Category: blood of Christ

Satan and Dispensationalism #25

Friday, October 30, 2015

“Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:” (Colossians 1:25,26 KJV).

Dispensational Bible Study enables us to see and appreciate the final revelation from God. Satan is thus utterly embarrassed!

It is written down forever in the eternal Word of God. Looks were indeed deceiving at Calvary. Satan, appearing victorious, actually participated in his own defeat! Beloved, the preaching of the cross is that God outsmarted Satan. Jesus Christ’s shed blood can deliver sinners—even wretched, uncircumcised Gentiles such as ourselves—from Satan’s domain!

“[12] Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: [13] Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: [14] In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:12-14).

That God would take Jews and Gentiles who would simply trust His Son’s finished crosswork, and form one new man, the Church the Body of Christ—completely unheard of in the Old Testament! Even Satan could not and did not figure it out. It was not revealed to Satan, his fallen angels, God’s elect angels, and man until God saved miserable Saul of Tarsus and commissioned him as the Apostle Paul. As God’s apostle of the Gentiles, Paul had a special role. He was given the privilege to finish God’s Word (today’s Scripture).

Through the Pauline epistles, Romans through Philemon, God has made known unto us “the mystery of his will” (Ephesians 1:9). God had a secret will, friends. Now that God has revealed His secret through Paul’s writings, Satan has an active campaign to keep it hidden. Dispensational Bible Study is watered down, slandered, and ignored by the religious crowd and the modern English versions, that Satan not be exposed as foolish. Let us not be foolish. Lest we miss God’s latest (and final) revelation, may we recognize and hold fast to by faith the Dispensation of Grace given to us by Jesus Christ through the Apostle Paul.

-FINIS!- 🙂

Satan and Dispensationalism #24

Thursday, October 29, 2015

“Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:” (Colossians 1:25,26 KJV).

Dispensational Bible Study enables us to see and appreciate the final revelation from God. Satan is thus utterly embarrassed!

Lucifer was (still is as Satan) the wisest creature. However, that which is created can never be greater than its creator. God knows Satan’s thoughts, but Satan knows not God’s thoughts. While the triune Godhead revealed Their will for the earth and Israel, They kept something secret. Satan was intelligent, but not omniscient (all-knowing); some things were completely unknown to him. The triune Godhead skillfully let Satan participate in Calvary’s crosswork. After Calvary, the Godhead revealed Their original purpose in Calvary.

Had Satan really known what God would do through Christ’s finished crosswork, Satan would have done everything he could to prevent Calvary. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians chapter 2: “[6] Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: [7] But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: [8] Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.”

Colossians 2:14,15: “Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.”

Through Christ’s shed blood, all sinners can now be reconciled to God. In the future, Israel’s New Covenant can be established, to save her from her sins and make her God’s earthly kingdom of priests. Moreover, the direct divine revelation given to Paul is that Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection is how (now, in our Dispensation of Grace) all people—Jew or Gentile—can by faith join the Church the Body of Christ and form God’s heavenly kingdom.

Satan and Dispensationalism #2

Tuesday, October 6, 2015

“…God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:3,4 KJV).

Dispensational Bible study is the key to believing a clear Gospel message and understanding the Bible canon, so Satan seeks to hide or corrupt it, that he may keep the masses in his snare!

Friend, have you ever wondered about God’s will for your life? Now that you have read today’s Scripture, you need not search any longer. It discloses God’s will for non-Christians and Christians. The God of the Bible has done everything needed to save mankind from his sins. Why? He is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). The God of the Bible became the God-Man, Jesus Christ, to shed His rich, royal blood to atone for every person’s sins. “Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time” (1 Timothy 2:6). He wants all people to be saved, that they not go to hell! Lost people need to trust Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork alone, that they go to heaven!

Verse 7 continues, “Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity.” When was the “due time” for Jesus Christ’s crosswork to be “testified” as available to all people? It was Paul’s apostleship, Acts chapter 9 onward! This is the dispensational aspect of God’s will, the “coming unto the knowledge of the truth” that God wants for Christians. He wants them to recognize the special ministry and message the risen, ascended, and glorified Lord Jesus Christ gave Saul of Tarsus, the Apostle Paul. In Paul’s epistles, we find a clear Gospel message and the doctrine needed for a functional Christian life.

