The significance of the Holy Spirit extends beyond a single purpose. His role in the redemptive plan encompasses various aspects of the believer from conviction to regeneration, baptism and the ongoing process of sanctification. He is God, infinite in power and wisdom. We, who are finite and limited in our comprehension can only partially grasp His complete role. However, scripture provides us with glimpses into His significance. Two of the most crucial aspects highlighted here are: first, He imparts new life within believers; and second, He serves as our seal of promise of the blessed assurance of eternal security.
After Christ’s resurrection and before His ascension, He instructed His disciples, numbering around 120, to remain in Jerusalem until they were endowed with power from on high enabling them to embark on the mission to preach the gospel throughout the nations. Prior to the cross, all of His disciples had scattered and abandoned Jesus due to fear of persecution. This command to wait for divine power was pivotal to the success of their mission.
Only the Triune God knows the exact moment He initiated His extraordinary work of mercy followed by grace within us. Perhaps His divine calling was already at work in our hearts and minds even as infants. Just as God breathed life into Adam transforming him into a living being, the new law (principle) of the Spirit breathes new life into our old Adamic spirit, giving us a born again spirit that is now alive to God. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation: old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
As a sidenote that I feel I must interject: A huge reason for creating this site is to dispel untruths. I just recently listened to a message from the pulpit combining old and new covenants with the message centering around knowing the mercy of God that enables us to confess our sins as often as we commit them because He is so merciful. Confessing sins all the way to heaven I address later in this section but for now let's be clear on God's mercy and His grace. Mercy is 'not getting what we desire'. Grace is 'getting what we don't deserve'. Before the born again experience we receive God's mercy but after regeneration we receive nothing but His abounding grace. (Romans 5:1, 20; 2 Corinthians 9:8). Most of the apostle Paul's letters begin with a salutation of grace and peace. Only three of Pauls letters include mercy in the saluation perhaps because Timothy and Titus would need to extend mercy for their calling's as church leaders because scripture says, "For judgement is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgement." (James 2:13). If you are a born again Christian never again will you ever have to worry about receiving God's mercy, it doesn't apply.
Foretold by prophets during the Old Covenant was this dispensation of grace which gave birth to the church, Christ body of believers - Christians. Although prophesied, the church age remained hidden and a mystery to His chosen people until the fullness of time when God would send His Son, born of a virgin and born under the law to redeem those under the law. Believing the hidden mystery of the 'gospel of Christ' not only brings new life to our dead spirits which enables us to fulfill all the righteous requirements of the law, but also provides us with a new heart enabling us to love God and others. The new heart we receive is not referring to the organ that pumps blood but to the part of us that defines our true identity. It's that part of who we really are and only ourselves and God sees. With the Holy Spirit indwelling inside believers, we are now adopted sons and daughters of God. (Galatians 3:26; Romans 8:14-17; John 1:12-13; 1 john 3:1; Ephesians 1:5; Genesis 12:1-2; Deuteronomy 30:6; Ezekiel 36:28 and, Jeremiah 31:33-34).
Although initiated and received by only a few of God’s chosen people, as most did not believe Jesus Christ was their long-awaited Messiah, this promise of the Holy Spirit would primarily descend upon the Gentiles. Making us Gentiles the inaugural recipients of new life and the blessing of the Holy Spirit’s transformative power. This blessing provides us with eternal reconciliation and peace with God. The Holy Spirit of Adoption assures us of this blessing. The Gentiles were never excluded from God’s loving redemptive plan but were an integral part of Elohim’s foreknowledge and determinate counsel before the foundation of the world. First, He had to create a people through which our Redeemer would come, the Jews. "And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Genesis 12:3).
Just as that dead car battery we discussed earlier needs an outside power source to regenerate it back to life and to make it useful, the Holy Spirit's power regenerates our spirits making us useful as part of Christ body and His workmanship. As new creations born from above we are no longer slaves to sin. Since we're no longer bound by sin, it is rendered powerless. As we grow in knowledge of truth, worship, and praise, He, the Holy Spirit of God, transforms us inside out, making us act and speak more like our big brother and Lord, Jesus. “For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren.” (Hebrews 2:11). There is no such thing as a Christian hypocrite. (Thanks, Lynn!) You are what God says you are even if you don't yet know it. You will always remain what God says you are even if you act, look and talk like a pig, you're still His beloved sheep.
