Second established will of God

Jesus said quite explicitly, "Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God." He takes away the first that He may establish the second. By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all"

 The first that was taken away consisted of three significant things that were copies or shadows of the reality and were replaced by the reality itself and they are:

1.The earthly Tabernacle

 The first that was taken away and replaced by the reality is the earthly tabernacle which was concerned only with foods and drinks, various washings, and fleshly ordinances that were imposed until the time of reformation. It was(Hebrews 9:9-10).

It has now been replaced by the true tabernacle in heaven and so we have been admonished saying: "But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of (Hebrews 12:23-24).  

2. Animal sacrifices with its food and drink offerings

 The second that was taken away was the animal sacrifices with its food and drink offerings. Every animal sacrifice had to be accompanied with its food and drink offering without which it would be incomplete. These sacrifices, regardless whether they were the regular daily offerings, morning and evening, the fellowship/peace offering on the weekly Sabbath, the monthly offering on every New Moon, the yearly offerings on the Lord's appointed feast days, or for a sin/trespass offering they all were accompanied with their food and drink offerings.

These were abolished and replaced by Jesus Christ as the sacrificial lamb who offered Himself once and for all, but replaced the food and drink offerings by His flesh and blood in the form of the bread and wine. For we are told that, "the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more (Hebrews 10:1-4).

Note carefully that, if these sacrifices could present those who approach the throne of grace perfect, they would not have ceased to be offered. Therefore, when Christ came into the world He said: "Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure. Then I said, 'Behold, I have come --- In the volume of the book it is written of Me --- To do Your will, O God. Previously saying, "Sacrifice and offering, burnt offerings, and offerings for sin You did not desire, nor had pleasure in them" (which are offered according to the law), then He said, "Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God." He takes away the first that He may (Hebrews 10:5-10).

Now the rationale and objective for this offering is for one thing and one thing only, it is to be able to draw near to the Father in a perfect, holy, sinless and blameless state. And so we have been admonished saying: "For on the one hand there is an annulling of the former commandment because of its weakness and unprofitable, for the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God" (Hebrews 7:18-19).

The law of sacrifices made nothing perfect, but with the reformation, replacing the animal sacrifices with its food and drink by the body and blood of Jesus Christ in the form of the bread and wine, we now have access to the throne of grace with all boldness and confidence which is now the new and living way by which one draws near to the Father. And so the once and for in this instance is, once and for all we have an offering that can present us holy, perfect and irreproachable before the Father.

To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph.

Appointed time for the Lord´s offering (contd)

 With such clear and simple instructions regarding the appointed times for offering the Lord the food for His offerings, I wonder why the body of Christ is so divided on this issue. I perceive that the cause for this disunity is due to a lack of knowledge which can be very detrimental, because according to the prophet Hosea; “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children” (Hosea 4:6).

The knowledge we are lacking is the intrinsic value and significance of this offering. This offering in the Old Testament dispensation was known as the burnt offerings consisted of animal sacrifices with their food and drink offering. The rationale and objective for this offering was to present the worshiper perfect before God but had to be dissolved because it could not present the worshiper perfect.

For we have been duly admonished saying, “For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? For the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins” (Hebrews 10:1-4).

So what we now have in our new dispensation is a new way by which we can draw near to God as God Himself testified of Jesus Christ saying; “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek." For on the one hand there is an annulling of the former commandment because of its weakness and un-profitableness, for the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God” (Hebrews 7:17-19).

 This was also confirmed by Jesus Christ who when He came into the world said; "Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure. Then I said, 'Behold, I have come --- In the volume of the book it is written of Me --- To do Your will, O God.' "

Previously saying, "Sacrifice and offering, burnt offerings, and offerings for sin You did not desire, nor had pleasure in them" (which are offered according to the law), then He said, "Behold, I have come to do Your will, O God." He takes away the first that He may establish the second. By that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 10:5-10).

The first that was taken away consisted of three significant things that were copies or shadows of the reality and were replaced by the reality itself , thus fulfilling the will of the Father.

