BIBLE VERSES TO PONDER
(Part 1 of 3)

MYSTERIES & KNOWLEDGE

The true man of God is to search out the deeper truth of God as concealed in His Word.

In these end days, knowledge will increase, because man will begin to see the need to reason together, and network the revelations of the depth of God's Word.

Those who fear the Lord will begin to understand. Wisdom and instruction will be theirs. Those who don't fear the Lord are seen here as fools, thus they despise the wisdom and instruction of the Lord.

Here we see that knowledge is again linked with the FEAR OF THE LORD, and that indeed knowledge is based upon the understanding of the HOLY. The "church" of these end times has focused so much on LOVE that the counterbalancing HOLINESS of God has been totally overlooked, much to the peril of those whose itching ears never hear of it!

Hosea awakens us to the concept of GOD'S people (His elect) being DESTROYED for lack of knowledge (which we just saw was understanding of His HOLINESS). They will be rejected, and will not be allowed to be priests to Him. They will be of no use to Him, and He will forget them. Do NOT lose site of the fact that these are HIS PEOPLE!!!

The entire Bible is to be used in this manner so that we might be perfect (mature) in God's ways.

This appears to be a command rather than a request, and should not be taken lightly. If we fail to study His Word or allow deception to creep into our understanding of it, we may have to answer for it!

The Bereans were considered to be more noble because they used God's Word as their ultimate authority.

We must be weaned from the initial precepts of the gospel message and get into the meat (deeper things of His Word) in order to be capable of searching out the deeper concealed Truth of God. It is to be found by harmonizing the ENTIRE BIBLE, searching here and there throughout His Word, and compiling the concepts to build the picture of HIS TOTAL TRUTH.

The baby (immature) Believer will not be able to bear the knowledge of His deeper Truth. Only when one is willing to be weaned from the initial gospel message, can he absorb the MEAT of this deeper Truth.

When the nominal Believer should have reached the level to be able to instruct others, most of them will not be able to do so. They will still be stuck on the milk. They cannot yet handle the meat, because it is for those who have been willing to be weaned and grow toward maturity, exercising God's discernment.

Here the Lord links the one who has absorbed the meat of His Word and is willing to share it as the one He will find as being WISE when He comes for his bride. Note that only part of the virgins were found to be WISE when He came.

As we help others see how this should be done, we must do so with the balance God gives the mature Believer, using the proper proportion of grace and salt, so that EVERY man may be reached. Only GOD can work through us in such manner, as each person is different. We must allow HIM to work through us, as only HE knows that person. It is my urgent prayer that I will be able to proceed in this manner.

PURPOSE OF OUR EXISTENCE

If we can all agree that we are among the things created by God, then we must acknowledge that the purpose for our lives, for our very existence is to PLEASE Him (our Creator). If we PLEASE Him, then our lives are successful. If we do not PLEASE Him, our lives have been a total failure. All other means of measuring success for our lives are mere vanity. Since we were created to PLEASE Him, let's take a closer look at how He intends for us to do so!

We are to walk by the guidance of the new Spirit with which we live (He now abides in us).

As we allow the Holy Spirit to FILL us completely and have His way with our lives, He will direct us to keep the commands of God's Word so we will be seen as walking within the approval of God, thus we prove our love of God. If we quench the Holy Spirit, and walk in self, we will not be following the intent of the Word of God, and will be seen as NOT loving the God who provided the grace for our eternal salvation.

We see that for the Believer, abiding is a two-way street. Just as He abides in us through the Holy Spirit, we are to abide in Him by allowing the Holy Spirit to have His way with us!

We know that He sees us as faithful regarding our part of the two way street when we abide IN Him by keeping the intents of His Word. Thus the love of God is perfected in and through us, and His fruit will be evident in our lives.

This verse is written to Believers, and indicates that we are seen as being free of sin AS WE ABIDE IN HIM! Because we will always sin (i.e. fall short of God's full intent for our lives), this is the ONLY way we can be SEEN as not sinning by the eyes of God. If we do NOT abide in Him, we will be seen as sinning, which would indicate that we have not properly seen His intent for us or known Him intimately.

Thus we see that the Father's love does not rest upon or appear through one who embraces the things of the world.

As we reject the things of this world, (thus our own self-will and the lusts of the flesh), we allow the Holy Spirit to renew our mind to the will of God for our lives.

As we reject the things of the world, we also cast out the thoughts and things that would try to overcome and/or replace the things of God, and we allow our thoughts to be conformed to the intent of Christ. The circular effect here is increasing discernment of God.

As we just learned, we can only walk in God's love if we reject the things of the world. As we refuse to be ruled by the world, and walk instead by the guidance of the new Spirit within us, we conform to the image of Christ, and provide an offering and sacrifice of sweet-smelling savor to God, just as Christ did.

As we follow the instructions we find in the Word of God, we are washed by it, thus we are sanctified and cleansed in the eyes of God, and prepared as the glorious Bride of Christ, which must not have spot, wrinkle, or anything of the kind. Only then are we seen as holy and without blemish.

