A Gift to You
and Yours
Plainly Spoken
For so an entrance shall
be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and
savior Jesus Christ. II Peter 1:11
(In
this verse the noun entrance is the Greek word eisodos. Eisodos
is composed of the word eis, which means motion unto a point with an emphasis on the motion, and hodos,
which literally means a road and
figuratively means a means of progress.)
The day is far spent. A new
day is a step away.
The roadway to the future is
paved with the great mystery of Christ that the apostle Paul preached. In that
mystery there are two spiritual groups in the body of Christ. The first group
is the saints. The second is the faithful in Christ Jesus. Saints are
represented as the head of the body. The faithful in Christ Jesus are
represented as the remainder of the body. A head without a body does not
function nor does a body without a head.
The saints are represented
as masculine while the faithful are represented as feminine in scripture. The
word Christ represents the realm of the saints from heaven while the word Jesus
represents the realm of the faithful generated from the earth. The saints are
the younger brothers of Christ and as such existed in spiritual embodiment with
him before the foundations of the world. The faithful, or potential for such,
were spawned as souls from the beginning in Adam. They, by faith, become the
female kin of Jesus. This is the family of God in heaven and on earth written
of by Paul with God as the Father and the Holy Spirit as the Mother.
The endowment of the spirit
of Christ or potential to become a saint does not come by man’s option or by
fallacious self-perfection. It is by God’s choice through grace in calling from
birth. Relatively few are chosen for this endowment; whereas to become a
faithful is a response to God’s call, available to whomsoever of man believes.
Notable saints in scripture
include Abel, Enoch, Noah, Melchisedec, Esau, Joseph, Moses, Gideon, Deborah,
Samson, Daniel, Isaiah, Elijah, and Paul. Notable faithful include Abraham,
Isaac, Jacob, Joshua, Solomon, Elisha, John the Baptist, Mary and the twelve
called by Jesus, most notably Peter. In Christ Jesus, or, in other words, the
uniting of the two groups is the ultimate power of God.
When a faithful soul dies it
falls asleep unto God. When a saint dies he returns to heaven.
Peter, in his last words,
called his experience on the Mount of Transfiguration a prophetic example of
“the power and coming of the Lord.”
Moses and Elijah were manifested as saints from heaven and Jesus was
transformed in appearance as the firstborn saint, the Christ. Peter, John and
John worshipped in awe. For a moment the veil, for them, was lifted.
It seems that the entrance
into the kingdom of heaven on earth, of which Peter wrote as the day of the Lord (II Peter 3:10), is near
at hand. As Peter once stated, the sun will darken and the moon will turn blood
red. And as Paul wrote, the saints in heaven will be manifested on earth and
the saints on earth will be transformed. Together, then, after this veil of the
saints’ flesh is lifted, the saints will take vengeance on those that know not
God and obey not the gospel as the holy angels. Also, they will gather together
the faithful for preparation to jointly enter into the New Jerusalem descended
from above.
At the end of this entry period, or short
work as Paul wrote, the surface of the earth will be scorched unto ashes by a
cosmic burst of radiance from the sun. All men, including the living remnant of
faithful, will die. Shortly thereafter the faithful of all times will be
awakened in resurrection as perfected souls, first, out from among all other
dead as the Lord himself descends from heaven. Then the purified faithful will
be joined perfectly, as in a marriage with the saints, under the Lord Jesus
Christ for the establishment his perfected one body of the New Jerusalem.
Next, all other men will be resurrected and
judged as either just or unjust. The just from all faiths will enter into the
new world kingdom of paradise restored to populate the new earth. The souls of
the just will be perfected through this kingdom from heaven on earth. The
unjust will be sent for a thousand years into reformative perdition where their
stubborn denial of God’s will shall be destroyed.
At the end of this kingdom during the day of God (II Peter 3:12) the earth
will be dissolved. By this time, the men in perdition will have become saved.
Then all men who have ever lived will ascend together as one into the
consummate perfection of heaven.