To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

Fifth identifying sign of the true church

5. The fifth identifying sign of the true church is that the church is careful to offer to the Lord His offering at His appointed time

 Offering the Lord the food for His offerings at the appointed time is a spiritual requirement which most professing believers are not taking seriously, I always wonder why! When the Lord quite distinctly asked Moses to command the children of Israel and say to them, “My offering, my food for my offerings made by fire as a sweet aroma to Me, you shall be careful to offer to Me at their appointed time” (Numbers 28:2).

Now there is absolutely no ambiguity as to when the appointed times are, since in conjunction with the command, the Lord gave specific instructions as to when these appointed times are to be observed in a chronological order, starting with the regular daily offering on mornings and evenings as declared by King David who wrote; “it is good to give thanks to the LORD, and to sing praises to Your name, O Most High; To declare Your loving-kindness in the morning, and Your faithfulness every night” (Numbers 28.3; Psalms 92:1-2).

The next appointed time is on every weekly Sabbath and this is in addition to the regular daily offering. As a matter of fact, the main reason for having a holy convocation is to offer the Lord the food for His offerings:  For thus says the Lord; “These are the feasts of the Lord which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire to the Lord, a burnt offering and a grain offering, a sacrifice and drink offerings, everything on its day.” This offering is, “Besides the Sabbaths of the Lord, besides our gifts, besides all our vows, and besides all our freewill offerings which we give to the Lord” (Numbers 28: 9-10; Leviticus 23:37-38).

The next appointed time in chronological order is every month throughout the months of the year and the rationale is to commemorate the beginning of a new month which is herald by the New Moon, followed by the other yearly festivals namely, Passover/Days of Unleavened Bread/First Fruits, Pentecost, Day of Atonement, and Feast of Tabernacles/Eighth Day.

These Festivals commemorate what the Lord did for humanity and according to King David and King Hezekiah, this is a perpetual covenant because King David wrote; “Behold, I am building a temple for the name of the LORD my God, to dedicate it to Him, to burn before Him sweet incense, for the continual show bread, for the burnt offerings morning and evening, on the Sabbaths, on the New Moons, and on the set feasts of the LORD our God. This is an ordinance forever to Israel” (2 Chronicles 2:4).

And when King Hezekiah reformed and rededicated true worship to Israel, “the king also appointed a portion of his possessions for the burnt offerings: for the morning and evening burnt offerings, the burnt offerings for the Sabbaths and the New Moons and the set feasts, as it is written in the Law of the LORD” (2 Chronicles 31:3).

Now, to endorse and confirm the perpetuity of the appointed times for offering the Lord the food for His offerings the prophet Isaiah wrote; “For as the new heavens and the new earth which I will make shall remain before Me," says the LORD, " So shall your descendants and your name remain. And it shall come to pass that from one New Moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, all flesh shall come to worship before Me," says the LORD” (Isaiah 66:22-23).

The question I would like to pose is, if originally these appointed times to offer the Lord the food for His offerings were ordained as a perpetual covenant, they will be observed in the Millennium when the kingdom of God will be established on earth, why are they not being observed today?

To be continued, stay tuned

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

Fourth identifying sign of God´s church (contd)

Ascribing to the Lord the glory due to His Name is as relevant today as it was in the Old Testament. The only difference is that of application, in the Old Testament it was according to the letter of the law and the command was “You shall,” but in our new dispensation it is in accordance to the spirit and the application is, “if you love Me keep My commandments.” And so we have been admonished saying,“One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind: He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it” (Romans 14:5-6).

We must however not be ignorant or ignore the fact that, it is only to the children of Israel has God revealed Himself and His way of life. For thus says the Lord; “Ask now concerning the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether any great thing like this has happened, or anything like it has been heard. Did any people ever hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard and live?’

“Or did God ever try to go and take for Himself a nation from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an out stretched arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? To you it was shown, that you might know that the Lord Himself is God; there is none other besides Him.’

“Out of heaven he let you hear His voice that He might instruct you; on earth He showed you His great fire and you heard His words out of the midst of the fire.” Therefore, “Know this day, and consider it in your heart, that the Lord Himself is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath: there is no other (Deuteronomy 4:32-36, 39).