The days in this world are evil (worldly temptations abound), so we must walk with caution, using our time wisely, and being sure to understand the will of the Lord. This is accomplished by being totally yielded to the Holy Spirit so HE can FILL us COMPLETELY. (As we reject the world and it's temptations, we overcome our own selfish will, and provide the room and atmosphere for the Holy Spirit to fulfill this command!

The people He redeems will be those who have developed a zeal and commitment to Him as opposed to binding themselves to the seductions and materialism of the world.

Again we see the need for developing a standard of holiness because we have been CALLED from darkness into His light.

Here we see one condition regarding God's granting us the desires of our heart as spoken in (prayer. Other verses give us other conditions as well, but if we ABIDE IN HIM, we are in perfect accord with His will for our lives, and our prayers will be in accord WITH His will for us! Sometimes we may THINK we are praying properly, but if we are not properly ABIDING IN HIM, our prayers may be selfcentered rather than GOD centered, whereby there is no promise here that He will fulfill them. WE ARE TO PRAY WITHIN HIS WILL AND FOR HIS WILL TO BE DONE IN OUR LIVES!!!

WARNINGS FOR DISCERNMENT

The meaning of this verse with the comma in tact makes sense in our day, as many now claim TO BE Christ. However, it is interesting to note that the earliest manuscripts did not contain punctuation. All punctuation marks were added by translators. If there was no comma intended after the word "saying" in this verse, it could even mean that many would come in the name of Yeshua, acknowledging that Yeshua (the one who initially spoke these words in Biblical days) is Christ, and deceive many; that even Christian teachers could be among those who teach deceptive doctrine in the end days.

Indeed this tells us that false teachers WILL introduce damnable heresies which will lead many away, and in turn these teachers and their followers will spurn the truth wherever it is taught.

God's Word further shows us here that Believers can be "spoiled" through teachings of man's ideology, corrupt deceit, and the traditions formed by man as he conforms to the world rather than to Christ. Here the divinity of Christ is stressed, thus the worthiness of Christ as the example we SHOULD follow, rather than the perversions of the world.

We are told here that hearing the deceit preached to the Believers in the end days will be pleasurable to us when we take it in, but will result in a garbled and distorted witness and speech regarding our understanding. Indeed if we have understanding built upon deceit, how can we properly relay the Word of God to others? Thus the problem of deceit continues to multiply with each one who receives it and spreads it on. There is so much deceit among Believers today that it is rare to find one who DOES HAVE the understanding of God's deeper Truth that we were meant to have.

Indeed the inspired Word of God teaches us here that He knew that the church would ultimately be so removed from HIS DEEPER TRUTH that what they taught would be considered as fables by Him. They will preach what the "church" of these days wants to hear, turning them away from HIS INTENDED TRUTH!

He acknowledges that evil can be prevalent in the congregation and the assembly. The assembly most probably refers to the synagogue, whereas the congregation would be looking ahead to the apostate "church" of the end days.

Because we are to ABIDE IN HIM, allowing Him to conform our minds, we should STOP listening to any form of teaching (this could even include many church, Christian TV and radio sermons) which attempts to restrict our awareness of the deeper meanings of God's ENTIRE Word to us!

We are to be conscientious to avoid the deception of such false teaching, and to embrace and share God's TRUTH, growing in Christ.

THREE IN ONE

We see here that God is referred to first in plural form, and then in singular form. This shows the unity of the essence of the triad personage of the Godhead. It indicates that we are made in His image. Just as there are three parts to the personage of God, there are three parts to our being. We have a spirit, a soul, and a body. Each of them have a specific role in our existence, just as each of the three personages of God has a specific role. However, just as the three personages of God maintains the perfect essence of the unity of the Godhead while achieving the purpose of His specific role, thus it is to be with us. Our spirit, soul, and body are to function with a singleness of essence.

We see here all three parts of our being, and we also see that it is critical that each of these three parts of our being be individually found to be blameless unto the coming of Yeshua. The only way this can happen is if our spirit has been renewed by the Grace of God upon our initial "belief", and our body and our soul have both been brought into proper alignment with our renewed spirit. When we receive the Holy Spirit, our spirit is renewed, thus our body and soul ARE ALSO TO BE RENEWED, but we are to achieve this process ourselves as we learn to lean on the power available to us through the Holy Spirit and feed upon the instructions we were given in God's Word! This process is called sanctification, and if we fail to achieve it, we have consequences ahead when we stand before God the Son.

We see here the heart (spirit), the soul, the mind (the communication center between the three parts of our being), and the strength (body). If we could but realize the emphasis God puts upon them working together in unity of a single purpose, we would have the greatest of understanding. The purpose is here also; it is to love our creator. This is the first and foremost commandment of our God. Maybe it would be wise to observe it.

We see here that the word of God is similar to a sword with a double edge, and can divide the soul from the spirit. The thoughts of the mind and the intents of the heart are not our secret. They will be revealed, and we may find that our soul must be severed from our spirit because our thoughts were never aligned with the new spirit within us. We will see the consequence for the soul that has to be severed in this fashion very shortly.