Yes, through faith and by
the power of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, the chosen seed, by his life, death,
resurrection and ascension, proved this true.
Peter, in the closing of
this second epistle about the roadway to the future, writes of the apostle
Paul’s message: “Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be
diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless. And
account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved
brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you;
As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things;”
Be prepared. Have faith aright, and hope as an
anchor for the soul and especially this love from God to man.
Text with Supporting Verses,
Notes, Comments and Links
The
day is far spent. A new day is a step away.
The roadway to the future is paved with the great mystery of
Christ that the apostle Paul preached. In that mystery there are two spiritual
groups in the body of Christ. The first group is the saints. The second is the
faithful in Christ Jesus.
(Ephesians 1:1, Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will
of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus: Colossians1:1, Paul, an
apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timotheus our brother, To the
saints and faithful brethren in
Christ which are at Colosse: “To the faithful in Christ Jesus” is joined to the
saints by the Greek conjunction “kai” which is a conjunction of annexation that
has a mild meaning of contrast. “To the faithful in Christ Jesus” is not an
adjective phrase modifying “the saints” nor are these two phrases joined by the
word “or” which would make them interchangeable. There are two differing groups
addressed- the saints and the faithful. They are pointed out also by the usage
the different plural pronouns “we” and “you” throughout Paul’s letters.
This seems apparent to the considerate reader in the first
chapter of Ephesians between verses 12 and 13. The subject changes from the
preceding section’s first person plural “we and us” to the following section’s
second person plural “you” in the transition between verses 12 and 13. 12: That
we should be to the praise of his
glory, who first trusted in Christ. 13: In whom ye also trusted, after that ye
heard the word of truth, the gospel of your
salvation: in whom also after that ye
believed, ye were sealed with that
holy Spirit of promise,
However,
sometimes Paul used the first person plural pronoun “we” in reference to the
entire body. The context of the usage of “we” determines about whom and to whom
the “we” applies- the saints or the entire body It seems the case in chapter two where Paul writes, “we all”: 3:
Among whom also we all had our
conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of
the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as
others.
Colossians 1:27 Even the mystery which hath been hid from
ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: to whom God
would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the
Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: Greek
grammars state that the dative plural used with the Greek preposition “en”
as in this phrase “Christ in you” be accurately translated as “Christ among you”
as it is in the preceding phrase “among the Gentiles” and as “en” with
the dative plural is translated throughout most of the English scriptures.”
Christ was among the faithful by way of the presence of the saints in the
church of Colosse)
Saints
are represented as the head of the body. The faithful in Christ Jesus are
represented as the remainder of the body.
A head without a body does not function nor does a body without a head.
(I
Corinthians 1:12, And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee:
nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. Ephesians 2:16, And that
he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the
enmity thereby. These three verses in I Corinthians12:3-5 pertain to the
relationship between the saints and the faithful: Now there are diversities of
gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are differences of administrations, but
the same Lord. And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God
which worketh all in all. The English word “diversities” is translated from the
Greek word “diairesis”
that denotes differences between two things. The difference between the saints
and the faithful is not in quality but in function and divine arrangement.)
The saints are represented as masculine while the faithful are represented as feminine throughout scripture.
(The
nation of Israel was many times written of as the daughters of God. The Greek
word for church is “ekelesia”. It is in the feminine gender identifying the
feminine portion of the body of Christ.
II Corinthians 6:18, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my
sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. As Paul most often quoted from
Isaiah in his writings, this is a quotation from Isaiah 52. It is
that of Isaiah 52:11 in the context of the New Jerusalem.
In
Ephesians, Paul makes this mystery of masculine and feminine representations
most profoundly clear: Ephesians 5:24-32, Therefore as the church is subject
unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.
Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave
himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water
by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having
spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without
blemish. So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth
his wife loveth himself. For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but
nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church: For we are members
of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. For this cause shall a man leave
his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be
one flesh. This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the
church. In the Geek interlinears the word Christ has the definite article “the”
preceding it. It could and should be understood as “the great mystery”. There
are less significant mysteries within the great mystery that do not have the
definite article. Tthe representation of the relationship between the saints
and faithful the as a marriage is the definitive mystery that Paul was given
and assigned to preach. )
The word Christ represents the realm of the saints from heaven while the word Jesus represents the realm of the faithful generated from the earth.