Satan obviously does not want God’s will fulfilled. So, his religious system confuses the various Gospel messages and divine instructions given throughout the Bible. This makes it nearly impossible for any lost person to become a Christian, and nearly impossible for a Christian to become a mature believer. Such people under his control are usually very resistant to hearing God’s truth!

Our latest Bible Q&A: “How long should I keep witnessing to the same person?”

The Carpenter from Nazareth (and Heaven) #10

Monday, September 28, 2015

“Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; Who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house. For this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath more honour than the house. For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God” (Hebrews 3:1-4 KJV).

Have you ever stopped to consider why Jesus’ earthly trade was carpentry?

A very fascinating portrait has formed. The Lord Jesus’ foster father, Joseph, was a carpenter, and He followed him in the trade. His Heavenly Father, God, was also a Carpenter, and He followed Him in the “family business” also. Today’s Scripture declares Father God was building a house in His creation. Jesus was thrilled to work with His Heavenly Father!

Jesus had studied the “Old Testament” Scriptures to learn that Father God was forming a nation who would learn His Word and then take it to the nations. He also learned, however, that Israel had gotten lost along the way. A vain and corrupt religious system had ensnared her and drawn her away from God’s pure words. The Lord Jesus knew that He had to reteach Israel verses she should have learned and later shared with the nations. As it turned out, they were willing to hear Jesus as much as they were willing to hear Moses. As the years passed, Jesus came to understand that that house Father God was building also involved three iron spikes, a wooden cross, and His sinless shed blood. Israel had to be redeemed from her sinful nature and forgiven of behaviors.

After Jesus taught Israel advanced doctrine built on the “Old Testament” Scriptures, those words were recorded in Matthew through John. This teaching was further developed in early Acts and Hebrews through Revelation. Once our Dispensation of Grace ends, believing Israel is to remain faithful to that doctrine, that the Antichrist not deceive her during those last seven years (verses 5,6). And so, the Carpenter from heaven is there today, to one day come back and finish building His nation Israel! 🙂

The Carpenter from Nazareth (and Heaven) #9

Sunday, September 27, 2015

“Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; Who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house. For this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath more honour than the house. For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God” (Hebrews 3:1-4 KJV).

Have you ever stopped to consider why Jesus’ earthly trade was carpentry?

According to the Law of Moses, Israel’s high priest had to first be washed with water, and then anointed with oil, before he could function in that office (see Exodus 29:1-7; cf. Leviticus 8:1-13). That high priest could then offer animals’ blood for the atonement of Israel’s sins (Leviticus chapter 16). In order to function as Israel’s “High Priest” (today’s Scripture), Jesus Christ was water baptized and then anointed with the Holy Ghost (Matthew 3:13-17). Then, His sinless blood was shed on Calvary, for Israel’s sins (Isaiah 53:8; Daniel 9:24).

Now, when our dispensation ends, Israel’s New Covenant can be established (Jeremiah 31:31-34). As the Old Covenant of Law was ratified with animal blood (Exodus chapter 24), so the New Covenant will be ratified by Jesus Christ’s shed blood (Hebrews 8:8-13; Hebrews 10:1-39). That New Covenant will redeem national Israel (Acts 3:19), her believing remnant, and enable them to become a house, Jesus Christ’s “house” (today’s Scripture). Verses 5 and 6 continue, “And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after; But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house we are, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.”

So, today’s Scripture contrasts Moses leading Israel under the Old Covenant with Jesus Christ leading Israel under the New Covenant. During the seven-year Tribulation, which will be operate once our dispensation ends, the book of Hebrews urges believing Jews to stay doctrinally pure, until Jesus Christ returns at His Second Coming to begin that New Covenant (cf. Romans 11:26-29).

Our latest Bible Q&A: “Should we pray for sick people?”

The Truth of the Gospel

Monday, September 14, 2015

“But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews? We who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles, Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified” (Galatians 2:14-16 KJV).

