords, the Bright Morning Star.” Because His third royal warrant had no accompanying royal family, the Church Age was inserted for the calling out of a royal family.

a. This is why this doctrine of ascension and session is the missing link between the resurrection of Christ and the Christian way of life.

b. Something new had to be created to accompany this new third royalty of Jesus Christ, a new royal family. His new royalty had to be a new spiritual species, as per 2Corinthians 5:17.

c. Therefore, the dispensation of Israel was interrupted seven years short of its completion. Then the omnipotence of the Father and of the Spirit was made available to believers. The Day of Pentecost is the day the royal family began with the baptism of the Holy Spirit, the first day of the Church Age.

7. So the chronology of events was: 1) resurrection, 2) forty days on the earth, 3) ascension ten days before the Church Age began, and 4) seated at the right hand of the Father. We know the number of days so exactly, because the resurrection occurred on the Feast of the First Fruits. The Feast of Pentecost would occur fifty days later. On day forty, our Lord ascended, and He said the baptism of the Spirit and the beginning of the Church Age would occur very soon (ten days later).

8. Both the ascension and session of Christ were accomplished in His resurrection body. Though coequal and coeternal with God, it was the true humanity of Christ that was seated at the right hand of the Father.

9. These two doctrines of ascension and session combine to form the climax of the strategic victory of Christ in the angelic conflict.

1. “And after He had said these things [announcement of Church Age, Acts 1:5, 8], He was lifted up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid Him out of their sight. And as they were gazing intently up in the sky as He was going, behold two men [angels] dressed in white stood beside them. And they also said, `Men of Galilee, why do you stand staring into the sky? This Jesus who has been taken from you into heaven will come in the same way as you have seen Him go into heaven.’”

2. While the angels were still talking our Lord was already in the third heaven. He traveled billions and billions of light years in just a few seconds.

1. After His ascension, His session fulfilled the prophecy of Psalm 110:1. “The Lord [God the Father] said to my Lord [God the Son], `Sit down at My right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.’” Jesus Christ had to be seated to resolve the angelic conflict. It was the strategic victory of the angelic conflict. Remember that His deity is omnipresent, everywhere, imminent and transcendent. It was His humanity that was seated at the right hand of the Father.

2. This prophecy is quoted a number of times in the New Testament, Matt 22:44; Mark 12:36; Luke 20:42-43; Acts 2:34-35; Hebrews 1:13, 10:13. It is quoted so often because it is very important.

3. The strategic victory of the great power experiment of the Hypostatic Union is the key to the importance of the ascension and session of Jesus Christ.

a. The resurrection, ascension, and session all deal with the true humanity of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is undiminished deity and true humanity in one person forever.

b. Just as only the humanity of Christ could provide our salvation by receiving the judgment for our sins in His own body, so only the humanity of Christ could be resurrected, ascend, and sit at the right hand of God the Father.

4. The humanity of Jesus Christ in Hypostatic Union is now exalted and glorified at the right hand of the Father where His posture is one of being seated.

a. Acts 2:33, “Therefore, [Jesus Christ] having been exalted to the right hand of God.”

b. Acts 5:31, “He is the one whom God has exalted at His right hand as prince and Savior.”

c. Philippians 2:9, “Therefore also, God has highly exalted Him and given Him a title which is above every title, that at the title of Jesus every knee should bow and every tongue should confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of the Father.”

5. The strategic victory of Jesus Christ in the great power experiment of the Hypostatic Union is related to the award of His third royal patent.

a. His first royal patent is related to His deity. His title is “Son of God.” His royal family is God the Father and God the Holy Spirit.

b. His second royal patent is related to His humanity. His title is “Son of David.” His royal family is the Davidic dynasty.

c. His third royal patent is related to His resurrection and ascension. His title is “King of kings, Lord of lords, Bright Morning Star.” His royal family is in the process of being completed, made up of every Church Age believer. You are not simply a child of God; you are a royal child of God.

1. The ascension and session is not only related to the Hypostatic Union, but it also to the angelic conflict. The fact that the resurrection, ascension and session is based on the strategic victory of our Lord in the angelic conflict is the subject of Hebrews 1-2.

2. Hebrews 1:3, “Who being the radiance [the flashing forth] of His glory and the exact image of His [God the Father’s] essence, He also sustains all things by the verbal expression of His power, having Himself accomplished purification for sins, He was caused to sit down on the right hand of the Majesty in highest places.” During the entire period of the Hypostatic Union on earth, from the baby in the cradle to the resurrection, ascension, and session, our Lord was still holding the universe together by the Word of His power.

3. Hebrews 1:13, “But to which of the angels did He say at any time, `Sit down at My right hand until I appoint your enemies a footstool for your feet?’”

a. God the Father never said this to any angel, but only to Jesus Christ. It is very significant that God the Father said this to the humanity of Christ in a resurrection body.

b. This means that although we are now inferior to angels in our human bodies on earth, in the future in resurrection bodies we will be totally superior to angels. This was established with our Lord’s session.

4. 1Peter 3:22, “Who [Jesus Christ] is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven after angels and authorities and powers had been subordinated to Him.”

a. With the resurrection of Jesus Christ, all angelic creatures including fallen angels, are subordinated to Him in His humanity! That fact is very important.

b. In His deity, Jesus Christ is the creator of angels. In His humanity, He was made lower than angels, Hebrews 2:7. But now in His resurrection, He is higher than angels in His humanity!

c. Some day in our resurrection body, we will share that same privilege experientially. Being in union with Christ, we are already positionally higher than angels. But in resurrection bodies, we will be experientially and physically higher than angels.

5. Ephesians 1:22, “And He [God the Father] has subordinated all [angelic creatures] under His feet. Furthermore, He appointed Him [Jesus Christ] ruler over all things to the Church.”

b. When our Lord received His third royal patent, He did not have a royal family. Therefore, the Church Age was inserted into history.

c. The Church Age was a mystery age because we have almost infinitely more than any Old Testament, Tribulational, or Millennial saint. We have unique things which are unbelievably fantastic, which have never existed before and will never exist again after the Rapture of the Church.

d. A second Christocentric dispensation had to be instituted to provide a royal family for our Lord’s third royal patent.

e. Furthermore, Israel had rejected Jesus Christ as their Messiah and King. Consequently, the messianic kingdom is postponed until the Second Advent of Christ.

f. In the meantime, the great power experiment of the Hypostatic Union has been parlayed into the great power experiment of the Church Age.

g. During the Church Age, there are no Jewish client nations to God. The next Jewish client nation will not exist until the Second Advent of Christ.

h. We live in the times of the Gentiles, which means only a Gentile nation can be a client nation to God. At the present time, though staggering, the United States of American is a Gentile client nation to God.

i. During the Church Age, there are only Gentile client nations. The first was S.P.Q.R., “the City and People of Rome.”

j. So the ascension and session of Jesus Christ form the link between the great power experiment of the Hypostatic Union and the great power experiment of the Church Age.

1. Hebrews 10:12, “But this One [Jesus Christ in contrast to the Old Testament sacrifices], when He had offered one unique sacrifice as a substitute for our sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God.”

a. The work of Jesus Christ on the cross is efficacious. When He received the imputation of our sins and God the Father judged them, that settled the sin question for all time.

b. To indicate the efficacy of His sacrifice, our Lord sat down at the right hand of God.

c. In physical death, our Lord’s work was completed. Hence, just before His death He said, “TETELESTAI,” which means “It is finished in the past with the result that it stands finished forever.”

2. So the resurrection, ascension, and session is the verification of the efficacy of our Lord’s saving work on the cross.

3. Furthermore, this efficacious saving work occurred while our Lord was physically alive. He did not die for our sins in physical death; He died as a substitute for us in a substitutionary spiritual death, wherein each and every sin of the human race was imputed to Christ and judged.

a. He died a substitutionary spiritual death for the sins of the world, which provided our salvation.

b. He died a unique physical death in which there was the separation of His soul, spirit, and body.

1. Ephesians 1:18, “That the eyes of your right lobe may be enlightened [post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation] so that you may know what is the hope [hope 2 and 3] of His calling [divine call], what are the riches [divine capitalization of every Church Age believer in eternity past through the provision of our portfolio of invisible assets] of His inheritance in the saints.”

a. The first thing God ever did for us is the means of glorifying Him. In eternity past, God the Father as the grantor deposited into escrow greater blessings for every believer as the grantee.

b. The distribution of those blessings upon the believer’s execution of the protocol plan and advance to spiritual maturity is the means of glorifying God.

2. Ephesians 1:19, “And what is the surpassing greatness of His power to us [maximum availability of divine power to every Church Age believer as a result of the extension of the Hypostatic Union into the Church Age] who have believed, for the working of His superior power [execution of the protocol plan] which He put into operation by means of Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in heavenly places.”

a. Part of the mystery doctrine of the Church Age is the fact that divine power is available to us as never before in history, i.e., the omnipotence of the Father, Son, and Spirit.

b. When Jesus Christ was seated at the right hand of the Father in the session after His ascension, that’s when this plan was put into operation.

c. The protocol plan of God and the availability of divine power to us is unique. The uniqueness of the Church Age is reflected in the fact that it was put into operation at the point of the session of Jesus Christ.

d. As a result of His resurrection, ascension, and session, our Lord Jesus Christ received his third royal patent without a royal family. The royal family is being formed today because of the ascension and session of Jesus Christ.

e. God is perfect; therefore His protocol plan is perfect. A perfect plan from perfect God excludes human power for its execution. A perfect plan from perfect God demands the use of divine power or perfect power for its execution.

f. Therefore, there is no substitute for the utilization of divine power in the execution of the protocol plan.

g. Divine power and human power are mutually exclusive. For the believer to utilize human dynamics and call it the Christian way of life is blasphemy. To the extent that the Church Age believer relies on human power or gets involved in legalism, he has completely failed to fulfill God’s purpose, plan, and objective for sustaining him in this life.

h. The perfect protocol plan of God cannot accept or utilize any form of human power or human ability, or anything that we can do. Anything we can do in our own power is not a part of the Christian life.

i. Only through cognition of Bible doctrine can divine omnipotence be understood and utilized in the execution of the protocol plan. There is therefore no substitute for post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation.

3. Ephesians 1:20, “which [superior power] He put into operation by means of Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in heavenly places.”

b. In His deity, Christ was always superior. However, this superiority refers to the humanity of Christ in a resurrection body, seated at the right hand of the Father.

c. So the session becomes very important, because the power that raised Him from the dead is now delegated to the royal family.

d. In resurrection, the omnipotence of the Holy Spirit restored the human soul of our Lord to His body, and the omnipotence of God the Father restored His human spirit to His body. This divine power that raised Christ from the dead is now available to you only because you are the body of Christ, royal family of God.

e. Divine power was utilized, transferred, and delegated to the Church Age believer; utilized in our portfolio of invisible assets, provided by the omnipotence of God the Father; transferred and delegated inside the operational-type divine dynasphere by the omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit.

4. Ephesians 1:21, “Superior to every authority, both human power and authority as well as angelic power and authority, and superior to every title that can be named, not only in this age [Church Age], but in the one destined to come [Millennium].”

5. Ephesians 1:22, “And He [God the Father] has subordinated both angelic and human creatures under His feet [operation footstool]; furthermore He [God the Father] has appointed Him ruler over all things to the Church.”

a. The first phase of operation footstool is the resurrection, ascension, and session of Christ.

b. The second phase of operation footstool is the Second Advent of Christ. At that time, the baptism of fire will remove all unbelievers from the earth, both Jews and Gentiles. Also in this second phase of operation footstool, Satan is sentenced to 1000 years of jail.

c. Another part of the second phase of operation footstool occurs at the end of the Millennium with the suppression of the Gog and Magog Revolution, sponsored and led by Satan, having been just released from prison. Then occurs the second resurrection of only unbelievers and their judgment, followed by the execution of the prehistoric sentence of Satan and all fallen angels.

d. There would be no royal family without the appointment of Christ as prince-ruler over the Church. This means He rules all Church Age believers today, winners and losers.

e. So Christ is the ruler of all creatures, angelic and human, no matter how rebellious. The most rebellious of all creatures today are not demons but born-again believers who fail to fulfill the principle of post- salvation epistemological rehabilitation in the perception, metabolization, and application of Bible doctrine under whomever is their right pastor.

1. Hebrews 8:1, “Now the main point on what is being communicated is this: we have such a high priest who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the majesty in the heavens.”

2. Our Lord was not qualified by birth to be a Levitical priest in Israel. His priesthood, however, supersedes the priesthood of Israel because He is both a king and a priest.

3. Our Lord’s priesthood is patterned after a royal priesthood, that of Melchizedek. Melchizedek was both a king and a priest. Our Lord is the king-priest as a result of His resurrection, ascension, and session.

4. His third royal warrant makes Him Lord and King over all lords and kings. Therefore, our Lord’s entire royal family, Church Age believers, are a part of that priesthood. One of the unique factors of the Church Age is the universal priesthood of the believer.

5. Because you are in union with Christ, you are a king-priest. This means you can directly address God the Father in prayer through Jesus Christ, because He is the greatest high priest in all of history. He is a royal high priest or king priest.

6. Therefore, we pray to God the Father in the name of Christ, and in the effectiveness of the power of the Holy Spirit which is life inside the divine dynasphere.

7. Jesus Christ is the high priest; we are a kingdom of priests. As our high priest, Jesus Christ makes intercession for us right now at the right hand of God the Father.

8. The ascension and session abrogates the Levitical priesthood, replacing it with the royal priesthood, 1Peter 2:9; Revelation 1:6, 5:10, 20:6.

1. Colossians 3:1-2, “If therefore you have been raised in Christ [and you have in baptism of the Spirit and current positional truth], keep on desiring to possess the above things [escrow blessings] where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of the Father. Keep thinking objectively about the above things [doctrine], not things on the earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”

2. To “possess the above things” requires the utilization of divine power inside the divine dynasphere, which requires cognition of doctrine, which requires right priorities; doctrine must be first in your life.

3. The desire to possess your very own escrow blessings motivates you to execute the protocol plan. This motivation results in consistent post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation, the daily perception, metabolization, and application of Bible doctrine.

4. The fact that the humanity of Christ is seated at the right hand of the Father, except for the Rapture of the Church and His permanent move at the Second Advent, is indicative of the fact that He has made the most fantastic system of power available to you!

5. Objective thinking about the “above things” includes cognition of your portfolio of your invisible assets, understanding the protocol plan of God in detail, perception of the unique things related to the great power experiment of the Church Age, especially the ten problem solving devices.

6. The royal family’s mental attitude is to think doctrine, not good and evil. We should have a very strong, positive mental attitude no matter what our circumstances or pressures.

7. This doesn’t mean we can’t learn about fascinating human subjects. They often demonstrate and illustrate many principles. And it’s always a wonderful thing to have a hobby or two in the field of thought, and to pursue that hobby.

8. But when it comes to the Christian way of life, the system of divine viewpoint thought must be based on cognition of doctrine. If we’re going to utilize divine power, we must understand the mechanics for its transfer and for its utilization. Ignorance is a guarantee that you will function on human power all your life.

1. The session is an indication of the authority of Christ. Romans 8:34, “Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is the one who died. Yes, rather, who has been raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who intercedes for us.” Jesus Christ has supreme authority over all human and angelic creatures.

2. All of this time Christ holds the universe together by the word of His mouth, Colossians 1:16, “For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven or in earth, visible or invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers, all things were created by Him and for Him.”

K. The Session and Spiritual Self-Esteem. Hebrews 12:2-3, “Let us fix our eyes [concentrate] on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such opposition by sinners against Himself, so that you do not grow weary and faint in your souls.”

1. Isagogics: the Bible must be interpreted in the time in which it was written. The noun huiothesía (υἱοθεσία) [pronounced hwee-oth-es-EE-ah] refers to a Roman custom in Paul's time. In the Roman empire the son was placed under slaves and teachers during his minority. At around age 14 he had graduated from a system of intensive training and discipline which was administered by slaves, those who taught him. He was then recognised as an adult member of the family. The ceremony was called huiothesía (υἱοθεσία) [pronounced hwee-oth-es-EE-ah], the word "adoption" in our passage. The basic concept of the ceremony was freedom to function as an adult citizen in the Roman world. This custom is taken by Paul. There is no concept here of adopting someone outside the family, it is recognition of someone inside the family, that they have now grown up.

2. We must relate the etymology to the isagogics. The word huiothesía (υἱοθεσία) [pronounced hwee-oth-es-EE-ah] comes from the Greek word huios (υἱός, ο, ὁ) [pronounced hwee-OSS] which means adult son, and thesia come from tithêmi (τίθημι) [pronounced TIHTH-ā-mee] which means to appoint or place. Huiothesía (υἱοθεσία) [pronounced hwee-oth-es-EE-ah] means, then, to be appointed an adult son as a member of the family. It refers to one of the 36 things that every believer receives at the moment of salvation, and it has to do with the believer's freedom. At the moment you believe in Christ spiritually you are brephos (βρέφος) [pronounced BREHF-oss], a child on mother's breast. But you are at the same time in union with Christ who is the Son of God, huios (υἱός, ο, ὁ) [pronounced hwee-OSS], and being in union with Him positionally you are huios (υἱός, ο, ὁ) [pronounced hwee-OSS]. You are a child spiritually, experientially, but positionally you are an adult son. This indicates that every believer, no matter how he fails, is still another huios (υἱός, ο, ὁ) [pronounced hwee-OSS] of God; he is in union with Christ.

a. Example of Gaius Julius Cæsar who had three wives. He had no sons as heirs. Daughter Julia married to Pompey. She died in childbirth. Cæsar still had a bloodline in his sister Julia. She had a daughter who married Gaius Octavius. Octavius and Octavia were the sons and daughters. Octavius is the grand nephew of Cæsar. Mark Anthony was overly arrogant, emotional, and Cæsar made certain that he would not rule Rome. Cæsar named Octavius as his heir. Roman adoption often takes place, and the person that you adopt has your power and authority. You recognize the adopted person as having the same power as you. Octavius became the heir and he still had to fight to get there. And his name was Gaius Julius Cæsar Octavius (?). He had a second wife, Julia, she was married thrice. Once for love, but her father forced her to marry someone else and they produced many children. The most famous one of this group was Agrapina. There was a woman that Octavius loved, Drusilla, but she was married to Tiberius Claudius Nero and she had two famous sons by him. Drusis was the second, handsome and charming. Two families closely allied, the Claudians and the Julians. Her next husband adopted the two sons. Germanicus was a great general and Tiberius envied him. He had to go to his brother’s line for an heir, so he adopted Germanicus (a military genius). He had nine children, and they were to be a source of some interest. Caligula had a sister who married into the Hanabarbas, and Agrapina was the sister of Caligula, and they had a sun, Lucius Domicius Hanabarbas. When the adoption system broke down, Caligula was absolutely insane and named no adoptive sons. Adoption was one of the more important words when it came to Roman rule.

b. Caligula did not adopt an heir and someone was chosen at his death. I think Claudius was made ruler. He did adopt a son, Lucius Domicius Hanibarbas, and he was called Nero.

c. Paul uses the word of ultimate genius. Nero, one of the most brutal rulers, came to the throne in the time of Paul. Excessively cruel.

d. Paul was a great genius. He had been wealthy; but he had other supergrace blessings to take the place of it.

3. The mechanics of adoption. Positional truth in Ephesians 1:4,5 gives us the mechanics. By means of the baptism of the Holy Spirit every believer enters into union with Christ. Positional truth is the mechanics of adoption. The word tithêmi (τίθημι) [pronounced TIHTH-ā-mee], the verb from thesis (θέσις) [pronounced THEH-sihs], is fulfilled by the baptism of the spirit - 1Corinthians 12:13. At the moment of salvation every believer is an adult son.

a. Even as He has chosen us for Himself in Him before the beginning of the world that we should be saints [royal family] and blameless before Him; in love, having pre-designed us for the purpose of adoption [which is a part of the salvation ministry of the Holy Spirit] as adult sons for Himself [which includes the power and position of a permanent royalty] (Ephesians 1:4–5)

b. God took all kinds of people and adopted us into the royal family. We are God’s heirs.

4. The time of adoption is the point of salvation - John 3:3,7; 1:12; Galatians 3:26; Titus 3:5. The son is like a slave until he turns 14 and then he will be given a toga and he will be recognized as an adult son. As a slave, that parallels our lives as unbelievers. We only glorify God through reaching spiritual maturity. The mechanics are the believer is put into union with Christ.

a. The son is under the authority of these various tutors appointed by his father and he is, in effect, a slave to them.

b. At age 14, he is given to toga virilus. Rome is how we understand these passages and doctrines.

6. God has a personal adoption of His royal family; and a national adoption (of Israel, with the 4 covenants).

7. The implications of adoption are freedom to have relationship with God and serve Him - Galatians 4:5. Remember that adoption as well as salvation in general gives us freedom toward God, not freedom in the human race. Therefore full time Christian service is nothing more or less than the believer free to have relationship with God - Romans 8:15.

8. There is also a future aspect of adoption - Romans 8:23, the resurrection body, minus the old sin nature, minus human good. In other words, the future aspect of adoption is ultimate sanctification.

9. Israel, as a nation, has a very special adoption. Israel has a future national adoption. Paul will be adopted as a Church Age believer; and as a Jew.

3. The mechanics of adoption. Positional truth in Ephesians 1:4,5 gives us the mechanics. By means of the baptism of the Holy Spirit every believer enters into union with Christ. Positional truth is the mechanics of adoption. The word tithêmi (τίθημι) [pronounced TIHTH-ā-mee], the verb from qesij, is fulfilled by the baptism of the spirit - 1Corinthians 12:13. At the moment of salvation every believer is an adult son.

4. The time of adoption is the point of salvation - John 3:3,7; 1:12; Galatians 3:26; Titus 3:5.

5. The implications of adoption are freedom to have relationship with God and serve Him - Galatians 4:5. Remember that adoption as well as salvation in general gives us freedom toward God, not freedom in the human race. Therefore full time Christian service is nothing more or less than the believer free to have relationship with God - Romans 8:15.

6. There is also a future aspect of adoption - Romans 8:23, the resurrection body, minus the old sin nature, minus human good. In other words, the future aspect of adoption is ultimate sanctification.

The verb “baptize” and the noun “baptism” are Greek words that are not translated but transliterated. We know the etymology because of the use of the word in ancient Greek literature. They are words which have come down to us through three different Greek languages over a period of 1000 years. Before these words got into the New Testament they were a thousand years old. So we know exactly what they mean. The Greek word for baptize means to identify one thing with another, to identify with “something else.”

Homer, in the IX book of The Odyssey, used the word baptize in his analogy of the spear entering the eye of the Cyclops and with the immersing of hot steel in water by the smith: the steel was identified with the water.

Herodotus used the word baptize in baptizing a new spear in the blood of a pig which had been sacrificed to the god of war: the spear was identified with its intent, to draw blood. When the Spartans went to war they always took an oath to kill the enemy and in doing so they plunged it into the pig’s blood. That was called the baptism of the spear. It was now a warrior’s spear, it had touched blood. So the point of the spear, which is something, goes into something else (pig’s blood) which has been offered as a sacrifice to the god of war.

Euripides used baptize in identifying a sunken ship with the sea. The “something else” was the bottom of the sea. He said the ship was baptized in the sea. Thus, the connotation of the word is always identification with “something else” and that is what baptizo means. It means to put something into something else, and that is all.

We know this because there are seven baptisms found in the Bible. Four of them are dry and three of them are wet, but in each of these baptisms something or someone is identified with something else. That is what baptizo really means. “Baptize” is not an English word, and the only way to translate it is give it it’s proper meaning: to identify, to identify something with something else.

To summarize: Baptizo or baptise means to identify. That is the translation of the noun and “to identify” is the verb. This was true in the days of Homer. Homer used these words in the sense of identification. Then in the days of the great Greek historians of the fifth century BC, Herodotus and Thucydides used it. Euripides used it. And always with great consistency the verb and the nouns have meant identification. They connote identification. Something is identified with something else. Homer talks about the crafty Ulysses putting the sharpened beam into the eye of Cyclops. he says the plunging of the beam made a hissing noise like a man who smelt iron when he dips the iron into the water, and he used the word bapto, identifies it, so that the iron is tempered. So the word has been used extensively so there was never any excuse for a transliteration. The translation should be “identification.”

Baptize means to identify: To be made one with. It means something so identified with something else that its nature or character is changed, or represents a real change that has already taken place.

a. Baptism of Moses — 1Corinthians 10:1,2. The children of Israel are identified with Moses and the cloud as they pass through the Red Sea.

b. Baptism of the cross or cup — Matthew 20:22; 2Corinthians 5:21. Jesus Christ drank the cup filled with our sins — identified with our sin and bore it on the cross. He was made sin for us — 1Peterer 2:24.

c. Baptism of the Holy Spirit — (Believer), 1Corinthians 12:13. The believer at the point of salvation is placed into the body of Christ. He is identified then as a believer, as a Christian — Acts 1:5; Romans 6:3,4; Galatians 3; Colossians 2:12, Ephesians 4:5.

d. Baptism of fire — (Unbelievers), the baptism of judgement on all believers: Battle of Armageddon, Matthew 25:31, 33; 3:11; Luke 3:16; 2Thessalonians 1:7-9.

2. Ritual Baptisms: (Representative Identification) Water is used. Water is symbolic of something else, but the individual is really identified with the water.

a. Baptism of John — Matthew 3:6, 11a. Water is symbolic of the Kingdom of God which John preached. People, when baptized by John were indicating, in effect: “I have previously believed in Christ, I am now symbolizing that identification with His Kingdom by baptism.”

b. Baptism of Jesus. Unique Baptism. Water was used. Jesus Christ was NOT a sinner. Water is symbolic of the Father’s will. Jesus Christ identified Himself with the Father’s will in the execution of salvation — Matthew 3:13-17. We cannot “follow the Lord in baptism” as to His purpose (securing our redemption) but can duplicate the mode of His

c. Baptism of the believer in the Church Age — Matthew 28:9. Water represents the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Believers are identified with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection. It symbolizes retroactive and current positional truth. It is the ritual of the real baptism of the Holy Spirit. It is thus a picture of Spirit baptism.

i. The person going into the water is identified with the water, and he is saying in effect, “I am identified with Him in His death.”

ii. The person coming out of the water is identified with the air which represents: Identification with Christ in His resurrection; The believer giving testimony to current positional truth — allowing His resurrection life to live through us.

iii. Ritual without reality is meaningless. Water baptism is the ritual (picture) of the real (Baptism of the Holy Spirit). The believer needs doctrine before baptism, i.e. positional truth: retroactive positional truth , current positional truth, experiential positional truth, human good versus divine good. He should understand the difference between relationship and fellowship.

iv. The believer was baptized in the early church very soon after salvation. Reason: Because as soon as the individual was saved he was given a long lesson in Bible doctrine. Immediately upon understanding the basics the individual was baptized. An individual should never be baptized until he understands the doctrine behind the ritual.

1. The verb “baptize” and the noun “baptism” are Greek words that are not translated but transliterated. We know the etymology because of the use of the word in ancient Greek literature. They are words which have come down to us through three different Greek languages over a period of 1000 years. Before these words got into the New Testament they were a thousand years old. So we know exactly what they mean. The Greek word for baptize means to identify one thing with another, to identify with “something else.”

2. Homer, in the IX book of The Odyssey, used the word baptize in his analogy of the spear entering the eye of the Cyclops and with the immersing of hot steel in water by the smith: the steel was identified with the water.

3. Herodotus used the word baptize in baptizing a new spear in the blood of a pig which had been sacrificed to the god of war: the spear was identified with its intent, to draw blood. When the Spartans went to war they always took an oath to kill the enemy and in doing so they plunged it into the pig’s blood. That was called the baptism of the spear. It was now a warrior’s spear, it had touched blood. So the point of the spear, which is something, goes into something else (pig’s blood) which has been offered as a sacrifice to the god of war.

4. Euripides used baptize in identifying a sunken ship with the sea. The “something else” was the bottom of the sea. He said the ship was baptized in the sea. Thus, the connotation of the word is always identification with “something else” and that is what baptizo means. It means to put something into something else, and that is all.

5. We know this because there are seven baptisms found in the Bible. Four of them are dry and three of them are wet, but in each of these baptisms something or someone is identified with something else. That is what baptizo really means. “Baptize” is not an English word, and the only way to translate it is give it it’s proper meaning: to identify, to identify something with something else.

6. To summarize: Baptizo or baptise means to identify. That is the translation of the noun and “to identify” is the verb. This was true in the days of Homer. Homer used these words in the sense of identification. Then in the days of the great Greek historians of the fifth century BC, Herodotus and Thucydides used it. Euripides used it. And always with great consistency the verb and the nouns have meant identification. They connote identification. Something is identified with something else. Homer talks about the crafty Ulysses putting the sharpened beam into the eye of Cyclops. he says the plunging of the beam made a hissing noise like a man who smelt iron when he dips the iron into the water, and he used the word bapto, identifies it, so that the iron is tempered. So the word has been used extensively so there was never any excuse for a transliteration. The translation should be “identification.”

A. Baptize means to identify: To be made one with. It means something so identified with something else that its nature or character is changed, or represents a real change that has already taken place.

a. Baptism of Moses — 1Corinthians 10:1,2. The children of Israel are identified with Moses and the cloud as they pass through the Red Sea.

d. Baptism of fire — (Unbelievers), the baptism of judgement on all believers: Battle of Armageddon, Matthew 25:31, 33; 3:11; Luke 3:16; 2Thessalonians 1:7-9.

2. Ritual Baptisms: (Representative Identification) Water is used. Water is symbolic of something else, but the individual is really identified with the water.

i. The person going into the water is identified with the water, and he is saying in effect, “I am identified with Him in His death.”

The first use of the word “cup” is in Matthew 26:39 (The Cross). The cup contained the sins of the world. Jesus Christ was sinless — 2Corinthians 5:21. The Father judged those sons — Isaiah 53:4-6.

Christ drank from the cup — John 18:11. Drinking from the cup is a picture of the judgement of God’s wrath. which fell upon the Son when He drank (when He bore the sins of the world). God’s wrath is against sin but the sins were poured out upon Christ who drank the cup to the bottom (bore the sins of the whole world), therefore the Father’s wrath was poured out upon Him.

The Father rejected human good for future judgement. The individual chooses human good for divine good (the cross). The work of Christ on the cross was divine good. If one rejects divine good (Christ’s work) they stand on their own merit (human good). Anyone standing on human good will have a cup from which he will drink, containing the wrath of God.

Jesus Christ deliberately drank from the cup: volition of His humanity. He received the judgement for our sins.

The alternative: Either accept Christ drinking the cup for you on the cross, or accept the wrath of God on yourself. If you reject the cross, then the alternative is the wrath of God.

In the Tribulation Jesus Christ becomes the judge and He pours out His vials (drinking cups) of judgement on religious unbelievers — Revelation 16.

When He comes, second advent: Unbelievers will drink the cup because they did not accept His drinking cup for them.

The baptism of the Holy Spirit did not occur in the Old Testament or in any previous dispensation — Acts 1:5, future tense. The baptism of the Holy Spirit was prophesied by John the Baptist — Matthew 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16. The mechanics for the baptism of the Holy Spirit is given in 1Corinthians 12:13. The Holy Spirit enters the believer into union with Christ at the moment of salvation. It happened the first time on the Day of Pentecost.

The unification of believers is dependent upon the baptism of the Holy Spirit (this only occurs at the moment of salvation). The implication of the baptism H/S are given in Galatians 3:26-28. Principle: All social distinctions are destroyed. The principle of retroactive identification is brought out in Romans 6:3-4; Colossians 2:12.

The baptism of the Holy Spirit begins the Church Age — Compare: Matthew 16:18 (Says the Church is future); Acts 1:5; 2:3. Key verses: Acts 11:15-17 — says the baptism of the Holy Spirit took place on the Day of Pentecost. 1Corinthians 12:13, “one body”: the body of Christ, Colossians 1:18.

The baptism of the Holy Spirit is the basis for positional truth — Ephesians 1:3-6. It is not an experience, it is NOT speaking in tongues or ecstatics. The aorist tense of 1Corinthians 12:13, once and for all, plus the phrase “we all” (all who believe), not just some.

— we are actually looking at the ritual related to this spiritual circumcision. “Buried” is the aorist passive participle from the compound verb sunqaptw. Sun means “with,” qaptw means to be buried. It should be translated “Having been buried with.” It is an aorist tense: point of salvation. Passive voice: you received this burial, you didn’t bury yourself.

“with him” — we have the locative of a)utoj, a pronoun used here for Jesus Christ. It is in the locative form to indicate union with Christ — “Having been buried with him” or “in him.” This is the positional truth of Romans 6.

Then we have a prepositional phrase, the preposition e)n plus the instrumental of baptisma. Baptisma is in the instrumental case — “Having been buried in him by means of the baptism.” There is a definite article here.

We have to remember that baptisma which is a noun, baptizw which is a verb, and baptw which is a verb, are all words which have come down to us through three different Greek languages over a period of 1000 years. Before these words got into the New Testament they were a thousand years old. So we know exactly what they mean. The worst thing that ever happened to the Christian church in the English speaking world is when these words were transliterated. For example, baptizw is transliterated “baptise.” But it isn’t a translation. Only a translation tells us what is going on. It is legitimate only to transliterate the proper names of people and geographical locations, and so on — rivers, mountains, cities; but it is never legitimate to transliterate a verb like baptizw. It should be translated. That has not been done and that is a part of the great problem. Baptizw or baptise means to identify. That is the translation of the noun and “to identify” is the verb. This was true in the days of Homer. Homer used these words in the sense of identification. Then in the days of the great Greek historians of the fifth century BC, Herodotus and Thucydides used it. Euripides used it. And always with great consistency the verb and the nouns have meant identification. They connote identification. Something is identified with something else. Homer talks about the crafty Ulysses putting the sharpened beam into the eye of Cyclops. he says the plunging of the beam made a hissing noise like a man who smelt iron when he dips the iron into the water, and he used the word baptw, identifies it, so that the iron is tempered. So the word has been used extensively so there was never any excuse for a transliteration. The translation should be identification.

Baptisms (by Dr. George E. Meisinger)
Chafer Theological Seminary
cts@school.com

When one hears the word "baptism," it is natural to assume water baptism. In many people’s minds water and baptism are inseparable.

The word "baptism" comes from the Greek word baptizo. In the fourth century B.C., Aristophanes used the term of dipping or plunging a cup into a bowl of wine to draw out the wine.[1]

Polybius in the second century B.C., used baptizo to describe a sunken ship, obviously immersed.[2]

The Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) uses the term to describe a Syrian general, Naaman, who plunged himself (baptizo) seven times into the Jordan River (2Kings 5:14). In these three instances, whatever or whoever was "baptized" was immersed.

The term, however, was also used metaphorically without involving water. For example, in a papyrus dated about 150 B.C., the individual "baptized" was overwhelmed or flooded, not by water, but by calamities.[3]

To be baptized in the ancient world, then, was to be engulfed by something, whether wine, water or trouble. The term emphasizes the notion of "submerge," or "immerse."

If we ask what meaning "baptism" has, we find help in an ancient custom that employed the term baptizo. Before going to war, Spartan soldiers took their spears and swords and plunged (baptized) them in blood.

The Egyptians had a custom when a crocodile dragged a person into the Nile and drowned him. When his body was recovered, the priests embalmed the remains, arrayed it in beautiful robes and placed it in a sacred sarcophagus. They treated his body "'as one who is more than an ordinary being.' A man drowned in this way was called one who had been 'immersed' [baptized]."[4]

What do we learn from the Spartan and Egyptian usages of the term? The Spartan's immersion was to identify their weapons with their intended purpose, which for them was warfare. A similar situation exists for the Christian. His baptism publicly identifies him with God's purpose for his life, which for them is to glorify God (1Corinthians 10:31).

The Egyptians believed that the immersion of the drowned man identified him with special status. He was no longer ordinary, but extraordinary. So it is with Christians. Their baptism identifies them with their new extraordinary place in the plan of God: they are sons of God, royal priests, and raised to newness of life.

It is likewise with the various New Testament baptisms: Each act of baptism identifies the individual with something suggested by its context.

Of the eight baptisms that follow, the first five involve no water, that is, no one got wet. The final three baptisms involve water. Yet in all cases the baptisms identified those baptized with something.[5]

In this passage the apostle speaks of Israel (“our fathers”), all of whom were baptized unto Moses, the Pillar of Cloud and the sea. Because Moses was God's appointed leader, by baptism unto Moses they were identified with Moses and God’s purpose for Israel through Moses. The cloud spoke of the Lord and divine guidance. The sea, which God parted, spoke of divine omnipotence. Thus, the baptism of Israel identified the Jews with God's omnipotent plan for Israel, under Moses, between the Exodus and entrance into Canaan. By the way, no Israelite got wet!

The "cup" refers to Jesus Christ's suffering on the cross for the sins of the world. Jesus Christ identified with our sins in that God "made Him who knew no sin to be [a sin-bearer] for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2Corinthians 5:21; cp. 1Peterer 2:24). Being our sin-bearer, Christ was immersed in our sin and died, paying the penalty for our sin and guilt. He drank the cup of our suffering for us. We could also call this the baptism of the Cross.

3. The baptism of fire (Matthew 3:11; Luke 3:16-17; cp. Isaiah 4:1-6; 2 Thessaloni-ans 1:7-10).

This fire speaks of divine judgment that destroys the chaff (unbelievers) in Israel. These unbelievers will be identified or immersed with fire or divine judgment at Christ's second coming. God removes them from the earth at that time (Matthew 24:37-41; cp. 25:31-46). Three parables deal with the baptism of fire: (a) The wheat and the tares (Matthew 13:24-30), (b) the good and bad fish (Matthew 13:47-51), and (c) the wise and foolish virgins (Matthew 25:1-13).

In this baptism, which takes place for every believer at the moment of faith in Christ, the Holy Spirit identifies each Christian with the body of Christ (1Corinthians 12:13; Galatians 3:26-28; Colossians 1:18; 2:12). This identification makes each one a "new creation" in Christ (2Corinthians 5:17), thus granting him a new, perfect, and eternally right relationship with God.

Noah's ark speaks of how the baptism of the Spirit perfectly delivers a believer from judgment. Peter shows that Noah's experience of full deliverance in the ark was a type of the baptism of the Spirit. The ark speaks of God's perfect provision for all who place their trust in Jesus Christ. Noah was a believer and, therefore, placed in the ark, identified with it, and thus delivered from the judgment of the flood. The believer who trusts Jesus Christ is placed in the ark of positional truth and, consequently, delivered forever from eternal judgment.

This is the first of the three baptisms that involve water. John immersed believers in water. The water spoke of their faith in John's message concerning the coming Messiah and of their repentance from sin because they were now in the kingdom of the regenerate. After Pentecost (Acts 2), John's baptism was inadequate because it was limited to the time of Christ's earthly ministry. For that reason, Paul later rebaptized John's disciples to identify them with the new Church Age and its distinctives (Acts 18:25-26; 19:3).

John the Baptist immersed Jesus Christ in water. The water spoke of God the Father's will for His Son. By His baptism, Christ testified to His willingness to fulfill God's will for His life. This was a unique, never to be repeated baptism.

8. The baptism of believers (Matthew 28:19; Acts 16:14-15, 33; 18:8; 19:5; 1Corinthians 1:13-17).

Immersion in water symbolizes, or gives testimony to, a Christian’s immersion into union with Christ by the Holy Spirit. This further identifies us with Christ's death and resurrected life (cp. Romans 6:1-14). What believers' baptism portrays is a deduction derived from details of the baptism of the Spirit. More follows in a moment.

There was a time when baptism was a great troubling issue in the church. For example, after the Reformation, there was a group of believers called the Anabaptists who believed that one should only baptize people after they had become Christians. Thus if one had been baptized before trusting Christ as his Savior, they baptized him again after he became a Christian.

That is why people called them Anabaptists: ana means "again." There were many who took exception to that! They believed that if they had baptized someone before his salvation, it was sufficient. They believed it so strongly that widespread hostility broke out against the Anabaptists and many were martyred for their convictions:

In later centuries heated conflicts broke out among some believers about whether one should be baptized by sprinkling, pouring, or immersion. Most denominations believe that immersion is acceptable, but some also think that you may merely pour or sprinkle water on the person being baptized. One thing remains clear, however, in spite of all of the fuss that people have generated over the centuries, the New Testament commands baptism.

In keeping with our study under #8 above, when a Christian is baptized in water, he testifies to his identification with Christ. God baptizes the believer by the agency of the Holy Spirit into union with Christ (1Corinthians 12:13), thus making him a part of the body of Christ, the Church (Colossians 1:18). In this way the believer is identified or associated with the Head of the body, Christ Himself, and with the rest of the body, his fellow believers.

To develop the symbolism of water baptism further, we may say that as a believer is immersed in water, he signifies his identification with Christ's death on the Cross and how that washed away his sins through faith in Christ (Colossians 2:12, 20; 3:3; cp. Acts 22:16; 1Corinthians 6:11; Revelation 7:14). As he comes up out of the water, he signifies his identification with Christ's resurrected life and how he may now walk in "newness of life" (Romans 6:3-4; Colossians 2:12; 3:1).

Salvation is by grace through faith alone in Christ alone. Thus, baptism does not save anyone, or help to save anyone. Man can do nothing by way of good works to acquire or maintain eternal life (Romans 4:4-5; 11:6; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5).

1. Acts 8:12-13. "When they believed [i.e., 'after' they believed] . . . they were baptized." The sequence is first faith, which saved, then water baptism.

2. Acts 10:44-48. The sequence is clear: Peter preached, the Holy Spirit fell on those who heard the word (and believed) "then Peter answered . . . and ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ." Note that he ordered or commanded, thus did not make water baptism optional for those who had believed.

3. Acts 9:17-18; 22:6-16, esp. 16. The sequence of events is (a) Paul was born-again in Damascus following a challenge from Ananias (Acts 22:16), (b) the Holy Spirit then filled him (Acts 9:17), and (c) finally Ananias baptized Paul with water (Acts 9:18; 22:16).

4. Romans 4:1-4, 10-11. This passage gives us an extraordinary illustration of how ritual follows inner spiritual reality. Abraham first believed then God imputed righteousness to Abraham while he was still uncircumcised. Then he was circumcised. In fact, the Lord did not have Abraham circumcised until 25 years after he was declared righteous (cp. Hebrews 11:8; Acts 7:2-4 and Genesis 12:1-3 with 17:9-19).

The Didache (ca. A.D. 150)[7] does not allow for baptism until the reality precedes the ritual. It claims that "instruction precedes baptism."[8]

Josephus, a first century historian, states "that the washing (with water) . . . [was] not in order to the putting away of some sins . . . [but presupposed] that the soul was thoroughly purified beforehand by righteousness."[9]

What about those too sick to baptize? Or a dying man who believes on the street following a fatal car accident? What about the repentant thief on the cross next to Christ who put his faith in Him (Luke 23:29-43)? Also Scripture declares Zaccheus (Luke 19:9) and Cornelius (Acts 10:7) to be saved before they were baptized.

It does not contribute to our salvation. God gives each new convert at least 33 things at the moment of salvation that place him in perfect and eternal relationship to God (Hebrews 10:14). One cannot improve upon such perfection with or without water.

It does not make one more spiritual. A Christian achieves spiritual status only through walking by means of the Holy Spirit and through growth in God's Word, not through water.

Water baptism has no magic in it and imparts no mystical or spiritual potential. It confers no grace to those who are baptized, that is, it does not guarantee to them heaven, spiritual success, forgiveness, a greater potential to become saved at a later age, nor secure the removal of sin, whether the sin nature, imputed sin, or personal sin. Water baptism is a picture or symbol of an already existing inner reality.

In a word, "yes!" But why? John baptized Jesus Christ and we are to imitate Christ to fulfill the standard of righteousness as He did (cp. Matthew 3:15).

Christ baptized others through His disciples (John 3:22, 26; cp. 4:1-2), showing His approval. In the Great Commission, the resurrected Christ commanded His followers to baptize those they disciple, just days before the Church dispensation began (Matthew 28:19-20). In obedience to Christ's command, the apostles commanded the newly converted to be baptized (Acts 2:38).

The New Testament church practiced water baptism as an integral tradition of the present age (Acts 19:4; 1Corinthians 1:13-17). In 1Corinthians 1:13-17 (cp. esp. 1:17 with 4:15) a clear-cut distinction is made between the Gospel and baptism. Paul led all of them to Christ through the gospel, but only baptized the few mentioned in chapter 1. He delegated the baptizing of the rest to his evangelistic team members, e.g., Sosthenes and Timothy (1Corinthians 1:1; 16:10).

The fact remains that though he did not emphasize baptism, he did in fact baptize. It is one thing to say that Paul did not emphasize baptism, but it is non sequitur to say that because he chose to delegate the ritual we should not baptize. Paul did baptize some, and since he thought it important enough to do that, we may assume he, as Christ before Him, delegated the rest to others!

By the way, throughout the centuries a baptism service has been a time of rejoicing, not a chore to be endured, or to be gotten over as quickly as possible.

Let me illustrate a positive attitude regarding baptism.[10] At a large church in Elkton, Maryland, a visitor came to a Sunday morning service. During the message he listened with great interest and at the conclusion of the service the preacher gave his usual appeal for people to believe in Christ for eternal life and forgiveness. This visitor showed that he wanted to believe in Christ.

The custom of that church is to baptize new believers on the spot. Consequently -- and I quote the preacher now -- "When he came into the baptistry, I dropped him into the water and out again to walk in the newness of life. He came up out of the water clapping his hands and shouting, `Hot dog, Hot dog, Hot dog.’

"Our people roared with laughter. I quickly asked them for silence as I explained that this . . . man had not been around the church and didn't know about ‘Amen, Praise the Lord, and Hallelujah.’ His word was ‘Hot dog,’ and he was praising the Lord with the only vocabulary he knew."

The point is that baptism is not only necessary as a fulfillment of righteous living, but a time of rejoicing as the new believer thus testifies to his faith in the Savior. This expression of faith should also be a catalyst of joy to those observing.

Three ways of baptizing exist in the Christian world today: sprinkling, pouring, and immersion. Does the New Testament show that the first Christians followed one or the other?

The primary usage of baptizo is to "immerse" or "dip." There are other Greek words for pouring (ekxeo)[11] and dipping (bapto).[12]

The verb "to baptize" is often used with prepositions (eis and en) whose primary meanings are "into" and "in" that denote to immerse completely.[13]

Circumstances attending the administration of baptism further denote immersion. For example:

· "Coming up out of the water" (Mark 1:9-10). We best explain this as coming up out of the water that had immersed the new convert.

· John baptized near the city of Salim "because there was much water there" (John 3:23). Other places also had much water, e.g., the Jordan River (Matthew 3:13, 16). The best way to explain the mention of “much” water is that more than a pitcher full of water was used to accomplish baptism. Why? Immersion was practiced.

· When Philip baptized the Ethiopian eunuch, "they both went down into the water." When done "they came up out of the water" (Acts 8:38-39). This, again, we best explain by an immersion.

Immersion is the best mode to picture our identification with Christ's death and resurrection (Romans 6). Going completely down into the water speaks of our death and burial with Christ (Romans 6:3-4). Coming up out of the water speaks of our resurrection with Christ unto newness of life (Romans 6:5b, 8, 11b).

Early church history: The Didache allowed pouring but only if no other means were available. It draws a clear distinction between pouring (ekxeo) and immersion (baptizo). Historian Philip Schaff says immersion was the original form,[14] and Martin Luther preferred it.[15] John Calvin says that immersion was the custom of the ancient church, though he thought the mode inconsequential.[16]

Proselyte baptism and John the Baptist's baptism were immersion. It does not make sense to claim that the church practiced something different without sound evidence that they did. Application: if you have not been baptized since believing in Christ, you should be immersed. If, however, someone poured or sprinkled you after your new birth, that is acceptable. Scripture does not command the mode, but does the act! If one has a choice in the matter, though, it is best to follow the New Testament pattern.

Baptism is for Christians who have believed and want to bring forth fruit in keeping with their repentance (deduction from Matthew 3:8). They also want to fulfill the process of discipleship for their lives (Matthew 28:19) and accept Christ's authority and thus are obedient (Acts 2:38).

Note that though Paul did not emphasize baptism in his ministry, that is, he did not always do it himself, yet he still did do it, or had others do it for him. And he did it as late as the 5th decade of the first century in both Corinth and Ephesus (1Corinthians 1 and Acts 19).

See Chart number two in the appendix that provides an overview of the historical occurrences of water baptism in the first century.

If we should baptize only those who believe, what does this mean for "infant baptism?"[17] Many parents rightfully want the best for their children, thus they have them baptized where this is practiced. Yet there are at least 7 reasons for not baptizing infants and for parents to wait until a later time:

1. There is no evidence in the New Testament of someone baptizing a baby. To do it, therefore, is to practice it without biblical precedent or teaching.

2. Sometimes appeal is made to "household baptism" (whole families baptized) as a reason for baptizing babies. This, however, is not valid because the texts show that those baptized had believed, something a baby cannot yet do (Acts 11:14 & 17-18; 16:31-34; 1Corinthians 1:16 cp. with 16:15).

3. Others appeal to the Lord's blessing of little children (Matthew 19:13-15), insisting those acts justify baptizing infants. Yet blessing and baptizing are different. To bless is to seek God's benefits for! To baptize is to perform a ritual that pictures an already existing inner spiritual reality.

4. Some people appeal to 1Corinthians 7:14, which says that children are "holy" or "sanctified." Yet sanctification and baptism are two different things. What the passage does say is that God regards the children of a mixed marriage (believer + unbeliever) to be legitimate (as opposed to illicit).

5. Some attempt to create an analogy between circumcision and baptism, appealing to Colossians 2:11-13. This too cannot stand because:

· Circumcision and baptism are concerned with separate ages: Israel and the Church. For Israel circumcision was a sign of their national relationship with the Lord. For the church baptism is a sign of identification with Christ's death and life.

· Circumcision and baptism involve different covenants, that is, on the one hand, the Abrahamic and Mosaic covenants and, on the other hand, the New Covenant. Under the Mosaic Covenant the Lord commanded to circumcise 8 day old boys. Under the New Covenant, we should baptize all who believe, whether old or young, male or female (Acts 8:12).

· God gave the sign of circumcision only to Abraham's descendants, thus Jonah did not ask the Assyrians to be circumcised. Nor did Elisha seek to circumcise Naaman, the Syrian.

6. There is an implication in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20). Here Christ commands Christians to make disciples by baptizing and teaching converts. You cannot "make disciples" of babies for they cannot be taught, thus it is senseless to baptize them.

· By symbolism, i.e., you would not bury one physically before his death, so similarly you should not bury one symbolically in baptism before his identification with Christ's death.

· By history: the Didache did not allow for infant baptism for it claimed that "instruction precedes baptism." Historically, it appears, infant baptism arose because of the erroneous teachings of sacramentalism [that baptism confers a special or mystical grace] and baptismal regeneration [that forgiveness requires water baptism].[18]

· By attempts to rationalize its existence. Many advocates claim that the power of infant baptism is not tied to the exact moment of administration, but looks forward to the child's later years. They sometimes say that baptism becomes effective when the child's "dawning" intelligence awakens to what took place. The Bible does not claim that any type of power exists in water baptism itself. Furthermore, the Bible portrays baptism as taking place after the "dawned intelligence" has believed in the Lord Jesus Christ.

· It is a subtle deception for it promotes a false security about salvation. It blurs the fact that the only means of salvation is faith alone in Christ alone. Thus, it works against one's voluntary act of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

· It warps sound theology because infant baptism minimizes the complete sufficiency of faith in God's promises to effect salvation (cp. 1Peterer 1:23).

· Infant baptism promotes a type of legalism because some groups that practice it exclude the infants of parents whose faith is nominal or insincere. Church leaders then may arrogate to themselves the ability to discern how sincere parents are, or to fathom their motivation--something only God can do (1Corinthians 4:5).

· Though infant baptism is not directly prohibited in the New Testament, it is better to carry out baptism as Scripture shows. Follow the Word; do not invent something not there.

· One should not employ infant baptism for "infant dedication" because (1) it has no precedent in the Word, and (2) it adds a different and biblically foreign meaning to baptism.

Paul rebaptized a group of John the Baptist's disciples, who were probably true believers (Acts 19:1-4). In fact, there is no reason to suppose that if they had died between their conversion under John and before their baptism by Paul that they would not have gone to heaven.

Prior to their encounter with Paul, however, they had not been baptized by the Holy Spirit and thus added to the Body of Christ, the Church (1Corinthians 12:13; Colossians 1:18).

Paul’s concern in Acts 19 was that they receive the Spirit and thus be identified with Christ in his death, burial and resurrection (cp. Roman 6:1-14). Then Paul’s water baptism would take on a new meaning for them, matching their new inner reality and position in Christ.

The implication is that rebaptism should be done if it's a case of being rebaptized as a Church Age believer. Of course, we are no longer in a transitional period such as those in the book of Acts. So what is the principle? Since the baptism of the Holy Spirit is a once-for-all-event, baptism should be done once-for-all after you have been born again.

As the enthusiastic convert who cried out "hot dog!" we should seek not only to "fulfill all righteousness," but also to rejoice at a baptism service. A baptism is foremost of all a symbol of one's new position in Jesus Christ and how through faith the Spirit identifies him with Christ's death and resurrection.

1. The big genuflex is the interim event between the Rapture and the Judgment Seat of Christ. Therefore, it is both the glorification of the Father's plan and the recognition of our Lord's battlefield royalty which was bestowed at His session. This will be the happiest moment of a person’s life.

2. At this time, the entire royal family is present, and they confess to the battlefield royalty of Jesus Christ. In opera, it is difficult to sing from a kneeling position; but this will be possible in a resurrection body.

3. This explains the phrase "every tongue shall confess to God. ." What is confessed is the fact that our Lord's royalty demands the resurrection of His royal family. We must have a resurrection body as He does because we are His family.

4. In resurrection body the entire royal family will identify the Head of the family, Jesus Christ, to the glory of the Father. In our moment of greatest happiness we will be talking about the Lord Jesus Christ. Our greatest moment of happiness will be thinking and talking about our Lord.

5. This explains the relationship between Romans 14:11 and Philippians 2:9-11. Therefore, also, the God the Father has exalted Him (Jesus Christ) to the maximum and He has bestowed upon Him the rank which is above every rank, in order that in the presence of Jesus (rapture of the church) every knee of heaven will bow, both the ones on earth (those who are raptured) and believers under the earth (those who died before the rapeture); and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord resulting in the glory of God the Father. The big genuflex is the moment of maximum +H which is perpetuated forever. It is followed by the Judgment Seat of Christ. We make that happiness meaningful by receiving our eternal rewards and decorations. However, you won't lose this fantastic happiness at the Judgment Seat of Christ even if you receive no reward, due to your failure in life. Our happiness is perpetuated forever. Imputation #7 is the reward, a blessing for the mature believer only.

6. Bob would love to be able to do something with this when you have all of the human good built up, and the human good will be burned. Bob would want us to suffer a bit if we wasted out time on human good; but then, he is not in charge.

1. Divine royalty. He is coequal with the other members of the Trinity. His title is "Son of God."

2. Jewish royalty. Mary is descended from Nathan; Joseph from Solomon. His title is "Son of David."

3. Battlefield royalty. The first and second royalties combine to form a third royalty at the cross. At the cross, our Lord received the judicial imputation of our sins, which provided salvation for all mankind, and was the strategic victory of the angelic conflict. This victory plus His resurrection, ascension, and session is the basis for our Lord's battlefield royalty. This unique royalty establishes Christ as the ruler of both regenerate man and elect angels forever. His title is "King of kings and Lord of lords."

4. This new battlefield royalty explains several passages in Revelation where Christ returns with the bride to be acknowledged by all; e.g., Revelation 19:12. And His eyes are like a flame of fire and on His head are many crowns, having a royal title that no one understood but He Himself.

5. Our Lord's new royal title is revealed in Scripture, Revelation 19:16, And He has a royal title which has been written on His robes and on His thighs, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

1. We can understand the confession of the royal family immediately following the Rapture based on the concept of Christ's battlefield royalty, for we will be in total awe of Him. We will have complete appreciation for the event. Before the Judgment Seat of Christ, we genuflect to the Lord Jesus Christ. We relate this to our very existence.

3. This moment will be the fulfillment of all our doctrine, and the realization of the purpose of our new birth. We will each personally praise the strategic victory of the angelic conflict and relate it to our very purpose for living, Romans 14:11.

4. Acknowledgment of the strategic victory precedes acknowledgment of the tactical victory. Strategy always precedes tactics.

5. Our praise of our Lord's strategic victory is our recognition of what Christ accomplished from the cross to the session.

6. The tactical victory will then be recognized at the Judgment Seat of Christ by the imputation of eternal rewards to all mature believers who will glorify Christ forever, Isaiah 53:4,11-12. Blessing and rewards which glorify Christ fulfill prophesies in the Old Testament. Isaiah 53:12b, "Then He will distribute the spoil to the great ones."

7. Christ was willing to suffer on the cross that we might share in the plunder of His victory. The big genuflex, our acknowledgment of Christ in eternity, will be the greatest moment of worship in history, full of great singing.

R. B. Thieme, Jr. Bible Ministries 5139 West Alabama, Houston, Texas 77056 (713) 621-3740

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A. Definition. Blessing by association is the overflow of divine blessing imparted to the mature believer. It is one of the categories of blessing which go through the grace pipeline to the mature believer. Every mature believer has people associated with him, believers or unbelievers, who receive blessing as a result of their association with him. This is one of the reasons why the wicked prosper.

1. Direct blessing from God goes to the person in association with the mature believer.

2. Indirect blessing from God occurs because the mature believer provides the blessing from his own prosperity. In fulfillment of Romans 12:13, he "contributes to the needs of the saints." The mature believer gives of his time, wealth, success, love, personality, and whatever the category of his prosperity might be.

a. A local church can make or break you. If the pastor is a jackass, you've had it. Local churches and Christian service organizations are destroying the objective of the Christian way of life, and have done more to distract believers than anything else.

b. Programs are distractions and do not cause spiritual growth. You are blessed by Bible doctrine communicated from the pastor. You are also blessed by association with someone else in the congregation.

c. When you get sucked into "improving the world," "social action," or "getting involved," then you lose out on being a blessing by association to others. Stay away from reform movements. You only save the country by taking in doctrine and reaching maturity.

2. Loved ones are a periphery of blessing, to include your husband or wife, children, mother or father. One mature family member blesses the entire family. You coast uphill when someone in your periphery cracks the maturity barrier. Any relative in your family can be blessed by your advance to maturity.

3. Professional life periphery includes your school system, coaches, teachers, students, administrators; hospital system; business associates; military organization; or any service organization.

4. Business association periphery includes a partnership, corporation, an investor, labor, or management.

5. Social periphery includes friends. However, be careful that you don't run around with the wrong crowd and get led astray. You will find your friends among like-minded believers. Stick with them. Watch out; don't run with unbelievers, because they are going in a different direction.

6. Geographical periphery includes your neighborhood, city, county, state, or nation.

D. The Heritage Aspect of Blessing by Association. When the mature believer dies,he is still a blessing by association to those left behind after his death. Those left behind are taken care of throughout their lifetime by God, even if they are antagonistic to Bible doctrine or are unbelievers. God continues to bless the bereaved loved ones, friends, and relatives.

E. Blessing by association overflows into historical impact. See the doctrine of the Pivot.

F. Blessing by association overflows into objectivity of the Christian life. Romans 12:14, "Keep on speaking well of those who persecute you and do not curse them."

G. Blessing by association is related to the rapport of the royal family of God, Romans 12:15.

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1. Spiritual blessings. These include sharing the perfect happiness of God and occupation with Christ as maximum category one love (toward God), which is greatly intensified in supergrace and ultra-supergrace. Many blessings accompany the believer's maximum love for the Lord Jesus Christ. The supergrace believer has great capacity for life, love, happiness, and blessing, and total appreciation for grace. He also receives the tremendous ability to face undeserved suffering in life with no complaining. For the supergrace believer, the intensification of spiritual blessings comes when he wears the shroud of maximum, unremitting, undeserved suffering to glorify God in the angelic conflict, and this suffering will not terminate until he departs this life. In the midst of it all, he still has perfect happiness, the "peace which surpasses all comprehension," PHI 4:7. The supergrace believer also has the ability to correctly interpret contemporary history, to evaluate current events in the light of the Word of God. He is free from slavery to the circumstances of life, and he adaptable to changing circumstances. The mature believer shines in time of historical disaster. He has grace orientation, freedom orientation, authority orientation, common sense, and a total sense of security, whether in prosperity or disaster.

2. Temporal blessings. These include material wealth, either received or acquired, as well as physical health. The supergrace believer can have professional prosperity, including a great influence on others, leadership dynamics, success, promotion, and recognition in one's sphere of life. Abraham had the privilege of receiving one of the greatest titles in the Bible, "friend of God." Moses was a successful ruler. Paul was the greatest communicator of all time. Jeremiah was the greatest prophet of all time. In supergrace, the believer will have the ability to assume responsibility and authority without emotional inspiration or false motivation. The supergrace believer can also have great social prosperity and great friends, as well as sexual prosperity with one's right man or right woman. In mental prosperity, the ability to think and concentrate increases. This gives the believer a greater capacity for life and a great deal of interest toward what is happening in everyday life. Every day will be meaningful. God will also grant cultural prosperity, which is maximum enjoyment of drama, art, literature, music, history, etc. Establishment prosperity includes enjoyment of freedom, privacy, and protection of life and property from criminals and reprisal.

3. Blessings by association. Those around a mature believer are blessed by their association or relationship with that person. There are two categories of blessings here. They are blessed either directly by God or indirectly from the supergrace believer as a result of the overflow of his supergrace blessings. These peripheral areas of blessing by association include loved ones, business life, social life, and the local church. There are also geographical blessings to the supergrace believer's city, state, and nation.

4. Historical blessings. The mature believer carries his generation, 2TI 1:5. He stabilizes his generation and even future historical generations. The ebb and flow of history does not disturb the tranquility or impact of the mature believer. He is the MAT 5:13-14 believer, "the salt of the earth" and "the light of the world." The supergrace believer is on the winning side of history, whereas the reversionist is caught up in the disasters of history and swept along with them, Ephesians 4:14, "As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming." The supergrace believer rides the crest of the wave of blessing. He rises above historical disaster.

5. Undeserved suffering. Only in time do we have the opportunity to glorify God under pressure, disaster, and undeserved suffering to prove to Satan and the fallen angels that Bible doctrine can handle any situation. God gives us the ability to handle suffering and turn suffering into blessing, Romans 8:28, Deu 23:5. A mature believer knows when he is under divine discipline or undeserved suffering. The former is unbearable; the latter is bearable. The supergrace believer's ability to handle undeserved suffering glorifies God and becomes evidence against Satan in his appeal trial. Undeserved suffering is also used by God to keep our eyes on Him and our focus on eternity, Revelation 2:10,2CO 12:9-10. Undeserved suffering also teaches us the value of Bible doctrine, Psalm 119:67-71. We read in Psalm 119:67, "Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep Thy word." Here, the psalmist is living in disastrous conditions and still says, "I keep Your word." God in wisdom deals with us as perfectly as only He can. He allows suffering, heartache, and disaster in our lives to draw us closer to Him.

6. Dying blessings (dying grace). Every believer has a choice in time between staying positive to Bible doctrine and receiving dying grace, or turning negative to doctrine and dying the sin unto death. For the supergrace believer, the curse of death with its pain and fear is removed, Hebrews 2:15. It is the greatest experience in life. The perfect happiness of the supergrace believer in time is exceeded only by his happiness in dying grace, 2Timothy 4:6-8. The mature believer has the best of life, greater blessing in dying, and better than the best for all eternity. As Psalm 116:15declares, "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His godly ones."

7. Surpassing grace blessings at the Judgment Seat of Christ. Surpassing grace is the optimum in spiritual achievement. It is the point of maximum blessing and reward, and the ultimate in glorifying Jesus Christ. "Surpassing" connotes something beyond supergrace and beyond time. Surpassing grace is the status of special blessings and rewards in eternity for the believer who has broken the maturity barrier in time.

1. Blood speaks of the WORK of Christ on the cross; blood represents the judgement of our sins while Christ was bearing them on the cross (spiritual death).

2. The phrase “blood of Christ” is a representative analogy to animal sacrifices in the Old Testament, demonstrating the fact that the work of Jesus Christ was presented by means of these blood sacrifices — Hebrews 9:22.

3. The physical death of the animal is analogous to the spiritual death of Christ.

4. Every animal sacrifice spoke of Jesus Christ. John 1:29, “Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world.”

5. The animal hadn’t done anything wrong. The animal was judged. In his judgement, the animal died physically.

6. Jesus Christ hadn’t done anything wrong. He was judged (for us). In His judgement the sins of the whole world were poured out on Him. In His judgement He died spiritually. No blood involved — Matthew 26:46.

7. Jesus Christ bled from His hands and His feet, and from His face where He had been beaten up — literal blood.

8. After He died physically they ran a spear into His side and blood and water (serum) came out, (John 19:34) indicating he was truly dead spiritually. He did not bleed to death. His throat was not slit like the animal sacrifices.

9. Jesus Christ said, after His work (spiritual death) was finished, “It is finished,” and then He said, “Father into thy hands I dismiss my spirit.” He dismissed His spirit but He did not bleed to death.

10. The bleeding of the animal (his judgement) is analogous to the spiritual death of Jesus Christ (His judgement for us). The judgement of the animal was physical death. The judgement of Christ for our sins was spiritual death.

11. The analogy is between the physical death of an innocent animal and the spiritual death of the sinless humanity of Jesus Christ.

12. There has to be a meeting of the two sides of the cross and that meeting is in the phrase “the blood of Christ,” which refers to the penalty of sin being paid — judgement for sin.

13. In the Old Testament the mercy seat was covered with the blood of the animal which had been judged by physical death.

14. The teaching of the death of Christ (Spiritual death — His judgement, Isaiah 53:9) before it occurred was by use of the blood sacrifices.

15. The significance of the blood in the death of Jesus Christ is that it relates to millions of people who were saved in the Old Testament as it relates to us — they are saved just as we are.

16. It sets up an analogy (Christ bearing our sins) between those who anticipated the cross historically and those who look back at it.

17. One must understand the entire significance of the person and work of Christ. On the cross He bore our sins, and made provision for our forgiveness and cleansing. This was through Christ bearing our sins, those sins being judged. The blood of Christ expresses this.

18. There is no need to offer animal sacrifices any more, because Christ’s sacrifice on the cross is once and for all.

19. It is apostasy to “plead the blood,” or to ask that the “blood cover us.” One does not “claim the blood,” instead one claims promises.

20. In revelation 12:11 “overcoming by the blood of the Lamb” refers to a Tribulational person accepting Christ as personal saviour, not “by” but “because of” the blood, and being protected because they have entered the plan of God.

21. The blood of Christ (His work on the cross) keeps on cleansing: 1 John 1:7,9.

a. When you believe in Christ, you are cleansed, and released from the penalty of sin through the person and work of Christ.

b. When you confess your sin as a believer, you are cleansed (Christian way of life).

1. This is the accusative singular of the direct object of ekklêsía (ἐκκλησὶα) [pronounced ek-klay-SEE-ah].

2. The church here refers to all believers of the Church Age, the royal family of God, a kingdom of priests.

4. Because of the baptism of the Holy Spirit the believer of this dispensation has a very perfect and very intimate relationship with Christ. This is called positional sanctification.

5. Therefore the church and/or the royal family occupies a very unique place in the angelic conflict.

6. There was no royal family until Christ was glorified at the right hand of the Father.

7. The royal family is directly related to the strategic victory of Christ on the cross, and all the way from the cross to His session.

a. Positional sanctification is described under two biblical words: ‘saint’ and the phrase ‘in Christ.’ These two words are used to designate the Church as the royal family of God in this dispensation.

b. Two words which form another concept: ‘body’ and ‘bride.’ This nomenclature relates us to the angelic conflict. The body is the Church on earth during this dispensation, the intensified stage of the angelic conflict. The bride is the Church in heaven after the Rapture. These two designations are very important and they cover many concepts of doctrine.

c. The English word ‘church.’ The Greek word, again, is ekklêsía (ἐκκλησὶα) [pronounced ek-klay-SEE-ah]. Five different meanings of ekklêsía (ἐκκλησὶα) [pronounced ek-klay-SEE-ah]:

i. The Attic Greek use, since this word first in the Classical Greek of Athens where it was used for the assembly Athenian citizens convened to conduct the affairs of state. The ekklêsía (ἐκκλησὶα) [pronounced ek-klay-SEE-ah] was all of the citizens of Athens coming together to make a decision.

ii. It was used in Old Testament usage for the assembly of Israel — Acts 7:38. Whenever in the New Testament the Old Testament assembly was mentioned ekklêsía (ἐκκλησὶα) [pronounced ek-klay-SEE-ah] was used. Every time Moses hauled the people together to chew them out during the period of the Exodus, whenever they were together, they were called ekklêsía (ἐκκλησὶα) [pronounced ek-klay-SEE-ah]. In other words, ‘assembly’ which is the literal meaning of ekklêsía (ἐκκλησὶα) [pronounced ek-klay-SEE-ah].

iii. Whenever Jews came together in a synagogue they were also known as ekklêsía (ἐκκλησὶα) [pronounced ek-klay-SEE-ah] or an assembly — Matthew 18:17.

iv. Under Hellenistic culture and the governments that grew out of the Alexandrian empire we have the assembly of a Hellenistic city state, as in Acts 19:25. Again, the citizens are called ekklêsía (ἐκκλησὶα) [pronounced ek-klay-SEE-ah].

v. The one found in the epistles of the New Testament and often in the book of Acts in its technical sense. There are two technical concepts. The most important, and the one that we find in Ephesians 5, is the universal church. Ekklêsía (ἐκκλησὶα) [pronounced ek-klay-SEE-ah] is used for the Church universal, that is, for all believers on the earth today — Ephesians 1:22,23; 5:25-27. It actually refers to the residence of the royal priesthood. The second technical use is the local church, the classroom for the royal priesthood — 1 Corinthians 1:2; 1Thessalonians 1:1; Revelation 2:3.

2. Dispensational orientation. ‘Mystery’ is the concept here. The dispensation of the Church is the mystery age. According to Romans 16:25,26; Ephesians 3:1-5; Colossians 1:25,26 the mystery refers to the fact that all doctrine pertaining to this dispensation was unknown in Old Testament times, never revealed. Starting with the baptism of the Holy Spirit and going all the way to the Rapture, and everything in between — the whole concept of the royal family, members of the family of God but royal family, the universal priesthood, the baptism of the Holy Spirit, the indwelling of the Spirit, the indwelling of Christ, are all doctrines pertaining to this dispensation only and they simply were not known in the Old Testament. The first reference to the Church was the prophesy of Jesus Christ in Matthew 16:18. So this is why we have the word ‘mystery’, something previously not understood but now known to those who are believers.

a. The Church Age interrupts the dispensation of Israel seven years short of its completion. The Church Age is an interrupting dispensation.

b. The reason for the interruption of the Jewish Age is the glorification of Jesus Christ as a part of the strategic victory of the angelic conflict. Therefore the Jewish Age must be interrupted in order to call out a royal family identified with Christ forever. Once Jesus Christ is seated at the right hand of the Father He is alone there. He in King of kings, Lord of lords. He is our high priest, He is the last Adam. ‘Not good that Adam should ever be alone.’ Jesus Christ said this about the first Adam; God the Father says this about the last Adam. So the last Adam isn’t alone because He has us, His very own royal family.

c. The Church Age did not begin in Abraham’s tent. This was taught by covenant theology; this is the reformed theology system which came from John Calvin, John Knox, and others who started the Church in Abraham’s tent. We know this from the very statement of Jesus Christ for the Church was future when He said in Matthew 16:18, “I will” — future active indicative of oikonoméō (οἰκονομέω) [pronounced oy-kohn-ohm-EH-oh] — “build my Church.”

d. The Church Age begins with the baptism of the Holy Spirit by which the royal family is formed. This is something that happens to us at the moment that we believe in Jesus Christ. Acts 1:5; 1Corinthians 12:13; Acts 2:1-3 which doesn’t mention the baptism cf. 11:15,16 which does mention it.

a. The Church Age terminates with the resurrection of the Church, called technically the Rapture — 1Corinthians 15:51-57; Philippians 3:21; 1Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 John 3:1,2.

b. By comparing the original text of Colossians 2:15 with Revelation 19:6-8; Zechariah 13:2 plus 1Thessalonians 3:13, it is concluded from the original languages that the body of Christ will be completed when the number of believers in the royal family is equal to the number of demons operating under the command of Satan today. This is predicated on the fact that the believer bumps one demon when he returns with Christ for that glorious victory of the second advent.

c. At the time of the Rapture of the Church it is transferred by resurrection to heaven. That means that the living believers go up, they are changed in the moment of a twinkling of an eye. The body is completed and therefore it becomes the bride. The bride goes through a period of preparation in heaven while the Tribulation runs its course on earth.

d. The preparation of the bride for the second advent is threefold. i) Every believer of the royal family receives at the same time a resurrection body — the dead believers and the live believers on earth — 1Corinthians 15:51-57; ii) The removal of the old sin nature in compatibility with ultimate sanctification — Philippians 3:21; iii) The destruction of all human good accumulated during the believer’s life on this earth. It is burned — 1Corinthians 3:15.

5. Synonyms for Christ and the Church are seven. Each one of these synonyms teaches an entire doctrine:

a. The last Adam [Christ] and the new creation [the Church] — 1Corinthians 15:45-47; 2Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 6:15.

b. The head and the body — Ephesians 1:22,23; 2 :16; 4:4,5; 5:23; Colossians 1:18,24.

e. The chief corner stone and the stones of the building — Ephesians 2:20; 1Peterer 2:4-8.

f. The high priest and the royal priesthood — Hebrews 7:25; 10:10-14; 1Peterer 2:5,9; Revelation 1:6.

g. The Groom and the bride — 2Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 5:25-27; Revelation 19:6-8.

a. Members of the royal family of God through the baptism of the Holy Spirit, leading to positional sanctification, called by the title of nobility ‘saints.’ This is the only group of believers who are members of the royal family of God forever.

c. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit for every royal priest. Every believer is indwelt by God the Holy Spirit.

d. The indwelling of the person of Christ for fellowship as long as you are growing. If you stop growing and turn into a reversionist He leaves you and starts knocking on the door, as per Revelation 3:20.

e. Instructions to the royal family in writing, the completed canon of scripture. When it comes to the royal family God speaks through His Word.

f. We have a supernatural way of life for the royal family with a supernatural means of execution. This is experiential sanctification. Execution through the filling of the Spirit and the intake of Bible doctrine.

g. Every member of the royal family of God is an ambassador representing Christ on earth.