(Ephesians
1:3: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us (saints) with all spiritual
blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
The
gospels were written in the realm of Jesus –that which can be seen through the
means of soul’s manifestation in flesh while Paul’s letters were the from the
unseen realm of Christ linking together Jesus and Christ- the forthcoming
mystery then incarnate. The word Christ is used only 50 times in the gospels
and Acts while it is used about 270 times in Paul’s letters. The singular word
Jesus is used over 650 times in the gospels and Acts while it is used
singularly in Paul’s letters about 40 times. The two words “Jesus and Christ”
together are only used 5 times in the gospels while they are used over a 180
times in Paul’s letters)
The saints are the younger brothers of Christ and as such existed in spiritual embodiment with him before the foundations of the world.
For
God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, John 3:16a (“only
begotten” is the Greek word monogenes
meaning the only one of a kin or race or the best representative of a lot and
is translated often as “unique” in secular Greek. In the verse the Greek
definite article ”the” is not present making the statement broader or more
general than specific. Jesus Christ was and is the most unique of the class of
Christ because the power of the Highest and the Holy Spirit came together for
the first time since the original Adam to produce a perfect soul, Jesus, for
the residence of Christ. Luke 1:35 And the angel answered and said unto her,
The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and
the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee. In differentiation, saints, like Moses and Paul had the spirit of
Christ in corrupted souls inherited naturally as a result of Adam’s fall
Ephesians 4:1, According as he hath chosen us(saints) in him before the foundation
of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: From
Genesis 1:1 through Genesis 2:3 the Hebrew word, “elohim”, translated as God is
in the plural and should be accurately translated as Gods. This is borne out by
the translators’ usages of “Let us” in this the beginning of Genesis
Ephesians 2:19, Now therefore ye(faithful) are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;)
The faithful, or potential for such, were spawned as souls
from the beginning in Adam.
(Genesis 2:7, And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the
ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a
living soul.
1Corinthians:15:45, And so it is written, The first man Adam
was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit
Ephesians :2:8: For by grace are ye(faithful) saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is
the gift of God.)
They, the faithful, by faith, become the female kin of
Jesus. This, the body of saints and faithful, is the family of God in heaven
and on earth written of by Paul with God as the Father and the Holy Spirit as
the Mother.
(Ephesians 3:14, 15, For this cause I bow my knees unto the
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom the whole family in heaven and (on)
earth is named,)
(Link: The Feminine Gender
of the Holy Spirit)
The
endowment of the spirit of Christ or potential to become a saint does not come
by man’s option or by fallacious self-perfection. Attaining the expression of a
saint is based on loyalty to the Lord above all else. Relatively few are chosen
for this endowment; whereas to become a faithful is a response to God’s call,
available to whomsoever believes.
Ephesians
2:4-9:
4:But
God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
5:Even
when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
6:And
hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in
Christ Jesus:
7:That
in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his
kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
8:For by grace are ye saved through faith;
and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9:Not of works, lest
any man should boast.
(Notice
the different clauses, “by grace ye are saved” and “by grace are ye saved
through faith” and their contexts in Ephesians 2;5 and 2;8 respectively In both
verses the word “are” is the Greek verb “este”. The verb is listed on page
page169 of Zondervian’s Analytical Greek Lexicon as in the second person
plural present indicative. However, the parenthetical note refers to Section
XII, Table L on page xiv. In Section XII, Table L “este” is both plural
indicative and plural imperative and can be used as first, second or third
person plural in each mood. Therefore, the choices for translation of this
clause ending verse 2:5 are: “by grace we are saved,” “by grace you are saved,”
or “by grace they are saved.”