In the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible, the verses “…who is the guarantee;” and “given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee;” use the word “earnest” instead of “guarantee.” In Strong’s Concordance, the word “earnest” is defined as a pledge, specifically part of the purchase money or property given in advance as security for the rest. For instance, it states, “This word originally meant ‘earnest-money’ deposited by the purchaser and forfeited if the purchase was not completed…. in the New Testament, it is used only of that which is assured by God to believers; it is said of the Holy Spirit as the divine pledge of all their future blessedness, and in Ephesians, it says, ‘particularly of their eternal (everlasting, endless) inheritance.’” Christ released us from being prisoners of sin and redeemed us back to the Father promising us eternal life with the indwelling Holy Spirit as an earnest down payment of His promise.
When we become born again, God infuses His Spirit within us serving as an earnest guarantee of salvation and embraces us as His own children. If you have the indwelling Holy Spirit, you are united with Jesus Christ, making all of God’s promises in Christ a resounding “Yes, and Amen.”(so be it). The blessing bestowed upon all the earth far surpasses anything our finite minds can comprehend. While we can only taste a fraction of the blessings, even what we can grasp is immense. Simply worship your way into the presence of God, and you will experience life abundant and riches beyond anything this world can offer. Nothing, nothing and I mean nothing compares to Him. Not all the money in the world. No sex, no drugs, no alcohol, no power and no fame will ever deliver or satisfy what all of mankind long's for - God!
The promise of the Holy Spirit gives us new life and He also is the One who baptizes us into the body of Christ. He transforms us. He sets us apart for His purpose. He empowers us. He gives us gifts. He guides us. He teaches us. He reveals to us. He warns us. He intercedes for us. He speaks to us and for us. He bares witness to us of who we really are in Christ as children of God. He affirms us and may very well be the One who rises up within us enabling us to experience the very presence of God. “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us,..” (Ephesians 3:20). Oh yea, and don't let me forget, the Holy Spirit also makes us fruity! "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control."(Galatians 5:22).
I pray you are beginning to see the significance in Galatians 3:14-15. The Holy Spirit regenerates our old spirits making them alive to God and dead to sin, but He also serves as our covenant seal of God's promises. What I just now realized as I'm seating here writing this site, is the Holy Spirit does not seal us as I believed He did. I was wrong. I just re-read scripture and saw who does the sealing. It's God! Let's review scripture again. “Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.”
In Revelation 5:2-3, the scripture speaks of an impending progressive judgment upon the earth, which will be revealed on sealed scrolls. Only one person was deemed worthy to open these scrolls. "Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals.” Regardless of whether we perceive ourselves being sealed with melted wax from a Roman seal, vacuum-sealed, or sealed in a jar, God is the one who performs the sealing, and only He possesses the authority to break the seal that binds His children. We are SEALED by God with the Holy Spirit of Promise with Christ in God up north in the third heaven. "...even when we were dead in trespasses, (God) made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus," - Ephesians 2:5-6. When scripture says, "...made to sit together in the heavenly," I believe it is revealing to us as born again believers, our spirits are complete and finished; redeemed and saved thereby making us sit at home united with our Lord in the heavenlies. Who He Foreknew He Predestin-ed; Call-ed; Justifi-ed; Sancitifi-ed and, Glorifi-ed. (Romans 8:29-30). It is finished and we are finished in spirit and in truth. Nothing happens to our spirits when we are absent from the body and present with the Lord. "...and you are complete in Him," (Colossians 2:10). The spirit is saved and sanctified. Our souls are being saved and being sanctified.
The above truth and declaration made by God, spoken to the great Apostle Paul, penned by a scribe named Tertius, is what makes us More Than Conquerors!
Since we are complete and finished in our spirits, united with Christ and SEALED, 1 John 4:17 makes perfect sense: “…because as He (Jesus) is, so are we in this world.” When God looks down on us, He sees His Son. As He looks down on his children with and in Christ, He says, "That's my girl, she's my child!" and "That's my boy, He's my son!" All of God's thoughts toward us are good always. (Psalms 139:17-18). If the sin nature is dead, and he is, and we are born of God, born of the Holy Spirit who transfers the divine nature of God into our spirits instead of the sin nature we originally inherited from Adam, and we are one with the Holy Spirit, and we are, then scripture should be taken literally that says: "And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. Whoever abides in Him does not sin."v8-9 "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God." (1 John 3:5, 8-9). Our new spirit is one with the Holy Spirit who protects our spirits from sinning. Or let me ask a question - Can the Holy Spirit sin? We remain clean before God always. (Hebrews 10:19-22). We can however sin in our souls, which encompasses our mind, will, and emotions. I do all the time especially in the realm of my thoughts. I sin in my dreams. That's why we're told to get our minds renewed in the truth of God's word.
