Today in our Church Age and as the Body of Christ we aren't connected to a Temple on the earth, but rather we're connected to the Heavenliest or the Zion of God and the New Jerusalem, which is by way of metaphor our mother above, which is in Heaven. All are veiled as a bride is covered by her wedding veil.
So the heavenly aspect started from the time of Paul's commissioning to going to the Gentiles, in the development of the Body of Christ, as the Church of the called out. This is all heavenly and spiritual, whereas Israel is earthly, natural earthy and hopefully we can tie this whole period of human history coming together. After that time we can go into the Kingdom Age, or the 1000 year reign which Ephesians 1:10 and others is referring to. At that time He will be King of kings, and Lord of lords when everything of the heavenly and earthly will come under His reign, and rule. But until then we sit in the enigma of the interim as the battle for mans soul wages in the heavens. Where the Religion of Satan through mans deception wages war with the Son of man, Christ as the Head of His Body the Church of the assemblage now called by God as son's of God in whom He rules again. Well that's just sort of a preview of what's to come. Now if we will come back to Galatians chapter 1 and let's pursue a little more of the heavenly concept of all of this. We think we pretty much gave you an overview of the earthly progress with its promises made to only Israel. We know Israel rejected it all, they crucified their Messiah, and God immediately turned to the Apostle Paul to go to the Gentiles. Now in Galatians 1:11 is where we have the real basis of that, after we've left off with Acts chapter 9. Now Paul has been out among the Gentile world, and at this time we are some 28 or 29 years after Pentecost.
Galatians 1:11-12
"But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me (now we must be careful how we read this. When Paul says "The Gospel which was preached of me," he's referring to the Pauline message of I Corinthians 15:1-4, Romans 8, Galatians 2:20, Colossians 2:10-12 and that message ) is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, (by the instrument of other men) but by the revelation of Jesus Christ."
What's Paul saying? At his conversion on the road to Damascus when the Lord spoke to him and said, "I'm going to send you far hence to the Gentiles" Paul didn't immediately head back to Jerusalem and check in with Peter, James or John or any of the other eleven. But instead the Lord sends him in the opposite direction down to Mount Sinai in Arabia, and evidently for about a year to three years the Lord just laid on this within this man, the whole revelation of all of these things that were only hinted at in Scriptures before. The things that Enoch, Noah, Seth, Eber, Abraham and Isaac, Daniel with the prophets only saw as a dim light at the end of time or the last of days of the Hebrew era. And this is what we try to emphasize to people, do you realize that all the way up through the Old Testament, all the way up through the Four Gospels, and the early chapters of Acts, that you never once see the term "The Body of Christ"? You don't see that term until you get to Paul's Epistles.
Once Paul begins his ministry never does he use the term, "The Gospel of the Kingdom as Jesus as the Twelve did." Why? Because that gospel was associated with the Twelve or as we just said with the Hebrew only era or dispensation. Just as they couldn't use the term the Body of Christ, Paul can't use the term the Gospel of the Kingdom. Do you see that? As we've showed before there is this fork in the road in the Bible, and that fork starts with the introduction of Saul of Tarsus who'll become the Apostle Paul at his conversion on the road to Damascus. God comes up to the point where Israel rejected everything of the Covenant promises, the Law and the Prophets and when that happened God says, "I'll do something totally different." When He establishes the promised New Covenant in His Son. So with the Apostle Paul, He went to the Gentiles. Just as it was prophesied. Now Paul lays this out so beautifully here in these verses. We've covered them lots of times, and we know this is repetition to a lot of you.
Galatians 1:13a
"For ye have heard of my conversation (my manner of living) in time past in the Jews' religion,..."
Now here we have to stop. What's a religion? Oh we've defined it so often as we've shared this Gospel. Religion is always a compilation of the effort of man to somehow appease a Holy God by or though his own efforts. Now that's religion. We don't care if it's the Oriental, Protestant, Catholicism, Judaism, or what ever. Religion is always man's attempt to somehow merit favor with God. Now we want to remember that the Hebrews religion at the time that Paul was practicing it here in Christ's earthly ministry, and shortly after, that's all it was. There was nothing of the power of God in it, any longer and we want to realize that the Law as given back there to Moses was about 2000-1500 BC. God's glory had left the Temple long before in fact before the time of the Maccabees, in what can be called Israels dark age that 500 years before John and Jesus came onto the scene as the close of the Israel only era.
But from that time, the religion of Judaism was in a constant state of degeneration. The priests who where to keep it pure defiled it and their God by their so doing. Like all other things are usually in that constant state, of degradation. Very seldom does something reach a peak of more or less perfection and stay there, it always degenerates down. Remember every thing is always going into a less usable state. So we've got to realize that from the beginning of Judaism, if we want to call it that, and the giving of Law to Moses, and then coming through the prophets and so forth, by the time we get to the time of Christ's earthly ministry, it was nothing but a dead man-made religion. There was nothing left of the power of God in it. Oh they went through the Temple worship, and all that was involved there. We just had a verse come to mind in Isaiah. We've been sharing that even Israel's religion came up into God nostrils as a stench. We've shook a few people up when we said that, we wonder how many Church services around the world on Saturday or Sunday morning make God feel the same way about them as He does here in Isaiah. We're in Isaiah chapter 1, and let's just begin with verse 11. This is the Word of God, this isn't our idea, in fact it just sort of turns our stomach to read something like this. Now this is frightening, but this is where mankind can get to when they follow their own devices.
Isaiah 1:11-13
"To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the LORD: (well didn't God instruct them to bring sacrifice? Well sure He did. Now read on) I am full (today we'd say, `I've had it! That's enough! Stop with it all!.') of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats. When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts? (I'm sure God is speaking of the Temple complex) Bring no more vain oblations; (that was part of their sacrificial worship. God says, `Don't bring any more, because I've had it with them.' Now do you have the picture?) incense is an abomination unto me; (now listen weren't they instructed to burn incense as a sweet smell to God? Sure they were, and they were still doing all of this exactly according to the Book. Now let's read on and we'll tell you what the problem was, for us today this would equate to religious forms of worship) the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity even the solemn meeting."
Now remember all that we've read was what God had instructed for worship, but now He's saying, "I'm fed up with this and can't stand to look at it."
Isaiah 1:14-15
"Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them." (now this is God speaking to the Nation of Israel.) And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood."
What was the major point of controversy and contention between God and them as God has here with the Nation of Israel? They were doing everything right, oh they wouldn't dream of approaching Temple worship and not do it exactly right. We mean to the last jot and tittle they did it right, but what were they lacking? Belief in Faith! There was no faith no trusting of Him, associated with all this, and it had become nothing but a dead religion a system of motions, empty meaning less. It took on the form of what God had said but He was not a part of it, He was not in it. And isn't that exactly where Christendom is today? Oh just look at all the things we do in Church, but how many people have faith to appropriate the real truth of it? And this is what God is looking for - just simple trust which a child exhibits and through love will become Faith. But love can only grow where there is knowledge of the object of that love or to which the love is given and then received. Man loves all kinds of objects or things but can they return that love? NO! They are all but dumb idols. Whats the remedy?
Hebrews 11:6
"But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."
Romans 1:17
"For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith."
Is this to say or mean that we have all the answers or wisdom and knowledge of God? NO! For faith is as a walk in the darkness of night when there is no moon to lighten the path for when there is there is no faith in it.
No comments:
Post a Comment