God's immutable covenants (PART 6 CONTD).

Now since they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but instead, we are told that; "In Isaac your seed shall be called." That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed, and that seed we have been duly instructed saying; Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He did not say, "And to seeds," as of many, but as of one, "and to your Seed," who is Christ.

The covenant therefore, is between God and to all those who have accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and they are covenanted to fulfill two very important everlasting aspects of this covenant:

They have been appointed to be as living stones, being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 

This is the main call of duty to everyone who has accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture saying, "Behold, I lay in Zion A chief cornerstone, elect, precious, and he who believes on Him will be by no means be put to shame. 

Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, "The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone," and "A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense." And so, we stumble because we are being disobedient to the word, to which we also were appointed, to be priests of the Most High and offer to Him the food for His offerings at the appointed times (1 Peter 2:5-8; Numbers 28:2).

Therefore, to everyone who profess to believe in Jesus Christ and have accepted Him as Lord and Savior are covenanted to keep his/her part of the New covenant which is perpetual. Now the terms of the new covenant is actually the performance and fulfillment of that good thing which God promised to the house of Israel, to the house of Judah and to David. 

To the house of Israel God promised that “If you indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” 

And to David He says; “For thus says the Lord: ‘David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel” (Exodus 19:5-6; Jeremiah 33:17). 

The New Covenant therefore is the means by which God’s promise to the house of Israel and to David can be fulfilled; For thus says the Lord; “This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days: I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.” The remarkable sign of this part of this new covenant is the continuous remembrance of God’s law in our minds, and the love of God’s law in our hearts so that we will always remember them and do them (Jeremiah 31:33; Hebrews 8:10; 10:16).

The terms of the New Covenant with the house of Judah states as follows; “Nor shall the priests the Levites, lack a man to offer burnt offerings before Me, to kindle grain offerings, and to sacrifice continually.”

The irony of truth is, Jesus Christ was slain, and have redeemed us to God by His blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth" (Revelation 5:9-10).

Although our reign on the earth as kings is futuristic, it will take place when Jesus Christ establishes His kingdom here on earth but, our responsibility as priests to our God to offer to Him His food for His offerings at the appointed time is current, and this is the downfall of many who profess to believe in Jesus Christ, they stumble being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed.

To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

God's immutable covenants (part 6)

7. The New Covenant  

The seventh perpetual covenant we are going to look at is the New Covenant which is no doubt the reality and fulfillment of the covenants which God made with Abraham, with the children of Israel, and with David His servant. For it is written; “Brothers, let me take an example from every day life; just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established , so it is in this case. The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed: The scripture does not say “and to seeds” meaning many people, but “and to your seed”, meaning one person, who is Christ.’

“What I mean is this: The law (covenant with Israel), introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God in His grace gave it to Abraham through promise” (Galatians 3:15-18).

In like manner the New Covenant did not do away with the covenant and the sign which God made with the children of Israel and with David. It brought about instead a reformation, making it feasible for Israel to keep their part of the covenant. For it is written: “For if the first covenant had been faultless then no place would have been sought for a second.”

“Because finding fault with them (the people), He says: ‘Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah – not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they did not continue in My covenant, and I disregarded them, says the Lord” (Hebrews 8:7-9).

Let us be reminded of the covenant which God made with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; “Behold, the days are coming says the Lord, that I will perform that good thing which I have promised to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah: In those days and at that time I will cause to grow up to David A Branch of righteousness; He shall execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will dwell safely, and this is the name by which she will be called: The Lord Our Righteousness.”

‘For thus says the Lord: “David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel; nor shall the priests, the Levites, lack a man to offer burnt offerings before Me, to kindle grain offerings, and to sacrifice continually” (Jeremiah 33:14-17). 

So perpetual is this covenant that the Lord said to Jeremiah; “As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, nor the sand of the sea measured, so will I multiply the descendants of David My servant and the Levites who minister to Me.” Moreover the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, “Have you not considered what these people have spoken, saying, the two families which the Lord has chosen, He has also cast them off? Thus they have despised My people, as if they should no more be a nation before them.’