What should a Christian do when he/she sins in the soulish realm and the body follows? Remind yourself that you are a child of God, chosen and beloved. That you are being transformed into the very image of Jesus from glory to glory. That our righteousness was given as a gift and we have an Advocate who sits next to the Father saying, "I paid for that sin, Not Guilty!" When you wrap you mind around truth, you won't want to sin. When we comprehend this precious, priceless gift from God, the more we want to please God not use the gift as a cloak of vice, but when we do sin because we will, remember our Advocate, Jesus Christ, the righteous and remind yourself that we are sprinkled with the blood of Jesus and washed clean. Jesus is not coming back to pay for the sin we'll commit tomorrow because He doesn't need to, He already did. Enter into the rest God offer's the children of God.
Rarely will you hear this in the pulpit. I've heard a couple of bible teachers say, "if you teach the word of God the way it's intended, some will accuse you of giving people a license to sin," and I concur, they will and have, but it's not a license to sin, and truth be told, it's just the opposite.
There are some versions of the bible that insert the word 'practice' sin in 1 John 3:5, 8-9 perhaps because we all know we sin, but I believe inserting that word is incorrect. Out of the same mouth we'll say, "I've been crucified with Christ," and in the same breath,"but I sure can resurrect that old sin nature." I used to say all the time when I knew very little or simply repeating what I heard preached. NO, we can't resurrect that old Adamic sin nature and because we are still getting our minds renewed in the soulish realm with think we're sinning in our spirit but we are not. I believe scripture is clear and when rightly divided by so many other scriptures like, 'we who are dead to sin', 'we who are new creations', 'we who are born of the sinless God', 'we who are raised to newness of life', we must conclude we can not sin in spirit and that's the truth.
I'll say it again, the more truth we know, the more we won't want to sin. When we begin to comprehend the love of God and the enormous sacrifice made to reconcile us back to God, all we want to do is do what is pleasing in God's sight. "We love Him because He first loved us." (1 John 4:19). I've often wondered why God uses us as His workmanship and not perfect angels. The moment I considered the thought was the moment the Holy Spirit tells me "who better to speak to another kinsman of redemption, deliverance and healing?" Angels desire to look into this things but mankind experiences them. He chose to use broken mankind to do His work on earth. Noah was an alcoholic, Jacob was a deceiver and manipulator, David was an adulterous and a murderer, Rahab was a prostitute. Paul consented the death of Christians and Peter denied the Lord three times. We're all in good company, and none of us has it perfectly right and we won't until we get home.
The apostle Paul anticipated this very thought from his Roman readers of giving people a license to sin and so he addressed the thought head on by stating, "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?" and "knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin," and "For sin shall not have dominion over you..."(Romans 6:2, 6-7, 14). Don't forget the 'body of sin' is that body of water or mass of the sin nature, not our physical body. This is not taught Sunday's or Wednesday perhaps because of (1) a lack of revelation or; (2) fear of losing security and, (3) a lack of faith to believe God when He says, "... being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;" and "for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure."
"I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Galatians 2:20). I remember being told to memorize this scripture so I did, but had no idea what it meant. I think perhaps there are many who have not yet understood what this verse is saying, and it's meaning extends even deeper when we come to the revelation that our lives are not our own. What this scripture means is ONCE we believe, God places our sin nature upon the cross with Christ and He crucifies it, buries it and sends it to hell and there it remains which is where it belongs and we can't resurrect him. Spiritually our Adamic nature surely died!
We are all sheep and all of us whether we realize it or not, need a Shepherd and we have One, seated at the right hand of God, signifying the work is finished and now He serves as our Good Shepherd who WILL lead us all the way home. He is our Great High Priest forever! He's our Mediator! He's our Intercessor; and our Advocate - the Righteous, and He is also our BIG BROTHER!
I grew up during a time when trick-or-treating was still safe. (I don’t celebrate the holiday anymore.) However, as a child, the eagerly anticipated holiday of Halloween promised a bag full of treats. Initially, our parents would take us door-to-door, covering only a few blocks in our neighborhood. But as we grew older, we were allowed to go out with our big brother, who took us farther than we had ever been before, resulting in even more treats. Back then, there was no fear of predators or tainted candy, so our only concern was getting lost. My parents and us younger ones always felt assured of returning home because we knew our big brother knew the way back home.
On the Sunday morning of Jesus’ resurrection, Mary Magdalene returned to the tomb and was surprised to find the body of Christ gone. Mary is now standing alone, weeping not only over the death of Christ but also over the missing body. Shortly afterwards, the resurrected Lord called out to her, "Mary!" In John 20:17 He says "...but go to My brethen, (which are believers) and say to them, 'I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God." We are no longer orphans. We now BELONG and the Holy Spirit within us bears witness that we are now children of God. Order has now been reestablished in us with the Triune God. No more chaos, no longer slaves to fear, but slaves of righteousness. The bonds of slavery have been broken and because we are now born of God we can sit down with Christ resting at home in the heavenlies. All that was broken has been healed and sealed forever! We have Sonship with God the Father, united with our big brother God the Son and, have God the Holy Spirit who goes alongside us as our Helper.