7. The objective of the Church Age believer is to be filled with the Spirit consistently, to function daily under the principle of GAP so that he reaches the supergrace as quickly as possible. Supergrace is the normal function of the priesthood as well as the spiritual circumstances which glorify God. Supergrace is the tactical victory of the angelic conflict, therefore on to supergrace!

A. Biblical Nomenclature: The Meaning and Usage of Ekklêsía (ἐκκλησὶα) [pronounced ek-klay-SEE-ah].

1. Ekklêsía (ἐκκλησὶα) [pronounced ek-klay-SEE-ah] was first used in Attic Greek for an assembly of citizens convened to conduct the affairs of state. It is so used in Acts 19:25,32 for the assembly of the Ephesians to handle the problems of their city-state. It was also used for citizens who gathered in the city to conduct business, Acts 19:30.

2. It was used in the second century B.C. translation of the LXX in the Old Testament connotation for the assembly of Israel, Acts 7:38.

3. It was used for the assembly of Jews in their synagogue, as in Matthew 18:17. The issue of discipline in the church is not taught here. This has nothing to do with the church today; this applied to the Jewish synagogue.

4. It is used for the Church universal, composed of all members of the royal family of God, i.e., all believers in this dispensation of the Church Age, Ephesians 1:22-23, 5:25-27; Colossians 1:17-18.

5. It is used for occasions when a group of believers in a particular geographical location got together, even as few as two or three. Such a group was called a local church, as in 1Corinthians 11:18, 14:19, 28, 34-35; Philippians 4:15; 1Thessalonians 1:1; 2Thessalonians 1:1; Revelation 2-3. These local churches mentioned were under the authority of pastors, whether the pastors were absent or present. Whether the pastor teaches face to face is not the issue; his authority may come in some other form of communication. The type of teaching does not determine whether or not the organization is a local church.

6. You are “Church” as a member of the royal family of God in this dispensation.

7. Jesus Christ is the ruler of the Church. It is you as an individual that He rules or does not rule, depending upon your volition. He is your ruler. But whether He is allowed to function in your life as your ruler depends upon whether you understand the apply the pertinent mystery doctrine. If you understand this doctrine, you have the basis for submitting to the authority of Jesus Christ as the ruler of the Church. If you are advancing in the spiritual life and living inside the divine dynasphere, then you have accepted the authority of Jesus Christ as the ruler of the Church. But the majority of Christians have rejected our Lord’s authority as the ruler of the Church.

8. Jesus Christ has delegated authority for the communication of doctrine in the local church to the pastor-teacher. If believers have rejected the authority of Jesus Christ over their personal lives, they will obviously reject the authority of any pastor who communicates the Word of God, the mind of Christ. Without knowing doctrine, we cannot accept the authority of Jesus Christ.

9. A technical study of believers between Pentecost and the Rapture, who at salvation enter into union with Christ through the baptism of the Spirit, comprises the rest of this study of the doctrine of the Church. You are the Church universal.

1. Jesus Christ is called the last Adam as the ruler of the Church, and the believers, the Church universal, is called the new spiritual species, as found in 1Corinthians 15:45-47; 2Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 6:15. This “new creation” is important because it focuses attention on the Church during the intensified stage of the angelic conflict.

2. In the head and the body analogy, Christ is the head and the royal family of God is the body. This speaks of Christ’s authority. The body emphasizes our differences in personality and spiritual gifts, Ephesians 1:22-23, 2:16, 4:4-5, 5:23; 1Corinthians 12; Colossians 1:17-18,24, 2:19.

3. The shepherd and the sheep analogy is found in John 10; Hebrews 13:20; 1Peter 5:4. This analogy connotes the security and great blessings that come to us as members of the royal family of God. The analogy is apropos, for like us, sheep have no sense of direction, cannot fend for themselves, are helpless, and therefore need the guidance, sustenance, and protection of the shepherd. The sheep must be guarded and fed by the under-shepherd, the pastor of the local church.

4. The vine and the branches analogy is taught in John 15:1-6. Jesus Christ is the vine; we are the branches. This analogy is used for union with Christ, i.e., positional truth and/or positional sanctification. The vine always represented stimulation. The production of the branches is your advance to maturity.

5. The concept of Christ as the chief cornerstone, and the stones of the building as the Church was first taught by Christ in Matthew 16:16-18 when He told Peter, “You are blessed, Simon, Son of Jonas. And on this rock [petra (πέτρα) [pronounced PEHT-ra], giant rock, Lord Jesus Christ] I will build my Church [royal family of God]. Therefore, your name is now Petros (Πέτρος) [pronounced PEHT-ross] [part or chip of a rock].” This reference to Christ as the chief cornerstone is found in Ephesians 2:20; 1Peter 2:4-8. Peter recognized that Christ, not the Church, is the rock. The Church didn’t even exist in Matthew 16. Christ is the link between the two walls, Israel and the Church. He is the ruler of both.

6. The analogy of the high priest and the royal priesthood is found in Hebrews 7:25, 10:10-14; 1Peter 2:5,9; Revelation 1:6. Only when the God-Man ascended and was seated could Jesus Christ be a high priest. Every believer in union with Christ is a royal priest.

7. The groom and the bride analogy is found in 2Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 5:25-27; Revelation 19:6-8. This eschatological analogy speaks of the future of the Church as royal family of God. This will not be fulfilled until the Second Advent at the wedding feast of the Lamb. It takes seven years for the bride, the Church, to be prepared before the Judgment Seat of Christ. There will be no local churches in the Millennium.

8. The King and the royal family of God analogy is taught in Ephesians 1:22-23; Colossians 2:10. Jesus Christ is the royal king and we are His family.

9. From each of these analogies, certain things are taught about your personal life as a Church Age believer.

1. The Church universal, synonymous with the royal family of God, is composed of all Church Age believers. You enter the Church universal at salvation through the baptism of the Holy Spirit and the resultant positional sanctification by which the royal family of God is formed and by which equal privilege is given to every believer.

b. The power which God gives to the Church is the omnipotence of God the Father related our portfolio of invisible assets and the omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit related to the divine dynasphere.

2. The local church is an assembly of believers in a specific geographical location under the teaching ministry of their right pastor, either face to face, or through some other system of communication. The local church has a policy and an administrative system based on doctrinal principles. This is why there are deacons and other administrative authority in a local church.

1. The Church is called the mystery age, Romans 16:25-26; Ephesians 3:1-5; Colossians 1:25-27. The Church was not known in the Old Testament. No Church Age doctrine was written or orally taught in Old Testament times, because the Church Age is a unique dispensation since believers are entered into union with Christ.

2. The extent of the Church Age is from Pentecost until the Rapture. The Church Age continues until the royal family is completed; then the Rapture occurs.

1. The Church began in 30 A.D. on the Day of Pentecost; not in Abraham’s tent, as per the covenant theology of Shedd or Hodge.

2. The Church was future from the time of Christ’s ministry. When in Matthew 16:18 Christ said “On this rock [Jesus Christ], I will build My Church,” He used the future active indicative of Oikonoméō (οἰκονομέω) [pronounced oy-kohn-ohm-EH-oh].

3. The Church actually began on the Day of Pentecost around 30 A.D., as the Lord had prophesied. In Acts 1:5, Jesus said, just before He ascended, “John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit a few days from now.” Specifically, “a few days” referred to ten days. Our Lord remained on earth for forty days after the resurrection. According to the Jewish feast calendar, the Day of Pentecost began fifty days after the resurrection, represented by the Feast of the First Fruits. So there was an interval of ten days after the ascension before the Church Age began.

4. The first occurrence of the baptism of the Spirit is the day the Church Age superseded the dispensation of Israel. By comparing Acts 11:15-16 with Acts 2:1-3, we establish the fact that the baptism of the Spirit occurred for the first time on the Day of Pentecost. The baptism of the Spirit is also taught in 1Corinthians 12:13.

5. The Jewish Age was interrupted seven years short of its completion when the Church Age began. The Tribulation, which follows the Rapture, is the end of the Jewish Age. This dispensation is divided into three parts:

c. The Tribulation, Daniel’s 70th week, from the Rapture of the Church to the Second Advent of Christ.

6. On the Day of Pentecost the baptism of the Holy Spirit occurred. The disciples were speaking in tongues as a warning of the coming of the fifth cycle of discipline in fulfillment of Isaiah 28:11. The gift of tongues continued until 70 A.D. when it was cancelled (1Corinthians 13:8).

7. The times of the Gentiles is defined as the period from 70 A.D. until the Rapture when only Gentile nations can be client nations to God.

8. The Church Age terminates with the Rapture or resurrection of the Church, when all the royal family receive their resurrection bodies, 1Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1Corinthians 15:51-57; Philippians 3:21; 1John 3:1-2. The Church and Israel never function simultaneously on the earth.

1. The Church Age is the only dispensation in which believers are classified as royal family of God. The royal family of God is formed through the baptism of the Spirit which is absolutely unique; it never occurred before the Day of Pentecost, and will never occur again after the Rapture. The baptism of the Spirit has replaced water baptism, especially in the post-Canon period of Church history.

2. The Church Age is the only dispensation in which every believer is indwelt by all three persons of the Trinity.

a. The indwelling of God the Father is related to the glorification of His plan, and it guarantees His ministry to every Church Age believer, which began in eternity past when the omnipotence of the Father formed your portfolio of invisible assets. Therefore, God the Father indwells you to establish a link between His provision of your portfolio of invisible assets in eternity past and the present availability of your portfolio of invisible assets to you as the Church. As the author of our portfolio of invisible assets, as the Grantor of our escrow blessings, as the mastermind of the protocol plan of God for the Church Age, as the designer of the divine dynasphere; God the Father indwells us in order that these might become a reality. His presence guarantees their availability.

(2) As the guarantee of the availability of divine omnipotence to every Church Age believer.

(4) As both our depositary and escrow officer, Christ’s indwelling guarantees that when you reach spiritual maturity you will receive the conveyance of your escrow blessings for time. This also guarantees future and greater escrow blessings at the Judgment Seat of Christ after the resurrection.

(5) As perpetual motivation for momentum when facing the various categories of suffering and pressure in this life, especially the three categories of suffering for blessing related to our advance to spiritual maturity.

(6) As the basis for assigning #1 priority to relationship with God over relationship with people. Not only is Jesus Christ the ruler of the Church, but the ruler actually indwells us as a steering mechanism.

(7) As the basis for assigning top priority to the utilization of divine power in the divine dynasphere rather than human power in the cosmic system.

(1) To provide a temple in our bodies, in order that Jesus Christ as the Shekinah Glory may indwell us.

(2) As a base of operations for the execution of the protocol plan of God, the utilization of divine omnipotence.

3. The Church Age is the only dispensation in which divine power is available to every believer, i.e., the omnipotence of the Father and the Holy Spirit.

4. The Church Age is the only dispensation in which every believer is both a royal priest and a royal ambassador.

b. As an ambassador, you represent God to man. You are a walking, one-man army as Church, God’s representative on earth.

5. The Church Age is the only dispensation where every believer has a detailed portfolio of invisible assets. No such portfolio ever existed before or after the Church Age. As a part of that portfolio of invisible assets, you have a spiritual gift, unique to the Church Age.

6. The Church Age is the first dispensation in which there is a completed canon of Scripture. We have our instructions in writing.

7. The Church Age is the only dispensation in which there is no prophecy. Only two prophecies relate to the Church Age: its beginning and end, the Day of Pentecost and the Rapture. But in between, no prophecy exists.

a. The Church Age operates under historical trends. Historical trends teach that certain things are categorized as apostasy, but times of apostasy do not indicate the Rapture is near. The Rapture can occur at any time. “No man knows the day or the hour.”

b. Historical trends is the only explanation for what occurs daily during the Church Age. This is the only dispensation in which prophecy is not a crutch. Prophecy is not needed to understand current trends. Only doctrine is needed. The New Testament describes various historical trends.

1. The great power experiment of the Hypostatic Union of Christ during the First Advent overflows, becoming a complete and total dispensation in itself.

2. As established with Christ on earth, the pattern continues. Available to us is the omnipotence of God the Father related to our portfolio of invisible assets and the omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit related to enabling power inside the divine dynasphere.

3. We also continue to benefit from the omnipotence of God the Son who holds the universe together for the perpetuation of human history.

4. The new spiritual species of 2Corinthians 5:17 is designed for spiritual living inside the divine dynasphere.

5. Because of unprecedented provision and delegation of divine power to every believer, every believer has equal privilege and equal opportunity.

1. Circumcision was designed by God as the sign of the Abrahamic covenant — Genesis 17:10-14. It was both an operation and at the same time a ritual. The ritual emphasised both the principle of establishment in the law plus the spiritual value of doctrine — Romans 2:25. Abraham was circumcised long after his salvation and after he was given the covenant — Romans 4:11. Moses almost died the sin unto death because he had failed to circumcise his younger son — Exodus 4:24-26. No Jew could partake of the Passover without first being circumcised — Exodus 12:48. The Jews were placed under the 5th cycle of discipline for lack of circumcision of the soul to accompany this ritual — Jeremiah 6:10; 9:25,26.

2. Circumcision consists of the operation of cutting away the foreskin of the male phallus. The ritual indicated dedication of the male sexual organ to the right woman and no one else. It was definitely set up in contrast to the phallic cult of the Gentiles — Leviticus 12:2,3.

3. The ritual of circumcision has no significance in the Church. It only intrudes as a false standard on the wrong side of the barrier — 1Corinthians 7:18,19; Galatians 5:2,3; Ephesians 2:11.

4. Circumcision became a rallying point for legalism, therefore — Acts 15:1, 24; Galatians 6:12,13.

5. Circumcision was used to designate the Jews by race and by nation — Galatians 2:8; Colossians 4:11; Titus 1:10; Ephesians 2:11. The ritual portrayed the laws of divine establishment found in the Mosaic code.

6. The ritual of circumcision is used as an illustration of retroactive positional truth in Colossians 2:11.

7. Circumcision is also used to illustrate or portray scar tissue of the soul, emotional revolt, and other aspects of reversionism — Jeremiah 6:10; 9:25,26; Ezekiel 44:7; Acts 7:51.

8. Circumcision is used to portray the function of GAP — Deuteronomy 10:16; Jeremiah 4:4.

9. Circumcision is used to portray the ECS — Romans 2:28,29; Philippians 3:3. This is a spiritual connotation.

1. Circumcision was established as a sign of the Abrahamic covenant, Genesis 17:1-14. Circumcision is an operation on the male phallus in which some useless skin is removed. This principle is carried into the ritual which emphasised the sanctification of the Jewish nation as a part of God’s plan for the previous dispensation. Only the males had to be circumcised in Genesis 17 because only the males were responsible. Women are designed to be responders, they carry no authority except as parents. The ritual as it began in Genesis 17 was designed to set apart the Jewish nation of Israel as a part of God’s plan as God’s representative in the previous dispensation. Abraham was circumcised after his salvation and after receiving the covenant. It was on the reception of the Abrahamic covenant that we actually have the right of circumcision administered for the first time, Romans 4:11.

a. In the history of Israel there are some very dramatic moments in the field of literal circumcision. Literal circumcision represented to the Jews their responsibility before the Lord to maintain and to disseminate Bible doctrine and the principles of establishment. Moses had ignored this with regard to his own children and almost died the sin unto death for his failure to have his youngest son circumcised, Exodus 4:24-26.

b. Circumcision was a recognition of the role of Israel under God’s grace and therefore it had great significance. Under the command given the child was circumcised on the eighth day. he had nothing to say about it. Being circumcised on the eighth day had two concepts, the coagulation of blood and the principle of grace. The child neither earned nor deserved nor worked for it, nor did his volition enter into it in any way. Therefore circumcision was of great importance in orienting to the grace of God. No Jew could partake of the Passover without circumcision, Exodus 12:48.

c. The Jews were placed under the fifth cycle of discipline for lack of circumcision of the soul to accompany this ritual, Jeremiah 6:10; 9:25,26. So the ritual of circumcision had both physical and spiritual connotation. At its inception we see the spiritual connotation.

2. Definition. Circumcision consists of the cutting away of the foreskin of the male phallus. The ritual indicated dedication of the male sex organ to the right woman, and no one else. It was in direct contrast with the phallic cult of heathenism which the Jews found in the land, Leviticus 12:2,3. This was the physical significance of the ritual of circumcision. It recognised that Israel would be blessed of God not only through spiritual principles but Israel would be blessed in the fact that a maximum number of Jewish males would find the one designed for them and live in great blessing. The [national, not personal] happiness of a nation and the stability of a nation depends upon a maximum number of males within that nation finding, under God’s grace, their right woman. And when a maximum number of right man, right woman marriages are made that nation is stabilized, happy, and blessed.

3. The ritual of circumcision has no significance in the Church Age. By this time in our history a maximum number of people everywhere realise the value of circumcision and have followed the principle, but when males are circumcised today it has no spiritual significance in their life, 1Corinthians 7:18,19; Galatians 5:2,3.

4. Circumcision early in the Church Age became a rallying point for legalism — Acts 15:1, 24; Galatians 6:12,13.

5. Circumcision was used originally to designate the Jews by their race and by their nation, Galatians 2:8; Colossians 4:11; Ephesians 2:11; Titus 1:10. Under this phraseology the Jews are often called the circumcised.

6. Circumcision is used to portray retroactive positional truth, Colossians 2:11. Remember there are two categories of positional truth. We are identified with Christ in His death. At the point of salvation we are entered into union with Christ as He died on the cross. Bearing our sins and taking our place He rejected human good. Human good is outside of the pale of the work of Christ on the cross. He rejected human good. Human good, therefore, is equivalent to the portion of the foreskin removed in circumcision. Human good is dead and circumcision is dead, useless skin. We are also identified with Christ as He is seated at the right hand of the Father. This is current positional truth. Circumcision relates to retroactive positional truth. Therefore in portraying retroactive positional truth the ritual circumcision removes that which is unnecessary, useless. The removal of the unnecessary useless portrays what is not necessary in the Christian life. Therefore the spiritual significance of circumcision comes into focus. Today we have a spiritual circumcision whereby grace eliminates legalism — what is useless. Grace eliminates the talent of man, the ability of man, the energy of man, the plans of man. All of these form the legalistic package.

7. Circumcision is also used to portray scar tissue, emotional revolt, and reversionism, Jeremiah 6:10; 9:25,26; Ezekiel 44:7; Acts 7:51.

8. Circumcision is used to portray the function of GAP, Deuteronomy 10:16; Jeremiah 4:4.

9. Circumcision is used to portray the ECS with entrance into the supergrace life, Deuteronomy 30:6; Romans 2:28:29: Philippians 3:3.

1. A civil government and policy based on the laws of divine establishment. That includes free enterprise.

2. The function of evangelism under the principle of freedom. We who evangelise must recognize the freedom of others. Freedom means privacy. Our job is to clearly present the gospel but we do not force people to accept Christ. We leave people with the information; they must use their volition, and it is wrong on the part of Christians to pressure people.

3. The establishment of local churches which are autonomous. To the extent that local churches form into denominations you are destroying the client nation principle. Denominations become the enemy of client nations. Autonomous local churches: neither connected with other churches to form denominations or spheres of influence, nor involved in any movement which seeks to unite church and state. One of the things that hurt England more than anything else was the fact that Henry the Eighth established his own church and made it part of the state.

4. A vigorous and dynamic Bible teaching to believers which emphasises the protocol system in the plan of God.

5. Missionary activity to other nations under the indigenous principle of not interfering with foreign governments but providing both gospel and Bible teaching for people in the nation. No missionary has the right to interfere with the government and become involved in the politics of the nation where he goes.

Spiritual Dynamics 907 8/25/96; Special: Higher Purpose of Freedom 2-10, 7/16/95; Romans 3/20/77; David 6/30/77

1. A client nation is a national entity under the patronage of God, assigned the responsibility for the formation, preservation, communication, and fulfillment of the canon of Scripture.

a. Before Israel became a nation, custodianship of the word of God involved divine revelation apart from Scripture. But since Israel has become a nation, it is involved in the authorship, custodianship and dissemination of the written Word.

b. Additional custodianship was assigned to Israel in the formation of the New Testament, since all except two writers were Jews.

c. During the time of the formation of the New Testament, the client nation changed from Judea to the Roman Empire, in 70 A.D.

2. In Ex 19:4-6, we have a reference to the client nation concept, “You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings, and brought you to Myself. Now therefore, if hearing, you will obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all peoples, for all the earth is Mine; then you shall be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation to Me. These are the words that you shall speak to the sons of Israel.”

a. Deuteronomy 7:6, “For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for His own possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.”

b. Deuteronomy 26:18-19, “And the Lord has today declared you to be His people, a people for His own [a treasured] possession, as He promised you; therefore, you are to keep all His commandments; and that He will set you high above all nations which He made, for praise, fame, and honor; and that you shall be a holy people to the Lord your God, as He has spoken.”

3. There are two categories of client nations to God in human history: the five Jewish client nations of the Old Testament with a specialized priesthood and the Gentile client nations during the dispensation of the Church with a universal priesthood. No Gentile nation of the Old Testament was a client nation to God. The Gentile client nation category follows exactly the same pattern as Israel with some dramatic differences related to the uniqueness of the Church Age, both in grace provision and in spiritual life.

4. A client nation is a synonym for a priest nation. The name “priest nation” is used for Israel because it had a specialized priesthood. The term “client nation” is used for any Gentile nation that performs the same functions during the Church Age. In Roman history, a client was someone dependent on another family. Instead of calling a Gentile nation a priest nation as such, the believers in the Church Age are a holy priesthood and a royal family of God, 1Peter 2:4-5, “And coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected by men, but elect and precious in the sight of God, you also, as living stones, are being built up into a spiritual house [compare Hebrews 3:6] as a result of a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through the agency of Jesus Christ.”

a. Israel was always called a holy nation. The Church is called a holy priesthood. Why? Because in the Church Age, every believer is a priest.

b. Jesus Christ tested and proved the prototype spiritual life. We offer up spiritual sacrifice by the fulfillment of the three stages of the adult spiritual life. God does not want sacrifices and offerings; He wants the sacrifice of the spiritual life. The spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God are the four spiritual mechanics of the spiritual life.

c. 1Peter 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 excellencies of Him who has called you out from darkness into His marvelous light.” The idea of an elect race comes from the Greek phrase in 2 Cor 5:17 KAINE KTISIS, which means, “a new spiritual species.” “Therefore, if anyone is in union with Christ, he is a new spiritual species; old things have lost their power, behold, new things have come to pass.” The new things that have come to pass are the four spiritual mechanics, the four spiritual objectives. In the privacy of your priesthood, you have the option or the option to fail as far as the spiritual life is concerned.

d. The royal priesthood is related to positional sanctification; for our Lord is a king-priest from the line of David. Believers in Christ are royal family of God, and this is the key to Gentile client nations in the Church Age.

5. A client nation to God is a nation under divine protection, because it has a large pivot of mature believers. These mature believers have blessing by association to those around them and historical blessing to their nation. A client nation is destroyed by the reversionistic believers who “spin-off” from the pivot of mature believers by their rejection of Bible doctrine. As the pivot shrinks, the nation loses its client nation status with God and undergoes the five cycles of discipline. Only a remnant of positive believers had impact through the spiritual life of Israel in the Old Testament.

B. The most important client nation and the key to all client nations is found in the history of Israel as a priest nation.

1. God directs and controls historical activity on the basis of client nations. A client nation is responsible to do five things.

a. The theocratic kingdom, B.C. 1441-1020, from the Exodus until the prophet Samuel. The theocratic kingdom ended when the Jews said, “We want to be like other nations.”

c. The Northern Kingdom from Jeroboam to Hoshea, B.C. 926-721. In 721 B.C. the fifth cycle of discipline was administered by the Assyrians under Sargon II.

d. The Southern Kingdom from Rehoboam to Zedekiah, B.C. 926-586. The fifth cycle of discipline was administered by the Chaldeans under Nebuchadnezzar.

e. After the Northern and Southern Kingdoms were destroyed, while no Jewish client nation was operational as such, Jews outside of the client nation filled in the gap to Gentile nations as they had been responsible before to do so. No Gentile client nation exists in the Old Testament, only Jewish client nations. Then Judah became a client nation again from B.C. 516 until 70 A.D. Chaldea and the Persian Empire were not client nations between B.C. 586-516.

(1) In 458 B.C., after the fifth Jewish client nation was operational, we have the return of Ezra. The entire Old Testament canon was discovered and Ezra led a great revival back to Bible doctrine

(2) In 445 B.C., Nehemiah returned with a group of people to rebuild the walls and to organize the military to defend this client nation.

1. There were periods of apostasy in Israel in the Old Testament. Apostasy in a client nation is always a cancer. If it grows long enough, that client nation dies under the fifth cycle of discipline. In every case of Jewish apostasy in a Jewish client nation status both the clergy and the politicians of Israel are indicted along with the negative volition of the people.

a. Jeremiah 6:13-14, “For from the least of them even to the greatest of them, everyone is greedy for profit, furthermore from the prophet even to the priest everyone manufactures lies. In fact they allege to solve problems of My people, saying, `Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace.”

b. Ezekiel 13:10-16, “It is definitely because they have misled My people by saying, `Peace!’ when there is no peace. Now when anyone builds a wall [the political lies of politicians], behold, they cover it with whitewash [the false solution to the problems of the client nation]; so tell those who plaster it over with whitewash, that it will fall. A flooding rain will come, and you, O hailstones, will fall; and a violent wind [fifth cycle of discipline] will break out. Behold, when the wall has fallen, will you not be asked, `Where is the plaster with which you have plastered it?’ Therefore, thus says the Lord God, `I will cause a violent wind to break out in My wrath. There will also be in My anger a flooding rain and hailstones to consume it in wrath. So I shall tear down the wall [the political lies] which you plastered over with whitewash and bring it down to the ground, so that its foundation is laid bare; furthermore when it falls, you will be destroyed with it. Then you will know that I am the Lord. Therefore I will spend My wrath against the wall and against those who have plastered it with whitewash; then I will say to you, `The wall is gone along with its plasterers, along with the prophets of Israel who prophesy to Jerusalem, and saw visions of peace for her where there is no peace,’ declares the Lord God.”

(1) Good decisions of national leadership result in greater options for greater decisions. Bad decisions destroy freedom options and enslave the nation, so that the client nation status is destroyed from within in the first three cycles of discipline. A nation that is not prepared for war is not prepared for peace.

(2) Mankind always has been and always will be the product of their own volition, not their environment. We blame environment, which is part of the arrogance skills.

(3) The doctrine of man’s sin nature and total depravity plus the function of Satan’s cosmic system requires that people in a client nation periodically will have to make great sacrifices for freedom.

(4) Political solutions are useless without spiritual solutions. What makes political solutions great is the invisible heroship of a pivot of mature believers. Political solutions are temporal; spiritual solutions are eternal. Political solutions relate to the power of man; spiritual solutions relate to the power of God. Political solutions are often erroneous and destructive to a nation, while spiritual solutions offer hope to a nation and eternal life to individuals in that nation. Political solutions are mortal and subject to corruption; spiritual solutions are eternal and compatible with the immortality of the soul. Political solutions grope in darkness of spiritual death, but spiritual solutions live in the light of eternity and the fantastic divine revelation in time. Political solutions are related to the first birth of mankind and his spiritual death; spiritual solutions are related to regeneration through faith in Christ—the second birth of mankind and his eternal relationship with God. Spiritual solutions never include violence or coercion, but a change in the soul through Bible doctrine.

d. People become self-righteous, arrogant legalistic, and reversionistic, Hosea 4:1-7; 8:7, and are destroyed for lack of Bible doctrine. Rejection of Bible doctrine leads to destruction of the client nation. Everything depends on your attitude toward Bible doctrine.

2. The fifth cycle of discipline was administered to various Jewish nations, which discontinued their function as a priest nation. The Northern Kingdom fell to Assyria in 721 B.C. The Southern Kingdom fell to the Chaldean Empire in 586 B.C. Judea was conquered by Rome in 70 A.D. Israel will not be a priest nation again until the Second Advent.

3. When Israel was being disciplined as a client nation from 586-516 B.C., there was no Gentile client nation. The remnant according to the election of grace went to Gentile client nations as representatives of a non-operational client nation. The same thing happens during the Tribulation—there is no client nation. Individual Jews are used by God to evangelize the Gentiles from 586-516 B.C. and during the Tribulation. The Persian and Chaldean empires were not client nations to God.

4. When the Roman Empire fell in 476 A.D., God had already used the Goths as His client nation during the fourth century. Scotland and Ireland were client nations during the fifth and sixth centuries. The Franks were a client nation during the eighth and ninth centuries; the Vikings were during the tenth century. Germany under Luther, and Switzerland under Calvin were client nations during the sixteenth century. Sweden under Gustavus Adolphus, and the Huguenots during the seventeenth century were client nations. Brandenberg-Prussia under the Hohenzollerns were a client nation during the eighteenth century. England was the same during the reign of Victoria in the nineteenth century. And the United States of America has been a client nation from 1776 until the present. These are just a few examples. (See the Doctrine of the Pivot for the geopolitical advance of the pivot in the Church Age.)

5. Jesus Christ, who controls history, knows where positive volition will be in each generation. And He makes sure that the current client nation goes to that area of the world with missionary activity. This insures that Gentile nations will continue as client nations until the Rapture.

6. Ignorance of Bible doctrine destroyed the Jewish client nations, and the same ignorance of doctrine destroys the Gentile client nations, Ephesians 4:18-19. Scar tissue of soul has had the same effect, 2 Cor 13:5.

D. The restoration of Israel as a priest nation will occur at the second Advent and continue throughout the millennium, Isaiah 49:5-8. Israel today and in the tribulation is not a client nation. There is a testimony from 144,000 Jews during the tribulation exactly like the seventy years of the Babylonian captivity, but there is no client nation during these two periods.

1. The pivot is the remnant of mature believers who have reached maximum adjustment to the justice of God by their positive attitude toward Bible doctrine. If there is a large pivot, the nation is delivered from historical disaster. It there is a small pivot, then only the pivot is delivered, while the nation is destroyed.

2. The size of the pivot in historical disaster determines the outcome of that disaster.

3. The spinoff is the reversionistic believers. The larger the spinoff, the greater the disaster and destruction of the nation.

4. When judgment falls on a nation, the pivot is still secure because of their adjustment to the justice of God. If a mature believer dies during historical disaster, it was just his time to go home, not a matter of discipline.

5. The principle of deliverance depending upon the size of the pivot is derived from the fact that mature believers are a blessing by association and have historical impact.

7. Therefore historical disaster separates those adjusted to the justice of God from those who are maladjusted. Since the spinoff is always composed of those who are maladjusted, they are disciplined and destroyed by the historical disaster.

F. The principle of the client nation solves certain problem passages in Scripture.

1. 2Samuel 8:18, “And David’s sons were priests.” David was from the tribe of Judah, therefore not qualified to be a priest. But because Israel was a priest nation the verse is telling us that all David’s sons were believers, and therefore, priests, as in the sense of Ex 19:6. Believers are priests in a priest nation.

2. In Ex 19:5-6, the phrase “My special possession” is a synonym for client nation.

2. Israel will be restored as the client nation to God at the Second Advent. Then it will function as His representative nation on the earth for the entire Millennium.

3. There is never a permanent Jewish client nation to God until Jesus Christ provides such a thing at the second Advent. Client nations are definitely an issue in the spiritual life.

1. In every generation of U.S. history, there has been the ingredients of the client nation: evangelism, Bible teaching, missionaries, and pro-semitism.

2. The USA as a client nation is reflected in our Constitution’s purpose, which limits the federal government’s authority.

3. We still have all the ingredients, but things are getting worse. We have a pivot of mature believers, but the spinoff is large and getting larger. Evangelism is a lot of lip service. Bible doctrine is rarely taught properly or accurately. Reversionism has destroyed most missionaries.

4. After the Rapture, there will be no client nation; therefore, there will be no nation for refuge for the Jews. The only thing we are doing right at the present is providing a haven for the Jews.

5. When the Church is taken out of the world at the Rapture, so is the ministry of the Holy Spirit in providing blessing by association and historical impact by restraining evil, 2Thessalonians 2.

1. Jesus Christ is warning the Jews of the removal of Judea as a client nation. Mature believers are to know from the intake of Bible doctrine that Judea will be destroyed. By practical application of this passage the pivot was delivered. Someone always gets hurt in historical disaster: 1,100,000 were killed, 97,000 taken captive.

2. The “times of the Gentiles” refers to the fact that from 70 A.D. until the Rapture, Tribulation and Second Advent, only Gentile nations will be client nations to God. In the Tribulation only individual Jews will be evangelists, there will be no Jewish client nation.

3. When the fifth cycle of discipline came in 70 A.D., it ended the function of any Jewish nation as a priest nation until the Second Advent of Christ. There will be no Gentile client nation during the Tribulation since all believers are taken to heaven before this period of great historical disaster.

4. Gentile client nations should have a maximum number of mature believers for a pivot, maximum evangelism within their own nation, maximum missionary activity to other nations, and they are to provide a haven for the Jews.

5. The client nation is characterized by being pro-semitic. No Gentile nation can be a client nation to God without providing a haven for the Jews during the “times of the Gentiles.” Anti-semitism automatically eliminates any nation from being a client nation to God.

6. During the tribulation, there will be a Jewish nation, but it will not be a client nation. There will be a great evangelistic thrust by 144,000 Jews and the return of Moses and Elijah. But Israel is not restored as a client nation until the Second Advent.

7. When the Rapture occurs, there is no pivot, no believers, and no client nation. That is why angels, Moses, and Elijah, in addition to the 144,000 Jews are used during the tribulation for the evangelization of the world.

8. In the meantime, we have the “times of the Gentiles,” which began in 70 A.D. and continues until the Second Advent.

1. Romans 11:25, “For, brethren, I do not wish you to be ignorant of this mystery [Church Age doctrine], lest you become presumptuous [wise in your own estimation], that a partial hardening has occurred to Israel until the full measure of Gentile nations has come in.”

2. The word translated “Gentile nations” is the Greek word ETHNOS. This word means Gentiles and Gentile nations. The full measure of the Gentile nations is all the Gentile client nations from the fall of Israel in 70 A.D. until the end of the Church Age.

3. The full measure of Gentile nations refers to the times of the Gentiles with one slight difference. The times of the Gentiles goes from 70 A.D. until the second Advent. The full measure of the Gentiles has to do with the fact that there will always be Gentile client nations until the resurrection of the Church. The difference is the tribulation, during which there is no Gentile client nation and Israel is not yet restored as a client nation.

1. Moses made a prophet gesture in relationship to Israel as God’s covenant people. This gesture may be classified as the doctrine of the fading glory in contrast to the spiritual life of the Church Age which may be classified as the doctrine of the unfading glory.

2. Ex 34:29-35, “Now it came to pass when Moses was coming down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of testimony in his hands that Moses did not know that the skin of his face was shining because he had been talking with Him. So when Aaron and all the sons of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face was radiant, and they were afraid to come near him. So Moses called to them. Then Aaron and all the rulers of the congregation returned to him; then Moses spoke to them. And afterward all the sons of Israel came near, and he commanded them everything that the Lord had spoken to him on Mount Sinai. When Moses had finished speaking to them, he put a veil over his face. Now whenever Moses went in face-to-face with the Lord to speak with Him, he took off the veil until he came out, and whenever he came out and spoke to the sons of Israel what had been commanded, the sons of Israel would see the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face was shining. So Moses would replace the veil over his face until he went in to speak with Him.”

a. Moses put on the veil after speaking God’s word to the people so that Israel could not see the fading glory of the Mosaic Law. Moses understood that Israel must hear the message and not associate the message with the fact that the Mosaic Law is a system of fading glory. Israel was not to understand at that time that all five of the Jewish client nations to God would sooner or later fail because of rejection of Bible doctrine. As soon as Moses entered the tabernacle he removed the veil and kept it off until he was finished listening to the Lord and speaking to the people of Israel.

b. The prophetic gesture of Moses provides the historical background and interpretation for the unfading glory of the unique spiritual life of the Church Age. The unique spiritual life of the Church Age believer is an unfading glory. There is no fading glory in the spiritual life of the Church Age. If the spiritual life is rejected, there is a veil over the soul called scar tissue of the soul. People do not do what the word of God says because there is a veil over their soul.

3. 2 Cor 3:13-18, “And not as Moses, who kept on putting a veil over his face to prevent the sons of Israel from gazing at his face while the radiance was fading away, but their thinking was hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is only removed by Christ. For until this very day whenever Moses is read, a veil covers their heart; but whenever it [the Jewish heart] has turned face-to-face with the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Spirit is the Lord [deity of the Holy Spirit]; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom [spiritual freedom]. But we all, with an unveiled face looking into a mirror to produce a reflection—the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory [the prototype spiritual life] to glory [the operational spiritual life], as it were from the Spirit of the Lord.”

a. When Moses pulled down the veil over his face, the Jews pulled a veil down over their hearts. The phrase “their thinking was hardened” means they rejected his teaching and had scar tissue of the soul. They were free to succeed or fail. They chose to fail. Is there a veil over your heart when you hear doctrine taught? To the extent that you neglect doctrine you are presumptuous. If you think that the learning of the world is more important than doctrine, you are presumptuous. The same thing that happened to the Jews in their client nation is happening to believers in client nation USA—their thinking is hardened.

b. There could be no Gentile client nations until the baptism of the Holy Spirit, so that any born again Jew could be part of a client nation that is not Israel. The full measure of the Gentiles does not exclude the Jew at all.

c. They had fading glory. You have unfading glory. You have greater responsibility than anyone in the five Jewish client nations to God. You have a spiritual life that has an unfading glory. If God severely disciplined the Jews who had a spiritual life with fading glory, what will he do to us if we reject a spiritual life with unfading glory?

d. We are face-to-face with the Lord when we hear the teaching of the word of God contained in the New Testament canon. The unveiled face belongs to the positive believer who is consistent in the function of the four spiritual mechanics.

e. Metabolized doctrine in your soul creates a mirror into which you can look and see what you are really like, James 1:23-25. This allows you to evaluate yourself without any help from anyone else. There is another reflection which is seen in the mirror of Bible doctrine—the reflection of the humanity of Christ in hypostatic union, the glory of the Lord. You have the opportunity of having the unveiled soul with all of its glory, becoming of member of the pivot of mature believers in the client nation, and so preserving the client nation.

1. Mankind does not possess the power to perpetuate or guarantee peace on the earth. There will always be wars and rumors of wars until Jesus Christ returns, Matthew 24:6-7. Therefore, beware of politicians who reject and diminish the military, Ezekiel 13:10-16. Beware of the liberal clergy, who manufacture lies about world peace, Jeremiah 6:13-14.

2. The supreme court of heaven can punish Israel without any help. Anti-semitism is a guarantee for destroying a national entity. God does not need any help in His discipline of Israel. Anti-semitism is Satanic, Revelation 12. Anti-semitism results in liability to personal and national discipline from the supreme court of heaven, Genesis 12:3.

3. All failure of client nations to God includes both the spiritual and establishment principles, Hosea 4:1-6. The failure of believers to execute God’s plan and purpose results in a shrinking pivot of mature believers and the rejection of establishment principles.

4. The Fantasy Notion. Politicians seeking power with utopian plans destroy a national entity. The utopian concept came into history in 1516, when Sir Thomas Moore wrote a book called Utopia, a state of political and social perfection. Utopianism involves the dreams and schemes of an imaginary, divorced from reality status of political and social perfection. Hence, utopianism is the Satanic concept of the millennium brought on by the work of mankind rather than by the work of God. This is the warning of Ezekiel 13:10-16. Utopianism not only rejects the biblical eschatology of the millennium but ignores the total depravity of mankind and the need for regeneration and establishment principles delineated in the Scripture.

5. God has ordained nationalism in the human race to protect it from self-destruction, Acts 17:24-27.

6. Utopian socialism is an economic system based on the premise that if capital voluntarily surrendered its ownership of means of production to the state and the workers, unemployment and poverty would be abolished. This is tantamount to redistribution of wealth and is totally disastrous. The Bible does not teach any such things. The word of God teaches that you must always have capitalism and free enterprize. Capitalism is the only economic system that creates prosperity.

c. He controls history through the pivot of mature believers in the client nation.

d. He controls history through the utilization of the wrath of man to praise Him, Psalm 76:10.

e. He controls history through the preservation of Israel against all anti-semitism functions both Satanic and sin nature conspiracy.

f. He controls history through the preservation of planet earth during the course of human history. He not only created the universe, Hebrews 1:10, but He holds the universe together by the word of His power, Hebrews 1:3. By the control of history, Jesus Christ provides freedom for the function of human volition.

g. He controls history through the second Advent, which terminates the last and greatest world war of history.

2. You cannot legislate hope; for hope is the monopoly of God and demands relationship with God.

3. Therefore, government cannot give you hope; for hope is a confident relationship with God.

4. Hence, hope is for Gentile client nations to God of the Church Age and that hope always depends on believers executing the unique spiritual life which has impact on the nation through blessing by association.

5. As goes the spiritual life of the believer so goes the blessing of God for the client nation.

6. In recognition of the doctrine, “as goes the believer, so goes the client nation,” hope becomes a technical monopoly of the royal priesthood.

7. Only those believers who execute the unique spiritual life of the dispensation of the Church constitute both blessing and deliverance to the client nation to God in any given generation.

8. Therefore, hope in the client nation is related to the pivot of mature believers who execute the spiritual life of the Church to become a vehicle of blessing by association.

1. We have communicators of doctrine in the Old Testament and New Testament. The voice of God is now in writing. We do not hear the voice of God, not since 96 A.D. on the isle of Patmos. In the Old Testament, the voice of God was heard by those who had the gift of prophet. Also men were taught by angels. Then the written word of God was communicated. The Old Testament communicator received his information from three sources: God, angels, and the Canon. Those who claim to have heard the voice of God are kooks and weirdos. Only those with the gift of communication heard the voice of God; and there were teaching angels as well. Once the Old Testament was completed, that was an accurate location of Bible doctrine.

2. Until Moses there were no communicators. Moses was as unique to the Jewish age as Paul was to the Church Age. Moses and Paul started out in very different ways; but they became expert communicators. Moses was the military hero of Egypt; and saved the Egyptians 4x from an invasion of the Ethiopians. Moses was a genius in writing, administration and music. Thutmose II used the administrative system set up by Moses when he (Thutmose II) came to power. No one ever starts out as a communicator. Moses had both the office and gift of prophesy. Those with the office of prophet were official communicators of doctrine only. Those with the gift of prophesy did something else but also communicated doctrine and received direct revelation from God, e.g., Daniel, David, Solomon. When Aaron took his place, that frustrated Moses and he finally pushed Aaron aside and took over.

3. During the time of the early church, circa 30-96 A.D., Paul had two sources: God directly and the Old Testament Canon. He became the greatest source of doctrine in the New Testament. There was also the temporary spiritual gift of knowledge (gnosis) which was academic knowledge of the content of doctrine which would be contained in the New Testament Canon before it was written.

4. After the Canon is closed we have only one system, the pastor- teacher. The pastor-teacher has two sources: his pastor-teacher, and the education to dig out information from the Canon itself.

5. In the Tribulation there will be a new system. The 144,000 Jews will teach the word of God; Moses will be resuscitated along with Elijah to teach doctrine; and angels will teach again.

B. The three types of communicators to this point have been prophets, Apostles and pastor-teachers. In the Tribulation there will be Moses and Elijah brought back and angels and the 144,000.

C. The communication system at present is not direct from God; it comes through the pastor-teacher.

1. You can't read the Bible for yourself and get what God intended for you to fully understand. You are in a playpen until you hook up with your right pastor. How would you like to learn how to perform a brain operation by reading a book?

2. A pastor-teacher has a spiritual gift sovereignly bestowed by the Holy Spirit at salvation. It is not earned or deserved. The spiritual gift provides both the authority and ability to communicate. All types of personalities have the gift and not all are eloquent, but they do communicate and you do understand. Everyone has a right pastor-teacher. Even the extremely shy person. Not everyone with the gift of pastor-teacher is eloquent. This gift was given to many people. They may have some peculiarities.

3. Baptism doesn't help communicate doctrine, only the Lord's table does this, which is why it is the only ritual left in the Church Age.

D. You discover the gift of pastor-teacher by persistent study of God's Word. Through growth it becomes apparent to you that you possess the gift. Also accompanying spiritual growth, you have a lot of discipline. You try a lot of things at which you're good and never succeed. You learn by a lot of knots on the head.

1. Presbutês (πρεσβύτης) [pronounced pres-BOO-tace] means old man, elder; a title for authority, commanding officer. Only one man has the authority; there is no such thing as plurality of elders in a local church, or assistant pastors.

2. Poimên (ποιμήν) [pronounced poy-MANE] POIMENAS means shepherd; connotes provision; pastor. Those who receive the doctrine are students under strict academic discipline.

3. Epískopos (ἐπίσκοπος) [pronounced ep-IS-kohp-oss] means to look over the situation, the guardian of the system. It is an administrative term in the sense of policy making. He is the overseer.

4. Diakonos (διάκονος) [pronounced dee-AK-on-oss] means servant; administrative function of serving the Lord. This is originally meant to be a waiter.

5. Leitourgos (λειτουργός) [pronounced li-toorg-OSS] means sacrifice at the altar. There is unique sacrifice involved in the communication of doctrine. A pastor's sacrifice means that he can never be quite human. He doesn't live a normal life. The demands of study and communication preclude normal living. For example, Paul as an ultra supergrace believer should have had a billion dollars, but he couldn't enjoy it since he had no time. The pastor-teacher is chained to the Bible; therefore, he lives a sacrificial life. Generally a communicator will always be historically obscure. He forgoes success in some other normal realms of life. He doesn’t have the time or the opportunity; being chained to the Bible. Bob’s father said, “You are a failure, no matter how you succeed.”

F. The Purpose of a Communicator, Ephesians 4:11-12, 13, 14-17. And He gave some Apostles [the top communication gift in those days] and other prophets, and others evangelists [a specialist; he gets the attention of his audience] pastor-teachers; For the purpose of training and equipping saints [the royal family] for combat; for the purpose of the vocation of the ministry, for the purpose of the edification of the body of Christ; until we all attain the goal, because of the consistency of doctrine and the full knowledge of doctrine of the Son of God, with reference to a mature noble man, to the standard of maturity which belongs to the fullness of Christ, in order that we no longer be childish ones [immature ones] , being tossed here and there by waves, being carried by every wind of false doctrine by the dice playing of men cheating, face to face with their cunning methods of deception; but by teaching doctrine in the sphere of love [the filling of the Spirit, the concept of impersonal love] may cause to grow up by all things of doctrine with reference to Him who is the absolute Chief [Jesus Christ] Christ, through Whom all the body, being joined together [in union with Christ] being taught categorically through every joint of supply according to the operational power in measure, one pastor for each part which causes growth in the body resulting in an edification complex belonging to self in love. This therefore, says Paul, I explain and make an emphatic demand by means of the Lord that you all no longer continue walking just as the gentiles [reversionistic types] keep walking by means of nothingness in their minds that I should be a minster of Christ Jesus to the gentiles.

1. If no one is saved because of the work of the evangelist, then there is no need for the gift of pastor-teacher. Therefore, evangelists are more important than pastor-teachers.

2. If there are no pastor-teachers doing their job, then there are no believers with momentum glorifying Christ.

3. Bob was lucky to be in a Baptist church at first, because that has given him all of his illustrations.

4. No such thing as evangelizing in a church; an evangelist meets people on a neutral ground.

5. God is not going to change the system just because some evangelists don’t know the gospel. God honors that gift, even if they get a few things wrong. No matter, people are going to be saved.

6. The first thing a missionary does is scour up converts. You are an oddball to them; you don’t look right, you don’t smell right; and you make many linguistic errors which they make fun of.

7. The evangelist is named before the pastor-teacher, because there need to be believers first. No believers then the pastor-teacher has no one to teach. You cannot have a church without believers.

8. Bob was a kid in Florida; and he walked by the tent where Gypsy Smith was an evangelist and Bob was spellbound. He came home and said where he had been, and his father laughed for 30 minutes. His mother quietly told him that he could go back and he did.

____________________________________________________________________ R. B. Thieme, Jr., Bible Ministries 5139 West Alabama, Houston, Texas 77056 (713) 621-3740

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1. Definition: A conscience is a norm or standard residing in the right lobe of the mentality of the soul. The conscience is located in the heart or the right lobe of the soul - Romans 2:15; Titus 1:15.

2. The conscience establishes norms for both human and divine relationship - Acts 24:16.

3. The conscience also has a part which is designed to establish concepts of wrong or right. The conscience, therefore, convicts of wrong or evil - John 8:9.

4. The conscience establishes norms for morality, for laws of establishment, for relationship with God - Romans 2:15.

5. False norms and standards in the conscience produce legalism or self-righteousness - 1Corinthians 8:7.

6. The law of liberty and freedom, and certain superseding laws for the believer - love, expediency, supreme sacrifice, are also related to the function of the conscience - 1Corinthians 10:24-29.

8. Human happiness in the field of neutral H, which is legitimate happiness, is based on compliance to the standards of one's own conscience - 2Corinthians 1:12. No person is a happy person who is violating his own standards.

9. Norms and standards reside in the conscience for the communication of doctrine - 2Corinthians 4:2. By having these norms and standards in the conscience we avoid intellectual dishonesty as well as academic snobbery.

10. The function of GAP builds up the divine standards in the human conscience - 1Timothy 1:5,19; 3:9.

11. The conscience can be distorted or destroyed by negative volition toward doctrine. Great destruction of the conscience is wrought by blackout of the soul and scar tissue of the soul.

12. Conscience establishes norms and standards for serving God - 2Timothy 1:3; Hebrews 9:14.

13. Conscience containing doctrine is the basis for meeting the exigencies of life, handling all the problems of life during maltreatment, misunderstanding, and is directly related to capacity for life - 1Peter er 2:19; 3:16.

a. There are certain things that feed the conscience, like the original environment. Environment is no way of explaining away your failures, your maladjustments in life, your bad personality. But it is true that your original norms and standards are based upon your early environment. We also acquire a conscience from our early environment, whatever it may be. For this reason a stabilized early environment gives you your first great thrust in life which is a good strong conscience. So the environmental factor is a contributor to the conscience whether it is good or bad. These norms and standards are standards you carry for life, and unless there are some radical changes you pretty well have the same norms and standards that you had when you left school. Bible doctrine can change that, it si the greatest factor in adding dynamics to conscience, but outside of that there isn't much hope. As a generation is influenced in the elementary high school stage of its life that is the way the generation will shape up or ship out, and the only thing that will ever change it is a radical disaster whereby a maximum number are destroyed in a shocking manner and the survivors have to undergo a complete change of norm or standard to survive.

1. The Greek word for conscience is suneidêsis (συνείδησις) [pronounced soon-Ī-day-sis], which means to know with a norm or standard. To have a norm or standard and be conscious of that norm or standard in thinking, motivation, decision making and action.

2. The English word conscience comes from the Latin word CONSCIENTIA, meaning joint knowledge; hence, to know with preconceived standards. There is no reference to the conscience, as such, in the Old Testament.

a. Suneidêsis (συνείδησις) [pronounced soon-Ī-day-sis] is defined by Kittel's Theological Dictionary as, "percipient and active self-awareness, which is threatened at its heart by the disjunction of acknowledgement and perception, willing and knowing, judgment and action."

b. Conscience is that mental faculty by which one distinguishes between right and wrong, and urges the individual to do what he recognizes to be right and to restrain him from doing that which he recognizes to be wrong.

4. The conscience is a sense or consciousness in the right lobe related to either moral or spiritual goodness of one's thoughts, motives, decisions, and actions. Therefore, conscience is a faculty, a power, or a principle conceived in the right lobe to determine the quality of one's thoughts, intentions, decisions, and actions.

5. In the conscience of the believer, the norms, standards, and priorities must originate from Bible doctrine. The conscience stores norms, standards, priorities, and values in life.

a. The conscience is the place for the norms and standards that are developed from Bible doctrine. The only thing that makes a Christian conscience work is Bible doctrine.

b. The conscience extrapolates from doctrine the norms and standards for life. You have to know something to have a conscience. When you know something you develop standards. Whatever you learn in the right lobe becomes a part of your norms and standards.

c. You must have vocabulary and thought to establish norms and standards. The conscience must be built on a vocabulary that begins with one word: no, or don't .All consciences are built with negative words which forbid doing something. So the conscience of man is first established by negatives, although eventually there are explanations in both positive and negative terms.

d. The preconceived norms, standards, and priorities of the believer must originate from Bible doctrine. This is the only possible way for the believer to have a conscience that honors God.

7. Scripture: Romans 9:1, 13:5; 1Corinthians 8:7; 2Corinthians 4:2, 5:11; Titus 1:15; Hebrews 9:14.

8. While the Old Testament does not have a word for conscience, it does tell how conscience worked in the Old Testament. Romans 2:14-15, "The law printed [written] in your hearts [right lobes], their conscience confirming the testimony and their thoughts alternately accusing or else defending themselves."

a. All normal persons develop some form of norms, standards, priorities, and concepts of life in the right lobe of the soul.

b. Believers develop divine norms, standards, and priorities in the right lobe through perception, metabolization, and application of Bible doctrine.

a. It is the most basic attribute of the soul related to self-consciousness, and is located in the right lobe of the soul.

(2) These standards set up your own personal honor code. They must recognize authority to have freedom, privacy and property.

c. Everyone has a system of norms, their conscience; e.g., giving your word, not welshing on an obligation, the fact that all women are ladies.

d. Honor is more important than anything else. A society without standards is no society at all. The Roman Empire destroyed itself because it rejected its own standards and the better standards of Christianity.

e. You were born into an aristocracy of honor as a believer. You have to develop new standards now. Your first standard should be recognition of authority, so that all of us may have freedom.

f. Your standards don't make you spiritual or advance you to maturity; God's standards do.

g. People have the right to learn their own standards and make their own decisions. No one has the right to superimpose their standards on anyone else. Privacy means you are allowed to hold any opinion until you grow up spiritually. You have the privacy to take in doctrine without anyone setting standards for you.

h. As you learn doctrine your norms and standards will change. At every stage of spiritual growth you have a consolidated conscience so that you regulate your own life on the basis of your own standards.

B. False standards of legalism produce a weak conscience. 1Corinthians 8:7, "Not all men have this knowledge [about food offered to idols], but some being accustomed to idol worship until now [when saved] eat the food as if it were sacrificed to idols, and their conscience, being weak, is defiled."

1. Some of the best food in Corinth had been offered to idols and then sold as the choicest meat in the temple market. Food is food and meat is meat. So it was alright to eat that food, once you sanctified it.

2. But for those with an idolatrous background and a weak conscience, eating food offered to idols was very offensive. The one with the weak conscience has legalistic norms and standards in his conscience from his religious background.

3. So there is a conflict between those with a strong conscience and those with a weak conscience. A strong conscience has Biblical standards from metabolized doctrine. A weak conscience lives by standards acquired from its background, which may or may not be good, or which may be distorted in the spiritual life. Eating is a physical issue, and has nothing to do with the spiritual life.

4. The weak conscience assumes he's strong, because legalism always assumes it is strong. Yet legalism is really weak. The invasion of guilt into the conscience is one of the biggest problems in legalism, and becomes motivation for legalistic believers.

5. So the conscience is a very sensitive thing. It can be erroneous in its concepts apart from doctrine. If doctrine does not feed the conscience, instinct will. And instinct develops legalism in a hurry.

1. Paul had a balanced conscience regarding establishment and the principles of Bible doctrine, or theology. The norms and standards located in the conscience are directed toward both God and man, but primarily toward mankind until you become aware of the existence of God and what He has done for you.

a. Acts 23:1, "Then Paul, looking intently at the Sanhedrin, said, `Brethren, I have conducted myself as a citizen with a good conscience before God up to this day.'"

b. Acts 24:16, "In view of this, even I myself keep on practicing to maintain even a blameless conscience, both before God and before men."

2. You must have a balanced conscience in order to have a blameless conscience. Paul had two sets of norms and standards from Bible doctrine. He had one set related to God and one set related to man. True strength is to develop your standards toward both God and man from the Biblical standards of doctrine.

3. Paul's conscience before God originated from the mystery doctrine of the Church Age. His conscience before people originated from Codex Three of the Mosaic Law plus everything he had learned related to Bible doctrine of the Church Age.

1. Believers in two categories of extended carnality have destroyed their conscience: extended carnality, resulting in life in Satan's cosmic system; extended carnality, resulting in the believer's involvement in the three stages of Christian degeneracy.

a. 1Timothy 1:19-20, "keeping doctrine [faith] and a good of intrinsic value conscience, which some have rejected and suffered shipwreck regarding their doctrine [faith]. Among these are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have delivered over to Satan, so that they may be taught not to blaspheme."

b. Tit 1:15, "To the pure, all things are pure; but to those who are defiled and unbelieving [those who reject doctrine], nothing is pure, but both their mind and their conscience are defiled."

c. 1Timothy 4:1-2, "But the Spirit explicitly states that in latter periods of time [the dispensations of the Hypostatic Union, the Church Age, and the Tribulation], some believers will become apostate from doctrine, paying attention to deceitful spirits and concentrating on doctrines from demons [cosmic involvement] by means of hypocrisy of liars [false teachers], seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron."

2. False teaching sears the conscience like a branding iron. It destroys the conscience. This searing refers to scar tissue of the soul and cosmic involvement.

3. A great deal of your strength comes from having the proper norms and standards in the conscience of your right lobe. Therefore, it is important to understand how apostasy can destroy the conscience.

1. The Bible has something to say about the conscience and dead works. The conscience is purified from dead works to serve God as a result of believing in Jesus Christ according to Hebrews 9:14, "How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit [omnipotence of the Holy Spirit] offered Himself without blemish to God, purify your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?"

2. There is no work we can perform for salvation; salvation is by grace. Therefore, our conscience must be purified from dead works. Dead works are human works, like faith plus anything for salvation. At the moment of salvation, the new believer has the potential for the purification of his conscience; the conscience can be purified from dead works by avoiding dead works through the filling of the Holy Spirit. All dead works will be burned at the Judgment Seat of Christ.

3. In other words, anything performed outside of the divine dynasphere is dead works. Dead works are from a bad conscience seared with legalism. Christian service that involves dead works is not Christian service at all. The great power experiment of the Church Age and the execution of the protocol plan of God demands the use of the omnipotence of the Holy Spirit inside the divine dynasphere.

4. Divine omnipotence and human power are mutually exclusive. Serving God and fulfilling His plan cannot be accomplished by human power. Human power destroys the conscience and results in dead works. Legalism cannot execute the plan, purpose, or will of God in the Church Age.

5. Serving God means the utilization of divine power and the cognition of Bible doctrine, which establishes the norms and standards for the right lobe.

6. Under the Levitical offering, the animal sacrifices were involuntary offerings. But the impeccable humanity of Jesus Christ was a voluntary sacrifice for the sins of the world.

1. The conscience is a vehicle for the problem solving devices of the protocol plan of God.

2. If the norms and standards respond to guilt, then you have a weak conscience. For example, if you rebound and still feel guilty, you have a weak conscience.

3. When the norms and standards of the conscience are formed from Christian moral degeneracy, then the conscience is weak and can only identify with dead works.

4. However, the application of Bible doctrine to life is made through the mechanics of the problem solving devices; they also enter the conscience.

a. The norms and standards of the conscience make the proper application of rebound. The believer simply names his sins to God, and because he has a strong conscience, he knows they are forgiven immediately. Therefore, there is no battle with guilt, no penitence, no self-flagellation, no trying to make it up to God. Rebound applied to the conscience removes guilt.

b. When the norms and standards of the conscience are formed from Bible doctrine, the believer has a problem solving device related to grace orientation, 2Corinthians 1:12. "Now this is our boast [esprit de corp], the testimony of our conscience, that we have conducted ourselves in the world and especially in relationship to God, both in holiness [filling of the Holy Spirit] and godly sincerity [motivation from Bible doctrine], not in fleshly wisdom, but in the grace of God."

(1) There a conflict in the conscience of the believer in adolescence between the motivation of Bible doctrine and the problem of fleshly wisdom. Believers hallucinate spiritually. They assume they have reached spiritual adulthood when they are really in adolescence. These believers can never handle the lust problems of the sin nature.

(2) The conscience is related to the grace of God in Paul's conduct toward the Corinthian believers.

(3) Grace orientation as a problem solving device expresses itself through the norms and standards of the conscience constructed from Bible doctrine. There is no grace orientation apart from the norms and standards of Bible doctrine established in the soul.

(4) Grace orientation in the soul includes conscience. Conscience is the basis for grace function in the Christian life.

(5) Grace orientation related to the conscience is also taught in 1Peter 2:18-19, "Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only for the good and gentle masters, but also for the unreasonable ones; for this is grace, if for the sake of conscience toward God, anyone bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly."

(a) Though originally addressed to slaves, this verse came to refer to anyone who is under the authority of someone else. Some people in authority are perverse, but you are just as responsible to submit to their authority. You serve them and do your best job as unto the Lord.

(b) A conscience loaded with doctrine bears up magnificently under unfair treatment. Such a believer has a strong conscience. Instead of guilt entering the conscience to destroy it, you have grace orientation and keep on making the right application. The weak believer complains and rejects authority, and so becomes a loser.

(c) So it is very important to have a conscience based on EPIGNOSIS doctrine so that you can handle unjust treatment in the same manner that you handle fair treatment.

(d) Military training can be counted on to provide unjust and unfair treatment from authority. To learn to submit to unfair authority is necessary for proper function under the abnormal circumstances of combat.

c. When the norms and standards of the conscience are formed from Bible doctrine, the believer has a problem solving device related to doctrinal orientation, 2Corinthians 4:2, "But we have renounced the things hidden because of shame [false norms and standards], not walking in craftiness or watering down the Word of God, but by the unveiling of doctrine [cognition and inculcation of Bible doctrine], commending ourselves to every person's conscience in the sight of God."

(1) The "things hidden because of shame" are the previous false norms and standards in the conscience related to guilt or some other form of arrogance. This is how people justify wrong doing.

(2) The weak conscience is crafty. The weak conscience waters down the Word of God.

(3) The more doctrine you learn, the more doctrinal standards you have in your conscience.

(a) You cannot have a good conscience, if you do not know Bible doctrine. Bible doctrine is the center of all spiritual skills.

(b) Paul is here saying that there is a legitimate modus operandi that goes with the spiritual life. You will build up norms and standards related to it from Bible doctrine, and at the same time set aside false norms and standards related to legalism.

(c) By learning and using doctrine without trying to run other people's lives, you commend yourself to other people's consciences in the sight of God.

(d) The conscience of the believer must be formed from the norms, standards, and priorities obtained through cognition of Bible doctrine. No one has a strong conscience until they reach spiritual self-esteem.

(4) 1Timothy 3:9, "Holding the mystery of the doctrine with a clear conscience." You acquire a clear conscience by having doctrinal norms and standards.

(5) The conscience of the believer must be formed from norms and standards obtained through cognition and inculcation of Bible doctrine.

d. When the norms and standards of the conscience are formed from Bible doctrine, the believer has problem solving devices related to virtue-love, 1Timothy 1:5, "But the objective of our instruction is virtue-love from a pure right lobe and a good conscience and a sincere faith."

e. When the norms and standards of the conscience are formed from Bible doctrine, the believer has a problem solving devices relate to perfect happiness. This happiness and tranquility is applied through the conscience.

f. When the norms and standards of the conscience are formed from Bible doctrine, the believer has a problem solving devices relate to a personal sense of destiny.

g. When the norms and standards of the conscience are formed from Bible doctrine, the believer has a problem solving devices relate to occupation with Christ. 1Peter 3:15-16, "but sanctify the Lord Jesus Christ in your right lobes [occupation with Christ], and always be ready to make a defense to anyone who asks you to give an account for the confidence that is in you with grace orientation and respect [occupation with Christ]. Be having a good conscience, so that in the things in which you are slandered, those who malign your intrinsic good in Christ may be put to shame."

(1) Note the source of occupation with Christ is epignosis doctrine in the right lobe. You handle slander through epignosis in the right lobe.

(2) If you have a strong conscience, you will leave it in the Lord's hands. Then it will go to the supreme court of heaven. They will be put to shame without you ever trying to defend yourself or answer back.

(3) Occupation with Christ extends into the conscience and becomes the ultimate in problem solving devices. Any of the various problem solving devices can enter the conscience and solve the problem. You will never be occupied with Christ until you have a strong, doctrinally oriented conscience.

h. The problem solving devices only work through a strong conscience. Through a weak conscience, the believer distorts the problem solving devices.

G. The believer's conscience demands that he submit to establishment authority. Romans 13:5, "Therefore, it is necessary to be in subordination, not only because of wrath [law enforcement], but also for conscience sake."

1. In other words, the Christian doesn't refrain from criminal activity because he's afraid of going to jail, but because, with a strong conscience, his norms and standards refuse to let him even consider any criminal activity.

2. The conscience in the soul is far stronger than any fear of punishment from law enforcement.

H. Conscience as a motivator. 2Timothy 1:3, "I thank God whom I serve with a clear conscience, the way my ancestors did, as I constantly remember you in my prayers, day and night."

1. So your conscience has something to do with your effectiveness in prayer. Paul's conscience demanded that he pray for certain people, and he did so. Paul didn't pray for people because he liked them, but for conscience sake, which is the strongest possible motivation.

2. Since the conscience is located in the right lobe of the soul, the norms and standards of the conscience are built on EPIGNOSIS doctrine, not on GNOSIS doctrine.

1. You've learned from your entire background and, therefore you have certain norms and standards. These are non-essential applications.

2. From a standard you make application. You have a right to those standards and applications as long as it does not contradict essential doctrine.

3. An essential doctrine will come along and knock out one of your past norms and standards.

4. You have to allow for the privacy of individual standards which are non-essential. And you don't correct people. You simply tolerate others. You don't try to get others to agree to your non-essential standards. If you don't get doctrine in your human spirit, you'll not get it in your soul.

a. To the human spirit as building material for your edification complex of the soul,

6. There is a relationship between your conscience and your perception of doctrine, between your intake of doctrine and your spiritual growth.

a. The mature believer has an edification complex of the soul growing out of the human spirit and a doctrinal conscience growing out of his soul.

b. Maximum doctrine feeds into the human spirit and builds your edification complex of the soul. It also feeds into the soul from which you build your conscience.

c. Every application you make in life you have to make from your own conscience. The source of all application of doctrine is your conscience. You don't operate on someone else's norms and standards.

1. Spiritual death - Ephesians 2:1; Romans 5:12; 6:23; 1Corinthians 15:22. Spiritual death is a judgement on the human race at the point of birth. It is being born into the devil's kingdom as citizens. We are born spiritually dead and related to the devil's kingdom and we continue that way until we believe in Jesus Christ at which point this thing is broken. This means that when grace found us we belonged to Satan's kingdom because we were born with spiritual death. Therefore the participle in verse is not only ascriptive but it is linear aktionsart. It is a status that continues and can only be broken by a new birth, and therefore the necessity for the new birth. The new birth breaks spiritual death. Spiritual death is not only separation from God but it is the penalty of sin, and it is totally the penalty of sin. Physical death is not the penalty of sin and it does not have anything to do with the penalty of sin. The only way that physical death is related to the penalty of sin is that since we are born spiritually dead it is inevitable that eventually we will all die. The first use of spiritual death in the Bible is in Genesis 2:17.

2. Physical death - Matthew 8:22; 2Corinthians 5:1-8; Romans 8:38,39; Philippians 1:21. Physical death is the separation of the soul from the body.

3. The second death is the perpetuation of spiritual death into eternity - Hebrews 9:27; Revelation 20:12-15. It refers to the final judgement of the unbeliever in which the unbeliever is cast into the lake of fire forever. So it follows the general concept of separation but it is the eternal lake of fire.

4. Operational death - James 2:26. "Faith without production is dead [non-operative]." This is a reference to the believer's failure to produce divine good, the failure of the believer to reach supergrace, the failure of the believer to GAP it consistently; it is the failure of the believer to get an accumulation of doctrine that leads to the ECS, occupation with Christ, supergrace capacity, supergrace blessing .

5. Positional death - Romans chapter 6 is the major passage of discussion. It is also found in Colossians 2:12, 20; 3:3. At salvation we are entered into union with Christ through the baptism of the Spirit. The baptism of the Spirit has two aspects. We are in union with Christ as Christ is seated at the right hand of the Father. We are also in union with Christ as Christ died on the cross - current and retroactive positional truth. Positional death is retroactive positional truth or identification with Christ in His death. We are identified with Christ in His death because at the cross Jesus Christ rejected human good. He bore our sins in His own body on the tree but He rejected human good. Retroactive positional truth is simply our rejection of human good through identification with Christ on the cross.

6. Temporal death - Romans 8:6,13; Ephesians 5:14; 1Timothy 5:6; James 1:15; Revelation 3:1; Luke 15:24,32. It refers to the believer out of fellowship through sin. It is simply carnality or the perpetuation of carnality in reversionism. Temporal death just means that death is used to show that when you and I sin we are out of fellowship, we are dead to God in the sense of being out of fellowship. The prodigal son was still a son but he was dead to his father - "This, my son, was dead but now is alive." He was out of fellowship, now he is back in fellowship.

7. Sexual death which is the inability to copulate - Romans 4:16-21; Hebrews 11:11.12.

1. 1. Spiritual death was the penalty of sin, and was so given as the warning to mankind in the garden. Genesis 2:17, "dying you will die." "Dying" refers to spiritual death at birth or the fall of man; "you shall die" refers to physical death. The origin of spiritual death was the original sin of man in the garden.

2. The penalty was imposed at the fall of man and is perpetuated in the human race through the imputation of Adam's original sin to the genetically-formed old sin nature after birth, simultaneously with the imputation of human life. The old sin nature is transmitted through the twenty-three male chromosomes which fertilize the female ovum. We are not condemned by our personal sins.

3. Spiritual death occurs at the moment of physical birth. The entire human race is born physically alive and spiritually dead because of the two imputations which occur at birth.

a. When biological life emerges from the womb, God creates soul life and imputes it to biological life. This is when we become a human being. Life does not begin at copulation, but when God imputes the spark of life after birth.

b. Simultaneously, the sin nature emerges from the womb and there is the imputation of Adam's original sin to the old sin nature. This causes spiritual death.

c. From birth the status of the human race is spiritual death. Ephesians 2:1, "And you, being dead in your transgressions and sins," (not "because of your transgressions and sins") .Personal sins are only a sign that you are spiritually dead.

4. Rom 5:12, "Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world and death [spiritual death] through that sin, so [spiritual] death spread to all men because all sinned [when Adam sinned]."

a. This means we are born physically alive and spiritually dead, so that if we die before reaching accountability, we automatically go to heaven. Adam made a decision for the entire human race. Our sins are not imputed to us, but to Jesus Christ on the cross.

(1) The condemnation of mankind is not based on personal sin, but on imputed sin. Mankind is not condemned by the imputation of his personal sins, but by the imputation of Adam's original sin to the genetically-formed old sin nature. Condemnation is based on our personal sins; they are the result of spiritual death. Condemnation is based on imputed sin.

(2) Personal sin is the result of imputed sin at birth. Hence, personal sin is the result of spiritual death.

(3) Personal sin is not the means of spiritual death, but the result of spiritual death, i.e., the result of having an old sin nature.

a. Real spiritual death. This was the actual spiritual death of Adam, who made the decision for the entire human race. We are all really spiritually dead at the moment of physical birth.

b. Substitutionary spiritual death. This occurred on the cross, when our Lord bore our sins in His own body and were judged. Our personal sins were never imputed to us for condemnation, but to Jesus Christ as our substitute, 1Peter 2:24, 3:18; 2Corinthians 5:21; Isaiah 53:6; Romans 5:8.

6. The solution to spiritual death is stated in Romans 6:23. "The wages of sin is death [spiritual death], but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." We obtain spiritual death at the moment of physical birth. Spiritual death is resolved at the moment of spiritual birth or regeneration. Being born-again solves the problem of spiritual death.

7. Jesus made a paronomasia out of spiritual and physical death in Matthew 8:22, "Follow Me; let the [spiritually] dead bury their own [physically] dead."

8. Spiritual death is the subject of 1Corinthians 15:22, "For as in Adam all die [spiritual death], so also in Christ shall all be made alive."

a. No member of the human race, born of woman, is condemned on the basis of personal sins. Personal sins are the result of being spiritually dead.

a. Spiritual death means the status of dichotomy. We have a soul and no human spirit. Therefore, we cannot understand the gospel or anything about God.

b. Spiritual death means the status of total depravity. Total depravity means we are in either moral or immoral degeneracy in the status of sin.

c. The status of total separation from God cannot be ignored. The status of total helplessness to do anything about it brings in the issue of the grace of God.

d. The Holy Spirit can make faith alone effective for salvation. Anything added to faith in spiritual death means no salvation. Faith plus anything else is salvation by works, which eliminates the work of the Holy Spirit in efficacious grace.

1. While spiritual death occurs at physical birth, positional death occurs at the second birth, the new birth or regeneration.

2. Positional death occurs through the baptism of the Holy Spirit at salvation. The believer is identified with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. Romans 6:1-14

3. Positional death, also called retroactive positional truth, is the believer's identification with Christ in His death. For just as Christ rejected human good and evil on the cross, so positionally we have done the same. Therefore, we must avoid them by residence and function in the divine dynasphere.

4. Positional rejection of human good and evil as the policy of Satan is part of the believer's residence inside the divine dynasphere at salvation, Colossians 2:11-12. Positional rejection is the basis for experiential rejection.

5. Positional death is the subject of Romans 6:1-5. "Therefore, what are we to continue? Are we to continue under the sin nature that grace might increase? Emphatically not! We who have died to the sin nature, how shall we still live in it? Or are you ignorant that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His [spiritual] death? Therefore, we have been buried together with Him through baptism into His death, that as Christ has been raised up from the dead to the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life. So if we have become intimately united in the likeness of His death, not only this but also we shall be intimately united in the likeness of His resurrection."

