CHAPTER 11
THE NEXT BREATH
Gal. 6:11-18 (Wuest Expanded Greek
Translation)
“…As
many that desire to make a good outward appearance in the sphere of the flesh,
these are trying to compel you to receive circumcision, there only MOTIVE being
that they might not be persuaded by
reason of the cross of Christ; for not even those who are circumcised are
themselves keeping the law, but they desire that you be circumcised that in
your flesh they might glory; for as for you far be it for me to glory accept in
the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ to whom to me the world stands crucified and
I to the world. For neither circumcision
is anything nor uncircumcision but a NEW CREATION. As many as by this rule are ordering their
conduct, peace be upon them and mercy even upon the Israel of God. Henceforth let no man furnish me trouble for
I bare branded the marks of the Lord Jesus in my body. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with your
spirit brethren. Amen”
Focusing on, “for
neither circumcision is anything nor uncircumcision” what Paul is saying can be
applied to our modern ideas of giving up smoking and drinking to gain right
standing with God. So we could read it
this way without taking away what the text is trying to teach, “For neither
smoking nor not smoking is anything; in other words it is not the issue. What is the issue? The text plainly gives it, “A NEW
CREATION.” It is a new perspective
beyond what this whole world believes is the problem and its solution.
I have been developing
this in light of “the power of endless life” which comes out of Paul’s letter
to the Colossians in chapter 2, (Kenneth Wuest, a Greek Scholar, uses the Greek
tenses which bring this out); “In VIEW
OF THE FACT,…” we have to be
in view of this fact to understand where Paul is going with this…”that we were
raised with Christ”…it is a new perspective.
We are bogged down in the cares and affairs of this life, something
brought out in the book of Hebrews ( 9:14)
where we are to be no more sin conscious; this sin consciousness which
is brought about from not only the Bible but also all the laws and rules of our
society that surround us; matters that make us “in” or accepted of our
peers.
Think about this; I
once smoked because of peer pressure. To
be accepted of my peers back then I had to smoke; so I wouldn't appear to be a
wimp and would stand on the street corner with them thus was one of the
guys. But when I got into the religious
world I got the idea that to be accepted there I had to stop smoking. So to be accepted I quit smoking. I thought, “Where can you go where you are
accepted for who you are?” Do we have to
become circumcised or uncircumcised to be accepted? Is this the real issue? I have found that the real issue is to become
who we really are, by finding out who we were before the foundations of the
world. Becoming as Paul said, “becoming
apprehended for that which we have become apprehended.” (Phil. 3:12)
Now the Holy Spirit
will do that; He will apprehend you and bring you into knowledge of who you
were and work out those good works that were formed in you before the
foundations of the world. (Eph. 2:10)
Before this world system came into play; before this work ethic of
performance came into play, which was used to please and appease peer
pressures. You learn that we have been
performance oriented from birth. When
you get into religion you kind of expect something different but discover they
are performance oriented as well. In you
past you had conflict with those of church, now that you have switched peers,
you find that now you have conflict with your old peers. Now understand, this kind of conflict, in
light of what we have said, isn’t conflict because of the REAL ISSUE. All you have done is change hats, so to
speak. It isn’t the kind of hat you wear
that gets you into the kingdom of God.
It is not whether you don’t smoke or smoke. If you make it this you are avoiding the real
issue; that which is far deeper and worst.
In Paul’s text to the Galatians he reveals what really happens, what
those who advocated these kind of things to gain God’s favor are doing. They are avoiding the cross of Jesus Christ
and the horror of that cross which speaks to a far worse problem in us
all. Paul has to ask the Galatians,
something we should ask ourselves, “if we could save ourselves by a set of
rules, I ask you, why then did Jesus have to die?” If we could save ourselves by not smoking,
drinking and a list of other do-not’s, then His death was senseless. Paul goes on to warn them saying if they
sought this old method of trying to save themselves, what Jesus Christ
accomplished would avail them NOTHING!
Paul in his early life,
known then as Saul a notorious self-righteous Jewish Pharisee, sought to put
this movement down until he got knocked off this high horse, literally, coming
to embrace that he once attacked. He
then goes to Damascus preaching a different message attacking the Pharisees who
he once was. They wanted to kill him; so
he has to escape by being lowered out a window over the wall fleeing to the
wilderness for almost 14 years. When he
returns he then sees what I am sharing here.