We are now sons and daughters of God. "Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is."(1 John 3:2). " But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God."(John 1:12-13). The proof of being children of God is the Holy Spirit and since we are now sons and daughters of God with His DNA flowing inside of us, we are now heirs of God, co-heirs with Christ. Wrapping our minds around this is difficult but it's true and we're given the faith to believe it, know it and walk in it. As a child of God, and because God is love, He affirms us and treats each and every one of us as if we were His only child, although He has millions. We have heirship with God our Father.
These two verses hold an immensed principle that we must not overlook, but first let me preface by stating during this dispensation of grace, very rarely is a person possessed with demons unless the person has invited them in, but that’s not the point here. The moment a person believes the gospel, we become completely clean on the inside and ONCE we are clean, the Holy Spirit takes up residency inside us. God can not live in an unclean vessel. "Greater is He who is in me, than he that is in the world".(1 John 4:4).
The adoption we receive as sons and daughters of God is not like a biological one. In a biological adoption, the child does not share the DNA of the parents. However, we do spiritually, as we are partakers of His divine nature and have received the Spirit of Adoption. His blood flows through our veins, and we are now one with the Son of God and one with the Holy Spirit. “For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren,.” (Hebrews 2:11). “But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit..” (1 Corinthians 6:17).
In the New Strong’s Expanded Exhaustive Concordance, the word “heir” in Hebrew is called “yaresh,” which means “a primary root to occupy (by driving out previous tenants and possessing in their place).” It also means “to seize, to inherit, to rob.” As a verb, it conveys “to inherit, subdue, take possession…” The concordance further explains that "this root can also represent the status of having something as one’s permanent possession, which can be passed on to legal descendants", or “take over as a permanent possession.” "Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ." (Galatians 4:7). We are the offspring of God possessing Him as He possesses us with the guarantee of the Holy Spirit marking us and sealing us. This heirship we've been given is far better than all the cattle on a hill. Heirship is not about owning things, it's about our identity as children of God - His offspring. This is not a position we hold, it is a reality we own. We have heirship.
It's as though our regenerated spirits have been transported back in time before humanity’s fall. (Colossians 1:13) reads, “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed (translated) us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” I apologize for using this metaphor, but every time I read this verse, I can’t help but remember Fred Flintstone picking up his pet dinosaur and planting him outside the house onto the porch at night. Just as God has literally and spiritually picked us up and planted us inside Jesus permanently, not outside the house but becoming an integral part of His house, as part of His church, the body of Christ. He's our foundation and all the bricks (members) are built off of Him. Try pulling one of those bricks out and see what happens. We have an eternal membership into the true house of God, made by God.
The Apostle Paul speaks in great detail to the church of Corinth on how we who are born again are united as members of the body of Christ. He expounds on how each of us are called by God for a specific reason and as members of His body, each member plays a valuable role in completing the church. One member may be an eye and another an ear, but how can the eye hear if it says I have no need of an ear? Christ's church will continue to grow until God says that's it, but ONCE you're in His body, you can't be plucked out or His body would no longer be complete.
This scripture penned by the apostle Peter to the dispersion of Jews, contrasts the old covenant which brought sin, condemnation and death, with the new covenant bringing an abundance of grace and life. In the old covenant the people of God were burdened with daily and yearly sacrifices of dead animals, priests who perished, and a temporary tabernacle, all of which were susceptible to corruption and decay. Their glory was fleeting compared to the new covenant of being born again to a living hope; a perpetual priest seated at the eternal tabernacle crafted by God, with a guarantee of glory that never fades away. Since these scriptures are written in our new covenant, they undoubtedly apply to Gentiles as well as Jews.
The word HOPE is first found in the book of Ruth. It's powerful when you understand the book of Ruth and how God has chosen yet another historical event to speak to all the earth of His redemptive plan and the hope that lies before us. I say 'yet another historical event,' because the Triune God has been declaring the redemptive plan in bits and pieces starting in Genesis 3:15 and extends all the way to Revelation.
The Israelites were instructed by God not to marry interracially in order to maintain their unique calling by God as a separate people of God, a holy nation. Ruth, a Moabite woman, became part of the ancestral lineage of King David and our Lord, Jesus Christ, through marriage to a Kinsman Redeemer named Boaz. Boaz was a distant relative of Ruth’s mother-in-law, Naomi. Even in their disobedience God would not turn away His love and faithness to His chosen people but continued to offer mercy, grace and blessings.