From the
context of the saints in verse 2:5 and the prior verses and Paul’s usage of the
first person plural in these, the choice by the translators for this clause
should have been “by grace we are saved” here in 2:5 in reference to the saints
because the pronouns must agree according to the rules of grammar. Janet M.
Magiera’s monumental work, The Aramaic Peshitta New Testament Translation, has
the translation of this clause in verse 2:5 most accurately in the first person
plural as “by grace redeemed us”. Between verses 2:7 and 2:8 in Ephesians, the
subject by the change by usages of the pronouns. The pronouns change here from
the first person plural “we” for the saints to the second person plural
“yourselves” for the faithful.
So, the King James
translation with the second person plural rather than the first person plural
is incorrect in verse 5 reading “by grace ye are saved” regarding the saints.
However, in the KJV verse 8a correctly reads in the first person plural “by
grace ye are saved through faith” to agree with the reflexive pronoun
“yourselves” in reference to the faithful rather than the saints. Here the
condition of faith is added in differentiation from the saints in verse 5 and
by such emphasized for the faithful.
Galatians
1:11-16, But I(Paul) certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached
of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught
it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ. For ye have heard of my conversation
in time past in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the
church of God, and wasted it: And profited in the Jews' religion above many my
equals in mine own nation, being more exceedingly zealous of the traditions of
my fathers. But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb,
and called me by his grace, to reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him
among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood. Acts
19:15, But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he(Paul) is a chosen vessel
unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of
Israel)
(Link: The
Twelve of Matthew and the Seventy of Luke)
Notable
saints in scripture include Abel, Enoch, Noah, Melchisedec, Esau, Joseph, Moses,
Gideon, Deborah, Samson, David, Daniel,
Isaiah, Elijah,
the 70 of Luke’s gospel, Luke and Paul.
(Link:
From Faith to Faith)
(Link:
The No People of
God)
Notable faithful include Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joshua,
Solomon, Elisha, John the Baptist, Mary and the twelve called by
Jesus, most notably Peter. In Christ Jesus, or, in other words, the uniting
of the two groups is the ultimate power of God.
(Link:
Righteousness:
The Synergism of Masculine and Feminine )
When
a the body of a faithful soul dies the soul falls asleep unto God. When a saint
dies he (and his acquired soul)
returns to heaven.
Faithful:
(1Corinthians15:6: After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at
once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen
asleep. John 11:11& 14: These things said he: and after that he saith unto
them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.
Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.
Saints:
Philippians 1: 20-24 According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in
nothing I (Paul, the saint) shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as
always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by
life, or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I
live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I
wot not. For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be
with Christ; which is far better: Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more
needful for you. Paul, also, in his writing spoke of his demise not as death
but as a departure for himself. II Timothy 4:6-8, For I am now ready to be
offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I
have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for
me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me
at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his
appearing.
Paul,
in his writings never
considered saints as “men” and never termed himself or other saints as
such. He wrote and spoke as a saint from the eternal perspective in Christ)
Peter,
in his last words, called his experience on the Mount of Transfiguration a
prophetic example of “the power and coming of the Lord.”
(II
Peter 1:16-19a For we have not followed cunningly devised
fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus
Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received from God the
Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent
glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. And this voice which
came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount. We have
also a more sure word of prophecy)
Moses
and Elijah were manifested as saints from heaven and Jesus was transformed in
appearance as the Christ. Peter, John and John worshipped in awe. For a moment
the veil, for them, was lifted.
(Matthew
17:1-9 And after six days Jesus taketh
Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain
apart, And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and
his raiment was white as the light. And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses
and Elias talking with him. Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it
is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles;
one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. While he yet spake, behold,
a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which
said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. And when
the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid. And
Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid. And when they
had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only. And as they came
down from the mountain, Jesus charged them, saying, Tell the vision to no man,
until the Son of man be risen again from the dead. It was shortly after this
event that Peter confessed that Jesus was the Christ. )
It seems that the entrance into the kingdom of heaven on earth, of which Peter wrote as the day of the Lord (II Peter 3:10), is near at hand.