It is therefore advisable that Gentiles do not isolate themselves from the feasts of the Lord and learn to glorify the Lord together with His people. For thus says the apostle Paul; “Receive one another, just as Christ also received us to the glory of God. Now I say that Jesus Christ has become a servant to the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers, and that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy, as it is written: for this reason I will confess to you among the gentiles, and sing to your name.” And again he says: “Rejoice, O Gentiles with His people! And again: Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles! Laud Him, all you peoples!” (Romans 15:7-11)

The festivals were ordained by God as days of holy convocations so that both Jews and Gentiles can come and appear before Him to rejoice and worship. When Gentiles disregards and hold in contempt the days which God has sanctified, and ordained as days of holy convocations, and choose to come before Him on days He has not ordained as holy convocations, they are provoking the Lord to jealousy.

For thus says the Lord; “When you come to appear before Me, who has required this from your hand, to trample my courts? Bring no more futile sacrifices; incense is an abomination to Me. The New Moons, the Sabbaths, and the calling of assemblies – I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meeting. Your new moon and your appointed feasts My soul hates; they are a trouble to Me, I am weary of bearing them, when you spread out your hands, I will hide My eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not hear, your hands are full of blood” (Isaiah 1:12-15).

The things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and therefore Christians are admonished saying; “I do not want you to have fellowship with demons, you cannot drink the cup of the Lord (which is the main objective of Christian fellowship), and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of the table of demons. Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than He? (1 Corinthians 10:20-22).

Therefore, a visible outward sign in identifying the church of God is that of ascribing to the Lord the glory due to His name by observing His Sabbaths which are all memorials and should be commemorated and celebrated in thanksgiving for what the Lord did for humanity on that particular day.

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

The fourth identifying sign of the true church

4. The Church Ascribes to the Lord the Glory due to His Name

The fourth identifying sign of the true church is that it follows the protocol and established guidelines for spiritual worship, it first and foremost ascribes to the Lord the glory due to His name by observing His Sabbaths. For thus says the Lord; “Observe My Sabbaths and reverence My sanctuary I am the Lord.” And, “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.” “Observe the Sabbath, because it is holy to you. Six days, work is to be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, holy to the Lord” (Leviticus 19:30; .26:2; Exodus 31:12-15).

It is important to note that, the Sabbaths are holy both to the Lord and to His people. It is the sign that confirms our relationship with the Father, and to acknowledge Him as being the Lord our God. It is the sign that acknowledges the Lord our God who makes us holy. Jesus Christ who became the Son of Man, and said to be the Lord of the Sabbath, is the same one who said to the children of Israel; “I am the Lord your God: walk in Mystatutes, 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).

The Sabbaths are God’s appointed feasts, sanctified and set apart by God as days of holy convocation. Only God has the authority to designate a day, or an assembly holy. This prerogative has not been granted to any human being. For thus says the Lord; “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: The feasts of the Lord, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, these are My feasts.” These feasts have been designated by God as holy convocations, and they are to be proclaimed at their appointed times (Leviticus 23:2, 4).

For thus says the Lord; “If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing you pleasure on My holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord honorable, and shall honor Him , not doing your own ways, nor finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words, then you shall delight yourself in the Lord; and I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth and feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father. The mouth of the Lord has spoken” (Isaiah 58:13-14).

There are many deceivers who have gone out into the world teaching that, these festivals are only meant for the Jews, but the Lord said, “These are the Lord’s appointed feasts, the sacred assemblies you are to proclaim at their appointed times.” And furthermore the Lord says; “Do not let the son of the foreigner who join themselves to the Lord to serve Him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants – everyone who keeps from defiling the Sabbath and hold fast My covenant even them I will bring to My holy mountain (Kingdom), and make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on My altar; for My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations” (Isaiah 56:3, 6-7).

To be continued

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

Third identifying sign of the true church

3. The Church manifests the presence of the Holy Spirit

The third identifying sign of the true church is the manifestation of the presence of the Holy Spirit which unfortunately can be very deceptive especially to those who are void of the truth. Most people are bewildered by signs and wonders, but we have been warned saying; “The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing.’

‘They perish because they refused to love the truth and be saved. For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion so that they will believe the lie and so that all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness” (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12).