Our society teaches us that the word “hope” implies wishful thinking. However, as mentioned in the book of Romans chapter five, our hope does not disappoint us because God has given us His Holy Spirit as a tangible assurance of eternal life. The word “hope” used in the Bible when referring to our security is a confident hope, a living hope and our blessed assurance.
In Dr. David Jeremiah’s Study Bible on page 1751, his commentary to Hebrews 18-19, says - “Ordinary hope is a state of mind whereby one faces uncertainty with varying shades of expectation, depending on how the prospects look (“I hope it rains tomorrow”). But Christian hope is a fact - a firm expectation - that believers can lay hold of, like an anchor. This hope in turn lays hold of a person so that they have confidence in all that has been promised. The mariner’s anchor is cast down into the depths of the sea; the believer’s anchor is cast upward to the inner sanctuary of heaven, where it lays hold of Christ and cannot be moved.”
All religions, sects and cults have a hope with 'varying shades of expectation,' and are based on self-effort and 'dead works.' Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism, Sikhism, Bahá'í Faith, Jainism, Zoroastrianism, and sadly to say Catholicism, also including (Jehovah Witnesses; Mormons; Freemasons; Black Hebrew Israelites and Scientology) all believe there is something we must DO to obtain eternal life. Christianty and it's belief in the Triune God and the born again experience that eridicates the sin nature making us children of God says, it's not what we do, but who we believe and can only be obtained as a gift. Romans 4:27 - 5:21 makes this point so very clear. It's so amazingly simply but most will miss it.
Chapter four of Hebrews delves into the concept of a rest that remains for believers. It highlights that during Moses’ time, the Israelites, God’s chosen people, failed to enter into the rest He offered due to an evil heart of unbelief. The author of Hebrews urges these Messanic Jews to avoid repeating the same disbelief that prevented their forefathers from entering God’s rest. Instead, he encourages them to advance in their confession of faith. The symbolic meaning behind the rest God offers becomes evident when we understand Christ’s ministry and His completed work at the cross. This enables us to cease from our own efforts and works of righteousness and simply believe the gospel that proclaims 'Christ paid it all'. We sing the song. The hymn is in the book but it seems to be common acceptance that there is something we must do. Nothing more is required.
This book of Hebrews presents another intriguing instance where a word is repeated multiple times within a specific section of the Bible. The word is “ONCE.” According to one search conducted, the word “ONCE” appears 59 times in the Bible. While this may seem insignificant on its own, its significance is amplified in Hebrews, where it is used eleven times, eight times in just four chapters. By comprehending the significance of the word “ONCE” in Hebrews and a few other books, we can dispel many misconceptions surrounding this priceless, eternal, and forever GIFT bestowed upon us by God through Christ's ONE time offering.
We often hear within Christian circles about the Jewish festival of Yom Kippur, the day of atonement that occurs annually. Before the destruction of the temple, on this day, the people’s sin debt is atoned for through three offerings: a bull and two goats. A bull was sacrificed for the High priest and his family, while a goat was sacrificed for the people’s sins, and another goat, called the scapegoat, would bear the sins of the people. The High Priest would symbolically place the peoples sins on the scapegoat which was then sent out into the wilderness, as far as the east is to the west, to never be seen or remembered again until next year. The other goat's blood was shed because God said, "Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins." This festival was observed only once a year, and only the High Priest could enter behind the veil into the very presence of God, offering atonement. However, what is rarely mentioned, is the daily sacrifices offered by the priests to God. Hang out in Deuteronomy and Leviticus for a little while and you'll see sacrifices never ceased. These offerings included sin, grain, burnt, peace, and drink offerings, trespass, purification, vow, thanksgiving and freewill offerings and there may be more.
The book of Hebrews contrasts these daily and yearly sacrifices with the Lord’s ONCE for all and ONCE-and-for-all sacrifice, which signifies no more sacrifices are needed. Propitiation has been made. In others words, God is satisfied with Christ offering Himself. "And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world." (1 John 2:2). Anyone who believes the gospel and is born again can now come into the presence of God. The Son of God’s ONCE-for-all sacrifice paid for mine and your sin(s) some two thousand years ago! He paid for all sins, for all people, for all time!
Now believers can "Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water." (Hebrews 10:19-22). This epistle written around 60-70AD, is written for the sake of all future believers and it says we are clean - future tense. Please don't think this scripture is saying you have to get your heart right or you'll miss what God wants His children to know. He gives us new hearts that are true hearts and it is the blood of Jesus that removes the evil, sin conscience and washes us clean, so we can come just as we are! This is a reference to believers as God want's us to know in His sight we are His favorite child and He delights in us.
