Eternity Creates Time and Space.
This is an area that confounds many people and even Christians wrestle with it from time to time. Everything we know has had a beginning and an ending. People have a birth and a death. Each season of the year has a beginning and an ending. These are all life cycles and are understood by every person on this terrestrial globe. This is the realm of time and space. Genesis 1:1 sets the stage of time and space. Eternity, an area we know very little of except what the Bible through revelation from God in eternity, reveals to us in glimpses. Eternity I compare to our universe or solar system. It is so deep, that we have never found the end of it. It is called deep space. Scientists continue to probe into it, but there is no glimpse of an end of it. In our solar system, everything evolves around the Sun. That is the way eternity is. Everything evolves around the Son, Jesus Christ, in Eternity. As our universe has no end, neither does eternity. Genesis 1:1 is the point where eternity creates our time and it will continue that way until time ceases to exist in Revelation 10:6. “And sware by him that lives forever and ever, who created heaven and the things that are therein, the earth and the things that are therein, that there should be time no longer.” In Genesis 1:1 and following it gives a glimpse into eternity and what creative power God’s Words produces. He spoke and what he spoke, was created. In our culture, words are words not realizing they too have creative power for good or evil. That is why in the judgment of God we will give an account of every idle word we have spoken, for they can build up or destroy, encourage or discourage, direct or misdirect. Words are powerful, and set the very course of nature. “Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasts great things. Behold, (really observe) how great a matter a little fire kindles. The tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. So is the tongue among our members. It defiles the whole body and sets on fire the course of nature. It is set on fire of hell.” James 3: 5-6; 7-12. God in Eternity has given us a glimpse of the creative power of words. His word shall not return void (return without having accomplishing what it said). “So shall my word be that goes forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void but it shall accomplish that which I please. It shall prosper in the thing where to I sent it.”-Isaiah 55:11. Eternity goes on forever and so does God. He was not created, He always was, He is (right now), and always will be. As scientists keep searching the heavens to learn more of its depth, so we continue to search the depths of God through the study of His Word, the Bible and prayer. A great gift of God to man, the Holy Spirit, will lead you so you can go beyond the printed page in understanding. “He will convince the world of sin, of righteousness and judgment to come,” as well as lead you into all truth.-St. John 16:8, 13. As we seek to understand more of our life in Christ Jesus, these two things keep brushing each other, time and eternity, finite and the infinite.
Sin and Its Effects
God gave humans a commission: (created in His image); God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth. Subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the fowl of the air and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” Genesis 1:28. There was only one requirement given to them: “Don’t eat of the tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, cause in the day you eat of it, you shall die.” (Death was not in God’s creation. People were created to live forever.)-Genesis 2: 16, 17. They still exist forever, in heaven or hell, depending on if they accept God’s free gift of salvation or not. Though there was only one condition of “Don’t Do,” by the deception of the serpent, (satan), Adam and Eve sinned and ate the fruit. Prior to that both God and humans had His divine nature and knew only the will of God. After they sinned, their divine nature received at creation began to be overcome by rebellion, disobedience and sin. They began to cover things up, not just with fig leaves, but hiding their sin from each other and God. They would not acknowledge their sin and wrong doing. They blame some one or something else. By their continuation in sin, disobedience and rebellion to God, their nature changed. It became what we call the sin nature. This nature has been passed on from generation to generation. Each generation has become more vile, rebellious and disobedient to God than the prior generation. Adam and Eve had two sons, Cain who killed his brother Abel. Cain had a son named Enoch, an ungodly man, who built a city and established an ungodly society. Adam and Eve had another son named Seth. His son, Enos, also built a city, but he began to call on the Lord. This is the beginning of the two societies we have today, one is godless and the other, a Godly society. The godless society persecutes the Godly society. “For the flesh lusts (has desires) against (contrary to) the Spirit and the Spirit (has desires contrary) against the flesh. These are contrary the one to the other, so that you cannot do the things that you would (desire).” Galatians 5: 17. This is the struggle you now continue to experience in your Christian life, it is about your choices. Because of the sin desire and actions within people it was impossible for the creator (God) and the created (people) to have a proper relationship. God is Holy and there is no sin in Him. So God chose to make a covenant with people which He expected them to obey. The sin nature in people did not let that happen. God cut covenant with Abraham and Moses at different times for people to follow. The covenant with Moses is called the Ten Commandments. Along with Levitical laws found in the Book of Leviticus, the prophets words and Holy feast days, was the worship and devotion the Jewish people had with God.