(II
Peter 1:10-12, Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your
calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: For
so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting
kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Wherefore I will not be negligent
to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be
established in the present truth.)
(Link:
A “Heads Up” On Things
to Come )
As Peter
once stated, the sun will darken and the moon will turn blood red. And as Paul
wrote, the saints in heaven will be manifested on earth and the saints on earth
will be transformed. Together, then, after this veil of the saints’ flesh is
lifted, the saints will take vengeance on those that know not God and obey not
the gospel as the holy angels.
(Jude 14,15: And Enoch also, the seventh from
Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with(en) ten
thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that
are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly
committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken
against him.
II
Thessolonians1:7-11, And to you(faithful) who are troubled rest
with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with(meta) his
mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God,
and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who
shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord,
and from the glory of his power; When he shall
come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that
believe(faithful) (because our testimony among you was
believed in that day. Wherefore also we
pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and
fulfill all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with
power. The word when that begins verse 10 means “until” according to definition
from the lexicons. In the context the saints come first until he(the Lord) comes to be glorified.
Notes:
The Greek prepositions en, meta, and sun are all translated at times with the
English word “with”. Each of these Greek prepositions has a sense of “with” yet
each has a distinct sense depending on the grammatical context and the case of
its object. “En” is most often translated as “in”. It has the sense of time and
place with instrumentality or by the means of the time, place or situation.
Meta is most often translated “with” yet it has a sense of and is translated as
“afterwards” when used with an accusative case noun. With genitive case nouns,
as used here, it means to be with along side of to help. Its sense is like metabolizer. A metabolizer
is added to that which is to be metabolized after that to be metabolized is
present. Paul also used “meta” of Jesus Christ with the saints in I
Thessalonians 3;13, To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in
holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ
with(meta) all his saints.
Parousia Notes: The Greek language was and is
known as a precise language compared to most other languages. The Romans used
the Greek language in their military commands and in construction because of
its precision compared to Latin. “Parousia” is a Greek word with a suffix. The
primary part of the word is “ousia”. The suffix is “para”, a Greek preposition.
In the Greek language prepositions are often used as suffixes. “Para” means
“beside” as in parallel lines. “Ousia” is a feminine particle that means “ones
property” Being feminine it denotes female property and was used as such in
secular Greek writings. As such “parousia” means beside the feminine substance.
The parousia translated as “coming” by the King James translators does not mean
personal presence but means coming along side the feminine portion or the
church. It is more likely that Paul used the word “parousia” to denote the
presence of the Lord beside the feminine church through the presence of his
manifested saints during the preparation for he, himself, being present. His actual presence is denoted by the Greek
word “erchomai” that is used in this regard several times of the events when he
comes personally after his saints.
The
Wrath Notes: In Greek the word wrath means angry. During this time God will not
be angry with those who do believe. He will be angry with those that know not
God and those that do not obey the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ during that
time. The systems of the world will be filled both with God’s anger towards man
and men’s consequential anger towards one another. Those of faith and those
that turn to the faith in this time will be separated from this wrath by the
saints who have been sent by the Lord’s as his holy angels. Therefore those of
faith will be kept away from the wrath towards those of the then present world
and will be prepared and preserved through their faith for their salvation at
the forthcoming personal presence of the Lord. IThessalonians:1:10, And to wait
for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which
delivered us from the wrath to come. Romans:5:9, Much more then, being now
justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. The Greek
preposition for “from” in these verses is “apo”. It means a local separation
from the surface with no sense of upward motion.
Peter,
as recorded by Luke, Paul’s companion, declared the signs that would appear to
notify the church that this transitory period had come. In Acts 2: 19-21, Peter
was, in part, quoting the Old Testament prophet Joel here. And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and
signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke: The sun shall
be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable
day of the Lord come: And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on
the name of the Lord shall be saved. Joel's entire
prophesy also contains a description of the presence of the saints during this
time of darkness. Paul, does not mention the sun darkening and the moon turning
blood red is his letters but he does write of the separation of the saints into
manifested spiritual bodies at the beginning of this time as a new first. In II Thessalonians 2:1-3, 1: Now we beseech
you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering
together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither
by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of
Christ(Lord in most Greek texts) is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any
means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first,
and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; The Greek word for
“falling away” is apostasia.