All of his letters express what it was that he learned in that time
period. He had come to see the real
issue; and issue that included Jew and Gentile alike, the fallen nature of
Adam. He discovers the real “sin” of the
whole world; that which cut “all” of humanity off from God placing us all under
the wrath of God. You can see why he saw
these other issues as petty and not the real issue. Even the divisions of humanity of Jew, Greek,
bond or free, Barbarian or Scythian for him were not the issue, but our coming
to a realization of a whole New Creature through all of us being born again
through Christ Jesus. His whole life
perspective changed. So when he says,
“In view of this fact,” he is embrace all that he had come to see during that
time of isolation.
Scriptures to read in
light of this whole article:
Eph. 2:10 “For we are
His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath BEFORE
HAND ordained that we should walk in them.
Col. 2:11 “And ye are complete in Him, which is the head
of all principality and power; in whom also ye are circumcised with the
circumcision made without hands (human efforts), in putting off the body of the
sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ; buried with Him in
baptism, wherein also ye are risen with Him through the faith of the
operation of God, who hath raised Him from the dead
CHAPTER 12
SERVANTS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS
“But God is thanked,
that you were the servants of sin, but you have obeyed from the heart that
FORM OF DOCTRINE which was delivered you.
Being then made free from sin, you became the servants of
righteousness.”
Interesting and
familiar text we may all have heard at one time or another. It rings for some as just another religious
text with no deep meaning to it. Let me
indulge a bit hear and give my paraphrase of what this text says to me.
“If anyone is to me
thanked it is the One I have learned to hear from beyond reading a book
or hearing it on a tape, CD, DVD or sitting listening to someone speak. There is a NEW FORM of teaching I now
follow. I once thought otherwise. Thinking I was obeying what I heard, when in
truth I hadn’t heard at all till I heard from HIM. I was only acting independent from hearing
from Him and following my head not my heart or inward voice. What now is delivered to me I meditate on day
and night and write it down to someday pass on to those I love. This is the true FORM delivered to me….to
hear His voice and obey. I am free from
having to act independent from hearing from Him. I can ask and wait with expectation that He
is there and will answer. I am now a
servant of hearing from Him as any who have the same ability; thus the term, SERVANTS
OF RIGHTEOUSNESS. Many forfeit this
ability by going about establishing their own idea of this righteousness….they have forfeited the
Righteousness of Christ. He too heard
from the Father. The words He spoke were
not his own but His Fathers. The words I
speak are not my own but Christ in me.
And the life I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of
God.
Some may say, “How dare
you make such a claim!” My answer, “How
dare I think otherwise.”
“If any man speak, let
him speak AS THE ORACLES OF GOD; if any man minister, let him do it AS OF the
ability which God gives, that God in all things may be glorified THROUGH Jesus
Christ, to whom be praise and dominion forever and ever….Amen”
CHAPTER 13
CHANGING OF THE LAW
“Whatever you do in
word or deed, do it “As unto God,” not men.”
In this text we see God’s purpose for even giving law. To throw God out of the picture, thus
destroying His purpose for the Law; that purpose being to expose our condition
being cut off from Him; whether we believe this or not; throwing God out of the
picture drives men to lawlessness. With
God out of the picture, mankind sees no reason for keeping the present law,
thus think to change or amend the law to their purpose, whether good or evil,
which many times is to the evil.
When we discover that
we can’t handle this life with any Law God had given or even those we have
created, we seek to change the laws so that it will “appear” that we are
handling what the law once said we couldn’t.
When it’s said, “Don’t steal, they have changed laws around this idea of
stealing so what was once out and out steal “appears” as not stealing.” (Ask
the Feds and the world bankers). When
God wrote, that one day, right will become wrong and wrong would be come right,
this is what was meant. There always
will be some kind of law yet not to God’s end intent which is clearly said,
“Christ is the end intent of the Law;” God’s purpose of the law wasn’t that we
could keep it, He made it so it would be impossible. Jesus clearly revealed this when He said, “YOU
HAVE SAID – in other words you have changed the laws purpose leading you to
think you could keep that which was created as impossible – You have said, but
I say unto you – the real strength of the law- I say unto you that if you look
upon a women with lust, you have already committed adultery.” He went on to illustrate other laws revealing
their impossibility. To address the
unreal view that these religious leaders had of law, Jesus said, “If your eye
offend you, pluck it out.” Imagine that;
if you think you have kept, for example, this law of adultery, yet now SEEING
what God had originally meant by this law; for you to stay in your idea of this
one law, you would have to pluck out your eyes so you could keep it! Of course it wouldn’t stop there because God
goes even deeper and addresses the THOUGHTS of an individual. The next step would be the cutting out of
your brain that triggers such thoughts.