What is “the truth of the gospel?”

The Gospel of the Grace of God is how God’s grace is manifested to us through Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork. “Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He rose again the third day” (1 Corinthians 15:3,4). “Being justified [declared righteous by God] freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God” (Romans 3:24,25).

“The truth of the gospel” (today’s Scripture) is that we are saved today by simple faith in Jesus Christ’s sacrifice on Calvary alone. Works are not the issue (water baptism, dietary laws, confession, commandment-keeping, and so on). Had our works been enough to give us a right standing before God, Jesus could have stayed in heaven!

Peter’s error in today’s Scripture was that he encouraged Law-keeping among Paul’s Gentile converts. Paul’s converts were under no such legalistic commands. Neither are we. “Ye are not under the law, but under grace” (Romans 6:14b). Paul rightly rebuked Peter. In our Dispensation of Grace, God has abolished Israel’s system of works, and ushered in the system of grace. Paul would sadly rebuke many Christians today, those who incessantly mix law and grace. His words to Peter would echo throughout Christendom, “Ye walk not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel!”

Our latest Bible Q&A: “Can you explain Galatians 2:11-16?”

Where True Love is Found

Saturday, September 12, 2015

“Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4:10 KJV).

Behold where true love is found!

Many people today seek “love” in all the wrong places—“pimping,” prostitution, homosexual unions, pedophilia, bestiality, necrophilia, and all sorts of other illicit acts. Even concerning “straight” couples (involving two humans), there is usually a very shallow understanding of what true love is. There is a lot of “take, take, take” from one or both sides, and a lot of “me, me, me” on one or both sides. There is very little, if any, altruism (“give, give, give”). Both people really seeking the other person’s best interest—the rarest of all!

Beloved, let us never, ever, ever place another human on a level he or she will never attain. We are all sinners. Mistakes will happen. Other people will disappoint us, as individuals have done before. Break-ups happen, divorces happen, infidelity happens, betrayal happens. Even though both sides try their very hardest, there is still heartache and heartbreak. (Then, there is one or both parties doing nothing to make the situation better, leading to the same dismal end.)

All the unlovely people we have met in our life, the horrible individuals who treated us as though we were utter scum, we need not be bitter against them. We need to pray for them. They have not got a clue what real love is, and were thus unable to show it to us. We should take a moment to remember today’s Scripture. If no one else loves us, if everyone else betrays us, if everyone else disappoints us, if everyone else abandons us, there is still Father God and His free gift offered to us. His only begotten Son shed His rich, royal blood, that He may pay our sin debt. He had nothing left to give! Jesus Christ was Father God’s most precious relationship, and He (yea, They) gave it up, that we sinners might enjoy that perfect relationship forever!

In no other Person but Jesus Christ will we find true love. Let us not search for it elsewhere. Such a search is a waste of time… and of true love.

Our latest Bible Q&A: “What about unmarried, divorced, and remarried men in the ministry?”

Our Neutralizer and Justifier

Wednesday, September 2, 2015

“Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour” (Ephesians 5:1,2 KJV).

Get rid of your rotten stench in Adam by trusting the sweet fragrance in Christ!

Once, a dear lady was trying to correct her extreme hoarding behaviors. Before professional cleaners and organizers improved her home, she took them on a tour of her exceedingly cluttered house. It was appalling to say the least! A major problem was she lacked functional bathroom plumbing. Her toilet could not flush human waste unless she manually poured water into the bowl. To their horror, they saw backed-up and decaying waste on her bathroom floor. Workers complained of the horrific smell as she demonstrated her toilet’s “improvised” flushing. She quickly defended herself, “I had a deodorizer in here somewhere!” She was hoping to mask the overwhelming odor of untreated sewage using a tiny deodorizer! While watching this program, I thought, this is exactly what people do with religion.

Sin has a very putrid smell. It greatly reeks in God’s sight. What people try to do in religion is manage the smell of their sin by masking it with “religious goodness.” But, they are merely deodorizing. They do not need to mask the smell. Yea, they cannot mask the smell—it is too great! They need to neutralize—obliterate—the smell entirely! They need a neutralizer and then a deodorizer. But, it is beyond their control. Try as they might, they cannot help themselves get rid of the stench. That is why Jesus Christ came to do it all for them!

