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LOVE OF THE TRUTH BIBLE STUDIES
February, 2012
1Ti 3:16 “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen by angels (“God was in Christ” 2Co 5:19), preached among nations, believed on in the world, and received up into glory.”
John 14:8-9 “Philip said to Him, Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us. Jesus said to him, Have I been with you such a long time and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father. And how do you say, Show us the Father?”
The magnitude of God’s love for His creation was wonderfully revealed over two-thousand years ago on a hillside just outside the city gates of old Jerusalem. It was there that God Himself was seen in the human flesh body of His Beloved Son Jesus Christ. God Himself who at the very beginning of creation subjected it to a state of vanity and futility (for reasons which most of the religious minds of today are still unable to understand). And now, He came to redeem all creation out of that subjection to vanity and begin the process of bringing it into the glorious liberty in Christ Jesus.
Rom 8:19-21 “For the earnest expectation of the creation waits for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creation was not willingly subjected to vanity, but because of Him who subjected it on hope that the creation itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.”
Although creation was made subject to vanity – and that not because of any fault of its own – within that subjection to vanity, He also placed the hope of being delivered and being brought into the glorious liberty of the children of God. That blessed “hope” is found deep within all of creation, and that “hope” of deliverance is dependent upon the coming forth of the manifestation of God’s sons!
Rom 8:19-21 Amplified Bible “For [even the whole] creation (all nature) waits expectantly and longs earnestly for God's sons to be made known [waits for the revealing, the disclosing of their sonship]. For the creation (nature) was subjected to frailty (to futility, condemned to frustration), not because of some intentional fault on its part, but by the will of Him Who so subjected it--[yet] with the hope that nature (creation) itself will be set free from its bondage.”
When God said; “Let us make man in our image and likeness…” He did so in Genesis 1:27. But this “Man” in Genesis 1:27 was made in pure spirit essence the exact substance of God Himself. Genesis chapter one speaks clearly of the spiritual creation of God before it was LOWERED into the natural, materialistic realm of chapter two. The Man in Genesis 1:27 was called the “Lord God” in Genesis chapter two – He was the Messiah (God’s anointed One). When God LOWERED His spiritual creation into the natural, materialistic realm we then begin to see the “Lord God” forming a man from the dust of the ground (the natural, materialistic stuff of the earth), and breathing into his nostrils the breath (spirit) of life.
This was the beginning of the lowering of God’s spiritual creation of invisibility of chapter one into the natural, materialistic (visible) creation of chapter two (and consequently, into the state of vanity, emptiness, futility). There are those who claim that Genesis chapter one and Genesis chapter two contradict one another, but they do not understand that the creation of Genesis chapter one and chapter two belong to two distinctly different realms, one pertains to the invisible realm of spirit, while the other (in chapter two) pertains to the visible realm. Any student of truth will soon ascertain these facts if they will but read these chapters in the same inspiration in which they were written.
Without entering into a lengthy discourse that may be wearisome to our readers, let us briefly highlight the events which show how the natural, materialistic creation was made subject to vanity. As we stated above, as the natural, materialistic creation was brought into being, it was a perfect creation BUT it was a creation which had been LOWERED out of the invisible spirit realm into the natural, material realm. (Is the natural, materialistic creation (Gen. 2) a shadow of the spiritual, invisible creation of Genesis 1?). The natural, materialistic creation was a lower creation in that respect, although it was perfect (complete) in its beginning.
In Genesis chapter two we read that the man of Genesis 2:7 was placed into a garden environment and commanded to dress it and keep it. He was also told that he could EAT of every tree of the garden (all except one; of which, if he ate from its fruit he would die). We are not told just how long this man lived in that Garden of Eden environment, but as that period in time unfolded, we hear the Lord God say; “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.” Gen. 2:18.
This “help meet” would not be something that was not already a part of the creation of Genesis chapter two, for the “help meet” came from WITHIN the man himself.
Genesis 2:21-23 Amplified Bible (AMP) “And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam; and while he slept, He took one of his ribs or a part of his side and closed up the [place with] flesh. And the rib or part of his side which the Lord God had taken from the man He built up and made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. Then Adam said, This [creature] is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of a man.”