SPIRIT

We see here that the key to eternal life is BELIEF. This is not simply an acknowledgment of the truth of the gospel message, but an acceptance of it, trusting in the assurance it gives us. It is to receive God's truth as a part of our being and to rest upon the promise it provides for us.)

In this verse we see the saving of (salvation of) the spirit, which is contingent upon our BELIEF in the work of Yeshua on the cross of Calvary and the power He exhibited over evil when He rose from the dead. It must be more than a mere headknowledge. We must receive this Truth within our hearts, and trust upon Him for the power to save us from the SPIRITual death that awaited us without Him. He knows at what moment we sincerely believe unto salvation, and at that moment He grants us the promise of eternal life in the Kingdom of God the Father. It is a gift of grace of the Father, and we will see shortly that it can NEVER be taken from us. Thus our spirit is found to be blameless.

The Father draws the spirit of a man to belief upon Yeshua through the communication and pleas of the Holy Spirit. Man can accept or reject the please of the Spirit, but will not be able to come to belief upon the Son without the drawing of the Father through the Spirit. Once a man has come unto belief upon Yeshua, HE WILL BE RAISED UP AT THE LAST DAY! God cannot lie, so this WILL be accomplished, and we need never doubt it!

Again, we find that after we come to belief upon Yeshua, we WILL be redeemed unto the Father's Kingdom. It is the Father's will that none of these people would be lost, and the Son WILL accomplish fully the Father's will, that the eternal plan of God would be completed. Thus, we see again here that all who believe upon Yeshua will BE RAISED UP AGAIN AT THE LAST DAY.

We see here that our election to the Father's Kingdom is assured. There is a day of redemption for the spirit, one for the soul, and one for the body. This day of redemption for the spirit would bring the spirit into the Father's Kingdom. We see that the Holy Spirit seals us unto that day, signifying that we are one of God's elect, and mandating that Yeshua complete in us that which was begun per Philippians 1:6. The seal used by the Holy Spirit here would be a mark of some nature that could not be changed or reversed.

We see here that the circumcision was exactly such a sign. It is even called here the "seal of the righteousness". Abraham received this sign that he might be the father of ALL WHO BELIEVE, and he IS the spiritual earthly father of EVERY BELIEVER, as we are grafted into the Olive Tree (Romans 11:17). Romans 4:16 reinforces that Abraham is the "father of us all". We are all spiritually considered to be under one earthly father, because we are all (Jew and Gentile alike) under the same Heavenly Father!

We see here that the circumcision was a covenant. The eighth day is significant, as the eighth millennium is to be the beginning of the Father's Kingdom. Again we see the shadow of the circumcision as a covenant that seals our entrance into the Father's Kingdom.

This complete passage refers to Yeshua, in whom we (as Believers) are circumcised supernaturally rather than physically. In so doing He conquers (puts off) the sin nature (body of the sins of the flesh) which had enslaved us. We are freed by Christ to live the life He intends for us to live, through the power of the Holy Spirit. This seal is just as irreversible as the Biblical shadow of it, the circumcision performed by hands, which was physically performed on the human body. Thus, we will be redeemed to our Heavenly Father after all the work has been accomplished in us to prepare us for His Kingdom!

We see here that circumcision occurs in the spirit, and is to be felt by the heart. Though it is irreversible, it should be taken VERY seriously!

We see here that the spirit is the part of us through which the Spirit of God communes with us. It is the spirit that is quickened upon our belief, and it is the spirit that is given life.

Yeshua will enable us to be found blameless before God the Father. We have just seen that this will be at the LAST DAY. The Day of our Lord as seen in this verse seems to be viewed by an overview of Scripture to be the complete time period that extends from the beginning of the Tribulation throughout the end of the Millennial Kingdom. Thus the LAST DAY when we are raised up AGAIN would be at the end of the period of time indicated here as the day of our Lord. We have also seen in the previous verses that He will not lose a single person who has believed upon Him, thus He will confirm each one of us (the Greek for confirm includes the concept of strengthen, make true, and fulfill as in requirements for salvation) so that He can and will raise us up AGAIN in HIS LAST DAY.

Because Yeshua is responsible to the Father to bring each one who believes upon Him into the Father's Kingdom in the last day, we see that He must confirm (prepare) some of us for this day through allowing Satan to have his say with us. When we do not commit to God's preferred way of preparation for the heavenly kingdom, we must be prepared by alternate and undesirable means. There can be no sin in the presence of God the Father, so we must be purified before we can enter the His Kingdom. Many people have been taught that we are eternally purified upon our initial belief, but this simply cannot be substantiated throughout the entirety of God's Word. This verse and many others strongly indicate that there is far more to God's teachings! We MUST wake up to His total Truth!

Here we see that we have an incorruptible inheritance reserved for us in Heaven. As Believers we never need to doubt our reservation or inheritance in Heaven.

We see here that it is divinely possible for the human spirit to be transported to other realms without the presence of the soul and the body. We have likewise seen that it is the human spirit that is circumcised (sealed) and quickened upon our belief. Thus, it is the spirit that is assured of this incorruptible inheritance reserved for us in Heaven, and if it is necessary for the spirit to enter this kingdom without the soul and body, this is divinely possible.