“Thus says the Lord: ‘If My covenant is not with day and night, and I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth, then I will cast away the descendants of Jacob and David My servant, so that I will not take any of his descendants to be rulers over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will cause their captives to return, and will have mercy on them” (Jeremiah 33:22-26).

Many of us profess to be believers but unfortunately, we stumble, because we are disobedient to the word, to which we also were appointed. 

To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph 

Google Adsense  <script type="text/javascript"><!--<br />google_ad_client = "pub-3769801306765944";<br />/* 234x60, created 7/30/08 */<br />google_ad_slot = "6656363308";<br />google_ad_width = 234;<br />google_ad_height = 60;<br />google_cpa_choice = ""; // on file<br />//--><br /></script><br /><script type="text/javascript"<br />src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"><br /></script><br /><br /><br />

God's immutable covenants (part 5)

 6. God’s Covenant with David

The sixth perpetual covenant we are going to look is God's covenant with David when He said to him; “When your days are fulfilled and you rest with your fathers, I will set up your seed after you, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne for his kingdom forever” (2 Samuel 7:12-13).

This covenant like all of the other covenants is immutable, it will not be broken, for the Lord has sworn in truth to David; He will not turn from it: And what He said was, “I will set upon your throne the fruit of your body.” Regardless of how much evil some of the sons of David did in the sight of the Lord, “Yet the Lord would not destroy the house of David, because of the covenant that He had made with David, and since He had promised to give a lamp to him and to his sons forever” (Psalms 132:11; 2 Chronicles 21:7). 

According to the word of the Lord, only if God had not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth would His covenant with David be broken. Because the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah saying; “Thus says the Lord: If you can break My covenant with the day and My covenant with the night, so that there will not be day and night in their season, then My covenant may also be broken with David My servant, so that he shall not have a son to reign on his throne, and with the Levites, the priests, My ministers. As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, nor the sand of the sea measured, so will I multiply the descendants of David My servant and the Levites who minister to Me” (Jeremiah 33:20-22).

The remarkable sign of this everlasting covenant which is dual in nature is Jesus Christ the Seed who descended from the body of David, and with whom God established his kingdom and priesthood forever.

With regards to the perpetuity of David’s throne through Jesus Christ it is written: “For unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father; Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over his kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform it” (Isaiah 9:6-7).

And with regards to the other part of the covenant concerning the Levites which states, “Nor will the priests who are Levites ever fail to have a man to stand before Me continually to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings and to present sacrifices”, this has been fulfilled by Jesus Christ who evidently arose from Judah of which tribe Moses spoke nothing concerning priesthood, but of whom the Lord has sworn and will not relent, saying; “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.” Therefore by so much more Jesus has become a guarantee of a better covenant. (Hebrews 7: 14, 20-22).

Jesus has become a guarantee of a better covenant in that formerly, there were many priests who were prevented from continuing in office because of death; but now, because Jesus Christ lives for ever, He has a permanent priesthood, and is capable to save completely those who come to God through Him, because He always lives to intercede for them and thus making this covenant perpetual.

To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

The immutability of God's covenants (part 4)

5. God’s Covenant with the Children of Israel 

 

The fifth perpetual covenant we are going to look at is the one that God made with the children of Israel when He said to them; “If you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation” (Exodus 19:5-6). 

The remarkable sign of this everlasting covenant is the Ten Commandments and specifically the Lord’s Sabbaths which ascribe to Him the honor and glory due to His name, and identify Him as the One and only true God. Moses said to the children of Israel; “The Lord spoke to you out of the midst of the fire, you heard the sound of the words, but saw no forms; you only heard a voice. So He declared to you His covenant which He commanded you to perform, that is, the Ten Commandments; and He wrote them on two tablets of stone” (Deuteronomy 4:12-13). 

The children of Israel was given a serious warning saying; “Take heed to yourselves, lest you forget the covenant of the Lord your God which He made with you, and make for yourselves a carved image in the form of anything which the Lord you God has forbidden you, for the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God” (Deuteronomy 4:23-24). 

The Sabbaths are the sign which truly identifies God above all others and distinguish His people as a special treasure to Him above all people. For thus says the Lord; “Surely My Sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you.” ‘Therefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant” (Exodus 31:13, 16). 