That which was taken out of the man of Genesis 2:7 was his counterpart (inner mate) who was a part of his creation in the image and likeness of God. When “she” was inside of the man (Adam) he/they were what may be termed as being gender complete, for Adam was both male and female made in the image and likeness of God.
Gen 1:27 “So God created man in his image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”
Within this Man in Genesis 1:27 was His male and female image just like God. In Genesis chapter one, verse one “God” is the Hebrew name Elohim which is plural and can also be rendered gods as more than one. In reading the Old Testament, beginning here in Genesis you will find a progressive unfolding of a wonderful revelation of this Elohim in the various NAMES which He uses to reveal different aspects of His being and nature.
Remember we are still dealing with the lowering (or the subjecting) of the creation of genesis chapter two into the state of vanity. The more the creation of Genesis chapter two becomes fragmented from the completeness and wholeness of the creation of Genesis chapter one, the more it comes into the state of vanity. This is exactly what is happening to Adam in chapter two, for before his deep sleep, he was gender complete (male and female in the image of God), but as Adam sleeps he becomes separated from his female counterpart (inner mate) taken from within himself. Now “she,” the “woman” (ish-shaw'), stood outside of the man as his counterpart (outer mate) help meet. And as we continue to see what unfolds here in the Garden of Eden, we find Eve being tempted to partake of the tree which Adam was told not to eat of. While Eve was inside of Adam, she was in him and under his covering, and was therefore, in submission to him as part of his being. But now, after she (Eve) was separated out of Adam, she acted upon her own will apart from her head and fell into transgression.
Let us hear these words of inspiration given through the apostle Paul.
1Ti 2:13-14 “For Adam was first formed, then Eve. (Eve was part of the formed) And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.”
It is abundantly clear that it was the female counterpart (outer mate) which was taken out of Adam that fell in the transgression. And this was caused by the Lord God lowering Adam out of his gender completeness in the image of God. Now because Adam was the head of his wife, he assumes full responsibility for her act of waywardness. How did he assume that responsibility? He also partook of the fruit which Eve had taken, assuming the responsibility and guilt upon himself because he was her head.
These are the words of the Lord God to Adam.
Gen 3:17-19 “And to Adam He said, because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree, of which I commanded you, saying, You shall not eat of it! The ground is cursed for your sake. In pain shall you eat of it all the days of your life. It shall also bring forth thorns and thistles to you and you shall eat the herb of the field. In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For dust you are, and to dust you shall return.”
I would just like to add; it is NOT always a bad thing to “listen to your wife.” I well remember the time once when we had a bearing noise coming from one of the wheels on our car. I set out to replace it. I did not KNOW which wheel it was so I determined to proceed by a process of elimination, by checking each wheel. Barbara, my wife told me that she KNEW it was the right front wheel. But, you know what? I was determined my way was best, so here I went – not to the right front wheel first, but to the left front and then the left rear, then the right rear – and finally! When I got to the right front, guess what, as I was taking the wheel off the worn out bearing literally fell out on the ground. Lesson learned – it is NOT always a bad thing to “listen to your wife.”
So this is how the long journeys of mankind begin down the dusty trails of self-will having been made subject to vanity. But why must this be? Is God being cruel to mankind? OR, are all these things happening as a part of His divine plan and purpose of dealing with His children which He determined long before the creation of all things? For you see, the man of Genesis 2:7 entered into creation in total innocence, that is; Adam did not know anything such as being disobedient to his Father, nor would he have known of the consequences of disobedience. Because Adam was a son of God (Luke 3:38) he, along with every son of God will be dealt with by his loving Father (Hebrews 12:6-7).
The common response that religion makes concerning what we have presented here is that God made a colossal mistake at the very beginning of his creation. Religion tells the people that God has an arch-rival, an enemy, which has done a good job of corrupting and perverting everything God has done. They tell the people that the Devil (or; Lucifer as they like to call him) has been a constant threat to all that God ever planned and purposed to do. They tell people how that most of mankind is cursed to spend eternal damnation in a fiery place called hell simply because God is powerless to do anything about the mess that the Devil got creation into. Well….please I have to stop here, because the more I relate to you the vomit that religion presents as being the gospel story, the sicker I get. The perverted and corrupted teachings coming out of the houses of religion today is a deliberate attempt to undermine the integrity and honor of Gods Sovereignty and control of all things. They attempt to fill the minds of the people with the darkness of their own carnal imaginations. And they will continue to do so as long as people remain gullible enough to sit and listen to their preachers pour forth their vomit upon them.