6. Retroactive positional truth or positional death is identification with Christ in His death. Positionally we have died to sin, human good, and evil. Now we must do so experientially.

a. Two things happened in the spiritual death of Christ on the cross: He was judged for the sins of the world; and He rejected human good and evil.

b. Therefore, human good and evil are still a part of the angelic conflict as far as their judgment is concerned.

c. By rejection of human good and evil on the cross, Jesus Christ rejected Satan's policy for the rulership of this world.

7. Positional death is related to God's gift of the divine dynasphere. Inside the divine dynasphere we are filled with the Holy Spirit and cannot sin. Therefore, to make a decision to sin, the believer has to leave the divine dynasphere. We can only sin outside of the divine dynasphere. All personal sin places us inside the cosmic system. Inside the cosmic system of Satan we produce human good and evil.

8. Positionally the believer is dead to human good and evil. Experientially the believer does commit sin, human good, and evil. But rebound only deals with sin, not human good and evil.

2. The carnal death of the believer is the subject of the phrase in Ephesians 5:14, "Therefore, it says, `Wake up, you sleeper. Stand up out from the acts of sin."

a. The temporal death of the believer, which describes the believer out of fellowship with God. This might be described as the status of committing an occasional sin with some elapse of time in between sins.

b. The cosmic death of the believer. This is the believer involved in either cosmic one or cosmic two or both.

c. The fragmented death of the believer, which is the believer involved in either moral or immoral degeneracy.

4. 1Corinthians 3:1 describes carnality. "And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual persons, but as to carnal persons, even as to babies in Christ."

5. Carnal, temporal, cosmic, or fragmented death refers to the function of the believer's volition in converting temptation from the sin nature into sinfulness.

a. Whether the believer knows he is being tempted or not is never the issue. The issue is that you wanted to do that sin and you did it; therefore, ignorance is no excuse.

b. The believer cannot sin inside the divine dynasphere. Therefore, the decision to sin is made outside the divine dynasphere.

c. The decision to sin automatically places the believer inside the cosmic system. Living inside the cosmic system classifies that believer as living in temporal or cosmic death.

d. For the believer, cosmic involvement through sin is always cosmic death. When in the cosmic system, you are in cosmic death.

e. James 1:15, "When lust has become pregnant, it gives birth to sin. Furthermore, when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death." Lust is temptation trying to penetrate the soul.

a. Temptation is not a sin, but the act of volition which follows. When you say "yes" to the temptation, the old sin nature controls your soul.

b. The sin nature dwells in the cell structure of the body and the Holy Spirit indwells the body. The question is: Who is going to control the soul?

c. The believer's decision to sin automatically gives control of the soul to the sin nature. And the believer's decision not to sin gives control of the soul to the Holy Spirit.

a. Jam 1:15, "Then when lust has become pregnant it gives birth to sin. Furthermore, when the sin is born [completed], it brings forth death."

b. 1Timothy 5:6, "But that widow who constantly indulges in wanton pleasure has died while she is living."

c. Rev 3:1, "I know your production, that you have a reputation that you are living, but you are dead."

d. Romans 8:6, "For the mindset of the flesh [old sin nature] is death [cosmic death], but the mindset of the Spirit is life and prosperity."

e. Romans 8:13, "For if you are living according to the flesh [old sin nature], you must die [cosmic death], but if you through the Holy Spirit are putting to death the production of the flesh, you live." When you say "no" to temptation you are in the divine dynasphere, which is life.

f. 1John 3:14, "We know that we have changed our residence from the realm of death [cosmic system] to [the Christian way of] life."

8. The believer who is positive to Bible doctrine understands how to recover from carnal death and keep moving, and does so. The negative believer continues under the control of the sin nature and is in the status of death while he lives. The negative believer eventually becomes a loser of his escrow blessings.

9. The believer who spends his life in carnal death usually dies physically from maximum divine discipline, the sin unto death. 1John 5:16; Psalm 118:17-18; Acts 5:1-10; Revelation 3:16.

1. This can be classified as operational death or "dead works," according to Hebrews 6:1. "Therefore, graduating from the elementary teachings about Christ, let us advance to maturity, not laying again the foundation of a change of mind about dead works and faith toward God."

2. Dead works include all facets of Christian service performed outside the divine dynasphere.

a. Dead works is analogous to human good. Dead works are all the function of human good apart from the filling of the Holy Spirit.

b. Works produced in the cosmic system are dead. Morality is virtue only when produced inside the divine dynasphere. In the cosmic system, works are legalism, self-righteousness, and arrogance and parlayed into evil.

c. This category combines the arrogance of Christian service with the function of human good. There is no momentum from Christian service; Christian service is always a result.

d. Dead works can include the function of crusader arrogance combined with the modus operandi of cosmic panaceas. Dead works include all Christian activism.

e. Dead works refers to the production, Christian service, or good works of the believer performed when he is inside the cosmic system.

f. Anything related to the cosmic system is outside the plan of God, including production performed inside the cosmic system, 1Corinthians 13:1-3.

g. The believer in moral degeneracy can perform hundreds and hundreds of acts of Christian service, all of which are dead works.

3. All works, production, and Christian service of the believer in the cosmic system is dead, and will be burned at the Judgment Seat of Christ, 1Corinthians 3:12-15. All Christian production will be evaluated at the Judgment Seat of Christ, Romans 14:10; 2Corinthians 5:10.

1. Sexual death in the male refers to inability to copulate and procreate. Sexual death in the female refers to inability to procreate.

2. This category of death is only used in relation to Abraham and Sarah, as found in Romans 4:17-21 and Hebrews 11:11-12.

1. Physical death is defined as separation of the soul from the body so that the person no longer lives on planet earth. The soul never dies, it lives forever.

2. After death, the soul of the believer resides in an interim body until the Rapture, at which time it leaves the third heaven, goes to the second heaven and receives a resurrection body.

a. The soul of the unbeliever leaves the body and goes to Hades. There it remains in torments until the end of time. Then it is resurrected, brought before the Great White Throne, judged, and cast into the lake of fire, providing eternal agony.

b. Death is always God's victory. God gives this victory to all believers through our Lord Jesus Christ.

3. Physical death cannot separate the believer from God, Romans 8:38-39. Nothing can separate us from divine love.

4. Physical death is a matter of the sovereign decision of God, based on His perfect knowledge of all the facts, Psalm 68:19-20. No matter how you feel, when the Lord decides to take you, that's it. It is blasphemous to question His decision.

5. God can and does prolong physical life, Psalm 102:19-20, 23-24; 118:18; Prov 14:27.

6. God also delivers the believer from death, Job 5:20; Psalm 33:19, 56:13; 116:8.

7. The believer who attains spiritual maturity departs under dying grace, Psalm 23:4. Psalm 116:15, "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His godly ones." This is not necessarily freedom from pain, but pain is negated as a factor.

8. Resurrection is victory over death. Whatever the failures or glories related to your death, we all revert to the principle of divine impersonal love in resurrection. Resurrection supersedes whatever you were in dying. Therefore, it is victory for all believers, 1Corinthians 15:54-57. There is no victory for the grave because all believers will have a resurrection body. The victory of physical death is for believers only.

a. Death means no appointment with judgment, Hebrews 9:27. The first appointment is physical death; the second, for the lake of fire, is cancelled.

b. Death means being face to face with the Lord, 2Corinthians 5:8; this implies an interim body.

c. Death means the end of pain, Revelation 21:4. There is no mourning, crying, or pain in the interim body. Believers who die the sin unto death don't lose out until the Rapture. They have a ball in the interim body.

f. Death means realization of eternal life, John 11:25, 10:28, 20:31; 1John 5:11-12.

g. Death means waiting for the resurrection in an interim body, John 11:25; 1Thessalonians 4:13-18; Job 19:25-26; Philippians 3:21; 1Corinthians 5:51-57.

10. For the believer whose momentum carries him to spiritual maturity, death is going to be profitable forever. Philippians 1:20-21, "For me living Christ, dying profit."

11. For the believer who spends his life in the cosmic system, death is horrible. However, better an end with horror than horror without end. The believer living in the cosmic system dies under maximum discipline of the sin unto death, 1John 5:16; Revelation 3:16.

a. God's timing, manner, and place of death is related to the whether we execute this spiritual life or not.

b. God's decision as to the time, manner and place of our death is always based on the integrity and love of God.

c. Every believer's death is always God's victory, 1Corinthians 15:55- 57. The word "victory" refers to the death of the winner believer. The word "sting" refers to the sin unto death.

d. Living is Christ and dying is profit for the winner believer, Philippians 1:21. In life we are guarded by the power of God, 1Peter 1:5. This is our wall of fire protection.

e. In all matters of life and death, God's timing is perfect, because God is perfect. For the winner believer, dying is the most wonderful part of life. Dying for the loser believer is most awesome and horrible time in life.

f. In dying, God's decision glorifies God and at the same time brings the greatest blessing in life to the dying person. For the believer who has harmonious rapport with God through his spiritual life dying is far better than any blessing in living.

1. The second death is for unbelievers only. It is the final judgment of those who reject Christ as Savior. It is eternal separation from God and final judgment in the lake of fire. It is part of the second resurrection.

2. It occurs at the end of the Gog revolution at the end of the Millennium. It is the final judgment of all unbelievers, Hebrews 9:27; Revelation 20:12-15.

3. Each unbeliever is judged according to his good deeds which add up to unrighteousness. The unbeliever is cast into the lake of fire because of rejection of Christ. He is not judged for personal sins since these were already judged on the cross.

1. This refers to the manner of death for the believer who rejects rebound and stays in the cosmic system. It is dying a horrible death with maximum pain, suffering and agony.

d. Transfer from time to eternity by surpassing grace blessing for Old Testament believers, for example, Enoch, Hebrews 11:5.

4. No believer suffers after the sin unto death because he is in an interim body, Revelation 21:4.

5. David's discipline is an example of Old Testament sin unto death, Psalm 32, 38.

6. Military disaster is a part of the sin unto death, 1John 5:16; Jeremiah 9:13-16, 44:12.

7. Depression, famine, and criminal violence is a part of the sin unto death. Philippians 3:18-19, "whose termination of life is ruin."

8. Revelation 3:15-16 describes the sin unto death as a lukewarm believer, whom the Lord is about to vomit out of His mouth.

9. The sin unto death is God's last punishment for the believer who lives out his life in the cosmic system.

1. There are three verses of scripture where the deity of Christ is presented as a syllogism [a logical progression in which the subject of the first sentence becomes the object of the second sentence, whereas the object of the first sentence becomes the subject of the second sentence, and the two are placed together in the third sentence], 1Peterer 1:2; 2Corinthians 13:14; Matthew 28:19. The syllogism is the Trinity is eternal. Christ is a member of the Trinity, Christ is eternal.

2. The outstanding scriptures dealing with the deity of Christ, John 1:1-3; 8:58; Micah 5:2; Romans 9:5; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 1:8-10; 1 John 5:20.

3. The pre-incarnate work of Christ. This necessitates His preexistence. His preexistence obviates the concept of deity. For example, Christ created the universe, not all at one time. The heavens and the earth were created instantly; man was created on the sixth day of restoration, long after the heavens and the earth were created. The angels were created some time between the creation of the universe and the creation of man. Animal life was created in three different sections. Every act of original creation is the work of the Lord Jesus Christ, John 1:3; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:10.

4. The doctrine of divine decrees. Jesus Christ had a definite part in the doctrine of divine decrees. He is so identified with the doctrine of divine decrees as to be God. For example, whenever the divine decrees is mentioned and Jesus Christ is mentioned in connection with them, He is mentioned as God. Therefore, once again, there are certain passages where the decrees are mentioned where Christ is mentioned, and Christ is identified as God. For example, Psalm 2:7-9; 22:1-6; 40; 110. In other words, Jesus Christ is so identified with the doctrine of divine decrees as to be God.

5. The Christophanies also indicate the deity of Jesus Christ. There are the Christophanies or the theophanies, there are synonymous terms because the only person in the Godhead who has ever been manifest, old Testament or incarnation, is always Jesus Christ. We are dealing with one special Christophany here. Jesus Christ often came as a man. He was the one who wrestled with Jacob. He also came as the burning bush to Moses. But we are talking about a specific Christophany which indicates that Jesus Christ is God, Jesus Christ appeared as an angel. As such in the Old Testament He is called the angel of Jehovah. He is also called Jehovah.

a. The angel of Jehovah is identified as Jehovah in the following passages: Genesis 16:7-13; 22:11-18; 31:11-13; 48:15,16; Exodus 3:1ff Cf Acts 7:30-35; Exodus 13:21; 14:19; Judges 6:11-23; 13:9-20. In all of these passage find Jesus Christ mentioned in context as the angel of Jehovah. That isn’t conclusive until in the same context the angel of Jehovah is also called

b. However, the angel of Jehovah is distinguished from Jehovah. Why? Because the angel of Jehovah is always Jesus Christ. Take the word elohim which is plural. As a plural word translated “God” in the Old Testament it refers to the entire Trinity. Whenever one or more persons are going to be mentioned we have the word Jehovah. It is used for God the Father, it is used for God the Son, and it is used for God the Holy Spirit. However it is only the Son who is the angel of Jehovah, it is only the Son who is ever a theophany or Christophany. Jesus Christ is the only person of the Godhead who ever is manifest to man or to creatures in the form of a creature, or in some other form like the burning bush, the pillar of fire at night, the cloud by day. But He is still God. Jesus Christ is the angel of Jehovah, but since He is also Jehovah the passage will say somewhere in it, “Jehovah said,” indicating that the angel of Jehovah is Jehovah and that Jehovah is the angel of Jehovah, and that this is a theophany and that this is God. Obviously when some other member of the Godhead is involved in some other operation where the angel of Jehovah is functioning it will say, “Jehovah said to the angel of Jehovah.” Why? Because the Father is Jehovah too, and the Father isn’t a Christophany or theophany but He is talking to a Christophany or a theophany. Genesis 24:7,40; Exodus 23:20; 32:34; 1 Chronicles 21:15-18; Isaiah 63:9; Zechariah 1:12,13. The angel of Jehovah is distinguished from Jehovah.

c. The angel of Jehovah is the second person of the Trinity. Two form of argument: 1. Jesus Christ is always said to be the visible God, the only member of the Trinity who is ever visible — John 1:18; 6:46; 1Timothyothy 6:16; 1 John 4:12. After the incarnation of Christ the angel of Jehovah never appears again.

6. The tetragrammaton [means four letters]. This is the sacred name of God, JHWH. The Jews never pronounced that name, they always said “Adonai.” So when you come to something like that you can use the vowel points of Adonai, the vowel points of the verb to be. So we have two different theories. We started out by using Jehovah. Then someone came along and said no, that is Yaweh. The tetragrammaton is used for the Father and used for the Son and used for the Holy Spirit. The principle: Jesus Christ is called Jehovah in the following passages: Isaiah 9:6,7; 40:3; Jeremiah 23:5,6; Zechariah 12:10.

7. Certain characteristics are ascribed to deity. These characteristics are specifically ascribed to Jesus Christ. So we recognise the deity of Christ from the doctrine of divine essence. The essence box is simply describing the characteristics of God, sovereignty, absolute righteousness, justice, love, eternal life, omnipotence, omniscience, omnipresence, immutability, veracity. All of these attributes are ascribed somewhere in scripture to Jesus Christ. For example, eternal life, Isaiah 9:6; Micah 5:2; John 1:1; 8:58; Colossians 1:16,17; Ephesians 1:4; Revelation 1:11. For example, righteousness and justice [holiness] which is ascribed to God the Son, Luke 1:35; John 6:69; Hebrews 7:26. Love, John 13:1,34; 1 John 3:16. Immutability, Hebrews 13:8. Omniscient, Matthew 9:4; John 2:25; 1Corinthians 4:5; Colossians 2:3; Revelation 2:23. Omnipotent, Matthew 24:30; 28:13; 1Corinthians 15:28; Philippians 3:21; Hebrews 1:3; Revelation 1:8. Omnipresent — Matthew 28:20; Ephesians 1:23; Colossians 1:27. Any one of these scriptures proves the deity of Christ.

1. Jesus Christ is eternal God. As a member of the Trinity, He always existed. There never was a time when He did not exist.

2. He is coequal and coeternal with the Father and the Spirit, Colossians 1:15. In eternity past, Jesus Christ had the same essence as the Father and Spirit.

3. In time He still had the same functions of deity, but He also became true humanity. Therefore, He is unique.

1. A syllogism is a logical formula consisting of two premises and a conclusion, a major and minor premise plus a conclusion, derived from deductive reasoning.

2. Following this formula: the Trinity is eternal. Christ is a member of the Trinity. Therefore, Christ is eternal.

2. John 1:1-3, “In a beginning which was not a beginning there existed the Word [Jesus Christ].”

D. The preincarnate work of Jesus Christ indicates He was God. He is the creator of the universe, John 1:3; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:10. He had to be God to preexist all other creatures.

E. The doctrine of divine decrees proves the deity of Christ. Christ is identified with the divine decrees so as to be God, Psalm 2:7-9, 22:1-6; 40; 110.

F. The Hebrew word JHWH is one of the titles for Jesus Christ. The Jews never pronounced the word. Instead they said Adonai, which means deity. Elohim (plural) refers to the Trinity. JHWH is used for Jesus Christ in Isaiah 9:6-7, 40:3; Jeremiah 23:5-6; Zechariah 12:10.

2. Perfect righteousness and justice = holiness, Luke 1:35; John 6:69; Hebrews 7:26.

3. Love, John 13:1, 34; 1John 3:16. 4. Eternal life, Isaiah 9:6; Micah 5:2; John 1:1, 8:58; Colossians 1:16-17; Ephesians 1:4; Revelation 1:11.

4. Omniscience, Matthew 9:4; John 2:25; 1Corinthians 4:5; Colossians 2:3; Revelation 2:23

8. Jesus Christ did not suppress His deity in the incarnation; this is the false doctrine of kenosis. Instead, He gave up the independent use of His divine attributes.

c. As the angel of JHWH, Genesis 16:7-18, 22:11-18, 31:11ff. Christ is said to be the angel of JHWH in Genesis 24:7, 40; Exodus 23:20, 32:34; 1 Chron 21:15-18; Isaiah 63:9; Zechariah 1:12-13. Because Christ is always the visible member of the Trinity, He never appears as the angel of JHWH after the First Advent, John 6:46, 1:18; 1Timothy 6:16.

3. The First and Second Advents. Philippians 2:6 “who though He existed in the essence of God, He did not think equality with God a gain to be seized.”

1. No two people are born equal. They have different talents, ability, mentality, circumstances, genes, and environment.

2. After the new birth, we still have different gifts or spiritual status. Therefore, all of us are still different.

3. It is impossible to make people equal. We have equal rights to advance under freedom as far as we can go. But there will always be someone who is prettier, stronger, smarter, etc.

4. The only basis for equality is to have everyone be zombies. The worst thing a society does is lower itself to the lowest common denominator, so as not to make the weirdos feel weird. Christian weirdos call this Christian love.

5. You are to stay within your own standards. Never depart from your personal standards to make someone else feel better. You can come into Berachah will all the different standards you want. Bob wore jeans to ride horses and to shovel the stuff they don’t need.

6. There is no law of love where standards are concerned. We must have different standards and are entitled to our different standards as long as we don't violate the law.

7. You are not inferior because your standards aren't as high as someone else's. Being inferior or superior is not the issue.

8. The differences between us as provided by the Lord are spiritual gifts. The pastor has authority but isn't better than anyone else.

9. All healthy nations have different people with different standards. This means competition, prosperity, influence, and a lot of normal things in life.

10. Stamping everyone from the same mold is anti-God, and is what fundamentalist Christians are doing today. Some believers are closer to maturity than others; therefore, we cannot all be or act alike.

11. A Houston pastors organization wanted to do an exchange of teachers once a month. Bob would fight such a person to the death to keep them from teaching at Berachah.

12. Only arrogant people want to be equal. If you are free from arrogance you don't care if there are people better than you; you're delighted for them. And you don't gloat over those who are inferior to you. You don't need to prove you are inferior or superior to anyone else.

1. The absolute status says that you are either in fellowship or out of fellowship. Believers are different because some use rebound and some do not. Some sin more frequently than others.

2. The relative status says that no two believers have the same stage of spiritual growth. Positive or negative volition to Bible doctrine determines these differences.

C. Differences in the Function of the Old Sin Nature. Believers have different areas of weakness or strength in the trends of their old sin nature. There are different kinds of human good trends. There are different areas of overt sinning. We are different, yet we are told to "love" one another. You do this by starting with a relaxed mental attitude toward all. We are so different that it is amazing that we can all sit together for an hour and a quarter without getting up and slugging one another.

D. Differences in Spiritual Gifts. At salvation each believer has a spiritual gift, but the spiritual gifts are all different. Certain gifts no longer exist, such as tongues, healing, and miracles. The gift we have determines how much authority we have or lack of it. Your spiritual gift automatically functions at a certain point in your spiritual growth. It doesn't function if you're not growing spiritually. If we are positive toward doctrine, God will provide the doctrine. No equality even in dying blessing.

1. The imputation of divine blessing in time depends on maximum Bible doctrine in the soul. So it depends on your attitude toward doctrine.

2. We all have equal opportunity, because we have the imputation of God's perfect righteousness and logistical grace.

3. There are six categories of blessings (see the Doctrine of Escrow Blessings), and variations exist in each of these. They are tailor-made for each individual. Spiritual blessings are uniform, but the others vary greatly. All mature believers get dying grace in different ways.

4. As long as our relationship with the Lord is right, we don't have to worry about what our temporal blessings are going to be. Because the Lord will give us the best blessings compatible with our perfect happiness. You may be poor all your life in maturity because God blesses you with different things.

5. There is no such thing as equality. Two people can be occupied with Christ and still not be equal. Yet God knows best how to bless each one.

6. There are greater differences among believers than there are among unbelievers. This is the basis for being content and getting adjusted to reality. Differences are always there, so you simply adjust to the reality of the situation and don't crack up because others are better off.

1. No two believers have the same set of circumstances in life. You should be able to look at anyone else's life and say, "I have what God wants for me and I am delighted with it."

2. Never envy other believers because their circumstances appear to be better. God assigns circumstances. Don't fight it. It will make you subjective all of your life.

4. You are allowed to improve your own barnyard and to maintain your momentum. This will keep you objective all through your life.

5. People are constantly motivated by envy and think, "I should have more than they do." Be content with what you have!

6. No two believers have the same amount of time between salvation and death. God gives you enough time regardless of how healthy or unhealthy you try to stay.

R. B. Thieme, Jr. Bible Ministries 5139 West Alabama, Houston, Texas 77056 (713) 621-3740

1. This is also diakonos (διάκονος) [pronounced dee-AK-on-oss] from which we get the word "deacon" but it has many meanings. The political meaning of the word: The word minister is translated "minister" and that is all right if it is understood the command is "carry out to the maximum your ministry."

2. The political use for this word is found in divine institution #4 where diakonos (διάκονος) [pronounced dee-AK-on-oss] is used for the head of a state, one who has the authority to administer capital punishment - Romans 13:3,4. In other words, diakonos (διάκονος) [pronounced dee-AK-on-oss] was used in the Bible to indicate a political ruler, one who had the authority to administer in the political realm of the national entity.

3. The second use of the word is the universal ministry of the believer. There is a sense in which every believer is a minister and has a responsibility before the Lord. This is for the royal family of God in the sense that all believers are in full time Christian service. It empahsises the royal priest as the ambassador for Christ. In 2Corinthians 3:6 - ". who has appointed us ministers..." Also 2Corinthians 4:1; 6:1,3.

4. The third use of diakonos (διάκονος) [pronounced dee-AK-on-oss] is connected with the administration of the local church. The pastor has all of the authority but he delegates authority to certain men in the church in order to carry on administration. This is where we get the word "deacon." Philippians 1:1. So a deacon is a man who has received delegated authority from the pastor in order to carry on the administrative activities of the local church.

5. The fourth use is the pastoral use. The pastor is also called diakonos (διάκονος) [pronounced dee-AK-on-oss] or a minister many times, and this has to do with the original source of all authority in the local church. It is delegated to the pastor who in turn delegates it to certain members in the congregation. All members of the congregation are ministers in the sense of coming under the teaching of the Word. 1Corinthians 3:5; Ephesians 3:7; Colossians 1:7,23; 1 Thessalonians 3:2; 1Timothy 1:12. This is a technical use of minister for a pastor-teacher.

7. A fifth use of diakonos (διάκονος) [pronounced dee-AK-on-oss] is the evil usage - 2Corinthians 11:13-15.

1. The divine decrees is the sum total of God’s plan designed in eternity past.

2. The plan centres around the person of Jesus Christ, as revealed from the commands of 1 John 3:23; Ephesians 1:4-6.

3. Entrance into the plan of God is based on the principle of grace whereby the sovereignty of God and the free will of man meet at the cross — and they meet without any merit on man’s part. Man is never benefited under God’s plan by his talent, his works, his thoughts, or his plans. Man is blessed on the basis of who and what God is and what God has provided through grace.

4. God’s plan was so designed in eternity past so as to include all events, actions, related to their causes and conditions as a part of an indivisible system, every link being a part of the integrity of the whole. The theological definition of the doctrine of divine decrees: The decree of God is His eternal, holy, wise, and sovereign purpose, comprehending at once all things that ever were or will be, in their causes, conditions, successions and relationships, and determining their certain futurition.

5. Without interfering with human volition in any way God has designed a plan so perfect that it includes cause and effect, directive, provision, preservation and function for all believers.

6. Under His plan God has decreed to do some things directly and some things through the agency of Israel and the Church, and some through individuals.

7. Therefore there are primary, secondary and tertiary functions within the plan of God, but all these constitute one great all-comprehensive plan, perfect, eternal, unchangeable, without loss of integrity.

8. The plan of God is consistent with human freedom. God does not limit or coerce human freedom, however a distinction should be made between what God causes, like the cross, and what God permits, like sin. God created man with free will, He permits human volition to function. This is how Adam sinned. God is not the author of sin, man’s volition is the source of sin in the human race. God cannot tempt or in any way authorise sin.

9. This demonstrates that man has free will. God never condones or causes sin in the human race, and in the perfect environment of the garden God warned man against sin and its consequences.

10. Distinction should be made between the divine decrees which are related to the plan of God in both design and action and divine laws which regulate human conduct and function in the universe. Divine laws include laws of nature, laws of divine establishment, laws of function for blessing in a national entity.

11. As a principle of logic God’s decrees do not arise from His foreknowledge. The foreknowledge of God makes nothing certain, it merely perceives in eternity past the things that are certain.

12. There is a difference between foreknowledge and foreordination. The decrees made certain, foreordination established certainty while foreknowledge does not. Nothing can be known until it is decreed — 1Peterer 1:2; Romans 8:29; Acts 2:23.

13. Therefore the elect are foreknown and the foreknown are elect. In other words, God knew ahead of time which way every free will would decide at any given point in history. This does not imply divine coercion. God’s plan, however, anticipates every decision of history. As free will decides so God decrees — John 3:36; 1 John 3:23.

14. Since God cannot contradict His own essence He plans the best for the believer. God is perfect, His plan and provision are perfect.

15. The cross was decreed in eternity past but the human volition of Christ decided for the cross at Gethsemane — Matthew 26:39, 42. God has provided salvation for you through the cross but it must be your free will choice in time — John 3:36.

16. No decree in itself opposes human freedom, but once a choice is made from your free will then your entrance into the plan of God by faith in Jesus Christ means that the function of the decrees does limit your human freedom while at the same time giving you your volition, your freedom to serve God. A believer, to have inner happiness, must choose to function under GAP. Malfunction under GAP means misery for him. Once you believe in Christ the divine decrees do limit you. They limit you to a life of taking in spiritual food, manna from heaven, Bible doctrine. And the more concentrated your intake the sooner you reach supergrace. The sooner you reach supergrace the sooner God is free to benefit you to the maximum. The supergrace life frees God to give you maximum blessing.

a. The decree of God is His eternal (always existed), holy (perfect integrity), wise (the application of omniscience to creation), and sovereign purpose, comprehending simultaneously all things that ever were or will be in their causes, conditions (status), successions (interaction with others that leads to certain decisions), relations, and determining their certain futurition.

(1) This definition begins by expressing the source of the decrees. "Comprehending" refers to divine omniscience.

(2) The definition also expresses the attributes of God in terms of divine will in human history.

(3) The definition emphasizes that the omniscience of God knew simultaneously in eternity past everything that would happen in human history (the thought, action, and decision of every person in his life), furthermore, everything in relation to all of the things pertaining to it.

b. The several contents of this one eternal purpose are, because of the limitations of our mentality and faculties, necessarily perceived by us in partial aspects and logical relations (from Scripture). Therefore, we classify the decrees as being plural, but in reality it is all one decree.

d. The decrees of God are His eternal and immutable will regarding the future existence of all events which will happen in time and the precise manner and order of their occurrence.

e. By decrees is meant the eternal plan by which God has rendered certain all of the events of the universe (angelic history, human history) past, present, and future.

f. The decrees of God are the chosen and adopted plan of God for all of His works.

g. The Presbyterian shorter catechism says: "The decrees of God are His eternal purpose according to the counsels of His own will whereby for His own glory He has foreordained whatever comes to pass."

h. The decrees are the all-inclusive will and purpose of God concerning all that ever was or will be, which originates wholely within Himself (omniscience), and which He Himself alone must have objectively designed for His own glory and for His satisfaction.

i. By accommodation to creatures of time and space subject to subdivisions reaching out to the falling of the sparrow, all decrees were simultaneous, not given by stages. However, because of the finite mental limitations of man, we must perceive them by logical and chronological progression. The human mind, when thinking properly, thinks according to logic and chronology.

j. All decrees are efficacious in that they determine all that ever was, all that is, and all that ever will be, but the decrees are viewed by man from two standpoints.

(1) Efficacious means that which is directly wrought by God from His sovereignty.

(2) Permissive means that which is appointed by God to be accomplished by secondary causes or by the free will and action of agents (the free will of man).

(1) The decrees are all-comprehensive. That means that not the slightest uncertainty could exist as to one of the smallest or most insignificant of events without confusion to all. Therefore, all events in the life of every person are interwoven and interdependent. God is not the author of confusion. Everything you think, why you think it, and the environment in which you think it, was all known to God in eternity past. This also says everything in life is a chain of cause and effect events.

(2) The decrees are eternal. God is not gaining in knowledge. What God has known at any time He has always known. Omniscience means God knew simultaneously everything that ever was or will be in their causes, conditions, successions, and relations.

(3) God is perfect; therefore, His decrees are perfect. They are not perfect in content, because they include sin, failure, etc. But everything that would ever happen was always known to God. His is a perfect system of comprehension.

(4) The decrees are unchangeable and certain. Nothing can possibly occur to necessitate a change. God is never "caught" not knowing something. God has never had to make any changes or any adjustments in the divine decrees.

(5) The decrees are the free choice of God in eternity past. (This is the most important point to understand, one which many theologians do not understand.) God is not bound to follow any necessary path. Having decreed, however, He is bound by His infinite faithfulness and truth to complete what He has begun. The free choice of God is very important, because God, from His own sovereign volition, invented free will in two categories of creatures, angels and mankind, so that both categories can choose for or against God.

l. Eph 2:10, "For we are His production [we have the provision of computer assets in our very own portfolio; i.e., election and predestination], having been created in Christ Jesus [the formation of the royal family of God and a new spiritual species resulting in positional sanctification by which every believer becomes the heir of God and has equal privileges under predestination] for good achievements [in momentum in the divine dynasphere as a part of equal privilege of election] which God has prepared in advance [divine provision of your portfolio of invisible assets], that we should walk by means of them [utilization of our computer assets]."

m. The decrees of God are His eternal purpose regarding you according to the counsels of His own wisdom and His sovereign will, whereby for His own glory (we are created for His own glory) He has programmed into the computer decrees all that will come to pass in the function of the human race in history. In the decrees, the sovereignty of God and free will of man coexist in human history.

(1) Inasmuch as the decrees were simultaneously known by God, they were simultaneously decreed by God. To appreciate the decrees, one must understand the nature of omniscience as a part of divine essence.

(2) Of all the decrees, five are related to the purpose of God in election. Therefore, they are called in election the five elective decrees. From this comes the concept of lapsarianism.

(3) The decrees must be in logical order. This is the subject of the doctrine of lapsarianism. Though the entire decree is one thought in the mind of God, the principle of cause and effect is involved in human thinking and understanding. The term lapsarian refers to the doctrine of divine decrees from the standpoint that man is a fallen being.

(4) Lapsarianism provides the logical order for the five elective decrees. (See the doctrine of Lapsarianism.) The correct logical order is:

(d) The decree to motivate by means of election and glorify God through the deposit of escrow blessings.

(e) The simultaneous decrees of election and predestination, and to apply salvation to those who believe in Christ. The Bible states that man is the object of grace after, not before, the fall in John 15:9, Romans 11:5-7; Ephesians 1:4-6; 1Peter 1:2.

a. The distinction between the decree and the execution of the decree in our thinking means the one logically follows the other. However, the execution itself is not a part of the decree itself. The decree occurred in eternity past, the execution occurs in human history. The false views of lapsarianism fail to take cognition of this.

b. Distinction should be made between God's laws and God's decrees. Laws regulate human conduct, while decrees are God's plan and action in eternity past. Laws can be broken; the decrees of God can never be broken.

c. Distinction between God's desires, like election, and the rejection of God's desires must be understood. God knows all your negative acts but doesn't interfere with your free will; for this would prevent the angelic conflict from ever being settled.

(1) For example, while sin and death are displeasing to God and incompatible with His divine nature, nevertheless, they belong to the decrees under the category of the fall of man.

(2) For example, while loser believers are displeasing to God and incompatible with His sovereign will, nevertheless, they belong to the decrees, having a printout from their PROM chip. We all have a PROM chip with our name on it, expressing our positive or negative volition toward God's sovereign will for our lives.

a. God's eternal and sovereign will for every believer is expressed in the Romans chip, having printouts such as election, glorification, justification, and predestination.

b. In further explanation, the decrees of God are pictured as a giant computer, and the omniscience of God feeds the facts into the computer.

(1) The Romans chip is the sovereignty of God chip. It is an integrated circuit into which unchanging data can be read, but into which no new data can be written, a perfect illustration of God's knowledge of history in eternity past. Romans stands for "read only memory."

(2) The PROM chip is the free will of man chip. PROM stands for "programmable read only memory." It is an integrated circuit with fixed data that can be read but not altered.

(3) By analogy, your life can be read but not altered. You have privacy and can make good or bad decisions.

(4) The entering of data is performed after the PROM chip is manufactured. The omniscience of God programmed into this PROM chip how you would function in time.

(5) All PROM chips contain data regarding the function of the free will of man in history. He fed the facts simultaneously in eternity past. The facts include everything you ever think, decide, or do in the past, present, and future. This doesn't tamper with your free will.

c. All logistical grace, and those who would be blessed and their blessings, were fed into the computer decrees. God knew every problem, heartache, and situation you would face before you ever existed. (Therefore, you insult God when you pray "God help," as if He didn't already know you needed help.)

d. The computer of decrees prints out facts about believers under the categories of election, foreknowledge, predestination, justification and glorification. It also prints out facts on the unbeliever under the categories of reprobation, condemnation and retribution.

a. The decrees of God are the sum total of God's plan designed in eternity past relating to all events of every classification collected into one single all-comprehensive whole through the omniscience of God. The decrees of God are His plan, His protocol plan.

b. The omniscience of God is the key to understanding the decrees. God has three categories of divine knowledge.

(1) Self-knowledge. Each person of the Godhead has infinite and eternal knowledge about Himself and the other two members of the Trinity.

(2) Omniscience. God knows all the knowable simultaneously about creatures, both the actual and the possible, but only the actual is programmed into the decrees.

(3) Foreknowledge. It merely acknowledges what is in the decrees but does not make anything certain; the believer still has free will that is uncoerced. (See the doctrine of Predestination.)

a. Election is the sovereign right of God over His creation. It is the expression of the sovereign will of God for believers only in eternity past, i.e., that you have the most fantastic blessings for time and eternity. Ephesians 1:4, "Since He Himself has elected us in Him before the foundation of the world." The decrees begin with election. provides

b. Election and predestination provide equal privilege and equal opportunity for all believers.

(1) The equal privilege of election is God's decision to make every Church Age believer a royal priest forever.

(2) The equal opportunity of election is God's provision of logistical grace support for every Church Age believer.

(3) The equal privilege of predestination is God's decision to enter every Church Age believer into union with Christ forever through the baptism of the Holy Spirit and resultant positional sanctification. This creates a new spiritual species.

(4) The equal opportunity of predestination is God's provision of the divine dynasphere for the Church Age believer in time.

a. Example: If the decrees make all things certain, then some say there is no occasion for man to use means, being unable to avoid the results decreed. In other words, why use any means if you are going to end up under predestination in the same situation?

b. This ignores the fact that God has decreed the means as well as the ends, and that all God expresses in election is His desire that we all be rich from blessing.

c. Man's destiny is the outworking of his own thinking, motivation, thinking, and decisions, which God knew and entered into a PROM chip. God knows all, yet that does not interfere with your PROM chip. God's knowledge of the facts does not interfere with their outworking in time.

d. The decree of God removes no man from what, within the sphere of his own experience, is the outworking of his own choice, acting from his own judgment, based on his own desires, thoughts and circumstances. Whatever free will choice anyone makes is the execution of the decrees. No decree opposes human freedom. God's knowledge in eternity past in no way effects or interferes with our thoughts, motives, decisions, or actions. Knowing our failures, God went ahead with the plan anyway; that's grace.

e. All decrees are efficacious in that they certainly determine all that ever was or will be. However, there are both efficacious decrees, things which God does directly, and permissive decrees, things which God permits as the function of free will.

f. Some things God has decreed to do Himself. That is called immediacy. Others things come to pass through the action of secondary causes acting under the law of necessity. Other things He decreed free will agents to do in the exercise of their volition. Yet one category is rendered by the decree of God as certainly free as the other. Mankind never acts outside of the decrees.

a. The Omniscience of God. The omniscience of God is God's objective knowledge of the universe and all creatures.

(1) God is eternal; therefore, His knowledge is eternal. God is sovereign, His knowledge is superior, and not related to human or angelic limitations.

(2) God is infinite; therefore, His knowledge is without boundary or limitation, hence, absolute and eternal knowledge. His knowledge is infinitely superior to creature knowledge.

(4) Time has nothing to do with God's knowledge. The future is as perspicuous as the past.

(5) All of God's knowledge is simultaneous. God knows perfectly, eternally, and simultaneously all that is knowable both actual and possible. There never was a time in eternity past or human history when God did not know all the knowable about everything. Such perception and sagacity is totally compatible with His divine essence. Every minute detail of both angelic and human creation is completely and perfectly in His mind at all times.

(6) God's knowledge is never irrational, speculative, theoretical, unknown, or forgotten.

(1) God is eternally Himself in three coequal, co-infinite, and coeternal persons. Therefore, each person in the Godhead knows Himself to be beyond comparison in His eternal and absolute knowledge of all things.

(2) God's knowledge is never complicated by ignorance, absurdities, or emotional reaction.

(3) God cannot change or be inaccurate in His knowledge. Divine knowledge is absolute.

(5) While divine self-knowledge is related to the persons of the Godhead, omniscience is really divine knowledge related to creatures- angelic, human, and the animal kingdom.

(1) Self-knowledge, which includes knowledge of the divine essence, the other members of the Trinity, and all things related to God.

(2) Omniscience, which deals with creation, angelic and human, both actual and possible.

(3) Foreknowledge, which is knowledge of what is in the decrees related to believers only. The foreknowledge of God makes nothing certain, but merely acknowledges what is certain; what is in the decrees regarding believers.

(a) As far as believers are concerned, there are numerous categories of printouts from the computer decrees: foreknowledge, election, predestination or foreordination, justification, and glorification.

(b) Foreknowledge means nothing can be known until it is first decreed. Therefore, God foreknows all events as certainly future because He has decreed them as certainly future.

(c) God's decrees relate equally to all future events of every kind; to the free actions of moral agents as well as to the actions of necessary agents; to sin evil and human good, as well as to moral, divine good, and honorable thoughts, decisions, and actions.

(d) Foreordination or predestination alone establishes certainty. Foreordination is a synonym for the decrees. Predestination is technically the printout for believers.

(e) Foreordination is an act of the infinitely intelligent and wise God in determining the certain futurition of all events. Omniscience decreed everything simultaneously and not by stages, because it was all in the omniscience of God in eternity past.

(1) Under the omniscience of God, all decrees were simultaneously known to God and simultaneously decreed by God in eternity past. There never was a time when God did not know all the knowable.

(2) God knows perfectly, eternally, and simultaneously all that is knowable both actual and possible. The omniscience of God also knows the alternatives to history; i.e., "iffy" history. God knows exactly what would have happened had another course of action occurred, but this is not entered into the computer decrees. Therefore, the omniscience of God knows every thought, act, decision of history and how they relate, plus what the alternatives would have been. God knows all that would have been involved in every case where man's decision might have been different from what it was. Divine knowledge about creatures is programmed into the computer of divine decrees. While the possible and alternatives to reality are known to God, only the reality is programmed into the computer of divine decrees. There are two categories of memory chips in the computer of divine decrees: the Romans chips are programmed by the sovereignty of God, the PROM, or free will of man chips, are programmed by the omniscience of God.

(a) In human history, the sovereignty of God and the free will of man coexist, and this coexistence is by divine decree.

(b) God's knowledge of human volition has nothing to do with the function of that human volition in time. This is why God does not stop you from making bad decisions. God invented creature freedom.

(c) The omniscience of God simply knows and has always known every decision of every human beings in history and every thought that preceded it and every motive that was involved as well as every action that followed.

(d) God knew billions and billions of years ago that Isaac would believe in Jesus Christ and Ishmael would not. Therefore, the printout for Isaac's PROM chip is regeneration and true Israel, and the printout for Ishmael's PROM chip is condemnation and exclusion from the new racial species of Israel. Every human being, in the same way, has his very own PROM chip.

(a) In addition to every person in history having his own PROM chip, there is another PROM chip which includes all human beings in history. The omniscience of God programmed into this PROM chip all personal sins in history. On the Cross, God the Father called for the printout of this chip and imputed all personal sins to Christ and judged every one of them. Since both sins of cognizance and sins of ignorance are the function of human volition, every sin in human history was imputed to Christ and judged by God the Father on the Cross.

(b) The sovereignty of God and free will of man coexist by divine decree in human history. Even though God gives a perfect volition, He imputes Adam's original sin to the genetically formed old sin nature for condemnation at the point of physical birth, so that we are qualified for salvation automatically.

e. Therefore, omniscience perceives the free as free (God will never tamper with your volition), the necessary as necessary (divine justice as our point of reference), together with all their causes, conditions, and relations, as one indivisible system of things (every cause and effect is related to another cause and effect, and so on, so that the course of human history is just as man thinks it, wills it, and does it), every link of which is essential to the integrity of the whole.

c. The decrees have become the complete and consummated right of the sovereignty of God determining the certain futurition of all things in human history.

e. But the decree itself provides in every case that the events shall be effected by causes acting in a manner consistent with the nature of the event in question. (You are never deprived of your free will.) God never changes the decree of what will happen and never tampers with your actions.

f. Therefore, in the case of every free will act of a moral agent, the decree itself provides at the same time the following.

(1) That the agent shall be a free agent (self-determination). When you were given life, you were given self-determination. Therefore, you are accountable for your own bad decisions.

(2) That the antecedents and all antecedents of every act in question shall be what they shall be. Whenever you make a decision it shall be the result of decisions before that. The circumstances will be what they are, the facts will be what they are, and God knows what you're thinking and will decide. Man's acts are a result of man's free will, not because the sovereignty of God causes man to perform the act.

(3) That all present conditions of the act shall be what they are. The action takes place in a moment of time and is your very own act.

(4) That the act shall be perfectly spontaneous and free on the part of the agent. There is no coercion.

h. Because God cannot contradict His own nature or His being, the essence and attributes of God necessitated His willing the highest and best for mankind.

i. The decrees of God are His eternal and immutable will regarding the future existence of events which will happen in time and the precise manner and order of their occurrence. The decisions are made, the circumstances are all there on tape; we just see things as they unfold in history. We know how it's going to turn out, but it's still fun watching things unroll. Your life is on tape, and the tape is running. God wouldn't be God if He didn't know it all beforehand. Yet God never violates your volition.

j. The decrees express the eternal plan and will of God by which God has rendered certain all events of history, past, present and future.

k. Therefore, the decrees are eternal and simultaneous knowledge of omniscience expressing the will of God by which all things are brought into being and controlled, made subject to His divine pleasure, and result in His eternal glory.

a. The printout applying to believers includes election, foreknowledge, predestination or foreordination.

b. Foreordination is also known as predetermination. Predetermination is an act of the infinite and eternal omniscience of God determining the certain futurition of all events related to the believer.

c. Foreknowledge is not the same as omniscience. It is more limited because it deals with only the actual, and only with believers.

d. Being omniscient, God knows all that would have been involved had He adopted any one of an infinite number of plans of action as well as the consequences had man chosen alternatives.

e. Foreknowledge refers only to those things which are within the plan of God, adopted for the believers only.

f. The decree alone establishes certainty. Nothing could be foreknown until it was first decreed.

g. Therefore, God's decrees never originate with His foreknowledge. The logical order is: omniscience, foreordination (the decree), then foreknowledge. The decrees make all things certain, not foreknowledge.

(1) Election is the key to the Jewish problem related to the four unconditional covenants.

(2) These promises can only be fulfilled to the elect, to those who believe in Christ. There lies the great problem in every generation of Israel: to possess the genes of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, but not to follow them in regeneration.

(a) Rom 9:11-12, "For though his twins had not yet been born, and had not accomplished anything good or evil, in order that the predetermined plan of God might stand on the basis of election, not because of works, but because of Him who calls, it was said to her, `The older will serve the younger.'" God knew in eternity past that Jacob would believe in Christ for salvation and Esau, his twin brother, would not believe.

(b) Heb 12:17,"For you know that even afterwards, when he [Esau] desired to inherit the blessings, he was rejected, for he found no place for a change of mind, though he sought for it with tears." Esau's scar tissue of the soul completely clogged up his stream of consciousness and garbage in subconscious finished the job of blocking gospel information from circulating in his soul. All he had left was emotion, and emotion will not save anyone. In eternity past, God the Father entered this information into the computer of the divine decrees. Crying for salvation is an insult to the work of Jesus Christ on the Cross.

(c) Regeneration sets aside the order and precedence of physical or natural birth. There is no equality in biological life, but in the soul life created by God at birth, there is equal privilege and equal opportunity for every member of the human race to believe in Christ and have spiritual life. No one is handicapped by biological life because God provides equality of opportunity to believe in Christ.

(d) Heb 4:13, "And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do."

(3) The gracious unconditional promises can only be fulfilled to the elect, to those who at the moment of faith in Christ receive the imputations of perfect righteousness and eternal life.

1. There is one all-inclusive will and purpose of God concerning all there ever was or will be from the beginning of history until its termination.

2. This will and purpose of God originated within Himself long before any creature ever existed.

3. This means the will and purpose of God related to the decrees is designed for the glory, pleasure, and satisfaction of God.

4. All creatures have been placed into space and time. Furthermore, all events related to space and time were simultaneously decreed. They result in divine action.

a. Related to the Godhead, these actions are immanent, intrinsic, and subjective.

b. Related to creation, these actions of God are extrinsic (cognizant of angelic and human volition), transient (chronological in their function), and objective (the function of divine justice as the point of reference for the human race).

5. God did not decree Himself to be. God eternally existed before and outside of the decrees. Therefore, the decrees do not act upon God, but God acts upon the decrees.

6. God's decrees are efficacious, determining all that ever was or will be, including the directive, permissive, and overruling will of God.

7. All things depend on God's will and nothing is certain apart from God's will. There comes a point in theology where God's will and the decrees must be understood as synonymous.

8. God's decrees originate from His own omniscience in eternity past separating fact from fiction.

9. Therefore, distinction must be made between the omniscience of God and the foreknowledge of God.

b. The foreknowledge of God makes nothing certain; it merely perceives what is certain, what is decreed. Only the decrees or foreordination makes anything certain.

c. Therefore, nothing can be foreknown until it is first decreed. This means you never have to run to God and say, "Oh God! Help!"

10. Distinction has to be made between the decrees of God and the desires of God. The decrees include a lot of things which are not God's desires, because the decrees include all things you think, say or do. Many things in the decrees are not the desires of God.

a. Sin, human good, and evil are not the desires of God but are in the decrees because they are performed by our free will.

b. God desires His perfect will and sovereignty, but both angelic and human creatures use their God-given free will and self-determination to violate the desires of God. So the decrees contain both the will of God and desires of God. The decrees are the all-inclusive will of God.

c. God does not desire to cast His creatures into the lake of fire forever, but it is so decreed under the printout of retribution for all who express negative volition at God-consciousness and at Gospel hearing.

d. God does not desire the discipline of believers, but it is decreed for all carnality and reversionism.

1. All imputations are the organization for the plan of God. There are seven imputations in the plan of God.

a. Human life is imputed to the soul. It remains in the soul forever. This means children and morons who do not reach or cannot reach the age of accountability receive automatic salvation. Since condemnation precedes salvation, they must be condemned before they can be saved.

b. Adam's original sin is imputed to the old sin nature, automatically condemning each member of the human race at birth.

c. At the point of faith in Christ, eternal life is imputed to the human spirit, created by God the Holy Spirit (called regeneration). This provides eternal security, since once given, God can never take away eternal life.

d. Perfect righteousness is imputed as a judicial imputation to the believer at salvation. This creates a grace pipeline for the imputation of all blessing to the believer.

e. On the cross the sins of the world were imputed to Jesus Christ in His spiritual death.

f. Blessing in time is imputed to perfect righteousness previously imputed to the believer when the believer cracks the maturity barrier.

g. Blessing for eternity is imputed to the believer's perfect righteousness at the Judgment Seat of Christ.

2. Equation of imputation plan of God. X [ I/HL + I/AOS = P1 (salvation) + doctrine (gospel) = H1 (confidence of imputation of eternal life at salvation)] + (salvation) Y [JI/Sin + JI/+R = P2 (potential of blessing in time) + doctrine = Hope 2 (confidence in escrow bless when we reach maturity)] + (maturity) Z [ I/EL (+ in X radical) + I/Blessing in time ( + in Y radical) = P3 (the potential of blessing at the Judgment Seat of Christ) + doctrine = H3] = the protocol plan or imputation plan of God.

a. The omniscience of God in taking cognizance of the fall of man graciously provided a plan based on imputations from divine justice.

b. This plan involves the omniscience of God feeding into the computer of divine decrees seven imputations which provide maximum blessing for mankind in time and eternity.

c. The decrees contain the historical reality of every member of the human race in degree of attainment.

d. Non-meritorious human volition can fall short of any potential of God's plan.

e. To what extent every individual advances in this plan was known to the omniscience of God in eternity past and fed into the computer.

f. In too many cases the potential exceeds the reality. Only the reality was decreed.

g. From this fact emerges the principle that the attainment of divine blessing through imputation is the means God has chosen to glorify Himself and to give Himself pleasure.

h. Therefore, the glory of God is related to the believer's advance to maturity and resultant imputation of divine blessing.

1. The decrees unite in one final and all-inclusive objective the glory of God, Proverbs 16:4; Romans 11:36; Hebrews 2:10; Revelation 4:11.

2. Being alone before all creation, the decrees of God concern no one but the members of the Trinity and their eternal glory. There is nothing you can do to promote God's glory. You can glorify God, but you cannot promote His glory. Your failure doesn't stop His glory. Nothing depends on you; everything depends on God.

3. Being eternal and infinite, God the Father, Son, and Spirit are worthy of all glory.

4. God's glory is what He is and always has been in eternity past, and always will be.

5. As the origin and subject of the divine decrees, it is inevitable that every thought, decision, and action in history will glorify God. That means the plan moves on with or without you. The plan of God never stops moving. If you are to advance along with the glory of God, you must develop thought, i.e., learn doctrine.

7. Since manifestation of His declarative glory also secures the highest glory for His creatures and their greatest good (Rom 8:28), it is inevitable that imputing blessing to the mature believer will glorify God. It will emphasize His grace and exclude human talent and human good.

8. To the finite mind the decrees are many, but to God they are all one plan, embracing both cause and effect, both means and end.

9. The decrees include every detail in the experience of every creature, including such minute aspects as the very hairs of your head being numbered.

10. The decrees of God related to His plan are those sovereign purposes of God which are efficacious, accomplished by God alone apart from creature ability, mentality, talent, function, and sacrifice.

11. Therefore, God is glorified and pleased in the momentum and advance of believers within His plan.

12. The omniscience of God knew in eternity past what thoughts, decisions, and actions would carry one believer to maturity and another to reversionism. God has prepared the most magnificent things for both categories by way of escrow blessing, but He has also prepared the most horrible discipline for the reversionistic believer.

13. While omniscience knew the factual and potential, only the factual was fed into the decrees. Foreknowledge only knows what omniscience feeds into the decrees. Anything decreed by God will inevitably glorify God; it could not work out any other way.

1. God does not decree mankind to sin, but He decrees that human beings have free will function of their volition with the option to sin or not to sin.

2. God does not decree anyone to believe in Jesus Christ for eternal life, but He does decree that all human beings have free will-the function of human volition with the option of believing in Christ or rejecting Christ.

3. While God permits sin, He does not sponsor sin. God was cognizant of all human sins in eternity past and the omniscience of God fed that knowledge of sin into the computer of divine decrees without being the cause of any sin in human history.

4. While God permits the rejection of Christ as savior, He does not sponsor it or encourage that rejection. In human history, the sovereignty of God and free will of man coexist as an extension of and resolving of the prehistoric angelic conflict.

5. At the termination of human history, the justice of God will judge all those who reject Christ as savior.

6. The justice of God imputed all personal sins of human history to Christ on the Cross and judged each one of them. This is the basis for the divine invitation to every member of the human race to believe in Christ.

a. Repeated rejection of Christ, when exposed to the gospel, produces scar tissue in the stream of consciousness of the soul's right lobe.

b. Esau rejected the gospel so many times that when he wanted to be saved, there was nothing left in his stream of consciousness except emotion.

c. No one can be saved by emotion. Salvation is a matter of faith in Christ and how you feel is inconsequential.

d. The decree of God removes no person from what-within the sphere of his own experience-is the outworking of his own choice based on the function of his own volition.

7. Under the law of volitional responsibility, sin is a matter of personal decision and such decision carries a liability in time.

a. Under the law of volitional responsibility, every human being must take the responsibility for his own thoughts, his own decisions, and his own actions.

b. Human volition is the source of good decisions from a position of wisdom and strength, as well as bad decisions from a position of lust and weakness.

c. While all personal sins were judged on the Cross, all sins and evil decisions have natural consequences of suffering in life, therefore, liability.

d. While all sins were judged on the Cross, personal sins carry liability in time (not in eternity, since personal sins are not an issue in eternity at the Last Judgment) and are subject to the law of volitional responsibility.

e. The function of human volition in making decisions is the source of the sins of ignorance as well as the sins of cognizance. Therefore, each of us is held responsible by God for his or her own decisions.

(1) Gal 6:7, "Be not deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a person sows, this he will also reap."

(2) Hos 8:7, "For they sow to the wind, and they reap the whirlwind. The standing grain has no heads; it yields no grain. Should it yield, strangers would swallow it up."

(3) Col 3:25, "For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of that wrong which he has done, and there is no partiality."

(4) Prov 12:13, "An evil snare is the transgression of the lips, but the person with integrity will escape from trouble."

(5) Prov 19:3, "A person's own folly ruins his life, yet his heart rages against the Lord." A fool blames God for his own bad decisions and consequent discipline from the Lord.

(2) Therefore, while all sins are judged at the Cross, personal sins carry liability from God under the law of volitional responsibility.

(3) However, at the Great White Throne judgment, the unbeliever is never indicted on the basis of his sins because his sins were judged at the Cross, but on the basis of his good deeds. You cannot commit a sin without it effecting someone else, without it hurting someone else. The liability for personal sins does not extend outside of time. Sin is not a liability outside of time, i.e., in eternity. Therefore, there is no contradiction between your liability for personal sins in time and the judgment of all personal sins on the Cross.

(4) Rom 9:10-13 is a printout of the divine decrees, where the omniscience of God knew simultaneously in eternity past that Jacob would believe in Christ and Esau would reject Christ to the point of developing maximum scar tissue.

8. In the function of the rebound technique of 1John 1:9, the purpose is to recover fellowship with God and to recover the filling of the Holy Spirit through citing personal sins to God the Father. As a result, two things can happen to the believer with regard to the liability of sin: the believer is forgiven and the sin liability is completely removed, or the believer is forgiven and the sin liability continues and punitive suffering is replaced by suffering for blessing.

9. The decree of God removes no person from what-within the sphere of his own experience-is the outworking of his own choice based on the function of his own volition.

10. The plan of God and the decrees of God are totally consistent with human freedom and volition. God does not limit and coerce human freedom or violate self-determination. Free will isn't free unless man can decide against God and His plan.

11. However, distinction must be made between what God causes directly (such as the Cross), and what God permits indirectly (such as sin and evil).

12. God created man with a free will. Therefore, He permits human volition to function in self-determination; otherwise, there would not have been the fall of man. It is His permissive will. The permissive will is just as much a part of the decrees which glorify God as the directive will. Remember the decrees are simply human history in the mind of God in eternity past before any creature existed.

13. God is not the author of sin or evil. Free will and self- determination is the origin and source of sin, good, and evil.

14. Both sin and the cross are fed into the computer by omniscience. One is the direct will of God. The other is the permissive will of God. But the permissive, directive, and overruling will of God are all a part of the decrees.

15. The sovereignty of God and the free will of man coexist by divine decree. Every decision and desire of God and man were recorded on Romans and PROM chips respectively. Omniscience programs this data into the decrees.

1. Since the decrees of God are the sum total of God's plan and indicate His purpose designed in eternity past, they must inevitably center around Jesus Christ as the God-man.

2. Therefore, the free will of man must face the issue of Christ, the issue of His work on the cross; for it is at the cross that the sovereignty of God met the free will of man for the glory of God and the momentum of the plan of God.

3. Under the divine policy of grace, the work of salvation is accomplished by God while man benefits apart from his own human merit.

4. God's plan in eternity past was so designed so as to include all events, all actions related to their causes and conditions as a part of one indivisible system, every link being a part of the integrity of the whole.

5. Without violating human volition, God has provided and designed a plan so perfect that it includes direction, provision, preservation, function, plus cause and effect for all believers.

6. Under this plan God has decreed to do some things directly, some things through secondary agencies (Israel and the Church), and some things through individuals (e.g., Paul).

7. This means there are primary, secondary and tertiary functions within the plan of God. But all of these functions constitute one all-comprehensive plan which is perfect, eternal, and unchangeable without any loss of integrity ever. This is why the plan of God is so consistent with human freedom and does not unfairly coerce human freedom. The revelation of the decrees is found only in the Bible. Therefore, the most important priority of the Christian life is perception of doctrine.

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1. God has ordained certain laws for the survival and freedom of the human race during the course of human history. Anarchy exists when segments of nations ignore these laws. The laws of divine establishment provide the freedom to fulfill the divine plan as ordained in the divine decrees under many types of government. Christianity works with nearly every form of government but democracy.

2. The laws of divine establishment are designed and directed toward both believer and unbeliever.

3. They operate from the fall of man to the Second Advent, as well as in the Millennium with some modifications in compatibility with perfect environment.

4. These laws directly affect freedom, civilization, authority, evangelism, spiritual growth, and perpetuation of the human race. They are as important to us as members of the human race as is the law of gravity.

5. The laws of divine establishment define freedom in terms of privacy, property and authority. There is no such thing as blessing, happiness, the enjoyment of life or freedom without authority. All systems of freedom function under authority. We all are free to drive, with a variety of competency levels. Authority allows for this.

6. Both the privacy of the individual and the function of legitimate authority are necessary for the function of human freedom.

7. Therefore, the four divine institutions, volition, marriage, family, and nationalism are the basis for the laws of divine establishment.

8. God also has divine laws for angels and nature. All these laws are designed to resolve the angelic conflict using an inferior creature, man.

a. The soul is prepared for us by God. It is the house for human life. The body is the house for the soul. The justice of God imputes human life to the soul; human life resides in the soul forever. No one can remove human life from the soul. This is the doctrine of human security.

b. We have two sets of laws, establishment and the royal family honor code under which we are required to function. With both functioning in the believer's life, he has great capacity for life, integrity, and enough doctrine to reach maturity.

c. The soul is made up of self-consciousness, mentality, emotion, and volition as the authority of the soul.

d. Human volition must have freedom and privacy for proper function. Your soul has privacy since it is hidden in the skull. We must have privacy if we are to exercise our volition. We must have privacy for freedom.

e. Divine establishment provides freedom and privacy for those who do not violate criminal law. Criminals should have no freedom or privacy. They have forfeited their right of privacy.

f. While people are not born equal or live in equality, they must have freedom of choice and the right to live in a free society pursuing a course of action compatible with their own aspirations or lack of the same. You have a right to go as far as your abilities and motivations will take you. No government has a right to destroy your motivation by saying you are greater than you are, or by providing everything for you.

g. Variation in human ability, both inherent and acquired, does not preclude freedom and freedom of decision in adult persons.

h. All normal persons have the option of positive or negative volition at God-consciousness, plus the freedom to accept or reject Jesus Christ at Gospel hearing.

i. Freedom is the basis for true evangelism. Follow up is not authorized for those who attend church or visit a church. Friends who approach you after walking down an aisle is a violation of your privacy.

l. Freedom cannot exist without privacy and authority. Therefore, the importance of establishment in human history is emphasized. Exceptions exist, such as slavery in the Roman Empire, where a slave was free to come and go. It is possible to live under slavery, be evangelized, and advance to maturity. After salvation, slaves were to remain slaves; and free remained free. There were such excellent laws of divine establishment in Rome that slaves could move about freely.

a. Monogamy, a permanent relationship between one man and one woman, is ordained of God to remind mankind that He has from the beginning a design called right man - right woman, Genesis 1:26:27, 5:1-2, 2:18-25; 1Corinthians 7:2-4.

b. When Jesus Christ created Adam He said, "not good that man should be alone." Therefore God provided the female. Jesus Christ constructed Adam's right woman. Their relationship, established in the garden, was continued after the fall. It has never been cancelled in any generation.

c. Marriage is the most basic and fundamental organization in the human race. Even the unbeliever, whose life is a total failure, can have great temporary happiness by marrying the right woman, no homosexuality Ecclesiastes 9:9.

d. The analogy to the monogamous relationship and our relationship to Christ is found in Ephesians 5:26-33.

e. Under the authority of the laws of divine establishment, the right man - right woman relationship becomes the normal, legitimate expression of category two love, 1Corinthians 7:9; 1Timothy 5:14; Ephesians 5:22, 23, 28, 33; Hebrews 13:4.

f. Marriage is the beginning of authority in life for adults. The husband has all the authority; there are no exceptions or rationalizations. Violations of a principle do not change the principle. For example, God continues to use the local church no matter how badly it fails. We cannot deny the principle of marriage just because we've made a bad marriage. Violations of a principle does not change the principle.

g. Marriage is one of the greatest areas of mistakes in life because of emotion and authority. You have to be rational in both response and function.

h. Marriage is the basis for stability in society and for the formation of civilization.

i. Marriage rejects the theory of revolution, anarchy, promiscuousness, or communal living. It is the protection for the home where the parents exercise authority over the children.

a. Physical birth and the imputation of human life, plus the imputation of Adam's original sin, finds the human baby both helpless and hopeless. Condemnation from God occurs immediately. Therefore, our personal sins do not condemn us and are free to be imputed to our Lord on the cross.

b. When we believe in Christ, God's perfect righteousness is imputed to us and we now have a purpose in life: the imputation of blessing to that perfect righteousness, which glorifies God. The laws of divine establishment give freedom to exercise our positive volition toward doctrine so that we can develop the capacity for these blessings.

c. God has provided certain divine laws, such as the authority of parents, to protect, care, nourish, provide, train, and discipline children to prepare them for life.

d. Parental authority is the way of preparing children for a normal life. Permissiveness destroys this. There must be recognition of authority and orientation to certain principles in life.

e. The highest expression of parental love is to inculcate through the forms of discipline. Children must be trained to respect the privacy, property, and rights of others, not to abuse freedom, and to have respect for authority.

f. Adjustment to life and orientation to circumstances demand authority training. Parents must teach poise, objectivity, respect for police, patriotism, and willingness to serve to protect freedom.

g. Christian parents must also evangelize and provide predoctrinal training for their children, Deuteronomy 6:6-9, 7:9.

h. It is the responsibility of parents to instill respect for the Word of God, the teaching of Bible doctrine, plus recognition of authority of the pastor-teacher. This is a spiritual responsibility over and above their establishment responsibility.

a. If the entire human race were under one rule prior to the Millennium, it would self-destruct. Internationalism is outlawed as being evil by the Word of God.

b. To perpetuate the human race and bring history to its logical conclusion, God has designed the nation to protect the freedom and rights of X-number of people on this planet. We call this nationalism. Only one language should be recognized in a nation.

c. With the divine judgment of the original united nations at the tower of Babel, the human race was then divided into nations. This division was originally based on racial, geographical and linguistic norms.

d. As the human race continued in history, true racial distinctions were obliterated in the rise of civilization. Thus, racial purity is a myth except in pristine areas. Race is used by politicians to create false issues.

e. The formation of the Jewish nation set up the perfect standard of what a national entity should be.

f. The Biblical proof that nationalism is authorized by God is found in Genesis 10:5; Deut 32:8; Acts 17:26-28.

g. All nations who follow the norms and standards of divine establishment possess the following characteristics.

(1) Interior protection of freedom is provided through a proper system of law enforcement, jurisprudence, and a system of law whereby a person is innocent until proved guilty, where only proper testimony is allowed and no hearsay is permitted, and where double jeopardy does not exist.

(2) The exterior protection of freedom comes through a strong, well-prepared military. All the freedom that we have ever possessed has come through the military.

(3) A government of whatever category must protect the freedoms and rights of its citizens without interfering with those rights by the illegal use of power.

(4) An economy must be based on free enterprize and capitalism. Labor has no right to dictate the policy of management. Smart management always takes good care of its workers. Government, labor, or criminals do not have the right to superimpose their policy on management. The separation of business and state is an important distinction.

(5) There must be a system of common law which prohibits crime and thereby protects the freedom, rights, life, and property of individuals. It must be a system of law which does not overstep the law by using the law to try to solve social problems. Law, therefore, must always be objective. Subjective distortion of the law uses legislation to invade individual rights, to steal personal property, and to erode human freedom; all in the name of the common good.

(6) There must be a common culture which reflects the spiritual life, morality, esprit de corp, nobility, patriotism, and integrity of a nation through its literature, art, music, and drama. People who come to America from Europe usually want to live and dress like Americans.

(7) There should be a system of government which functions under its power without abusing its power to destroy freedom and establishment. The government should encourage freedom. There should be an administrative body to represent the functions of taxation, law enforcement, honorable jurisprudence, maintenance of the military, and enforcement of law and order without the destruction of human freedom.

1. None of these things would be meaningful without the principle that establishment is designed to evangelize where positive volition exists, and to protect where negative volition exists.

2. A system of mutual authority which protects individual self-determination must have separation of church and state. A state religion always destroys freedom.

3. As long as a government allows religious freedom and self- determination, such a government fulfills its establishment norms. Therefore, the separation of church and state becomes a basic standard for human freedom.

4. Divine institutions and the laws of divine establishment are designed to protect human freedoms for the purpose of true evangelism.

5. Freedom to accept or reject Jesus Christ without pressure put on by anyone should exist. Unbelievers must be free to accept or reject the Gospel without coercion or punishment.

6. The state must never adopt an official religion supported by taxpayer's money. All religion should be free from taxation and never be supported by taxes.

7. A person's relationship with God or lack of it should be a matter of privacy and personal choice.

D. Establishment and Christianity. This relationship is found in Romans 13:1-7. By fulfilling your function as a believer, you do more for your country than anyone else.

1. Matt 21:22, "Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's [laws of divine establishment], and to God, the things that are God's [royal family honor code]."

2. 1Peter 2:13-14, "Subordinate yourselves.. to every human institution." You became an establishment person the day you believed in Christ. You should be a true conservative.

1. This includes the concept of the pivot, which when large enough, means that mature believers (those in Z radical) having maximum influence on their nation under historical impact and blessing by association. It also includes the concept of the five cycles of discipline, which occur when the pivot shrinks and becomes too small. There are spinoffs in a client nation; and these are in reaction against Bible doctrine. He may be involved in some frantic search for happiness. This can be involvement in a service organization. He is following the various types of false doctrine related to these organizations. However, the spinoff will end up in heaven.

2. When divine judgment falls, it always comes in the form of historical disaster. Idiotic government policy tells you the end is near. When a nation goes completely mad, God destroys that nation, which protects the rest of the world.

3. If the pivot is large enough, the nation will be delivered. If it is too small, the nation is destroyed. Every nation has its relationship with the justice of God through the laws of divine establishment.

4. Religion is the greatest enemy of a nation, because in the name of good, it produces more evil than sins ever could.

5. Historical disaster separates the pivot from the spin-off (those in apostasy and reversionism), but the pivot is preserved, Isaiah 28:5-6; Jer. A nation which has gone mad is destroyed so that history and the human race can be perpetuated.

6. If the nation is preserved, there always follows a great period of prosperity. An example is Judah in B.C. 701. When the spin-off is reduced, this is the basis for that prosperity. The spin-off is destroyed during the crisis so the nation can have prosperity. If a nation doesn't cleanse itself under the laws of divine establishment, then the justice of God cleanses that nation.

7. Historical catastrophe is designed to destroy the infection of apostasy and degeneracy so that a nation can be preserved.

8. Historical disaster as the cleansing of a nation is taught under the concept of the five cycles of discipline in Leviticus 26:14-38.

(1) There are no advantages to the advantages (blessings) without the Advantage (relationship with the integrity of God).

(4) Loss of both the Advantage and the advantages removes a nation from history.

1. People can't survive until they understand authority. Authority is the legal power delegated by God under the laws of divine establishment whereby a certain number of the human race have jurisdiction and responsibility for other members of the human race. The laws of divine establishment define this authority.

2. While authority exists in both spiritual and temporal realms, only temporal authority is related to the laws of divine establishment. Spiritual authority is related to the royal family honor code.

3. Authority is necessary for the function of the laws of divine establishment. We must differentiate between the person and the delegated authority from God.

4. Establishment authority is for both the believer and unbeliever. When we believe in Jesus Christ, we are not exceptions to the rule; and we are still under establishment authority. It includes the authority of husband over wife, parents over children, teachers over students, coaches over athletes, management over labor, senior rank over junior rank, and police officers over public.

5. In addition, there are divine laws of establishment over nature, so that nature also obeys the authority of God, Matthew 8:27; Mark 4:41; Luke 8:25. A friend ignored these laws in the chem lab and blew himself up and the lab. Only a few pipes survived.

6. In the spiritual realm, the pastor-teacher is the authority over the congregation, 1Corinthians 16:15-16; 2Corinthians 10:8; 1Thessalonians 5:12; Hebrews 13:7,17.

7. In the realm of establishment, the husband has the authority over the wife. The wife consents to the marriage, even if the wife is smarter than your husband; and therefore is under his authority until death, Ephesians 5:22; Colossians 3:18. Complaining, whining women have no excuse. All males are unreasonable.

8. Authority in the business world stabilizes the economy. Management and investment has all the authority, never labor, Ephesians 6:5; Colossians 3:22.

9. Freedom through military victory is based on authority in military establishment, Neh 4:13-15.

1. Failure of the military on the battlefield indicates lack of training, lack of self-discipline, poor equipment, but mostly lack of respect for authority and no spiritual motivation or incentive to fight. Bob is constantly amazed by the ability of the Americans, the men cut off from all high authorities during the Battle of the Bulge.

3. Therefore, freedom is always related to authority. Freedom without authority is anarchy; authority without freedom is tyranny.

4. The military establishment is an index to national character. Successful armies maintain freedom. This is why universal military training is an axiom in the laws of divine establishment, Numbers 1:2-3, 31:3-5; Deut 24:5; Judges 3:1-2; 2Samuel 22:35; Psalm 18:34, 144:1.

5. Military training is useless when the men of a nation are reversionistic, apostate, and degenerate.

6. Antagonism toward authority destroys the function of the military as the instrument of freedom.

7. Military victory is the means of maintaining peace, not the modus operandi of politicians, Josh 11:23; Psalm 46:7-9.

8. Politicians generally are divorced from reality, saying "`Peace, Peace,' when there is no peace," Jeremiah 6:13-14, 8:11.

9. Draft dodgers, slackers, and deserters are sinful in the eyes of God, Numbers 32:6,7,14 Numbers 20-23. Universal military training is an axiom under the laws of divine establishment. Being a deserter, a slacker, a draft dodger or a conscientious objector is the sin spoken of where we read, “Your sin will find you out.”

1. Freedom is the heritage of birth with the imputation of human life to the soul. Because God imputed human life to the soul, that is the basis for freedom.

2. Freedom therefore is an extension of the various functions of the soul, i.e., our volition, mentality, emotion, conscience, and self- consciousness.

3. Freedom exists in two areas of life, both as an extension of the imputation of human life at birth, and as an extension of regeneration, the imputation of eternal life to the human spirit.

4. The laws of divine establishment deal with the first area of human freedom, while the principles of Bible doctrine in the royal family honor code deal with the second area of human freedom.

5. Since man was created to resolve the angelic conflict, freedom is an extension of that conflict into human history.

6. The laws of divine establishment are designed to protect human freedom so that evangelism and spiritual advance can occur in every generation of history.

7. The laws of divine establishment protect the privacy, property, freedom, and volition of mankind. The decalogue (ten commandments) is part of the laws of divine establishment designed to protect human freedom and human rights.

a. Gal 5:1 In the sphere of freedom, Christ has freed us; stand firm, therefore, and stop being enmeshed by the yoke of slavery [to good and evil].

b. John 8:32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. God's truth gives you spiritual freedom regardless of your human circumstances.

c. Rom 8:21, "...into the freedom of glory with reference to the children of God." This refers to our future freedom.

9. But the freedom in the spiritual realm, which belongs only to the believer, must be distinguished from establishment freedom, which is the heritage of all people in a national entity.

10. The existence and perpetuation of freedom demands respect for establishment authority. Military victory is the means of maintaining national freedom and the laws of divine establishment. Self-discipline is necessary.