It is feminine and has a sense of divorcement from a quite similar word used in
scripture and in the same family. It is “apostasion”. The Greek word for
“first” is proton. It means first ever and above all else. The saints will be
separated from the faithful by their manifestation. Of course this will be the
first and most important time this collective arrangement has ever existed.)
(Link:
Fallaciousness in the Doctrine of the
Rapture )
(Link: Considerations
on the Spuriousness of the Book of Revelation )
Also, they, the saints, will gather together the faithful
for preparation to jointly enter into the New Jerusalem descended from above.
At the end of this entry period, or short work as Paul
wrote, the surface of the earth will be scorched unto ashes by a cosmic burst
of radiance from the sun.
(II Peter 3:10: But the day
of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens
shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements (the basic systems of man)
shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works (the works of man)
that are therein shall be burned up. Notice that the event in the day of God
following in I Peter 3:12 are different than these here in the day of the Lord
in verse 10.
Hebrews 12:25-29: See that ye refuse not him that speaketh.
For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall
not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven: Whose voice
then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake
not the earth only, but also heaven. And this word, Yet once more, signifieth
the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that
those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Wherefore we receiving a
kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God
acceptably with reverence and godly fear: For our God is a consuming fire.
If not why did God provided the symbolic usage of the ashes
of the red heifer and other symbols of purification by fire from heaven and by
man. The red heifer( female) was slaughtered and burned to ashes on the Mount
of Olives to the east of the temple mount where Jesus was crucified. It was the
only sacrifice that purified the Hebrews from death according to Alfred
Edersheim in his book, The Temple and Its Services. All citizens of
Jerusalem and coming to Jerusalem were required to have the ashes of the red
heifer sprinkled on their heads for purification before entry into Jerusalem
for the major festivals. Hebrews 13:11-14, For the bodies of those beasts,
whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are
burned without the camp. Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the
people with his own blood, suffered without the gate. Let us go forth therefore
unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach. For here have we no continuing
city, but we seek one to come. Hebrews 9:13,14, For if the blood of bulls and
of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the
purifying of the flesh: How much more
shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself
without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living
God?)
(Link: Purification By Fire )
All men, including the remnant of faithful, will die.
(I Corinthians15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall(future) all be made alive. All humans now are still descendent of the
corrupted Adam and in whole or in large part have the corrupted DNA of Adam. If
not humans would be not be dying within a century. Salvation for man is, in
large part, the accomplishment of man’s DNA being made perfect in resurrection
or the salvation of the soul - as Jesus said new wine must be put in new
bottles.
Hebrews 2;9, But we
see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of
death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste
death for every man.
Hebrews 9:27,28 27: And as it is appointed unto men(plural-collective noun) once to
die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins
of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time
without sin unto salvation.
Men are likened unto seeds in the scripture in the context
of resurrection. I Corinthians 15:33-38, Be not deceived: evil communications
corrupt good manners. Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not
the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame. But some man will say, How
are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come? Thou fool, that which
thou sowest is not quickened, except it die: And that which thou sowest, thou
sowest not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or
of some other grain: But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every seed his own body.
John 12:24-26, (Between the time of the raising of Lazarus
and the resurrection of Jesus) Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of
wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it
bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that
hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. If any man serve
me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man
serve me, him will my Father honour. Wheat represents the faithful while the
barley seed and the resulting leaven from its fermentation represents the
saints in scripture
Notice in scripture that the transitory events leading into
the new heaven and earth of paradise restored many times mention Sodom and
Gomorrha. They were both burned to ashes without survivors. Here, it appears
that Paul is saying the same with the exception of the remaining seed for
sprouting anew in resurrection after the fact. Rom:9:29: And as Esaias said
before, Except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed,(faithful) we had been as
Sodoma, and been made like unto Gomorrha.)