Let us now go back to the hill just outside the gates of Jerusalem over two-thousand years ago. It was there on this day that they would crucify our Lord Jesus Christ. It was the day of the Passover which the nation of Israel celebrated every year at this time. (Exodus 23:14-17). At this very moment their Passover lamb was being prepared for slaughter in the Temple courtyard by the Levitical priests. But as they were going about their religious ceremonies according to the Law of Moses, there was another sacrifice ready to be made on the hill called Golgotha. (John 19:17) On this day of the Passover, that Old Testament festival which stood only in type and shadow and symbolism was being brought into its spiritual reality as they crucified Jesus Christ! The day of the Passover which begin many years in the past when the children of Israel were in bondage to Egypt (Exodus chapter 12), was only a symbolic ceremony; but NOW, today, here on Golgotha’s hill God’s true LAMB (John 1:29; Rev 5:12; Rev 13:8), has come to give His life for the sins of the world!
They had taken Jesus into custody early that morning and had led Him before Pilate for judgment. They accused Jesus of many things which were all false. Finally, after beating Him and spitting in His face and mocking Him, they led Him away to be crucified. Then, here on the hill called Golgotha they nailed His hands and feet to the cross and lifted it upright with His tortured body hanging by the nails. It was now the third hour (around 9 o’clock) and they crucified Him. Mark 15:25.
Mar 15:33-37 “And when the sixth hour (around 12 o’clock) was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour (around 3 o’clock). And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he calleth Elias. And one ran and filled a spunge full of vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink, saying, Let alone; let us see whether Elias will come to take him down. And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost (his spirit).”
Our Lord Jesus hanged on the cross, bleeding to death and in excruciating pain for six long hours (from around 9 o’clock to 3 o’clock in the afternoon) before He died. They had killed their Messiah, their true King, Lord and Saviour. Please notice what was happening during this time.
Luke 23:44-46 “And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was torn in the middle. And crying with a loud voice, Jesus said, Father, into your hands I commit My spirit. And when He had said this, He breathed out the spirit.”
Why do you suppose that the veil of the temple was torn in the middle? Remember that the veil mentioned here is the veil which hanged in front of the Most Holy Place before the chamber where the Ark of the Covenant was placed. Also, remember that it was within this Most Holy Place that the glory of God shined forth from between the wings of the two Cherubim over the Mercy Seat that covered the Ark. It was within the Most Holy Place that the Levitical High Priest would enter every year on the Day of Atonement in the seventh month, to secure forgiveness of his sins and the sins of the people. What we must realize is that the Levitical priesthood, who sacrificed the Passover Lamb on this day, was out of a job; for their ceremonial ritual had been fulfilled in spiritual reality by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ the true Lamb of God! And at the moment when Jesus drew His last breath and gave up His spirit to God, the veil within the temple Most Holy Place was ripped in half. The veil was torn in half and the glory which shined forth from between the wings of the two cherubim suddenly left the temple. Our Lord Jesus spoke these words to the people of Israel.
Luke 13:34-35 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate: and verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see me, until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.”
Of course the “house” He was talking about was their temple of worship. The state of being “desolate” meant that the time was come when the glory of God’s Presence was going to leave that place. I want us to look closely at what happens in the days when these things were happening. Jesus Christ has just been crucified as the true Passover Lamb.
1Co 5:7-8 “Purge out therefore the old leaven that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us: therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”
The true Passover was Christ Jesus our Lord, and if we keep the feast of the Passover in spiritual reality, we will do so by accepting Jesus Christ as our Passover Lamb and Saviour! From the day they crucified Jesus Christ on Calvary’s hill, the ceremony in the old temple lamb sacrifice became obsolete and non effective.