I shared the Tim Tebow story with a Christian in the presence of the same individual who expressed a desire to earn their salvation, whom I’ll refer to as Earn-ee. After recounting the story to the Christian, Earn-ee remarked to both of us, “God doesn’t communicate to me like He does you two.” My initial inclination was to respond that it was because she was not His child. While God is not obligated to respond to anyone except those who believe and accept His free gift of salvation, He does however knock on the door of hearts with an invitation to accept His gift. The moment a person utters the words of the gospel from the depths of their heart, not merely from their intellect, they become His child and are sealed for eternity and then He hears and speaks.
The old covenant couldn’t atone for our sinful nature, and the law only revealed our sins. There was a constant reminder of sins because they were only covered temporarily not eliminated. Remember the "I's" of Adam came as a result of the fall and left us with preoccupied thoughts of a sin conscious (awareness) always conscience of good and evil, right and wrong with a self-centered, self-absorbed, and self-awareness of SELF which is pride and pride is sin.
God is so loving, kind, and gracious, and He knows His children. If you're struggling and been taught - "you gotta get it under the blood', and "confess your sins so you can become righteous again" please keep this in mind, because of His nature, He will drop into us or the Holy Spirit will rise up within us, enabling us to experience His presence regardless of our lack of knowledge and certainly as we are growing. He is patience with His children and so affirming, gentle and kind.
Please be clear on the truth. Our new spirits immediately upon regeneration have been freed from that evil self-consciousness which is the "I's" of Adam enabling us to enter behind the veil into His very presence. "For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God," These two verse are exactly where they're supposed to be - in the Christians More Than Conquerors victory chapter. Who We Became as a result of the fall has now be removed permanently as a result of God's Response and the reasonable act of Our Response making us Who We Become as children of God. We've been given boldness to enter by the blood!
For quite some time, I would quote the last part of the above scripture to unbelievers to share with them we die ONCE and then judged. That is true, since there's no such thing as reincarnation or purgatory. Yes, we die once and then judgement, (the judgement seat of Christ for all believers judged purely on what we did here for Christ, never for sin) or the great white throne judgement for all unbelievers. I don’t believe that’s what this passage actually means in context. It's referencing Christ one time suffering and death verses the old covenant atoning sacrifices that never ceased. Let’s not forget the scripture that says, “If I be lifted up…I'll draw all judgement to myself.”(paraphrased). Christ became the sin nature and all sins where placed on Him, He died ONCE and was judged ONCE for the sin nature and all sins. "...God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin (the old adamic sin nature, unregenerated): He condemned the sin nature in the flesh that the righteous requirements of the law might be fulfilled in us who [are born again]..."(Romans 8:3b). Sin, carnal and flesh in the book of Romans always refers to the unregenerated natural man born of Adam, not a baby christian. That belongs in the Corinth church.
Let's see if we can break this down even more. The sin nature we inherited from Adam that causes us to commit sins, Christ became, and bore ALL sins upon Himself and was judged in our place. The question then is, "Are there any sins God left out or forgot to judge?" There is a rest for the people of God and this rest offered has nothing to do with Saturday's or Sunday's, it about believing and ceasing. God rested on the seventh day, not because He was tired, He rested because He had provided everything needed, nothing else needed to be done, so He rested or in others word, He was finised. He provided everything man would ever need, then created man to enjoy it all. Look at the order of creation. So it is with salvation, the Triune God provided everything to save us, Christ said "It Is Finished!" and then sat down.
Christ offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice before the foundation of the world making all of our sins in the future. If His ONCE sacrifice could not pay the price for all mankind's sin(s) as the ETERNAL God who does not live in the realm of time, He would have to offer Himself often, but after He died in our place, defeating death, hell and the grave by His resurrection, He sat down! Please don't miss this point.
If Christ died ONCE and the payment for sin has been permanently paid off, then logic dictates that the gift of salvation remains steadfast and eternal! I once heard a lovely Christian say to me, "Yea, but we got to turn from our wicked ways." I suspect 'wicked ways' is in reference to God speaking to His chosen people in 2 Chronicles 7:14 that says, "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." In this context, God was referring to Israel, not America and certainly not Christians. There’s a significant distinction between the two. We have to stop mixing the two covenants. Christ warned us against mixing new wine in old wineskins and attempting to mend a new piece of cloth onto an old garment. These two are not compatible, that's why there are two and not one. Christians are not wicked and we are not sinners. We are saints because Christ serves as our propitiation, which means He fully satisfied God’s wrath and judgment against the sin nature and all sins. If God judges believers for their sins, (future sins that you forgot to confess or the one you didn't know you committed) it would imply He is unjust, and in a legal system as well as God's courtroom, it would constitute double jeopardy.
