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 

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 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