Heb 9:8-14 “The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing: which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience, which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation. But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?”
It is abundantly clear that the Old Covenant mode of worship ended that day when they crucified Jesus Christ. That very day the glory of God left the Most Holy place of the temple (never to return there). But where did that glory of God go? After Jesus was crucified, buried and rose from the dead on the third day, He was seen by the people thereafter for forty days.
Act 1:1-14 “The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen: to whom also he showed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God: and, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.”
It was very important for the disciples not to depart from the city of Jerusalem for they were commanded to wait for the promise of the Father, which was the baptism with the Holy Spirit which they were about to receive not many days thereafter. In fact, they had now been with Him for forty days, their short wait would be for only ten more days, for then the Day of Pentecost would come. Counting the days from the feast of the Passover to the feast of Pentecost there were fifty days. They would only have to “wait” ten more days.
Act 2:1-4 “And when the day of Pentecost was fully come (after fifty days), they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”
The glory of God – the Spirit of God – that once resided within the old temple made with hands NOW entered into His temple of living stones!
1Pe 2:5 “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.”
1Co 6:19 “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, Which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?”
Eph 2:21-22 “In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: in whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.”
Oh, beloved reader of these lines, has your heart felt the caress of your Father’s love pressing you onward and upward into Him? Are you aware that He loves you, and is presently dealing with you as His sons and daughters? All the subjecting and lowering of creation into the realm of vanity and emptiness has NOT been without divine purpose and intent in the mind of our Father. It has NOT been by some awful mistake made by a feeble minded God which religion presents to the people. They do not understand, simply because they cannot see beyond their carnal mind of imagination.
Take courage today in the Lord for He has predestined us to enter into the fullness of our inheritance in Him.
As we close we would draw your attention to one more thing that happened only 70 years after Jesus was crucified. Our Lord spoke of these things in Matthew 24. As He and the disciples were leaving the temple there in Jerusalem, they drew His attention to the massive stones and beautiful structure of the temple. Then, He spoke to them about how that temple would soon be utterly torn down and even the city of Jerusalem burned with fire. Think about it; for 70 long years after Jesus had been crucified, the Levititical priests and the people were still sacrificing their lambs and other animals at the altar in the courtyard of the temple. They had sewn the torn veil back together again and even though the Most Holy Place was dark as a dungeon inside because the glory of God had left that place, they carried on their religious ceremonies as usual. That was, UNTIL the legions of Rome and Titus came and burned the city of Jerusalem and demolished the temple. It is amazing that all down through the passing Church Age, there have been those who wanted to reinstate the Old Covenant mode of temple worship in the old city of Jerusalem.
At the time of this writing there stands ready a battle group of ships of war in the Persian Gulf waiting to strike the country of Iran. The news states that their plans are to strike Iran sometime this spring. The internet is filled with religious fervor of the Evangelical, Pentecostal and Fundamentalist Christians who can’t wait for the war to begin to destroy Iran. Carnalistic racism is what I call it! They do NOT have God’s blessing in their misguided zeal that is for sure. In fact, I believe before very long the whole religious bunch is going to wind up with egg in their face. Could it possibly be that their carnal efforts will backfire and bring destruction upon the Israeli State and the city of Old Jerusalem of which they hold so much reverence? One thing is for certain there needs to be a house cleaning in order to get rid of all the racial bias promoting the Jewish nationality over all the other nationalities of the world.
1Pe 2:1-10 “Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, as newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: if so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed. But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.”
The day will certainly come when people will begin to realize that we are ALL children of God and of His household. Doesn’t matter if some of those children are down at the hog pen right now covered with the filth of this world and in sin, they are still God’s children. The pious religious pride of some Christians has blinded their eyes until it has caused them to think that they are the only people that God cares about.
I believe that the year (2012) will be another year of awakening – as God brings out into the open things which people have tried to hide for so long. I do not believe 2012 will be the end of the world as some people are talking about, but I do believe that there are some very important changes about to come forth which quite possibly many people are not prepared for.
Continued.
Dale Luttrell
Dale & Barbara Luttrell – P.O. Box 3074 – Roswell, NM. 88202
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