The book of Hebrews was written to Messanic Jews who were facing significant opposition and persecution from fellow Jews who clung to the strict Old Covenant laws of Judaism. These Messanic Jews were contemplating returning back to Judaism, which would involve repeating the old ceremonial law of animal sacrifices. The author of Hebrews strongly urges them to continue on the path of perfection, as the New Covenant was established on far superior and enduring promises that not only eliminates sins but also makes believers perfect in their conscience.
The superiority of Christ surpasses those of the angels, Moses, and the Aaronic priesthood and tabernacle because Christ, as the Son of God, offered Himself as the living sacrifice and shed His eternal blood. He now sits at the right hand of God, making intercession for us as our Great High Priest forever. The writer tells these Hebrews it is impossible for them to return to the symbolic and temporary sacrifices of the past, when the true living sacrifice of the true Lamb of God, God Himself, was offered. Can you think of any better sacrifice than God offering Himself? By them going back, there remains no other sacrifices because Christ is the eternal and final sacrifice.
Imagine, if you will, being a farmer who received from a seller the world’s best soil that never depletes nutrients. The soil remains perfect and consistently yields high crops, no toiling the soil required. You don’t need to change the soil or add nutrients; since it maintains its optimal condition for production. However, the farmer decides he wants to return to his old soil that depletes, ages, and requires new nutrients each planting season to produce crops. The seller of perfect soil informs the farmer, “Sir, if you return to that old soil, there’s no other or better soil available. It’s impossible to return to that depleted soil and then come back for mine because that's inferior soil and it will not deliver as my soil will yield. If you don’t want my soil, there’s nothing else for you.” I know this is crude, but perhaps the point is made. No where in the book of Hebrews is it suggesting losing salvation or the security of a born again believer. If it were, you would have to remove Luke 15 from the Bible.
When He hung on that cross, shedding His blood for us, and cried out, "It Is Finished," it means It Is Finished. (Hebrews 10:1-3) "For the law,..can never... make those who approach perfect." "For the worshipers, ONCE purified, would have had no more consciousness (awareness) of sins." That's right, we as born again Christians are NOT to be sin conscious because if we are we are actiong like our old parents, hiding from God and He doesn't want that for His children. That's why He says come boldly to the throne of grace.
Another crucial point Hebrew's want it's reader to understand is the old, inferior offerings could not take away sins, therefore there was a contant reminder of sins. Imagine the tent God instructed Moses to make in the wilderness. I'm sure trenches were created but still, since sacrifices were made daily and they didn't have sanitation and running water from hoses, what must have been the most overwelming stench in the air? BLOOD! In addition the people were carrying animals sacrifices to the tent every day. If it wasn't yourself carrying a pigeon, Heiman your neighbor was. "Oh no what did Heiman do today, he was just here yesterday!" Constant reminders of sin. If it wasn't Elyokum, then it was Melech from the Asher clan. Either you or your neighbor was atoning daily. There is a very value message made here with regard to being constantly reminded of sins. Please don't miss it!
The book of Hebrews is honing in on a critical aspect of Christian identity and our relationship with the Triune God by telling us because of the blood of Jesus THERE IS NO MORE A REMINDER OF SINS. IT'S BEEN REMOVED FROM OUR AWARENESS. "For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year."We who have heard the gospel and believed the gospel from our heart and confess with our mouths the gospel have been forgiven of all our sins and cleansed of all unrighteousness forever! My Abba, Father did not give me a born again sin nature!
"For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" (Matthew 16:26) As born again believers, our wealth and riches transcend the fleeting monetary gains that hold no eternal value. I once heard Dr David Jeremiah say if the gospel you preach can not be preached in a third world country, it's not the gospel (paraphrased). God has never promised new covenant saints earthly riches. What He has promised us is eternal riches and on earth, to heal the brokenhearted, proclaim liberty to the captives, open the prison to those who are bound, comfort all who mourn, give beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, a garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness and called righteous. Have you ever been bound by something and the Lord set you free? It's priceless. As a born again christian, our wealth is spiritual in Christ Jesus making it a wealth of treasures that will never deplete or depreciate but last forever. Let us examine some of our heavenly bank account.
Let's look at why we're so rich!
In the first section of this site we looked at “Who We Were,” prior to the fall of all mankind. Consequently we had to examine from God's point of view “Who We Became” as a result of one man's disobedience. As stated earlier, "We are not sinners because we break God's laws. We break God's laws because we're sinners." Since we have a good God, we have a But "God's Response" to our predictament "..for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
We also examined the evidence of our sinful nature as we observed our children’s behavior. We must teach them to share and be truthful, as these are acquired behaviors, since their Adamic nature is inherently selfish and deceitful. Lying or being deceitful is a sin. Jesus condemned lying when He declared, “Satan is the father of lies.” There are two instances where God explicitly addresses lying as a clear indication that it is not of God but of Satan.