Again the Lord said to the children of Israel, “I am the Lord your God: Walk in My statutes, keep My judgments and do them; hallow My Sabbaths, and they will be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I am the Lord your God” (Ezekiel 20:19-20). 

Now what is very interesting to note about this particular covenant, is the fact that they are not all Israel who are of Israel, nor are they all children because they are the seed of Abraham; but, "In Isaac your seed shall be called." That is, those who are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God; but the children of the promise are counted as the seed" (Romans 9: 6-8).

 Signifying that, this covenant is perpetual between God and to all those who have accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. For we have been admonished saying; "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. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise" (Galatians 3:28-29; Colossians 3:11).

 Therefore, the covenant which the Lord commanded the children of Israel to perform which is the Ten Commandments which He wrote on two tablets of stone, and seriously warned them not to forget and teach them to their children and grand children, is applicable to all those who are in Christ Jesus. Now, the reward for keeping our part of this covenant is, "If you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” 

 The apostle Peter echoed a similar sentiment when he wrote: "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy" (1 Peter 2:9-10). 

 So my question to all those who profess to be the Israel of God are we fulfilling our part of the covenant?

To be continued

The immutability of God's covenant (part 3)

Let us now look at the fourth perpetual covenant the one that God made with Abraham when He said to him; “I have made you a father of many nations, I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you. Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.” And God said to Abraham: As for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you through out their generations” (Genesis 17:5-9).

The remarkable sign of this perpetual covenant is Circumcision. For thus says the Lord; “This is My covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised; and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you. He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised, every male child in your generations, he who is born in your house or bought with money from any stranger who is not your descendant. He who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money must be circumcised, and My covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant” (Genesis 17:10-13).

This perpetual covenant has been perpetuated in Jesus Christ through His circumcision eight days after His birth, when His name was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before He was conceived in the womb. In Christ Jesus we were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ. Since according to God’s abundant mercy He has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and in Him we all live and move and have our existence, His circumcision then fulfills and perpetuates the term of the covenant for every human being. 

Through Jesus Christ, God is now our God and we are also heirs according to the promise. Those who were once Gentiles in the flesh – who are called Un-circumcision by what is called the circumcision made in the flesh by hands, and who at that time were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise having no hope, and without God in the world, are now in Christ Jesus, have been drawn near by the blood of Christ, and now in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor un-circumcision avails anything, but faith working through love and by being a new creation.

To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

The The immutability of God's covenants (part 2)

 

2. God’s covenant with the sea

The second perpetual covenant we are going to look at is God's covenant with the sea. God made a covenant with the sea saying; “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.” Then He shut in the sea with doors, when it burst forth and issued from the womb; He made the clouds its garment, and thick darkness its swaddling band; and fixed His limit for it, and set bars and doors; and said; ‘This far you may come, and here your proud waves must stop” (Genesis 1:9, Job.38:8-11).

The remarkable sign of this unbreakable covenant is the sand of the sea shore. The Lord assigned to the sea its limit, so that the waters would not transgress His command and pass over, and return to cover the earth. For thus says the Lord; “Will you not tremble at My presence, who have placed the sand as the bound of the sea, by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass beyond it? And though its waves toss to and fro, yet they cannot prevail; though they roar, yet they cannot pass over it” (Proverbs 8:29; Psalms 104:9; Jeremiah 5:22). 

Even in the case of a tsunami which is an oceanic tidal wave caused by a submarine earthquake or a volcanic eruption when the ocean waves rise above the land and move inland, the water quickly recedes and return to its boundaries.

3. God’s Covenant with His Creation

The third perpetual covenant we are going to look at is God's covenant with His creation. After the flood in which all life on the earth perished with the exception of those who were in the ark with Noah, Noah took of every clean animal and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar, the Lord smelled a soothing aroma, and said in His heart, “I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake, although the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again destroy every living thing as I have done. While the earth remains, seed time and harvest, and cold and heat, and winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease” (Genesis 8:20-22).