As today’s Scripture says, Jesus Christ is both our neutralizer and our deodorizer. He forgives us by way of His shed blood (neutralizing, clearing the debt) and then He gives us His righteousness (deodorizing, justifying). In Jesus Christ, we share His fragrance. “Our righteousnesses are as filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6)—stinky works that our efforts produced. As “religious” Saul of Tarsus learned, his “good works” were “but dung” (Philippians 3:8)… smelly waste product, untreated sewage!

Oh, but what a lovely smell we have in Jesus Christ! 🙂

Paul and Dispensationalism #20

Thursday, August 27, 2015

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus; Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some” (2 Timothy 2:15-18 KJV).

What else can the Apostle Paul teach us about dispensational Bible study?

The only verse that tells us to “study” the Bible tells us how to study it. It is found in the last Bible book Paul wrote. We must “rightly divide the word of truth.” Confusing ourselves with Israel and stealing her passages will cause major problems, both in this life (today’s Scripture) and in the next.

Ignoring dispensational Bible study will affect everyone in eternity. Most Christians will arrive at the Judgment Seat of Christ with worthless information in their inner man. They did not follow Paul’s instructions, but preferred religious tradition, philosophy, non-dispensational Scripture, et cetera. That “wood, hay, and stubble” will result in loss of reward (1 Corinthians 3:9-15). Many lost people will wake up in hell because they grabbed a Gospel for another dispensation as though it applied to them (Mark 16:16, Acts 2:38, Matthew 19:17, et cetera)!

Friends, may we believe the right Gospel right now. It is not about “repenting,” “turning over a new leaf,” “asking Jesus into your heart,” et cetera. It is about trusting Jesus Christ’s shed blood, death, burial, and resurrection as complete payment for your sins (1 Corinthians 15:3,4). Paul’s Gospel is the only valid Gospel message today, the Gospel that will save us unto eternal life and guarantee us a place in heaven. We do not have to go to hell!

Brethren, may we study all of the Bible, Genesis through Revelation. May we recognize Paul’s epistles, Romans through Philemon, apply directly to us. Paul is our apostle (Romans 11:13). May we take those grace doctrines in Paul’s books and apply them to life by faith. This is the “gold, silver, and precious stones” that will profit us in eternity (1 Corinthians 3:9-15). We do not have to stay confused and defeated! 🙂

-FINIS!-

Paul and Dispensationalism #14

Friday, August 21, 2015

“For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men” (Titus 2:11 KJV).

What else can the Apostle Paul teach us about dispensational Bible study?

From Genesis chapter 12 (call of Abraham) until Acts chapter 9 (salvation of Saul of Tarsus), JEHOVAH God dealt almost exclusively with the nation Israel, promising them various covenants, the backbone of their prophetic program. Romans 9:4,5 comment: “[4] Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises; [5] Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen.”

When God dealt with Gentiles prior to Acts chapter 9, He did so through or related to the nation Israel. The Abrahamic Covenant described how God blessed Gentiles who blessed Israel and He cursed Gentiles who cursed Israel (Genesis 12:1-3). Ultimately, God would convert and commission Israel to bring His Word to all nations in His earthly kingdom (Exodus 19:5,6; Isaiah 60:1-3; Zechariah 8:20-23). At Calvary and during early Acts, Israel refused to become that kingdom of priests!

Ephesians 2:11-13 explains how prophecy gave way to mystery: “[11] Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands; [12] That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: [13] But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.” (Verse 13 is true now that we have come to Paul’s ministry!)

God’s grace that brings salvation “appeared to all men” once the risen, ascended, and glorified Lord Jesus Christ saved and commissioned Saul of Tarsus. Now, God’s Word and the Gospel of His Grace have come to us Gentiles through Paul’s ministry without Israel (Romans 11:11-13). That grace message is Israel’s rejected Messiah Jesus and His finished crosswork can save Gentiles (including lost Jews) into a body of believers who are alive with God’s life!