Very shortly thereafter the faithful of all past times will
be awakened in resurrection as perfected souls, first, out from among all other
dead as the Lord himself descends from heaven.
(I Thessalonians 4:16, For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of
the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise
first. “Himself” emphasizes that Christ had come before in the form of the
saints, as the manifested holy angels, and at this point he personally descends
as the Lord of all. Note: Not only will all faithful be resurrected during this
time also; all nature will be resurrected in paradisical perfection for the new
heaven and earth.)
Then the purified faithful will be joined perfectly, as in a
marriage, with the saints under the Lord Jesus Christ for the establishment of
the New Jerusalem.
(Link: An Eastern Wedding
Feast )
(Link: The Apostle Paul's
Great Mystery of Christ Revealed )
Next, all other men will be resurrected and judged as either
just or unjust. The just from all faiths will enter into the new world kingdom
of paradise restored to populate the new earth. The souls of the just will be
perfected through this kingdom from heaven on earth.
Matthew 25:31-40, When the Son of man shall come in his
glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of
his glory : And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate
them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: And he
shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall
the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father,
inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I
was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was
a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye
visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous
answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or
thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or
naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto
thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you,
Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have
done it unto me.
“Just” humans are those of any belief that, from their
hearts, follow the basic tenets of the law and give out of a heart seeking the
well being of the less fortunate.
The unjust will be sent for the thousand years of the
kingdom into reformative perdition where their stubborn denial of God’s will
shall be destroyed.
(Luke, 25:19-31, There was a certain rich man, which was
clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there
was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,
And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table:
moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels
into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he
lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in
his bosom. And he cried and said,
Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of
his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. But
Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good
things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art
tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed:
so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass
to us, that would come from thence. Then he said, I pray thee therefore,
father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house: For I have five
brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of
torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them
hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the
dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the
prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.)
At the end of this kingdom the earth will be dissolved and
all men who have ever lived will ascend as one into the consummate perfection
of heaven.
(II Peter3:12&15, Looking for and hasting unto the
coming of the day of God wherein the
heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with
fervent heat? And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even
as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath
written unto you, The day of God is different than the day of the Lord in verse
10 of this chapter. The day of God is when the Lord delivers all up to the
Father at the end of the kingdom when death is destroyed. I Corinthians 15:24,
Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even
the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.)
(I Thessolonians 4:17: Then(at the end of the kingdom) we
which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them(them that are
without in verse 12) in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall
we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words. The
English word “Then” at the beginning of this verse is the Greek word “epeita” in the
Greek texts. It means then after a period of time that can be substantial
especially when used with the future tense as it is here. If Paul meant then
immediately he would have used another Greek word like “tote”. This event is
quite distant in time from the event of the preceding verse which is the Lord
himself coming to raise all of the faithful first. If Paul meant “then immediately”, then he would have used
the Greek word “tote”.)
(I Timothy 2:4: Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.
1Timothy 4:10: For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we
trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.)
(Philippians 2:9-11, Wherefore God also hath highly exalted
him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in
heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should (some Greek texts
read “shall”) confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the
Father. Romans14:1,1 For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.)
(I Corinthians 15:20-28: But now is Christ risen from the
dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. For since by man came
death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. : For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the
firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. : Then cometh the
end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when
he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he must
reign, till he hath put all enemies
under his feet. The last enemy that
shall be destroyed is death. For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted,
which did put all things under him.
And when all things shall be subdued
unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.)
(Link: The Appointed Times
for the Salvation of All Men)
Yes,
through faith and by the power of God, the Lord Jesus Christ, the chosen seed,
by his life, death, resurrection and ascension, proved this true.
Be prepared. Have faith aright, and hope as an anchor for
the soul and especially this love from God to man.
Psalms:138:2: I
will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy loving
kindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy
name.
Acts:17:11:
These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the
word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether
those things were so.
Galatians5:5:
For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.