The proof and evidence of the Holy Spirit is not in signs and wonders, neither is it in wealth and prosperity. We have been cautioned saying; “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God: This is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world” (1 John 4:1-3).

To acknowledge that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is to believe that, “Both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying: “I will declare Your name to My brethren; in the midst of the congregation I will sing praise to You.” And again: “I will put my trust in Him.” And again: “Here am I and the children whom God has given Me” (Hebrews 2:11-13).

It is to believe that, "We do not have a High Priest Who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin". And it is for this we were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps" (Hebrews 4:15, 1 Peter 2:21).

It is to believe that “Love has been perfected among us in this: that, we may have boldness in the Day of Judgment because as He is so are we in this world.” And, “He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as he walked” (1 John 4:17; 1 John 2:6).

The evidence of the presence of the Holy Spirit is in the truth of God’s Word. Jesus said; “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing, the words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63).

Jesus said again; “If you love Me keep My commandments, and I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that he may abide with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him; but you know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.” And, “When he the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to Me by taking from what is Mine and making it known to you” (John 14:15-17; 16:13-14).

According to the scriptures, “God gives the Holy Spirit to those who obey Him.” And the anointing you received from Him remains in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you. But as His anointing teaches you about all things, and as that anointing is real, not counterfeit – just as it has taught you, remain in Him” (Acts 5:32; 1 John 2:27).

Therefore, regardless how charismatic, socially appealing emotionally gratifying the teaching may be as long as it is not supported by the word of God one should not be deceived by it.

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph

The Year of Tithing

 It is imperative to note however, that there is a time when a whole tithe is given to help support the widows, the fatherless, the strangers and the Levites but it is every three years known as the year of tithing. For we have been duly instructed saying; “At the end of every third year you shall bring out the tithe of your produce of that year and store it up within your gates. And the Levite, because he has no portion nor inheritance with you, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are within your gates, may come and eat and be satisfied, that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do” (Deuteronomy 14:28-29).

So then, every third year is the year of tithing as we have been duly instructed saying; "When you have finished laying aside all the tithe of your increase in the third year --- the year of tithing --- and have given it to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, so that they may eat within your gates and be filled, then you shall say before the LORD your God: 'I have removed the holy tithe from my house, and also have given them to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, according to all Your commandments which You have commanded me; I have not transgressed Your commandments, nor have I forgotten them.”

“I have not eaten any of it when in mourning or have I removed any of it for an unclean use, nor given any of it for the dead. I have obeyed the voice of the LORD my God, and have done according to all that You have commanded me. Look down from Your holy habitation, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel and the land which You have given us, just as You swore to our fathers, "a land flowing with milk and honey" (Deuteronomy 26: 12-15).

But now, in our new dispensation, we are no longer under the Levitical priesthood but under the priesthood of Melchizedek and with the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law” (Hebrews 7: 12).

We no longer serve in an earthly sanctuary or tabernacle and neither do we have priests who do not have an inheritance, in addition to this, it is stated categorically that, “We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat”. So the admonition on how to support the ministry is, “But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased. Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.” The beneficial thing to do is be generous and do good deeds: “Let him who is taught the word share in all good things with him who teaches” (Hebrews 13:16-17; Galatians 6:6).

But since the tithe is the Lord`s and it is holy to the Lord, it should be used to fulfill what the Lord originally ordained it to do that is, to eat before the LORD our God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide, so that we may learn to fear the LORD our God always, and help the widows, the fatherless, the strangers that are within our gates and share in all good things him who teaches.

The application of this principle in our new dispensation is synonymous to the instructions given by the apostle Paul who wrote; “One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind: He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it” (Romans 14:5-6).

No one should be forced, coerced, manipulated or enticed to show and express their love, gratitude and appreciation to the Lord for His blessings. However, to him who knows to do what is good and does not do it, to him it is sin.

 The principle of tithing is the system or mechanism that the Lord has instituted to support one another and not for ministers to exploit their supporters and live lavishly at the expense of the poor congregation and promising them breakthroughs, the breakthrough come when the instructions concerning the year of tithing is diligently followed. God has overlooked these times of ignorance and now commands all men everywhere to repent.

With brotherly love

Lucius Joseph