IMPOSSIBLE! God had always wanted
to reveal our helpless, hopeless condition, using PURE LAW to draw us to the
only solution to our dilemma, the death of His Son for us. Mankind has thought to water down this law,
thus destroying it true purpose. So, if
you think that more laws on the books or changing current laws is the answer,
you will one day find out that you were deceived; in truth you had not wanted
to face what the “good” law was attempting to get you to see – your need of
deliverance from your present condition.
So we have just seen, that when scriptures calls the Law good, it is
saying just what I have shared with you; it is good in that it leads you to
your solution, Christ Jesus. If the any
law is so constructed that it doesn’t lead you to Christ, it is not this good
law God had originally given to save us from our real condition of being cut
off from God from birth because of the original fall of mankind by Adam and
Eve.
CHAPTER 14
A LETTER FROM GOD
Matthew 7:23 “And then
will I profess unto them, I never knew you; depart from Me, you that work iniquity.”
A
Letter from the Lord:
“You
never came to understand ME as a Super-intelligence personified Being; thus,
never developed a personal one on ONE relationship with ME. You may have heard of ME, felt MY energy, and
even used it to your advantage. But,
real recognition, gratitude expressed, never came between us. Thus, I can’t say I KNOW you, nor you
ME. There have been those who have had
this personal relationship with ME, which you have rejected seeing it as
nonsense. It wasn’t!
I
now must give you the desire of your thoughts and free will. By your thoughts, words and actions are you
justified. By your thoughts, words and
actions are you condemned. It needed not
to be. It is a choice of perspective. It is not I that judge you.
For
me to say, “I love you” would be a personal emotion of a personal being, who
would and should expect from another personal being the same response. You may have loved my creation, and falsely
personified it, yet you never gave credit where credit was due, a Personal
Creator.”
“I
shall say the same as you have said. I
will profess that which you have professed.
That which you learned and knew and understood of Me, whether I ever
said a word to you.
My
Son had asked, “Who do men say that I am?
Some answered as you have quoting rumors and opinions of others. That day, only one, Peter, heard from Me and
Professed, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.”
My
Son revealed that day what many of you have failed to experience. He said to Peter, who had heard from Me,
“Flesh (world opinion) and blood (traditions) has not revealed this to you, but
my Father. And upon this rock (really
hearing Me speak to you, not just hearing about Me), upon this rock will I
build the “called out ones who heard Me speak to them – this is my true
church. Not a building or creed, but
called assembly of hearers from Me. Your
churches are filled with those who hear about Me, but never from Me. You have never heard from Me. You only know about me. So now I say the same. I know about you more then you will ever
know. But I never knew you in that you
listen to others, thinking I couldn’t speak for Myself, or wouldn’t speak to
you one on ONE. I didn’t get
laryngitis. I attempted to speak to you
but you had chosen to listen to others who also thought they knew Me. You could have known Me by an one on ONE
conversation. You could have gone to the
Source. I know Myself, but now, I don’t
know you. I now have to say to you, “Go
to your place.” That place that you have
created, a place where I cannot be. It
is not Me. Had you gotten to hear from
Me you would have found your place in Me.
Yet, you “Worked” your opinions and ideas mixed with your peers,
cultures and creeds. Generation after
generation of what they thought they knew of Me. Yet not hearing it from Me, now will never
know. I was not a mindless
substance. I never was created, though
you have heard, “We created God in our image.”
I never gave that impression. It
was I who created you in an image you never knew. You who saw Me as an impersonal force. I AM a Super-personal being and established
that you be as such.
Here
is what you missed. You would have been
at peace in your life if you had walked in the light (heard from Me) as I am in
the light (I knew Myself). There would
had been a unity of all had they gotten this unity beyond their cultures,
religious creeds and carnal opinions.
Hearing from Me would have passed all this understanding of what they
all thought they knew of Me. What was to
be preserved did not lie in what you thought you knew before hearing from
Me. It lies in another realm; the realm
of The Beloved. All the divisions were
not there. Never was nor ever will
be. It is only in that realm that true fellowship
exists. You have destroyed this fellowship by your own choices. Thus separation from a unity we once formally
had held. You ask, “Where? What place?
Because you did not ask Me before, now you will never know. So, go, you who worked this iniquity into
your minds. Go to your created
place. The End.