Then the Lord made a covenant with Noah and his sons on behalf of the entire creation saying; “And as for Me, behold, I establish My covenant with you and with your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you; the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, of all that go out of the ark, every beast of the earth. Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”

The remarkable thing about this perpetual sign of this covenant is the Rainbow. For thus says the Lord; “This is the sign of the covenant which I make between Me and you, and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I set My rainbow in the cloud, and it shall be for the sign of the covenant between Me and the earth.”

“It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. The rainbow shall be in the cloud, and I will look on it to remember the everlasting covenant between Me and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.” And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth” (Genesis 9:9-17).

God's covenants as far as one can see are immutable, perpetual and are from generations to generations as long as time exist. We should therefore be cognizance of this fact and be mindful not to break our part of the covenant.

To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

The immutability of the Lord's Covenants

The immutability of God's covenants

With the world in such a chaotic state with diversities of ideologies especially in the area of spirituality and the majority of people deceiving others and themselves being deceived, it is of paramount importance that each individual try as much as possible to understand the different covenant that God made with His creation and the immutability of these covenants because, at the end of it all  each one of us shall give account of him/herself to God and in addition to that ignorant of the law is no excuse.

It is quite evident that God has in the past made several covenants with both nature and man, and apparently without a covenant man has no relationship with God. A covenant is a solemn agreement which God as the Covenantor made with His creation the covenantee, and in order to demonstrate the authenticity and immutability of the agreement God sealed them with remarkable signs which keep us in remembrance of God’s promise.

We can for example look at seven covenants which God made with His creation, and the signs which demonstrate the immutability of that particular covenant.

1. God’s Covenant with Day and Night

God made a covenant with day and night saying; “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years; and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth” (Genesis 1:14-15).

So immutable is this covenant, that the Lord said to the prophet Jeremiah; “If you can break My covenant with the day and My covenant with the night, so that there will not be day and night in their season, then My covenant may also be broken with David My servant, so that he shall not have a son to reign on his throne, and with the Levites, the priests, My ministers” (Jeremiah 33:20-21).

The remarkable sign of this unbreakable covenant is the two great lights. The greater light (sun) to rule the day: and the lesser light (moon) to rule the night. He made the stars also, and set them in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness” (Genesis 1:16-18).

Anything to the contrary will be regarded as a supernatural event, something beyond the physical realm.

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

Third reason for the lost identity of the true church

3. The Lord has Rejected His Altar

The third reason for the church's loss of identity it is because the Lord has rejected His altar: For thus says the word of the Lord; “The Lord has destroyed His dwelling like a garden; He has destroyed His place of meeting. The Lord has made Zion (the church) forget her appointed feasts and her Sabbaths; in His fierce anger He has spurned (rejected contemptuously) both King and priest. The Lord has rejected His altar and abandoned His sanctuary. He has handed over to the enemy the walls of her palaces: they have raised a shout in the house of the Lord as on the day of an appointed feast” (Lamentations 2: 6-7). 

The Lord abandoned His sanctuary because of defilement, as it is written; “Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, burn incense to Baal and follow other gods you have not known, and then come and stand before Me in this house, which bears My name, and say, “We are safe” – safe to do all these detestable things? Has this house, which bears My name, become a den of thieves to you? But I have been watching declares the Lord.”

“Go now to the place in Shiloh where I first made a dwelling for My name, and see what I did to it because of the wickedness of My people Israel. While you were doing all these things, declares the Lord, I spoke to you again and again, but you did not listen; I called you, but you did not answer. Therefore, what I did to Shiloh I will now do to the house that bears My name, the temple you trust in, the place I gave to you and your fathers. I will trust you from My presence, just as I did all your brothers, the people of Ephraim. So do not pray for this people nor offer any plea or petition for them; do not plead with Me, for I will not listen to you” (Jermiah7:9-16).

The church is only harming itself by continuing to defile itself with all sorts of abominations, and defilements. For thus says the Lord; “They pour out drink offerings to other gods to provoke Me to anger. But am I the one they are provoking? Declares the Lord, are they not rather harming themselves, to their own shame?” (Jeremiah 7:18-19).

It is not surprising that the majority of churches have failed miserably, for thus says the Lord; “Take heed that no one deceives you, for many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray.” And, “Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to Me, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and do many mighty works in your name? And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you evil doers.”