Understanding the Blood Covenant
As Christians, we need to understand the blood covenant. A covenant as is in the Old Testament, or by Jesus’ death on Calvary’s cross, is a divinely binding together of two lives: yours’ and God’s. God belongs to his people and they belong to Him. This covenant binds them together. To understand this relationship we need to learn what a blood covenant involves. The key to understand and experience covenant, one must understand that covenant is wrapped up in one word, “Exchange”. If you learn this you can understand covenant. Many Christians know they are in covenant, but do not live in covenant. As stated, first there is to be an exchange. The second thing is “legal binding contract between yourself and God. There are only two things needed to live in covenant with God. One requirement is you are to “listen diligently to God”. The second thing is that you “obey what He says”. If you do these two things, you have a “divine legal right, in the court of Heaven, to receive everything contained in the blood covenant”. All Blood Covenants, before the blood is shed, a person would take off his coat and give it to the other person. To a Christian this requires us to surrender to His will, through repentance and accepting the Blood of Jesus’ atoning sacrifice, for our life of sin. We give our sinful garments to God. We then receive His robe of righteousness and the new life he gives. “Therefore, if any person be in Christ they are a new creature. Old things have passed away, behold, ALL things have become new and ALL things are of God.” 2 Corinthians 5:17, 18. This part of the covenant exchange is the exchange of love and devotion to each other forever, not temporary but eternal. The Lord then becomes to you your ever present Lord and banner, of his love to you. You are to be that to him as well. The second part of covenant is Protection: the strong becomes available to the weak. This is the exchange of weapons as is described in Ephesians 6:10-20. “Finally my Brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore, take unto you the whole armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day and having done all, to stand. Stand, therefore, having your loins girt about with truth and having on the breastplate of righteousness. Your feet, shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith, where with you shall be able to quench all the firey darts of the wicked. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God. Pray always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.” In the light of the Scripture, we see more clearly about what the full armor of God is all about. We exchange our weak weapons of the flesh for God’s armor of power and might. That is just like the exchange we make of our garments and sinful flesh for God’s robe of righteousness. With it we receive the right and privilege of not only being called the children of God, but we now have a divine right to use the Name of Jesus. Prior, we did not have this right, because we used it to curse but, the Name of Jesus was to bless all the nations of the earth. Now we have authority to use that name and bless the nations of the earth with it. We are to occupy this world as a people who have recognized their divine right, authority and destiny. We are to control the activity of governments and societies of this world for we are Ambassadors of the Heavenly Kingdom and reconcilers of a lost people to be restored to their creator and Heavenly Father. As He desires none to perish but all to come to repentance, this needs to be our goal as well.
The authority mentioned in St. John 1 speaks of our being clothed with the authority of Heaven. Our goal, bring ungodly things and situations into divine order. We are to occupy, literally to take charge, until He returns. As a State patrolman is clothed in his uniform with badge and weapon, he reveals to all people that he is clothed in the authority of the government or state he represents. Whether people like it or not, it is not the uniform that gives them their power and authority, but rather the governmental agency they represent.
The third part of the covenant exchange is wealth. We give Him our financial possessions and He gives us His, which so far exceeds our own wealth. With this exchange comes an assurance that “God will Bless you at whatever you put your hand to” in obedience to His divine plan and purpose. –Deuteronomy 28. “The Lord shall make you plenteous in goods, in the fruit of your body, in the fruit of your cattle, in the fruit of your ground, in the land that the Lord sware (promised) to your fathers to give you.” “The Lord shall command the blessing upon you, in your storehouses and in all that you set your hand to do. He shall bless you in the land which the Lord your God gives you.” “Beloved, I desire above all else that you prosper and be in health even as your soul prospers.”-3 John 2. Faith in God produces these fulfillments, but you must listen intensely to Him and do what He says, not half heartedly but with your whole heart. This is what being born again is all about.
Signs of the Covenant.
After the exchange of Love and devotion, the armor transferred and promise or commitment of wealth, the animal would then be sacrificed. The animal, usually a lamb, would be cut down the middle. They would then walk through its blood, stating they were coming into covenant together for life and sacrifice. A covenant meal would then be eaten, usually consisting of a piece of bread and cup of wine. The bread represented the life of each person coming into the life of the other person. It is irreversible. The drinking of the wine is a symbol of the blood of their lives coming from one to the other. This is the symbolism of communion: taking into your body the very flesh and blood (life) of Jesus Christ “Do this in remembrance of me.” It is a reminder of your commitment to Him and His to you. After they ate the covenant meal, they would share from each person’s flock some sheep. Their offspring became a covenant flock. Sometimes they planted trees which as they grew would become a covenant forest. For the Christian, The wood is the cross, an eternal reminder you are not living your life unto yourself but living it for God. It also reminds us that no matter how lonely and forgotten we might feel, Jehovah Shammah, your ever present Lord, is right there with you, living your life together with you.
The New Creature
“Therefore, if any person be in Christ, they are a new creature. Old things are passed away, behold all things are become new, and all things are of God who has reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ and has given to us the ministry of reconciliation….” “Now then, we are Ambassadors for Christ….”-2 Corinthians 5: 17-21.
Now, you are in covenant with Jesus Christ and the person of sin within you has been destroyed. “Don’t you know that as many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore, we are buried with him by baptism into death, so that like as Christ was raised from the dead, by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. If we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection. Knowing this, that our old man (former life in sin) is crucified with him (Jesus), so that the body of sin might be destroyed. From now on, we should not serve sin. For the person that is dead is freed from sin.” “Likewise, reckon (put to your account) yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal (physical) body, that you should obey it in the lusts thereof.”-Romans 6: 3-12.
“I am crucified with Christ, never the less I live, yet not I. but Christ lives in me and the life that I now live in the flesh (this body), I live by the faith of (not in, the faith is the faith of Christ), the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not frustrate the grace of God.” Galatians 2:20, 21a. I believe every time we put the old limitations of our former life, on the new creature, which is “Christ in you the hope of Glory,”-Colossians 1: 27, we frustrate the grace of God. This is now what and who you are in Christ Jesus. Think about it, meditate on it and let it take root and grow in you. Let the Holy Spirit produce in your body the very life of Jesus Christ. Don’t be a person who has a faith they give mental ascent to, but not the faith they live, the faith of Jesus Christ, which lives in them. Through His life and Holy Spirit power in you, you will be able to heal the sick and cast out devils, too. Spiritually grow beyond the religious norm. Practice Propinquity, practice the Presence of God. Let Jesus Christ be big in you!