Someone decided to label these seven abominations as the ‘seven deadly sins’, as if there are only seven. All sin is deadly unless forgiven by God.
After God's Response, we embarked on a journey to Rome to discern what Our Response should be in lieu of all God has done for us: simply believe the gospel. By believing in the gospel of Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, we transitioned to “Who We Become” as children of God, receiving the free gifts of eternal life and righteousness. As a testament to these blessings, we briefly mentioned just a few of the wealth we have acquired through these gifts. The ultimate goal of this journey is GLORY, Hallelujah! Remember the scripture in Ephesians that says God has the church on display? We're going to the chapel to consumate our union with Christ forever!
The Bible proclaims that we are God’s inheritance, just as He is our inheritance. While we may not fully comprehend the profound implications of this revelation, I’m certain it far exceeds anything we could ever imagine. From scripture, we are assured of receiving new heavenly bodies devoid of any trace of sin. We inherited a sinful nature from Adam, so shall we inherit God’s sinless nature. We, as born again believers already have God's sinless nature in our regenerated spirits. But in our final state we will receive glorified bodies akin to the one Jesus was resurrected in and without sin.
As heirs of God, we have a down payment here with born again spirits, a new heart and the indwelling Holy Spirit within us, but when we get home, as heirs and co-heirs with Christ we will be just like our brother. "Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is." (1 John 3:2). We will become perfect as He is perfect, embodying all that is good, pure, noble, just, lovely, righteous, honest, kind, patient, gentle, and truthful. We will be the glory of God in every aspect of our lives. However, none of these qualities will hold any significance to us since we won’t have anything to compare them to.
Imagine never hearing someone say, “That’s a truly humble person over there,” because pride will be erased from our memory, leaving us unaware of its existence. We won’t hear descriptions of honesty and integrity, such as, “He’s honest and walks in integrity'. You can trust him; if he says he’ll do it, he will.” On this side of eternity we can compare honesty with dishonesty, good with bad, right from wrong, truthful to lying. When we receive our glorified bodies from God, He will remove every trace of our earthly lives, eliminating our ability to make comparisons. Everything that is from Satan will be locked away in hell and removed from our memory. We will be fully clothed and free from shame. That's why Scripture instructs us "...while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal." (2 Corinthians 4:18).
I did an inquiry with Aria, Opera's browser AI asking it to define honorabe and Aria's results said, "Honorable" is a word that carries a lot of weight! It's about integrity, moral uprightness, and acting with respect and fairness." I especially like the word 'uprightness' because that word is the exact word for righteousness. This is exactly what Adam and Eve walked in prior to the fall. All the glory of God's goodness exuberated from these two people until..... It only makes sense that God will restore everything back to what is was when we gave him GLORY in everything we did.
In this GLORIOUS section, I aim to convey something profound and powerful that lies ahead for believers. Whenever the alarm system’s code wasn’t entered correctly or not within the allotted time at church, the alarm would sound triggering a call from the security company asking for the secret code. It was “GLORY!” I can’t comprehend the full extent of what awaits us, but when I gaze upon the Earth from my perspective, I envision a world devoid of seasons. Fall, which symbolizes death due to the cutting off of sap from leaves, will be replaced by a backdrop of eternal green foliage as the background and rich beautiful colored flowers in the foreground.
There will be no more decay, no more garbage, no more smog, and no more crime and no more evil. Hatred, racism, greed, inequality, income disparities, and all forms of negativity will cease to exist. No more sickness or desease. We will be completey free of fear and the shame of nakedness and sin will be eradicated permanently. All living creatures will once again be subject to man which means "...a nursing child shall play by the cobra's hole, and the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper's den.." (Isaiah 11:7-8) and I will be riding a cheeta.
But it gets even better. We will be in the present of God which means we will experience perpetually prefect agape love, peace and joy and will be able extend the same to all, no conditions attached. The law of reciprocity will be removed from our pure, clean and sinless thoughts. We'll all have duties and responsibilities for at least the first one thousand years. By the way, in case you are not aware, there will be a new heaven and a new earth, and the King of kings and Lord of lords, the Lion from the tribe of Judah, our Savior will reign in....guess where? It may be a surprise to many but in Jerusalem. All divisions including nationalities, ethnicity, race, color and cultural identity will be done away with. Jew and Gentile will be one. " There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus." (Galatians 3:28).
We are going back to, "Good and very good!" Back to Eden where order is restored. Let's let scripture speak for itself.