While Jesus was going through towns and villages teaching, someone said to Him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few? And He said to them, “Strive to enter by the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. When once the house holder has risen up and shut the door, you will begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying; ‘Lord, open for us.’ He will answer you, “I do not know where you come from.’ Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ But He will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from, all you workers of iniquity!’ (Luke 13:24-27).

A worker of iniquity is one who is unrighteous, one who is disobedient to the laws of God and the way one knows that he/she is not a worker of iniquity is by obeying the commandments of God, for he/she who says, "I know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 John 2:4). 

There is however, one thing for sure, the gates of hell will never prevail against the church of God, it is alive and well, and it can be distinguished by looking for the identifying signs which distinguishes the church of God from all other counterfeits which is the keeping of His commandments and principally, the perpetual sign of the Sabbath/s which Jesus Christ who is the same yesterday, today and forever is still and will always be the Lord of.

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

Second reason for the church´s loss of identity

2. Intimate relationship and enslavement to this World

 The second reason for the church's loss of identity is its intimate relationship and enslavement to the world. For thus says the Lord, “The roads to Zion (church) mourn, for no one comes to her appointed feasts. All her gateways are desolate, her priests groan, her maidens grieve, and she is in bitter anguish. Her foes have become her masters; her enemies are at ease. The Lord has brought her grief because of her many sins. Her children have gone into exile, captive before the foe. All the splendors have departed from the daughters of Zion, her princes are like deer that find no pasture; in weakness they have fled before the pursuer” (Lamentation 1:4-6).

Regardless of how difficult it is for many of us to conceive, the church is in the world, but it is not of the world, the church is not a part of the system which governs this world, our admonition is to; "Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive of her plagues. For her sins have reached to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities" (Revelation 18:4-5).

In Jesus' prayer to the Father on behalf of His disciples Jesus prayed saying; "But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world" (John 17:13-18).

The church's call of duty is to go into the entire world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned: It is when one believes and is baptized that he/she is added to the church. It is not the church`s call to invite the world into the church, the church is not a sanctuary for sinners as being portrayed. The church is not to be conformed to this world, but needs to be transformed by the renewing of the mind, that we may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

The first reason for the lost identity of the church

There are three basic reasons why the true church has lost its identity and they are as follows: 

1. Disobedience

 The first reason for the church's loss of identity is due to disobedience. For thus it is written: “Be stunned and amazed, blind yourselves and be sightless; be drunk, but not from wine, stagger, but not from beer. The Lord has brought over you a deep sleep: He has sealed your eyes (the prophets); He has covered your head (the seers). For you this whole vision is nothing but words sealed in a scroll. And if you give the scroll to someone who can read, and say to him, “Read this, please,” he will answer, “I can’t; it is sealed.’

Or if you give the scroll to someone who cannot read, and say, “Read this please,” he will answer, “I don’t know how to read” (Isaiah 29:9-12).

The crux of the matter is, when one habitually disobeys the laws of God a veil of darkness covers his/her eyes, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man --- and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.

Therefore, God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen" (Romans 1:21-25).

When one exchange the truth of God for the lie and do not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, un-discerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful;

Disobedience to the laws of God results in the degeneration of the human mind; it degenerates from being wise to becoming fools, from being knowledgeable to having a debased mind and from having a pertinent heart to an unrepentant heart.

Therefore, the Lord´s instruction to His people is; “Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them, lest the LORD's anger be aroused against you, and He shut up the heavens so that there be no rain, and the land yield no produce, and you perish quickly from the good land which the LORD is giving you.

"Therefore you shall lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as front-lets between your eyes. You shall teach them to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up” (Deuteronomy 11:16-19).

The premise on which we should all be building our thesis on is that, all the law and the prophets hang on the two great commandments, the first being; “to love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind,”  which is fulfilled by the observance of the first four of the Ten Commandments, whilst the second, which is to love our neighbor as ourselves is fulfilled by the observance the last six of the Ten Commandments.

To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

Reasons for the lost identity of the true church

Reasons for the lost identity of God´s church

It is inconceivable to believe that the church which is built on Jesus Christ, and of which He said that, “The gates of hell shall not prevail against it” could be so difficult to distinguish among the counterfeits.