11. Under the laws of divine establishment, freedom places demands upon both the believer and unbeliever. However, in Romans 13:1-7, the responsibility for freedom under establishment principles of authority is limited to the believer only.

12. Part of the royal family honor code is to render to Caesar (human government) the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's .Therefore, no Christian can ignore military service, obeying the law, or paying taxes.

2. As these commandments are written in Old English they are prefaced by the phrase, "Thou shalt not," which is the imperfect tense in Hebrew used as the imperative. The phrase indicates the believer's responsibility in protecting human freedom through compliance with the laws of divine establishment. The decalogue doesn't deal with the subject of sin but with the subject of human freedom. It just so happens that certain sins are an attack on human freedom. Therefore, the two subjects come together in the decalogue.

3. The ten commandments define human freedom in terms of attitude toward God, people, and property.

a. Peoples' property is sacred. It belongs to them. There is nothing wrong with being wealthy, or successful. It is not anti-Christian. People should be wealthy under free enterprise.

4. The first commandment is not only a prohibition of idolatry, but national recognition that Jesus Christ controls history.

5. While the first commandment prohibits mental or soul idolatry, the second prohibits overt idolatry, which is said to be contact with demons, Zechariah 10:2; 1Corinthians 10:19-21.

6. Demonism destroys human freedom, while overt idolatry destroys a nation, Isaiah 2:8, 18-20, 21:9, 36:18-20, 37:12-19; Jeremiah 3:6-11; Ezekiel 6:4-6.

7. The third commandment prohibits the use of the name of the Lord God for vain and unworthy objects, including gossip, false testimony, and covering a lie.

a. Using God's name as an expletive is taking the Lord's name in vain, but is not what this passage deals with. This passage means to use God as a front for your lying, cheating, stealing, or perjury.

b. God's name is used properly in worship, prayer, praise, thanksgiving, the expression of personal love for God, and doctrinal communication.

c. God's name should not be used to persuade people into a false position. "You shall not use the name of the Lord your God for evil." God's name is not to be used for human projects which allege the will of God.

8. The fourth commandment relates the volition of man to time. The importance of the Sabbath is in the fact that it is a memorial to the grace of God. It is a reminder that God rested on the seventh day from all He had provided, Isaiah 58:11-14.

a. The Sabbath also recognizes an establishment principle in the function of the economy, i.e., that people who work for a living have to have time to rest. People need to rest to get ready for the next week. This is rest as related to divine establishment. Even Hammurabi did not come up with this idea.

b. Doing nothing is a reminder of grace. Just as the body needs rest for function, so man needs rest for freedom. Man with no rest becomes a slave. He has no opportunity to exercise his freedom and personal volition in relationship to time.

9. The fifth commandment establishes the principle of authority under the laws of divine establishment. The first authority in life is that of parents. "Respect your father and mother that your days may be prolonged in the land which the Lord your God gives to you." Recognition of authority is the basic principle of orientation to life. Recognition of authority is the secret to a long healthy life.

10. The sixth commandment emphasizes the establishment principle of live and let live. "You shall not murder."

a. Killing is authorized for capital punishment and for those in the military fighting for freedom. You will kill without emotion. You will kill by correctly using your weapons and your skills.

b. Murder is the basic violation of human freedom. It is also a sin. The right to live under God is removed when a person is murdered. If you intrude on God's right to take life in His timing, you violate the laws of divine establishment and commit the worst overt sin.

11. The seventh commandment protects the freedom of right man - right woman. "You shall not commit adultery." Adultery is both a sin and an attack on human freedom. Capacity for love and life is distorted and ruined, so that adultery not only abuses freedom, but destroys the possibility for happiness in life. A woman should be one man's property. The command is directed to men; it assumes the woman is not smart enough to tell a man from a boy.

12. The eighth commandment emphasizes the right of private property under the laws of divine establishment. "You shall not steal."

a. Stealing is a sin, a crime, and a violation of the laws of divine establishment. The command demands the government protect both the lives and property of those in the nation.

b. Stealing is a basic disorientation to life. People who have accumulated things in life have a right to those things. You shouldn't even steal to stay alive. Stealing is complete disorientation to life. It is as low a thing as could occur. Stealing is short-cutting the function of advancing under authority.

c. When oriented to life, you never have to steal. You must recognize people have the right to their property. When you are tempted to steal, that is a warning you are not oriented to life and to the laws of divine establishment.

d. Governments steal through high taxes. Governments make criminals out of law-abiding citizens.

g. We have an immoral, dishonest government who steal from corporations under the socialist principle, the greatest good for the greatest number.

13. The ninth commandment emphasizes the protection of human freedom through objectivity in the function of the law. Laws of evidence demand truth in courtroom testimony. This verbal sin is sinful and anti- establishment.

a. Hearsay is not admissable as testimony. You can't live and let live and gossip at the same time.

b. Law cannot function objectively with perjury; society cannot live objectively where gossip and maligning goes unchecked.

14. The tenth commandment demands restraint on the lust pattern of the old sin nature. This command was the basis for Paul's discovery of the old sin nature, Romans 7:7.

1. The ten commandments define morality in terms of establishment. Morality is the observation of the laws of divine establishment. Therefore, it is for both the believer and unbeliever.

2. Since sin is an attack on establishment, morality is the antidote and is commanded for both believer and unbeliever.

3. Therefore, morality is not Christianity, but is the human race functioning under the laws of divine establishment.

4. Morality is not the monopoly of Christianity. Christians in civil responsibility have moral responsibility. Anything an unbeliever can do is not the Christian way of life. Believers have great responsibility to their nation to obey the laws of divine establishment.

5. Morality is defined as right conduct and excellence in the function of the laws of divine establishment.

6. Morality is conformity to the laws of divine establishment, which has as its basic tenet: live and let live. This overlaps with the royal family honor code.

7. While Christianity is not morality but a relationship with God through Jesus Christ, Christianity demands morality from the royal family of God. We are not exempt from certain civic responsibilities.

8. Therefore, the advancing believer is never anti-establishment or immoral. No mature believer is a socialist. Mature believers cannot be anti-establishment. Naziism is socialism. Fascism is socialism. These are synonyms; not antonyms.

9. The laws of divine establishment demand morality from both believer and unbeliever alike.

10. Morality is the result of spiritual growth, but it is not living the Christian life. Living the Christian life is compliance with the royal family honor code.

11. Living the Christian life is the filling of the Holy Spirit, maximum doctrine in the soul, positive volition to doctrine, maturity adjustment to the justice of God. None of these can be accomplished by the unbeliever. Christianity is not morality, but this doesn't mean you can be immoral.

12. Morality as an establishment factor protects human freedom, but it does not provide eternal salvation, Galatians 2:16; Titus 3:5; Romans 3:20.

13. Morality can and does protect human freedom. Immorality leads to anarchy, i.e., no recognition of authority. Christian dynamics includes morality but at the same time exceeds morality. Morality is the environment in which Christianity functions.

1. Matt 21:22, "Render unto Caesar..." The Lord delineates the Christian responsibility in the civil area and in the spiritual area.

2. Christianity functions under two standards: the laws of divine establishment which is our civil responsibility,and the royal family honor code which is our spiritual responsibility.

a. When you fulfill your responsibility to God through advancement to spiritual maturity, you demonstrate the true solution to problems in the nation.

b. Violence does not solve problems, it only intensifies problems. Violence destroys the impetus of the laws of divine establishment, which is civilization.

3. 1Timothy 2:13 Pray on behalf of kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead undisturbed and tranquil lives in all godliness and integrity. Compare 1Peter 2:13-14 Subordinate yourselves to every human institution, whether to a king as one in authority, or to a governor sent by him; for the punishment for those who do evil for the recognition of those who do good.

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1. Drunkenness is always condemned as a sin. (Drunkenness and drinking are not the same) - Isaiah 5:11; 20:2; 28:7,8; Proverbs 20:1; 23:20; Romans 13:13; 1Corinthians 5:11; Ephesians 5:18. Drinking is not classified as a sin in the scripture.

2. Drunkenness is to be avoided in certain categories of humanity: Kings - Proverbs 31:4,5; pastors - 1Timothy 3:3; Titus 1:7; deacons - 1Timothy 3:8.

3. Drunkenness is also condemned in certain Bible characters: Noah - Genesis 9:21; Lot - Genesis 19:32-36; Nabal - 1Samuel 25:36,37; Ephraim, the tribe - Isaiah 28:1.

4. Drinking of alcoholic beverage is condoned under certain circumstances - Proverbs 31:6,7; 1Timothy 5:23. Medically speaking, a limited amount of alcoholic beverage is beneficial in certain areas. a) In the brain and nervous system; b) Moderate amounts of alcoholic beverage acts as a sedation; too much always has a toxic effect; c) In the area of circulation. Older persons often have prescriptions containing alcohol or are told to take a glass of good wine a day to dilate the blood vessels and improve circulation.

5. The adverse effects of alcohol. a) It leads to impulsive and abusive behaviour. As a depressant it lowers inhibitions, dulls the reflexes, amplifies mental attitude sins; b) Vernices disease. Too much alcohol causes paralysis of the eyes, uncoordinated walk, clouding of the consciousness, a final coma, and you've had it; c) Excessive alcohol destroys brain tissue; d) Destruction of the liver; e) The Dts - confusion, anxiety, terror, visual hallucinations or delusions.

6. The incident where Jesus turned water into wine - John 2:1-11. a) Jesus truly turned water into alcoholic beverage, it was not grape juice; b) However, the performance of this miracle neither condones nor condemns drinking; c) The miracle was designed not as a brief on drinking but to focus attention on who and what Jesus Christ was in the hypostatic union. It was to focus attention on Jesus Christ as the only saviour as well as Israel's legitimate King; d) The six water pots which were filled with water (to wash feet) are analogous to the water of the Word - Ephesians 5:26. The water was then turned into wine to replace the shortage at the wedding feast; e) Wine produces joy in the human heart - Judges 9:13; Psalm 104:15; f) When through the daily function of GAP the believers converts doctrine into supergrace status God shares His happiness with the believer. The water pots are analogous to a believer filled with water [doctrine]. The doctrine is then converted into +H, God sharing His +H with the believer; g) So the miracle not only focused attention on the hypostatic union but illustrated the manner in which Bible doctrine in the soul converts the believer into supergrace status.

7. Alcoholism is a part of national disaster - Joel 1:4-6. It is related to economic depression - Joel 1:4. It is related to soul frustration - Joel 1:5. It is related t military invasion in Joel 1:6. This concept is also found in Isaiah 28:1-9.

8. The conditions under which drinking is restrained: a) The law of love applied toward believers; b) The law of expediency applied toward unbelievers. Used when presenting the gospel drinking becomes a false issue; c) Under the law of supreme sacrifice which is directed toward God when drinking hinders a specific ministry.

9. Drinking is related to reversionism - Jeremiah 13:12-17. Wine is used in the scripture to represent the entire principle of sublimation involving the rejection of doctrine. The rejection of doctrine is the rejection of category #1 love and the substitute for this in Jeremiah 13 is heavy drinking.

10. The principle of common sense in drinking. a) The importance of abstinence on the job and in youth. b) While moderate drinking is not prohibited by the Word it belongs to those who have the maturity to handle it. c) Drinking is not for young ladies on dates with strange men or with an unknown crowd. d) Never drink alone or when upset. e) Never drink with strangers or in a strange place. f) Never drink while on the job. g) Never drink while operating a motor vehicle or flying an aeroplane.

a. We are interested in this study in what the Bible says about drinking and alcoholic beverage.

b. Those who have had personal problems because of drinking or are related to those with drinking problems have difficulty in approaching this subject objectively.

c. Those who have been reared in the atmosphere of Christian legalism will be shocked by what the Bible teaches.

d. Those who are looking for an excuse to get off the wagon will think they have smelled a cork.

e. No subject has more prejudice and less reason than the subject of drinking alcoholic beverage.

f. What we are about to study is not a booze sermon, nor is it an excuse for some weak sister to start drinking again. It is none of these things.

g. The objective is not to get believers on or off the wagon but to teach what the Bible says about drinking.

h. The fact that the Bible has a lot to say on the subject merely proves that drinking has long been an issue in the history of the human race.

a. We live in a time of human history when there are numerous categories of alcoholic beverage, beverage which is not only available but made use of in many different ways for many different purposes. For example, medicine. Or, on the other hand, seduction. Or, escape or frantic search for happiness. Or stimulation. Also relaxation and celebration.

b. It should be pointed out immediately that alcohol is both toxic and beneficial; it is both destructive and helpful; it is both a curse and a blessing.

i. Medicine. Alcohol is very good in compounding prescriptions, it is an excellent solvent and it is a preserving agent.

ii. It also comes in the form of a whiskey, and alcoholic liquor which is distilled from serial grains. The term is derived from the Celtic "usquebaugh" and it means the plain spirit derived from grain. Later it included compounded beverages which added both sugar and flavourings, and finally it came to be called whiskey. Whiskey is often classified by geographical location. There are three general classifications: Scotch, Irish, and American.

iii. All whiskeys are manufactured by very much the same process. First of all there is the preparation of the liquor known as wart, the mashing. Then there is the fermentation of the wart to produce the wash, and thirdly there is the separation of the spirit from the wash by distillation. Irish whiskey uses both malted and unmalted barley, oats, wheat, rye. Scotch whiskey uses malted barley. These fall into four categories. The highland malts which have been cured over peat fires. There are lowland malts which have a full flavour but are not as distinctive as the highland so they're used for blends. A third category is the Islay malts, used primarily for blends. Then there is the Campbelltown malts which have a more pronounced flavour. Three categories are used for blends, the highland is not. US whiskey falls into two categories: Bourbon and Rye. There is also a corn whiskey.

v. Gin. It gets its name from the juniper berry used as the principle flavouring. Gin is 76 per cent maze, 15 per cent malt, 10 per cent rye. Sweetened gin is obtained by adding sugar or syrup.

vi. Wine. This is the fermented juice of the grape. There are four general categories of wine today: Table wine, sherry, the fortified wines like port and Madeira, and then there are the sparkling wines like Champaign.

vii. Brandy, which is fermented juice of grapes and other fruits, aged for some time in wood. The most famous brandies come from a district in France called Cognac. Brandy does not age in a bottle, it has to age in wood.

ix. Beer. One of the oldest forms of alcoholic beverage. It is fermented of malted serials, usually barley malt, to which hops have been added. There is a record of Babylonian beer going back to 4000 BC. Ramses III of Egypt consecrated to the god of Egypt 466,303 jugs of beer. Historians like Herodotus, Pliny, Tacetus comment on beer in the ancient world. The art of brewing became well-known throughout the ancient world. The Chaldeans had it. The art spread to Egypt, Greece, and Rome, so that beer became quite a famous alcoholic beverage.

3. The Bible condemns drunkenness and makes it very clear that drunkenness is a sin - Isaiah 5:11,22; 28:7,8; Proverbs 20:1; 23:20; Romans 13:13; 1Corinthians 5:11; Ephesians 5:18. Drunkenness is a handicap to those who are in authority, temporal authority such as kings - Proverbs 31:4,5; spiritual authority such as pastors - 1Timothy 3:3; Titus 1:7; or deacons - 1Timothy 3:8. None of these categories are forbidden alcoholic beverage but all must be very temperate in keeping with the authority that they exercise. Those is authority, then, are not forbidden alcohol but they are warned against drunkenness as a possibility of abusing their authority. Not only is drunkenness a sin but people in that status abuse their authority.

a. Drunkenness is also condemned in certain Bible characters. Noah in Genesis 9:21; Nabal in 1Samuel 25:36,37; Lot is Genesis 19:32-36; the tribe of Ephraim in Isaiah 28:1.

a. Drunkenness or excessive use of alcohol leads to crime, suicide, divorce, traffic accidents, economic and industrial losses, loss of health, miserable circumstances, poverty, national disaster.

b. It should be remembered that alcohol is not a stimulant, it is a depressant. As a depressant it lowers inhibitions, dulls the reflexes, destroys common sense and good judgment, and it stimulates mental attitude sins.

c. But drunkenness also produces more than impulsive behaviour and social tragedy, it is the source of quite a number of diseases. It is also weakening of the health which leads to diseases not directly induced by alcohol.

d. Excessive alcohol affects the brain in numerous ways, including cerebral hemorrhage, delirium tremens which produce mental confusion, anxiety, terror, auditory and visual hallucinations as well as delusions. Alcohol in excess also attacks the liver. It is the cause of vernicese disease: a paralysis of the eyes, uncoordinated walk, the clouding of consciousness, final coma and death. As a depressant alcohol cooperates with the old sin nature to lower standards of resistance to sins in all categories. This means that excessive drinking or drunkenness is not only a sin in itself but has dire spiritual consequences as well as physical. The Bible gives no encouragement and no excuse for excessive drinking.

i. There are two types, however, of excessive drinkers. The first type is the type who drinks a large amount at one time. The other one goes for days and days, the one who drinks constantly day in and day out. There are two kinds of people who have a drinking problem. Those who can't stop from the steady drinking and those who can't stop from heavy drinking in a short period of time. Both of these types should avoid any use of alcohol except in medicine. The chemistry of the blood and individual metabolism is related to how much a person can assimilate - how much alcohol content in the blood, how much can your body take out per hour as to how much you are taking in. Inebriation is a sin and there is no benefit from having an alcoholic problem.

5. Proper and improper uses of alcohol. Proverbs 34:4-7 - wine attacks authority of leadership; wine attacks the function of leadership; the correct use of wine (Give strong drink to him who is dying); to those whose life is bitter. 1Timothy 5:23 -

a. This passage indicates that wine or certain alcoholic beverages had both a relaxing and beneficial effect on Timothy.

b. Paul is prescribing a moderate amount of alcohol to relax the nervous high-strung Timothy.

c. A limited amount of wine acts as a sedation; too much wine has a toxic effect.

d. Wine stimulates the appetite through the increase of gastric juices while at the same time relaxing the solar plexus, the area of the central nervous system, the stomach muscles, and so on.

e. The benefits of wine, then, can be summarised as follows: beneficial to brain and nervous system as a depressant producing sedation; beneficial to the stomach in terms of appetite, digestion; beneficial to the circulation, especially in the case of older people.

f. Psalm 104:15 - "And the wine which makes man's heart glad, maketh his well-nourished face radiant, and food which sustains man's right lobe." To have the heart glad refers to a limited amount. The passage is actually saying a little wine with food is a good thing.

a. Jesus was invited to a wedding in Cana of Galilee, along with His disciples - verse 2.

c. Jesus replied to His mother in verse 4. "What is this to me or to you?" I.e. What difference does it make to us. Neither Jesus nor Mary were in any way hurt by the fact that they arrived late and hadn't had any wine.

e. Jesus said to her, So what! You and I do not have to depend on wine for anything.

f. Then Jesus challenged Mary's subtle hint about departure by saying, "Mine hour has not yet come."

g. This was a reference to His saving work on the cross, and it is mentioned on numerous occasions: John 7:30; 820; 12:23,27; 16:32; 17:1. In other words, He begins with a very strong vocative of rebuke. It states that neither Jesus nor His mother depended upon wine for a good time. This verse states that His departure from the wedding and from this life had not yet come. This is a double entendre. Furthermore, Jesus implied that He would stay and rectify the situation. So His mother understood that He would stay and that He would do something about it.

i. What about the wine? It was a wedding feast and they were serving alcoholic beverage, which was the custom. They ran out of wine which did create a crisis for hospitality. So Jesus, to indicate that drinking wine was not an issue with regard to eternal salvation, now performs a miracle. Wine isn't an issue. Now He provides more wine, and the best wine that anyone ever had. Jesus truly turned water into wine. The miracle, however, neither condones nor condemns drinking. Like all miracles, its purpose is to focus attention on who and what Christ is. it is to point out that Christ is the God-Man, the unique person of the universe. He is the son of David. This is the first advent. The issue is salvation, not whether you drink wine or not. The issue is Christ, not social crisis and not a social problem.

ii. There were six water pots, each one held 20-30 gallons. At 20 gallons that would be 120 gallons of water. Wine is composed of 70-80 per cent water. There is 12-30 per cent grape sugar, 12-14 per cent ethyl alcohol, there are other alcohols. Wine has carbon dioxide, organic acids, glycerin, organic colouring, microorganisms for fermentation. So water into wine is unexplainable, it is not a miracle if you can explain it. It was a miracle in which at least 120 gallons of water were turned into 120 gallons of wine.

iii. Christ, not wine, is the issue here. The miracle gave everyone in Cana a chance to be saved, for the miracle presents God's plan of grace in the person of Jesus Christ, the God-Man, the only saviour. It was a miracle to focus attention on who and what Christ is.

a. The law of liberty. Every believer has the right to drink a moderate amount of alcoholic beverage, it is not a sin. But then there are other laws that supersede at certain times.

b. There is the law of expediency. It is expedient not to drink under certain conditions: witnessing, and so on. Or when drinking becomes an issue to an unbeliever.

c. The law of love. It becomes necessary to refrain from drinking when it becomes a means of leading astray a weaker believer.

d. The law of supreme sacrifice. Drinking is forbidden when it hinders a specific ministry or leadership function in life.

8. Alcohol is also a part of national disaster - Joel 1:4-6; Isaiah 28:1-9; Jeremiah 13:12-17.

9. The principle of common sense in drinking. Not only does the Bible have a lot to say about drinking - pro and con, when you should and when you shouldn't - but even an unbeliever with an average amount of common sense ought to be able to handle the problem.

a. Alcohol is wasted on young people. Young people ought not to drink. They are neither smart enough or wise enough to derive any benefit from drinking.

c. Do not drink while frustrated or unhappy. When you link emotion with drinking you are going to have a problem.

d. Young ladies who date strangers should be non-drinkers (on that date). Never drink with a stranger, never drink at a strange place.

g. Never drink while operating a motor vehicle, flying an airplane, operating any type of machinery.

h. Never mix gunpowder and alcohol. Never drink while hunting, plinking, shooting.

j. Drunkenness and dissipation is a waste of time as well as life. While drinking is not forbidden by the Bible drunkenness is stupidity as well as a sin.

k. The Christian lush is a reversionist who has failed to utilise the grace provision for learning doctrine, growing in grace, advancing to the objective.

1. By definition dying grace is the believer's experience of physical death or dying under the provision of grace whereby the individual believer has blessing and happiness in death. His death has a minimum or no pain, maximum happiness, and the soul is stimulated to the maximum in its last moments in the physical body. Not all believers go out under dying grace. Believers in reversionism do not go out under dying grace, they go out under the sin unto death. It doesn't change their status in heaven but it is God's last opportunity to discipline them.

2. Dying grace removes the fear of death - Psalm 23:4, "Even though I walk through the valley of the deep darkness of death." This is describing the manner of dying and dying grace. "I will not fear" - dying grace is such a marvellous doctrine that it eliminates the idea of fear connected with death. "I will not fear harm" - a miserable death - "for you are with me" - God is with every believer, and especially every supergrace believer, at the moment of his dying.

3. Dying grace, therefore, is a supergrace blessing - Hebrews 11:5; Psalm 116:15, "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his godly ones [supergrace believers]." A supergrace believer gets the best possible send-off into heaven.

4. Description of dying grace - Job 5:21-17. The believer cannot die until the Lord is ready to take him home. Instruments of death cannot kill the believer until God's plan calls for the believer to die.

2. Ordinarily the drawbridge is let down or controlled from the time side of the chasm.

3. Dying grace is a blessing of supergrace. Therefore the drawbridge is let down on the time side.

4. But in this passage we have the drawbridge let down from the eternity side. There is no death.

5. The same thing will happen to supergrace believers in the Rapture generation.

6. Because the Lord is to meet the Rapture generation in the air that drawbridge called dying grace will not be lowered. Instead, the bridge will be lowered from the eternity side. This means that all carnal believers at the Rapture, all immature believers at the Raptures, all reversionistic believers at the Rapture will also be transferred at the same time. Their transfer is blessing by association.

1. Categories of death in the Bible. There are at least seven different categories of biblical death.

a. Spiritual - separation from God in time. This is the fact that we are born spiritually dead.

d. Operational death or the believer's failure to produce divine good - James 2:26.

e. Positional death. This is part of the baptism of the Spirit whereby the believer is identified retroactively with Christ on the cross, therefore he rejects human good and he is identified currently with Jesus Christ seated at the right hand of the Father. We are in union with Christ, we share His eternal life, His righteousness, His sonship, His heirship, election, destiny, everything.

b. Death is always a matter of the sovereignty of God based upon His perfect character - Psalm 68:19,20.

c. Love is stronger than death - Song of Solomon 8:6. Category #2 love is involved there.

d. God can and does prolong life under certain circumstances - Psalm 102:19,20; 12:23,24; 118:18; Proverbs 14:27.

e. Women must be taught to face the death of loved ones, the woman being a responder in her soul - Jeremiah 9:20-25.

g. Death cannot be faced when the norms, standards function of the right lobe is destroyed - Lamentations 1:19,20. This is the characteristic of a reversionistic believer.

c. Therefore dying grace is the experience of physical death under special blessing, the special provision of grace whereby dying is greater than living. This implies minimum pain, maximum happiness, maximum soul stimulation, maximum utilisation of resident doctrine, and maximum blessing so that dying becomes better than anything you had in life. This is the ultimate in departure from this life.

4. Dying grace is the missing link. There is a relationship between supergrace blessings in time and surpassing grace blessings in eternity or SG3. Dying grace is the missing link between the two, it is the way in which the transfer is made.

8. Dying grace is the bridge between supergrace blessing and surpassing grace blessing - Hebrews 11:13.

9. The importance of seizing and holding the high ground of supergrace. In the first eight principles of dying grace we have seen how important it is to be in the supergrace status at the point of physical death. The importance of seizing and holding the high ground of supergrace is related to the plan of God in eternity past. In eternity past under the concept of the doctrine of divine decrees God knew about each one of us. He designed some special paragraphs of blessing to give us the maximum that time and eternity have to offer, but they are also designed to glorify God to the maximum. Maximum glory comes to God by way of the fulfilment of these paragraphs. The one who has SG2 glorifies God in time. Under SG2 the first category of blessing is spiritual blessing, and spiritual blessing means occupation with the person of Christ, sharing the happiness of God, the completion of and ECS, resident doctrine to meet every exigency of life. And then with that we have temporal blessings, and this often becomes a motivator to people but it is a false motivator - to take in doctrine so you can be promoted or very wealthy or successful, etc. All of these things are incidental and God is glorified by giving these things, and there is where the emphasis lies in the glorification of God Himself. Then the third category has to do with dying, so that dying grace is a blessing of supergrace, the greatest blessing in supergrace, the highest blessing of supergrace. But these special blessing are all designed to glorify God, and the link between these two paragraphs, the one that puts the two of them together, is dying grace. So dying grace is described as a bridge going from time to eternity. Therefore the key to everything is being able to seize and hold the supergrace life or to maintain the stability of spiritual maturity. They key there, of course, is continued positive volition toward Bible doctrine. Philippians 3:12-14 is the passage which goes with point 9. "I am apprehended of Christ Jesus." That refers to the doctrine of divine decrees. In eternity past we were seized and held by Christ Jesus, so that we have these special blessings paragraphs from millions of years ago.

10. The relationship between supergrace and surpassing grace, then, is found in dying grace. We live to reach supergrace, we die to get to surpassing grace. Hebrews 11:13.

11. The exceptions to dying grace. a) The disciplinary exception which is known as the sin unto death. This discipline is the exception to dying grace, it includes maximum misery and pressure in time and only increased misery and pressure for the dying stage leading to eternity. And once the believer reaches eternity he has nothing to show for his life on the earth. He has not glorified God in time, he will have no special blessings in eternity by which God is glorified. He is minus SG3 as he was minus SG2, and therefore the transition between time and eternity is of the utmost pain, misery, horror, disaster, everything that is monstrous. b) The transfer without dying - Enoch in Hebrews 11:5,6. c) The Rapture generation which will depart from this life without seeing death. The Rapture generation is interesting because at the time of the Rapture there will be supergrace believers, those who have seized and held the high ground and have enjoyed paragraph SG2. They will be transferred to eternity and SG3 by way of the Rapture. The question is not what about the supergrace types, but what about the reversionists, the carnal types, those who are not on the high ground. The answer is they are blessed by association and they, too, go into eternity and their status in eternity with regard to blessing is dependent upon the same principles in time.

12. The description of dying grace. Job 5:19-27 has a great deal to say about living and dying and dying grace. Job 5:19–21 In six troubles He will deliver you. Even in seven, evil will not touch you. In economic disaster, He will deliver you from death, and in war He will redeem you from the power of the sword. You will be hidden from the scourge of the tongue. Neither will you be afraid of violent death when it comes. Once God decides to take us home, there is no remaining here. You will come to your grave in a full age like a shock of corn in its season. God decides when the times has come to bring us home in His Presence. Behold this, the doctrine of dying grace, we have researched it and so it is; know it is for yourself. For not one of us lives for himself or dies for himself.

13. Dying grace therefore is an advance on supergrace - Philippians 1:20,21. "To die is gain" - SG3.

14. Dying grace can be accomplished in several ways. There are basically three ways. a) The maintenance of supergrace until death, and this places dying grace in SG2 paragraph. This is the normal way for the supergrace believer to be transferred to eternity. It is a part of the supergrace blessing, it is the last one on earth and the best. It also, therefore, makes dying better than any blessing in time. b) A PCS (permanent change of station) from time to eternity, but this time the PCS is accomplished as a part of the paragraph SG3. This is the case of Enoch. c) The transfer from time to eternity by means of resurrection. This is the Rapture case.

a. To the unbeliever death is a reminder to be prepared. There is only one preparation for death and this is the important decision of life by which we come to accept Christ as saviour. Believing in the Lord Jesus Christ prepares that individual for death in the sense that he will have a resurrection body, that he will have the privilege of living forever in the presence of God. Therefore death is settled by that decision. However, because of the doctrine of surpassing grace and because of the special blessing concept it does become necessary to recognise that for the believer the preparation for death is the constant intake of Bible doctrine, the principle of residency of doctrine in the soul. For the unbeliever the death of others is a reminder of the shortness of time and that time hangs by a very fine thread, a thread that can be snapped at any moment for any one of us. Therefore it becomes important to constantly take in doctrine. Life is a constant preparation for death. Death, therefore, becomes the desert for the supergrace believer. Death is also a reminder of the futility of gain in this life - the futility of profit, the futility of human celebrityship, the futility of everything that is considered important in life - for once a person begins to die all of these things fade away and only eternal things count. Mark 8:36,37.

b. The death that we are studying is dying grace, something which is fantastic because it sets aside all of the horrors of death. It is a greater blessing than any blessing in life because of who and what Christ is and because of His magnificent provision in the written Word. Death means for us many wonderful things. It means that we have an inheritance which is "incorruptible and undefiled that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for us who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation, ready to be revealed in the last time." Death means fur us, therefore, blessing, for doctrine resident in the soul accumulated day in and day out leads to the supergrace life, and the supergrace life is a life of special blessings designed for you in eternity past - not just special blessings for you but glory for God, for in giving you these blessings under supergrace status it is God who is glorified, we are the beneficiaries. No matter how great are the blessings in life under SG2 the blessing of dying is much, much greater. But from the standpoint of those who are left behind it is inevitable that a supergrace believer will leave behind those who love him. Therefore there is the principle of James 1:18, "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and cometh down from the father of lights, with whom there is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. "The perfect gift here is the Lord Jesus Christ who provides for us in living as well as dying, as well as eternity. He is so described as a gift - John 3:16. The gift is described in relationship to the cross in Romans 6:23. So we as believers respond as per 2Corinthians 9:15 - "Thanks be unto God [the Father] for his unspeakable gift." And because of this gift and because we have received this gift, and because we have followed the colours to the high ground, then we recognise that our departure from this life is described as a good gift. If you are a supergrace believer it means that you are a good gift to someone in this world. It is inevitable that a supergrace believer will have those in his periphery who dearly love him and totally appreciate him, and therefore he is the good gift. And the departure from this life of that good gift. When God sees fit to take any gift from us by physical death it is always a reminder to us of many things. It is a reminder that for the believer time and eternity are only a temporary separation and that the death of loved ones isn't the end of anything for we will see them forever and ever and ever in eternity. Loved ones cannot be separated by death because of who and what Christ is.

1. By definition, the construction of a house or a backbone of the soul occurs through the intake of doctrine. Epignôsis (ἐπίγνωσις) [pronounced ehp-IHG-noh-sis] residing in the soul and the spirit is the basis for constructing a house or backbone for the soul. The ECS is the bridge to supergrace. The consistent function of GAP under the authority of the believer's right pastor is the basis for the construction of the ECS. This is emphasized in Ephesians 3:16-21; 4:11-13.

2. To understand the ECS as a structure in the soul, a little work on the etymology of the Greek. Our word is eis (εἰς) [pronounced ICE] plus the accusative of Oikodomê (οἰκοδομή) [pronounced oy-kod-om-AY]. Oikodomê (οἰκοδομή) [pronounced oy-kod-om-AY] is made of two words: oikos (οκος) [pronounced OY-koss] = a house or a temple; demo = a Classical Greek word for construction. So it means the erection of a temple, the erection of a structure, the building of a structure. Oikodomê (οἰκοδομή) [pronounced oy-kod-om-AY] is used in Ephesians 4:12,16,29. A similar word oikonomia (οἰκονομία) [pronounced oy-koh-nohm-EE-uh] is the result of construction. The resultant construction of the ECS is the entrance into the supergrace life - 1Timothy 1:4. Oikonómos (οἰκονόμος) [pronounced oy-kohn-OHM-oss] emphasizes the building and the one who builds it. It refers to the contractor which is doctrine - Acts 4:11.

3. The structure of the ECS. When doctrine is taught it becomes gnôsis (γνσις) [pronounced GNOH-sis], but by becoming gnôsis (γνσις) [pronounced GNOH-sis] it can immediately become others things. If the individual listening to the doctrine is hypersensitive, subjective in any possible way then anything that touches a subjective nerve in the soul causes that individual to operate under dokéô (δοκέω) [pronounced dohk-EH-oh] which is subjective thinking. That immediately eliminates any possibility of utilizing the doctrine just learned in the ECS or advancing toward supergrace. Gnôsis (γνσις) [pronounced GNOH-sis] must become and must remain immediately objective thinking or phroneô (φρονέω) [pronounced fron-EH-oh]. Phroneô (φρονέω) [pronounced fron-EH-oh] plus volition or faith transfers it to the human spirit and immediately changes it into epignôsis (ἐπίγνωσις) [pronounced ehp-IHG-noh-sis]. Then epignôsis (ἐπίγνωσις) [pronounced ehp-IHG-noh-sis] is sucked into the right lobe into the frame of reference, and there are two valves, one at each end of the memory centre. One valve processes it into vocabulary and categories and the other valve into the norms and standards, and all feed into the launching pad. This is important because we are going to see that scar tissue is not in the lungs of the soul but in the heart, the right lobe. So epignôsis (ἐπίγνωσις) [pronounced ehp-IHG-noh-sis] is the basis for advance in the Christian life.

a. Epignôsis (ἐπίγνωσις) [pronounced ehp-IHG-noh-sis] is also known as suniêmi (συνίημι) [pronounced soon-EE-ay-mee] which means to know the underlying laws, the meaning of an object, the technical knowledge, and when epignôsis (ἐπίγνωσις) [pronounced ehp-IHG-noh-sis] enters the human spirit it becomes suniêmi (συνίημι) [pronounced soon-EE-ay-mee], and as suniêmi (συνίημι) [pronounced soon-EE-ay-mee] and epignôsis (ἐπίγνωσις) [pronounced ehp-IHG-noh-sis] the construction of the ECS begins. The first floor, then, is grace orientation. This is absolutely essential. Without this floor you can't function in anything. Grace orientation make it possible to advance when sooner or later there is conflict from the norms and standards of your soul and what is taught from the Word of God. The mastery of the details of life is almost a result of grace orientation. However, the relaxed mental attitude is not. The RMA means doctrine must conquer subjectivity in the life. Next we have the capacity for love in which the structure is almost completed, and that means category #1, category #2, and category #3 love. If you have capacity for one you have capacity for all. Finally we have the penthouse, +H, and from there entrance into the supergrace life. The believer enters the supergrace life after completion of the top floor; +H is sharing God's happiness.

4. The usage of the word "edification." a) One of the objectives of the pastor's teaching of doctrine is the erection of the ECS, therefore the first use of edification is technical. In its technicality it means a complex structure in the soul - Ephesians 4:11,12. b) It has a general meaning. The local church with a maximum number of ECSs is a prosperous church - Acts 9:31. c) The objective of phase two is the ECS, not speaking in tongues - 1Corinthians 14:3,4,12, 26. The thing that shows that you are advancing is not speaking in tongues but the construction of the ECS. d) Human knowledge or gnôsis (γνσις) [pronounced GNOH-sis] puffs up while knowledge of doctrine through GAP edifies. So 1Corinthians 8:1 distinguishes between the type of knowledge that causes you to advance and grow up and the type of knowledge of doctrine that causes you not to. It has nothing to do with academic learning.

5. The humanity of Christ possessed an ECS during the incarnation - Luke 2:40,52; John 1:14.

6. Rapid construction of an ECS comes from GAP under maximum pressure - James 1:2-4.

7. Relationship to the national entity is a very important factor. Your ECS has a lot to do with the condition of the country. The believer in the royal family has that privilege of developing through doctrine an ECS which provides personal stability and national stability. In tact, if there are enough ECSs the country is preserved in spite of the idiocy of its government, the men who are running it. All freedom gained by the military on the battlefield is exploited by the believer erecting an ECS - Jeremiah 42:10 states the principle.

9. The ECS has a direct relationship to the supergrace life. Just before everyone reaches supergrace there is a great chasm he must cross. On the other side is the supergrace life. Across the chasm is a bridge, and that bridge is the ECS. The top floor of the ECS takes you right into supergrace, as per Philippians 4:4 cf. 1John 1:4.

10. Two spirits are vital in the construction of the ECS. The Holy Spirit makes GAP function; the human spirit is the converter of building material in the function of GAP. The Holy Spirit - John 14:26; 16:12-14; 1Corinthians 2:9-16; 1John 2:27. GAP is the source of the ECS - Ephesians 4:12,13. For the human spirit as the target for GAP - Job 32:8; Romans 8:16; 1Corinthians 2:12,13. Doctrine stored in the human spirit is used for construction material of the ECS - Ephesians 4:23,24; Colossians 1:9,10; 1John 2:3.

1. The doctrine is based upon certain verbs and their cognates found in he Bible, both in the Hebrew and the Greek. E.g. in the Hebrew we have banah which means to construct and edifice. Its counterpart in the Greek is oikonoméō (οἰκονομέω) [pronounced oy-kohn-ohm-EH-oh] which means to build or construct, to erect a structure. There are also some nouns that go with oikonoméō (οἰκονομέω) [pronounced oy-kohn-ohm-EH-oh] - Oikodomê (οἰκοδομή) [pronounced oy-kod-om-AY] which means the act of building or erecting a structure. It is quite common for the ECS. Then there is oikonomia (οἰκονομία) [pronounced oy-koh-nohm-EE-uh] which is the ECS, the result of erecting a structure. There is also oikonómos (οἰκονόμος) [pronounced oy-kohn-OHM-oss] which refers to the contractor or the builder or the function of construction.

2. GAP is the source of the ECS, Ephesians 4:12,13. In that passage we have all the ingredients for the ECS. The believer is a priest in the Church. As a believer priest he is to gather with others, this gives him his privacy. The message of the pastor-teacher is all that is important to the believers who hear him.

3. The believer's ECS provides both stability for the individual and preservation for the national entity. It is the only way a believer can be happy. Furthermore, the ECS count is the basis for determining the preservation of the national entity, Jeremiah 42:10.

4. The rapid construction of the ECS comes from a maximum use of faith patience under maximum pressure, James 1:2-4.

a. First floor: grace orientation. It is impossible to begin an ECS unless the believer is grace oriented;

b. second floor: the mastery of the details of life, and capacity for these details;

c. the third floor: the relaxed mental attitude of the believer's soul. This is freedom from any habitual mental attitude sins because MA sins destroy any capacity for life;

d. the fourth floor: capacity for love. This is important because all capacity for love does not start with people, it starts with God. As you develop occupation with Christ, then the other capacities fall in line;

e. the fifth floor: +H, the door that opens the believer into the normal Christian life which is supergrace.

6. The biblical use of the word "edification." It is used in Ephesians 4:11,12, as the objective of the pastor-teacher. His responsibility is to so communicate doctrine that those who are positive will hear and grow up into the ECS. The soul was saved in order that the soul might have something special from God. The soul is saved so that it can be structurised by God's plan, and this is where the ECS comes in. The second use of "edification" is found where a local church with a maximum number of believers having an ECS is a prosperous church. Acts 9:31. The third use of "edification," the objective of phase two is to erect the ECS, not to speak in tongues, 1 Cor. 14:3,4, 12, 26. Fourth, human knowledge has a tendency to pump up but the function of GAP in the sphere of love edifies, 1Corinthians 8:1.

7. There are two spirits involved in ECS. The first is God the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity. He functions in the intake of doctrine by which the ECS is constructed, John 14:26; 16:12-14; 1John 2:27; 1` Cor. 2:9-16. The second "spirit" in the ECS principle is the human spirit. It is the target for doctrine by which material is made available for the construction of the ECS, Romans 8:16; 1 Cor. 2:12,13; Job 32:8. Only doctrine stored in the human spirit is construction material, Ephesians 4:23,24; Colossians 1:9,10; 1John 2:3.

8. As a starting point for motivation the humanity of Christ possessed an ECS during the incarnation, Luke 2:40, 52; John 1:14.

d. Imitators of God, Ephesians 5:1. However, Eph. 5:1 not only refers to the ECS but emphasizes it as the entrance into supergrace.

10. The supergrace life is the objective after the ECS. The ECS, therefore, is the entrance into the supergrace life. Once the top floor has been constructed there is a transition into supergrace. The top floor is God's happiness shared with the believer.

1. The doctrine of edification is based on categorizing the Greek noun Oikodomê (οἰκοδομή) [pronounced oy-kod-om-AY]. This noun is found in Romans 14:19; 2Corinthians 10:8, 13:10; Ephesians 4:12,16, 29; 2Corinthians 14:5,12,26. In all these passages, it has a dual connotation.

a. Collectively it refers to the formation of the royal family of God during the entire period of the Church Age; i.e., the building up of the body of Christ. When the royal family is completed, the Rapture of the Church will occur.

b. Individually it refers to the spiritual growth of the positive believer, and/or momentum in the Christian way of life. Hence, the individual connotation refers to the execution of the protocol plan and the subsequent manufacture of the invisible hero, resulting in the glorification of God.

2. When the collective connotation is used, Oikodomê (οἰκοδομή) [pronounced oy-kod-om-AY] should be translated "construction, building up," or" building process." When the individual connotation is used, Oikodomê (οἰκοδομή) [pronounced oy-kod-om-AY] should be translated "edification."

3. The collective connotation of Oikodomê (οἰκοδομή) [pronounced oy-kod-om-AY] is based upon our Lord's third royal patent or title, King of kings and Lord of lords, the Bright Morning Star, given to Him as a result of His strategic victory in the angelic conflict.

1. The edification complex of the soul is technical nomenclature found in the epistles of the New Testament for the attainment of spiritual maturity.

2. The consistent function of GAP under one's right pastor-teacher is the only way to construct an edification complex of the soul.

4. Doctrine perceived must feed both the human spirit and the human soul for capacity for both human and eternal life. The edification complex of the soul is the result.

5. Virtue-love is the means of reaching maturity and receiving an edification complex of the soul, 1Corinthians 8:1. You cannot have an edification complex of the soul unless you are using virtue-love at gates 5 and 6 of the divine dynasphere. "Gnosis produces arrogance, but virtue-love edifies." Virtue-love is the sign you have been metabolizing doctrine.

a. Light. This is used for the divine dynasphere and sometimes for the edification complex of the soul.

b. "Christ formed in you" Gal 4:19, connotes both the edification complex of the soul and spiritual self-esteem.

c. "The new man," Ephesians 4; Colossians 3, refers to both the edification complex of the soul and divine dynasphere.

e. "Imitators of God," Ephesians 5:1. There is a direct relation between gate 8 of the divine dynasphere and the edification complex of the soul.

a. 2Corinthians 10:8, "For even if I should rub it in about our authority, which God gave for your edification and not for destroying you, I shall not feel ashamed."

(1) The Corinthians wavered so much that Paul really had to get tough with them and throw his rank around.

(2) The Corinthians were reacting to Paul's authority and so were doing many things detrimental to their spiritual life.

(3) "Our authority" refers to those with the communication gifts of pastor-teacher as well as apostleship, e.g., Apollos and Timothy. The pastor establishes his authority through the communication of doctrine.

(4) Paul makes it very clear that the construction of the edification complex depends upon accepting the authority of some pastor- teacher who communicates doctrinal information.

b. 2Corinthians 13:10, "For this reason, I am writing these things while absent, in order that when I am present, I may not use severity in compatibility with the authority which God has given to me for the purpose of your edification, and not for the purpose of destroying you."

(1) No one can learn any subject without accepting the authority of the one who teaches.

(2) Therefore, the importance of understanding that edification and invisible heroship comes only in one way, and that is through the teaching of the pastor in communicating the mystery doctrine of the Church Age, and no other way.

(3) It is impossible for anyone with the gift of pastor- teacher to communicate Bible doctrine unless his authority is recognized. Therefore, the enforcement of good manners and thoughtfulness of others is a part of the exercise of his authority.

(4) Notice that Paul thought it better to talk about authority in a non-face-to-face situation so that he would not have to chew them out face-to-face when he arrived.

c. 1Thessalonians 5:12, "But we request of you, brethren, that you respect those pastor-teachers who work hard among you [studying and teaching], who have command over you in the Lord and give you instruction."

(1) The road to the edification complex is paved with hundreds and thousands of messages regarding the protocol plan of God.

(2) Whether these messages are of any benefit to you depends upon whether you accept one man as your right pastor and accept his authority in teaching.

d. Hebrews 13:17, "Keep obeying those pastors who themselves are ruling over you, and submit to their authority [by learning Bible doctrine], for these same pastors keep watching for the benefit of your souls as those who have to render an account. Keep obeying them, in order that they may do this accounting with joy, and not with groaning, for this is unprofitable for you."

2. The threefold purpose of the pastor is found in Ephesians 4:12 ...for the purpose of equipping the saints, for the production of Christian service, for the edification of the body of Christ.

a. The "saints" refer to the royal family of God with emphasis on the baptism of the Spirit.

b. "Equipping the saints" refers to God's grace policy and provision for the execution of the protocol plan.

c. "Equipping" is the function of the pastor who, through teaching the mystery doctrine of the great power experiment of the Church Age, is able to see people grow and become invisible heroes.

d. All believers are in full-time Christian service from the moment of their salvation. Christian service is the normal result of spiritual growth but never the means.

e. Edification is the execution of the protocol plan for the Church Age and subsequent manufacture of invisible heroes, resulting in the glorification of God.

3. The spiritual momentum of the believer comes from the teaching ministry of the pastor. Ephesians 4:16 Because of whom [Lord Jesus Christ] the entire body, being joined together [baptism of the Spirit] and being inculcated by every joint of supply [pastor-teacher] on the basis of the operational power [Holy Spirit in divine dynasphere], in measure one [pastor-teacher] for each part [of the royal family of God]; he himself [pastor-teacher] causes growth in the body, resulting in its edification by means of virtue-love.

a. Body function depends upon the proper use of joints. Athletic coordination depends upon the proper use of the joints.

b. So in this analogy of the pastor to the joints, it is the pastor-teacher who gives the body of Christ its function on earth.

c. The result of the communication of doctrine is the construction of an edification complex in your soul.

(1) Personal love for God the Father is motivational virtue and motivation for perception of doctrine.

(2) Impersonal love for all mankind is functional virtue. It gives one the ability to listen objectively to a pastor-teacher regardless of his personality.

2. Positive volition is expressed in Romans 14:19. "Consequently, we run after [pursue] those things related to prosperity and edification."

a. Running, not walking, expresses positive volition toward the mystery doctrine of the Church Age, which gives us all the details regarding God's plan, purpose, and will for our lives after salvation.

b. This includes the perception, metabolization, and application of the mystery doctrine of the Church Age as the means of executing the protocol plan of God. The execution of the protocol plan of God results in the manufacture of invisible heroes. Invisible God plus invisible assets plus invisible power equals invisible heroes who glorify God.

c. Prosperity and edification go together; both are the result of continual positive volition.

3. In order for post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation and consistent perception of doctrine to occur, it is important to have a mental attitude of humility. Romans 12:2-5, "Stop being conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renovation of your thought [divine viewpoint of life] that you may prove what the will of God is; namely, the good of intrinsic value achievement [advance to spiritual maturity], the well-pleasing to God [fulfillment of the protocol plan], the mature status quo [manufacture of invisible heroes]. For I say through the grace which has been given to me to everyone who is among you: stop thinking of self in terms of arrogance beyond what you ought to think, but think in terms of sanity for the purpose of being rational without illusion as God has assigned to each one of us a standard of thinking from doctrine. For just as we have many members in one body and all members do not have the same function, so we who are many are one body in Christ and individually members of one another."

b. There must be a complete renovation in your thinking if you're ever going to demonstrate what the will of God is for your life.

c. Certain types of thinking are out of bounds, i.e., thinking related to the arrogance complex.

d. The standard of thinking from doctrine includes every aspect of divine viewpoint, orientation to life through enforced and genuine humility, and everything that makes us objective and teachable toward the Word of God.

e. "Many members in one body" emphasizes that although we have different spiritual gifts and different personalities, we all belong to one royal family, the body of Christ.

f. "Individually members one of another" refers to interaction within the royal family of God.

4. Without enforced and genuine humility, there is neither objectivity nor teachability. Without objectivity and teachability in life, you will be miserable, whether you are a believer or unbeliever, successful or not. Without objectivity and teachability, there is no edification complex in your soul as a believer.

5. Edification is the execution of the protocol plan of God through the function of post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation. This includes your daily perception, metabolization, and application of Bible doctrine.

6. Edification is the status of the invisible hero. He has completed the edification complex of the soul, the most beautiful structure in life. It is found in the soul of the invisible hero.

7. Edification is therefore impossible without humility, teachability, and objectivity.

1. 1Corinthians 14:12, "So also you, since you are eager to have the function of spiritual gifts, seek to abound in spiritual gifts that edify the church."

a. "So also you" is a Greek idiom that should be translated, "this applies to you."

b. The Corinthians were all eager to get the gift of tongues because it was spectacular, and then they could assume they were spiritual. In reality, the worst believers in the Bible are described as having the gift of tongues.

c. "Seek to abound" means you should give precedence to those spiritual gifts which result in edification. The primary spiritual gift in this category is the gift of pastor-teacher.

2. 1Corinthians 14:26, "When you assemble, let all things be done for edification." There are a number of ways in which we worship God, but they must all relate to our spiritual growth. Everything in assembly worship should be done with a view toward the objective, which is edification. The objective is to communicate doctrine, the purpose of which is to produce edification.

3. The key to the modus operandi of the local church is edification. Edification, or the advance to spiritual maturity, is the objective of the Christian way of life.

4. In the context of 1Corinthians 14, the gift of tongues did not fulfill that purpose. 1Corinthians 14:40 concludes that the gift of tongues did not do "all things properly and in an orderly manner."

a. The gift of tongues only existed for the first forty years of the Church Age. Then it was discontinued when the fifth cycle of discipline was administered to Israel by the Romans in August of 70 A.D.

b. While it did exist, the gift of tongues illustrated how not to do things decently and in order. For tongues did not contribute to the principle of edification, nor did it contribute to doing things "properly and in an orderly manner."

1. Priority #1 for edification must be perception, metabolization, and application of the mystery doctrine for the Church Age. This demands concentration under the ministry of the Holy Spirit inside the operational- type divine dynasphere. Therefore, when doctrine is taught, concentration means there is post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation through the ministry of God the Holy Spirit.

2. As you give Bible doctrine #1 priority in your life, you organize your life around priority #1. Therefore, you have an organized life and your life is in order. This means you always give proper time to the perception, metabolization, and application of doctrine.

3. As you learn doctrine, your thinking inevitably begins to change; there's a "renovation of your thought" (Rom 12:2). Therefore, you begin to organize your thinking around priority #1. The more doctrine you learn, the more you organize your thinking around doctrine.

4. Mechanically, that means you use the ten problem solving devices of the protocol plan of God. As these problem solving devices are developed in your mind, you concentrate on executing the protocol plan through the doctrine you have learned. That is how you construct the edification complex of the soul.

1. Therefore, when you execute the protocol plan of God, you have constructed the following building.

b. First floor: Operation Z, the perception of Bible doctrine under consistent post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation.

c. Second floor: Dispensational orientation, i.e., understanding the uniqueness of the Church Age.

d. Third floor: Problem solving devices, which are very important for experiential Christianity.

(1) As you understand and function under these problem solving devices, you become spiritually self-sustaining and you function under the privacy of your priesthood to resolve your own problems, including the greatest problems in life.

(2) There are two ways in which problems are properly resolved: through the use of the ten problem solving devices, and through cognizance of specific principles in the Word of God.

g. Sixth floor: Spiritual maturity, the point at which we execute the protocol plan of God.

2. The moment you personally believed in Jesus Christ, a foundation was constructed, comprised of the forty things from God. The foundation is Jesus Christ.

a. 2Timothy 2:19, "Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal; the Lord knows those who are His."

b. 1Corinthians 3:11, "No one can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ."

c. The foundation is constructed on the saving work of Jesus Christ on the cross, i.e., redemption, propitiation, reconciliation, imputation, and justification.

d. The foundation is instantly constructed the very second we believe in Christ. Again, the foundation is comprised of the forty things we receive at the point of our salvation.

(a) John 3:15, "Whosoever believes in Him shall never perish, but have eternal life."

(b) John 3:16, "For God loved the world so much that He gave His uniquely-born Son that anyone who believes in Him should never perish but have eternal life."

(c) 1John 5:11-13 This is the deposition: God has given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has this [eternal] life; He who does not have the Son does not have this [eternal] life. These things I have written to you who believe in the person of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life.

(d) John 6:47, "Truly, truly I say to you: he who believes in Me has eternal life."

3. The first floor is consistent post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation, i.e., perception, metabolization, and application of the mystery doctrine of the Church Age. It is converting gnosis into epignosis doctrine in operation Z.

4. The second floor is comprised of the unique characteristics of the Church Age, called dispensational orientation. We have ten unique things in the Church Age that believers in other dispensations do not possess. As a result, there is tremendous emphasis on the individual believer in the Church Age.

a. The baptism of the Spirit results in the creation of a new spiritual species and the royal family of God. Cognition of being a new spiritual species makes you aware of the tremendous requirements related to your spiritual life. As a member of the royal family of God, you have a unique modus operandi.

c. A phenomenal portfolio of invisible assets belongs to each one of us as royal family of God.

d. For the first time in history, every believer, regardless of his background, attainments or lack of attainments, handicaps, success, or any other distinguishing human factor, has equality given by God Himself.

(1) It is impossible for man to make men equal, as the communists allege. Man can only provide freedom, but freedom manufactures inequality.

(2) Equality originates with the baptism of the Holy Spirit. The first time anyone is equal is the moment when they believe in Jesus Christ, and are entered into union with Christ. That is the only moment of equality. But spiritual freedom means that immediately after salvation, stratification among believers begins to develop. Some believers become winners; some believers become losers.

(3) Under election, we have equal privilege (royal priesthood) and equal opportunity (logistical grace). Under predestination, we have equal privilege (union with Christ, new spiritual species, royal family of God) and equal opportunity (operational-type divine dynasphere).

(4) Freedom guarantees and manufactures inequality. Some believers will advance to maturity and become winners. Some believers will use their free will to be losers.

(5) Only God can create equality. Only once in all of history has God created equality, and that is in the Church Age through the baptism of the Spirit. That's why we have no right to racial discrimination or inferiority or superiority complexes. Because as born-again believers, we have exactly the same status in the royal family of God.

e. We have our unique royal commissions: royal priesthood and royal ambassadorship.

g. Every member of the Trinity indwells every believer. This never existed before in history!

h. We have the unique availability of divine power. Never before in history has divine omnipotence been available for use to every believer.

(1) The omnipotence of God the Father is related to our portfolio of invisible assets.

(2) The omnipotence of God the Son is related to the perpetuation of history and preservation of the universe. Furthermore, Jesus Christ guarantees the protection of the positive believer for the fulfillment of His will.

(3) The omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit is related to the operational-type divine dynasphere.

i. This is the first time in history when there are no prophecies to be fulfilled during the Church Age.

(1) There are only two prophecies related to the Church Age, and they relate to its termini: the baptism of the Spirit began the Church Age, and the Rapture of the Church will terminate the Church Age. Everything in between is a matter of historical trends.

(2) Historical trends are based on the principle that as goes the believer, so goes the client nation to God. If there is a large pivot, there is prosperity. If there is a shrinkage of the pivot, there is loss of prosperity and often loss of client nation status.

j. This is the dispensation of invisible heroes. Visible heroes in this dispensation are related to the laws of divine establishment. Invisible heroes are believers who execute the protocol plan of God.

k. No believer ever advances in the protocol plan of God apart from dispensational orientation.

5. The third floor is made up of the problem solving devices: rebound, the filling of the Spirit, the faith-rest drill, grace orientation, doctrinal orientation, personal love for God the Father which is motivational virtue, impersonal love for all mankind which is functional virtue, +H or sharing the happiness of God, a personal sense of destiny, and occupation with the person of Christ as the priority solution.

6. The fourth floor is spiritual self-esteem characterized by cognitive self-confidence.

a. Here is where you begin to apply and use Bible doctrine. Whereas before you grabbed Bible promises and used them, now you grab whole chunks of doctrine and use them. Now you are becoming powerful in your spiritual life.

b. Suffering for blessing begins in spiritual self-esteem, specifically providential preventative suffering. Spiritual self-esteem plus providential preventative suffering equals spiritual autonomy.

c. We do not advance past spiritual self-esteem unless we pass the four tests of providential preventative suffering: people, thought, system, and undeserved suffering.

7. The fifth floor is spiritual autonomy characterized by cognitive independence.

a. Now you have really grown up, because you have at your fingertips all the doctrinal rationales you need to push your way through life and glorify God.

b. Again, you must pass suffering for blessing in the form of momentum testing if you are going to advance.

8. The sixth floor is spiritual maturity characterized by cognitive invincibility.

a. Cognitive invincibility is necessary to pass the third category of suffering for blessing, which is evidence testing.

b. Spiritual maturity plus evidence testing equals glorification of God to the maximum as a witness for the Prosecution in the rebuttal phase of Satan's appeal trial, which runs coterminously with human history.

9. The seventh floor is the modus operandi of the invisible hero with his invisible impact. Invisible God plus invisible assets plus invisible power equals invisible heroes. The invisible impact of the invisible hero includes:

b. Historical impact - blessing by association to the client nation as a part of the pivot of mature believers.

c. International impact - blessing by association to non-client nations through missionary activity of invisible heroes.

d. Angelic impact - the invisible hero becoming a witness for God against Satan in Satan's appeal trial.

e. Heritage impact - blessing by association to loved ones after the death of the invisible hero.

d. The anticipation of escrow blessings for the eternal state, received at the Judgment Seat of Christ.

1. Edification is the motivation in the function of virtue-love, the royal family honor code, in the congregation, through which tolerance provides room for spiritual growth.

2. Romans 15:2, "Let each of us accommodate his neighbor for the good to edification."

3. 1Corinthians 8:1, "Gnosis puffs up, but virtue-love builds [the edification complex of the soul]."

I. The edification complex of the soul is the capacity for escrow blessing. Acts 9:31, "All the church were having prosperity, having been edified, and advancing in occupation with Christ." Local church prosperity is directly related to the number of edification complexes in that church. The edification complex of the soul is to the church what the pivot is to the nation.

2. The Jewish Age was interrupted by the introduction of the Church Age ten days after the ascension of Christ. At His session, Jesus Christ received a battlefield royal warrant, but He was without a royal family. Therefore, the Church Age was inserted into history to call out a royal family. The Church Age becomes the time of the intensification of the angelic conflict.

3. The Church Age is terminated at the Rapture. Then the Age of Israel continues until the Second Advent. There were four promises made to Israel during the Jewish Age that are yet to be fulfilled. The Church Age was not revealed in the Old Testament, so it comes under the mystery doctrine.

a. The conditional covenant requires some human function for the covenant to be operative.

b. The unconditional covenants require nothing of man. They depend entirely upon the attributes of God.

a. Codex one is the freedom heritage. It describes freedom in terms of the laws of divine establishment, defining life, freedom, privacy, property, and authority.

b. Codex two is the spiritual heritage which teaches a complete Christology and soteriology, presenting everything necessary to believe in Christ.

c. Codex three is the establishment code. It teaches concepts of authority in the husband, parents, government, and the military, as well as rules for health, law, trial, punishments, sanitation, etc.

3. The unconditional covenant is a gracious bestowal by one party on behalf of another. There are four unconditional covenants to Israel.

a. In the Abrahamic Covenant, God promised a new race called the Jews and a new nation called Israel, Genesis 12:1-3, 13:15; Revelation 21:2,10; Hebrews 11:8-10. This covenant applies to the progeny of Abraham through Isaac and Jacob. This covenant was the basis for the deliverance of the Jews and the beginning of the new nation, Ex 6:2-8. This covenant has not been fulfilled yet. It is fulfilled when the Jewish race and nation is perpetuated forever as a source of blessing.

b. In the Palestinian Covenant, God promised the Jews that they would inherit the entire Middle East, Genesis 15:18; Numbers 34:1-12; Deuteronomy 30:1-9; Josh 1:3-

4. During the Millennium, the land of Israel will extend from Turkey to Syria in the north, west to the Med Sea, south to East Africa, include all of Saudi Arabia, and east to the Euphrates River.

a. In the Davidic Covenant, God promised David that he would have a son who would rule forever, 2Samuel 7; Psalm 89:20-37.

b. The New Covenant, Jeremiah 31:31-34, confirms the fact that the unconditional covenants already given would be fulfilled.

C. The Postponement of the Age of Israel. The Age of Israel was sequential until the ascension of Christ. It has been postponed until the royal family is completed and the Church Age is terminated.

D. The Principle of Levels of Measurement. There are four levels of measurement.

1. There are three primary variables using the ratio level of measurement or absolute zero: temperature, length, and mass.

a. Theologically, time has an absolute zero which begins at the fall of man. This elapse is unknown. But from the standpoint of the function of time, there is an artificial zero.

c. Your artificial zero is the moment of your salvation. You are allotted all the time necessary to advance to spiritual maturity.

1. Sequential time. There is no break in time as far as the plan of God is concerned. God has a plan for your life from birth to death. Therefore, you are given one day at a time to advance.

2. Interrupted time. Unconditional covenants were promised in sequential time, but will be fulfilled through interrupted time. Therefore we have the concept of the artificial zero.

3. The time for the fulfillment of the covenants begins at the Second Advent and Millennium.

4. God is not slow with regard to His promises. All divine promises are always fulfilled. God can begin time at any point He wishes. God's apparent slowness in fulfilling His promise to Israel is based on the fact that the Age of Israel has been interrupted and an artificial zero in the interval level of measurement has been created, i.e., the Second Advent of Christ. Therefore, Christ is still the minister to Israel, Romans 15:8.

1. Jesus Christ is the one who was elected from eternity past: Isaiah 42:1, “Behold ‘my servant [Jesus Christ],’ whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth.” 1Peterer 2:6, Christ is described as “a chief corner stone, elect, precious...” This election took place in the eternal decrees, Ephesians 1:4 “… chosen us in Him.” Also 2Timothyothy 1:9; 1Peterer 1:2.

2. Election is a present, as well as future possession of all believers, Colossians 3:12, our position “IN Christ.” Every believer SHARES Christ’s election, Romans 8:28. Election takes place at the moment one believes, 1Corinthians 1:9, 23, 24, 26-28; 2Thessalonians 2:13 “… chosen you to salvation through belief.”

3. Election is the foundation of the Church, 1Thessalonians 1:3,4; it is based on grace, Galatians 1:6; it is the basis of facing suffering with blessing, Romans 8:28.

4. Predestination is the other side of the coin. Christ is predestinated; we are IN Christ; we SHARE His destiny.

5. So: Christ is elected ["chosen"]; we choose Christ from our free will which is non-meritorious faith. Because we are THEN in union with Christ, we are CHOSEN [elected] IN Him.

6. In eternity past, Ephesians 3:11, God the Father PURPOSED A PURPOSE “IN Christ Jesus.” This was the plan of God, Ephesians 2:8,9. This plan includes the believer’s position IN CHRIST: Jesus Christ indwells the believer, John 14:20; the believer is IN the BODY of Christ, 1Corinthians 12:13, the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

8. Christ is THE elected one: Isaiah 42:1; 1Peterer 2:6. The believer shares His election by choice.

9. From eternity past the believer is “chosen IN Christ.” “Chosen in Christ” is the plan.

b. 2Timothyothy 1:9, “according to His own purpose (plan) and grace, which was given us IN CHRIST JESUS before the world began.”

c. 1Peterer 1:2, “Elect .. through the sanctification of the Spirit [set apart by union with Christ] … blood of Jesus Christ.”

10. CHRIST IS THE ELECTED ONE, the predestined one. The believer shares this election, this destiny by choosing for Christ, by faith. Faith is the principle set up in the Word of God. Faith is non-meritorious because the merit is always in the object of faith. In salvation faith the object is Jesus Christ.

11. The principle of grace and of the free will of man is set forth in scripture after scripture. The character of God (His fairness, His righteousness, His perfection, His justice) is set forth in scripture after scripture. Psalm 145:17; Psalm 18:30; Deuteronomy 32:4; 2 Chronicles 19:7; Psalm 89:14; Romans 3:26.

12. The theory that anyone is predestined to hell or heaven, without right of choice is incompatible with the principle of grace, incompatible with the character of God, it makes a farce out of the plan of God (Grace), and it impugns the character of God (His perfect righteousness and justice).

13. 2Peterer 3:9 - “God is not willing that any should perish ...” But He predestinated some to go to hell?? NEVER!

14. Romans 10:13, “Whosoever shall CALL upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

15. John 3:16, BUT still He doesn’t give the whole world a choice, but just certain individuals??? NEVER!

a. John 6:44 - “No man can come to me except the Father, which hath sent me, draw him.”

b. John 12:32, “And if I be lifted up from the earth, will DRAW ALL MEN unto me.”

c. Isaiah 53:6, “God the Father laid on Jesus Christ the iniquities of us all.”

16. But all are not free to avail themselves of Jesus Christ being judged for their sins??? NEVER!

17. Never be caught in the debater’s trap of making one verse to try and prove a theory that is in opposition to the principles set forth in scripture after scripture, scripture is the Word of God, or that is not compatible with the character of God.

1. Election is that doctrine which relates the believer to the plan of God as revealed in the divine decrees. Christ was elected in eternity past — Isaiah 42:1; 1Peterer 2:6. Hence, election for the believer is peculiar to the Church Age whereby baptism of the Holy Spirit causes the believer to share both the election and the destiny of Christ. All members of the human race have been potentially elected into the plan of God by the doctrine of unlimited atonement — 2Timothyothy 2:10, but only those who believe are entered into the plan of God by election and by destiny.

2. The specific election of Jesus Christ. The election of Christ, mentioned in Isaiah 42:1 and 1Peterer 2:4,6, occurs as a part of the doctrine of divine decrees — John 15:16; Ephesians 1:4-6; 2Thessalonians 2:13; 1Peterer 1:2.

3. The election of the royal family believer. Since election is sharing the destiny of Christ, and since Christ was elected in eternity past, and since every believer is in union with Christ through the baptism of the Spirit, every believer is said to be called or elected — 1Corinthians 1:2,30; Romans 8:28-32; Ephesians 1:4. This election occurred at the moment of faith in Christ — 1Thessalonians 1:4; 2Thessalonians 2:13; 2Timothyothy 1:9. Election, then, is the present as well as the future possession of every believer — John 15:16; Colossians 3:12.

4. There is also an election of Jewish believers in the previous dispensation. When a Jew in the Age of Israel believed in Christ he had an election on the plan of God. But it is not a royal election, he is not in union with Christ; this is for the Church Age only. He is in the Age of Israel but instead he is entered into the Abrahamic, Palestinian, Davidic, and New covenants to Israel. So his election is related to the unconditional covenants of the dispensation of Israel. This is summarized as a doctrine in Romans 11:1-7.

5. Election is the basis of Church Age royalty. At the moment of salvation God the Holy Spirit enters every believer into union with Christ — 1Corinthians 12:13. The baptism of the Spirit is the sole basis for entrance to the royal status — 2Thessalonians 2:13. Therefore, the importance of understanding the doctrine of election is stressed in 1Thessalonians 1:4.

6. Election has a purpose of encouragement: to encourage the believer to reach the tactical victory compatible with his royal status — the supergrace life. Ephesians 4:1; 2Timothyothy 1:9 cf. 13,14; Titus 1:1.

1. Election is the expression of the sovereign will of God in eternity past before the universe existed and before mankind lived on the earth.

3. Election is a Biblical term which is applied to the believer only in the Church Age. In this study, election is defined as a computer asset, one of two printouts from the Romans chip of the sovereignty of God.

4. Election, along with foreknowledge, predestination, justification and glorification, are all printouts from a Romans (sovereignty of God) chip. Therefore, they belong only to the believer, Romans 8:28-30.

6. Election is a computer asset which expresses the sovereign will of God for each believer in the royal family during the great power experiment of the Church Age.

7. Election is the expression of the sovereign will of God for your life. Predestination is the provision of the sovereign will of God for your life.

8. Under election, the sovereignty of God willed the highest and best for every believer, having previously deposited it in escrow for each believer in eternity past.

9. The mechanics for the election of the Church is the baptism of the Holy Spirit which occurs at the very moment we believe in Christ. This is one of the forty things we receive at salvation by which each one of us is entered into union with Christ.

10. The election of the Church includes both equal privilege and equal opportunity for every believer. Not only do you have a magnificent destiny under the protocol plan of God, but you have the same privileges and opportunities as all other believers for the execution of the protocol plan of God.

b. Under election, equal opportunity is logistical grace support and blessing for both winners and losers. (See point 7.)

b. The election of Christ brought in the Hypostatic Union, i.e., undiminished deity and true humanity in one person forever. Jesus Christ is eternal God and therefore different from humanity. Jesus Christ is true humanity and therefore different from eternal God. He had to become true humanity to be our Savior, our great high priest, and our mediator.

c. The election of the Church brought in the new spiritual species, the Church or royal family of God.

b. The two separate client nations of the Northern and Southern Kingdoms, 926 - 721 B.C.

4. The key to any client nation is the status quo of its believers. A client nation cannot exist without a pivot.

5. The function, prosperity, and perpetuation of the Jewish client nations always depended on the size of its pivots, 1 Kg 19:18.

6. In the Jewish Age, the Tribulation, and the Millennium, there is an election of born-again Jews. Isaiah 45:3b-4, ". . . the Lord God of Israel who calls you by your name. For the sake of Jacob, My servant, even Israel, My elected one, I have also called you by your number; I have given you a title of honor [Israel], though you [unbelievers] have not known Me."

7. There will be no client nation during the Tribulation because of the removal of the pivot of the Church Age, but there will be client nation function through an international pivot of 144,000 Jews, according to Revelation 7 and 14. Matt 24:21-22 says, "because of the elected ones [144,000], those days will be cut short." Isaiah 65:9 refers to the Jewish elect in the Millennium: "Therefore, I will bring forth from Jacob a seed [the elect of Israel],out of Judah an inheritance for My mountains. Even My elected ones will inherit it, and My servants will dwell there."

8. Election to privilege is an issue to the Jew. Every Jewish nation depended upon its pivot. Judea survived historical crisis because of a pivot in 135 B.C. Romans 11:1-7, "God has not rejected His people whom He foreknew [believers]. . ."

10. Since no Jewish nation can be a client nation to God during the Church Age and the times of the Gentiles, the election of Israel is not operational during the Church Age.

11. The election of Israel, as with all elections, applies only to those who have personally believed in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ was very clearly revealed to the Jews in the Old Testament. Therefore, those who believed in Christ had an election and a plan.

12. Wherever you have an election and a plan, that adds up to having a destiny. An election from God plus a plan of God equals a destiny.

13. The election of Israel began a new racial species, beginning with Abraham at age ninety-nine.

15. Jesus Christ is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Those first three Jews set the precedence for true Israel, for all three were believers in Jesus Christ.

2. In eternity past, the omniscience of God programmed the decrees regarding the Hypostatic Union of Jesus Christ. Impeccability, the cross, and our Lord's resurrection, ascension and session are all printouts of that decree.

3. Christ was elected in eternity past; His election was fulfilled through the virgin pregnancy.

6. The election of Christ is the basis for His saviorhood. He is the only way of salvation. He was qualified to be the Savior by His impeccability.

7. Without the ascension and session of Christ, there would be no royal family to act as a pivot.

8. All history focuses on the person of Jesus Christ. Isaiah 42:1, "Behold My Servant whom I sustain, My elected One in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the Gentiles." Ephesians 1:4.

9. The election of Jesus Christ was impossible without logistical grace support provided for Him. Election is closely related to logistics.

a. Logistical grace support allows you to fulfill your election to privilege by delivering the nation. Never think of election without realizing the importance of logistics.

c. The cross was the ultimate in logistical support. Jesus Christ was sustained and kept alive until all sins could be borne by Him, Acts 2:23. Had logistical support been withdrawn, there would be no salvation for us.

10. 1Peter 2:4,6, "And coming to Him as a living stone, rejected by men, but elected and precious in the sight of God . . . Behold, I lay in Zion the chief cornerstone, the elected One, held in honor; in fact, He who believes in Him will never be put to shame."

2. After the first forty years of the Church Age, 30 - 70 A.D., the royal family of God provided a pivot for all Gentile client nations. The Jew could only be elected to privilege by belief in Christ, just as in the Jewish age. But now there could be no Jewish client nation.

3. Election to privilege occurs at salvation. We have the privilege of historical impact by advancing to maturity, 2Peter 1:3.

4. The function of Gentile client nations demands a pivot for freedom, evangelism, and advance to maturity.

5. The Church Age believer must not only understand his relationship to God, but his relationship to history as well. You must understand your relationship to God, man, and history. In fulfilling our relationship to God, we fulfill our relationship to the other two.

6. 1Thessalonians 1:4, "Knowing, brethren, beloved of God, His election for you." You must know that election is God's plan for you. Colossians 3:12, "As elected ones of God, holy and beloved, put on the affections of grace compassion." To understand your election, you must function under grace orientation. Understanding election is orientation to the plan of God for your life.

7. 2Timothy 1:9, "He has elected us into a holy station in life, not according to our works." Our works have no relation to our historical impact. Romans 8:33, "Who will bring any accusation against the elect of God?" Heaven itself cannot stop our historical impact because of the fulfillment of our election.

8. Blessing by association is the fulfillment of our responsibility to man. Historical impact is the fulfillment of our responsibility to history.

9. Knowledge of doctrine is essential to fulfilling our election to privilege. Titus 1:1, "According to the doctrine of God's elected ones, and the full knowledge of doctrine according to the norms of godliness." Election means we are responsible to preserve the client nation by advancing to the pivot.

10. Since the believer has been elected to privilege, he must function under the royal family honor code. Ephesians 4:1, "I, therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, exhort you to walk in a manner worthy of your station in life, for which station in life you have been called [elected]." Ephesians 1:4, "Since He Himself has elected us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before Him."

a. This verse teaches that election was provided before the creation of the world.

b. "Holy" is a reference to both the absolute and relative concept of experiential sanctification. Election relates to the experiential part of God's plan for our lives. Holiness has to do with separation unto God, the execution of the protocol plan of God.

(1) Absolute holiness describes the mandates related to the filling of the Spirit. When the believer is inside the divine dynasphere, the Holy Spirit controls his soul, and the old sin nature is restrained in his body.

(a) The believer in cosmic one is said to be grieving the Spirit because the old sin nature controls the soul, though still indwelling the body.

(c) This is an absolute; you're either filled with the Holy Spirit and inside the divine dynasphere, which is 100% spirituality, or you're in the cosmic system, which is 0% spirituality and 100% carnality. This absolute status applies to any stage of spiritual growth.

(2) Relative holiness refers to advancing through the stages of spiritual growth, or retrogressing through the eight stages of

c. "Blameless before Him" is a reference to ultimate sanctification in the eternal state.

11. Believers are commanded to make their calling and election a reality in 2Peter 1:10-11. "Therefore brethren, be more motivated [perception of doctrine regarding your portfolio of invisible assets] to make your calling and election a spiritual reality; for by doing these things [fulfillment of the protocol plan, perception of doctrine], you will never stumble [become a loser in cosmic system]. For in this manner [execution of the protocol plan], your entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ [ultimate sanctification in the resurrection body] will be richly supplied [conveyance of eternal escrow blessings to winners]."

a. How do you make your election a spiritual reality? Through perception, metabolization, and application of election and lapsarianism. You use the privacy of your priesthood; you learn the doctrine; you learn the mechanics.

b. Election is only the potential for impact on history. By the daily function of GAP, we make our calling and election a reality when we advance to spiritual maturity.

12. Election is a reason for thanksgiving for others. 2Thessalonians 2:13, "But we are always obligated to give thanks to God concerning you, having been loved by the Lord, because God has elected you from eternity past."

13. The election of the Church brought in a new spiritual species. By being placed in union with Christ by the baptism of the Holy Spirit, we can now use the 100% available divine omnipotence.

1. At the point of birth you come under the concept of selection, not election. God selected you to be a member of the human race rather than an animal. The fact that you have life is selection from the sovereignty of God.

2. The fact that any person believes in Christ and receives eternal life is a matter of common and efficacious grace. At this point selection becomes election. This opens the door for the greatest opportunity ever known to man. You are a royal priest sustained by logistical grace, a person in union with Christ, and you can function under the power of the Holy Spirit in the operational-type divine dynasphere. This means you can capitalize on your escrow blessing on deposit.

3. That any person is given election to privilege is a motivational challenge which you cannot ignore.

4. The selection of the sovereignty of God at birth is followed by the election of the sovereignty of God at the point of regeneration.

5. You have been given the greatest opportunity and privileges ever conveyed to any member of the human race. Therefore, the dynamics of the ordinary life in the Church Age become extraordinary.

6. Selection precedes election. Selection relates to physical birth; election relates to spiritual birth. God's purpose in election is that you receive your escrow blessings.

7. Between selection and election is the most important decision in your life: that you believe in Christ.

8. Selection, salvation, and election explain the chronological concept of election. We are selected by God to resolve the angelic conflict, saved by faith in Christ to enter into His protocol plan, and elected to fulfill His protocol plan and thereby glorify Him upon the conveyance of His highest and best to us, i.e., our greater blessings for time and eternity. This is His sovereign will for us.

a. The Romans chip is the sovereignty of God chip. The PROM chip is the free will of man chip. The sovereignty of God and the free will of man coexist in human history in order to resolve the angelic conflict. Romans stands for "read only memory." Romans is an integrated circuit from which unchanging data can be read, but into which no new data can be written. Romans chips can only be programmed at the factory, analogous to heaven in eternity past.

b. Hence, the Romans chip is the sovereignty of God integrated circuit, and it has two printouts which relate to the protocol plan of God: election and predestination. Election is the expression of the sovereignty of God in eternity past. Predestination is the provision of the sovereignty of God in eternity past.

c. PROM means "programmable read only memory." PROM is the free will of man chip, programmed by the omniscience of God in eternity past. It is defined as a memory device, or integrated micro circuit containing fixed data that can be read but not altered. In other words, your free will, thinking, motivation, and actions operate right now in time. However, God knew your thoughts, motives, volitional decisions, and actions in eternity past. Therefore, the omniscience of God entered into your very own PROM chip every decision you will ever make in life, as well as your every thought, motive, and action.

d. The entering of the data is performed after the device is manufactured. God manufactured free will in both angelic creatures and in mankind. Then He programmed into the PROM chips just exactly how each free will would function.

e. Each PROM chip is programmed on the basis of the fact that the omniscience of God knew when each free will would operate independently of His sovereign will, and when each free will would operate in conformity with His sovereign will. God invented free will to function either for or against Him; the choice lies with each individual.

f. Omniscience is God's knowledge of all creation simultaneously. Therefore, there never was a time when He did not know just exactly how your free will would work.

g. In the computer of divine decrees, both the Romans chips and the PROM chips operate simultaneously.

h. In eternity past, God made one sovereign decision, one with many aspects. That one decision was to provide for you your very own election related to His plan for your life, and to provide for you your very own predestination related to His plan for your life. This is all contained in the Romans chip.

i. In the PROM chip is a precreation record of each one of our lives, and it reads either winner or loser, depending upon your decisions. But there's no excuse for being a loser, because in your Romans chip you have equal privileges and equal opportunities under election and predestination. Losers choose to be losers by their ignorance of Bible doctrine and its resultant arrogance.

j. The winner is the believer who uses his invisible computer assets of election and predestination. The loser is the believer who, through wrong decisions from a position of weakness, fails to learn, to understand the mechanics, and to utilize these invisible assets. Hence, the distinction between the winner and the loser is in the PROM chip, but never in the Romans chip.

k. This important principle of equal privilege and opportunity for each individual Church Age believer under both election and predestination was left out of the lapsarian controversy in the history of theology.

a. A computer is a device that stores and manipulates data which can control other devices as a result of its manipulation and storage data, and which can communicate with other computers, with other types of devices, and with human beings.

b. Our computer is the computer of divine decrees. The storage data is the content of the divine decrees, both election and predestination. This computer can control other devices; for example, the printout of the canon of Scripture becomes our controlling device. It can communicate with human beings; for example, the pastor-teacher's gift is designed to communicate information.

(1) "Input" is a technical word in computer science for data entered into a computer system. It's analogous to the fact that in eternity past God programmed all the facts of history into the computer of divine decrees.

(2) "Output" is the data signal emitted from the system. Your output today is either positive or negative; it refers to your growth or retrogression, your spirituality or carnality.

(3) "Program" is a sequence of instruction that is determined before the start of the operation, like the portfolio of invisible assets or the protocol plan of God, and is translated into a series of actions, like human history.

(4) "Hardware" is a part of the physical components of a computer system, like the sovereignty, love, and omniscience of God.

(5) There are three factors about "software" that are analogous to the three elections in history: Israel, Christ, and the Church.

(6) A "chip" is a piece of silicon or similar material on which an integrated circuit is manufactured. Therefore, the chip belongs to the computer as a device to store data. We've noted the Romans and PROM chip.

(7) "Parallel processing" is a method of data processing in which more than one bit is handled at a time. It's analogous to the sovereignty of God programming the Romans chip in eternity past while the omniscience of God programmed the PROM chip in eternity past.

(8) "Parallel transmission" is a method of data transmission in which more than one bit is sent at a time, like the transmission of both our portfolio of invisible assets in eternity past and the protocol plan of God in time.

(9) There are even "gates" in computer science. A gate is a circuit with two or more inputs but only one output.

1. The whole purpose of the doctrine of election is to describe God's way of providing invisible assets so we can fulfill His will and His plan.

2. Election is the expression of the sovereignty of God for every Church Age believer made in eternity past. God's sovereignty wills for you personally the highest and the best. Election expresses this sovereign will by providing equal privilege and equal opportunity for you, which we must use to fulfill His plan and to execute His will for our lives.

3. The election of the Church is the expression of the sovereign will of God for the royal family of God as the body of Christ.

4. Therefore, the protocol plan of God is mandated for the election of the Church. You are elected to only one plan, the protocol plan, which is God's plan for your life. No other plan will do.

5. A right thing must be done in a right way under the precise and accurate function of the protocol plan of God.

6. The mechanics of the election of the Church is the baptism of the Spirit, the means of creating the new spiritual species, the means of forming the royal family of God, and the means of providing so many wonderful invisible assets.

I. The Equal Privilege of Election, the Universal Priesthood of the Church Age Believer.

1. Our royal priesthood shows that God's plan for us in the Church Age as royal family is totally and completely unique. Never before the Church Age and never after the Rapture is there ever another universal priesthood; it is only for us in the Church Age.

2. A priest is a human being who represents people before God. In the Church Age, since every believer is a priest, every believer represents himself before God. This establishes a system of privacy.

3. Under the privacy of your priesthood, you are responsible for yourself before God. This means you are responsible for every thought you think, every motive you have, every good decision you make, and every action you take, good or bad. God is holding you responsible for your own decisions. Why? Because He made you a priest so that you could represent yourself before Him.

4. The royal priesthood of the believer is taught many times in the New Testament. It was a favorite subject of Peter. Although his teaching was misunderstood by the Catholic Church, he was really teaching about the royal priesthood of each Church Age believer. Peter was the first to teach this doctrine, found in 1Peter 2:5 and 9. John taught the doctrine as well.

5. As a royal priest, every believer has a direct line to God, which means he represents himself before God, he evaluates himself, and he offers prayer for himself.

6. Hence, the privacy of your priesthood is related to the importance of epistemological rehabilitation. You have privacy so that you can learn Bible doctrine yourself. You can never learn anything if you are not objective, if you reject authority, or if you have any form of arrogance. To learn Bible doctrine under epistemological rehabilitation requires a tremendous amount of objectivity.

7. This is why the local church should be an environment where believers can gather together and yet have their privacy respected. This means both your sins and your strengths should be kept private. The pastor- teacher, as the final authority in the local church, must protect the privacy of all priests in his congregation by disciplining or removing those who violate or impose upon others' privacy.

8. The believer-priest cannot account for his thoughts, motives, decisions, or actions in undefinable terms. Under the privacy of your priesthood, you must be able to define your life in terms of the protocol plan of God, which means you must learn the technical language and vocabulary. Once you do, you as your own priest can analyze and evaluate your own life and your own problems, and apply doctrine and make corrections to your own life under the privacy of your own priesthood. Therefore, the privacy of the priesthood demands that we learn doctrine so that we can define our situation at any given time.

9. The royal priest's self-improvement is based on the function of perception of doctrine. Any self-improvement based on the advice and counsel of others is really a set-back.

10. The royal priesthood is designed by God to function under conceptualism. No believer can think, apply doctrine, or solve problems through the mind or the personality of another Christian. This is why each one of us is a priest. To the extent that we seek counsel or advice, we're not getting enough doctrine or we're not using our own doctrine. Initially there's a place for counseling with new believers, but as you grow you should begin to handle your own life. You should know when you're wrong and when you're right, and you should be able to utilize all the doctrine you have learned to advance to maturity. Only in spiritual maturity will you glorify God.

11. Under the privacy of your priesthood, you have the right to assemble with other believers in a group, where your privacy is respected, to learn doctrine from whomever is your right pastor-teacher.

12. The privacy of your priesthood permits the function of both your positive volition toward doctrine plus the right to metabolize and apply that doctrine to your own experience. (The tendency is to get arrogant and want to apply it to everyone else's experience.)

13. The only human dependence of the royal priesthood is the divine provision of your very own pastor-teacher, and consistent positive volition under his teaching ministry. In that sense, a pastor is very much like a parent and should be honored, not loved. Your pastor should not bully you or intrude upon your privacy (unless you intrude on someone else's privacy); he should communicate and teach doctrine faithfully.

14. Faithful Bible teaching from your right pastor demands your faith perception, metabolization, and application of that teaching to your own life as a royal priest. You cannot advance to maturity on your own; someone has to train you.

15. Life in the divine dynasphere is not only spiritual freedom under the filling of the Spirit, but spiritual independence within the framework of your royal priesthood. This means that as a believer-priest, you cannot fulfill the protocol plan of God by advancing to spiritual maturity on someone else's thinking, motivation, decisions, actions, advice, counseling, emotion, or even their leadership (the only exception is your dependence on the teaching of your pastor-teacher). You have to advance to maturity on your own. The first stage of spiritual adulthood is spiritual self-esteem, which is when you know how to do it on your own, and you no longer feel threatened by all the things in life that cause fear, worry, and anxiety.

c. Perception, metabolization, and application of doctrine to your own experience (and if you're in authority, to the experience of those under you).

e. The sacrifices of life, such as praise, which is your doctrinal momentum resulting in spiritual adulthood and the modus operandi of virtue-love.

f. Divine viewpoint mental attitude from metabolized doctrine. (It isn't what the other person thinks that counts; it's what you think from metabolized doctrine that counts.)

g. Self-motivation from metabolized doctrine. You have to motivate yourself; you can't depend on someone else's leadership. If you depend on them, then you are borrowing their inspiration. That will never work, for it results in stifling your own motivation. Then when you are under adversity, you have no motivation to keep driving.

17. Remember, your pastor is neither the leader of your social life or the "madam" of a lonely hearts club. He is neither a counselor nor a crutch to lean on.

18. Your priesthood demands that you live your own life as unto the Lord and take the responsibility for your own decisions. This is your equal privilege under election.

J. The Equal Opportunity under Election, the Divine Provision of Logistical Grace Support and Blessing.

1. Two aspects of logistical grace come to you down the grace pipeline from the justice of God to His indwelling righteousness in you. Logistical support is designed to sustain you. Logistical blessing is additional blessing, more than just support.

2. Both logistical grace support and blessing is provided for winners and losers alike, because both types of believers have the perfect righteousness of God. This gives all believers equal opportunity.

3. The holiness or integrity of God is made up of divine righteousness and divine justice. At the point of salvation, God's righteousness was imputed to you so that you possess one-half of divine integrity. Righteousness demands righteousness; justice demands justice. What the righteousness of God demands, the justice of God executes.

4. The righteousness of God has demanded, ever since the moment of your salvation, that the justice of God sustain your life through every stupid mistake and every dumb decision you make. The righteousness of God demands that the justice of God keep you alive to fulfill your personal destiny. All of us are alive by the grace of God after salvation.

5. The justice of God is the initiator of grace. On a daily basis, the justice of God sends down the grace pipeline to the indwelling righteousness of God everything it takes to keep you alive and to sustain you, and as well as great and fantastic blessings. The justice of God sends undeserved blessings to all believers, winners and losers alike. This is why the wicked prosper, due to their equal privilege in God's plan.

6. All logistical blessing in the Christian life comes in this manner to the winner and loser alike. We do not earn or deserve any of it; it is a matter of grace. We're not blessed because we give, witness, perform Christian service, or because of anything we can do or anything we are. That would be a compromise of the integrity of God. God blesses you only because you have His righteousness indwelling you; hence, His integrity is not compromised.

7. The very air that you breathe, the food you eat, everything you have, the only reason you are alive through every type of vicissitude in life is based entirely upon this principle of logistical grace.

8. Our blessing is a matter of grace, just as our salvation was a matter of grace. We are saved by grace through faith, and we are sustained by grace.

1. Therefore, the equal privilege and equal opportunity of election means there never has been and never will be a Church Age believer who did not have exactly the same privilege and same opportunity to fulfill God's plan, to reach spiritual maturity, and to receive the fantastic escrow blessings provided for him by God the Father in eternity past.

2. Under the doctrine of divine decrees, election cannot be divorced from predestination. Predestination is the provision of the sovereign will of God for the royal family. Predestination provides equal privilege (union with Christ) and equal opportunity (the divine dynasphere) to execute the protocol plan of God.

a. God is the Supreme Being of the universe (Hebrews 6:13), therefore the Highest King (Psalm 47:7)

ii. Phase 2, time: "Be filled with the Holy Spirit" Ephesians 5:28. How? 1John 1:9; Witness: Acts 1:8 using pertinent doctrine - John 3:36.

e. Good's +R was satisfied with Christ's work on the cross; therefore the meeting place is the cross, where +R is imputed to man. 2Corinthians 5:21.

b. His Justice demands that disobedience against His laws be punished: John 3:36.

d. God's Justice is satisfied because of His provision. Jesus Christ paid the penalty (Spiritual death). Colossians 2:14.

c. Righteousness and Justice stood in the way because sin was a barrier between man God.

f. In His Love God the Father sent His Son to the cross to die for the sins of the whole world: John 3:16.

g. So righteousness and justice are satisfied and love and eternal life can get through the grace pipe to man. The barrier is removed. The issue is the Lord Jesus Christ.

h. The alternative to God's love is wrath (Righteousness and Justice): John 3:36.

i. If you do not accept Christ who satisfied the righteousness and justice of God, then you are subject to His righteousness and justice (wrath).

b. To share His Eternal Life with us, God the Eternal Son, was willing to leave heaven and become humanity and die for the sins of the world: John 10:17,18.

c. His deity could not provide Eternal Life, therefore He became true humanity (God-Man) in order to die: Hebrews 2:14,15.

d. God will share His Eternal Life with believers: John 10:27,28: 1John 5:11,12a.

b. Therefore He reads our minds: 2Timothy 2:19. He knows who is born again and who is not.

d. Therefore Romans ans ans 8:28; God in His Omniscience works all things (good and bad) together for the good of those who belong to Him.

e. Knowledge is imparted to the believer through the Word. 1Corinthians 2:9-12; 2Timothy 2:15.

c. We can faith-rest any situation because of God's omnipresence: Matthew 28:20, "Lo, I am with you always ..."

a. He is neither capable of, nor susceptible, to change. Matthew 3:6a; Hebrews 13:8.

e. When we read the God repented or changed His mind (Anthropopathism) that doesn't mean that God has changed, but that people have changed and that God must treat them differently.

a. Definition: He is perfect truthfulness, there never is a time when He is in error.

b. God cannot lie. Titus 1:2, " . which God, that cannot lie." Hebrews 6:18, " . impossible for God to lie."

c. His veracity (truth) is eternal. Psalm 117:2, " . truth of the Lord endureth forever."

d. Veracity in salvation. John 14:6, "I am the way, the Truth, and the life ..."

e. We can depend upon His veracity to sustain us. Psalm 91:4, "His truth . shield and buckler."

Verse 6 - "For thou makest him most blessed forever," a conjunction ki plus the verb shith in the qal imperfect. It should be translated, `For you will appoint him'; "blessed" should be translated "blessings." This is the construct plural of berachah; "forever" - this is paragraph SG3 or surpassing grace.

The entire verse says: "For you will appoint him blessings forever: You have made him happy with happiness of your face."

It should be noticed in this particular verse the contrast between the imperfect tense of shith used for future blessings and the imperfect tense of chadah used for present blessings. The verse adds up to the fact that there is no excuse for any member of the royal family today not having blessing and happiness as a part of his experience. But if this blessing and happiness is not related to doctrine it is totally without any content as far as we are concerned.

Verse 7 - "For the king keeps trusting in Jehovah," batach is the qal active participle, and remember that the qal active participle very frequently has linear aktionsart. Batach is one of the five basic Hebrew words for faith which is derived from wrestling, the wrestler's body slam, and it means to slam your problems and your troubles on the Lord and to trust in the sense of having content in the soul. Faith must always have an object to be workable and the object of batach is always the doctrine, the promises, the principles which are located in one's soul.

The word "mercy" is one of the worst translations in all of the Authorised Version because "mercy" is chesed which really means grace. And it should be translated "because of grace." It should be translated "Therefore because of the grace of the Most High God he (David) shall not be moved (or waver)." This has to do with the fact that David will not be influenced by evil. This is the stability factor. For the mature believer the stability always has a negative side, total rejection of evil. God's grace is the basis for stability in time and doctrine is the manifestation of God's grace. Remember that grace is the expression of the genius of God just as evil is the expression of the genius of Satan. God's grace is manifest through doctrine.

When it says "Because of the grace of the Most High God he shall not waver" it is a way of expressing stability - the constant application of doctrine in the use of batach plus the principle of grace [the super-grace life] meaning stability. The believer who has this stability has capacity for life and is not influenced by evil. He is only influenced by doctrine. So this verse says that David will be influenced by doctrine rather than evil and that David understands the issue of phase two that the most important thing in his life is doctrine, and that doctrine in the soul is more important than air in the lungs.

Verse 8 - "Your hand shall discover all of your enemies." David as a great ruler had many enemies. The enemies on the outside were the hostile nations and David's whole rule would be made up of fighting the nations round about. It would take them about thirty three years to learn that you cannot attack Israel with impunity and, therefore, Solomon would have a reign of forty years without even so much as having to use weapons. And it will be five years into the reign of David's grandson, Rehoboam, before there will be a national crisis again in the area of invasion. So it is a very strong principle that having good intelligence is a part of the battle.

Verse 9 - "You will make them like a furnace of fire at the time of your presence [not anger]." We have here an analogy to a furnace indicating that the reign of David would defeat these nations as well as revolutions within.

"The Lord shall destroy them in his anger, And the fire of the Lord's judgement shall devour them." The point is that no rule of any kind succeeds if enemies are unchecked. The same thing is true by way of application in your local church. You cannot survive when revolts become strong.

Verse 10 - "Their progeny you will destroy from the earth, Their seed from the human race." This doesn't seem to be compatible with "brotherly love" .But it is highly compatible with love because David has a kingdom and there comes a time when something disrupts and becomes a major problem of dissension or disruption. Then it is time to remove the problem. The "fiery furnace" of history (vv9-10) is God actually fulfilling this from heaven itself. Jesus Christ controls history and God does what might be called "grace pruning." He prunes the human race. There are certain nations like the Assyrians in the ancient world, certain races, certain groups, and in order for the angelic conflict to continue and in order for human history to move in its course God does some pruning from time to time.

These two verses have some principles of application. The first application is from divine righteousness and justice, called the holiness of God. The holiness of God demands the perpetuation of the human race during the course of history and during the course of the angelic conflict. One of the concepts of evil is the concept that life must be preserved, that we must try to stop dying. Both birth and death are very normal functions and since the fall of man and the sovereignty of Satan replacing man as the ruler of this world, both doctrine and evil have remained in the world as absolutes. And doctrine and evil are the only absolutes. Doctrine portrays the grace plan of God; evil portrays the genius of Satan trying to rule the world and bring about perfect environment before the second advent and the Millennium. So both evil and doctrine were here before we came and as absolutes they will be here after we are gone. Doctrine was here before we came as an absolute and as the manifestation of the genius of God. Evil is the manifestation of the genius of Satan. Man was created in order to resolve the angelic conflict. Man's fall did not in any way cause any disaster in this field but man's fall actually extended the angelic conflict beautifully.

Now the whole concept is a very important one. When man fell the first thing he did was to sin ad sin caused the birth of the old sin nature so that all sin after that comes from the old sin nature. As a demonstration of grace the old sin nature's were judged on the cross by Jesus Christ who at the same time propitiated the righteousness and justice of the Father, making it possible for those who passed the point of salvation [propitiation] to be under maximum love. God cannot love the world unless His righteousness is satisfied. All true love is based on righteousness and righteousness and justice must be free from compromise before God can love anyone. All great love is based upon righteousness and justice. Therefore, once that particular problem is solved then the issue remains what it was before man's creation - the issue is God's plan versus Satan's plan or doctrine versus evil.

And the cross is not only the way of salvation but the cross is the means by which the true issue of the angelic conflict remains firm in human history. And personal sin is not the major issue and sin and evil are not the same. And the real issue is in the soul - what you think, doctrine versus evil. To think socialism is evil, to think gun legislation is evil, to cut the budget on the military is evil, altruism becomes evil therefore. The do-gooders, the bleeding hearts, the women's libs, all of it is evil. So many things that are called good become evil.

After we accept Jesus Christ as saviour we are still going to sin, but we have rebound. But if we get one little ounce of evil in the soul then that becomes a terrible, terrible thing. Evil breeds evil in the soul and evil cannot be eradicated or removed by rebound. And when a person can rebound and be filled with the Spirit he still has evil in his soul. It is the evil in his soul that ruins him. Because there are two types of genius in the world. There is the genius of God which is absolute and infinitely superior to any other genius. And there is the genius of the highest creature God ever created - Lucifer the son of the morning. All human genius is of no consequence. And grace is the manifestation of God's genius; evil is the manifestation of Satan's genius. When you compare Satan's genius with God's then evil becomes the vocabulary, the nomenclature. Much of the good in the world and many of the greatest epigrams which display good are simply evil. So when a saturation of evil jeopardises the course of the angelic conflict and the existence of the human race, that saturation is removed and David's "furnace" here tells us about that.

For this reason races, nations, families, individuals and their progenies are destroyed as a part of God's grace pruning. And if it were not for God's grace pruning there would be no 20th century and you and I would not be here to perpetuate the angelic conflict.

Verse 11 - "For they intended." We have that particle ki again used as an explanatory conjunction, plus the qal perfect of natah, to stretch out. It should be translated "For they stretched out evil upon you." The word for "evil" is ra'a. David was a grace product and therefore evil must attack where grace is the greatest. That's why when you become grace oriented as a pastor and you begin to teach the Word of God correctly so that grace is correctly understood, then it is inevitable that Satan will attack in your direction. And the counter attack isn't a lot of demon nonsense - that is for unbelievers. When there is demonism around it is usually hooked up with idolatry. Demonism isn't the big problem, the big problem is evil. And evil can be one little thought.

1. Religion, the worst thing that ever happened to this world. Religion is the greatest expression of Satan's genius, it is the policy of Satan using this policy as a pseudo grace system. Religion is of Satan. The greatest of all the categories of evil is religion. In religion we always have the Satanic principle of works, of legalism. In religion man seeks to gain the approbation of God by his own works. Christianity is not a religion because in Christianity God seeks man through the work of Jesus Christ on the cross. There is a vast difference, then, between grace and legalism or grace and works. In religion we have, therefore, the quintessence of evil. The things that have been done in the name of religion are everything from murder to persecution, and one of them is to steal money from people: making them think that they are going to heaven because they have given money, or making them think that they're spiritual, or making them think that if they contribute to some cause God is going to bless them. Bible Christianity never asks you for your money.

2. Legalism is a byproduct of religion which overflows into every facet of life, including taboos, social life, manner of dress, deportment, grooming, modus vivendi, etc.

3. Politics. Not all politics is evil, only that which pertains to socialism, social action, and the abuse or distortion of law to try to solve the problems of life. Politics related to the laws of establishment and the proper use of law is good, but politics which seeks to establish a welfare state, interfere with industry and free enterprise, cater to minorities, and establish a double standard for white and black, disarm law-abiding citizens, encourage loafing, and destroy the military, is evil.

4. Psychology is not all evil but it is evil in the sense that it is the human viewpoint of life. It represents two of Satan's policies: a) that if you are sinful and evil and a nasty person in every way there has to be an explanation why you are the way you are, and if we go back far enough into your background we will discover there certain things that happened in your environment that explain you. b) the panacea is to take you and change your environment, give you better environment, improve your environment. This is evil because it isn't the answer to life. Psychology and Christianity are antithetical in this area. Psychology also has related fields that express these ideas - sociology, counselling, and psychiatry. All these offer human viewpoint solutions that inevitably become evil. The evil is found in such conclusions as the problems of life are resolved by improved environment or abnormal behaviour that must be explained on the basis of past environment. There is some truth in these things up to a point but they are not panaceas for anything.

5. Revolution is evil as a system which seeks to overthrow the authority of establishment in nationalism. Nationalism is God's order until the second advent, it is the protection of the human race from self-destruction. Revolution in the name of problem-solving transfers power from establishment to non-establishment types. Revolution is a power grab based on power lust.

6. Internationalism is also a category of evil. This is Satan's system for the administration of this world in opposition to nationalism. Both political and religious systems of internationalism are in opposition to the Word of God.

1. All these categories of evil have many roots, but the specific root in context is avariciousness.

2. While religion is avaricious people are constantly being victimised by evil gimmicks and money raising systems.

3. Legalism falsely contends that the giving of money to the church is a means of divine blessing.

4. Policy in politics: Money is always a big issue, influence peddling, bribery, plundering the law-abiding citizen in order to take care of the political group.

5. Avariciousness manifests itself in fields of psychology, revolution, and internationalism.

6. In all of these categories of evil - such as religion, legalism, politics, internationalism, psychology, revolution - avariciousness has only one root. Love of money is only one root.

7. Notice the absence of the definite article in front of "root." There are many other roots which support the tree of reversionism.

a. Evil is the modus operandi of Satan as the ruler of this world. It is the policy of Satan; it is the genius of Satan in ruling the world.

b. Evil and sin are different. They overlap in certain cases. Evil includes certain sins but it is much more than sin; evil includes a phenomenal amount of good.

c. Evil includes human good - every attempt to solve the problems of life apart from God and apart from doctrine and every attempt to destroy man's true freedom. Man's freedom must be limited only by the laws of divine establishment but man's freedom must never be limited by laws that try to solve his problems. Law is not a problem-solver, law is a protection for the volition of all members of the human race, making evangelism possible.

d. Therefore, evil includes altruism, humanitarianism, philanthropy, socialism, sociology, public welfare.

e. Evil includes the social gospel, called today social action, the restriction of human freedom for the greater good, the distortion of law to solve social and economic problems - allegedly.

f. Evil is religion, legalism, reversionism, apostasy, every deviation from Bible doctrine and the laws of divine establishment.

g. Sin and evil both originated with Satan but in the human race they split. And sin in your life originates in the old sin nature; evil originates from your right lobe. Therefore they are dealt with differently and on the cross Jesus Christ did not and could not die for evil. (To be judged for evil would be to be judged for Satan's policy/modus operandi. And there would be no angelic conflict.)

h. Sin is handled by rebound; evil can only be handled by growth to spiritual maturity. Doctrinal saturation is the only way to exclude evil from the soul. And why was David the greatest king who ever lived even though he went out and "shacked up" with Bathsheba and killed the husband, etc.? Why wasn't he dumped like King Saul who was moral? Saul was full of evil and David was not.

a. We have quite a few Hebrew words, like awen which means nothingness, vanity, or evil, and the whole book of Ecclesiastes is a dissertation on evil. Then we have an adjective ra which means bad, evil, or worthless. Then we have the feminine raa. Then we have the badness or evil as a quality - roa. Then we have the verb in the Old Testament to be evil, raa.

b. In the New Testament we have a number of words, one of the most prominent adjectives, bad, evil, worthless - kakoj. Then we have off of this by changing the suffix, kake (long "e").Then by changing the suffix again we have kakia, depravity wickedness. There is also another set of words, ponhroj which is both a noun and an adjective. As a noun it means evil intentioned or the evil one (Satan), as the adjective it simply means evil, worthless and so on. Then you change the suffix, put an ia suffix and you have evil in the sense of maliciousness. Then there is another set based on fauloj, and again this has the concept of evil in the sense of worthlessness.

c. So evil is well documented from the standpoint of nomenclature, vocabulary, etymology.

3. The super-grace believer is protected from evil by virtue of being in super-grace. He is protected because he has maximum doctrine in the soul. He is protected because with this maximum doctrine in the soul he is not only protected but he is alert and he knows what is evil and what is not, and he knows how to avoid it.

a. Psalm 21:11 - "For they stretched out evil upon you: they devised a conspiracy which they are not able to carry out."

b. Proverbs 12:12 - "The evil desire the plunder of evil men: but the root of the righteous produces." Verse 20 - "Deceit is in the right lobe of those who devise evil: but counsellors of prosperity [or establishment] have happiness in their right lobe." Verse 21 - "No evil happens to the righteous: but the evil are filled with trouble."

c. Psalm 23:4 - "Ye, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil;" Only super-grace believers have dying grace and here is "I will fear no evil" going through the valley of the shadow. This is a picture of dying grace. Evil even attacks at the point of death or dying.

d. Genesis 50:20 - Joseph was speaking to his brethren: "As for you, you intended evil against me; but God meant it for good." Here again is the great power of God. He can take evil and convert it into good - "in order to bring about this present result [the preservation of many people alive]."Genesis 48:16 - where Jacob was blessing the two sons of Joseph: "The angel of the Lord [Jesus Christ] who redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads." Notice here it is not redemption from sin, he is not talking about salvation, he is talking about being delivered from evil.

e. Psalm 37:16-19 - "Better is a little of the righteous than the abundance of many evil ones, For the arms of the evil will be broken [discipline from reversionism]: but the Lord sustains the righteous. The Lord knows the days of the mature believer: and their inheritance will be forever. They will not be ashamed in time of evil [historical reversionism]: and in the days of famine [depression] they will have abundance."

g. Psalm 97:10 - "You who love the Lord, hate evil: the Lord who preserves the souls of the godly ones; he delivers them from the hand of the evil ones."

h. Psalm 119:101 - "I have restrained my feet from every evil way, that I may keep your doctrine."

i. Psalm 121:7 - "The Lord will protect you from all evil; he will guard your soul." Evil attacks the soul; evil is human viewpoint thinking.

j. Proverbs 1:33 - "But he who listens to me [doctrine] shall live in security, and shall be at ease from the dread of evil."

k. Proverbs 2:10-14 - "For wisdom [doctrine] will enter your right lobe, and knowledge of doctrine will be pleasant to your soul; Application will guard you, understanding will watch over you: To deliver you from the way of evil, from the person who speaks distorted things; From those who leave the paths of righteousness [reversionist], to walk in the ways of darkness [blackout of the soul]; Who delight in doing evil, and find happiness in the distortion of evil."

4. The issue in the royal family: Are you influenced by doctrine or are you influenced by evil? Proverbs 11:18,19 - "The wicked [reversionist] earns deceptive wages: but he who sows righteousness [super-grace] a true reward. He who is persistent in righteousness [maintain super-grace] to life: But he who pursues evil [reversionism] pursues his own death."

a. The reversionist, the believer influenced by evil is pushing himself to the sin unto death.

b. Proverbs 14:22 - "Will they not go astray who devise evil? But grace and doctrine to those who devise good."

c. Proverbs 15:3 - "The eyes of the Lord are in every place, watching the evil, watching the absolute good." In other words, divine omnipresence is the factor in providing discipline for the reversionist and providing blessing for the believer under doctrine. If you are influenced by doctrine you have great blessing for life and for eternity. If you are influenced by evil, the antithesis, there is no blessing in time and you will be a peon in heaven.

d. Proverbs 16:6 - "By grace and doctrine one recovers from reversionism: and by occupation with the Lord one keeps away from evil." It is very clear from scripture that we can keep away from evil and then we can live a life free from evil. It is very clear from scripture that we do not live a life free from sin and never will in this life. There is no such thing as sinless perfection but there is freedom from evil.

e. Proverbs 22:3 - "The wise [the super-grace believer] sees the evil, and hides himself: but the stupid [negative believer] goes on and is punished for it."

5. It is amazing how many have forgotten the fact that no matter how smart they are there is always someone smarter, and that always someone who is smarter is the greatest genius creature, Satan himself. Evil is his policy; evil is his system; evil includes his objective. And there never was a time when any of us could outsmart Satan. He is much smarter than we could ever dream to be. His approach to us with evil is in the name of good and sincerity and sweetness and light. Therefore it is a very subtle thing. Doctrine is our only protection from evil; and only doctrine in the soul, not doctrine in the Bible! Doctrine in the soul insulates the super-grace believer from evil and you must be insulated from evil. And that means none of us can have doctrine in the soul apart from someone teaching us, our right pastor.

6. Doctrine, therefore, neutralises evil - Psalm 54:5, "The evil will return to those who lie down and wait for me; put them to silence with your doctrine." Here is David recognising the fact that he is not strong enough in himself, that his human talent was not enough to cope with evil. None of us can cope with evil. We can cope with sin by saying, No and by rebound, but we cannot cope with evil. Evil is greater than we are. Romans 12:21 says: "Be not overcome with evil, but overcome evil with (the absolute) good." The absolute good being, in context, doctrine.

7. Evil distorts grace, Psalm 38:19-20: "But my enemies are vigorous and numerous: and many are those who hate me wrongfully. And they who repay evil for good, they oppose me because I pursue the good (absolute good)."

a. Psalm 52:1 - "Why do you boast in evil, O mighty man?" [Note: The great, the human celebrities, boast in evil. They are boasting about the greater good for the greater number, about their system of providing great and good things and using their power wrongfully to destroy freedom in terms of the greatest good for the greatest number] "The grace of God endures all day long."

b. Grace was here before evil; grace existed in God's essence long before Satan was a creature. Grace will exist long after Satan and all fallen angels and all unbelievers are assigned to the Lake of Fire. Grace came first and grace will be here last. Grace, therefore, is the only way to take a ride on the plan of God in time. And the only way that you can understand the genius of God in grace is to have maximum doctrine in the soul.

c. So, 1Corinthians 15:33 - "Do not be deceived: Evil company corrupts good morals [or good establishment]."

8. Evil distorts establishment - Psalm 50:16-21, "But to the evil God says, What right do you have to distort my laws and to take my contract in your mouth? [Evil often uses God as a front] For you hate authority [Evil despises the authority of establishment], you cast your words behind you. When you see a thief you are pleased with him [sympathy], and you socialise with adulteresses. You send your mouth loose on evil, and your tongue frames deceit. You sit and speak against your brother; you slander your own mother's son. These things you have done, and I have kept silent; You thought I was just like you: I will reprove you, and state the case in order [a little at a time] before your eyes."

9. Reversionists are influenced by evil - Psalm 36:1-4, "Transgression speaks to the ungodly within his right lobe, There is no respect of God before his eyes. For he flatters himself in his own eyes, concerning the discovery of his iniquity to hate it. The words of his mouth are evil and deceit: he has ceased to be wise to do the absolute good. He plans evil on his bed; he sets himself in a path not good; He does not despise evil."

a. John 3:19 - "And this is the judgement, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light; because their deeds in life are evil." Their deeds, not because they are sinners or sinful, but because they are evil.

10. Evil rationalises. The rationalisation of evil is found in Isaiah 5:20 - "Woe to them who call evil good, and good evil; who substitute darkness for light, and light for darkness; who substitute bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!" Anyone who is mixed up and not able to distinguish evil from good is going to have a miserable life.

11. Conspiracy and revolution is evil - Proverbs 17:11, "A revolutionist seeks only evil."

a. Psalm 34:21, "Evil shall slay the wicked: And those who hate the righteous will be condemned."

b. Proverbs 24:19-20 - "Do not fret yourselves because of evildoers; or be jealous of the wicked: for there will be no future for the evil one; the lamp of the wicked will be put out" .That is the whole story of history. The lamp of the wicked is put out in every generation. And to the extent that you hook up with evil the lamp of the evil will be put out.

13. Evil seeks to build happiness on someone else's unhappiness - Psalm 35:12, "They will repay me evil for good, to the bereavement of my soul.

14. The laws of divine establishment protect the human race from evil. The laws of divine establishment are for believer and unbeliever. They set up systems of authority and function in life so that the human race can be perpetuated generation after generation, so that history can run its course and so the angelic conflict can be completed with man's role in the angelic conflict. Romans 13:3,4 - "For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behaviour, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise of the same: For it [the laws of divine establishment] is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing [capital punishment]: for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings judgement on the ones who practice evil." Here evil is used in the sense of lawlessness.

15. There is no evil in God. Psalm 5:4 - "For thou art not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness: no evil dwells in thee." James 1:13 -"Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted by God: for God cannot be tempted by evil, and he himself does not tempt anyone." The perfection of God, the essence of God, makes Him totally free from evil. God created free will in angelic creatures and from that free will came sin and evil in angelic creatures. God created free will in human creatures and that free will became the basis for sin and evil in the human race. God has always tested free will because free will must be tested. That is why in the garden there was one tree which was forbidden as a test for free will. And the only way in which man could fail God is to partake of that one tree. That was the beginning of sin as well as the beginning of evil.

16. God judges evil - Psalm 3:16, "The face of the Lord is against evildoers, to cut off their memory from the earth." Isaiah 13:11, "Thus I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will also put an end to the arrogance of the proud, and abase the pride of the dictator." Arrogance is the one sin always related to evil.

17. So in spite of this evil, this genius of Satan, this policy of Satan, Jesus Christ controls history.

a. Proverbs 16:3,4, "Commit your works to the Lord, and your plans will be established. The Lord has made everything for his own purpose: even the wicked for the day of evil."

b. Isaiah 45:7, "I form the light, and create darkness; I make peace, and create evil; I the Lord do all these things." Here is a verse that apparently says that God creates evil. Therefore it is a good place to stop and analyse exegetically.

c. We begin with the words "I form the light." "I form" is the qal active participle of the verb jatsar, one of four creation verbs. The first verb is bara, to create out of nothing and it is used for the creation of man's soul out of nothing. It is so used in Genesis 1:27; 5:1,2; Isaiah 43:7. The second word is asah which is used for creating man's soul resulting in his personality. From the definite points of the soul - self-consciousness, mentality, volition, emotion - comes a definite personality, and asah is used for a personality manufactured from the essence of the soul. The third word [the one we have in our context] is jatsar which means to form, to mould, and was used for the creation of the male body in Genesis 2:7. The final word is banah which was used for the creation of the woman's body. Banah means to build. The body of the woman was built. The body of the man as fashioned or formed. The soul of both the male and the female was created out of nothing - bara. From that comes a definite personality - asah. And jatsar, which is one of the four creation words, is obviously used in a passage where light seems to be the subject.

d. "I fashioned, I formed, I sculpted, the light." The Hebrew word for light is simple but the concept in the Hebrew is complex. "I am the lord and there is no other, forming light and creating darkness." Creating darkness is a qal active participle of bara, to form something out of nothing. It should be translated "creating darkness." The darkness which is created is choshek which refers to darkness which is caused by the fall of Satan - Genesis 1:1-3: "And Elohim said, Light be."

e. What does it mean, creating darkness? First of all, darkness was caused by the fall of Satan and the angelic revolt. In preparation of the earth for man's habitation God had to correct the situation by the use of light. In this verse, Isaiah 45:7, it says that God created the darkness. The use of bara refers to the fact that God created Satan, the prince of darkness. Satan is a creature; God is the creator. Satan as a creature can never triumph over God the creator even though his greatest genius is expressed in his greatest weapon which is evil. Now you have to remember that sin is as embarrassing to Satan as it is to the average person. Satan does not want to rule a world with sin. It is Satan's objective to avoid it but because of the imperfection of Satan and his genius sin in inevitable. Therefore, Satan, as the ruler of the world would like to eliminate sin and when the Christian begins to understand this he will understand that he and Satan have something in common - that both are opposed to sin. But Satan's genius, as great as it is, cannot eliminate sin which is merely an embarrassment. And the negative side of Satan's plan is to eliminate sin.

f. The positive side of Satan's plan is to rule the world through a policy of his own genius - evil. Once again, evil and sin are not the same. Sin is man's failure to comply with God's plan. Sin on the part of the angels is the angelic failure to comply with God's plan. When you think of sin in angels or when you think of sin in mankind, think of their failure, their inability to comply with divine standards. But when you think of evil you must think of the genius of Satan. And God has countered the genius of Satan [evil] with His own genius which is grace. And the great struggle is not sin versus anything but it is grace versus evil, or evil versus grace, and doctrine the manifestation of grace. So that sin is not incidental but it must be clearly understood that the genius of Satan has not found a way to eliminate sin. Therefore this manifests his own weakness and failure. And the only solution to the sin problem is found in the human race, which is the greatest insult Satan ever received. A member of the human race, the Lord Jesus Christ, solved the sin problem on the cross. But sin was rampant, uncontrolled, apart from the genius of God, for Satan himself cannot control sin, though he would like to. In seeking to defeat the Lord Jesus Christ and to establish a Millennium prior to the second advent of Christ, Satan has tried to eliminate sin.

g. Now darkness is used in connection with Satan. Satan is called the prince of darkness. Those under the influence of Satan in the human race - "men loved darkness", which means that they love a policy created by a creature, by the super creature genius, Satan himself. So the use of the verb bara refers to the fact that God did create Satan, but He created him a perfect creature. All angels were created without sin, without evil. So the creature angel was created by God perfect, even as the creature man. And the only potential for failure to meet the standards of God, sin, or in seeking to substitute something else for the plan of God, evil, the failure could only come in free will. Every system of theology which ignores free will, first in angels and then in man, is going to be inevitably erroneous and its applications are going to fall apart.

h. Why would it say in Isaiah 45:7 that the Lord created darkness. For the simplest reason in the world. It is to point out that God is infinitely greater than Satan, and that God will ultimately and completely and totally triumph using man's volition, not bypassing it. He will triumph in the angelic conflict because God as the creator is infinitely smarter than the greatest creature genius, Satan. So with the fact that God is the creator here and Satan is a creature, the whole reason is to give us confidence and assurance that Satan as a creature cannot triumph over God. And that God has a simple plan called grace whereby using man's volition He completely and totally conquers the super creature.

i. "I make peace" - the qal active participle of asah, to manufacture something out of existing material. What is said to be manufactured here is shalom. Shalom's basic meaning is not even peace. It means prosperity. It should be translated here, "The Lord is the one manufacturing prosperity." God not only found a way to use the volition of the born-again believer to defeat Satan's genius plan of evil but He found a way while doing it to provide prosperity for the believer whose volition is so involved. In other words, if you are involved with doctrine on a day by day basis, then while your volition is taking in doctrine there is along the way another beautiful picture: God takes the believer who GAPs it daily and provides for him all kinds of prosperity - every kind of prosperity that can exist in the devil's world. And He does this to remind Satan that Satan cannot win and that God's plan of grace is infinitely greater than Satan's brilliant plan of evil. So He is the one manufacturing prosperity and that explains David. Remember Saul? Saul was a moral man, a lovely person, a clean living type. But his sins were the sins of the mental attitude. He was jealous, he was bitter, he was vindictive, he was implacable. He went into reversionism, he neglected his kingdom, he was totally under the influence of evil.

j. By contrast there was David, a hell-raiser. But he was not influenced by evil - except on two occasions. And he prospered. He was the wealthiest man in the world in his day. Saul was not one of the obvious sinning types but he was influenced by evil. Evil is the great enemy of the believer.

k. One thing has been found to be true: A believer who stays with doctrine on a day by day basis and takes it in is going to have all kinds of blessing. And every time he gets blessed it just tears Satan apart. Grace has found a way to bless man in time and in eternity, and that glorifies God. The believer influenced by doctrine is blessed; the believer influenced by evil is cursed.

l. "and create evil" - the qal active participle of bara plus the adjective for evil ra. Ordinarily we have the feminine adjective for evil, raa. But the masculine adjective is very important here because ra and choshek go together. They refer to the evil one, Satan. And it should be translated: "and the one creating the evil one." It forms the same concept as the Greek ponhroj which can be evil or the evil one. Satan is a creature of God. No creature can successfully revolt against the creator. That is the principle found in this passage. And it is a very wonderful thing because it is carried into the spiritual realm. Reversionism is the individual spiritual revolt against grace and against the Lord, and no reversionist can succeed in this revolt against the Lord. That is why reversionists have such terrible discipline. Jesus Christ not only controls history but He also controls His own family, and to attempt such a revolt is evil.

m. When the believer rejects Bible doctrine there is only one way he can go. He must inevitably be influenced by evil. And to be influenced by evil means to become evil. You can be moral and be evil, you can be legalistic and be evil, you can be very self-righteous and be evil. And so smart is Satan and by comparison so dumb are we that we must have something from that One who is smarter than Satan. We must have information whereby we are defended against this and our volition must be involved. Therefore, the daily function of GAP is the only answer for protection against evil. So when the believer rejects doctrine he becomes evil.

n. Now the final phrase: "I the Lord do all these things." We have the qal active participle of asah [to manufacture something out of something]. "I Jehovah am the one manufacturing all these" .The manufacture of these comes from His perfect essence. Asah means from the perfect essence of God. This is the material from which the plan is manufactured.

o. Light was formed, darkness was created, this verse says. Light was good and Satan couldn't corrupt light. The only thing he could do was set up something antagonistic. He could not corrupt the light which God had created but he could set up a counter to it. Darkness is a counter to light but it cannot corrupt light. Therefore, this is the whole point in bringing this in. Light was formed, darkness was created. Prosperity was manufactured from His essence by means of doctrine resident in the soul. The evil one was created by God and therefore he sets up something contrary to prosperity.

p. So the evil one, Satan, was created by God. Therefore, he is a creature and controllable. When it says that He created the evil one it means what God created with its free will can go in the wrong direction but anything that God created God can control. That is important. That is why we are on the winning side and that is why we can't lose.

18. The saturation of evil means national disaster. Divine determination in administration of the fifth cycle of discipline is related to the evil factor, the percentage of evil or some similar factor.

a. Isaiah 47:10 - "For thou hast trusted," the qal imperfect of batach [the faith-rest type of trust]. It should be translated "Because you have trusted." This is the pseudo faith-rest, the satanic faith-rest. It means to depend on evil.Trusting in evil

i. Nations not influenced by doctrine and the laws of divine establishment have a tendency to be influenced by one or more forms of evil.

iii. While both evil and sin originate from Satan their source in mankind is different.

iv. Sin comes from the old sin nature in mankind while evil originates from his heart, the thoughts of his right lobe. Therefore, evil is in the frame of reference, evil is in the memory centre, evil is in the vocabulary and the categories, evil is in the norms and standards and evil is on the launching pad.

v. Evil includes human good, social and economic panaceas, trying to solve the problems of life through legislation, social gospel, social action, socialism, anthropocentric altruism, humanitarianism, religion, legalism, any form of reversionism, "victorious life" panaceas.

vi. Sin was solved in salvation but evil can only be resolved by spiritual growth resulting in maturity or super-grace status.

vii. The sins of humanity were judged on the cross but evil was not solved on the cross. Evil continues as the policy of Satan until the Millennium, and then at the end of the Millennium at the Gog revolution.

viii. In the meantime the believer's sin is handled by rebound, relating it to the cross. The reason you can name a sin and be forgiven is because it was previously judged on the cross - rebound means prior judgement. Evil will not be solved until Satan is removed from rulership of this world.

ix. In the meantime the believer's sin is handled by rebound relating to the cross, and evil can only be avoided by establishing a command post in the soul, maximum doctrine.

x. Any time a believer is legalistic, reversionistic or apostate, involved in whitewashing the devil's world with the social gospel, he is trusting in evil. Only the daily function of GAP can protect him from evil.

b. The Chaldean empire had become a satanic stronghold and the Chaldean empire is the background for Isaiah chapter 47. They had been saturated with evil in the days of Nebuchadnezzar. After his salvation they had a great spiritual revival. In the third generation from Nebuchadnezzar they went down and the Persian empire administered the fifth cycle of discipline.

c. "Thou hast said" - the qal perfect of amar, "you have said." "None seeth me" - the qal active participle of ra'a has here a first person singular suffix and it refers to the individual Chaldean reversionist who rationalises using ra'a plus the negative in the qal participle, indicating the fact that he assumes that because he calls his evil good he has approbation. "No one sees me" is a little bit stronger in the Hebrew. It means "no one disapproves." It is an idiom.

d. "perverted" - shub plus the second feminine singular suffix referring to the Chaldean nation. It means to seduce.

e. "your wisdom" - your human wisdom and human knowledge have seduced you, literally. They were rationalising and calling evil good. Good is one of the greatest of all Satanic fronts. This is his greatest barrage, evil classified as good - morality, involvement in various civic and public activities, the attempt to improve the devil's world in whatever form it takes is called good but in reality it is perversion or seduction.

f. What does it mean - "your wisdom and your knowledge have seduced you" ?First of all, wisdom and knowledge here is a rationalisation, which Isaiah calls "calling evil good." It is anthropocentric knowledge, it is human viewpoint. Evil is a thought in the soul. It is often a humanitarian thought, a sincere thought, a desire to help humanity thought.

g. Who do you think wants to have a chicken in every pot today? Satan! Who do you think wants to have a guaranteed income for every person in the country? Satan! He wants it; it is his world; he wants to improve it.

h. Evil is a thought, often a sweet thought, a kind thought, a loving thought, a sincere thought. A thought in the right lobe can make or break you for if that one thought going through is evil you have had it. To be influenced by evil is to be seduced by evil. To be influenced by doctrine is not only spiritual maturity and divine blessing but it is freedom from evil. We as believers will never stop sinning in this life but we can live a life entirely free from evil. That is what doctrine does. So it is imperative to remember that your great enemy is evil.

i. "and" - an inferential waw, "therefore." "thou hast said in thine heart." The imperfect tense this time. Because this is also a conversive waw it is going to be translated like a perfect. It should be translated: "therefore you have said in your right lobe."

j. "I am and none else beside me," says the King James. The Hebrew says: "I, There is no one like me." Not "I am," there is no verb because this is arrogance speaking.

k. What is this verse all about? This is the standard thinking of evil. It is the phrase of arrogance. Arrogance is a sin, a mental attitude sin. It was the original sin of Satan and it was used in the tempting of man and it definitely played an important part in the fall of man. So arrogance is a basic mental attitude sin as well as one of the seven great sins in God's standard. Arrogance is always a sin related to evil. Arrogance always spawns evil. Satan's original sin was arrogance or pride from which Satan's policy of evil originated. Evil originates from the arrogance and genius of Satan. The principle of his plan is arrogance, pride.

l. Corrected translation: "Because you trusted in your evil: and you have said, No one sees me; your wisdom and your knowledge have seduced you: therefore you have said in your right lobe, I, and there is no one beside me."

m. Verse 11 - "Therefore shall evil come upon thee; and you shall not understand its origin [that is the great genius of Satan. His ability to put something over on you and you never understood where it came from]: and mischief . "

n. The word "mischief" is a feminine singular noun howah and it means disaster, national disaster, fifth cycle of discipline.

o. "thou shalt not be able to put it off" - the hophal perfect of the verb jakal plus the negative. Plus the piel infinitive of chaphir which means to avert. You will not be able to avert the disaster.

p. Once a nation is controlled by evil they are not able to avert the fifth cycle of discipline. The very fact that they are under the control of evil means that they have destroyed themselves.

q. Next we have "desolation." That is shoah, destruction of the entire political structure of that nation. Reference to the fifth cycle of discipline administered to the Chaldean empire by Cyrus the Great. Now the fifth cycle of discipline or the total destruction of a nation not only represents Jesus Christ as controlling history but Jesus Christ protecting the human race from saturation of evil. When there is a saturation of evil in a nation Jesus Christ removes it. That is how we got to the 20th century. Evil destroys the human race.

r. "you will not understand" - that is because evil is so blinding to the soul that not only the origin of evil is not understood but the whole progress of evil is not understood. Evil cannot interpret history or understand life. And that is why we have such ridiculous interpretations of history, both academically and in life in general today. The interpretations of history today are ludicrous.

s. Now the verse says: "Therefore evil shall come upon you; and you will not understand its origin: consequently disaster shall fall on you; and you will not be able to avert it: and suddenly destruction [5th cycle] shall come to you, and you will not understand it."

19. Evil never understands grace function. And what people cannot understand they have a tendency to be antagonistic toward it. That is why there is so much antagonism toward grace in fundamentalist circles, because evil cannot understand grace.

a. Matthew 20:15 is the perfect illustration. It is at the end of a great parable, the parable of capitalism. Remember that the Lord Jesus Christ always stood by His own laws, the laws of divine establishment. One of these laws was free enterprise and under the law of divine establishment the capitalist, the man who puts the money into the business, has the right to declare the policy about everything related to the business. Labour has no right to be a policy-maker. And Jesus gave a parable on this.

b. Jesus asked: "Is your eye evil because I am good?" In other words they couldn't understand how the employer could give the people who worked one hour the same wage as those who worked twelve hours. Why? Because the eye is the key to the soul and they were evil. He was good. And he made the policy on the basis of his good, not their evil. He had the right to make the policy, he was the capitalist he was the boss.

c. In the context we have the parable of capitalism. The owner of the vineyard paid a day's wages to those who came to work regardless of the time they came to work or the time they put in - because he contracted each one separately. This was his privilege. So everyone had the same wage and, of course, the early workers complained. They couldn't understand what he was doing, they couldn't understand grace.

d. Now, Jesus calls the capitalist a)gaqoj, absolute and intrinsic good. The capitalist was a)gaqoj. He represented the grace principle, he represented the laws of divine establishment, he made a separate contract with each group and he kept his part of the contract as they kept theirs. That is all the principle you need. Now with the people who didn't like it there was arrogance there was jealousy there was implacability there was bitterness - mental attitude sins which were the manifestation of evil in this case. The evil was they had agreed to a contract so they had no right to intrude upon the privacy of someone else. Evil is nosy and is always intruding upon privacy.

e. In Matthew 20:30-34 those who understood grace, the blind men, are set up by way of contrast with the workers. Jesus walked by and the blind men couldn't see Him, but they found out who was there. So they called to Him: "Lord [Kurioj, deity], have mercy [grace in action] on us [we don't have any claim to your attention but you are Kurioj], thou Son of David [Humanity]." The whole hypostatic union was there. Here were two blind men, they had no evil, they had nothing but doctrine, so they made a doctrinal appeal. So the doctrinal appeal obviously touches with grace and, therefore, Jesus healed them. They were free from evil and their sight was restored. Whereas the workers could see what others were getting but they were blind in their souls. And they remained blind in their souls.

f. This a fascinating passage which illustrates that evil never understands grace.

20. Evil is distinguished from other categories. Evil is distinguished from war and disease. War is not evil; disease is not evil. Evil must be distinguished from sin and evil must be distinguished from evil.

[It is always amazing how many times the writers of Scripture emphasise the righteousness of God and the power of God whereas the mixed-up lib, the apostate, is always talking about the love of God without knowing what he is talking about. All great lovers have to have character and all great love comes from character, integrity.]

David started out as a believer. He followed the colours to the high ground and became a mature believer in entering super-grace. He received his paragraph SG2. And in the first category he had the spiritual blessings - occupation with the Person of Christ, sharing the happiness of God, the inner residency of Bible doctrine, the establishing of a command post of doctrine in the soul. There was no tragedy, no disaster, no heartache in life for which David was not perfectly prepared by the inner residency of Bible doctrine.

In addition to the spiritual blessings he had fantastic temporal blessings. First of all God made him the wealthiest man in the world. Then he was blessed with great leadership and technical dynamics in the work of a professional soldier. He had social prosperity, sexual prosperity, materialistic prosperity, technical prosperity, he had the works under temporal blessing. Then later on he had dying grace. The Davidic covenant is a manifestation of the high decoration which he received. Verse 4 - "He asked you for prosperity, you have given it to him; extension of days forever and ever [SG3],

Verse 5 - "Great is his glory in your deliverance: you have bestowed on him majesty and honour.

Verse 6 - "For you will appoint him blessings forever [SG3]: you have made him happy with the happiness of your face.

Verse 7 - "For the king keeps trusting in Jehovah, Therefore because of the grace of the Most High God he shall not waver.

Verse 8 - "Your hand shall discover all your enemies [foreign]: your right hand shall discover the ones hating you [domestic].

Verse 9 - "You [David] will make them [your enemies] like a furnace of fire at the time of your presence. The Lord shall destroy them in his anger, The fire of the Lord's judgement shall devour them.

Verse 10 - "Their progeny you will destroy from the earth, Their seed [the human race] from the son of Adam.

a. Evil must be distinguished from war and disease. And in Jeremiah 28:8 it is distinguished. "The prophets who were before me and before you from ancient times prophesied against many lands and many kingdoms, of war, and of evil, and of disease." War is not evil, though there is evil in war. War is the means by which nationalism continues. And nationalism is the order of the day until the Millennium and even in the Millennium God still divides planet earth and the human population into nations.

The same thing is true of disease; disease is not evil. This is the contention of the healers, those who are mixed up about healing in the atonement, etc. Jeremiah 28:8 indicates that evil must be distinguished from war and that neither warfare nor disease is classified as evil. Warfare is therefore the means of maintaining national freedom. The only evil things in war come from evil people; sinful things in war come from sinful people. Disease is not evil. It may be punishment for sin or evil but it is not evil in itself.

b. Evil is distinguished from sin - 1Chronicles 21:17, "And David said to God, Is it not I who ordered the numbering of the people? Indeed I am the one who has sinned [the qal perfect of chata] and done evil [the verb raa twice. And we have the hiphil stem of raa. The verb is doubled]."

The last half of the verse teaches that sin and evil are not the same, though both were involved in David's numbering of the people. The sin of David was arrogance, pride of prosperity. But the evil of David was checking up on God. And in 1Chronicles 21:1 it says: "And Satan stood up against Israel, and motivated David to number the people." And when you have a passage like that you know that it will involve evil as well was sin. But both sin and evil being involved they are still distinguished and the fact that David mentions both and discerns between them indicated that he knew that he had sinned. But more than that he was aware of evil and its consequences, and consequently he states this fact.

c. Evil is distinguished from evil and the administration of the 5th cycle of discipline. This is the different distinction which is found in Jonah 3:10, "When God saw their deeds [the Assyrians], that they turned from their way of evil; then God repented of the evil which he had declared that he would do to them."

In other words we have the same vocabulary words but we have a distinction. Evil is the 5th cycle of discipline, the destruction of a nation when God administers it. But He administers it because there is a saturation of evil in that nation. So God uses an evil to punish an evil. This a manifestation of the divine justice in the essence box.

21. Evil is often mistaken for good, Micah 1:12, "For the citizens of Maroth became weak waiting for good: but evil came down from the Lord to the gate of Jerusalem [they were taken in by the fifth cycle of discipline and destroyed]."

In this case the real evil is called good. They were waiting for the good. The Hebrew word is tobh which is used for real good and pseudo good. The citizens of Maroth became "weak." This is the qal perfect from the Hebrew verb chalah which means the practising of pseudo-good which is evil and really leads to the weakening of a nation.

22. Evil provides false security for reversionism - Micah 3:11, "Her leaders pronounce judgement for a bribe, hers priests instruct for a price, her prophets divine for money: yet they lean on the Lord , saying, Is not the Lord in our midst? No evil can come upon us."

In other words they were practising evil and saying that evil couldn't come. They were like the ostrich, their head was in the sand.

Verse 12 - "Therefore, [on account of you evil types] Zion will be plowed up as a field, and Jerusalem will become a heap of ruin." So the practice of evil leads to the destruction of a national entity.

23. Evil national leadership is opposed to God. They talk about God, they use God where they can as a political expediency, but actually they are opposed to God. Nahum 1:11 - "From you has advanced one who plots evil against the Lord, a wicked counsellor." Plotting evil against the Lord, an evil counsellor, the qal active participle from jaatz meaning to counsel or decree. As a participle it should be a policy-maker - of Belial. Now Belial is maximum evil. Son of Belial means a very evil person. Evil national leadership is opposed to God, says this passage. A policy-maker of Belial is the national leader.

24. Evil will be eliminated in the Millennial reign of Jesus Christ. The perfect environment of the Millennium will include the fact that evil will be eliminated. Evil is the policy of Satan and Satan is incarcerated for 1000 years during the Millennium. Zephaniah 3:14,15, "Shout for joy, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel; rejoice and be happy with your right lobe, O daughter of Jerusalem. The Lord has removed his judgement against you [5th cycle], he has mopped up your enemy: the Lord is King of Israel in your midst: you will not see evil any more."

25. Evil is located in the soul - Matthew 6:23, "But if your eye is evil, your whole body is full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" This is our Lord's dissertation on the blackout of the soul. Evil in the eye simply means perceptive concepts are related to the principle of evil. Cf. Matthew 15:19.

26. Evil is also altruistic. Luke 11:13 - "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him? [This was in the Age of Israel. You can't ask for the Holy Spirit today].

Parents are evil but they give good things to their children. So altruism is evil. Many an evil parent provides some very nice things for his children. So the principle is that evil is altruistic.

27. Evil is related to Satan in five different areas. a. Satan's angels are called evil spirits in Luke 7:21; 8:2; Acts 19:12-16; b. Satan's domain is called an evil world - Galatians 1:4; c. Satan's policy is called evil in Thessalonians 5:22; 2Thessalonians 3:3; d. Those under Satanic policy and influence by evil are called evil men - 2Timothy 3:13; Job 35:12; Matthew 12:35; e. Satan's administrators are called inventors of evil things in Romans 1:30.

Psalm 21:11 - "For they stretched out evil upon you: they devise a conspiracy which they are not able to carry out."

"They imagined" - AV. Should be `they devised' - "an evil device." AV. mezimah means a conspiracy or a revolution. Literally: `they devised a conspiracy.'

2. God protects the prepared man. David was promoted and he was protected from evil.

3. Many conspiracies were planned by evil persons against David. All of these conspiracies were frustrated.

5. One of the greatest blessings of the super-grace life is divine protection from evil, both in the angelic and human realms. This is also a blessing which the believer takes for granted. Many many times we have been protected from evil and we have been totally unaware of it.

1. Evil is the policy of Satan as the ruler of this world. Evil is the modus operandi of Satan from the time of his fall throughout the angelic revolution and down to the point when be became the ruler of the world.

2. Evil is Satan's failure to produce a system of good in mankind and society that would bring in a pseudo-millennium.

3. Evil is Satan's system by which he administers the rulership of this world. Satan cannot restrain sin, and he parlays human good into sin and evil.

4. All evil has two sources: sin and erroneous thinking, and human good (the motivation of evil) and erroneous thinking. Where the sin of self-righteousness plus human good or sincerity combine, there is a saturation of evil in a nation.

5. The principle is that if Satan as the ruler of this world is not capable of ruling the world he controls, then no man can rule it either. Man cannot solve his problems by human solutions. All solutions to the problems of life depend on the imputation of God's perfect righteousness.

6. Evil is the function and innovation of that person who is consistently involved in the cosmic system.

7. Evil is the adverse trend of society. It is the destruction of society, the malfunction of society, and the removal of legitimate authority and its function under category one truth, i.e., the laws of divine establishment.

8. Just as grace and doctrine represent the genius of God in relationship to the human race, so evil represents the genius of Satan in relationship to the human race.

9. The soul is the battleground of every believer in the Church Age, especially because this is the intensified stage of the angelic conflict. What you think is more important than you realize.

11. Recovery from sin is instantaneous through the use of the rebound technique, but recovery from evil takes a long time through post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation.

12. Evil is the human good panacea which attempts to solve the problems of life apart from doctrine and divine establishment. Doctrine and establishment came first, being from the mind of God.

13. Evil is often a distortion of doctrine or a distortion of the laws of divine establishment. Satan's original sin was a distortion of doctrine. Evil distorts law and order, substituting evil, as in crime.

14. Evil comes in many forms: altruistic humanitarianism, philanthropy, religion, legalism, reversionism, socialism, political internationalism, government interference, distortion of the law, bribery in government, cutting down the military, gun legislation, sociology, public welfare, the common wheel, and the United Nations.

b. The whole idea of government trying to abolish sickness, mental illness, economic problems, frustrations, and human problems by legislation and human solutions is evil. The world's problems can never be solved apart from Bible doctrine and the laws of divine establishment.

c. Evil also includes social action, the social Gospel, restriction of human freedom for the greater good, the distortion of law to solve social and economic problems; i.e., the interference of government in business and free enterprise, setting restrictive regulations, legislating car requirements, government quotas, gun legislation, catering to minorities; these are all illegal and distorted laws.

d. However, the greatest of all evils is religion. Legalism and apostasy are the greatest manifestations of evil.

e. Evil includes all systems of Christian function outside of and apart from the local church. God only ordained and authorized one institution, and that is the local church. God has ordained and authorized the local church as the only vehicle for spiritual growth in the dispensation of the Church. No one has authority over believers in the spiritual realm except for the pastor-teacher, who must teach doctrine in the local church.

f. This means that not only are denominations evil, but so are independent service organizations. Most denominations last about 100 years.

g. Evil is what you think as an apostate, reversionistic liberal, a bleeding-heart, guilty type.

15. So the worst and most detrimental thing that can happen to a believer is to come under the influence of evil. The recovery from evil is lengthy and very painful.

16. Evil is every deviation from Bible doctrine and the laws of divine establishment.

d. Adjective PONEROS means evil, worthless, degenerate; as a noun means the evil one (Satan).

1. Evil originated and existed before human history. The means by which it was transmitted from previous creature existence to human history is Satan himself.

3. Evil originated in angelic creation in the greatest creature to ever come from the hand of God.

b. He is the ruler of one-third of all angels, Matthew 8:28, 9:34, 12:26; Luke 11:18-19.

c. If Satan could take on human appearance, as fallen angels did before the Flood, he would be the most beautiful, smartest, and strongest of all human beings. He would have every form of attractiveness.

d. He is the central antagonist of the angelic conflict, Hebrews 1- 2; Genesis 6; 1Peter 3:18-22.

g. He is the ruler of the world, Luke 4:5-7; John 12:31, 16:11; 2Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 2:2. He has set up a system of administration whereby Mr. Hyde can function in Dr. Jekyll.

5. Satan has devised a system whereby people can be nice, lovely, and look good to society, and yet behind the facade of good there lurks an evil, destructive person who is often self-deceived.

6. Satan controls most of Christianity through his cosmic system. The thing that makes people function in the cosmic system is arrogance.

7. Satan's plan is related to beating Christ to the Millennium with his own the production of a perfect world. The more the world follows his plan, the greater the degeneracy which occurs. His plan seeks equality by destroying success and failure with legislation.

8. Satan's plans always look good to the stupid, but it always results in degeneracy. L. S. Chafer put it best in his Systematic Theology, Vol 2, pp. 100-1, 108-111.

9. 1John 3:8, "When anyone commits a sin, he has become the agent of the devil."

a. The old sin nature is usually the source of temptation; volition is the only source of sin.

b. Your decision to sin puts you immediately into the cosmic system, making you the agent of the devil.

c. The works of the devil can only be destroyed by residence and function inside the divine dynasphere. We are the products of our own decisions; therefore, we bring disaster on ourselves.

10. Satan's strategy regarding nations is found in Revelation 12:20; regarding unbelievers in 2Peter 2; Luke 8:12; 2Corinthians 4:34; 2Thessalonians 2:7-10; Colossians 2:8; Revelation 17; regarding believers in 2Corinthians 2:11; to accuse believers in Job 1:6-11; Zechariah 3:1-2; Revelation 12:9-10. 1John 2:1-2 teaches that the Lord defends us.

11. Satan seeks to frustrate the will of God with every believer; i.e., regarding what we think, Ephesians 4:14; where we are located, 1Thessalonians 2:18; and what we do, Jas 4:7-8. He especially seeks to keep us from functioning at gate 4 of the divine dynasphere, where we learn and apply Bible doctrine. He seeks to destroy the believer's focus so that he gets his eyes on other people, on himself (in self-pity), or on things, (e.g., logistical grace is not sufficient).

12. Arrogance is the system by which Satan keeps you functioning in the devil's world without going crazy. His system is designed to distract believers by entertainment, improving the world (crusader arrogance), occupation with temporal solutions to man's problems, social action, the welfare state, communism, fear, and religion.

13. Religion is created by Satan to counterfeit the plan of God. Religion is man seeking approbation from God on the basis of his works. Satan counterfeits the following.

14. Satan's system of false teachers is part of his strategy. They have a phony and hypocritical facade, Matthew 7:15; Romans 16:18. They use human public relations as a system of flirtation, Galatians 4:17-18; 2Timothy 3:5-7. They appeal to arrogance and pride, 2Corinthians 10:12. They promote idolatry as part of the devil's communion table.

1. Evil is a factor that the believer must face which was not judged at the cross. The believer must realize that he cannot confess evil in something like the rebound technique, because evil was not judged at the cross.

e. The believer is not to be involved in good and evil in any way. The believer can avoid good and evil.

f. You cannot be tried twice for the same crime; a mistake being made by the Supreme Court.

2. Human good and evil have been an issue since the fall of man, both before and after the cross. After the cross, the angelic conflict must continue in order to be resolved. The angelic conflict can only be resolved through human volition. Positive volition toward the cross results in faith in Jesus Christ, solving the problem of sin. But salvation could not resolve human good, lust, and evil, because the angelic conflict must continue with some issue.

3. Man must be free to express his volition toward salvation, and toward sin after salvation in the rebound technique. But evil must continue or there is no angelic conflict. This is because Satan must have his "equal time." Therefore, human good and evil continue right down to the Second Advent.

4. Man must not only be free to express his volition toward the cross and toward sin after being saved in rebound, but he must also be free to express his volition in the same way Christ did on the cross when He rejected, separated from, and divorced Himself from human good and evil. This takes a lot of doctrine for the believer to do this experientially. The believer's positive volition toward doctrine develops divine viewpoint thinking which rejects evil.

5. Anything not judged does not have a one-second solution. In one second, you can believe in Jesus Christ and be saved. Likewise, in one second you can confess a sin and be forgiven. But there is no one-second solution to anything dealing with evil.

6. That's why the post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation is a daily thing that must go on and on and on in order that you might be able to resist evil. The more doctrine you have, the more you reject evil.

8. The whole purpose of water baptism as a picture of retroactive positional truth was to teach the rejection of evil.

9. Evil and its various aspects become the greatest distraction to doctrine, because it catches doctrine at the point of your thinking.

1. The mature believer should be able to distinguish between sin and evil and between evil and honor. Hebrews 5:13-14, "But solid food [sound doctrine] is belonging to the mature, the ones who because of academic self-discipline keep having their perceptive faculties well-trained with reference to differentiating between both the honorable and the evil." Therefore, the mature believer rightly divides the Word of Truth so as to distinguish between sin and evil. 2. Motivating evil exists in the thought pattern of the soul. Evil and degeneracy start with a thought.

a. Mt 6:23, "But if your eye is evil, the entire body is full of darkness [cosmic involvement]."

2. The balance of residency of the soul (Bible doctrine plus filling of the Holy Spirit; i.e., residence, function, momentum inside the divine dynasphere) avoids thinking evil.

3. Impersonal love from maximum doctrine in the soul eliminates evil. It takes lots of doctrine to reject evil, Proverbs 23:7.

4. The divine dynasphere is the only real protection against evil. 1Corinthians 13:5, "The love [virtue-love] does not behave dishonorably, is not preoccupied with self, is not hypersensitive, does not think evil." "Love" refers to virtue-love. Personal love can think evil, but impersonal love, a function of the royal family honor code, cannot think evil. It is virtue- love which defeats evil.

5. The believer in the cosmic system is constantly frustrated by evil. Romans 7:19, "For what I desire I do not do, but what I do not desire [evil], this I keep practicing." Romans 7:21. Sincere do-gooders are the major practicers of evil. The more involved you are in sincere human good crusades, the more you intensify your evil.

6. Therefore, the believer is warned to beware of those who practice evil, Philippians 3:2. Even legitimate things are mutilated or distorted. To beware does not necessarily mean to avoid but to understand. You never get over the mutilation of your norms and standards by evil. (Elijah #1-3)

7. Believers are specifically warned not to be influenced by evil but by doctrine in 3 John 11. "Beloved, do not be imitators of the evil but of the good."

8. False doctrine is both evil and insanity. Eccl 9:3 refers to psychotic arrogance.

9. Those who are under the influence of evil always have a price. 1Timothy 6:10, "The love of money is the root of all evils." It is a dangerous temptation to any poor believer to chase after money so as to neglect Bible doctrine. Actually, this verse applies to the love of any detail of life.

10. Influence by evil explains why prayers are not answered, Job 35:9- 13. Rebounding doesn't erase the influence of evil. Job 35:12, "There they cry out, but He does not answer because of the pride of evil men." This explains the pattern of saying no to truth, building scar tissue on the soul, intensifying arrogance into self-pity, self-righteousness, and guilt, and therefore coming to believe the lie.

11. Believers are often led into the cosmic system and evil by their Christian friends.

b. 2Thessalonians 3:2-3, "That we may be delivered from perverse and evil men, for all believers do not have doctrine; but the Lord is faithful and He will strengthen you and protect you from evil."

12. God protects that believer inside the divine dynasphere who has positive volition to doctrine.

c. Psalm 91:10, "No evil will befall you; you who love the Lord hate evil. The Lord preserves the souls of His mature ones; He delivers them from the hands of the evil one." Psalm 119:101.

d. Psalm 121:7, "The Lord will protect you from all evil; He will guard your soul." Proverbs 1:33.

e. Prov 2:11-13, "The wise sees the evil and hides himself, but the stupid goes on and is punished for it."

13. The attitude of the mature believer toward evil is stated in Psalm 84:10. "For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand days in the cosmic system. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of My Lord than to dwell in the tents of evil."

14. Submission to the authority of establishment prevents evil and the influence of evil, Eccl 8:2-5. A leader can do anything he wants in his private life as long as he does his job well as a leader. Rulers do have a right to their privacy.

15. The laws of divine establishment are designed to protect the citizens of the nation from evil. Romans 13:3-4 implies that the unbeliever can function in the divine dynasphere at gate 3 when he follows establishment truth. "Do you desire not to fear the authority? Therefore, keep on doing the good and you will have recognition from it. For it [government] is a minister of God to you for the purpose of good. But if you do evil, be afraid. For he does not wear the sword for nothing."

a. All crime is evil. Crime is extended by a soft society. Evil criminals must be executed. Capital punishment is designed to separate out evil crimes.

b. Evil in the soul is like hydrophobia; it must be removed from society. If it is not, crime rages wild in society.

c. Once under the influence of evil, the criminal will never change; he will always be destructive. However, criminals with no evil can be resuscitated.

d. Certain sins express evil, but not all sins are evil. Certain sins express crime, but not all sins are criminal. All believers are sinful, but that does not mean all believers are criminals.

e. So by protecting against evil, the laws of divine establishment give freedom and protection for evangelization and for the teaching of Bible doctrine.

16. The domination of good in the client nation determines its historical prosperity, while the domination of evil determines its historical judgment, Proverbs 12:20; Psalm 34:16.

a. If the nation through its law does not remove its criminals by death, the Lord will punish the entire nation for their failure. Disaster will come in one or more forms. Isaiah 13:11, "Thus I will punish the world for its evil. I will also put an end to the arrogance of the proud, and abase the pride of the dictator." Isaiah 47:10-11.

b. The only limitation on crime is humility and respect for authority. Micah 1:12 teaches that our failure to cope with evil leads to destruction of the nation. Amos 5:14-15, "Hate evil, love good, and establish justice in the court; consequently, the Lord God of the armies will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph."

a. Sin and evil occur in war, but war as a category is not evil. War brings national freedom. The same is true of disease.

d. Disease in itself is not sinful, though sin and evil are associated with disease. Not all people who are sick are being disciplined by God.

1. Cosmic one is called the interlocking systems of arrogance in which the believer grieves the Holy Spirit. Arrogance is to the believer and unbeliever in cosmic one what the filling of the Holy Spirit is to the believer in the divine dynasphere.

2. Cosmic two is called the interlocking systems of hatred in which the believer quenches the Spirit.

a. Mental attitude arrogance is anything related to preoccupation with self to the point of sin, human good or evil. It is satisfaction with self and dissatisfaction with others.

b. Negative volition arrogance is related to preoccupation with self causing apathy toward doctrine. The authority of the pastor or the message is rejected.

d. Institutional arrogance is rejection of the authority, policy, and purpose of the organization.

e. Blind arrogance is the arrogance of legalism. This is being partially divorced from reality (sociopathic rather than psychotic). This includes self-righteous arrogance, which is failure to see in yourself what you criticize in others.

f. Conspiracy arrogance comes after institutional arrogance and results in a conspiracy to overthrow the purpose, policy, or authority of an organization.

g. Criminal arrogance seeks to solve problems through violence. It is total divorcement from reality. It includes terrorist and revolutionary activities.

h. Crusader arrogance is the self-righteous arrogance of trying to straighten out the world. A person places his personal standards above the law or any form of establishment or authority. When criminal arrogance interlocks with crusader arrogance, there is terrorism or revolution.

i. Psychotic arrogance is total divorcement from all reality. It is a result of bad decisions, not genetics. It is intense concentration on self. It is the emotional control of reason.

j. Sexual arrogance is preoccupation with sex and self-gratification. It is preoccupation with the body to the exclusion of the soul.

k. Genetic arrogance is assuming that greatness in life is inherited. Parents who seek recognition through the achievement of their children have this type of arrogance.

l. Political arrogance is a result as well as an interlock with crusader arrogance. It is any human panacea which offers the solution to life's problems. Liberals and conservatives both suffer from political arrogance. It rejects the separation of church and state.

m. Client nation arrogance emphasizes the laws of divine establishment and the function of government leadership in terms of arrogance versus humility. There are three basic forms of legitimate government.

(1) Monarchy is the rule of one man in the interest of the common good, which under arrogance becomes tyranny, i.e., the rule of one man for his own advantage.

(2) Aristocracy is the rule of a group in the interest of the common good. This degenerates to an oligarchy, which is the rule of a group for their own benefit, as the cosmic system influences the nation.

(3) A republic is the rule of the better part of the people in the interest of common good. But when arrogance comes, it degenerates into a democracy, which is the rule of the worst part of the people for their own benefit.

(4) Client nation arrogance is the failure of our elected representatives and arrogant bureaucracy in trying to control the government.

(5) Client nation arrogance is the collective arrogance of a people in cosmic one.

n. In authority arrogance, the individual fails to make the most difficult transition of temporal life, which is going from the authority in the home to freedom in life. The home is organized humility. The parents' authority is enforced humility, and child's response to enforced humility produces genuine humility. Rejection of overt authority in life results in rejection of inward authority of the soul, and that destroys your own self-discipline.

o. Arrogance of Ignorance. Genuine humility is necessary for the transitions from authority in the home to freedom in life and from ignorance at salvation to cognizance at spiritual maturity. Genuine humility is the necessary teachability to make that transition. The arrogance of ignorance is the failure to make that transition from ignorance to cognizance in the Christian way of life.

p. In the arrogance of unhappiness, self-centeredness eliminates any capacity or possibility for happiness. Involvement in cosmic one guarantees unhappiness and leads to erroneous ideas about what constitutes happiness. This means you expect others to make you happy. Entertainment and marriage is for people who are already happy. But with the arrogance of unhappiness, you have a martyr complex which results in trying to control people by giving them a guilt complex. This is how the weak control the strong.

q. The arrogance of disillusion is called iconoclastic arrogance or the feet of clay syndrome.

(1) This begins when you put someone on a pedestal. Then when their feet of clay shows, you become disillusioned and react to whatever they represent.

(2) In other words, arrogance creates an idol of enchantment and illusion, but when the idol is shattered, arrogance is shocked and distracted and disoriented to life.

(3) As a result, the arrogant creator of the idol seeks to destroy the idol, a revenge in which the person can only gain his self-respect by destroying the thing which has allegedly destroyed his self-respect.

r. The arrogance of morality is the self-righteous arrogance of superimposing false standards of morality on others. People major in one moral thing so they can rationalize and say they are better than everyone else in that area. This is superimposing a false standard of morality on others or taking a true standard out of its context, e.g., salvation. Morality is designed to protect human freedom.

s. The arrogance of emotion is irrationality. Arrogant people stop thinking and so their emotion becomes their substitute for thought. This is total preoccupation with self related to emotion. Knowledge is the environment for thinking. Bible doctrine is the environment for decisions. Emotional arrogance fantasizes and therefore collapses under pressure.

t. In the arrogance of pseudo-generosity, a person gives because of a desire for attention, approbation, or to buy friendship or happiness. 2Corinthians 9:7,11 teach that the function of genuine generosity is found in the mind.

u. Arrogance of Christian service. Loss of momentum comes from rejection of doctrine and substituting Christian service for spirituality. Christian service becomes a distraction to momentum. Production is a result of growth, never the means. Perpetuation of Christian service while in the cosmic system is the arrogance of Christian service. Arrogance mistakes Christian service for growth and momentum.

v. The arrogance of discouragement is preoccupation with self under pressure and testing. Unexplained disaster tempts the believer to feel sorry for himself. Being maligned, treated unfairly, or facing the death of loved ones are the kinds of disaster or pressure that bring this on. Matthew 26:58; 1 Kg 19:10. This was Peter and Elijah's problem.

w. Arrogance of Lust. When legitimate desire is linked with arrogance, it becomes lust. Inordinate desire is lust. Desire is not wrong, but lust is. Lust is arrogant preoccupation with one's desires.

x. Pseudo-intellectual arrogance is the superimposition of human I.Q. over spiritual I.Q. Arrogance rejects divine viewpoint. It glorifies human speculation to the exclusion of Bible doctrine, or seeks to reconcile Bible doctrine with false philosophical, psychological, and scientific speculation; e.g., gnosticism.

y. Pseudo-love arrogance is the attempt of anyone to duplicate the principles or function of true love while residing in the cosmic system.

z. The function of suicide is produced by a permanently locked-in arrogance which motivates taking one's own life.

a. Negative volition to doctrine. This person resists doctrine because he is antagonistic to truth, to God, and to the things of God. He is the enemy of God's plan. Evil, before it ever becomes a function or action, is a thought or motive. People are degenerate because of the way they think, not because of what they do. You have to be preoccupied with yourself before you can be negative to doctrine in cosmic two. This is characterized by antagonism toward everyone associated with the divine dynasphere. There are three categories of negative volition.

(1) Negative volition at God-consciousness. This is the point of accountability which occurs at different ages depending on the culture. God-consciousness can occur in a number of ways.

(b) Cosmological thinking says the intuitive law of cause and effect demands the existence of God.

(c) Ontological thinking says that since the human mind possesses the idea of a perfect Being, such a Being must exist. There must be an absolute which gives character to the relative.

(d) Anthropological thinking says that man's soul possesses both volition and conscience with an urge to choose right rather than wrong, and that the structure of society is based on the recognition of virtue and truth.

(e) Theological thinking says that God must exist because men universally believe in His existence. Heathen are heathen because of negative volition at God-consciousness or Gospel hearing, Romans 1:18-25.

(2) Negative volition at Gospel hearing. Rejection of Jesus Christ enters you into gate 1 of cosmic two, 1Corinthians 1:18; 2Corinthians 4:3-4; 2Peter 2:20-22.

(3) Negative volition to doctrine. The believer immediately enters this gate when he rejects the communicator and/or his message. Emotional arrogance is a big reason for this. 2Corinthians 6:11, "You are hindered by your own emotions." You become selective in what you think, thus rejecting anything resembling truth. Then you lean on your emotions for pleasure, thereby misusing emotion, Romans 16:17-18.

b. Cosmic degeneration. When you become antagonistic to truth you enter into a state of degeneracy. Degeneracy is in thought long before it is in actions. Romans 1:24-27 illustrates, "they who exchange the doctrine of God for a lie."

c. Anti-establishment occurs when the soul is antagonistic to the laws of divine establishment and authority. 2Timothy 3:2-3 teaches that this begins in the home with "disobedience to parents." This is ingrained antagonism toward authority. Romans 1:28-32 is the best illustration of anti- establishment.

(1) Man's attempts to improve the world are always sponsored by Satan. Anyone's solution sought apart from divine truth is a cosmic panacea.

(4) "The end always justifies the means," is the motto of the believer in cosmic two. He believes in redistribution of wealth, over- taxation, legislation to solve all problems, sameness in life, big government and little people where citizens are slaves of the state, regulation of private enterprise, confiscation of private property, and utopianism.

(5) Cosmic panaceas lead to violence, terrorism, and revolution under the principle of social engineering.

(6) The state trains the children to be obedient to the dictates of the state rather than to parents. There is a total rejection of freedom and authority.

e. Religion is Satan's counterfeit of the plan of God. Christianity is not a religion, but is a relationship with God through the person of Jesus Christ. Religion is man by man's efforts seeking to gain the approbation of God. 2Corinthians 11 describes religious leaders. 2Timothy 3:7-8, "these religious types oppose doctrine, are men of depraved mind [degenerate], disqualified from blessing with regard to doctrine . . ." Cf. 2Peter 2:1-3.

g. Anthropocentric academic speculation is motivated by pseudo- intellectual arrogance. This is the attempt to reconcile philosophical and scientific speculation with doctrine. When this can't be done, the person rejects doctrine and seeks a substitute. The more arrogant you are, the more you are attracted to academic speculation.

1. Negative volition toward doctrine causes the believer to be changed by evil, Proverbs 5:13-14. Evil changes your thinking.

2. Emotion revolts in the fourth stage of reversionism against its right lobe. This is when people get into many different kinds of evil trends.

3. You can always tell historically when emotion takes over because there is a tremendous change in culture; e.g., in music and drama, which goes from being great, honorable, and romantic to being perverse, sick, imbecilic, and irrational. These pointless things apparently appeal only to those in emotional revolt of the soul. (This is why so many people still instinctively go for sports where there's still some honesty.) But many people are still propagandized by the current music, drama, and art trends. All of this explains why men now have long hair and women have short hair, as they try to run everything in revolt.

4. Emotion has no ability to think, no standards, no honor, no morality, and no establishment.

5. Normal emotion responds to our norms and standards, to doctrine in our soul, to establishment principles in the right lobe, and it recognizes authority.

6. But emotional revolt means rejection of authority. This sets up a vacuum which sucks evil into the soul. Evil in the left lobe produces scar tissue; evil in the right lobe produces hardness of heart.

7. There is no question that Satan controls any believer who has no doctrine in his soul. Therefore, you get into a tremendous amount of human good in reversionism.

1. Every generation has to choose between the grace policy of God, represented by the cross, and the evil policy of Satan. This issue has never left the human race. The genius of God has perpetuated the issue of volition throughout human history and throughout the human race.

2. Therefore, the issue before the royal family is: are you influenced by doctrine or by evil? Our parents in the Garden faced this same issue.

3. Grace is the means by which doctrinal principles are elucidated; evil as Satan's policy is the means by which false doctrine is inculcated, Proverbs 11:18-19, 14:22, 15:3, 16:6, 22:3, 24:1-4; Ephesians 5:16; 2Thessalonians 3:2-3. These passages present some of the following principles.

c. The end of the pursuit of evil for the believer is the sin unto death. This is the most suffering any believer can ever endure, but he deserves every bit of it.

d. Now, just as in the beginning, when you partake of the "forbidden fruit" of evil, you receive tremendous divine discipline. Just as what you eat from a tree becomes a part of you, so when you partake of evil it becomes a part of you. And simply by being filled with human good and evil, you bring on yourself a whole system of self-induced misery and divine discipline.

e. Ephesians 5:16 summarizes all these principles of evil found in Proverbs. You redeem time by the filling of the Spirit and maximum doctrine in your soul, which at the same time kills off evil.

4. Doctrine neutralizes evil in the soul, Psalm 54:5; Romans 12:21. Once under the influence of evil, the only possible recovery comes from learning doctrine.

5. The mandate regarding evil is found in Romans 12:21: "Stop being conquered by evil, but conquer evil by means of the good." This refers to the function of the plan of God, X+Y+Z. The divine system for the administration of the good is residence and function in the divine dynasphere. Therefore, the only way to "overcome evil with good" is to advance in the plan of God through the daily perception of doctrine.

6. Evil distorts grace, Psalm 38:19-20, 52:1. Grace does not come through when you are under the influence of evil.

a. The Psalm 38 passage says that anytime a person follows the absolute good and doctrine, he is subject to many attacks of evil, both subtle and obvious.

b. 1Corinthians 15:33, "Be not deceived; evil companions corrupt good morals." Many people become anti-establishment through their association with those who are influenced by evil, who are in effect evil evangelists.

7. There is no evil in God, Psalm 5:4; Jas 1:13-15. It is impossible for any of God's attributes to be evil. He is minus all the evil things Satan does all the time. That there is no evil in God indicates the great dividing line in the angelic conflict.

1. The supergrace believer is protected from evil. (Here is another reason to get to supergrace!) In supergrace B or no-man's land, all the greatest attacks of evil strike. So when you mature as a believer, you face all kinds of evil.

2. Satan wants you to drop your guard and go negative toward doctrine, Psalm 21:11, 23:4; Proverbs 12:12,20,21; Genesis 48:16. Genesis 50:20, "They meant it for evil, but God meant it for good."

3. There is no coexistence with both evil and inner happiness. However, sin and happiness can coexist. Do you know anyone happier than David, or anyone who lived better than David? You can be happy living in your sins.

a. Psalm 37:16-19, "They [mature believers] will not be ashamed in the time of evil; in the day of depression they will still have abundance."

c. Prov 1:33, "He who listens to Me shall live in security, and shall be at ease without fear of evil."

5. The more doctrine you have in your soul, the more you will love the Lord and the more you will hate evil. All thoughts in life are actually fighting over your soul, Proverbs 3:7.

6. The negative believer immediately finds a great deal against which he can react, and he moves into the stages of reversionism. Remember that Satan offers him a pseudo-supergrace status, paragraph, and pseudo prosperity. Satan is capable of rewarding as the ruler of the world.

7. So the constant intake of doctrine is the only insulation from evil, because doctrine goes where evil would reside; i.e., in the right lobe, and there doctrine combats evil.

1. Evil distorts establishment, Psalm 50:16-21, e.g., law and order, the sanctity of marriage.

a. Evil especially distorts divine institution #2, marriage, and divine institution #3, the family.

b. Evil also rejects authority. Psalm 50:18 says "for you hate authority." Rejection of authority in every area of life is evil. This is so prevalent in our day that you would think verse 18 was written recently.

a. Evil begins at certain stages of reversionism, especially from the frantic search for happiness stage and on.

b. All reversionists are evil, for evil is the thinking of Satan and the propaganda of Satan. So anyone in reversionism is under the influence of Satan.

3. Evil rationalizes. Isaiah 5:20, "Woe to them that call evil good, and good evil." Since evil must avoid any guilt reaction, it must rationalize by distorting the conscience and setting up its own norms and standards.

4. Conspiracy and revolution is evil, Psalm 64:4,5; Proverbs 17:11. If a person is anti-authority, he is evil, because evil always attacks authority. No problems can ever be solved by assassination.

5. Evil is self-destructive, Psalm 34:21; Proverbs 24:19-20. This explains why David lived while Saul died the sin unto death. Evil people always try to solve the world's problems by violence; e.g., anti-Semitism, which is three evils and two sins.

7. evil is repaid for good, it always hurts the soul of the one who did good. You haven't lived until this happens to you!

8. God judges evil, Psalm 34:16; Isaiah 13:11. God uses Evil One to punish Evil Two because evil responds to evil. People respond to their leaders, and if the leader is evil, so will the people be evil. As an illustration, Hitler was accepted in his evil, and so was his nation evil.

9. Bible doctrine and evil were here before we came into the world. You cannot change either doctrine or evil, but they can change you. The believer who seeks to change evil is changed by evil.

a. The uptrends of history are caused by the evangelization of mankind, followed by the communication and reception of the mystery doctrine of the Church Age.

b. The downtrends of history are caused by a maximum number of people living in Satan's cosmic system under the influence of evil.

c. Therefore, there are no tragedies in history. Historical disaster is related to certain cosmic trends based on evil, e.g., the demand for power exceeds the need for power.

d. Isaiah 47:11, "Evil shall come upon you and you will not understand its origin. Consequently, national disaster shall fall on you, and you will not be able to avert it; suddenly destruction shall come to you, and you will not understand."

11. Remember that evil is the policy of Satan as the ruler of this world, and Satan is the greatest creature genius. Using his genius against God led to his evil, for his arrogance led to revolution which led to evil.

12. While evil and sin originate from Satan, the source of man's evil is different. Man's sin comes from his old sin nature, whereas the source of evil is his right lobe in the mentality of his soul. Sin comes from the old sin nature; evil comes from your thinking, from the thoughts of your right lobe and frame of reference. Remember, you are what you think.

13. Good and evil must continue as part of the angelic conflict. Good and evil must continue to challenge us as to which way we will go: Satan's way or God's way.

14. Evil will not be solved until Satan is removed as the ruler of this world, until he is incarcerated at the Second Advent in Gehenna.

15. Evil can only be avoided by establishing a command post of the soul, Hebrews 13:10. Evil can only be handled in each generation by those who are influenced by Bible doctrine.

16. Evil cannot understand life. In evil, there is no such thing as reality. People who are influenced by evil do not know reality nor can they face reality. When disaster strikes, people do not recognize the evil that originated it.

17. Evil is blind to the correct interpretation of history and does not understand life. This is because scar tissue on the soul believes the lie. Evil is divorced from reality. Reality says there is sin and evil in life.

a. Direct control based on His own divine sovereignty will be brought more forcibly to the earth at the Second Advent.

b. Indirect control occurs through the laws of divine establishment. Destroying the laws of divine establishment results in anarchy and revolutions. Any people who have ever tried violent solutions have never found answers to their problems. Violence and revolution has never been the answer. God will demonstrate this at the Gog and Magog Revolution at the Second Advent.

c. Permissive control is God permitting evil to run its course during the angelic conflict.

2. Prov 16:3-4 summarizes the principle. Therefore, evil is going to run its course in human history, but evil should not be a deterrent to your spiritual growth. You advance spiritually in spite of evil. In other words, you don't throw up your hands and say "It's useless!"

3. Isaiah 45:7, "The One forming light and creating darkness [God created the creature who created darkness]; the One manufacturing prosperity and the One creating the evil one; I Jehovah, am the One manufacturing all of these things [Jesus Christ controls history]."

1. A vigorous nation can sin vigorously, but that doesn't mean destruction will fall upon it. Sin is not the issue; evil is.

2. The fourth cycle of discipline is economic disaster, Leviticus 25-26. The fifth cycle of discipline is being taken over by a foreign power. Isaiah 47:10-11, "Because you have trusted in your evil . . . " is a description of nations influenced by evil.

3. Nations not influenced by Bible doctrine or by the laws of divine establishment have a tendency to be influenced by one or more forms of evil. 4. There are three things a nation must have for survival and blessing: evangelism, spiritual growth in local churches by means of pastor-teachers teaching doctrine, and the laws of divine establishment functioning within the framework of the government.

3. Evil is always antagonistic towards grace and always seeks to manipulate grace.

4. God's standards for maturity and qualifications for blessing are the same for every believer: advance to spiritual maturity.

5. It is therefore blind arrogance for any believer to suggest or imply that he has achieved what no other believer ever has, or that he has had some unique experience, or that his life is more important than anyone else's.

6. Blind arrogance divorces the believer from the reality of spiritual things. Blind arrogance comes in many forms: legalism, salvation by works, spirituality by works, maturity by works. All three are signs of evil.

7. So the person who assumes that the plan of God stands or falls on the basis of his behavior is arrogant and under the influence of evil. The plan of God depends on the essence of God, never on what we do.

8. Peter was like the arrogant person who sets up false standards, and then by complying with those false standards concludes that he is a great believer. Arrogance assumes many incorrect things, and always slips so easily into evil. (For more amplification, see Philippians #59.)

9. Like believers in reversionism and evil, the labor union of Matt 20 had erroneous standards. Only blind arrogance made them cling to their standards instead of yielding to the superior standards of management. Labor becomes evil by complaining and judging management. The Bible calls the owner AGATHOS, for he kept his word.

10. So blind arrogance keeps the believer from yielding to the superior standard of God's matchless and perfect grace. Grace is related to doctrine, never to works.

11. Rewards for the believer in eternity depend on God's policy of grace, not on the arrogant, legalistic, anthropocentric evil standards of blind fundamentalism. God neither blesses in time nor rewards in eternity on the basis of arrogant standards of legalists. All His blessing is based on His grace standards.

12. You don't make covenants or contracts with God. When you know and love Him, you depend on His wisdom to deal faithfully with you at all times.

13. So the "first" in this passage are those under the influence of evil. The "last" are the mature believers, depending on God's grace standards.

1. Evil is distinguished from war and disease, Jeremiah 28:8. Neither war nor disease are evil. War is not evil, though there are evil acts in war. But the principle of war is good and noble, for it is a part of the function of establishment to maintain freedom. Most religious organizations make war or disease a part of evil, which is where they get mixed up.

2. Evil is distinguished from sin, 1Chronicles 21:1,17. You can't confess evil as you can confess sin.

c. So David distinguished between sin and evil, though both were a part of his numbering the people. His motivation for doing so was evil.

3. Evil is distinguished from evil in the administration of the fifth cycle of discipline, Jonah 3:10. The people were first thinking evil, which led to the fifth cycle of discipline, which is always administered through evil. But God let them off from the fifth cycle of discipline, allowing the other evil to continue. So there are two kinds of evil.

a. There is evil in a national entity when the people are negative to the laws of divine establishment, or when believers reject Bible doctrine and go into reversionism.

b. The fifth cycle of discipline is called an evil. "An evil to an evil nation." In other words, God matches the punishment to the crime. He uses evil one to judge evil two.

2. Joseph: Genesis 50:20, "You intended evil against me, but God meant it for good."

3. David: Psalm 84:10, 37:25-27, "I have been young, now I am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor His seed begging bread. Depart from evil and do good; therefore, live a long time."

4. Job: Job 28:28, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; to shun evil is understanding of doctrine."

5. Solomon: Proverbs 16:6,17, "And by occupation with the Lord one stays away from evil. The highway of the mature believer is to depart from evil."

6. Isaiah: Isaiah 59:15, "And the one who turns aside into evil makes himself vulnerable."

7. Jeremiah: Jeremiah 23:21-22, 9:3. 8. The Lord Jesus Christ: John 17, "I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to guard them from evil."

a. Fear is used for a mental attitude sin, characterized by panic when in a dangerous situation. It is a painful emotional distress aroused by impending pain, danger, disaster, evil or by illusions regarding the same. It is worry, apprehension, consternation, or horror. Fear is also an active feeling of dread, of which fright and terror are the more intense degrees.

b. Fear is used for reverence, respect, or awe. It is a reverence manifesting itself in obedience. In this respect, fear is a Christian virtue, 1Peter 2:17.

(1) The concept of fear in Exodus 20:20, "Moses said to them, `Do not be afraid; for God has come in order to test you and in order that the fear of Him may remain with you so that you will not sin.'" One of the greatest restraints on sin is fear of the righteousness and justice of God. The greatest believer of the Old Testament, Moses, was no exception to this and lost out on one of the greatest blessings of his life-entering the Land-by not respecting the righteousness of God.

(2) In Deuteronomy 17:19 fear denotes respect for God, "It [a copy of the Mosaic Law] shall be with him and he shall read it all the days of his life, that he may learn to fear [respect] the Lord his God, by carefully observing all the words of the law and its statutes." Respect for doctrine results in respect for the Lord.

(3) In Leviticus 25:17 fear prevents wrongdoing toward other persons, "So you shall not wrong one another, but you shall fear your God; for I am the Lord your God." Instead of reacting to the wrongdoing of others, you shall put the entire matter in the hands of God.

(4) Psalm 111:10, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding all those who do it [application of doctrine]; His praise endures forever." Respect for the Lord is the beginning of a lifetime of learning Bible doctrine and having that Bible doctrine circulating in the stream of consciousness.

2. The meaning of the word "fear" in the Bible is determined by the context in which it is used.

3. Neglect or rejection of the mystery doctrine of the Church Age and failure to utilize its fantastic problem-solving devices result in many problems, including fear.

4. Fear is lack of thinking under pressure. It is a general problem in life. We are designed by God to be rational creatures; fear makes us irrational. Fear is an irrational and emotional sin.

5. For the believer, fear is failure to learn and apply Bible doctrine to the problems of life, and failure to learn and utilize the problem- solving devices.

6. Fear is a part of the emotional complex of sins. Fear is a whole system of sins which include worry, anxiety, insecurity, incapability of doctrinal application, and therefore inability to use the problem-solving devices.

7. Fear also includes all the problems of emotionalism, for fear is an emotional sin. Many sins involve only thinking (e.g. lust), but fear involves emotion and no thinking.

8. The Christian loser is bogged down and hindered from his advance by various categories of sins and arrogance related to fear.

1. The more things you surrender to fear, the more things you fear. Today you may be worried about only one thing; tomorrow about two things, etc. Soon you become so emotionally involved in fear that you have no identity. Irrationality means loss of identity, which means the accumulation of fear until you are afraid of life. Fear is something that, if not controlled, continues to develop in your life until you have no capacity, and as a believer you become a loser. (One of the motivations for becoming addicted to drugs is fear of life, anxiety, worry, and tension.)

2. The extent to which you surrender to fear, the greater is your capacity for fear. To the extent to which you surrender to fear, to that extent fear controls more and more of your life. Increasing fear means increasing insecurity, which destroys your capacity for love, life, happiness, and blessing. No set of circumstances in life will ever make you happy. There is no way you can have true love or true happiness apart from a healthy mental attitude.

3. The greater your capacity for fear, the more you increase the power of fear in your life.

4. The more you increase the power of fear in your life, the greater your mind set as a loser believer and the greater your chances of failure to execute the protocol plan of God through the mechanics of the spiritual life under equal opportunity. The greater your chances of failure to execute the protocol plan of God, the sooner you cancel your equal opportunity to glorify God. The sooner you cancel your equal opportunity to glorify God, the sooner you live a life of total misery through the law of volitional responsibility.

a. The more things that acquire the power of fear in your life, the greater your capacity for fear. The greater your capacity for fear, the greater your capacity for arrogance and becoming a loser. For fear causes you to become totally preoccupied with yourself. Once in the arrogance complex, all the rest of the mental attitude sins come quickly. The combination of fear and arrogance causes many people to become mentally ill.

b. The more things that acquire the power to promote fear in your life, the more punitive suffering and self-induced misery you bring on yourself.

c. The more things that acquire the power of fear in your life, the greater your capacity for fragmentation and becoming a loser in the Christian life. As a loser, your capacity for life, love, and happiness is completely destroyed.

d. The greater your mindset as a loser-believer while living, the greater the intensification of your fear when dying.

5. Fear is an emotional sin. Emotion has no true courage. It has a pseudo courage. Arrogance and emotional domination of the soul produce cowardice. Fear is irrational and irresponsible. It creates three things: the arrogance skills, the arrogance complex of sins, and the emotional complex of sins. Fear not only removes Bible doctrine from number one priority in the life, but fear fragments and destroys the function of your spiritual life and moves you into the eight stages of reversionism. The last three stages of reversionism destroy all previously learned Bible doctrine and hinder any use of problem solving devices. Fear is a function of self-absorption. To make emotion the criterion for the spiritual life is a wedding between the arrogance skills and the emotional revolt of the soul. Normal emotional activity in the soul functions in subordination to the absolutes of Bible doctrine circulating in the stream of consciousness. Emotional response to doctrine and the thinking of the spiritual life becomes a true variable, while emotional activity that dominates and subordinates Bible doctrine to it is rejected by the absolute.

a. Emotion can be normal or evil, good or bad. Regardless of what it is, emotion is never a tool of cognition. You do not learn by emotion. God gave us emotion as a enjoyer of what is truth.

b. Emotion is not a criterion for the spiritual life. Emotions were never designed to be problem solving devices.

c. Sinful emotional activity such as fear, worry, anxiety, hatred, anger, revenge, guilt are reactions without divine approval and totally rejected by the absolutes of Bible doctrine.

d. Emotional reactions, such as emotional revolt of the soul or false spirituality by ecstatics, are a distraction to the execution of the protocol plan of God. Given some testing, the loser believer under emotional revolt of the soul will scream loud and clear, find someone to blame, and fall apart.

e. Emotion as the criterion of the spiritual life converts reality into unrealistic expectation, illusion, denial, projection, hallucination.

f. The believer must distinguish between normal emotional response (like watching a good movie) or abnormal emotional reaction to life in the form of the emotional revolt of the soul (using drugs).

g. Fear as an emotional sin is zero. Zero application to life results in stress, intensity of suffering through additional stress, but fear does not exist in virtue-love, 1John 4:18.

6. The fear principle explains the sin unto death, 1John 5:16b, "There is a sin face-to-face with death." The function of worry and anxiety in living results in the function of fear in dying. There is a sin believers commit while taking the journey through their very own death-shadowed valley: fear, reaction to the fact you are dying, bitterness.

7. Destruction of capacity for life, love, and happiness increases your capacity for arrogance and emotionalism, and therefore, your capacity for fragmentation.

8. So fear is a key that unlocks many doors, starting with the door of arrogance. You cannot be afraid without putting an abnormal emphasis on yourself. To the extent that you become frightened by anything, to that extent you set up a new circuit in your life which is arrogance. From that fear comes many manifestations of arrogance.

a. Jealousy. If you're afraid of losing someone, you become jealous when they show any favoritism toward anyone else.

b. Bitterness. You become bitter toward that person because they don't give you the affection and attention you think you deserve.

e. Revenge motivation. From all this comes a series of functions in your life that absolutely destroy any capacity. Therefore, you cannot be distinguished from the unbeliever, except that you are far worse than many unbelievers. They have handled fear through establishment principles. But you have something so much greater and so much easier compared to how they must handle fear. Yet it's amazing how many unbelievers are superior to Christians in their modus operandi, conquering such things as fear the hard way through establishment principles.

9. Arrogance, fear, worry, anxiety, anger, and emotionalism are all irrational. Irrationality is a total contradiction to the protocol plan of God which manufactures invisible heroes. Fear manufactures losers.

10. Fear is lack of thinking under pressure. Of course, if you don't think under normal circumstances and in prosperity, you will be filled with fear during abnormal circumstances.

11. Fear is the mental attitude of worry, anxiety, apprehension, trepidation, and despondency. Inevitably, fear leads to arrogance, the narcissus syndrome, and even to psychosis.

12. Fear cannot coexist with the function of the protocol plan of God in your life. The function of the protocol plan of God means first the function of Bible doctrine. When you have a point of doctrine, you can say as David did when facing Goliath, "The battle is the Lord's." That overcomes the problem of fear and so releases your ability to go into action, which is exactly what David did.

b. People who live by fear are intimated by life. For the believer who lives in a state of fear, the fear increases like a disease. As the cancer of fear increases, that individual becomes intimidated by life.

c. Fear eliminates a personal sense of destiny, so that the loser believer cannot overcome emotional sins like fear, worry, anxiety, guilt, denial, projection.

d. Fear of death will never prevent your dying, but it will prevent your living.

e. Fear is being overcome by the problem, becoming enmeshed in the disaster. The disaster destroys the spiritual life rather than the advancing the spiritual life as designed by God.

f. A personal sense of destiny is inculcated with the solution, therefore involved in the function of the problem solving devices for the application of doctrine to experience.

(1) Psalm 56:3-4, "What time I am afraid, I will put my trust in You. In God, whose word I praise, In God I have put my trust; I shall not be afraid of what can man do to me?"

(2) 2Timothy 1:7, "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and sound judgment."

13. Arrogance produces irrational self-deception, which in turn spawns fear, worry, anxiety, and the unhappiness of self-induced misery.

a. Arrogance causes loss of personality identity. Many women have lost their personality identity because they wanted to feel wanted and loved, but ended up merely being used. This is abnormal self-deception.

b. Some people have great capacity for unhappiness, for they can only complain and grumble about life. The more you develop your capacity for unhappiness, the farther away goes your chance of having any happiness in this life.

c. Because of arrogance, you do not know who you are or what you are, for you cannot see your soul in the mirror.

d. With loss of personality identity, you fall into a total state of fear so that you begin to retreat from any form of reality, becoming psychopathic or neurotic.

e. The only hope is that, while you're still partially normal, to function under post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation. For cognition of Bible doctrine inside the divine dynasphere can remove the fear, arrogance, self-deception, and the retreat from reality which makes it impossible for God's grace to break through and be utilized in your life.

f. But when you become a total loser, having no understanding of God's grace, you are totally miserable. So fear is the beginning of the end for you, which you do to yourself.

1. The protocol plan of God is designed to remove all the cobwebs of fear in your soul and replace them with confidence in doctrine, which leads to confidence in the Lord. That is the only true basis for spiritual self- esteem, which is confidence in yourself through Bible doctrine. This inevitably results in the greatest courage in life. It's more than moral courage; it is a mental attitude courage in all relationships and in all circumstances of life.

2. Paul stated this to Timothy who was intimidated by his congregation. 2Timothy 1:7 is a mandate which belongs to the protocol plan of God. "For God has not given to us a lifestyle of fear, but of power, and of virtue-love, and of sound judgment."

a. Every time fear comes into your life, you know you are not living the Christian way of life. You know immediately that you are not executing the protocol plan of God.

b. Power refers to the 100% available omnipotence of God. The omnipotence of God the Father is related to our portfolio of invisible assets. The omnipotence of God the Son is related to the perpetuation of human history so that we can execute the protocol plan of God. The omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit is related to our very own palace, the operational-type divine dynasphere. Relying on God's power is true courage.

c. True courage is virtue-love, i.e., personal love for God the Father, impersonal love for all mankind, and occupation with Christ.

d. True courage means sound judgment, thinking under pressure, and good judgment at all times. Sound judgment comes from Bible doctrine, not from emotion. The person with real courage is the person with doctrine in their soul. For example, when David faced Goliath, he had doctrinal courage which was far superior to Goliath's loud-mouthed macho courage.

e. The protocol plan of God is a life of courage. The execution of the protocol plan of God is learning courage.

f. What passes for courage is often not courage at all, but macho arrogance and stupidity.

g. Virtue-love represents the problem-solving devices. Sound judgment is the result of utilizing the problem-solving devices.

3. 1John 4:18, "Fear does not exist in virtue-love, but virtue-love drives out fear; for fear causes punishment. In fact, the person who is afraid has not been matured by virtue-love."

a. If you have personal love for God the Father and you understand His integrity, you don't need to claim specific promises for every situation. You rest on the entire essence and integrity and person of God. If you love God, you therefore know God.

b. Therefore, once you have virtue-love, you're not afraid of anything whereby you need promises, for now you know the One who makes the promises. You understand God's integrity, and therefore, you are dependent on Him. If you are dependent upon God and His integrity, then having fear is not only an insult to God, but it is blasphemous and sinful.

c. Fear actually causes two categories of punishment. First, you punish yourself through self-induced misery. Then when fear gets into arrogance, divine punishment follows. So you can be punished three ways by fear: by yourself, by your peers, and by God.

e. Virtue-love, mentioned three times in this passage, represents all the problem-solving devices.

4. So the great problem-solving devices of spiritual adulthood eliminate fear by equating living with dying and adversity with prosperity.

a. Fear of death destroys capacity for life; it is a sign that you are still in spiritual childhood. Death is the last thing in the world that should concern you, for you have no control over the manner of your death or time of your death. When you realize your death is strictly in the Lord's hands, the one time when the Lord's wisdom will prevail over your volition, there is no excuse for having fear of death.

b. Then once you understand there is nothing to fear in death, then you begin to realize there is nothing to fear in life.

c. Fear is a great motivation in life for most people. Yet fear is totally destructive; it destroys love. Making wrong decisions out of fear destroys your capacity for life.

d. Many people spend so much time being afraid of death, or of dying, or of starving, or of being poor, etc., that they do not enjoy life. They have no zest for life and no capacity for life. The one person in this world who has zest and capacity for life is the spiritually mature believer.

e. Fear of adversity destroys capacity for prosperity. When prosperity comes, you're so afraid that you will lose it that, in your fear, you have absolutely no capacity for that prosperity. You may stash it all away for "a rainy day." That's no capacity for life. Therefore, you do not enjoy prosperity when it comes.

5. Fear is the enemy of the protocol plan of God. It destroys any possibility of suffering for blessing in its three stages.

7. The Church Age believer cannot think, apply doctrine, or solve problems through the thinking or mind of another believer. You must have the doctrine in your own soul and solve your own problems. To the extent that you depend upon others for your spiritual application to life, to that extent you are a loser.

1. Fear, like anger, is a sin of emotion. Emotion cannot think, apply doctrine, or function in a crisis. Emotion has no doctrinal content, when the emotional complex of sins are involved. There is emotion which is not sinful. There is good and bad emotion. Fear is the application of nothing to adversity, resulting in less than nothing.

2. When arrogance pulls the pin of the grenade, fear is a part of the fragmented life.

a. In normal emotion, the emotions respond to the authority and thinking of the prefrontal lobes of the soul.

b. In abnormal emotion, the emotion controls the frontal lobes of the soul and blanks out all thinking. Abnormal emotion produces fear, worry, anxiety, anger, and hatred, resulting in violence, which is anger and hatred blocking the normal restraints from the prefrontal lobes.

4. Fear can never think under pressure. Believers in the emotion of fear cannot apply doctrine and handle the problem. When emotion takes over, doctrine is erased.

5. Courage is thinking doctrine and functioning under pressure as if there were no abnormal circumstances, no crisis, or no pressure. Courage is claiming promises in adversity; using the ten problem-solving devices; and functioning under the privacy of your royal priesthood to think, to apply, and to metabolize doctrine with your own intellect. However, fear makes you a loser.

6. The status of spiritual self-esteem begins the grace function of cognitive self-confidence, i.e., thinking in terms of metabolized doctrine in your own right lobe. This is the dynamics of divine viewpoint in the frontal lobes of the soul.

7. The Church Age believer cannot think doctrine, apply doctrine, or solve problems through fear or through the mind of another believer.

8. Fear is emotional. The spiritually adult believer eliminates emotion as a criteria for Christianity, since emotion cannot think, cannot apply doctrine, cannot learn or use the problem-solving devices, and cannot rationalize or estimate the situation from the divine viewpoint.

9. Fear is the emotional means by which people fail under any kind of pressure or even normal circumstances. Courage is thinking doctrine under pressure, claiming promises of God under adversity, understanding the utilizing the ten problem-solving devices of the protocol plan for the Church Age.

10. Since fear is a sin of emotion, it is necessary to understand more about emotion. (See also the doctrine of Emotions.)

a. The emotional believer defines the status of the believer who does not have the ability to think doctrine or to use problem-solving devices.

b. The status of spiritual self-esteem in the Christian way of life begins the grace function of cognitive self-confidence, which is the antithesis of fear. Such a believer who thinks in terms of metabolized doctrine and the ten problem-solving devices can put fear in its proper place and also experience legitimate emotion.

c. The believer in spiritual adulthood eliminates emotion as the criterion for Christianity, since emotion cannot think, cannot apply doctrine, cannot rationalize, and cannot estimate a situation. When emotion is out of line in the soul, it results in irrationality and its accompanying sins of fear, worry, anxiety, and anger.

d. Emotion is not capable of using the problem-solving devices of the protocol plan of God.

(1) Normal emotions respond to your frame of reference. Normal emotions are subordinate to your intellect. When doctrine is in your intellect, emotions can become legitimate if they are subordinate to that doctrine.

(2) Abnormal emotions tear you apart (like a nagging woman). There must be a balance between your emotions and the right lobe of your soul. What you really are is what you think on the inside. Good social protocol has normal emotion related to it. Emotion is often the animation of what we think.

f. The Bible has a great deal to say about the emotions of the soul, often using psychological nomenclature to express the concept of emotion.

(1) The Hebrew word KILJAH refers to the fat pads of the kidneys, but it is used figuratively for the emotions in Psalm 7:9, 62:12; Jeremiah 11:20, 17:10.

(2) The Greek word NEPHROS is used in the New Testament for emotions, translated in the KJV "reins," in Revelation 2:23.

(3) Another Greek word, SPLAGCHNON, is literally translated "guts" or "entrails." It is used for emotions in 2Corinthians 6:12.

(4) Another Greek word, KOILIA, is used for emotions in Romans 8;16 and Philippians 3:19. It also connotes body cavity, stomach, womb, uterus, and intestines. It actually refers to the solar plexus, the nerve center where you feel "butterflies" or activity when excited or nervous.

g. These words for emotion are different from KARDIA, which refers to the intellect or the right lobe of the soul where there is no emotion. The emotions should be subject to the right lobe of the soul, where the doctrine that gives you momentum and wisdom is located.

(1) Jeremiah describes our Lord Jesus Christ as "the Lord of the armies who judges righteously, who tests the emotions and the right lobes" in Jeremiah 11:20.

(2) Jeremiah 17:11, "I, the Lord, search the right lobe, and I test the emotions in order to give to every man according to his modus operandi."

(a) All spiritual momentum and growth and application comes from epignosis doctrine in the right lobe of the soul.

(b) How the Lord judges you depends on which dominates your soul: the heart or the emotions. In the heart, there must be EPIGNOSIS and SOPHIA doctrine.

(c) Note that the Lord searches the heart, but He tests the emotions. He searches the heart for doctrine, and He tests the emotions to see if they are subordinate to the heart or if they control the heart.

(d) If the emotions dominate the heart, then the modus operandi of the believer is heretical, as with pentecostals.

(3) Psalm 26:2, "Examine me, O Lord, and test me; test my emotions and test my heart." In other words, see that my emotions are subordinate to my intellect and to Bible doctrine. The heart must be tested for its content of doctrine and its control of emotions.

(4) Revelation 2:23, "And all the churches will know that I am He who investigates the emotions and the right lobes [hearts]." God is constantly investigating your life. He investigates your heart for doctrine. Without doctrine in your heart, a vacuum is created, causing your emotions to automatically dominate your heart. This results in emotional revolt of the soul.

(5) Proverbs 23:15-17, "My son, if your right lobe [heart] is wise, my own right lobe [heart] will be glad; and my emotions will rejoice when your lips speak what is right. Do not let your right lobe [heart] envy sinners, but live in respect for the Lord all the day."

(a) When you hear truth, you have a norm and standard for truth from doctrine in your heart, and therefore, you respond emotionally.

(b) When you "live in respect for the Lord all day," your right lobe controls your emotions. That refers to occupation with the person of Jesus Christ.

i. When emotion takes over control of the soul, fear and emotion become inseparable. Emotion is irrational arrogance. It has no thought, no doctrinal content, no common sense.

j. Even normal emotion is not the criteria by which you are to evaluate your spiritual life. Your spiritual life is what you think, not what you feel.

k. Believers who make emotion the criterion for their spiritual life generally have four basic problems.

(1) Such a believer's emotional pattern distracts him from the execution of the protocol plan of God, Romans 16:17-18. "Now I urge you, brethren, be alert for those who are causing dissensions and apostasies contrary to the doctrine which you have learned. For such believers do not obey our Lord Jesus Christ, but they obey their own emotions, serving themselves; and by their smooth and flattering speech, they deceive the hearts [right lobes] of the stupid."

(2) Therefore, emotion hinders postsalvation epistemological rehabilitation; i.e., the perception, metabolization, and application of Bible doctrine. 2Corinthians 6:11-12, "O you Corinthians, our mouth [means of communicating doctrine] has been open face to face with you [in doctrinal teaching]; our right lobes have been enlarged [by learning more doctrine]. Therefore, you have not been hindered by us [Paul, Apollos, Timothy]; you have been hindered by your own emotions."

(3) Such a believer makes a god out of his emotions, Philippians 3:18-19. When emotion becomes your god, you're fragmented and ripe for the tongues movement. Philippians 3:18-19, "Many [cosmic] believers keep walking, concerning whom I have communicated to you many times, and now continue communicating even though weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ, whose destiny is destruction, whose god is their emotion, whose fame is by means of dishonor [whose glory is their shame], who keep on thinking about earthly things [wrong priorities from a fragmented life]."

(4) Such a believer's unrestrained or uncontrolled emotional pattern is the basis for criminality, violence, hatred, anger, total involvement in the arrogance complex, which means bitterness, vindictiveness, jealousy, implacability, self-pity, and guilt reaction. So there is a very close relationship between the arrogance complex and emotional sin. Such a believer's unrestrained or uncontrolled emotional pattern is related to the five categorical problems, especially #2, fear.

l. All you have by applying the emotional sins of fear, worry, anger, and anxiety to the problems of life is nothing, or even worse, the manufacture of greater problems. Nothing (emotion) added to something (your problems) is still nothing.

n. Courage is the ability to think under pressure. Cowardice is the dominance of emotion under pressure.

o. Emotion is irrational arrogance, using feeling or emotion as the criterion for life instead of Bible doctrine.

(1) Normal emotion is under the authority of the right lobe or heart. It responds to the thinking of the epignosis doctrine in the right lobe.

(2) In abnormal emotion, emotion controls the right lobe or mentality of the soul. Though Christians do operate this way, it is not spiritual at all.

q. Abnormal emotion produces sins of worry, fear, anxiety, anger, hatred, and it is the motivation for many other sins such as gossip, slander, maligning, judging, violence and even murder.

r. In the human soul, there exists a male and a female part, just as the human body has both male and female hormones. Intellect is the male part of everyone's soul, and it must dominate the emotions. Emotion is the female part, and it must be dominated by the precordial frontal lobe.

s. Therefore, emotion is a responder and reflector of thinking and/or norms and standards. Emotion is the feeling reflex of the soul.

t. As a system of response and feeling, emotion in itself does not contain the following five things: the ability to reason, content of thought, common sense, vocabulary as a tool for mental function, or doctrinal content.

u. Emotion is never the criterion for Christian experience. This means you are not spiritual because you feel spiritual or because you have an emotional or ecstatic experience.

v. Alleged speaking in tongues is blasphemy; no one has legitimately spoken in tongues since August of 70 A.D.

w. Under the principle of fear, worry, anxiety, and irrational arrogance, emotion is a major distraction to the execution of the protocol plan of God for the Church Age.

y. Emotional arrogance results in constant fear, worry, anxiety, and insecurity in the most secure plan ever provided in this world, i.e., God's protocol plan. Therefore, it is blasphemous to be in a state of fear or worry. Emotional arrogance converts reality into illusion and hallucination.

z. In other words, emotions are wonderful when subordinate to doctrine. Emotions are a disaster when they control your soul. The signs of such control include arrogance, fear, worry, anxiety, and insecurity.

11. Emotion is defined as that complex, biochemical and physiological process or function concerned with the somatic expression of feeling. Therefore, it is obviously not a part of the Christian way of life, which is spiritual.

a. Emotion is the basis for thymopathic behavior, i.e., the disturbances of effects.

c. The conscious sensation of emotions in the soul is a mechanism of emotion in the brain area.

d. The effects of emotion on the organic functions of the body is the parasympathetic effects of the transmission of too many or too few motor nerve impulses to the muscles of the body.

e. The prefrontal lobes are the cortical areas associated with thought, motive, and decision. Normal emotions respond to thought in the frontal lobes, especially the right lobe.

f. Even where the frontal lobes have been removed through a frontal lobotomy, the person is still capable of emotional activity. Such a person's emotions are unstable, illustrating the relationship between emotion and certain sins such as anger, fear, hatred, and anxiety. Emotion without thought is a tragic complication of life.

a. Such sins as anger, fear, hatred, worry, and anxiety are emotional. These sins of emotion result in other sins of emotion, such as violence and murder.

b. Emotion is also related to human power and human influence, but never to divine power and the mystery doctrine of the Church Age.

a. Under the protocol plan of God for the Church Age, emotions are not adequate guides for motives, thoughts, decisions, or actions from the believer.

c. The Church Age believer must learn to distinguish between postsalvation epistemological rehabilitation as the means of executing the protocol plan of God, and emotional experience which can be normal or abnormal. But whether it is normal or abnormal, it is not actually the spiritual life, only a response to it.

d. Normal emotional experience results from subordinating emotion to the intellect. Abnormal emotional experience results in either subordinating the intellect to emotion, or the emotional bypassing of the norms and standards of God's protocol plan.

e. In other words, abnormal emotional experience may express itself in pseudo-spirituality of ecstatic experience which has nothing to do with the filling of the Spirit. Or it may express itself in emotional sins like hatred, worry, anxiety, fear, anger, violence, or even murder.

f. The emotional activity of fear, worry, and anxiety has no cognitive self-confidence from Bible doctrine. Therefore, there is no doctrinal conceptualism and no function of the problem-solving devices of the protocol plan of God.

g. The sinful activity of hatred, fear, anger, and worry promote arrogance undermine momentum in God's plan through the fragmented life.

h. The application of nothing to something is nothing. You cannot apply emotion or its results, e.g., hatred, anger, fear, worry, and anxiety, to the problems of life and ever come up with solutions. By applying emotions in themselves, all you have is more problems and the intensification of your problems.

i. The application of fear to the problems of life only creates more problems and greater problems. So the fear reaction of nothing added to something results in less than nothing, i.e., the vacuum which is the blackout of the soul.

j. The function of fear, with its corollaries of worry, anxiety, anger, and hatred, is both a sin and an abnormal emotion resulting in the arrogance of non-identity. The arrogance of non-identity distracts the believer from executing the protocol plan, and it disorients him to the fantastic problem-solving devices provided under that plan.

k. Since emotion is a biochemical and physiological process concerned with the somatic expression of feeling, it is obvious that emotion is not part of the Christian way of life. The by-products of emotion also cannot be a part of the Christian way of life; in fact, they are a part of the fragmented life.

14. Fear can be related to peer pressure, and it produces two categories of arrogance. Both categories result in fear and instability. This results in a self-identity problem, which spawns other problems. The two categories of arrogance are:

a. The better-than syndrome, in which the believer thinks he is superior to all other believers. But when someone better comes along, he cracks up and gets into emotional sins.

b. The worse-than syndrome, in which the believer thinks he is inferior to all other believers. This produces arrogant subjectivity.

c. Peer pressure arrogance produces irrational self-deception, which in turn results in inordinate ambition, inordinate competition, which multiplies emotional sins, motivating violence, and even murder.

d. Such a believer has reached the saturation point of self- induced misery, and has blocked out the problem-solving devices that could help him.

15. Fear is a contradiction of the protocol plan of God for the Church Age. Contradictions cannot exist in the protocol plan. Therefore, the fragmented life is not a part of the protocol plan.

a. Arrogance contradicts the protocol plan. Emotionalism contradicts the protocol plan. Ignorance of doctrine contradicts the protocol plan. Ignorance of the problem-solving devices contradicts the protocol plan.

b. Contradictions are eliminated through postsalvation epistemological rehabilitation. Contradictions are eliminated and replaced by the ten problem-solving devices.

c. God is perfect; therefore, His plan is perfect. Perfect God has designed a perfect plan for imperfect persons.

d. Fear, worry, and anxiety are a contradiction to God's plan, purpose, and will for your life.

e. No believer can execute the protocol plan while in a state of fear, worry, anxiety, hatred, anger, and other emotional sins.

E. Fear is used as an expression of category one love or occupation with Christ. This is documented in many passages of Scripture, including 2Samuel 23:2-3; Neh 5:9; Job 28:28; Psalm 19:9, 34:11-12, 111:10; Proverbs 1:7, 9:10, 10:27, 22:4; Mal 3:16; Ephesians 5:21.

F. Fear is a mental attitude sin, 1Samuel 18:12,29. 1Samuel 28:20, "The fear of man provides a snare, but he who trusts in the Lord shall be promoted."

G. Fear is a sign of reversionism. 1Samuel 18:12,29, 28:20. Saul was afraid of David.

H. Fear is prohibited in the grace plan of God. Deut 31:6,8; Josh 8:1; 1 Chr 28:20; Isaiah 41:10; 2Timothy 1:7. "Fear not, for I am with you."

I. Maturity is characterized by courage or lack of fear. Psalm 3:6, 56:3, 11; Hebrews 11:27. This is true even when surrounded in battle.

J. True love is the absence of fear, 1John 4:18. It is impossible to have fear and be occupied with Christ at the same time.

K. There is a legitimate fear of failure to utilize the faith-rest drill and make doctrinal application, Hebrews 4:1. Believers should be afraid of subjective thinking and failure to claim the doctrines, promises, and logistical grace of God.

1. It is possible to learn many doctrines and yet fall apart in historical or personal disaster.

2. Sudden disaster often places the believer under great pressure and moves him into panic where he cannot concentrate on the doctrine he has learned.

3. The difference between fear and courage is the ability to concentrate under great pressure.

4. The coward cannot think under pressure, while the man of courage concentrates under the same pressure.

5. Concentration is required in learning and metabolizing doctrine, but is required to a greater extent under a pressure situation.

6. Adversity, suffering, stress, and disaster have the ability to destroy concentration and cause your rate of learning to exceed your rate of learning.

7. The suddenness or intensity of a disaster hinders the believer from concentrating on doctrine he has already learned.

8. Normal reaction to disaster can be fear and panic, so that the believer cannot apply doctrine.

a. Deut 31:6,8, "Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid of them or tremble because of them for the Lord your God is the one who goes with you. He will not fail you. He will not desert you. The Lord Himself goes before you, therefore He will be with you. He will never leave you nor desert you. Do not be afraid. Do not be discouraged."

b. Isaiah 41:10, "Therefore, the Lord is the One who goes ahead of you; do not fear or be dismayed."

10. Believers in all stages of spiritual growth can find themselves suddenly in the fear-panic ploy of the cosmic system from some sudden disaster. Every believer must be prepared for this. Psalm 56:3, "When I am afraid, I will trust in you." Faith always selects something (a promise from God, a doctrine) that is stronger than the pressure that comes from stress.

11. The solution to fear is found in the faith-rest drill, by which the believer claims a promise to stabilize the mind. You cannot function under the faith-rest drill unless you have spiritual strength. 1Corinthians 2:5, "That your faith should not be in the wisdom of man [human viewpoint], but in the power from God [Bible doctrine in the soul]." 2Corinthians 5:7, "For we walk by faith and not by sight."

1. Exodus 14:8 states that when the Jews left Egypt, they left in a state of arrogant defiance. This caused Pharaoh to change his mind about letting the Jews leave and motivated him to pursue and attempt to destroy them.

2. Instead of using prayer and the arrogance skills, the Jews at the Red Sea should have been using the faith-rest drill and other problem solving devices. They should have understood what Moses had been teaching them-that God has a plan for their life. Exodus 14:13-14, "But Moses said to the people, `Do not fear! Take your stand and watch the deliverance of the Lord which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever. The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent."

b. The Jews saw the problem; Moses saw the solution. The people faced the problem and were afraid. Moses faced the same problem and was confident from the application of metabolized doctrine in his soul.

c. You cannot run around expressing fear and at the same time apply doctrine. Fear and the mechanics of the spiritual life are mutually exclusive. You are in one or in the other. You will face your D-day.

d. A sign on the door of an English pub during the battle of Britain during World War II said, "Fear knocked at the door. Faith answered. No one was there."

a. The problem solving devices on the FLOT line of the soul prevent the outside pressures of adversity from becoming the inside pressures of stress in the soul. The FLOT line prevents this.

b. Adversity is the outside pressure of life. Stress is the inside pressure of life, like fear, worry, anxiety. When there is no problem solving device on the FLOT line of the soul, then the adversity becomes stress and stress overruns the command post of the soul and puts the spiritual life out of action.

c. Adversity is inevitable, even necessary; stress is optional, not necessary. Stress is not necessary when you deploy the problem solving devices on the FLOT line of your soul. You deal with your own problems in the privacy of your soul and avoid panic, fear, and arrogance.

d. God gives you spiritual freedom and human freedom so you can make your own choices and learn to take responsibility for your own decisions.

e. Stress in the soul is tantamount to sin nature control of the soul. Therefore stress in the soul overruns the command post of the heart and puts the spiritual life out of action.

f. People who live by fear are intimidated by life. Fear is a false variable rejected by every absolute of Bible doctrine. 1John 4:18, "Fear does not exist in virtue-love; but virtue-love drives out fear, because fear has self-punishment, and the one who fears has not been matured by means of virtue-love."

(1) Virtue-love is an absolute of Bible doctrine which rejects the variable called fear. The absolute drives out the false variable. The filling of the Holy Spirit produces virtue-love, Galatians 5:22.

1. Emotion can respond to doctrine, but emotion cannot apply doctrine to experience. In an emotional state you become irrational.

2. Emotion is the feeling reflexes of the soul, therefore, never designed by God to be construed as the criterion for the spiritual life.

4. Emotion is not a tool for cognition nor the criterion for the spiritual life.

5. The emotional complex of sins includes fear, worry, anxiety, hysteria, anger, hatred, bitter jealousy, loathing, malice, tantrums, irrational violence, murder, egotistical irrationality related to arrogant self-righteousness, insensitivity about self but hypersensitivity about how others fell about you, denial, projection, self-pity, revenge motivation and modus operandi, guilt.

b. Guilt is emotional feelings of culpability, arrogant preoccupation with the correctness of one's behavior stemming from self- absorption.

c. Guilt is a manifestation of the need for and absence of problem solving devices.

6. Hebrews 13:5-6, "Let your way of life be free from the love of money. Be content with what you have; for He Himself has said, `I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you,' so that we confidently say, `The Lord is my helper. I will not be afraid. What shall man do to me?'"

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1. The filling of the Spirit is the first power option in the Christian life (the second power option is doctrinal orientation to life) and the second problem solving device for the execution of the protocol plan of God.

a. 1Thessalonians 5:18-19 says, "In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God for your benefit in Christ Jesus. Stop quenching the Spirit." When you quench the Holy Spirit by the sin nature controlling the soul, by stress in the soul producing sin, by false doctrine in the soul, or by using defensive mechanisms instead of the problem solving devices, you have no divine power at your disposal. Therefore, the importance of the recovery of the power of the Holy Spirit.

b. The recovery of the power of the Holy Spirit is the subject of Ephesians 4:30, "Furthermore, stop grieving the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption." These believers were commanded to stop grieving the Holy Spirit which they were doing. This was a wake up call to get back on track and start living their own spiritual life.

3. Spirituality or the filling of the Holy Spirit links salvation adjustment to the justice of God to maturity adjustment to the justice of God. To make it from salvation to maturity requires the filling of the Holy Spirit and the daily intake of Bible doctrine. We already have perfect righteousness judicially imputed at salvation.

4. The filling of the Holy Spirit is God the Holy Spirit controlling the soul of the believer. Descriptions of the filling of the Holy Spirit in Scripture.

5. The believer starts the Christian way of life with the Holy Spirit controlling the soul. We have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and the filling of the Holy Spirit simultaneously at the point of salvation. As soon as we sin, the old sin nature controls the soul. When we rebound, the Holy Spirit again controls the soul. Carnality is loss of the filling of the Holy Spirit. Carnality is neglect of rebound, causing sin to multiply. Sin minus rebound equals carnality. The filling of the Holy Spirit is recovery through rebound adjustment to the justice of God, Proverbs 1:23; 1John 1:9.

6. At the moment of salvation, the Holy Spirit indwells the body of the believer. Because the body is the headquarters of the old sin nature, the Holy Spirit sets up His headquarters in the body for counteraction. The battlefield is the soul. This counteraction is spearheaded by the filling of the Holy Spirit. We are always indwelt by the Holy Spirit. The filling of the Holy Spirit means God the Holy Spirit controls the soul. He does not control when we sin (grieve Him) or perform human good or evil (quench Him). When we rebound (1John 1:9), the Holy Spirit controls our soul again.

a. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is documented in Romans 8:9; 1Corinthians 3:16, 6:19-20; Galatians 3:2, 4:6; John 7:37-39, 14:16-17.

b. "Anointing" or "unction" of the Spirit is found in 1John 2:20,27. These terms are synonymous with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, but not with the filling of the Holy Spirit, Acts 4:27, 10:38; 2Corinthians 1:21.

c. The objective of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is to break the sovereignty of the old sin nature's rule over human life experientially. The baptism of the Spirit breaks it positionally, Galatians 5:17.

d. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is the principle of victory over the old sin nature, while the filling of the Holy Spirit is the function of victory over the old sin nature.

e. While the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is permanent, the filling of the Holy Spirit fluctuates due to the trends of the old sin nature and the function of our volition toward those trends. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit involves the body of the believer; the filling of the Holy Spirit involves the soul of the believer.

7. Since the filling of the Holy Spirit is functional, it is the means of executing the objectives of the Christian way of life. Anything you do in the energy of the flesh is not the Christian way of life.

B. The filling of the Spirit is one of the seven ministries of God the Holy Spirit to us at the moment of salvation.

1. We do not earn and we cannot deserve the ministry of God the Holy Spirit to us. Ephesians 4:30, "Furthermore, stop grieving the Spirit, the God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption."

2. The Holy Spirit plays a far greater role in the Church Age than any other dispensation except the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union. The Church Age is the only dispensation in which every believer is a priest, an ambassador for Christ, and entered into union with Christ. The precedence for the Christian way of life comes from our Lord's ministry on earth, not the Mosaic Law.

3. There are seven ministries of God the Holy Spirit to the Church Age believer at the moment of salvation.

a. Efficacious grace. God the Holy Spirit takes the faith alone in Christ alone of the spiritually dead unbeliever and makes it effective for salvation. The call of God to believe in Christ comes from God the Holy Spirit making the gospel clear to the unbeliever-common grace. The Holy Spirit put His seal on our efficacious grace, guaranteeing that our non- meritorious faith in Christ is effective for salvation. You are saved by grace through faith alone. Ephesians 1:13, "In whom also when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation-in whom also when you had believed, you were sealed by means of the Holy Spirit with reference to the promise." The sealing ministry of God the Holy Spirit is His signature guarantee of five different things.

b. Regeneration or being born again. Mankind emerges from the womb with biological life and spiritual death. At the moment of birth, God creates the immortal soul life and imputes to biological life. Jesus said to a religious Pharisee, "You must be born again." The Holy Spirit creates a human spirit at the moment we believe in Christ. At that moment, God the Father imputes His very own eternal life to that human spirit. That is being born again. Human life puts us in a hopeless status-spiritual death; regeneration makes us spiritually alive. Regeneration is the ministry of God the Holy Spirit at salvation in creating a human spirit, which causes the believer to become instantly trichotomous-body, soul, and spirit, 1Thessalonians 5:23; Phile 25. The soul is the residence of human life; the human spirit is the residence of eternal life.

c. The baptism of the Spirit is the ministry of God the Holy Spirit in taking every new believer and entering him into union with the person of Jesus Christ. We are in union with Christ forever. This is how the Holy Spirit makes Christ Lord. You cannot make Christ Lord. This is positional sanctification. At the same time as entering us into union with Christ, a new spiritual species is created. Race, culture, and gender are no longer an issue. This adds up to equal privilege and equal opportunity to execute the plan of God for the Church. In addition, we are royal family of God and have the eternal life of Christ. We have a double portion of eternal life. We are also the sons of God. We are joint-heirs with Christ. We share His election and His destiny. Acts 1:5; 1Corinthians 12:13; Galatians 3:26-28; Ephesians 4:4-5. The baptism of the Spirit is not an experience, not an emotion.

d. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit, 1Corinthians 3:16, 6:19-20; 2Corinthians 6:16. The Holy Spirit dwells in the body of every believer as of the moment of faith in Christ for the purpose of making the body of the believer a temple of the Holy Spirit. Your body is made a temple of the Holy Spirit for the indwelling of Christ. Just as in the Age of Israel, Jesus Christ dwelt in the Tabernacle and later the Temple as the Shekinah Glory as a guarantee of blessing to Israel, so He now indwells the body of each believer as a guarantee of escrow blessings for time and eternity.

e. The filling of the Holy Spirit occurs at the moment of salvation by God the Holy Spirit entering us into our very own palace-the operational divine dynasphere. Our Lord was entered into the prototype divine dynasphere at the point of physical birth, since He was filled with the Spirit from birth. The divine dynasphere is a part of our portfolio of invisible assets. There are eight gates in the divine dynasphere:

(3) Gate three is enforced and genuine humility, objectivity, and teachability. God makes war against the arrogant believer but He gives grace to the humble believer.

(4) Gate four is momentum from perception, inculcation, and metabolization of Bible doctrine circulating in the seven compartments of the right lobe of the soul.

f. The distribution of spiritual gifts occurs at the moment of salvation. The Lord Jesus Christ was involved in the initial distribution of spiritual gifts at the beginning of the Church Age, Ephesians 4:7-8. But subsequently, God the Holy Spirit distributes all spiritual gifts. All of these gifts are necessary for the function of the team. These gifts only function under the filling of the Spirit plus the metabolization of doctrine.

g. The sealing ministry of the Holy Spirit, Ephesians 1:13-14; Ephesians 4:30. This is a guarantee of His ministry of efficacious grace, of eternal life, of eternal security, of our portfolio of invisible assets, and of a resurrection body.

C. The ministry of God the Holy Spirit to the Church Age believer is the same ministry that He had to our Lord Jesus Christ during the First Advent.

1. The first power option of our spiritual life is the same filling of the Spirit that occurred for the first time in history in our Lord Jesus Christ. The relationship of God the Holy Spirit to our Lord Jesus Christ in the incarnation set the precedence for Church Age believers. During the dispensation of the hypostatic union, our Lord's humanity was sustained by the filling of the Holy Spirit. This was prophesied in the Old Testament.

a. Isa 11:2, "And the Spirit [God the Holy Spirit] of the Lord [God the Father] will rest on Him [Jesus Christ], The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and power, The Spirit of knowledge and occupation with the Lord [God the Father]."

b. Isa 42:1, "Behold, My servant, whom I sustain; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I will put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations." The fulfillment of this prophecy is declared in John 3:34, "For He [God the Holy Spirit] whom God [the Father] has sent speaks the doctrines from God; for He does not give the Spirit by measure." Matthew 12:28, "If I cast out demons by the Spirit of God [and I do], then the kingdom of God has come to you."

c. During the First Advent, our Lord's humanity was filled with the Spirit as a part of the doctrine of impeccability. Luke 4:14, "And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit." Our Lord prophesied in John 14:16-17, 26; 16:13-14 that the disciples would have the Holy Spirit to teach them when the Church Age began. In the context of Luke 4:17-21 our Lord read from Isaiah 61:1, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me." Then He declared, "This Scripture is fulfilled in your presence today."

d. During His earthly ministry, our Lord offered the filling of the Holy Spirit to the disciples, knowing that they would need this power because of their key role at that time and in the future. None of them accepted the offer and asked for the Spirit. Luke 11:13, "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?" Ten days before the Church Age began, on the day of our Lord's ascension, our Lord gave the Holy Spirit to the disciples without their asking. This established a precedent for the Church Age. John 20:22, "And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, `Receive the Holy Spirit.'"

2. At the moment of salvation through faith in Christ we have four principles involved in our relationship to the Holy Spirit.

a. Every believer is indwelt by God the Holy Spirit and cannot lose that indwelling presence of the Spirit all the days of his life on this earth. Our body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, in order to provide the indwelling presence of God the Son. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit indwells every believer during the Church Age.

b. Every believer is simultaneously filled with the Holy Spirit at the moment of salvation and loses that filling the first time he sins.

c. However, the believer recovers the fellowship of the Spirit, the filling of the Spirit, through the rebound technique.

d. The filling of the Spirit is tantamount to residence inside your very own palace-the operational type divine dynasphere. Fellowship with the Holy Spirit is synonymous with the filling of the Spirit.

3. As the believer understands the ministry of God the Holy Spirit in two dispensations, his love for the Holy Spirit increases by quantum leaps. Our Lord constantly made choices for the function of the two power options in the function of His spiritual life. The two power options-the filling of the Spirit and metabolized doctrine-played a major role in our Lord's earthly ministry.

a. Jn 1:14, "The Word became flesh and He tabernacled among us and we beheld His glory, as of the uniquely born One from the Father, full of grace [grace orientation] and truth [metabolized doctrine]."

b. Heb 9:14, "How much more then shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" The one offering that was greater than all the Levitical offerings was the offering of our Lord Jesus Christ on the Cross. Our Lord offered Himself and remained filled with the Spirit while bearing the judgment for our sins. The filling of the Spirit gave Him the power not to resent any sin that was imputed to Him for judgment.

c. Our Lord on the Cross established a precedence or our life in the Church Age, as explained by Hebrews 12:2, "Be concentrating on Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our doctrine, who because of His exhibited happiness, He endured the cross, disregarding the shame, then He sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." You cannot separate loving Jesus Christ from loving God the Holy Spirit. We have a far greater power in the filling of the Holy Spirit, so that we do not have to react to injustice.

4. Our love for God the Holy Spirit begins when we metabolize the doctrine of the ministry of God the Holy Spirit at the point of our faith in Christ, when we begin to learn what God the Holy Spirit did for our Lord Jesus Christ, when we begin to learn how the first power option (the filling of the Spirit) that has been given to us is the same power option that sustained our Lord on the Cross. The ministry of the Holy Spirit for us at salvation adds to our love for Him. Your capacity to love God the Holy Spirit is directly related to your capacity to love God the Father and God the Son.

1. The deity of the Holy Spirit is established in Trinity passages which reveal the coequality of the Spirit with God the Father and God the Son, 2Corinthians 13:14.

2. In the Old Testament, God the Holy Spirit is called Jehovah, Isaiah 6:8-9 cf Acts 28:25; Jeremiah 31:31-34 cf Hebrews 10:15.

3. Certain divine attributes are ascribed to the Holy Spirit which emphasize His deity.

a. Eph 5:18, "Stop being intoxicated with wine by which is dissipation [a lifestyle of self-absorption to try and solve the problems of life], but keep on being filled with the Holy Spirit."

(1) Dissipation refers to a disorderly lifestyle, an excessive lifestyle of dependence on the wrong things to solve the problems of life. Loss on control of oneself means loss of clear rationality with regard to the options of life, which is detrimental to your spiritual life. Hence, dissipation is loss of true self-orientation in life.

(2) This is an analogy by antithesis. The present passive imperative of the Greek verb PLEROO means to be filled, to be controlled. It means to fill up a deficiency. The filling of the Holy Spirit fills up our deficiency of power to execute the spiritual life.

(a) At the time of writing the present tense was a tendential present, which indicates an action that is mandated but is not actually taking place. For the rest of the Church Age believers it becomes a durative present tense, which is used for an action or state of being in the past continuing into the present; hence, present linear aktionsart.

(b) The passive voice indicates that the Church Age believer is acted upon by God the Holy Spirit inside the operational type divine dynasphere.

(3) The Greek preposition EN plus the instrumental of agency can be translated "keep on being controlled by means of the Spirit."

(4) The believer is filled with the Holy Spirit when two synonymous conditions occur: the Holy Spirit controls the soul of the believer and the believer resides in his very own palace-the divine dynasphere. Spirituality is the filling of the Spirit.

b. 2Corinthians 3:17ff, "Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is [spiritual] freedom. But we all, with an unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory [the humanity of Christ under the filling of the Spirit] to glory [the Spirit filled life of the believer who executes the protocol plan of God], as it were from the Lord, the Spirit."

(2) The Holy Spirit provides spiritual freedom from the control of the sin nature when we are filled with the Spirit.

(3) We have an unveiled face when we are filled with the Spirit and learning the mystery doctrine of the Church Age. The Bible is a mirror in which we see ourselves as God sees us through the objectivity provided by the filling of the Spirit.

(4) The glory of the Lord is humanity of Christ in hypostatic union. We are being transformed into the same image as the humanity of Christ under the filling of the Spirit through seeing ourselves in the word of God through the ministry of God the Holy Spirit.

c. Eph 3:16, "that He may give you, on the basis of the riches of His glory [your portfolio of invisible assets and the unique assets of the Church Age], to become strong by means of power through His Spirit in your inner being." This is the ministry of God the Holy Spirit metabolizing doctrine in your inner being, circulating that doctrine in the seven compartments of the stream of consciousness, and giving you the ability to make right decisions from a position of strength. We acquire strength through the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit inside the divine dynasphere. This is what our Lord prophesied for the Church Age in John 14:26, 16:12-14. This was Paul's great teaching in 1Corinthians 2:9-16.

(1) This does not mean spirituality by works, by legalism. The positive side clarifies the difference between the means and result in spirituality. In spirituality, the Holy Spirit is the grace provision, Acts 1:8. The means after salvation is rebound. The result is the filling of the Spirit and the function of the Christian way of life.

(2) Spirituality and spiritual growth are related but they are not the same thing. They are two aspects of the Christian life. Spirituality is an absolute based on the filling of the Spirit. Spiritual growth is a relative concept based on the amount of doctrine circulating in our stream of consciousness. As we advance in spiritual growth, much of the time we are spiritual and sometimes we are carnal.

(3) As an absolute, spirituality or the filling of the Spirit is the ministry of God the Holy Spirit to the believer's soul providing not only the teaching of the Word but providing metabolized doctrine circulating in the seven compartments of the stream of consciousness.

e. Gal 5:1, 13-18, 22-25 is a dissertation on the importance of the filling of the Spirit as far as the execution of the spiritual life.

(1) Gal 5:1, "It is for [spiritual] freedom that Christ has set us free; therefore keep standing fast and do not become entangled again in the yoke of slavery [carnality]."

(2) Gal 5:13-18, "For you were called to freedom, brethren; do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh [sin nature], but through virtue-love serve one another. For the entire Law has been summed up in one doctrine, in the statement, `You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' But if you bite and devour one another, take care lest you be consumed by one another. Therefore, I command you, keep walking by means of the Spirit, and you will not carry out the lust patterns of the sin nature. For while the flesh [sin nature] desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit is totally opposed to the sin nature; for these two are constantly opposed to each other, so that you do not do the things you wish. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law." The Christian way of life cannot be based on the Mosaic Law. The Mosaic Law was never designed to be a spiritual way of life. The best the Mosaic Law can do is make you very legalistic.

(3) Gal 5:22-25, "But the production of the Spirit is virtue-love, happiness, prosperity, patience, integrity, generosity, faithfulness, humility, self-discipline; against such there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us advance in our spiritual life by means of the Spirit."

a. Eph 4:30, "Stop grieving the Holy Spirit, the God by whom you have been sealed for the day of redemption." This is the retroactive progressive present active imperative of the Greek verb LUREO. Grieving the Spirit is carnality or life in cosmic one. This is a command to stop sinning and persisting in cosmic one without rebound. This command emphasizes the fact that spirituality and carnality are mutually exclusive. They are absolutes, 1John 1:6-7; 1John 2:10-11.

b. The command to not live in cosmic two is found in 1Thessalonians 5:19, "Do not quench the Spirit."

3. The positive and negative commands emphasize imitation as the issue in the spiritual life. We either imitate God or people, Ephesians 5:1.

b. Carnal believers imitate unbelievers, 1Corinthians 3:3; Galatians 5:19-21; 1John 1:6.

F. The filling of the Holy Spirit is related to spirituality, growth, and victory over the sovereignty of the old sin nature, 2Peter 1:2-5. The metabolization of doctrine after the filling of the Holy Spirit supplies your integrity, and your integrity supplies knowledge for growth and passing momentum tests.

G. Since spirituality is the modus operandi of the royal priesthood, it is not subject to the Mosaic Law, Romans 8:2-4.

1. Rom 10:4, "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes." The Law demands perfect righteousness; believing in Christ provides for us this requirement of the Mosaic Law.

1. Christ is magnified in the inner life of the believer, 2Corinthians 3:3; Ephesians 3:16-17; Philippians 1:20-21.

2. The filling of the Holy Spirit is the basis for the perception, metabolization, and application of Bible doctrine, John 14:26, 16:12-14; 1Corinthians 2:9-16; 1John 2:27.

3. The believer is guided by God only while filled with the Holy Spirit, Romans 8:14-16.

4. The true function of worship for the royal family, John 4:24; Philippians 3:3.

5. Effectiveness in the believer's production; e.g., in witnessing, Acts 1:8; in prayer, Ephesians 6:18.

6. The glorification of Christ in the human body, John 7:39 cf 16:14; 1Corinthians 6:19-20.

8. Partnership with the divine essence, 2Peter 1:4. Our partnership with Christ as royal family only functions when we are filled with the Holy Spirit, Philippians 2:1-2.

1. In the Church Age, the believer represents the absent Christ, who is now at the right hand of the Father.

2. Therefore, the purpose of the filling of the Holy Spirit during the Church Age is related to the fact that Christ is absent.

3. Therefore, the character of the filling of the Holy Spirit during the Church Age is different than the character of the filling of the Holy Spirit during the Millennium when Christ is on the earth.

4. Hence, the function of the filling of the Holy Spirit during the Church Age is designed to provide the ability to learn doctrine and to apply doctrine as the fulfillment of the Christian way of life.

5. In this way, the Church Age believer fulfills his ambassadorship, representing Christ who is now at the right hand of the Father. We need special power to do this, and the divine power of the Holy Spirit is the basis on which we operate.

6. Emotion is not our energy. We all have emotion as part of our capacity for life, but emotion is not the filling of the Holy Spirit or the fuel for the Christian way of life. The filling of the Holy Spirit is never emotional in the Church Age.

7. There are two warnings against emotion and ecstatics to the royal family of God.

a. Rom 16:17-18, "Keep an eye out for those who are emotional and contrary to doctrine you've learned. They deceive the stupid by flattering speech."

8. Emotions are designed to respond to knowledge in the right lobe, but emotion is not a Church Age characteristic of the filling of the Holy Spirit. However, it is normal to emote over doctrine you learn.

9. Only in the Millennium when Christ is present on earth does emotion and ecstatics characterize the filling of the Holy Spirit. For in the Millennium, the filling of the Holy Spirit is designed to appreciate Christ, and therefore, emotions and ecstatics are legitimate, Joel 2:28-29.

10. Believers in the Millennium are said to be indwelt with the Holy Spirit, Ezekiel 36:27, 37:14; Jeremiah 31:33.

11. Believers in the Millennium are also filled with the Holy Spirit, Isaiah 29:19, 32:15, 44:3; Ezekiel 39:29; Zechariah 12:10.

1. The believer must be able to distinguish between personality and spirituality. Spirituality is not personality. Yet too often a sweet personality passes for being someone spiritual. Watch out for these types.

2. Spirituality by personality imitation consists of imitating someone who is sweet. People who do this are stupid. They imitate such superficial things as mannerisms, dress, the absence of cosmetics, neglect of grooming; pious speech such as "amen," "praise God," or "God willing;" or mannerisms such as poor posture or expressions of sincerity.

3. Spirituality by "yielding" is a concept that has arisen from the mistranslation of Romans 6:13. "Yielding" is meaningless. It assumes spirituality by dedicating your life, witnessing, or constant prayer. But production is the result of the filling of the Holy Spirit, never the means.

4. Self-crucifixion is alleged to be spirituality. But there is no such thing as experiential self-crucifixion. This is a false interpretation of Romans 6:1-13. This is nothing but extreme asceticism.

5. Spirituality by obeying taboos such as giving up cards, drinking, movies, dancing, smoking, mixed bathing, etc., has no substantiation in Scripture.

a. A taboo is something forbidden by tradition, social usage, or by some form of authority. A taboo is a prohibition set up by a religious group, but is not forbidden by the Word of God.

d. Anything an unbeliever can do is not the Christian way of life. To offend people because they are legalistic is to be just as wrong as the legalist. Evil is always offended by anything related to grace.

e. It is not our objective to superimpose our own idea of right and wrong on others. We have personal taboos, and others have their own. We are each to live our own life as unto the Lord without superimposing our personal standards on other believers. Live and let live.

f. When people are positive to doctrine, don't get in their way with taboos. The exception to this is the right of parents to superimpose standards on their children.

(1) If someone can bully you into setting up a system of taboos for spirituality, you will become a legalist also.

(2) If you reject and react to taboos, often you take it out on doctrine and become a reversionist.

6. Spirituality by relativity says that a person is spiritual because his sins are more respectable than someone else's .In a typical comparison, a subtle type of sinfulness is compared to a shocking type of sinfulness, resulting in a false rationalization. Included in this rationalization is the delusion that there are degrees of spirituality.

7. Spirituality by ecstatics is based on the fact the emotions are not under the authority of the mentality of the soul, which is called the emotional revolt of the soul. As a result, ecstatics and stimulation have no meaning, no foundation, no relationship to reality, and no relationship to spirituality; e.g., the tongues crowd, the holy-rollers. What is regarded as ecstatics is actually a stage of reversionism. This problem exists in believers accustomed to using their feelings for their criterion, and who do the same in their spiritual life.

8. Spirituality by ritualism alleges that spirituality is the consistent observance of certain rituals like baptism and communion.

9. Program spirituality says that becoming involved in church programs determines one's spiritual status. This includes such things as giving, attendance, participation in prayer meetings, bringing visitors, and teaching Sunday school. Program churches are designed to carry weak pastors. This system caters to approbation and power lust.

K. Spirituality is the link between salvation and maturity adjustment to the justice of God.

1. Maturity adjustment to the justice of God is gained through postsalvation epistemological rehabilitation; i.e., the perception, metabolization, and application of Bible doctrine inside the divine dynasphere.

2. This process depends upon the ministry of the Holy Spirit in making doctrine understandable to the believer.

3. This means the filling of the Holy Spirit is absolutely necessary for the perception of Bible doctrine, John 14:26, 16:12-14; 1Corinthians 2:9-16; 1John 2:27.

4. Without Bible doctrine resident in the soul, there is no maturity adjustment to the justice of God.

5. Without the filling of the Holy Spirit for the teaching of Bible doctrine, there is no growth.

1. Oil is used as an analogy to the filling of the Holy Spirit. It lubricates. Friction wears out machines; oil eliminates friction.

a. By way of analogy, the filling of the Holy Spirit makes it possible for us to assemble with other believers in a local church, where no two are in the same stage of spiritual growth.

b. Certain people will be obnoxious to you. However, the filling of the Holy Spirit protects you from getting your eyes on people, and He gives you understanding and toleration of others.

a. By way of analogy, the filling of the Holy Spirit produces an understanding of others and a tenderness toward others as you realize they have problems also. Consequently, a breach is healed before there is any further difficulty.

b. The filling of the Holy Spirit also heals your bitterness, anxieties, and fear as you grow with doctrine.

3. Oil is used for light. This refers to the ministry of the Holy Spirit in illuminating the Word of God.

4. Oil propels or accelerates, as in diesel fuel. Therefore, the filling of the Holy Spirit is necessary for advance to maturity.

5. Oil invigorates; it provides energy for athletes (rub down). The filling of the Holy Spirit gives energy for the execution of the Christian way of life.

6. Oil warms. The ministry of the Spirit provides the function of the Christian way of life. We are different people when we are controlled by the Spirit.

7. Oil adorns; it is used for grooming. Likewise, the Holy Spirit produces in us a beauty, an animation, a thoughtfulness, and an energy which we would not otherwise have. The filling of the Holy Spirit produces in us everything worthwhile, thereby advancing us in the right direction with concentration, poise, and good manners.

1. The filling of the Holy Spirit comes through rebound. After you rebound, Bible doctrine must be the number one priority in your life. Without that priority, you can lose your advance overnight.

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1. This is an important principle in the interpretation of history from the divine viewpoint.

2. Illustrations of this principle from modern history include the French revolution and Bolshevik revolution.

3. This doctrine will explain any future national suffering, and the reason for the administration of the cycles of discipline to a client nation.

1. After 400 years of slavery, the Jews were destined to become the first client nation to God under the great leadership of Moses. But to warn against making bad decisions as a free people, God gave Moses information regarding the four generation curse. This information explains why problems continue and become worse from one generation to another.

2. Ex 20:4-5 is the first statement on this subject as a part of the decalogue. Exodus 20:4-5, “You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on earth beneath or in the waters below. You will not bow down to them or be caused to serve them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sins of their fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who despise Me.”

a. This passage is a warning against idolatry, practiced by the vigorous and powerful Canaanite giants occupying the land. Part of their power came from demonism related to idolatry.

b. The Ten Commandments were, in effect, the Constitution for Israel, designed to help these former slaves establish the concept of freedom in their new nation. The mandates are designed for the protection of freedom.

3. This curse does not apply to anyone who believes in Jesus Christ or to any establishment-oriented unbeliever. Hating God refers to rejection of Jesus Christ. So this curse never applies to the believer unless he spends his life in the cosmic system. Negative volition is the basis of culpability; becoming a believer breaks this four generation curse principle.

4. Ex 20:6 adds comfort to this curse, “But showing mercy to thousands who love Me and guard My mandates.” Even in the fifth cycle of discipline, God always shows mercy to those who live their spiritual life in accordance with God’s plan for their life. No disaster is greater than the Bible doctrine in your soul.

5. Deut 5:8-10 is the second statement of this curse, and is identical to Exodus 20:4-6. Repetition is for inculcation, so that the rate of learning will exceed the rate of forgetting.

6. The third statement of this curse is Exodus 34:6-7. “Then the Lord passed in front of him [Moses] and proclaimed, `The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in mercy and truth, guarding His mercy for thousands [believers], and forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished. He punishes the iniquity of the fathers on the children and on the grand children to the third and fourth generation.’”

a. After three or four generations, the curse completely burns itself out and there is always a new start after four generations who have been under this curse. This curse is never given where people respond to grace.

b. The abuse of parents creates environmental handicaps which are passed on to their children. The children, therefore, cannot handle their own flaws and problems because of the environmental handicaps.

c. These flaws are never understood or addressed because the people involved are reacting to the abuse and the failure of their parents.

7. The fourth statement is given in Numbers 14:18. “The Lord is slow to anger, and abundant in mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgressions and sin, but He will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation.” Each generation is responsible for its own iniquity which is passed on culturally from one generation to the next.

b. Juvenial crime increases in each generation. Life is cheap in the forth generation.

a. The four generation curse always begins when people reject legitimate authority, and it always begins in the home.

b. Though the Jews were given Moses, the greatest human authority ever given to a people by God, the Jews just out of slavery could only think of their freedom. Therefore, they rejected Moses’ authority, associating authority with the slave master.

c. When people are first emancipated from slavery, they’re prone to thinking that freedom means license to do anything, even to break laws.

2. God’s system for a nation calls for the balance of freedom and authority, which is the basis for the laws of divine establishment.

a. Freedom without authority is anarchy; authority without freedom is tyranny. Both are wrong.

b. Our protection from enemies without is the authority of the military. Our protection from enemies within is the police force and the judge. So it takes authority systems to protect your freedom.

3. Your freedom as a human being does not become operative until after you leave home. Your parents are your first lesson of authority, as authorized by divine institution number three, the family. This is why all national suffering is related to the family, and why the sins of the father are visited on the son.

a. We’re born under the authority of parents, because until we learn to submit to authority, we suffer in life under the law of volitional responsibility. All seeming advantages in life are lost if one rejects authority.

b. So rejection of authority is the most prominent cause for suffering in life. Divine institution number one is your free will, and you choose to accept or reject authority from very early in life.

c. Authority is necessary for the very function of life. You never enjoy your freedom or have capacity for freedom until you understand and accept authority.

4. The first generation of a four generation curse will reject authority beginning in the home, Proverbs 30:11, “A generation who curse their fathers and do not bless their mothers.”

a. People reject the first basic authority of parents because they want to do what others do.

b. The greatest suffering in life comes from rejection of parental authority. The key to the stability of any nation is the home.

c. You must learn obedience before you have capacity to use freedom. All capacities in life start with capacity for authority. No one learns how to live until they can identify and respect authority, regardless of the person in authority.

d. Arrogance begins with rejection of authority. Satan’s arrogance began by the rejection of God’s authority in eternity past.

5. Verse 12 speaks of the parents who teach their children self-righteous arrogance and consequent hypocrisy in the second generation. “A generation who are pure in their own eyes, and yet they are not cleansed from their filth.” During this second generation, there is the intensification of self-righteous arrogance. This is found in “Christian” homes where there is tremendous legalism and blind arrogance.

6. Verse 13 describes the third generation as having locked-in arrogance. “A generation whose eyes are so arrogant that their eyelids are raised in arrogance.”

7. Verse 14 describes the fourth generation, “A generation whose teeth are swords, and whose jaws are set like knives.”

b. We see something of this today in believers who use violence in their crusader arrogance against such things as abortion. Christian leadership today is advocating rebellion against government, civil disobedience, and violence. These are signs that we’re in the fourth generation.

8. In the first generation you reject authority, in the second generation you have a self-righteous justification for arrogance. As a result, the third generation has locked-in arrogance, and the fourth generation has inordinate ambition and lust for power. The fourth generation is the most corrupt of all, having accumulated all the sins of the past three generations plus their own.

9. Everyone wants power, lusting for everything they want. The fourth generation gets everything by hypocrisy; i.e., being the nice guy, doing anything to get what they want.

10. Our first generation was during World War I during the presidency of Woodrow Wilson. The second generation was during the Depression. The third generation was the Vietnam generation. We’re now in the fourth generation, especially among young people. This is a very serious problem, since the fourth generation can cause the destruction of our client nation under the five cycles of discipline.

1. You are not in the four generation curse unless you are culpable. Culpability is always based on volition, the volition of each individual in any generation of human history. You are only responsible for your own sins and not the sins of your parents. The four generation curse never exists except where the children of the fourth generation commit the sins of their parents in the third generation.

a. Culpability is liability for divine punishment or discipline from the supreme court of heaven. God holds you responsible for your sins.

b. Culpability is based on the volition of each person in each generation regarding the sins of their parents.

c. No one is culpable unless they repeat the sins of their parents from their own volition or follow the volition of other apostates in their own generation.

2. Deut 24:16, “Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor shall children be put to death for their fathers; everyone will be put to death for his own sin.”

3. Only those children who react to child abuse or who learn from their parents the evil of their parents and become culpable are involved in the four generation curse. Apart from one’s own culpability no one is under the four generation curse. The sins of the parents have to be repeated in the children of the next generation for culpability and punitive action to be administered. Though you have to sin for yourself to be culpable, the point is that you are influenced. You have a tendency to repeat the sins of your parents, i.e., the arrogance, the vanity, and the mental attitude sins. Choosing to repeat these sins from your own volition results in passing these down to the fourth generation, where all hell breaks loose in revolution, violence, and the destruction of a nation.

4. Apart from your own culpability, no one is under the fourth generation curse. It can be broken in any generation. The simplest way to break the curse is by faith in Christ and the subsequent execution of the protocol plan of God.

5. The sins of the father have to be repeated in the next generation for culpability and punitive action to be administered from God.

6. Otherwise, where there is no culpability, the law of grace applies. Deut 7:9, “Know, therefore, that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God guarding the covenant and His mercy to the thousandth generation of those who love Him and keep His mandates.” Salvation by grace through faith breaks this curse every time for the individual. This verse particularly refers to reaching personal love for God and spiritual self-esteem.

7. Ps 100:5, “For the Lord is good, and His love endures forever. His faithfulness continues through all generations.” The word “good” refers to God’s perfect essence. God deals personally with those who break the four generation curse.

8. Jer 31:29-30 says God only visits the sins of the parents on the children of those who reject or disobey Him.

1. Deut 6:4-9, SHAMA ISRAEL, ADONAI ELOHENU, ADONAI ECHAD. This is translated, “Listen [hear], O Israel, Jesus Christ is our God, Jesus Christ is unique.” This verse emphasizes the importance of the client nation providing freedom for people to make positive or negative decisions toward the Gospel and doctrine. This verse defines the necessary ingredients for a client nation.

a. The qal imperative of SHAMA means to be motivated to listen and hear. A client nation must have a people who have humility and are willing to learn Bible doctrine. This teachability overflows to every area in life.

b. ADONAI ELOHENU, “the Lord is our God,” means that as goes the believers, so goes the nation. The size of the pivot determines the prosperity of the nation. Nothing else really counts. No client nation is ever conquered by another nation; it can only go down by destroying itself.

c. ADONAI ECHAD, “the Lord is unique,” means that believers must be motivated to advance to spiritual maturity whether in the ritual plan of God during the Old Testament or in the protocol plan of God during the Church Age. Though the principles of spiritual advance are similar in both dispensations, there are major differences. One is that Israel had visible historical impact under the ritual plan of God; but in the Church Age, the believer is to have invisible historical impact by executing the protocol plan of God.

2. Deut 6:5 defines the motivation necessary to advance spiritually. “Love the Lord your God with all your right lobe and with all of your soul and with all of your strength [power—the three stages of the adult spiritual life].” Having all the doctrine you can get into your stream of consciousness is love for God. This is harmonious rapport with God, which is the spiritual life.

3. Deut 6:6-7, “These words [doctrines] which I am commanding you today shall be in your hearts [stream of consciousness]; you will teach [inculcate] them to your children and shall talk about them: when you sit in your home, when you walk along the road, when you lie down, when you get up in the morning [before you go to bed and when you wake up].” The four generation curse is broken by salvation through faith in Christ plus perception and metabolization of doctrine by parents teaching children the spiritual life. You teach by repetition—inculcation. 4. Deut 6:9, “Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates.” 5. See also Deut 7:9; Psalm 100:5; Jeremiah 31:15-16.

1. In Deut 21, God taught Moses the hard way to break the four generation curse, which is the solution for the incorrigible. Deut 21:18-21, “If a parent has a stubborn and rebellious son [incorrigible teenager, incapable of being corrected, unmanageable] who does not obey his father and mother, consequently, he will not listen to them when they discipline him, his father and mother shall seize him and bring him before the judges in the court of his town. They shall testify to the judges, `This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious; he will not obey us; he is immoral and a drunkard.’ Then all the men in the town will take him out and stone him to death. You must purge evil from among you; all Israel will hear it and be restrained.” Capital punishment restrains evil; capital punishment restrains crime.

2. To perpetuate the client nation, the four generation curse must be broken either through evangelism and doctrinal teaching or through the punishment of the incorrigible juvenile delinquents.

3. In every generation, there is always a certain number of young people whose arrogance and rejection of authority results in immoral behavior, e.g., rape, drug addiction, burglary, arson, violence, etc. Crime is one of the greatest dangers to freedom. If crime is not controlled by the judicial system, your freedom is gone.

4. One preventative solution is to teach your children when they are young, as taught in Deut 11:18-21, “You will inculcate these doctrines of Mine in your right lobes and minds. Tie them as notes on your hands, and as training aids tie them around your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit down at home, when you travel, before you go to bed, and when you wake up. Write these on the door frames of your houses and on your gates, so that your days and the days of your children may be many in the land that the Lord promised to give to your ancestors, as long as the heavens remain above the earth.”

a. Parents are to teach doctrine to the child’s heart (stream of consciousness)—the spiritual understanding.

b. Parents are to teach doctrine to the child’s mind—the academic understanding.

5. The key to the perpetuation of the client nation is always related to the next generation of young people—whether or not they receive proper training in authority orientation, are evangelized, grow in grace, and form a pivot.

1. Children have often been used by parents as justification for their own negative volition toward God’s will and God’s plan.

2. Two generations of Jews were destroyed as a result of the four generation curse: the Exodus generation, and the generation captured by the Babylonians. In each case, the loser generation had rejected Bible doctrine and used their children as an excuse for their apostasy and failure. And in each case, the children who were used as an excuse turned out far better than their parents, and they broke the four generation curse.

a. Verses 1-25 describe the reconnaissance team sent out by Moses to determine the best way to capture the land. The team returned with two different opinions.

c. Verse 30 is the minority report from Caleb and Joshua. Caleb silenced the people who were already upset from hearing that giants inhabited the land. Numbers 13:30, “Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and spoke, `We should by all means invade the land and take possession of it, for we will definitely overcome it.’” Caleb had mixed the promises of God with his faith. He looked at the land of Canaan from the divine viewpoint. He was in harmonious rapport with God.

d. Verse 31-33 is the majority report. Numbers 13:31-33, “But the men who had gone on the mission with him said, `We cannot attack these people, for they are stronger than we are.’ So they disseminated a bad report to the Israelites about the land they had explored, saying, “...There also we saw the giants.’” The carnal believer looks at the problem. They were frightened by the giants; they were in a state of emotional revolt of the soul.

4. Num 14:1-4 is the failure of the first generation, the beginning of a four generation curse, but which was cut off in the next generation. “That night all the people stayed up all night and screamed; consequently, they cried all night [expression of their negative volition and frustration]. And all Israel grumbled [griped] against Moses and Aaron, and the entire congregation said to them, `If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if we had only died in this desert! And now, why is the Lord bringing us into this land to be killed by the sword? And our wives and children will be taken as plunder? Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt [in slavery]?’ So they said to each other [worked each other up], `We will elect a new leader and go back to Egypt.’”

5. The doctrinal viewpoint is given in Numbers 14:6-10, represented again by Joshua and Caleb. Part of the message in verse 9, “Do not rebel against the Lord; do not fear the people of the land. We will eat them up [their protection is gone]. The Lord is with us; do not be afraid of them.” Verse 10 is the reaction of the people, “But the congregation said, `Let’s stone them.’”

6. The pardon of the Exodus generation through the intersession of Moses is found in Numbers 14:20-23, “Therefore the Lord answered, `I have pardoned them on the basis of your word [the intersession of Moses]; nevertheless, as surely as I live, and as surely as the glory of the Lord shall fill all the earth none of the men who have seen My glory and My miraculous signs which I have performed in Egypt and in the desert, where they tested Me ten times and have not listened to My voice, shall by no means see the land which I promised to them with an oath to their fathers, nor shall any of those who despised Me see it.’” God had given them the most gracious pardon in all of human history. But no sooner were they pardoned and forgiven and they were off again into sinning. The continued sinning until they died the sin unto death. Despising the Lord means failure to fulfill the spiritual life given by the Lord. The pardon of the Exodus generation had no impact on their scar tissue of the soul.

7. Num 14:29-34 is the statement of God’s discipline to the first generation. “In this desert, your bodies will fall, every one of you, twenty years old or more, who was counted in the census and who has grumbled [complained] against Me. Not one of you will enter the land, except Caleb and Joshua. As for your children that you said would be taken as plunder, I will bring them in to enjoy the land that you have rejected. But you, your bodies [corpses] will fall in this desert. Your children during this time will be shepherds, here for forty years, suffering for your unfaithfulness until your corpses lie in the desert. For forty years, one year for each of the forty days you explored the land, you will suffer for your sins, and you will know what it is to have Me against you.”

a. The second generation would not only go into the land and conquer it, but they would enjoy it! The difference between the first and second generation was attitude toward Bible doctrine. So the four generation curse was broken in the second generation.

b. God used the suffering experienced by the second generation to provide for them providential preventative suffering, in order to strengthen their spiritual self-esteem so that when they marched into the land, they would form a strong pivot.

c. So this was a combination of two categories of suffering, both the law of volitional responsibility and divine discipline. They had self- induced misery and divine discipline.

1. In the New Testament, there is one great illustration of the four generation curse, found in Matthew 2:14ff, Matt 14, and Acts 12, 24, and 25. It’s the story of a half Jewish and half Arab family.

2. Its first generation was that of Herod the Great. Herod had every opportunity for salvation, but he rejected Christ as Savior. Herod killed three of his own sons, forty five members of the Sanhedrin, and all the children in Bethlehem, Matt 2. God used Herod to postpone the Jewish revolt against Rome for 100 years.

3. Herod the Great was followed by his son, Antipas the Fox, Matt 14, representing the second generation under the curse. He took his wife, Herodius, the wife of his uncle Philip, from the third generation. Antipas had the greatest opportunity to believe in Christ, Luke 23:4-12. He died in misery and poverty.

4. The third generation was Herod Agrippa I, mentioned in Acts 12. He also rejected Christ for salvation and was responsible for the martyrdom of James.

5. The fourth generation was represented by three of the great- grandchildren of Herod: Herod Agrippa II, and his sisters Bernice and Drucilla. All three heard the preaching of the Apostle Paul, and all three rejected it. Acts 24-25 is the story of Felix and his wife Drucilla, the sister of Herod Agrippa II. Bernice became the mistress of the emperor Titus.

1. Jeremiah 11 delineates the old covenant, the Mosaic Law, which was basis of freedom. But that was rejected so that the Jews went back into slavery.

2. In Jeremiah’s day, the four generation curse on idolatry reached its peak. Therefore, the fifth cycle of discipline was administered, Jeremiah 16:10-13.

3. So in Jeremiah 31, Jeremiah looks way out ahead to the Millennium, where he sees Christ returning to the earth and perfect environment. There he sees the New Covenant, which will give to the world the greatest freedom it has ever known.

4. Therefore, maximum knowledge of doctrine in the Millennium will break the four generation curse under the function of the New Covenant to Israel, Jeremiah 31:29-34.

R. B. Thieme, Jr. Bible Ministries 5139 West Alabama, Houston, Texas 77056 (713) 621-3740

a. Giving is an expression of worship which commemorates the grace policy of God. Giving in the Church Age is the function of the believer’s royal priesthood, and since it is, giving must be accomplished in privacy without being pressured. There are four categories of Christian service, one of them is giving.

b. The first category of Christian service is the function of your spiritual gift under the filling of the Holy Spirit. The second category of Christian service is related to your royal priesthood and it includes prayer, giving, and the execution of the protocol plan of God through learning, thinking, solving. Christian service is related to your royal ambassadorship and that includes evangelism, personal witnessing, administration in the local church, function in the mission field, working with young people or functioning in the various legitimate Christian service organisations. The fourth category of Christian service is related to the laws of divine establishment and it includes military service, law enforcement, government, but never activism.

c. Giving is further defined as the presentation of money or other valuable commodities which may be used in the sustaining the ministry of communication in the spiritual gift of either evangelism or pastor-teacher.

2. Motivation is the major issue in giving. People think in terms of the amount given but that is wrong. In fact, even if you cannot even give you can still give through your mental attitude. Mental attitude is the key to giving, not the amount given — 2Corinthians 9:7. “ … for God loves a grace-oriented believer” — corrected translation. Grace orientation, problem-solving device number 4, is the true basis for giving. 2Corinthians 9:8 goes on to say that when you find this kind of person God provides the money to give — “for God is able to make all grace abound unto you.” God graciously provides extra finances for the grace giver to give. For the only legitimate system of giving is a grace giver giving to a grace cause.

a. Verse 9 is a quotation from Psalm 112:9 — Just as it stands written, He scatters abroad [God gives extra money to certain people], He gave to the poor; His righteousness abides forever. God provides under grace but God’s grace righteousness also meets at the point of grace giving.

b. Verse 10 — Now He who supplies seed to the sower [capital] and bread for food, shall supply and multiply your seed for sowing, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;

c. Verse 11 — You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.

d. Verse 12 — This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanksgiving to God.

e. There is a passage that starts with a mental attitude, never giving under compulsion, and ends up in many expressions of thanksgiving to God. Giving is a mental attitude based upon a problem-solving device — grace orientation.

3. Giving is an expression of mental attitude in every circumstance of life, 2Corinthians 8:2.

4. Giving must express an attitude toward the Lord before it can express an attitude toward people, 2Corinthians 8:5.

5. Giving depends on consistent function of post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation - perception, metabolization and application of Bible doctrine, 2Corinthians 8:7 — “But just as you excel in everything, in faith-rest, and in doctrine, and in knowledge, and in all diligence, and in love [impersonal] from you to us, and also you excel in this grace giving.” They excelled in giving not on the basis of whether they liked someone or not but on the basis of impersonal love, the virtue of the subject rather than the attractiveness of the object.

a. Precedence for giving is derived from the dispensation of the hypostatic union and is predicated on grace, 2Corinthians 8:9 — “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich [He was eternal God], yet for your sakes he became poor [true humanity in hypostatic union], so that you through his poverty [being judged for our sins on the cross] might become rich.”

b. Giving is a mental attitude related to an overt act, 2Corinthians 8:12 — “For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable on the basis of what one has [willingness counts for giving], not on the basis of what one does not have.”

c. Therefore giving is related to motivation from metabolised doctrine in the right lobe of the soul, 2Corinthians 9:7 — “Each one as he has determined in his right lobe, so give; not from distress of mind, or under compulsion: for God loves a gracious giver.” The key to giving is grace orientation.

d. God in His matchless grace provides both the spiritual motivation and the monetary capital for grace giving, 2Corinthians 9:8.

e. God in His matchless grace provides both the monetary capital for grace giving and makes it part of your Christian service, 2Corinthians 9:10.

f. Generosity of mental attitude results in generosity of giving, 2Corinthians 9:11 — “You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.”

g. Giving is a part of Christian service, 2Corinthians 9:12 — “This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God’s people, but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanksgiving to God.”

h. The concept of giving is also related to two spiritual gifts: the gift of pastor-teacher and the gift of evangelism. The problem here is that the gift of pastor-teacher must make an issue out of two things as a recipient of support from believers. He must make an issue out of the Gospel and, therefore, while he does not have the gift of evangelism he evangelises. And he must make an issue out of “after salvation what?” — what is the Christian way of life? the mystery doctrine of the Church Age. Therefore the pastor must constantly use his spiritual gift to proclaim the Gospel when it is in a passage. If you make an issue out of money you cannot make an issue out of the Gospel. The pastor must never make an issue out of money — 2Corinthians 11:7, “Because I preach the gospel to you without charge …” 2Corinthians 11:8 — “I robbed other churches [like Philippi], taking wages from them to serve you;” Paul wasn’t supported by the Corinthians. He couldn’t have made an issue out of the Gospel and the mystery doctrine. So the Philippian church supported Paul in Corinth.

i. The pastor exchanges spiritual blessings to the congregation in exchange for material blessing from the congregation. Hence the fulfilment of the principle: mutual blessing by association. Philippians 1:5 — “Because of your contribution from the first day until now for the purpose of spreading the gospel;”

j. Giving reflects the mental attitude of the congregation towards their right pastor, Phil. 4:10 — “I rejoice in the Lord greatly, that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed you have been concerned but you lacked opportunity to give.”

k. Giving is the application of Bible doctrine on the part of the congregation, Philippians 4:14 — “And you yourselves also recognized that in the beginning of my ministry with reference to the gospel, when I had departed from Macedonia, not one church contributed to me in the application of doctrine of giving and receiving, except you [Philippians] only.”

l. Giving is a grace production in Christian service, Philippians 4:17 — “Not because I seek the gift from you; but I seek after the grace production of divine good which accumulates to your account.”

m. Giving to one’s right pastor is maximum blessing to the pastor and pleasing to God, Philippians 4:18 — “Moreover I have received all of your gifts and I have an abundance: I have been filled with blessing, having received from Epaphroditus the things [money] from you, a fragrant aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God.”

n. The grace concept of giving is found in both the Old and the New Testament. Proverbs 11:24 - “There is the one who gives generously, yet he becomes more prosperous; and there is also the one who holds back in giving what is fitting, and he becomes impoverished.”

o. There is a second principle in Proverbs 11:25 — “The generous person will be prosperous: and he who gives water will himself also be caused to have water” — agricultural economy relating, of course, to irrigation.

p. The grace concept of giving in the New Testament: 1 Cor. 16:2 — “On the first day of the week let each one of you put aside, and save on the basis of his prosperity, that no collections be taken when I come.”

1. The Hebrew word for Hades is sheol, and it refers to a vast subterranean area of the departed dead of the human race and certain categories of angelic creatures. It is estimated to be in the heart of the earth but that is not necessarily it. Several passages imply this but the location is really unknown. The implication comes when Abaddon, the most incorrigible of the demons, is released from the Abyss and there is an opening there and they come right up out of the earth. That is where we decide that it must be in the heart of the earth. The dying are said to go to sheol in Numbers 16:30; Ezekiel 31:15,17. Those who are believers of the Old Testament were said to be delivered into the power of sheol, Hosea 13:14; Psalm 49:16. In the Septuagint, the Greek translation, Hades is used for the Hebrew sheol. Prior to the resurrection of Christ all human dead went to Hades where two compartments were designed to receive them, namely Paradise and Abraham’s bosom. Between the two there was a great gulf fixed. All unbelievers are still in torments until the great white throne judgment. In addition there are two compartments in Hades for fallen angels, and they are separate compartments — Tartarus and the Abyss. Tartarus is reserved for the fallen angels involved in the infiltration and cohabitation of Genesis chapter six. They are called “sons of God,” beni-ha-Elohim. The Abyss is a special prison for certain demons whose restraint is necessary for the continuation and perpetuation of human history. They had to be removed from the scene in order for the angelic conflict to continue.

2. Hades: the first compartment. Nomenclature: Paradise/Abraham’s bosom. It is defined as the place where all the Old Testament believers went after physical death. Illustration: Luke 23:39-43, “And one of the criminals who was hanging there hurled insults at him [at Christ], saying, ‘Are you not the Messiah? Deliver yourself and us!’ But the other criminal answered, and rebuked him, saying, ‘Do you not have respect for God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? In fact, we indeed justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but he [our Lord] has done nothing wrong.’ And he kept repeating, ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom!’ And he [Jesus] replied to him, ‘Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise’.” Paradise is the residence, then, of the Old Testament believers who died up until the Church Age.

Our second passage on Paradise is found in Ephesians 4:8-10, “For this reason the scripture says [according to Psalm 68:18], ‘When he [Christ] had ascended up on high, he led captives [Old Testament believers] in a triumphal procession from their state of captivity [Paradise],” hence they were transferred from Paradise to the third heaven. [This is also taught in Matthew 27:52-53] (Not this doctrine only, that he ascended, what does it imply except that he [Christ] also descended into the lower parts of the earth? The one who has descended is the same person also who ascended far above all the heavens),” the third heaven, the new Paradise.

3. The prophecy is given in Psalm 16:10, “For you will not abandon my soul in Sheol; neither will you allow your Holy One [Jesus Christ] to undergo decay [reference to His resurrection].” His soul came out of Hades, not Hell, for the resurrection, Acts 2:27,31, the fulfilment.

4. The second compartment is called Torments. This is the residence of all unbelievers until the end of the Millennium. In the great white throne judgment, Revelation 20:11-15, “Hades emptied its dead,” the second resurrection for judgment in the lake of fire. There are only unbelievers in the second resurrection. In Luke 16:19-31 we have the details of Torments and the great gulf fixed. In the description of the last judgment in Revelation 20:13 Hades “gave up the dead which were in it.” Verse 14 says, “Both death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This [the lake of fire] is the second death.”

1. The Hebrew word SHEOL originally meant in post-Biblical Hebrew the deep parts of the sea. But both Sheol and the Greek word Hades are used to refer to anything that is subterranean and large. Therefore, they are used for the vast subterranean place of the departed dead of the human race and the abode of certain fallen angels.

2. Both Sheol and Hades are mistranslated “hell” which adds to the confusion.

3. HADES is used from classical times and before for the underworld and the realm of the dead.

4. Sheol is sometimes used for the grave, as in Genesis 37:35, 42:38; 1Samuel 2:6 and other passages.

5. The dying are said to go to Sheol, which is not the grave, but to the underpart of the earth. This is a reference to the soul, Numbers 16:30; Ezekiel 31:15, 17.

6. Prior to the resurrection of Jesus Christ, all human dead went to Sheol or Hades where two compartments were designed to receive them. Old Testament believers went to Paradise or Abraham’s Bosom. Unbelievers went to Torments.

7. Those who are believers in the Old Testament are said to be delivered into the power of Sheol, Hosea 13:14; Psalm 49:16.

8. However, since the resurrection of Christ, Old Testament believers have all been transferred to the third heaven as a part of the triumphal procession.

1. In the resurrection of Jesus Christ, two categories of divine power were used.

a. The omnipotence of God the Father sent His human spirit in heaven back to His body in the grave. Thus the Father became an agent in the resurrection, Acts 2:24; Romans 6:4; Ephesians 1:20; Colossians 2:12; 1Thessalonians 1:10; 1Peter 1:21.

b. The omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit sent His soul from Hades back to His body in the grave. Thus the Holy Spirit became an agent in the resurrection, Romans 1:4, 8:11; 1Peter 3:16.

2. The principle is that the power that raised Jesus Christ from the dead is now available to every Church Age believer as a member of the royal family of God. Ephesians 1:19-20, “And what is the surpassing greatness of His power to us who have believed for the working of His superior power, which [superior power] He [God the Father] put into operation [made operational] by means of Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His own right hand in heavenly places.”

3. The same omnipotence of God will raise the Church Age believer at the Rapture of the Church. 1Corinthians 6:14, “Now God has not only raised the Lord, but He will also raise us through His power.”

a. If our soul and spirit are already in heaven, God the Father will provide our resurrection body.

b. If we are alive as a part of the Rapture generation on earth, God the Holy Spirit will provide our resurrection body.

C. Scriptural Documentation for Sheol or Hades. Ephesians 4:9, “(Now this doctrine that ascended, what does it imply, except that He also went down into the lower regions [Sheol or Hades] of the earth?”

1. Job 11:7, “Can you discover the depths of God? Can you discover the limits of the Almighty? It is as high as the heavens; what can you do? Deeper than Sheol; what can you know?” In other words, Sheol is used here for the location of all Old Testament believers. Isaiah 14:9, “Sheol from beneath is excited over you to meet you when you come.”

2. 1Samuel 2:6, “The Lord kills; the Lord makes alive. He brings down to Sheol and He raises up.”

1. Paradise is where the Old Testament believers resided after death before the resurrection of our Lord.

3. Tartarus is where certain fallen angels, called BENI HA ELOHIM in Genesis 6, reside.

a. The Abyss is the location of the demon king, Satan’s right hand man, called Abaddon. He will have quite a future in the Tribulation. Abaddon is mentioned once in the New Testament and nine times in the Old Testament. In Revelation 9, he breaks out of this jail with the help of Satan who has now been cast out of heaven and can never return there again.

1. Paradise or Abraham’s Bosom is a part of Sheol or Hades where all the Old Testament believers went immediately after death. Once departed from the body, their soul and spirit went to Paradise.

2. David wrote a thanksgiving psalm regarding his deliverance from death. In Psalm 116, he states that had he died, his soul would have gone to Sheol. Psalm 116:1, “I love the Lord because He hears my voice and my supplications.” God in His grace spared David, who should have died. Psalm 116:2, “Because He has turned His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live.” This states briefly that his prayer has been answered. He is grateful that he is still alive. Psalm 116:3, “The cords of death entangled me, and the terrors of Sheol came upon me. I found distress and sorrow.” He was dying miserably. Psalm 116:4, “Then I called on the name of the Lord, `O Lord, I beseech You, deliver my soul.’” Psalm 116:5, “The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion.”

3. In David’s prophecy of Psalm 16:10, he said, “You will not abandon my soul to Sheol, neither will You permit Your Holy One to undergo decay.”

a. Notice that David makes a distinction between the grave where the body is located and Paradise or Abraham’s Bosom where the soul is located.

b. David is not speaking about himself, for his body has undergone decay. His soul went to Paradise after he died. David was prophesying about the soul of the humanity of Jesus Christ in Hades after His physical death.

c. No Old Testament believer could go to the third heaven until Jesus Christ had been judged for his sins on the cross. At that point, the Old Testament believers were all transferred in a triumphal procession into the presence of God in heaven.

d. Today, after the cross, when any believer dies, his soul and spirit is absent from the body and face to face with the Lord in heaven.

4. We know Psalm 16:10 does not refer to David but is a prophecy referring to Jesus Christ because it is quoted by Peter in Acts 2:27. “Because you will not abandon My soul to Hades, nor allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.” This verse is then interpreted in Acts 2:31. “He [David] looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades nor did His flesh have time to suffer decay.” Our Lord only spent three days in Hades.

5. . Paul also interprets Psalm 16:10 in the same way in Acts 13:35. “Therefore, He also says in another place [Ps 16:10], `You will not allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.’” Paul explained what that meant in Acts 13:36-37. “For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, died, and he was buried among his ancestors and he did undergo decay. But He whom God raised did not undergo decay.” This is a reference to the resurrection of Jesus Christ, with emphasis on the fact that His human soul returned to His body in the grave by the power of the Holy Spirit before His body could decay.

6. 1Peter 3:18, “For Christ also died once and for all, the righteous as a substitute for the unrighteous, in order that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh but made alive by means of the Spirit.”

7. Where in Hades did the soul of our Lord go? The answer is found in Luke 23:39-43. “And one of the criminals who was hanging there hurled insults at our Lord, saying, `Are you not the Messiah? Deliver yourself and us!’ But the other criminal answered and rebuked him, saying, `Do you not respect God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we have received what we deserve for our deeds; but He has done nothing wrong.’ Then he kept repeating to Jesus, ‘Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom.’ And He replied to him, `Today, you will be with Me in Paradise.’”

a. Even all the criminals knew the message that our Lord Jesus Christ was the Messiah and the Savior.

b. Again, Paradise is the first compartment of Hades. Ephesians 4:9, “(Now this doctrine that He ascended, what does it imply, except that He also descended into the lower regions of the earth?)”

c. This refers to our Lord’s human soul which went to Paradise after His physical death.

d. The soul of our Lord in physical death joined the souls of all the Old Testament believers already there, i.e., all believers who had died during the Old Testament plus all who had died during the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union, which would include Lazarus and John the Baptist.

e. In resurrection, the soul of Jesus Christ was returned to His body in the grave by the omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit.

8. The resurrection of Jesus Christ resulted in transferring all the believers in Paradise into the third heaven. Ephesians 4:8, “Therefore, it [Ps 68:18] says, `When He ascended into heaven, He led a host of captives [Old Testament believers] in a triumphal procession from a state of captivity, and He gave gifts to men.”

a. No believer resided in heaven until Jesus Christ was judged for our sins and was resurrected. That is analogous or tantamount to the triumphal procession.

b. The explanation of this is given in Matt 27:51-53. “And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, and the earth shook, and the rocks were split, and the tombs were open, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were resuscitated. And coming out of the tombs, they entered intothe holy city and appeared to many.”

c. This passage tells us the time when all believers who had died were transferred from Paradise in Hades to the third heaven or “New Paradise.” To show this transfer was occurring, some were permitted to come out of their tombs, take their former bodies in resuscitation, and announced it in the city.

9. Paul visited the third heaven after he was stoned to death, and he saw these believers there, 2Corinthians 11:25ff.

a. On the occasion when Paul was stoned to death, he was permitted to visit the third heaven or new Paradise before he was resuscitated and returned to the earth.

b. Paul describes his experience in heaven in 2Corinthians 12:2-4. “I know a man in Christ, fourteen years ago – whether in the body, I do not know, or out of the body, I do not know; God knows — such a person was caught up into the third heaven. I knew such a man — whether in the body or out of the body, I do not know; God knows — how he was caught up into Paradise, and he heard inexpressible doctrines which a person is not permitted to speak.”

i. Fourteen years previous would have been around 57 A.D. when Paul was in Lystra.

ii. Paul’s experience here was to show that in the Church Age, we do not go to Paradise in Sheol after our death, but all believers since the resurrection of Jesus Christ go directly to heaven at the point of physical death, with the exception of the Rapture generation.

1. Torments is the residence of all unbelievers since the beginning of time. Psalm 9:17, “The unbelievers will turn to Sheol just as nations who forgot God.”

2. Why is anyone in Torments, destined to be judged at the Last Judgment? John 3:18, “He who believes in Me is not judged; but He who does not believe has been judged already because he has not believed in the uniquely-born Son of God.” The only reason a person goes to Torments, later to be condemned to the Lake of Fire, is because he has rejected Jesus Christ as Savior.

3. The first resurrection is for believers only and is formed of four companies.

b. Bravo company is the resurrection of the Church at the Rapture. Since rank has its privileges, the royal family is next in resurrection.

c. Charlie company is the resurrection of all OldTestament saints and Tribulational martyrs at the end of the Tribulation.

d. Delta company is the resurrection of all millennial saints at the end of the Millennium.

4. The second resurrection is for unbelievers only and occurs after the Gog and Magog Revolution at the end of the Millennium. At that point, “Hades will deliver up its dead.” Those dead are located in Torments. They will stand before our Lord seated on the Great White Throne.

a. The unbelievers will not be judged on the basis of their sins, because their sins were already judged on the cross, and the law of double jeopardy applies. Revelation 20:11-15 makes very clear the basis for their indictment. Two sets of books are opened.

i. The Book of Life contains the names of believers only. Anyone who dies without believing in Jesus Christ has his name blotted out of this book.

ii. The Book of Works lists all an unbeliever’s good works. Yet in their totality, they all add up to –R (relative righteousness). -R cannot have fellowship with +R (perfect divine righteousness), so they are condemned to the Lake of Fire forever.

b. The Lake of Fire was designed for the fallen angels. Man was created to resolve the angelic conflict. Those people who go the way of fallen angels, rejecting Jesus Christ, will share the Lake of Fire with fallen angels forever. Luke 16:19-31 is not a parable, but is a true story. Parables never mention proper names. Furthermore, parables are always identified or explained as parables. The narrative in Luke 16:19-31 is a true story, entitled “Dead Men Tell Tales.” This true story describes the first and second compartments of Sheol or Hades during the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union.

d. Verse 19 introduces a wealthy unbeliever. “Now there was a certain rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, and he lived in luxury every day.”

i. There is nothing immoral, wrong, or sinful about being rich. That is an evil philosophy which has extended into communism. There are certain problem solving devices connected with being rich and having an abundance of possessions, just as there are certain problem solving devices connected with being poor. In other words, there are no set of circumstances in life that are free from problem solving devices

ii. There is no excuse for the rich lording it over those less fortunate, and there is no excuse for the poor envying the rich.

iii. When a nation has rich people, it means that nation follows the principles of free enterprise, which are a part of the laws of divine establishment. Therefore, having wealth in a nation is a good and healthy sign that the nation is doing well and right, rather than poorly. The idea of redistribution of wealth is an evil that enslaves the masses, as illustrated by those under the domination of the Russian experiment since 1917.

iv. One of the great problem solving devices of being rich is to ignore the fact that there is life after death. Many become self-indulgent, and forget Mark 8:36-37, “What shall it profit a person if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? Or what shall a person give in exchange for his soul?” So they give no thought to eternity and life after death. Yet time is just a drop in the bucket compared to eternity.

v. Hence, the tendency of the wealthy person is to ignore the fact that only through personal faith in Jesus Christ can an individual have eternal life. “What shall a person give in exchange for his soul?” In other words, there is no way you can buy your way into heaven. Jesus Christ purchased our salvation on the cross, as taught by the doctrine of redemption.

vi. Like anything else in life, money has it problem solving devices and money has its benefits. Money often creates illusions, e.g., money means happiness or security, or that money can buy anything. That is not true. Money cannot buy eternal life, happiness, love, or virtue. It is not true that you are happy because you have money or miserable because you are poor. Happiness and misery are not based upon one’s economic status. People with very little can be extremely happy; people with very much can be very miserable, and visa versa.

vii. Those who lust for money become a slave to money. But those who acquire wealth through the grace of God have discovered how to make money their slave. But the person who regards money as his #1 priority in life becomes a slave to money. Apply the priority principle. You concentrate on whatever is your #1 priority. Then you organize your life around priority #1. Therefore, you organize your thinking around priority #1. This determines the outcome of your life.

viii. The rich man in verse 19 spent all his concentration, time, and life on self-indulgence. Therefore, the Mark 8:36-37 says to him, “What shall it profit a person if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? Or what shall a person give in exchange for his soul?”

ix. Some of the most important things in life cannot be purchased with money, such as eternal life, +H or sharing the happiness of God, love and virtue. Again, those who lust for money become slaves to money, and it’s one of the worst categories of slavery in the world. This principle applies to power as well. Those who lust for power are slaves to power, but those who acquire power through the grace of God can enjoy it without abusing it or stepping beyond their capacity for it.

x. Matt 6:24 says “No one can serve two masters. For he will either hate the one and love the other, or he will hold to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and Mammon [the god of riches].” Mark 10:25, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of the needle [small gate in the main gate through which only a man could pass] than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.” Rich people and poor people are saved exactly the same way, by faith in Jesus Christ. So why is this true? Because the rich man tends to be preoccupied with himself and his life on this earth to the extent that he has forgotten about eternity. He is not interested in Jesus Christ.

xi. This man is described as dressing well and living in the lap of luxury. There is nothing wrong with dressing well and there is nothing wrong with luxury as such. There are problem solving devices with wrong emphasis on status symbols of life, money, power, success, approbation, pleasure, material things, luxury, social life, sex, health; i.e., anything that takes precedence over Bible doctrine.

xii. The wealthy unbeliever enjoys life so much that he forgets about death and eternity. He forgets Hebrews 9:27, which says “It is destined for mankind to die once, but after this the

xiii. So this rich man lusted for wealth and became the slave to wealth. As a slave to money and pleasure, he had no time for the Gospel until it was too late, i.e., after he died.

e. Verse 20 introduces a suffering believer. “And a certain poor man named Lazarus who had been thrown down at his gate, covered with sores [cancerous ulcers],”

i. Lazarus had been thrown or cast at the rich man’s gate, and he would lie there until he died. When our Lord gave this message, Lazarus was already dead. If Lazarus were still alive at the gate of the rich man, the perfect tense of BALLO would have used. But the pluperfect tense indicates that he eventually died there. The perfect tense looks back on the past from the standpoint of the present. The pluperfect tense looks back on the past from the standpoint of the past.

ii. The passive voice of BALLO indicates that Lazarus was acted upon by a cruel mob: they just tossed him away there. Lazarus was helpless and couldn’t move from that spot. We see the great cruelty of man toward helpless man.

iii. The verb BALLO in the passive voice is intransitive, meaning that it makes a complete affirmation in itself and does not require a direct object to complete its meaning. The passive voice means Lazarus didn’t produce or participate in the action; he was a victim of the action. Hence, this was cruel and unnecessary treatment. It was violence against the weak and helpless.

iv. The mob didn’t like Lazarus, and the mob didn’t like the rich man. Evil men do not discriminate; they despise the rich, the poor and the helpless.

v. The dramatic perfect tense of the verb ELKOO, translated “covered,” is used to bring a past event vividly and dramatically into the present. The Narrator describes the past event in such a way that his readers are led to think for a moment that they are present and witnessing this terrible treatment of Lazarus and his body covered with ulcers.

vi. The passive voice means Lazarus didn’t deliberately acquire these sores; it was something that happened to him.

vii. There is a definite parallelism between Lazarus and Job. Both were mature believers facing evidence testing, but with different results.

b) Both were covered with sores and ulcers. Hence, both Job and Lazarus had loss of health and were maltreated by people because they were repulsive to the eyes of the beholder.

c) Both Job and Lazarus had loss of health, but there was a difference. Job recovered his health and lived a long time. Hence, Job emphasizes living grace in evidence testing. Lazarus never recovered his health and eventually died. Hence, Lazarus emphasizes dying grace related to evidence testing. Luke 16:21, “And he kept desiring to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man’s table; besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores.”

viii. In other words, Lazarus was normal; he still had normal desires. When he was hungry, he desired food. He was so terribly hungry that he simply desired the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. Because he was starving, Lazarus was normal and had an intense desire for foods. Even crumbs from the table would have been wonderful.

ix. The only friends Lazarus had were dogs who had much more compassion than the rich man and his friends or the mob and their cruelty.

x. Remember that Lazarus was suffering for blessing, a suffering which glorified God to the maximum; a suffering that makes Lazarus one of the great all-time believers, recognized as such by our Lord.

xi. Lazarus was totally isolated from any form of human companionship or human compassion. Therefore, it was so important for him to use problem solving devices, such as doctrinal orientation, grace orientation, personal love for God, impersonal love for all mankind who treated him so cruelly, +H (sharing the happiness of God), a personal sense of destiny, and occupation with the person of Christ.

xii. The intensity of his suffering is noted in the phrase “he kept on desiring to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man’s table.” The fact that he was in great pain did not in any way slow down his appetite.

a) Lack of basic necessities of life: he had no food, no shelter, and virtually no clothing so that his skin was exposed for all to see.

b) Lazarus had none of the things the rich man had. No one even cared for him except dogs. It’s amazing how dogs can be so compassionate and sympathetic toward people who are suffering, whereas rational people, in the cruelty and vile evil of their old sin nature, have absolutely no compassion.

xiv. Lazarus was cut off from any form of love, friendship, or compassion. In fact, he experienced only cruelty from people. People ostracized him, rejected him, and ridiculed him. Though he was totally helpless and weak, they pushed him around and threw him around, and finally tossed him at the rich man’s gate. Lazarus’ only compassion came from dogs.

xv. But Lazarus was a mature believer and realized the importance of his suffering. He would demonstrate to both mankind and angels the importance of eternity compared to time. In contrast, the rich man was demonstrating daily that to him, only time was important; eternity didn’t matter.

xvi. We apply to Lazarus 1Corinthians 10:13, “No testing has overtaken to you but such as is common to mankind. But God is faithful, who will not permit you to be tested beyond what you are able to bear, but with the testing, He will also provide a solution, a way of escape, so that you may be able to endure it.” Therefore, Lazarus did not complain or fall apart, even though he had normal desires.

xvii. Solomon was a believer who had everything in life, and yet he was very miserable. Lazarus was a believer who had nothing, but he was very happy with +H. Lazarus demonstrates the principle of being happy without having anything at all. For while Lazarus had nothing, he had the problem solving devices, like +H, and used them.

xviii. If Lazarus had been depressed, he would have had no appetite. The very fact that he had an appetite indicates he was functioning under the ten problem solving devices. Lazarus was a normal person under extreme and intense suffering for blessing. Therefore, he was not depressed or unhappy. His desire for even crumbs from the rich man’s table indicated how normal he was, having an appetite in spite of suffering. Most people in such situations become depressed and have no appetite at all. The fact that Lazarus was hungry not only indicated that he was normal, but that he was handling his situation through the use of the problem solving devices.

xix. Lazarus suffered to demonstrate the importance of eternity compared to time. Time is just a drop in the bucket compared to eternity, according to Jas 4:14. Time is the only opportunity to have eternal life. 2Corinthians 6:2, “Now is the time to accept Christ; now is the day of salvation.” It takes only one second in time to believe in Jesus Christ, yet the rich man didn’t even take that one second to do so; Lazarus did. We do not know the original status quo of Lazarus; we only know what he faced before he died and entered Paradise.

xx. Time is the special opportunity for the believer to glorify God, and to demonstrate to the angels the greatness of God’s justice, wisdom, and grace policy. Philippians 4:11, “Not that I speak on the basis of want, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances may be.”

xxi. Time is the mechanics for resolving the angelic conflict. Lazarus was one of the greatest testimonies to angelic creatures as to what is important in life.

xxii. For the believer, time is the opportunity to glorify God, and to demonstrate to angels the greatness of God’s justice and

xxiii. Lazarus and the rich man have now been dead for over 2000 years. If we could interview them in their eternal state this is what they would say.

a) Question: “Lazarus, how do you feel about your suffering at the rich man’s gate and the abuse you took prior to that?” Answer: “It was nothing. Time is just a drop in the bucket compared to eternity. Now I have billions and billions of years to enjoy the most indescribable and fantastic blessings of the eternal state.”

b) Question: “Rich man, how do you feel about your lifetime of wealth, influence, power, and pleasure on earth?” Answer: “I regret every second of my prosperity and power, for it blinded me to my need of eternal salvation, a relationship with God, which I could have had both in time and eternity. And yet I must take the responsibility for my own decisions and my own perspective.”

c) From this, we can distill the soliloquy of the rich man in Hades. “I would do anything to change places with Lazarus. For over 2000 years, I have been tormented in the flames of Hades. I curse the good times that blinded me to the importance of eternity. The horrors of my eternal state have erased all the pleasures of my lifetime, and the worst is yet to come. I understand that I will be resurrected, stand before a Great White Throne, face Jesus Christ whom I rejected, and be judged and cast into the Lake of Fire. It is unbearably hot here in Hades, but it will be a billion times worse when I am cast into the Lake of Fire. “Why, oh why didn’t I listen to the Gospel when I had the chance? Why didn’t I even stop once at my own gate and speak with that terribly and horribly abused man, Lazarus? Why didn’t I stop and talk to him? If I had, he would have given to me the Gospel, and perhaps I would have responded and then I would not be in this horrible place. I did hear the message of both Jesus and John the Baptist, His herald. But I paid no attention; I laughed it off and went on my way. “Woe is me forever and ever and ever and ever.”

f. Verse 22 gives the perspective of death. “Now it came to pass that the poor man died, and he was carried by angels into Abraham’s Bosom [Paradise]; then [some time later] the rich man also died and was buried.”

i. Lazarus was a believer in the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union. He was a mature believer, and therefore he departed from his body under the principle of dying grace.

ii. Note, however, that there was no burial of Lazarus. His body was not even taken to a potter’s field. That would bother the superficial Christian. Yet what happens to your body after you leave it is of absolutely no consequence. You will never occupy that body again. Perhaps Lazarus’ body was discovered dead several days after he was already in Paradise. Perhaps they simply threw his body in the garbage cart. So what? What happens to the body is of no consequence.

iii. It was the custom of the ancient world to gather the bodies of the poor and either dump them in the garbage or burn them, or bury them in a potter’s field. When the bodies were repulsive, they didn’t make it to a potter’s field, but were usually dumped in the garbage heap outside the town. The garbage heap outside of Jerusalem was called Gehenna, a large area where garbage was burned. Gehenna became one of the synonyms for hell.

iv. But the soul and spirit of Lazarus are absent from the body and, as it were, “face to face with the Lord.” Lazarus was probably carried by the pursuivant angels to Abraham’s Bosom. These were special angelic officers in the angelic college of heralds.

v. Being very wealthy and prominent as a personality, the rich man probably had a very unusual and ostentatious funeral with a beautiful coffin and mausoleum, attended by numerous mourners, including five brothers who were also unbelievers and who inherited his money. But the rich man’s soul was sent to Torments, the second compartment of Hades.

g. Verses 23-26 is the rich man’s dialogue and call for help. Verse 23, “And in Hades, he [rich man] lifted up his eyes, being in Torments, and he saw Abraham far away and Lazarus [in his bosom] at the place of honor.”

i. In Torments means there is already a prelude of suffering before the Lake of Fire.

ii. The noun KOLPOS means chest, bosom, or breast. However, it is actually used for a place of honor at a meal. So this doesn’t mean Lazarus was actually lying on Abraham’s bosom, but was in a place of honor. This indicates that Lazarus died as an invisible hero.

iii. So Lazarus was carried into a place of honor, called Abraham’s Bosom, the place of Jewish believers who attained spiritual maturity. Abraham is the father of the new racial species called the Jew. Therefore, Abraham is designated as the place of honor. Jesus Christ is called the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who are the regenerate descendants of the new racial species.

iv. Jesus said to the dying Gentile thief, “Today, you will be with Me in Paradise,” Luke 23:43. Therefore, both Gentile and Jewish believers entered into the compartment of Hades called Paradise after their death. However, one section was a place of honor for the Jewish believers who attained spiritual maturity. Lazarus was one of the great heroes of Israel of all time.

h. Verse 24, “And he [rich man] screamed and said, `Father Abraham, have mercy on me and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this

i. The rich man was also a Jew, but he was a Jewish unbeliever. Abraham is the father of the entire Jewish race, and in that sense the rich man was right in calling him “Father Abraham.”

ii. “Have mercy on me” was something Lazarus never said at the gate of the rich man. As a mature believer, he accepted the events of his life as being exactly what God wanted. He demonstrated that to be totally impoverished, in maximum pain, and rejected by everyone so that only dogs have any compassion as a part of evidence testing is the ultimate honor to one of the greatest believers of Old Testament times!

iii. Apparently there is no water in Torments, for there is no necessity for water there. But the rich man still can only think in terms of life. Even after his death, he cannot think in terms of eternity.

iv. Unbelievers after death can experience and feel the pain of fire and everything associated with it. They will feel that pain of burning for all eternity because they reject Jesus Christ as their Savior. And it never stops hurting.

v. Though he understands he is suffering in fire, all he wants is water. Yet the answer to his suffering could only be found in time, through personal faith in Jesus Christ. Notice that this is a real flame and real fire, and it never stops hurting.

vi. Why is the rich man asking for this relief, instead of asking what can be done to get him out of there? Because the rich man heard John the Baptist and Jesus Christ and others give the Gospel. He knew when he rejected Christ what to expect; now it’s all come to pass.

vii. While Lazarus suffered at his gate wanting only water and food yet using the problem solving devices, the rich man had all the food and water he could want and walked by Lazarus without compassion. It is amazing how uncompassionate evil people are always the first to want mercy though have no mercy for others, but are totally indifferent toward them.

viii. The bodies of Lazarus and the rich man both lie in graves, and their souls reside in Sheol or Hades. Lazarus as a Jewish believer resides in the place of honor in Paradise called Abraham’s Bosom. The rich man as a Jewish unbeliever resides in the second compartment of Hades, called Torments, waiting for the second resurrection when he will be transferred to the permanent Lake of Fire.

ix. Note that the soul never sleeps; only the body sleeps in the grave. Note that the soul can see and recognize people after death without the use of the body. The rich man had no problem recognizing Lazarus who was flung at his gate. This teaches the important principle that the soul has the ability to see and recognize others beyond the grave. Furthermore, the soul can think and communicate after death. From this we might conclude there is an interim body after death.

x. Death does not end it all. Physical death merely transfers homo sapiens from time into eternity. From this passage, we note that dead men tell tales.

xi. The cry for mercy must come in time; in eternity it is too late. 2Corinthians 6:2, “Now is the time of acceptance; now is the day of salvation.” Now is the moment to be prepared for eternity by personal faith in Jesus Christ. Live your life in the light of eternity.

xii. Furthermore, the call for mercy must be directed toward the One who can save. Abraham can do nothing. It is only Jesus Christ who can save. Neither Abraham nor Lazarus can help the unbeliever in the eternal state. Both Abraham and Lazarus are simply sinners saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. The only chance for eternal life is while one is alive on earth.

xiii. Hades or Sheol is the temporary residence of all unbelievers until human history is completed. From Hades, all unbelievers will be transferred to Gehenna or the Lake of Fire after the Great White Throne Judgment. Actually, the Lake of Fire was prepared for the devil and his angels, according to Matt 25:41.

xiv. Both Hades and the final Lake of Fire are only for unbelievers. John 3:18, “He who believes in Him [Jesus Christ] is not judged, but he who does not believe has been judged already because he has not believed in the name of the uniquely-born Son of

xv. God does not desire that any person in the human race go to Torments in Hades and then the Lake of Fire. 2Peter 3:9, “He is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to a change of attitude toward Christ.” Therefore, life is often extended so that every chance is given for everyone to believe in Christ. No one will spend eternity in the Lake of Fire who hasn’t had multifarious opportunities to personally believe in Jesus Christ.

xvi. Both Torments in Hades and the Lake of Fire are vividly described in Matt 9:48, “where the worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.” Everyone should hear the screams of those who die burning in total agony, so that they will understand the importance of believing in Jesus Christ! In eternity, the screams never stop; they go on forever and ever and ever, simply because they refused the so-great salvation provided by Jesus Christ.

i. Now Abraham is allowed to reply to the rich man in verse 25. This dialogue was permitted not only to answer this one man’s question, but to settle the issue for all who were listening who had the same problem solving devices and wanted the same relief from Lazarus. Verse 25, “But Abraham said, `Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now [in eternity] he is comforted here.’”

i. An adult man is called “child” because he was divorced from reality, because of his unrealistic expectations.

ii. That Lazarus was “comforted here” means he was given a special place of honor in eternity. Whatever he had to endure to make a point to the angelic creatures, which is a great part of evidence testing, was nothing compared to the honors he received in the eternal state.

iii. The rich man had the same opportunities as Lazarus to believe in Jesus Christ and have eternal life, yet he rejected Jesus Christ. None of the rich man’s wealth, power, or prosperity could buy him eternal life. As he used his power and wealth for his own pleasures, it became a trap which obscured the importance of the Gospel.

iv. On the other hand, Lazarus believed in Jesus Christ. Even though he went through suffering for blessing, he had all the fantastic doctrine and problem solving devices to handle it magnificently. We do not know exactly how long Lazarus suffered in that terrible state. But however long it was, he never got out of step; he used the problem solving devices.

j. Verse 26, “And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you cannot, and none of us may cross over there.”

i. The chasm is invisible but real. No one can break through it. There is a barrier between Paradise and Torments, the place of agony. The barrier is impassable.

ii. There is no hope in eternity for those who reject Jesus Christ in time. There is no such thing as purgatory. There is no “half-way house” to heaven. The place of your eternal state is determined by your attitude toward Jesus Christ in time.

iii. 1John 5:11-13, “And this is the deposition: that God has given to us [believers] eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has this eternal life; He who does not have the Son does not have this eternal life. These things I have written to you who believe in the person of the Son of God, in order that you may know that you have eternal life.”

k. Verses 27-29 is the second dialogue and the second call for help from the rich man. Verses 27-28, “Then he said, `Now I beg you, Father Abraham, that you would send him to my father’s house — for I have five brothers — that he may warn them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’”

i. Before, the rich man pleaded for mercy; now he’s begging! Lazarus never pleaded for mercy, nor did he beg. The rich man should have taken notice of Lazarus, enduring all that suffering and not complaining. By contrast, he had given relatives thousands and thousands of dollars, and they still bitched!

ii. Note again the use of the vocative “Father.” Abraham is the father of the new racial species of Israel, and the rich man is a Jew.

iii. The rich man calls his mansion “the house of my father.” Lazarus, tossed at the gate of that mansion, was the last call for salvation. The five brothers saw Lazarus lying there, too. In effect, Lazarus was the evangelist at their gate. His pulpit was that gate. Everyone saw how he suffered and how he didn’t complain. They must have known he possessed something far greater than they had. Yet they all walked by Lazarus daily without giving heed to that final message.

iv. All five brothers are unbelievers. The rich man didn’t want his brothers to also die and end up in Torments with him. The funeral message to the friends and loved ones of the unbeliever is: “The deceased is now suffering in Torments because he did not believe in Jesus Christ. Yet he loves you so much that he wouldn’t want you to join him there, and I will tell you how to avoid it. Hell is no place for loved ones and old friends to have a pleasant reunion. Hell is a place of agony and suffering, only intensified at the end of human history by the transfer to the Lake of Fire. “In other words, if you have friends or loved ones who have died as unbelievers, their desire for you is to stay out of that place. They’re probably begging someone like Abraham to send someone back from the dead to tell you the story of salvation.”

v. So terrible is the perpetual agony of the unbeliever beyond the grave that he desires that the Gospel be presented to loved ones left behind so that they might believe in Christ and have eternal life and avoid the place of Torments.

vi. The present active subjunctive of DIAMARTUROMAI means to warn, to testify, to witness, to declare emphatically. The tendential present tense indicates an action proposed but not actually taking place. The rich man proposes the action. The subjunctive mood is used in a final clause to indicate the purpose of the action of the main verb.

vii. The same wealthy estate which distracted the rich man now distracts his five brothers who had inherited the family fortune. No longer is there a Lazarus lying at their gate. Wealth often causes the rich to ignore or avoid the reality of the eternal state after death.

l. Verse 29, “But Abraham replied, `They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’”

i. Moses and the Prophets is the Jewish word for the Old Testament; Torah is a synonym. Moses and the Prophets refers to the Old Testament Scriptures which clearly reveal the Gospel. Isaiah 53 is one of the greatest Gospel messages in all the Word of God.

iii. If these five brothers reject the Biblical testimony regarding Jesus Christ, they will not accept the testimony of one who returns from the dead. The testimony in the Bible is much more powerful than the testimony of someone coming back from the dead! That’s how powerful the Word of God is! The idea of returning Lazarus from the dead to testify to the five brothers is useless.

iv. Remember that another Lazarus had been resuscitated from the dead by Jesus, and many Jews who had attended his funeral came back to see him alive; yet many still didn’t accept Jesus Christ as Savior. John 11:45-46, “Therefore, many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary saw what had transpired and believed in Him. But some of them went away to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.” John 12:37, “But though He performed many miracles before them, yet they were not believing in Him.” The testimony of the Word of God is far more powerful than miracles.

a) One reason why we do not have miracles today is because something far more powerful has been given to us, i.e., the New Testament Scriptures. Never before the Church Age was the New Testament Canon completed and given. It is much more powerful than miracles.

b) If people will not accept the Gospel message found in the Bible, they will not accept the testimony of someone brought back from the dead by a miracle.

c) A miracle is the easiest thing for God to perform because it does not require the volition of mankind, but only the sovereignty and omnipotence of God.

d) In the Tribulation, two Jews, Moses and Elijah, will be brought back from the dead to witness in Jerusalem. Yet their message will be rejected. When they are martyred, there will be great rejoicing in Jerusalem.

m. In the third dialogue, verses 30-31, there is another call for help. Verse 30, “But he replied, `No, Father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’” The future active indicative of METANOEO means to change your thinking or mind about Christ. Upon hearing the Gospel and before anyone believes, he must first change his mind about Christ.

n. Verse 31, “But he replied to him, `If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets [the Word of God], neither will they be persuaded if someone is resuscitated from the dead.’” This means that negative volition gets locked in and nothing will change it. This also means that the Word of God is infinitely more powerful than any miracle.

a. Tartarus is the residence of certain fallen angels who became involved in an invasion of the earth. This special category of fallen angels are called BENI HA ELOHIM in the Hebrew, translated “sons of God.” They are demons who are not operational at the present time.

b. Tartarus is mentioned in 2Peter 2:4 as the place where these fallen angels reside. “For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned [Gen 6:2] but incarcerated them in Tartarus with chains of thick darkness, He delivered them over to judgment, being constantly guarded.”

i. The aorist active participle of TARTAROO means to be imprisoned or incarcerated in Tartarus.

ii. “When they sinned” is a temporal participle referring to a time in history, not to prehistoric angelic times.

c. Without mentioning Tartarus by name, a similar passage is found in Jude 6. “And the angels [BENI HA ELOHIM of Genesis 6:2] who did not keep their own domain, but who deserted their proper abode, He has incarcerated them in everlasting chains of thick darkness for the judgment of the great day.”

i. Now they can see nothing. In Genesis 6, they saw the beautiful women of the earth and lusted for them, and so made their invasion on earth.

ii. The fact of their invasion is documented by a phenomenal amount of extant literature from Homer to the fourth century B.C.

iii. Everything that happened in Genesis 6 occurred over a period of 500 years. Unfortunately, it is called mythology, which it is not.

v. The “judgment of the great day” occurs when all fallen angels are cast into the Lake of Fire, as anticipated by Matt 25:41.

d. Who are these fallen angels and what did they do? The answer is found in Genesis 6. But as introduction, we note the Satanic attacks on the line of Christ in the Old Testament.

i. When Cain murdered Abel in Genesis 4, that was a Satanic attack on Adam’s seed. It was an attack on the first promise given to Adam after he sinned, that God the Father would provide a Savior from Adam’s seed, who would come through the woman as the childbearer. Romans 5:12ff.

a) Satan and fallen angels understood that the Savior would come in the line of Adam as true humanity through the woman. Therefore, Satan knew he had to cut off that line from Adam to Christ.

b) So in that first generation, Satan inspired Cain to murder Abel, a believer. But then the line continued on through Seth, so that Satan realized that murder wouldn’t work to cut off the line.

ii. Therefore, in an attempt to destroy all true humanity, fallen angels invaded earth and copulated with females, producing half-angel half-human beings, documented in Genesis 6:1-6. Had all true humanity been destroyed in this way, Jesus Christ could have never come into the world.

a) In fact, only one family of eight people were still true humanity out of millions of people living on earth. Those eight people were Noah and his wife, plus his three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and their three wives.

b) The tracing of that family of Noah from Genesis 4 - 11 is one of the most important factors in our so-great salvation. For Jesus Christ could not come unless true humanity remained on the earth.

c) So the angelic infiltration of Genesis 6:1-6 was the greatest attack ever made on the virgin birth and incarnation of Jesus Christ.

d) Noah’s sons all made great decisions, in all marrying ladies who were still true humanity.

e) Therefore, the Flood destroyed that entire super race of half-angels, half-men.

f) Since there is no longer any possibility of angelic infiltration into the human race, the greatest objective of Satan from the flood to the point of the virgin birth was to kill the Jews, especially those in the Messianic line.

iii. The line of Christ went from Shem to Abram, a Chaldean from the third dynasty of Ur. Upon hearing God’s promises to Abraham regarding the Savior as his descendent, Satan made attacks on Abraham’s seed.

a) The first attack occurred when Sarah found herself in the harem of an Egyptian king in Genesis 12:10-20.

b) The second attack occurred when Pharaoh, Thutmose III, ordered the entire male line of Israel to be killed in Exodus 1:10, 15-16.

c) Thutmose III's son, Amenhotep IV attempted to destroy all Israel in Exodus 14:13-19.

d) After the line went from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the Messianic line was passed on through Judah.

iv. The Davidic Covenant promised David that his Son would be the Messiah. Now Satanic attacks focused on David’s line.

a) Jehoshaphat arranged a marriage between his son, Jehoram, and Princess Athaliah, the daughter of Jezebel, the queen of the Northern Kingdom. Here was a classic case of man’s plans trying to unite the kingdom. Jezebel was a Phoenician who married the king, so that his kingdom would also include all of Phoenicia. This story starts in 2 Chr 18:1. It was strictly a sex marriage, and the sex was related to the phallic cult and human sacrifice. In the process of all this, Jehoram killed his brother, 2 Chr 21:4.

b) Then the Arabs invaded and killed all the sons of Jehoram except one, called Ahaziah or Jehoahaz, 2 Chron 21:16-17, 22:1.

c) Then Athaliah, the mother of Jehoahaz killed everyone in the royal seed, and the only survivor was Joash, 2 Chron 23:3. At this point, the entire line of Christ was reduced to one person. But the line of Christ has been preserved.

d) Hezekiah was childless when attacked by Sennacherib, the King of Assyria, Isaiah 36:1, 38:1, 39:7. But God preserved Hezekiah against death in the battle, again preserving the line of Christ. Later Hezekiah had a son.

vi. There was the final attack on the virgin Mary when she was pregnant. The dilemma of Joseph when he discovered Mary’s pregnancy is found in Matt 18:1-20. If he was a legalist, he would have followed Deut 24:1 and had Mary stoned. But Joseph had a marvelous, honorable attitude, for he was an aristocrat, descended from Solomon (Matt 1). The Coniah curse (you will never have a son that will be the Messiah) was fulfilled in the virgin birth, in that Joseph was not the real father of the Messiah.

vii. The edict of Herod killed all children in Bethlehem, Matt 2:13-18. Due to a great signal corps, Herod learned that the wise men left the land by a different route and would not report back to him. So knowing when the virgin birth occurred, he took two years to develop all his plans, tracing genealogies, etc., so that he ordered every child in Bethlehem two years old and younger to be slaughtered. But God told Joseph in a dream to go to Egypt before that happened, so that Jesus Christ was spared.

e. These are a few of the remarkable stories of how God’s grace provided for us a Savior, Jesus Christ our Lord.

f. Prior to the incarnation, Satan attacked the line of Jesus Christ in an attempt to frustrate the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union. During the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union, Satan made every attempt to frustrate our Lord getting to the cross.

i. That’s why you read “they picked up stones to stone Him; but He passed through the crowd unnoticed.”

ii. The very treatment our Lord received in His seven trials was an attempt to kill Him before He could get to the cross.

iii. Even on the cross, Satan was not through. He inspired people to say, “If you are the Christ, come down from the cross. Save Yourself and us.”

iv. We’ll never know this side of heaven what it took for our Lord to make it to the cross as a perfect human being, and to receive the imputation and judgment of our sins.

g. Since the cross, resurrection, ascension, and session of Jesus Christ, Satan has only one way to win, and that is by frustrating the fulfillment of the four unconditional covenants made to Israel, i.e., the Abrahamic, Palestinian, Davidic, and New Covenants. Yet these will all be fulfilled in the Millennium. But all these covenants have in common the necessity of Jews being alive, and therefore all anti-Semitism is Satanically-inspired.

h. The Tribulation will demonstrate all the ways in which Satan tries to destroy the Jews, Revelation 6-19. But of course the Jew will be preserved by the grace of God. Anti-Semitism is Satanic in nature. Its purpose is to frustrate the plan of God which centers in Israel. Anti-Semitism reaches its peak in Revelation 12, in the middle of the Tribulation.

i. One of the greatest attacks on the line of Christ and one of the most subtle forms of anti-Semitism occurred in Genesis 6 before the Jew even existed. The result of this angelic attack was the creation of a third compartment in Sheol or Hades called Tartarus.

i. A fable is a story, like the fox and the grapes, in which the characters and plot neither pretend reality nor demand credence. Fables are fabricated as a vehicle of moral or didactic instruction.

ii. Myths are stories of anonymous origin, prevalent among primitive people. By the people to whom they were first addressed, they are accepted as true. Myths concern supernatural beings and events, or natural beings and events influenced by supernatural agencies. Many of the so-called myths of ancient Greece are related to two Greek nouns.

a) TARTAROS was a part of the Greek underworld called Hades. It was a place of sunless abyss below Hades in which Zeus imprisoned the Titans.

b) Those who dwelt in Tartarus were called TARTARITES. This word was used in reference to the Titan wars, which are a distorted picture of Genesis 6 and the events that precede Genesis 6.

i. There are demons with angelic bodies who are not permitted on the earth. They are all incarcerated in Tartarus.

ii. There are demons without bodies, or disembodied spirits, who are permitted to function under the command of Satan on planet earth.

c. In Genesis 6, the demons with bodies were visible to human beings. Furthermore, they were very beautiful and attractive, having male bodies.

d. The demons with bodies were involved in an antediluvian attack on the human race which resulted in their incarceration in Tartarus. The motivation for their attack was to destroy the possibility of the incarnation beginning with the virgin birth.

e. The operational demons of the postdiluvian civilization are disembodied spirits. They do not seek sex with females, as did their predecessors, but they seek the invasion of the human body.

f. Only unbelievers can be demon possessed. The demon invasion of the soul through satanic and false doctrine has two categories of victims: unbelievers can also be demon possessed, and believers in Jesus Christ who cannot be demon possessed because each member of the Trinity indwells the body of every Church Age believer.

g. The word antediluvian refers to the period of time before the Flood. The antediluvian civilization began with the creation of mankind and terminated with the Flood.

h. Only eight believers survived the Flood (Noah and his family), because they were the last members of the true human race left on the earth. They were the only ones who had survived the infiltration of fallen angels.

i. Civilizations, like dispensations are a category of human history, but a different category.

i. Each civilization begins with believers only and terminates with a cataclysmic judgment.

ii. Each civilization has its own climate, environment, and its own characteristics within species. During the antediluvian civilization, the earth was not yet tilted on its axis; there was no bacteria. Therefore, there was perfect climate.

iii. Mankind has a different lifespan in each civilization. In the antediluvian civilization, people lived 800-900 years.

iv. Animal life in each civilization has differences within the species. However, there is no transmutation of species. The only species that no longer exists was the half-human half-angelic creatures, destroyed completely by the Flood.

i. The antediluvian civilization goes from the creation of man to the Flood. During this civilization, there was an angelic sexual invasion of the human race, Genesis 6. This can be classified as a genetic attack on the human race designed by Satan to frustrate the incarnation and the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union. In fact, it was Satan’s greatest attack to hinder the cross.

ii. The postdiluvian civilization began with the recession of the universal Flood, and it continues until the Second Advent of Christ.

a) The demons involved in the sexual attack in the antediluvian civilization are now incarcerated in the compartment of Hades called Tartarus. The only demons operational today are disembodied spirits, so that any such sexual attacks can never occur again.

1) In demon possession, the demon invades the body of an unbeliever only. If an unbeliever believes in Jesus Christ, the demon is removed immediately.

2) Demon influence is the demon invasion of the human soul through satanic thought or satanic theology. Anyone residing in the cosmic system, believer or unbeliever, comes under demon influence.

c) Just before the termination of the postdiluvian civilization, there are three great demon army military attacks on mankind during the Tribulation, Revelation 9, 17.

1) The first demon army to attack the human race is led by a prince of demons called Abaddon, Revelation 9:1- 12. This first demon army is stationed at present in the Abyss, the fourth compartment of Sheol or Hades.

2) The second great demon assault army is led by four demon generals, Revelation 9:13-21.

3) The third demon assault army is led by Satan himself. His purpose is to destroy all Jews. Anti- Semitism is always Satanic in its origin and function. It is possible that the last two demon armies are also stationed at present in the Abyss, but they launch their assault at different points in the Tribulation.

iii. The millennial civilization begins with the Second Advent of Christ and terminates with the Gog and Magog Revolution, led by Satan himself, and with the final judgment of human history.

k. It should be noted that the antediluvian angelic attack and the Tribulational angelic attacks involve invasions by visible demons. However, during the postdiluvian civilization, all demon attacks are invisible, except in the Tribulation.

l. While invisible believers cannot enter into sexual activity with human beings, demon possession and demon influence is the basis for the phallic cult practiced by human beings. The phallic cult includes not only human sacrifice but extensive sexual activities related to drugs and demon possession. The ethnic demonology of Greece, Rome, Phoenicia, the Canaanites, and the Germanic as well as other Indo-European mythologies always include the phallic cult and human sacrifice, as well as great violence.

m. A study of Genesis 4-6 gives a clear picture of what life was like on earth before the Flood. The violence then was far greater than at any time since. There are many stories, classified as myths (and are not), which document this violence. The life of Hercules is a good illustration.

a. Gen 6:1, “Now it came to pass that when homo sapiens began to become numerous on the surface of the earth, that daughters were born to them.”

i. This is a description of a tremendous population explosion on planet earth. The Hebrew word HA ADAM refers to mankind as a category of creation, i.e., the human race.

ii. With any population explosion, there is always an excess of females. These daughters were very beautiful. The ratio of women to men in this population was excessive.

iii. The increase of the population meant there were more sin natures. More sin natures means more evil, more lawlessness, and more violence on the earth. Because more sin natures without a system of establishment government means that people are open to making any decisions they want. Yet true freedom means the right to make certain decisions within the constraints of the laws of divine establishment. But without such constraints, there are too many options for the sin nature. This resulted in a tremendous amount of homicide, rape, terrorism, and violence on the earth.

iv. There was no establishment, but there was culture. Probably the greatest musical and writing culture of all time existed in the midst of a population with the greatest intelligence of all time.

v. So great was the evil on the earth that by the tenth generation from Adam, only one family remained in the status of regeneration, and that one family applied doctrine in a special way to avoid any sexual relationship with half-human, half-angelic creatures. Eight were in Noah’s family, and the ninth believer was Noah’s grandfather Methuselah. The warning of the coming of the Flood was Methuselah’s departure from this life.

vi. The concentration of evil on the earth was so great, yet it did not destroy the human race! A concentration of evil never destroys the population of the earth, though millions of people may be raped, murdered, tortured, and victimized in every way. The population of the earth goes right on. Unrestrained criminality cannot and will not wipe out the human race.

vii. By the tenth generation from Adam there was no reference to the Sethites, or Cainites as separate families and tribes, because the two lines had amalgamated. This is illustrated by the marriage of Naamah to Ham. The Cainite line was filled with disillusion from their study of science, culture, urban society, and had rejected the happiness God had designed for man by rejecting Christ as Savior. Their society pursued intellectual matters and hedonistic pleasure. The antediluvian population was generally unregenerate, reversionistic, and involved in the cosmic system. Genesis 6:2, “Now the sons of God [demon pantheon on Mount Olympus] saw the women of mankind, that they were beautiful, so they seized [raped] for themselves women from all they had selected [whomever they chose].”

viii. The “sons of God” is clearly a reference to angelic creatures. For the Hebrew BENI HA ELOHIM is used for angelic creatures only.

ix. When the word beautiful is used in the Scripture, it means these women were extremely beautiful.

x. The Hebrew verb LAQACH means to seize violently, to take by sheer strength, to overpower and seize these women against their will to have sex with them.

xi. The Hebrew phrase BENI HA ELOHIM is used four times in the Old Testament. All four times it refers to angelic creatures only. Note that in verse 1, HA ADAM is the phrase used to refer to mankind.

xii. So the “sons of God” refer to the demon pantheon on Mount Olympus and the Titans like Iobates. The duplication of the Greek pantheon was made by the Phoenicians, Canaanites, Romans and others.

xiii. The “sons of God” refer to demons only, as also found in Job 1:6, 2:1, 38:7, and Daniel 3:25.

b. The myths concerning the Titan wars present the mythological account of Tartarus; its basis is true.

a) The Titans are the personification of the convulsions of the physical world; e.g., volcanoes and earthquakes.

b) Cyclops is the name of the second category of children. The name of the first cyclops is the Terror of Rolling Thunder. The second cyclops is called Lightning Flash; the third is called Thunderbolts.

c) The third category are called the Hundred-Handed Monsters, also composed of three beings.

ii. So the couple had nine children total. Uranus the father feared the Hundred-Handed Monsters, so he put them in Tartarus. Their mother Gaea was indignant, and called on her older children, the Titans, for help.

iii. But only one of the Titans would help; he was called CHRONOS, meaning time or chronology. Chronos attacked his father and became the ruler of heaven and earth. Chronos married his sister Rhea, and they had six children, three boys and three girls. The girls were named Vesta, Series, and Juno. The boys were called Pluto (Hades), Neptune, and Jupiter (Zeus).

iv. Chronos had learned from his parents that he would be dethroned by one of his own children. So he swallowed each child when it was born. But when he got to the sixth one, his mother gave him a stone in swaddling clothes to eat and concealed Jupiter (Zeus in Greek) in the Island of Crete.

v. Assisted by his grandmother Gaea, Jupiter constrained Chronos to disgorge his cannibal repast, and first came up the memorable stone, which was then placed for safe keeping at Delphi. Then followed the five children.

vi. Then came the war of the Titans. Jupiter and his brothers and sisters fought against Chronos. In the war that followed, Iobates and all the Titans except Oceanus fought on the side of Chronos. Jupiter and his brothers and sisters fought on the other side and won the war. The war was won by Jupiter when he went to Tartarus and released the Hundred-Handed Monsters.

vii. As a result of winning the war, Jupiter and his brothers and sisters made Mount Olympus their capital. From then on, the story of Greek mythology is about the empire of Zeus (Jupiter) who became the god-ruler of the world to the Greeks. Zeus gave to his brother Neptune (Poisendon) the kingdom of the sea. He gave to his other brother Pluto (Hades) the underworld.

viii. The Titans who were defeated were sent to Tartarus. Atlas, the son of the Titan Iobates, was doomed to carry the heavens on his shoulders. Iobates had three famous children: Pandora, Prometheus, and Atlas.

ix. In the empire of Zeus from Mount Olympus, there was the beginning of a series of incidents found in two forms: myths and Genesis 6:1-13. The Biblical story is completely and totally accurate. The myths that came out of this are simply distortions of the truth. The background for them is truth.

x. When the war between the Titans and Zeus was over and the Titans were imprisoned in Tartarus, this is a picture of how God dealt with BENI HA ELOHIM. The children of Zeus included Athena or Minerva, who sprang from his brain full- grown and fully armed. By his wife Juno he had Aries, Vulcan, and Hebe. By Latona he had Apollo (Phoebus) and Diana (Artemis). By Diona he had Venus (Aphrodite). By Mais he had Mercury (Hermes).

xi. The males represented by BENI HA ELOHIM, translated “sons of God,” actually refer to demons like Zeus (Jupiter). These demons had bodies, which they used to seduce and impregnate females of the human race during the antediluvian period of history.

xii. BENI HA ELOHIM included Zeus, Apollos, Neptune, and Pluto, which are actually demon names. The sons of the gods were Titans like Chronos, Iobates, Oceanus, Tethys, Hyperion, Thammuz, Rhea, etc. Every name found in Greek mythology is either a demon name or a “hero” name.

xiii. The sexual attack to destroy true humanity on the earth and prevent the First Advent of the humanity of Christ is illustrated by one demon alone, Zeus (Jupiter), who had several notable sexual encounters with female members of the human race which started the genetic problem. Let us note this one example of the genetic attack on the human race

a) (a) Zeus is one of the BENI HA ELOHIM. He seduced a woman named Semele, who had a son half-angelic, half- human, named Bacchus (Latin) or Dionysus (Greek).

b) Zeus seduced the woman Alchimine. By her he had a half-human, half-angelic son called Hercules or Herucles.

c) By a third woman, Danae, he had a half- human, half-angelic son called Perseus. The original Persians of the ancient world claimed their ancestry from Perseus.

d) By a fourth woman, Lyda, he had four children who were half-human, half-angelic: Castor, Clytemnestra, Pollux, and Helen. It is claimed that only Castor and Pollux were his children; Clytemnestra and Helen were children by Lyda’s human husband.

e) By a fifth woman, Europa, he had three sons: Minos, Rhadamanthus, and Sarpedon.

f) By a sixth woman, Electra, he had Dardanus, from whom the Trojans claim their origin.

i) By a ninth woman, Antiope, he had Anthion and Zeuthus who built the walls of Thebes.

j) By a tenth woman, Aegena, he had a son named Aeetes, the ancestor of both Aeschylus and Ajax. Genesis 6:3, “Then Jehovah [God the Father] said, `My Spirit [Holy Spirit] will not always plead the cause of God in man’s soul forever, for in his going astray, he is flesh [mortal]. Therefore, his days will be one hundred and twenty years.’”

xiv. This verse refers to the antediluvian ministry of the Holy Spirit. One of the greatest periods of evangelism in all of history resulted in millions of people hearing the Gospel, and yet there were only nine converts before the civilization was destroyed!

xv. The common grace ministry of the Holy Spirit is emphasized here. Remember that being born spiritually dead, we are totally depraved, totally separated from God, and totally helpless to do anything about it. Furthermore, we are spiritually brain dead; unable to understand the Gospel. But God the Holy Spirit makes the Gospel perspicuous under the doctrine of common grace.

xvi. The Holy Spirit pleads the cause of God in man’s soul, because the soul of man is spiritually brain dead. The cause of God is salvation. It is impossible for us to understand the Gospel on our own; that’s why the Holy Spirit pleads the cause of God, i.e., makes the Gospel perspicuous.

xvii. From the time of Genesis 6:3 to the time of the Flood, there would be an elapse of 120 years. At that point, God the Holy Spirit would no longer plead the cause of God in salvation, because the flood would wipe them out.

xviii. Only the nine human beings mentioned above believed in Jesus Christ. The half-human, half-angelic creatures heard the Gospel as well, and they could have believed in Christ and saved their human side, but none of them ever did. There were millions of them.

xix. Time is the only chance you have for eternal life. You can only make a decision in time to believe in Jesus Christ.

xx. Evangelism would continue 120 years more in the antediluvian civilization before the Flood came and destroyed the last opportunity for the ministry of God the Holy Spirit in common and efficacious grace.

xxi. The grace policy of God never executes judgment on mankind before every grace opportunity has been given to believe. Grace precedes judgment. Therefore, from the time of the angelic infiltration and the genetic attack on true humanity, there would be 120 years of Gospel preaching.

xxii. In 120 years, the entire human race would be corrupted by half-human, half-demonic people. The half-demonic side rejected the Gospel, even though it was probably given clearer, better, and more forcefully in that period of time than in any period of time since.

xxiii. By the grace of God, the true humanity of Christ would be born as a descendant of Shem, one of the eight survivors of the Flood.

c. Gen 6:4, “The Nephalim [fallen ones, half-human half-demon creatures] were on the earth in those days, and also afterward when the sons of God [demons] had sex with females of the human race, and had children by them, these children were the heroes who, from ancient history, were famous men.”

i. Notice that in this passage, three categories of creatures are mentioned: HA ADAM is true humanity, BENI HA ELOHIM are angels with bodies, and HA NEPHALIM are the progeny of the first two combined, i.e., half-human, half-angelic creatures.

ii. HA NEPHALIM means “the fallen ones.” They are the subject of all the mythology of Greece, Rome, Canaan, and Germany. Numbers 13:33, “There we also saw giants [Nephalim], the sons of Anach [part of the Nephalim], and we became like grasshoppers in our own sight, and we were in their sight.” They were giants, not the Nephalim of Genesis 6.

iii. Half-human and half-demonic creatures had superb strength and super intellect.

iv. These are the Greek heroes of antediluvian times. They include Orpheus, Perseus, Theseus, Minos, Hercules, Jason, Pelius, Castor, and Pollux. They are in contrast to the later heroes of the Trojan War, like Ulysses, Aeschylus, and Ajax, who were humans in postdiluvian times.

v. So the Nephalim included people of great power and intellect, like Dionysus or Bacchus, Anthion, Aesculapius the great physician, Prometheus, Pelops, Apollo.

vi. As a result of this demon attack, the fallen angels involved were confined to Tartarus, the third compartment of Sheol or Hades.

vii. The demons who function in the postdiluvian civilization under the command of Satan no longer have sexual capabilities; they are disembodied spirits.

a) In the antediluvian civilization, the demons who invaded the earth had angelic bodies and sexual capabilities. With their bodies, these demons were able to have sex with human females, resulting in the Satanic attempt to destroy true humanity on the earth. It almost succeeded except for the grace of God in the cataclysmic universal flood.

b) In the postdiluvian civilization, all demons are disembodied spirits, and therefore limited to the following functions: demon possession, which is the demon invasion of the human body and taking it over, and demon influence, which is the infiltration of Satanic or false doctrine into the human soul as per 1Timothy 4:1-2.

ix. Jude 6 tells what happened to the first category of demons who infiltrated the human race. “And the angels which kept not their status quo but abandoned their proper place of residence [in the second heavens], He has guarded them in eternal chains under thick darkness for the judgment of the great day.” Tartarus is described as “chains of thick darkness” in all Greek

x. These demons are mentioned again in 2Peter 2:4, “For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned [Gen 6:2], but incarcerated them in pits of darkness [in Tartarus], reserved for judgment.”

d. Gen 6:5 is the divine evaluation of the Nephalim period. “Then the Lord observed that the evil of homo sapiens was great on the earth, and that every motive of the thoughts of his heart [right lobe] was only evil continually.”

i. In the period between the angelic infiltration and the Flood, a period of 120 years according to Genesis 6:3, there were many unusual characteristics.

a) It was a period of the greatest music in history; evil people produced the most fantastic music in history, yet also the greatest violence.

b) It was a period of the greatest scientific achievement in history, yet at the same time a period of great lawlessness. It was the greatest academic civilization in history.

c) Along with culture of art and music, there was also great immorality. Along with fantastic luxury, there was wanton cruelty (similar to the Athenians later).

b) Bacchus was the demon god who promoted the phallic cult. He started the first sorority in history, and the women were called Maenads (which later became a word for sexual insanity).

1) The sorority emphasized emotion taking over the soul and suppressing thinking, therefore blacking out reason. Hence, it included a demon penetration of the soul.

2) The function of the sorority was to seek total freedom to give women more choices than they had ever had in their homes under their parents and husbands. In other words, this was to free them from authority. The function of the sorority was to establish a total freedom and escape from human limitations by entering into sexual orgies with demons. Hence, the demon penetration of the mind or soul was followed by the demon penetration of the female body.

3) The bacchus cult began with a lot of good music, dancing, working everyone up, and drugs. Both a sexual orgy and violence resulted. The women abandoned themselves to the demons. The Maenads (mad ones) not only abandoned themselves to demons in a lustful frenzy, but they became extremely violent. They often killed one another. They lost all reason. So that along with sexual lust, there was tremendous killer lust.

4) King Pentheus of Thebes (Greece) became suspicious of three women in his household: his wife, his mother, and his sister. One night after pretending to be asleep, he followed them as they slipped out of the house and attended a meeting of the Dionysian sorority. There he saw these women become involved in an orgy.

5) King Pentheus couldn’t stand it any longer, so he went in to rebuke these three women. They all literally clawed him to pieces with their hands, screaming and shouting.

1) This is the story of Apollo and the Oracle of Delphi. Apollo was the demon god of light who was very much involved with the kingdom of darkness and Satan himself. Apollo was one of the first champions of the angel of light principle from demons. He was the champion of lucidity. He was called the god of the sun. Apollo is his Latin name; Phoebus is his Greek name.

2) On Mount Parnassus, Apollo killed a gigantic python. It was alleged to have been fifty feet long, and if so, it weighed about 350 pounds. In Apollo’s honor, the Pythian Games were held.

3) The demon-possessed priestess who served the demon god Apollo at the Oracle of Delphi prophesied and controlled the lives of many famous people.

4) Apollo represents the doctrine of demons found in 1Timothy 4:1-2, as well as demon thinking in cosmic two. Apollo represents the intellectual departure from God, in contrast to Bacchus (or Dionysus) which represents the emotional, orgastic departure from God’s will.

1) Mythologically, this pattern is related to Aesculapius, the demon god of healing. Aesculapius was the progeny of Apollos and a human female called Coronas (Arsenio).

2) To understand how demon healing works, we must note two great demon-princes who serve their king, Satan.

(1) Abaddon or Apollyon is found in Revelation 9. He is the demon in charge of overt warfare. He commands the Abyss, from which he will bring forth the first great demon army in the Tribulation.

(2) Beelzebub is the prince in charge of covert warfare against the human race. He has charge of operation mole, which is Satan’s plan to give demons and Satan’s human servants credibility in the Christian community. Satan’s human deceivers include sorcerers who perform feats of necromancy, exorcists, so-called “divine healers,” and people involved in signs from Satan, including the actual reproduction of the gift of tongues. Beelzebub is the demon in charge of the eggastromuthos demons who, when they possess the body of an unbeliever, actually reproduce the gift of tongues as it occurred on the Day of Pentecost and for forty years thereafter.

3) Beelzebub, as the demon in charge of undercover operations, sponsors activities to give credibility to Satan’s human servants. Satan’s human servants are easily identified as people who allege to perform miracles of healing. No one has been healed by a miracle by a person since 96 A.D.

4) God occasionally will directly heal a person in response to prayer. But the great power in the post- Canon period of the Church Age is the power of the Word of God. Jesus Christ only healed to give a hearing to His message.

5) Beelzebub is the head of a great demon organization which practices miracles of healing.

(1) Matt 12:24, “When the Pharisees heard it, they said about Jesus, `He casts out demons only by Beelzebub, the prince of demons.’” When Beelzebub orders demons who are causing illness out of a human body, there is instant healing of that body. There are three categories of illness: physiologically-induced illness, mentally-induced [psychosomatic] illness, and demon-induced illness. Mark 3:22, “The scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, `He is possessed by Beelzebub, and he casts out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.’”

(2) Lk 11:15, “But some of them said, `He casts out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of demons.’”

6) So certain forms of demon possession cause illness, so that when the victim goes to a so- called divine healer (who is working for Satan), Beelzebub orders the demons to withdraw which means there is an instant and real cure. Therefore, people think that divine healer has great power and must be from God. This is how even believers are led astray. This system provides honor and credibility to servants of Satan who practice the healing art.

iv. The saturation of evil was illustrated by violence, murder, rape, and human sacrifice.

a) Lykaon, the King of Arcadia, sacrificed his son and then sat down and ate his corpse. He was demon- possessed. This is patterned after Chronos, who ate his children when they were born.

b) King Pentheus of Thebes was torn to pieces by the sorority of Dionysus, which included his wife, mother, and sister.

c) Atrius, the King of Mycenae, seduced the wife of his brother, Thyestes, whom he banished from the kingdom. When Thyestes was pardoned by his brother and allowed to return, Atrius invited him to a banquet in his palace. As he sat down, he was served two of his sons who were murdered and cooked for his convenience.

d) When Hercules returned home after his famous twelve labors, he murdered his wife and children.

e) Adonis was loved by both Aphrodite (Venus) and Persephone, the Queen of Hades. Zeus settled the rivalry by decreeing that Adonis should spend one-half a year with Venus above earth, and one-half year with Persephone in Hades. This story was used to describe seasons. For each year, Adonis must die and spend time with Persephone. Therefore, human sacrifice was practiced to send him down. To be sure he comes back up, more people were sacrificed.

f) Pember, Earth’s Earliest Ages, p. 135, “And hence, there sprang up a thick crop of frauds and assignations of open quarrels and violence, till the whole earth was filled with corruption and bloodshed...” High culture never prevents violence.

g) If the flood occurred in 2245 B.C., then the angelic infiltration would have been about 2365 B.C. Genesis 6:6, “Therefore, the Lord Himself repented that He made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His right lobe.”

v. The niphal reflexive of NACHAM means to have a change of mind. It is the exact equivalent of the Greek METANOEO, and has the same meaning. It is impossible for God to sin, and therefore He does not “repent from sin.”

vi. This is an anthropopathism, which ascribes to God human feelings, passions, thoughts which God does not actually possess; e.g., hatred, anger, scorn, benevolence, compassion, longsuffering, and repentance. But in order to explain a divine policy, such a feeling or thought is ascribed to God. Therefore, to describe a change of divine policy, “repent” is used. Many times in history God has had to judge segments of the human race.

viii. God’s “right lobe” is an anthropomorphism, which ascribes to God a part of human anatomy which God does not possess, in order to express a divine function.

ix. God would give 120 years to this half-human race, under the principle that grace precedes judgment. At that time, there would be a total destruction of the human race apart from eight persons.

e. The divine decision regarding the antediluvian civilization follows in Genesis 6:7. “Then the Lord decreed, `I will blot out mankind whom I have created from the surface of the earth, from man to animals to reptiles to birds of the sky, for I have changed My mind that I made them.’”

i. Apparently, the antediluvian reptiles and animals were much larger than the ones today. We know something about the antediluvian animals from the investigation of an ice pack in Siberia. So all animals and reptiles and birds were to be destroyed, except for those preserved in the ark.

ii. The saturation of evil was so great that the human race had reached a point of total self-destruction. This was a part of the satanic plot to destroy true humanity on the earth so that Jesus Christ could not come in the flesh. Yet only as perfect true humanity could Jesus Christ come and be judged for our sins.

iii. Therefore, to protect the remnant of believers, God had to destroy the antediluvian civilization. This divine decision was totally compatible with God’s grace policy, which is extended to us today. The only way that God could keep His divine promise that there would be a Savior, and that “whosoever believes in Him will never perish but have eternal life,” was by destroying the corrupted part of the human race so that only true humanity would be preserved beyond the great catastrophe of a universal flood.

iv. Noah and his family were the last human beings who had not been corrupted by the angelic infiltration that produced the Nephalim. There must be a line of true humanity which extends from Noah to the true humanity of Jesus Christ. This explains the necessity to destroy the antediluvian population, which by now was a super race of half-angelic, half human beings.

i. “Eyes” are an anthropomorphism, ascribing to God human anatomy which He does not possess, used to express in human language a concept we can understand.

ii. Noah and his family were both genuine human race and regenerate human race. They had personally believed in Jesus Christ as He was revealed in the great evangelistic push as of that dispensation.

g. Gen 6:9, “The following is the family history of Noah, a justified person [a believer], who was uncontaminated in his genealogy [still true humanity]. Furthermore, Noah walked with God [a mature believer].”

i. Being justified means Noah had personally believed in Jesus Christ. Therefore, he was justified by faith.

ii. Therefore, since Noah was both justified and uncontaminated in his genealogy, he was the exception to Genesis 6:7, when the Lord said, “I will blot out mankind whom I have created from the surface of the earth.” All mankind was to be blotted out because mankind had become Nephalim, i.e., half-human and half-angelic. Had that continued, there would have been no possibility of the Lord Jesus Christ becoming true humanity and being judged for our sins. Then there would have been no way God could keep His Word to Adam and the woman.

iii. The reason why the family history or genealogy of Noah is so important is because it is true humanity all the way from Adam and the woman to Noah. That Noah walked with God indicates he was a mature believer as well. Genesis 6:10, “And Noah had three sons, namely Shem, Ham, and Japheth.”

iv. Every member of the human race is descended from either Shem, Ham, or Japheth, or the many combinations that have developed since then.

v. Abraham was in the line of Shem, and at age 99 he began the new racial species of the Jew. The Jewish line continued only through Isaac and Jacob, both believers. Jacob’s twelve sons are the basis for the entire Jewish race. Our Lord came from the line of Judah. Genesis 6:11, “Now the earth was corrupt in the sight of God; furthermore, the earth was saturated with violence.” Genesis 6:12, “Consequently, God looked at the earth and behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted their way on the earth.”

vi. The effectiveness of the genetic attack on the earth by demons resulted in true humanity being almost extinct on planet earth.

vii. The source of salvation must come from the true humanity of Jesus Christ. 1Peter 2:24, “He carried our sins in His own body on the cross.” As God, He could have nothing to do with sin. He had to become true humanity. Hence, there was the necessity for destroying the hybrid race of the half-human, half-angelic creatures.

viii. The demons (BENI HA ELOHIM, sons of God) were removed to Tartarus, while the corrupted humanity was removed to Torments in Hades.

ix. God protects the believer, fulfilling His will in time of extreme catastrophe. Whenever God has to judge the world to protect the human race from self-destruction, He always protects the believer from this extreme catastrophe, which in this case was a universal flood which destroyed all Nephalim and all animal life on the earth except what was in the ark. But no matter how great the catastrophe, it is the mature believer who always survives. The pivot of mature believers always survives catastrophe.

h. Gen 6:13, “Then God said to Noah, `The end of all flesh has come before Me [idiom: I’m thinking about the destruction of the antediluvian race), for the earth has become saturated with violence. Behold, I am about to destroy them with planet earth.’”

i. It’s interesting to note that one of the greatest cultures of all time occurred during the antediluvian civilization. The music, literature, and drama was far greater than anything produced since. Yet the greatest violence also existed. Culture and violence always go together, for it occurred again during the fifth century B.C. Athens, during the Renaissance, and today in the United States.

ii. So when a population gets to this point of saturated evil and violence, God intervenes with judgment. There will never again be a universal judgment of the earth, like the Flood. The earth will only be destroyed once more in its entirety, and that will occur at the end of the Millennium. At that time, God will cause a nuclear explosion that will destroy the earth and universe entirely.

iii. Under the principle that Jesus Christ controls history, there must be, from time to time, great judgments, so that certain segments of the population which are self-destructive can be wiped out.

iv. Jesus said the same thing when He said, “He who bears the sword will perish by the sword.” This does not refer to the soldier in the military or police officer in law enforcement, but to the criminal who is self-destructive in the human race. This is why capital punishment is no necessary. If we don’t destroy the criminal element through capital punishment, then God will do so in a terrible catastrophe.

v. How did God “destroy them with planet earth?” Genesis 7:11, “He opened up the fountains of the deep.” Remember the water that flooded the entire earth came from below the surface of the earth. The rain that came from above contributed a very small portion to the flood, only about 2%.

vi. This verse stresses the importance of God’s grace in judgment. It is seen in the work of our Lord on the cross. It is also seen in our Lord’s removal of evil empires from time to time to avoid the self-destruction of the human race.

1. In 1Peter 3:18-22, we have the only real winner in history, the One who did more to win than anyone else, and the One whose victory is more significant than anyone in human history.

a. 1Peter 3:18, “Because Christ also died once for our sins, the righteous One as a substitute for the unrighteous ones, that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive by means of the Spirit.”

i. The trichotomous humanity of Christ remained impeccable during the entire time He was on the cross, though He underwent the greatest temptations anyone ever faced. He was the “lamb without spot and without blemish.” He continued residing inside the divine dynasphere during three hours of the most intense suffering to ever exist in human history.

ii. There are two reasons why our Lord remained the “righteous One.” First, He was sustained by the omnipotence of God the Holy Spirit inside the prototype divine dynasphere, Hebrews 9:14. Secondly, He used the problem solving devices, especially +H or sharing the happiness of God, Hebrews 12:2. Both of these sustaining factors are now available to you as a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ.

iii. The Greek preposition HUPER plus the genitive of advantage from ADIKOS, “as a substitute for the unrighteous ones,” refers to us all. The Greek noun ADIKOS includes both moral and immoral degeneracy, everything that makes up our failures when we’re under the control of the old sin nature.

iv. If you have personally believed in Jesus Christ, you have been brought to God. Jesus Christ is the only one who can bring us to God, and who can give us eternal life.

v. The entire satanic plot was an attempt to keep Jesus Christ from being “put to death in the flesh.”

vi. The omnipotence of the Holy Spirit had custodianship of our Lord’s human soul after His physical death. God the Holy Spirit was the means by which our Lord was “made alive by means of the Spirit.”

vii. The rest of this passage explains what happened to our Lord’s soul between the phrases “having been put to death in the flesh” and “but made alive by means of the Spirit.” Under the custodianship of God the Holy Spirit, His soul not only went to Paradise, but He also visited Tartarus. So our Lord’s human soul was in Hades for three days. While there, He went to Tartarus.

b. 1Peter 3:19, “by means of whom [God the Holy Spirit], He [human soul of Jesus Christ] went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison.” The “spirits in prison” are the BENI HA ELOHIM of Genesis 6:1ff. Those fallen angels who were judged and incarcerated in Tartarus when the universal flood occurred on the earth, Jude 6; 2Peter 2:4.

c. 1Peter 3:20, “who [imprisoned demons] once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, while the ark was being constructed, in which a few, that is, eight souls, were brought to safety through water.”

i. The patience of God waited 120 years. That period received that most intensive Gospel proclamation in all of human history. Every one of the Nephalim had a chance to believe in Christ, and every one of them said no. In the vacuum of their souls, they continued to worship the gods of Mount Olympus, who were not gods but demons.

iii. The water that drowned the unbelieving world was also used to deliver the eight souls who were believers and true humanity. They are called “eight souls” because the soul is saved, not the body. We receive an interim body, and then a resurrection body.

d. 1Peter 3:21, “which also is an antitype [copy, representation] of the baptism [of the Holy Spirit] which now saves us — not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but a pledge of a good conscience toward God — through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,”

i. At the moment of our salvation, the baptism of the Spirit made us members of the royal family of God. Each member of Noah’s family in the ark is analogous to the believer who is union with the person of Jesus Christ. Union with Christ delivers each member of the royal family of God.

ii. Those eight souls were an antitype 10thor copy of what happens to us in the baptism of the Holy Spirit. For they were delivered from the catastrophe of the Flood by being inside the ark, just as we are delivered from the Lake of Fire by being in union with Christ, due to the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Just as they were safe in the Ark, so we are safe in union with Christ.

iii. The parenthetical phrase is to make sure you understand this does not refer to water baptism.

iv. Your conscience was developed at the moment you believed in Jesus Christ as Savior, when God the Holy Spirit entered you into union with the person of Jesus Christ, making you royal family of God and a new spiritual species. So the pledge of good conscience toward God begins with becoming a new spiritual species and a member of the royal family of God.

e. 1Peter 3:22, “who [Jesus Christ] is at the right hand of God [the Father], having ascended into heaven after angels and authorities and powers had been subordinated to Him.”

i. When Jesus Christ ascended, He was seated at the right hand of God the Father and received His third royal warrant. When we believe in Jesus Christ, we are put into union with Him as He is seated at the Father’s right hand. This means we are positionally in heaven at the right hand of the Father right now; this is the doctrine of positional sanctification.

ii. Since Jesus Christ ascended, He is now higher than all angels in a human body! This is unprecedented in all of history! This means that positionally, you are also higher than all angelic creatures. Furthermore, in the future when you receive your resurrection body, you will be physically higher and superior to the angels, the original creation of God.

2. When our Lord Jesus Christ went to the fallen angels of Genesis 6 in Tartarus He announced to them a victorious proclamation, that they had not succeeded in their great attempt to prevent Him from coming in the flesh as true humanity.

a. The Holy Spirit transferred our Lord’s human soul from Paradise to Tartarus to make His proclamation.

b. He announced that He had come into the world as true humanity. Then our Lord gave those demons an entire dissertation on the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union, and how He had been judged for the sins of the world. He told them how their plot had failed, for true humanity had remained on the earth with Noah and his family.

3. We only have part of what our Lord said to those fallen angels recorded in Hebrews 2:9-17. Hebrews 2:9, “We see Jesus, who was made a little lower than angels [in His humanity], now crowned with glory and honor because He suffered death, that by the grace of God He might taste [spiritual] death for everyone.” True humanity is lower than angels. In a resurrection body we will be higher than angels. Hebrews 2:10, “For in bringing many sons into glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the Author of their salvation perfect through suffering.” Hebrews 2:11, “For both He who sanctifies [Jesus Christ through agency of the baptism of the Spirit] and those who are being sanctified [royal family], are all from one [idiom: all of the same family], for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren,” Hebrews 2:12, “saying [Ps 22:22], `I will proclaim Your name to Your family [royal family of God]; in the middle of the congregation I will sing Your praise.’” In antiphonal worship, Jesus Christ is praised as the strategic victor in the angelic conflict. Hebrews 2:13, “And again [Isa 8:17], `I [personification of all Church Age believers] will put my trust in Him.’ And again [Isa 8:18], `Behold, I [victorious Christ] and the children [royal family] whom God [F] has given to Me.’” Not only did Jesus Christ succeed in coming in the flesh, in spite of that angelic attack, but at the same time a royal family was formed. God the Father has given to our Lord a royal family as an award for His third royal patent. Hebrews 2:14, “Since therefore the children share common blood and flesh [true humanity], He also Himself, in the same manner [virgin birth], shared their humanity, in order that through death [substitutionary spiritual death] He might destroy [neutralize, render powerless] him [Satan] who has the power of death, that is, the devil;” In spite of the demon attack of Genesis 6:1-11, true humanity continues to reside on the earth in the postdiluvian civilization. Hebrews 2:15, “and might deliver those who, through fear of death, were subject to slavery all of their lives.” When we celebrate the Lord’s table, we celebrate the highest freedom ever attained in this life, i.e., spiritual freedom. Fear, such as fear of death, makes the human race a slave. Hebrews 2:16, “For obviously, He [humanity of Christ] did not assume the nature of angels, but He did take on the seed of Abraham [new racial species of Jew].” Hebrews 2:17, “For this reason, He had to be made like His brethren [royal family] in every way, that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.” This is the victorious proclamation in part.

1. This fourth compartment of Hades is the jail for a certain postdiluvian demons who have been incarcerated there because they disobeyed the rules for the angelic conflict in human history.

2. ABUSSOS means abyss, and is mistranslated “the deep” in the KJV, Luke 8:31; Romans 10:7 and in Revelation 9:1-2, 11, 7:17, 11:7, and 20:1-3 where it is called “the bottomless pit.” Romans 10:7 tells us it is a part of Sheol; cf. Amos

3. Our Lord had a dialogue with a demon-possessed man of Luke 8:30-31. After He cast the demons out, they begged Him not to order them into the Abyss. “And Jesus asked him, `What is your name?’ And he replied, `Legion,’ for many had entered him. And they begged Him not to command them to depart into the Abyss.”

a. The fact that they called themselves “Legion” means they were organized into a military force.

b. The demons knew they had violated certain principles and could be tossed into the Abyss. A demon army is being formed there of all fallen angels who violate the rules of the angelic conflict.

c. Demons who violate certain rules of the angelic conflict during human history are banished into the Abyss. Apparently at least 1000 demons indwelt this man, contrary to the rules of the angelic conflict.

4. The Church is the focal point of the invisible warfare today; therefore we are required to become invisible heroes. However, the Abyss is related to visible warfare in the Tribulation.

5. The Abyss is the present barracks for the first demon assault army under the command of Abaddon (Hebrew) or Apollyon (Greek). This first demon assault army will invade the earth during the Tribulation, Revelation 9:1-12. They are released from their prison to become part of the administration of punishment to unbelievers. At this time, the invisible angelic conflict will become visible. Hence, there will be visible heroes among believers; e.g., Moses and Elijah and the 144,000 Jewish evangelists. These events indicate a tremendous and radical change in God’s plan after the Rapture of the Church occurs.

6. A second demon assault army is said to be stationed underneath the Euphrates River. It will be sent into action at the sounding of the sixth trumpet, Revelation 9:13-21. This demon assault army will actually kill one-third of the people of the earth who are involved in the cosmic system.

7. The third demon assault army is commanded by Satan himself. It now resides in heaven. It will attack upon the sounding of the seventh trumpet, Revelation 11:15-12:17. This army will be involved in warfare in heaven. It will be defeated by the angelic order of battle led by Michael the archangel, Revelation 12:7-8. As a result of this defeat by Michael and the elect angels, the third demon assault army will attack planet earth, Revelation 12:9. This attack is specifically directed against the Jews. It is Satan’s final attempt to wipe out every Jew on the earth. Anti- semitism is one of the greatest systems of evil from Satan.

8. There is a special demon-king, Apollyon, now residing in the Abyss who will indwell and empower the dictator of the revived Roman Empire in the Tribulation, Revelation 17. Revelation 17:8, “The beast that you saw [revived Roman Empire] was [Roman Empire in time of John, 96 A.D.] and is not [fall of Roman Empire in 476 A.D.] and will come out of the Abyss and go into

9. The Abyss will be the millennial jail of Satan where he will serve 1000 years of prison sentence. Revelation 20:1-3, “And I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the Abyss and a great chain in his hand. And he seized the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for one thousand years. And he cast him into the Abyss, and he both shut and sealed it over him so that he should not deceive the nations any longer until the thousand years were completed.”

10. When the two witnesses, Moses and Elijah, finish their ministry in the Tribulation, they are killed by Abaddon, the king of all demons in the Abyss, Revelation 9:11 cf 11:7.

1. During the First Advent, healing was used to verify and establish the fact that the Messiah had come to Israel. Healing was not used to alleviate suffering, but to present the Messiah.

2. There is no “healing in the atonement.” That is a false satanic doctrine. “Healing in the atonement” would imply lack of eternal security: a sick Christian would be a lost Christian.

3. God often provides illness as a means of divine discipline, 1Corinthians 11:30.

4. Good health is not a sign of spirituality or salvation. Beware of judging those who have lost their health.

5. In the pre-Canon period of the Church Age, God the Holy Spirit sovereignly bestowed a temporary gift of healing on certain men to establish their credentials as apostles and other communicators of doctrine. Healing established the man as from God. 1Corinthians 12:11.

6. All temporary spiritual gifts were designed to take up the slack in the Church Age until the Canon was completed and circulated.

7. However, once the Bible was completed (96 AD), all temporary gifts were withdrawn to be replaced by doctrine.

8. Certain gifts, such as miracles and healing, were no longer necessary to establish the authority of Bible teachers and doctrinal communication.

9. Temporary gifts include prophecy, miracles, apostleship, healing, tongues, and interpretation of tongues. Tongues ended after 70 AD, since it was a sign to warn the Jews of the coming fifth cycle of discipline as prophesied in Isaiah 28.

10. Since healing was designed as a credit card rather than to alleviate suffering, it was always removed once the authority of the communicator was established.

11. For example, Paul in Acts 19:11-12 cf Philippians 2:27; 2Timothy 4:20 when he could no longer heal his close friends.

12. God can always heal anyone, but healing is not the order of the day in this stage of the angelic conflict. God never heals through an individual, only through prayer. Those who allege they can heal are totally evil. Healing will be the order of the day again in the Tribulation.

13. No human being has any gift related to healing now that the Canon has been completed. However, in our Lord’s day Jesus performed acts of healing to focus attention on Himself as the God-Man, the Messiah, and the God of Israel.

R. B. Thieme, Jr. Bible Ministries 5139 West Alabama, Houston, Texas 77056 (713) 621-3740

C. Demon induced illness: When demons possess unbelievers they can produce certain kinds of diseases. Also Satan and/or demons are permitted at times to affect believers’ health from the outside. No believer can be indwelt by a demon.

1. Satan was permitted (from the outside) to buffet Paul with a thorn in the flesh type of disease or pain — 2Corinthians 12:7.

2. Satan was responsible for Job’s illness — Job 2:6-8. Permitted by God (since Job is a believer).

a. Acts 10:38, “ … and healing all who were oppressed by the devil.” These illnesses had as their source the devil.

b. Luke 13:16 (vs. 10-17) The cause of this woman’s disease is demon possession. The doctors could not heal her — because she was bound by Satan. Doctors today are baffled with demon induced illness. [This is not a passage against doctors!]

c. There are two ways of getting well according to James 5. Prayer here is the spiritual aspect, praying for the individual. The anointing of oil is medical help. This was doctoring in those days — see the parable of the Good Samaritan )Luke 10:30-37) Oil was used medicinally. (Don’t read our modern medicine picture into New Testament times!)

d. In Luke 13 Christ heals. Note that in cases where demon possession causes illness the casting out of the demon cures the illness. This is termed healing — Matthew 10:1; Mark 1:32-34; 6:13; Acts 8:7; 19:12.

e. In cases where demon possession did not cause illness they just cast out, no mention of healing.

4. Satan uses demons to cause deafness, dumbness (Not all of this is caused by demons, however) and paralysis — Matthew 9:32-33; 12:22; Mark 5:5; 9:17-18.

a. Matthew 7:21-23. This passage describes a very prevalent situation today in the large “mass healing” meetings.

(1) The use of “me, Lord, Lord” refers to the constant use of the name of Jesus Christ in apostate meetings of the healing and tongues variety — 7:21.

(3) “prophesied” … cast out demons … done many wonderful works (in thy name — in the name of Jesus Christ)

(5) “ye that work iniquity” Their prophecies, casting out demons and many wonderful works are called iniquity (sin). God’s power is not sin, therefore this power by which they operate is Satan’s.

(6) For example: A demon-possessed faith-healer (unsaved) will be very nice, very well-dressed, very well versed in using the name of Jesus Christ repeatedly — doing everything IN THE NAME OF JESUS. Note the use of “in thy name” in Matthew 7:22.

(7) He will use emotion, he will take up a huge offering, he will have an empiricism (senses) approach. The people who come up to be healed may have demon induced illness, or they may not. But the demon possessed individual cooperates with the individual with the demon-induced illness. When he shouts “heal” the demon comes out of the victim and the demon induced illness is no more. The whole crowd of simple and stupid believers or non-believers watching shouts, “Praise God,” etc. If the faith healing is not demon possession — and the victim is not demon possessed it is purely psychosomatic. The emotionally charged atmosphere makes the person think they have faith and that they are healed.

b. 2 Thessalonians 2:9, “ … with every kind of power and signs and lying wonders.” This is Satanic power in the Tribulation, and its mystery of iniquity is already at work in the Church Age.

1. He heals sovereignly when He does and on the basis of grace, and who and what He is.

2. God does not heal through a spiritual gift of healing, there is no spiritual gift of healing since the canon of scripture has been

3. There is no bona fide faith-healing operating on the earth. All are deceivers and frauds, very stupid, very sincere, and very much showmen in enacting their thing. (Healing was a temporary spiritual gift in the pre-canon period of the early church)

b. Handkerchiefs dipped in the Jordan, or in some radio preacher’s olive oil from the Holy Land.

f. Generally this appeals to the toothless, brainless simpleton, the unthinking emotional crowd.

b. People don’t get healed because they “have faith.” Then the gimmick — they are told if they didn’t get healed, “Well, you didn’t have enough faith.”

c. In every case where God heals, it does not depend upon the faithfulness of the individual, the faith of the individual, the works of the individual, it depends upon the sovereignty of God, not human approbation. God does at times sovereignly heal people.

6. There is not “healing in the atonement” as taught by A.B. Simpson and others. Isaiah 53:5 in the Hebrew is “By His bruise we are drawn together.”

7. So the first of four reasons why people have a miraculous healing is the healing is directly caused by God.

a. Caused by medical research and application: It seems to be prevalent among certain types of modern-day believers to poo-hoo doctors, medical research, they are “going to directly depend upon God.”

b. But they use hearing aids, wear glasses, have false teeth. Even Paul had physician friend (Luke) with him at times on his travels — and Luke practiced medicine.

(2) Faith-healer in cooperation with the devil (whom he calls Jesus) heals in connection with demon-induced illness.

III. Illness caused by a change of mental attitude: Psychosomatic. The frontal lobe gets upset, and it sends signals down to the body and that causes everything from hypertension to rash.

A. Now when the mind affects the body, and suddenly there is an emotional charged experience when a very determined and sincere type says you are going to be healed — it actually in some cases was only a change of mental attitude.

B. Here is an individual who is convinced mentally that he has a tumor, cancer, warts, an ulcer or something else.

c. There is a great deal of emphasis on the “wonderful crowds” present, a lot of public relations, testimonials to prove that “God is working.” Their motto is diametrically opposed to Christianity, they say seeing is believing, feeling is believing, touching is believing, hearing in believing, smelling is believing (Jesus filled the room with a heaven-sent fragrance) This is empiricism. Only faith unlocks the Word, first in salvation and then proper spirituality.

d. There is tremendous emphasis on the offering, and some project like a tent or truck to proclaim the gospel.

e. And more singing, and maybe a verse or two on what Jesus did with handkerchiefs and oil.

g. All of this is pure deception, and phony all the way. I™ is the chief form of apostasy today. On the basis of Bible doctrine don’t get mixed up with it.

2. Now as the healing exhibit moves into high gear he does his ‘formula’ on the stage and it is a sight deal all the way. The Word says, “We walk by faith, not by sight” — 2Corinthians 5:7; Colossians 2:6.

b. The emotional surge of the meetings has given them the adrenalin that they need to throw their crutches away.

c. Purely psychological: Doctors are saying that 60 per cent of the patients that walk in their office and say, “Doc, I’ve got an organic problem, a physical problem,” actually have a mental hang-up. Get the mental hang-up removed and their physical body doesn’t ache.

1. The Holy Spirit is eternal God and is coequal with the Father and the Son, 2Corinthians 13:14. He has the same essence as God the Father and Jesus Christ.

2. The Holy Spirit is called "God" using the sacred JHWH in Isaiah 6:8-9 cf Acts 28:25; Jeremiah 31:31-34 cf Hebrews 10:15-16.

4. The deity of the Holy Spirit is taught in the New Testament, 2Corinthians 3:17.

1. The Holy Spirit had a special ministry of divine revelation to Old Testament believers; primarily, but not exclusively, to those who had the gift of prophesy. The Spirit had a ministry to every writer of Old Testament Scripture. Every writer was controlled by the Spirit in what he wrote.

a. 2Peter 1:20-21 Understand this first, that all prophesy from Scripture does not originate from one's own interpretation; for prophesy was never produced by the will of mankind, but men communicated as they were being carried along by means of the Holy Spirit.

b. 2Timothy 3:18-19 All Scripture is God-breathed, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for training which is righteousness, that the man of God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.

(1) The Greek word THEOPNEUSTOS, meaning God-breathed, refers to two things: inhale and exhale. In addition to revelation as the ministry of the Holy Spirit, we have the doctrine of Inspiration.

(a) The inhale: God the Holy Spirit communicated to human authors of the Old Testament God's complete and coherent message for both that generation and for all future generations.

(i) Jeremiah 1:9 Then the Lord [God the Holy Spirit] stretched out His hand and touched my mouth and said to me, `Behold, I have put words in your mouth.'

(ii) Mark 12:36 David himself said by means of the Holy Spirit, `The Lord said to my Lord, "Sit down at My right hand until I put your enemies beneath your feet."

(b) The exhale: the human authors wrote down in their own language the divine message from God.

(2) The result is the correct and accurate doctrine of the inspiration of Scripture, which says: God so supernaturally directed the writers of Scriptures, that without waving their human intelligence, their vocabulary, personality, literary style, feeling, or any other human factor, His own complete and coherent message to mankind was recorded with perfect accuracy in the original languages of Scripture, the vary words bearing the authority of divine authorship.

2. The ministry of the Holy Spirit to the Old Testament writers in the doctrine of inspiration included three categories.

a. The TORAH. This was written by Moses, who had both the gift and office of prophet.

b. The NABIIM, which includes Joshua, Samuel, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Hosea, Joel, Zachariah. The human authors had the office of prophet.

c. The KETHUBIM, which means "the writings." The human authors had the gift of prophesy only: David, Solomon, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah.

1. It was extended to very few believers and only for special purposes. The Spirit's ministry in the Old Testament was to less than one percent of believers. There was no indwelling or filling of the Spirit in the Old Testament.

2. The purpose was to empower and enable certain believers to accomplish the will of God under certain and varying circumstances.

a. In the Old Testament this ministry was always to a few believers, but in the New Testament the Spirit's ministry is to all believers.

b. Because people do not understand this, there is a great deal of confusion. Pentecostal groups have picked up the ministry of the Holy Spirit to the Old Testament saints and have attempted to bring it into the Church Age.

3. This ministry is called enduement, or being clothed with the Spirit (LABACH). Enduement means to empower; to invest or endow with some gift, quality, or faculty of power; to clothe with power or ability above and beyond human ability.

b. Skilled labor to make Aaron's high priestly clothes, Exodus 28:3; and to build the tabernacle, Exodus 31:3.

e. Othniel and certain judges were empowered to kill Israel's enemies, Judges 3:10; Gideon to kill Arabs, Judges 6:34; Jephthah, Judges 11:29; Samson to kill a lion, Judges 14:6, and the Philistine army, Judges 15:14ff. All of these passages link the empowering of the Holy Spirit with killing the enemy or ruling the nation, and not as a part of spirituality.

f. Saul was empowered for ruling and communicating, so that the people could identify their leader, 1Samuel 10:9-10.

g. David, whose great feats were accomplished in the power of the Spirit, 1Samuel 16:13. David was perpetually empowered with the Spirit.

i. The human authors of the Old Testament, 1Peter 1:11-12; 2Peter 1:20-21. These men knew all about Jesus Christ in His first advent. They preached by means of the power of the Holy Spirit.

5. There were three carnal believers in the Old Testament whom the Holy Spirit empowered.

6. The Holy Spirit empowered a few Old Testament believers to perform miracles. There were three great periods of miracles.

c. During the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union by the Lord Jesus Christ. Matthew 12:28; Luke 4:14-18.

2. The disciples were told to ask for the Spirit, but did not, Luke 11:13. So before the beginning of the Church Age and after His resurrection Christ gave them the Holy Spirit, John 20:22.

E. Old Testament believers who received the Holy Spirit could lose the Holy Spirit as a matter of discipline.

1. During the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union, there were a few believers who were filled by the Holy Spirit, such as John the Baptist. However, the most important ministry was the ministry of the Holy Spirit to the humanity of Christ.

2. The filling of the Spirit is always related in the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union or the Church Age to the divine dynasphere.

a. The humanity of Christ dwelt in the prototype divine dynasphere; we have the operational type divine dynasphere. This is why the filling of the Spirit which we have takes its precedence from the filling of the humanity of Christ.

b. The humanity of Christ was both indwelt and filled with the Spirit. That is precedence for out relationship with the Holy Spirit in the Church Age.

c. Efficacious and common grace are the same in every dispensation. Salvation is the same in every dispensation, but not the ministry of the Spirit to the believer.

a. Isaiah 11:2, "And the Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and knowledge, and occupation with the Lord."

(1) When anyone has the Holy Spirit, they have their own counsel and understanding. They do not have to go to anyone else for counseling. With doctrine, you have the ability to counsel yourself.

(2) "Wisdom" is doctrine that causes spiritual growth. "Understanding" is exposure to the teaching of doctrine. With doctrine, you do not depend on anyone with influence or power to do anything for you; you will depend upon the power of the Holy Spirit.

(3) "Knowledge" is understanding and being able to us the problem solving devices, which only the Spirit can reveal.

b. Isaiah 42:1 quoted in Matthew 12:18 Behold My Servant [Jesus Christ], whom I sustain. My Chosen One, in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit on Him.

c. The Spirit filling Christ is the fulfillment of John 3:34 For He whom God has sent speaks the doctrines of God; for He does not give the Spirit by measure.

d. Matthew 12:28 Jesus said, `If I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom has come to you.'

4. Our Lord was sustained in His humanity by the Spirit. He did not use His own divine attributes to glorify Himself or to fulfill anything in the strength of His divine power. It was a part of the dispensation of the Hypostatic Union that our Lord would depend on the Father's provision, including the Father's provision of the Holy Spirit. This would establish a precedent for the royal family of God in the Church Age.

5. Our Lord offered the filling of the Holy Spirit to any of his disciples who would ask for Him.

a. This is why it says, "Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened unto you." That was Jesus giving a promise to the disciples to show them the mechanics for getting the filling of the Holy Spirit prior to the Church Age.

b. Luke 11:13 If you being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children [and you do], how much more shall your Father from heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask for Him. We do not ask for the Holy Spirit during the Church Age, since we receive Him as of the moment of salvation.

c. None of the disciples ever did ask the Lord for the filling of the Spirit. Consequently, just prior to the ascension, our Lord gave the Holy Spirit to the disciples without their asking. Why? Because He knew that in the ten days before the Church Age began, they would be tested beyond their power. Therefore, He gave them the power, so that they would be in fellowship and ready for the Church Age to begin on the day of Pentecost. John 20:22, "And when Jesus had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, `Receive the Holy Spirit.'"

G. The ministry of the Holy Spirit in the Church Age to the royal family is unique.

1. Regeneration and efficacious grace are the same in all dispensations. The Holy Spirit makes the Gospel a spiritual reality to the unbeliever in every age.

2. But in the Church Age the key is the baptism of the Holy Spirit, which enters us into union with Christ.

3. Christ was appointed royalty at the session. But He is alone and must have a royal family to compliment His third royal patent, His battlefield royalty "sit down at My right hand until I make your enemies the footstool for Your feet."

4. God the Father stopped the Jewish age to provide a royal family for our Lord as the "King of kings and Lord of lords."

5. Therefore, because we are royalty, God the Holy Spirit does more for us at salvation than for believers of any other dispensation.

b. He creates a human spirit for the imputation of eternal life, the ministry of regeneration.

c. He enters us into union with Christ as a guarantee of our escrow blessings, the baptism of the Spirit.

d. He enters us into the divine dynasphere for the power to execute the protocol plan of God, the ministry of the filling of the Holy Spirit. (The system of spirituality for Old Testament saints was not related to the Holy Spirit but to the faith-rest drill.)

e. He indwells us to provide a temple for the indwelling of the Shekinah glory (our Lord), the ministry of indwelling.

g. He guarantees our escrow blessings and eternal security, the sealing ministry of the Spirit.

6. Every believer is indwelt by the Holy Spirit and cannot lose that indwelling.

7. Every believer is filled with the Spirit at the point of salvation (because we are entered into the divine dynasphere) and loses the filling of the Spirit at the point of post-salvation sinning or carnality. The filling of the Spirit is only valuable when we know doctrine. The filling of the Spirit is the means of learning doctrine.

8. Recovery of the filling of the Spirit occurs through the use of the rebound technique, 1John 1:9, not by asking for the Spirit.

1. The ministry of the Holy Spirit to the Jewish Age believer was quite different than His ministry to the Church Age believer.

3. In the Church Age the Holy Spirit does much more for the royal family than He did for the believer in the Old Testament, or will do for the believers in the Millennium.

4. Fundamentalist Christianity today sometimes fails to make this distinction, resulting in apostasy and heresy.

5. The ministry of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament was limited to a very few believers and was very different than His ministry to believers in the Church Age.

6. Not only was His Old Testament ministry limited to a few believers, but it could be taken away because of the believer's carnality and reversionism.

7. The Holy Spirit may be quenched or grieved in the Church Age, but He continues to indwell every believer. Sin neutralizes the filling of the Spirit until rebound occurs.

8. In the Church Age we are never commanded to ask for the Spirit, since we receive Him at salvation.

9. In the Church Age we are only commanded to be filled with the Spirit. This is accomplished by the use of the rebound technique, 1John 1:9.

10. In the Old Testament a believer could ask for the Holy Spirit and pray for His continued presence.

1. All the Trinity passages reveal the coequality with other members of the Godhead — 2 Corinthians 13:14 indicates the total deity of the Holy Spirit.

2. The Holy Spirit is also called Jehovah in the Old Testament, this is a title of God — cf. Isaiah 6:8,9 with Acts 28:25, or Jeremiah 31:31-34 with Hebrews 10:15.

Principle: You cannot hurt someone else until you have first of all hurt or grieved God the Holy Spirit who indwells all members of the royal priesthood.

4. The filling of the Holy Spirit is God the Holy Spirit controlling the soul of the believer. Descriptions of the filling of the Holy Spirit in Scripture.

a. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is documented in Romans 8:9; 1Corinthians 3:16, 6:19-20; Gal 3:2, 4:6; John 7:37-39, 14:16-17.

d. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is the principle of victory over the old sin nature, while the filling of the Holy Spirit is the function of victory over the old sin nature.

B. The filling of the Spirit is one of the seven ministries of God the Holy Spirit to us at the moment of salvation.

1. We do not earn and we cannot deserve the ministry of God the Holy Spirit to us. Ephesians 4:30, "Furthermore, stop grieving the Spirit, the God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption."

3. There are seven ministries of God the Holy Spirit to the Church Age believer at the moment of salvation.

c. The baptism of the Spirit is the ministry of God the Holy Spirit in taking every new believer and entering him into union with the person of Jesus Christ. We are in union with Christ forever. This is how the Holy Spirit makes Christ Lord. You cannot make Christ Lord. This is positional sanctification. At the same time as entering us into union with Christ, a new spiritual species is created. Race, culture, and gender are no longer an issue. This adds up to equal privilege and equal opportunity to execute the plan of God for the Church. In addition, we are royal family of God and have the eternal life of Christ. We have a double portion of eternal life. We are also the sons of God. We are joint-heirs with Christ. We share His election and His destiny. Acts 1:5; 1Corinthians 12:13; Gal 3:26-28; Ephesians 4:4-5. The baptism of the Spirit is not an experience, not an emotion.

(3) Gate three is enforced and genuine humility, objectivity, and teachability. God makes war against the arrogant believer but He gives grace to the humble believer.

(4) Gate four is momentum from perception, inculcation, and metabolization of Bible doctrine circulating in the seven compartments of the right lobe of the soul.

C. The ministry of God the Holy Spirit to the Church Age believer is the same ministry that He had to our Lord Jesus Christ during the First Advent.

a. Isaiah 11:2, "And the Spirit [God the Holy Spirit] of the Lord [God the Father] will rest on Him [Jesus Christ], The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and power, The Spirit of knowledge and occupation with the Lord [God the Father]."

b. Isaiah 42:1, "Behold, My servant, whom I sustain; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I will put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations." The fulfillment of this prophecy is declared in John 3:34, "For He [God the Holy Spirit] whom God [the Father] has sent speaks the doctrines from God; for He does not give the Spirit by measure." Matthew 12:28, "If I cast out demons by the Spirit of God [and I do], then the kingdom of God has come to you."

2. At the moment of salvation through faith in Christ we have four principles involved in our relationship to the Holy Spirit.

b. Every believer is simultaneously filled with the Holy Spirit at the moment of salvation and loses that filling the first time he sins.

c. However, the believer recovers the fellowship of the Spirit, the filling of the Spirit, through the rebound technique.

a. John 1:14, "The Word became flesh and He tabernacled among us and we beheld His glory, as of the uniquely born One from the Father, full of grace [grace orientation] and truth [metabolized doctrine]."

b. Hebrews 9:14, "How much more then shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" The one offering that was greater than all the Levitical offerings was the offering of our Lord Jesus Christ on the Cross. Our Lord offered Himself and remained filled with the Spirit while bearing the judgment for our sins. The filling of the Spirit gave Him the power not to resent any sin that was imputed to Him for judgment.

1. The deity of the Holy Spirit is established in Trinity passages which reveal the coequality of the Spirit with God the Father and God the Son, 2Corinthians 13:14.

2. In the Old Testament, God the Holy Spirit is called Jehovah, Isaiah 6:8-9 cf Acts 28:25; Jeremiah 31:31-34 cf Hebrews 10:15.

3. Certain divine attributes are ascribed to the Holy Spirit which emphasize His deity.

a. Ephesians 5:18, "Stop being intoxicated with wine by which is dissipation [a lifestyle of self-absorption to try and solve the problems of life], but keep on being filled with the Holy Spirit."

(b) The passive voice indicates that the Church Age believer is acted upon by God the Holy Spirit inside the operational type divine dynasphere.

(3) The Greek preposition EN plus the instrumental of agency can be translated "keep on being controlled by means of the Spirit."

(2) The Holy Spirit provides spiritual freedom from the control of the sin nature when we are filled with the Spirit.

c. Ephesians 3:16, "that He may give you, on the basis of the riches of His glory [your portfolio of invisible assets and the unique assets of the Church Age], to become strong by means of power through His Spirit in your inner being." This is the ministry of God the Holy Spirit metabolizing doctrine in your inner being, circulating that doctrine in the seven compartments of the stream of consciousness, and giving you the ability to make right decisions from a position of strength. We acquire strength through the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit inside the divine dynasphere. This is what our Lord prophesied for the Church Age in John 14:26, 16:12-14. This was Paul's great teaching in 1Corinthians 2:9-16.

e. Gal 5:1, 13-18, 22-25 is a dissertation on the importance of the filling of the Spirit as far as the execution of the spiritual life.

(1) Gal 5:1, "It is for [spiritual] freedom that Christ has set us free; therefore keep standing fast and do not become entangled again in the yoke of slavery [carnality]."

a. Ephesians 4:30, "Stop grieving the Holy Spirit, the God by whom you have been sealed for the day of redemption." This is the retroactive progressive present active imperative of the Greek verb LUREO. Grieving the Spirit is carnality or life in cosmic one. This is a command to stop sinning and persisting in cosmic one without rebound. This command emphasizes the fact that spirituality and carnality are mutually exclusive. They are absolutes, 1John 1:6-7; 1John 2:10-11.

b. The command to not live in cosmic two is found in 1Thessalonians 5:19, "Do not quench the Spirit."

3. The positive and negative commands emphasize imitation as the issue in the spiritual life. We either imitate God or people, Ephesians 5:1.

b. Carnal believers imitate unbelievers, 1Corinthians 3:3; Gal 5:19-21; 1John 1:6.

G. Since spirituality is the modus operandi of the royal priesthood, it is not subject to the Mosaic Law, Romans 8:2-4.

1. Romans 10:4, "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes." The Law demands perfect righteousness; believing in Christ provides for us this requirement of the Mosaic Law.