Judging from statements made by Jesus Christ Himself and other passages of scripture, one can conclude that the majority of churches are not portraying the sign of the true church of God.

For example Jesus said unequivocally “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen will by any means disappear from the law until everything is accomplished.”

He then gave a stern warning saying; “Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus Christ placed His stamp of authority on the Sabbath which is part of the commandments by saying; “The Son of Man is Lord also of the Sabbath.”

The Sabbaths therefore is a critical sign in identifying the church of God, as confirmed by scriptures which states, “You must observe My Sabbaths. This will be a sign between Me and you for the generations to come, so that you may know that I am the Lord, who makes you holy.” Also, “Keep My Sabbaths holy, that they may be a sign between us. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God” (Exodus 31:13; Ezekiel 20:20).

The Sabbaths, not just the weekly Sabbath, but the Sabbaths including the annual Sabbaths are times specifically ordained by God for holy convocations or religious assemblies. For thus says the Lord; “These are My appointed feasts, the appointed feasts of the Lord, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies” (Leviticus 23:2, 4).

Unfortunately, while some are very zealous in observing the Weekly Sabbath, they have rejected and held in gross contempt the Annual Sabbaths and therefore are not ascribing to the Lord the glory due to His name.

Others on the other hand who observe both the Weekly and Annual Sabbaths, fail to bring to the Lord His offering which is the main objective for having a sacred assembly, for thus says the Lord; “These are the Lord’s appointed feasts, which you are to proclaim as times of holy convocation, for presenting to the Lord offerings by fire, burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings, each on its proper day.’

In the event that someone has not truly understand the reformation and not the abolition of this burnt offering, this burnt offering is Jesus Christ the Lamb of God, with the unleavened bread representing His body as the grain offering, and the wine representing His blood as the drink offering. This is figurative to Christ who loved us and gave Himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. This is the offering which abolished the first and established the second, as the new and living way by which the church draws near to God.

This offering is of such paramount importance that it is besides or in addition to, the Sabbaths of the Lord, and besides our gifts, and besides all our vows, and besides all our free will offerings which we give to the Lord (Leviticus 23:37-38).

Furthermore the majority of churches are profaning the name of the Lord and profaning His holy things, they have failed to make any distinction between the holy and the common, neither have they taught the difference between the unclean and the clean, they have disregarded the Lord’s Sabbaths, so that He is profaned among them (Ezekiel 22:26).

For this reason the Lord is not being worshiped in the beauty of holiness. It is stated quite categorically “Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols?

For we are the temple of the living God as God has said; ‘I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be My people. Therefore come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord” (2 Corinthians 6:14-17).

No one who is uncircumcised in heart should be allowed to enter the Lord’s sanctuary, the Lord’s sanctuary is only for priests who are called to be holy to their God, and not to profane the name of their God; for they offer the offerings by fire to the Lord, the bread of their God; therefore they shall be holy.

The Church of God unfortunately has lost its identity, it is no longer looked upon as the little flock, who does not peddle the word of God for profit, and who demonstrates the presence of the Holy Spirit by teaching the word of truth, who ascribes to the Lord the glory due to His Name, who brings to the Lord His offering at its appointed time, who worships the Lord in the beauty of holiness, and who takes delight in approaching God, all because of three reasons.

To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

 

The seventh identifying sign of the true church

7. The Church takes delight in the Lord 

Add caption

 The seventh identifying sign of the true church is that it takes delight in the Lord by following the Way of the righteous. For it is written; “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night” (Psalms 1:1-2).

According to the prophet Isaiah, delight is found in the Lord, “If we keep our feet from breaking the Sabbath, and from doing as we please on the Lord’s Holy day, if we call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord’s holy day honorable, and if we honor it by not going our own way, and not doing as we please or speaking idle words, then we will find our joy in the Lord, and He will cause us to ride on the heights of the Lord and to feast on the inheritance of our father Jacob.” The mouth of the Lord has spoken" (Isaiah 58: 13 - 14).

To facilitate in the process of taking delight in the Lord, the principle of tithing has been instituted, for thus says the Lord; “You shall truly tithe all the increase of your grain that the field produces year by year, and you shall eat before the Lord your God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide, the tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil, of the first-lings of your herds and your flocks, that you may learn to fear the Lord your God.”

‘But if the journey is too long for you, so that you are not able to carry the tithe, or if the place where the Lord your God chooses to place His name is too far from you, then you shall exchange it for money, take the money in your hand , and go to the place which the Lord your God chooses, and you shall spend that money for whatever your heart desires; for oxen or sheep, for wine or similar drink, for whatever your heart desires; you shall eat there before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your household.

“You shall not forsake the Levites who is within your gates, for he has no part or inheritance with you” (Deuteronomy 14:22-27).

So then, the principal objective of the tithe is to grant us the capability to come before the Lord with our households, to eat and drink and to rejoice at the Lord´s appointed festivals. The portion of tithe given to the priest is a heave offering which is 10% of the tithe, and every third year which is the year of tithing the tithe is given to help support the stranger, the fatherless and the widow who are within our gates.

The staggering thing however is that, the majority of those who are clamoring for the tithe do not observe the Lord´s festivals and furthermore, we are in the dispensation when we have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. The beneficial thing to do is to be generous and do good deeds: “Let him who is taught the word share in all good things with him who teaches”

Taking delight in the Lord is to be looking forward to the Lord's Sabbaths and coming before Him to honor and glorify Him as the Lord. For thus says the Lord, "You shall keep My Sabbaths and reverence My sanctuary: I am the LORD" (Leviticus 19:30; 26:2).

And by taking delight in the Lord's Sabbaths as a day which is holy and honorable to both the Lord and ourselves, then the Lord has taken an oath promising that we will find our joy and delight in the Lord, and He will cause us to ride on the heights of the Lord and to feast on the inheritance of our father Jacob. The choice is ours.

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

The sixth identifying sign of the true church

6. The Church Worships the Lord in the Beauty of Holiness

The sixth identifying sign of the true church is that of the state of holiness which is a unique quality of divinity, spiritual purity, and for this reason the Lord says; “Her priests have violated My laws and profaned My holy things; they have not distinguished between the holy and the unholy, nor have they made known the difference between the unclean and the clean; and have hidden their eyes from My Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them” (Ezekiel 22:26).

No foreigners, uncircumcised in heart should be allowed to enter the sanctuary of the Lord. For thus says the Lord; “When you brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in My sanctuary to defile it, My house: and when you offered My food, the fat and the blood, then they broke My covenant because of your abominations” (Ezekiel 44:7-9).

Believers are not to be unequally yoked with unbelievers, because righteousness and lawlessness has no fellowship together, light and darkness has no communion, and a believer has no part with an unbeliever (2 Corinthians 6:14-18).

The church has the God given responsibility to judge its members, in order to avoid the defilement of the Lord’s temple. For it is written; “I have written to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people – not at all meaning the people of this world who are immoral, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters.

In that case you would have to leave the world. But now I am writing to you that you must not associate with anyone who calls himself a brother but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a slanderer, a drunkard or a swindler. With such a man do not even eat.”

“What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside. Expel the wicked man from among you” (1 Corinthians 5:9-13).

Holiness is a prerequisite for worship and true fellowship, for this is what Moses said to Aaron, " "This is what the LORD spoke, saying: ' By those who come near Me I must be regarded as holy; And before all the people I must be glorified" (Leviticus 10:3).

Now the way one regards the Lord holy is by being holy him/herself, for we have been admonished saying, "as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, "Be holy, for I am holy" (1 Peter 1:14-16).

We have been duly admonished saying; "Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:" It is imperative that we be holy if we are to have fellowship with the Father and the Son: Because, the message which the original apostles heard from Him and declared to us is that, God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin" (1 John 1:5-7).

This is why it is so vitally important to offer the Lord the food for His offerings whenever we appear before Him, because it is at this juncture that the blood of Jesus Christ in the form of the wine cleanses us from all sin and presents us holy and blameless before Him.

These times of ignorance God has overlooked and now commands all men everywhere to repent and stop worshiping the Lord in vain.

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph