Spiritcode

Paul O’Sullivan
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Getting spiritual understanding

  1. 6d ago

    JUSTIFIED BY FAITH

    JUSTIFIED BY FAITH The interpretative architecture we bring to a text like Paul’s letter to the Romans is rarely a blank blueprint. Rather, it is a complex structure built from our personal histories, denominational filters, and cultural assumptions. When we engage with the Word, we enter a dialogue where our previous understandings collide with ancient truth. Often, we are so familiar with the vocabulary that we lose the weight of the wisdom. As a student of the text, you must move beyond the "commonplace" view of the Bible and rediscover a sense of awe for this verifiable record of universal reality. As the source suggests: "It’s better to have wrong reverence than no reverence... familiarity breeds contempt. We don’t know how to revere this resource we’ve got." In Romans 5:1, the word "therefore" serves as the architectural bridge between the "cage-rattling" arguments of the first four chapters and the new reality of the Gospel. Paul’s intent in the opening chapters is to "rattle the cages" of both the pagan world and the religious establishment. He levels the playing field by demonstrating that, whether religious or not, we are all a "pack of rat bags" and "muddlers" who have fallen short. The "therefore" signifies that because our own performance has failed to rectify the "shocking mess" of our condition, a new authority has intervened. With the structural failure of human effort exposed, we transition to the formal proclamation that establishes a new kingdom. 2. The Gospel as Proclamation: Authority Precedes Policy In the Roman world, an Evangelion (Gospel) was not a religious suggestion or a self-help tip; it was a formal, political announcement. It carried the weight of: "The King is dead, long live the King!" It was the proclamation of who was now in authority. We must distinguish between the "Gospel"—the fact of the King’s Lordship—and "Policy"—the way that King decides to run his kingdom. The Evangelion (The Core) The Policy (The Working Out) Jesus is Lord The Forgiveness of Sins Proclamation of Authority The Reconciliation of the World The synthesis here is vital: the forgiveness of sins is not a standalone "product" you buy; it is a policy that is only possible because Jesus has been established as Lord. He is the one in charge, and He has decided that the new reality is defined by reconciliation. Policy never exists in a vacuum; it flows from the character of the Sovereign. This transition from old systems to the new Lordship demands a shift in how we relate to the King—a move from abstract belief to a "fair dinkum" trust. 3. Redefining Faith: From Abstract Belief to "Fair Dinkum" Trustworthiness Modernity has diluted "faith" into "belief without evidence," but the linguistic journey from the Hebrew Emuna to the Greek Pistis reveals a sturdier concept. In the Australian vernacular, this is being "fair dinkum." It is a "no-nonsense," "no-BS" relationship characterized by loyalty and authenticity. The architect of this faith was Abraham. Though he was a "muddler" who didn't always get it right, he was fair dinkum with God, and God was fair dinkum with him. This relationship involves three dimensions: * Trustworthiness/Loyalty: A "no-nonsense" commitment to the person of God, rather than a checklist of doctrines. * Authentic Connection: An honest, connected relationship where we stop pretending and simply "come home" to the one who knows us. * The Result (Justification): Having "all your ducks in a row." In the legal/accounting sense, to be "justified" is to have the books balanced and the records set right. Crucially, the source identifies that this justification is Aorist. Unlike a "daily performance review" where your standing fluctuates based on your behavior, the Aorist tense signifies a once-and-for-all action. It is "locked-in" and completed. You are counted as "safe" and "in the right" because of the fair dinkum quality of your connection to the Lord. Once our standing is "locked-in," we can move from the anxiety of "Sin Management" to a top-down understanding of divine Law. 4. The Three Dimensions of Alignment: A Hierarchy of Living We often treat the Bible as a "Manual of Sin Management" or a "Crimes Act," viewing Law from the bottom up. However, the biblical concept of Torah (Greek: Nomos) is far more expansive. Think of it like someone asking, "Which way to Newport?" and you pointing your finger. Torah is the pointing; it is the "directional instruction" or "teaching" that shows the way the river flows. God’s hierarchy of living moves from the internal to the external: 1. Quality of Life and Being: The internal infusion of divine life. This is the starting point. 2. Principles of Life: The "normative" (from Nomos) discernment of what is helpful or destructive, beyond mere legality. 3. Legal Boundaries: The external rules and regulations—the "Crimes Act" layer. The "So What?" of this architecture is profound: Humanity tries to fix the Boundaries (external rules) to hopefully one day change their Quality of Being. God works in reverse. He infuses us with His life first. This new Quality of Being gives us the capacity to understand the Principles (the "ways" of God), which finally makes the Boundaries make sense. This internal transformation is not a burdensome duty; it is the natural byproduct of Grace. 5. Grace as the Manifestation of Joy The word Grace (Charis) is a member of the "Joy" (Chara) family of words. Grace is not just God "letting you get away with it"; it is the manifestation of God’s delight. When we look at Gifting (Charisma), we see the suffix -ma, which in Greek denotes the "effect" of something. To understand this, consider the analogy of "Rain-ma." If the rain is God's joy, then the "ma" (the effect) is the wetness, the green grass, and the trees growing. * Grace (Charis) = The Manifestation of God's Joy. * Gifting (Charisma) = The Effect (-ma) of that Joy bubbling over in the individual. God caused you to exist because He thought you were a "great idea." His grace is the joyful blessing of a Father who is genuinely happy you have "come home." Your "gifts" are simply you having fun with God as His joy overflows through your unique personality. This realization of God's delight brings us to the ultimate state of peace and reconciliation. 6. Summary: The Final Meditation When we synthesize these redefined terms, Romans 5:1-2 ceases to be a cold legal contract and becomes a narrative of relational homecoming. We move from being "rat bags" in a mess to being sons and daughters with "all our ducks in a row." This isn't because we became perfect religious performers, but because we became "fair dinkum" with a King whose "policy" is joyous reconciliation. The Reimagined Passage "Therefore, since we have all of our ducks in a row because we are 'fair dinkum' with God, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him, we have also obtained access through this 'fair dinkum-ness' into the joyful, bountiful blessing in which we stand, and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God."

    26 min

  2. Jun 7

    REVELATION EP2 - 7 CHURCHES PROPHETIC DIMENSION

    REVELATION EP 2 SEVEN CHURCHES PROPHETIC DIMENSIONS Two very well-known and very misunderstood chapters of the Bible in Revelation are chapters two and three of Revelation - The letters to the seven churches.  These letters are addressed to seven historical congregations in Asia Minor, and they reveal consequential spiritual conditions of rise and decline that appear throughout the Church in every age. Each letter follows a similar pattern: Christ identifies Himself, commends what is faithful, exposes what requires repentance, and promises a reward to those who overcome. Together they present a comprehensive picture of discipleship, warnings correction, and hope.   Taken together, the seven letters reveal Christ as the Lord of the Church, walking among His people, intimately aware of their strengths, failures, struggles, and victories. They demonstrate that faithfulness is measured not merely by outward success but by love, holiness, perseverance, truth, and dependence upon God. The letters also show that divine judgment begins with God’s own household, yet His purpose is restorative, calling believers to spiritual renewal in Christ and renewed communion with him and with one another. The futurist interpretation of Revelation is strengthened in these letters as Ephesus and Pergamos and Sardis and Thyatira and Philadelphia are all told by Jesus to be prepared for the coming of the Lord ‘behold I come’ in various tones, and Laodicea is told that he is actually standing at the door. The Holy Spirit is currently working to reverse the tragic consequence of many people’s abandonment of faith that has occurred over the years. The repeated exhortation, “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches,” transforms these letters from ancient correspondence into an ongoing universal call to all. Their central message is that Christ seeks a purified, faithful, overcoming people who will participate in the final triumph portrayed throughout the remainder of Revelation. There is a fourfold multilayer architecture of how these letters function simultaneously as four distinct dimensions happening here in the one passage of text. 1. They are first century letters to congregations, from Jesus through John. 2. They are a blueprint of the entire church age. 3. They are a prophetic warning to the Church today about the End Times and the Coming of The Lord, 4. They are a spiritual map of the healing and salvation of the human soul.  This fourth dimension reframes how we personally interact with the letters as this is the inward spiritual application and the mirror of our soul’s journey. In this dimension there is an inward ongoing unveiling of Jesus and the work of the Holy Spirit in us. These seven churches represent seven distinct conditions of the human soul in its journey toward full union with God. Church Historical Period (approximate) Ephesus Apostolic Church (30–100 + AD) Discernment then loses first love Smyrna Persecuted Church (100+ –303) Trials10 years/Diocletian/worn down Pergamos Imperial Church (313–590 Marriage of church and state (Constantine) Thyatira Medieval Church (590–1517 Pagan superstition/Jezebel) Sardis Reformation Church (1517–1900 faith, division, deadness) Philadelphia Holy Spirit Church (1900 to now) mission faith power love holiness  Laodicia  End-time Church (1900 to now) money, politics, power, celebrity, image  The church in Ephesus was praised and warned Revelation 2:1 I know your works, your labor, your patience … and you have persevered and have patience, and have laboured and not become weary. Nevertheless, I have this against you, that you have left your first love.  The next church, Smyrna did become weary through persecution. John wrote vs.8 the devil will throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested and have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. Exhaustion of persecution in Smyrna inevitably led to the church in Pergamos (marriage) to accept the protection of the Roman Empie through Constantine and to accept the compromise of the marriage of state and church. This led to the superstitious pagan church of Thyatira being rebuked for allowing the immoral and idolatrous influence of Jezebel. Then followed the church of Sardis which represents the historic stage of reformation of faith under Luther which decayed into dead denominationalism. John wrote “I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die,  Then came the churches of Philadelphia and Laodicea. These churches both represent the experience of Holy Spirit revival life coming to the church worldwide. Philadelphia type churches and Laodicea type churches both emerged in the 1900 Pentecost Holy Spirit revival, and many people of the many thousands of dying denominations were touched by it. Jesus said at Pentecost ‘you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and you will become witnesses of me’. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God’ s love and holiness and power and truth and of Gospel mission and witness. Some church movements from the 1900 revival became holiness churches and others became Holy Spirit power churches. Others became doctrinal truth teaching churches and others missionary movements. And there always was and still is the possible drift from Philadelphia love and faith and holiness to Laodicea worldly power and image and complacency. But church history is not destined for abandonment, xand neither is the human soul. We can awaken and recognise any hypocrisy and that awakening sparks the Philadelphia stage of transformation. The Philadelphia type churches receive encouragement, and though weak in worldly strength, if they remained faithful to Christ, they are promised an open door that no one can shut.  The Laodicea type churches get rebuked for lukewarm self-sufficiency (the word Laodicea means ‘the opinions of the people). Though they were materially prosperous, Jesus called them spiritually poor and blind. Yet even here Jesus extends a gracious invitation to renewed fellowship: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock.” Note –  Philadelphia is the church of brotherly love - the name comes from phileo meaning affection or love – and delfos - brother, so it means brotherly love and this represents a historical movement experiencing genuine spiritual life of an open door of spiritual power - an open door that no human institution can shut. Laodicea has a closed door locked on the inside that Jesus stands at and knocks to be let in But that brotherly love to one another and to God and the spirituality of grace and Holy Spirit freedom and renewal will operate differently to a religiously structured church like the church of Laodicea - the lukewarm church. And if the spirit of a Philadelphia church does not become compromised, they keep an open door that no one can shut and they receive no rebuke from Jesus. That brings us back to all of us holding a dynamic history textbook, a ticking prophetic clock and a mirror of our transforming soul all at once.  And the number of seven churches isn’t an accident. It represents end time completion. These letters represent an exhaustive range of spiritual conditions found in humanity. everyone has a bit of all seven churches within them - we have a bit of Ephesus a bit of Sardis a bit of Laodicea somewhere within our own soul - this aligns with the apostle Paul's teaching in 1Corinthians 2:11 says that only our spirit can discern what we have in our soul, and he later says examine yourselves whether you are in the faith 2Corinthians 13:5 These seven conditions of the soul are deeply connected to those seven areas of historic church experience and spirituality, and they don't just exist in a vacuum. One spiritual state of a church directly triggered the vulnerabilities of the next stage in a remarkable progression and it does so also in our souls.  Philadelphia can reflect or mirror a person’s soul or it can reflect an historical movement or a current day church that experiences the genuine spiritual life of an open door of God’s life and love and power - an open door that no human institution can shut. Laodicea can reflect the soul of worldly religious mindsets and structures of opiniated complacency and self-sufficiency. The Church of Philadelphia can stay pure by the grace of God at a grassroots level of relational integrity while the Laodicean church may resist that simplicity and freedom. The wealth and image of the Laodicean church that thinks they're rich and need nothing receives a divine diagnosis that is devastating. Jesus says ‘you are wretched and poor and blind and naked - that's a harsh reality check.  So a question arises for me right here. If one stage naturally triggers the next - as we saw in the exhaustion of persecution in Smyrna leading to seeking relief in the worldly power in Pergamos which led to the superstitious pagan church of Thyatira. Then followed the faith reformation, then the dead religion of Sardis. Then the divergence of Philadelphia and inevitably the worldly power of the opiniated Laodicea.  Laodicea looms as an historical dead-end doom loop. And is the human soul also doomed to a dead-end doom loop? Where do we get off?  The answer is we get to choose where we stay on the map and it is unequivocally clear the antidote to the doom loop is to deliberately anchor ourself in the Philadelphia state of life because the text of the Scripture is entirely intentional here. The logos design in this text wants us to feel for our own souls the weight of that possible downward spiritual spiral we saw in the letters to the churches because we are accountable for the state of our own souls. Only the Philadelphia life brings faith and hope and love and freedom. A person can be living a Philadelp

    36 min

  3. May 31

    REVELATION EP 1 FULL DISCLOSURE

    REVELATION Ep1 Full Disclosure Just as Genesis is the book of beginnings, Revelation is the book of consummation. In it, the divine program of redemption is brought to fruition, and the holy name of God is vindicated before all creation. Although there are numerous prophecies in the Gospels and Epistles, Revelation is the only New Testament book that focuses primarily on prophetic events. Its title The Apocalypse means “unveiling” or “disclosure” or “revelation.” It is also called The Revelation of Jesus Christ. This means both a revelation which came from Christ and a revelation which is about Christ—both are true. Revelation 1:1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants—things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John,  2. who bore witness to the word of God, and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, to all things that he saw.  3. Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near. 4. John, to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, (theme of past present and future) and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne,  5. and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood,  6. and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. 7. Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen. 8. “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” (NB theme of past present and future) 9. I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.  10. I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet,  11. saying, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,” and, “What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.”(turkey not Jerusalem) 12. Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, 13.  and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band.  14. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire;  15. His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters;  16. He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength.  17. And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last.  18. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen.  And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.  19. Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this.  20. The mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands which you saw are the seven churches. The Book of Revelation is the unveiling of who and what Jesus is to the church to the world and to eternity. Scholars have viewed these prophecies through four primary lenses. While each perspective seeks to honour the work of the Holy Spirit, I hold  the Futurist view in this study because it mentions things that have happened in history, inspires faith in the "here and now" of Christ’s absolute authority over and through His Church and it looks forward to the future Second Coming with a living hope. 1. Preterist - depicting the current Roman struggle against the church and not future prophesy throughout the ages of the second coming of Christ. They say he came in 70 AD when Rome destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem. But we see in Revelation 1:7 that John was prophesying the Day of The Lord - the Second Coming and judgement. 2. Historical - The struggle of the church against the world system through the ages. 3. Spiritual - depicting nothing literal or historical at all, but purely symbolical. 4. Futurist - depicting events that would surely take place in the church, the world and eternity, after the time of John, and beginning significantly with the opening of the first of the seven seals in chapters 5 and 6 (also see Ch.4 vs 1 – things to come)  Revelation 4:1… And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.” This leads us to take note of the three divisions of time. Revelation 1.19 write the things that you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter. 1. Things you have seen - chapter 1 2. Things which are - chapters 2 to 4 – the 7 churches. 3. Things with shall be - chapter 4 onwards. There are three persons involved in this revelation – Jesus – John – The messenger. I submit to you that the messenger, or angel that gave this prophecy to John is Enoch, and we will now look at some evidence.  1. Records in Genesis 5 and Hebrews 11 confirm that Enoch is physically in Heaven with God. This creates a theological necessity – Enoch has been given a Divine exemption and is released from the prison of his appointment with death.  Hebrews 9:27 it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment. But he is not the only one! There will be a generation of people who will be caught up from the earth to meet Jesus in the air when he returns.   Psalm 102:18 This will be written for the generation to come, That a people yet to be created may praise the LORD…From heaven the LORD viewed the earth, to hear the groaning of the prisoner, To release those appointed to death, 2. The Bible link for Enoch  Revelation 1:7 Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him - and Jude 14  Jude 14. Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment on all. This prophecy of the Second Coming is virtually identical to Revelation 1:7 3. When linked with the messenger’s self-identification in Revelation 19:10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.  And ch.22:9 Then he said to me, “See that you do not do that. For I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren the prophets, The evidence presents this historical figure as being uniquely commissioned to return and declare the unveiling to John. The Book of Revelation was written about 95-AD by the apostle John on the Isle of Patmos while he was in exile under the persecution of Domitian. The apostle Peter and Paul had been martyred just previously under the persecution of emperor Nero. This dating mainly comes from early church testimony, especially Irenaeus in the second century, who said the vision was seen “toward the end of Domitian’s reign.” Irenaeus lived from 120 to 202 AD, and the future hope of the return of Christ became the dominant position in both Eastern and Western Christianity and still is. Added to this is the fact that the seven churches in Asia Minor that John writes to would logically have been more developed and established at that time. The book of sevens  Revelation 1:4 - John to the seven churches which are in Asia. Grace be to you, and peace, from him which is, which was, and which is to come - and from the seven spirits which are before his throne. (see also vs.20) Here there are mentioned seven spirits and seven churches, and of great significance later in the book are 1. The 7 seals 2. The 7 trumpets from seven agels 3. The 7 vials 1. The seven seals - the seven seals are seals of a book of events which are to happen worldwide (ch5.1) Which include the revelation of a conquering church, judgments upon the earth, and signs and wonders in the heavens. These events take place progressively and will be studied in detail later. The 7th seal actually contains another series of events called the seven trumpets.  2. The seven trumpets- The seven trumpets blown by seven angels are also a series of worldwide events that are judgments upon the earth, they are not final judgments but are meant to turn people to God. And the 7th trumpet contains in its blast, the seven vials.  NB The 5th angel releases locust/scorpion spirits which torment people for five months but those sealed with the Holy Spirit are protected – just as Noah and family were protected for 5 months in the ark. I met up with some close Christian friends from Inverell at a function this week and I shared that I’d be teaching the Book of revelation this coming Sunday, and they mentioned the passages about the scary demonic locusts that had a sting like scorpions (ch.9). They said that some people thought they were symbolic of fighter planes etc. But we agreed that they were definitely of a spiritual nature, set free by an angel for five months and not allowed to kill those with the seal of God – the Holy Spirit. And the

    28 min

  4. May 24

    UNIVERSAL PENTECOST

    UNIVERSAL PENTECOST   Passover was first celebrated when Israel escaped from slavery in Egypt when they were told to sacrifice a spotless lamb and sprinkle its blood on their doorposts. They were told to not to do the long baking process of leavening the bread - because of the haste with which they had to flee Egypt. And from that time on Israel celebrated the Passover Feast each year with unleavened bread. Leaven is basically yeast and other ingredients can be added. The Feast of Passover weekend where Jesus as the Lamb of God died on the cross included Resurrection Sunday where Jesus rose from the dead and offered his blood of sacrifice to the Father. And on that day was also the Jewish Feast of Sheaves which was symbolic of Jesus being the firstfruits of the Resurrection. And Fifty days after that came the Feast of Pentecost (pente = fifty) – a harvest feast for life instead of a blood sacrifice feast for sin. The Passover and all other sin offerings were required to use unleavened bread because leaven had become the symbol for sin. Paul even admonished the church in Corinth because of their unruly communion services, saying they were celebrating their communion with the old leaven of malice and evil. Their lives should have been an expression of a new leaven of love and life and faith and we’ll see how this came to be our new spiritual reality today. The appearance of leaven occurred when Israel began to celebrate the Pentecost harvest feast with two loaves of leavened bread. The law commanded them to only use leavened bread in this feast instead of unleavened bread. (Leviticus 23:15).  This could appear to be a scandalous thing, as only unleavened bread was ritually used with sacrifices, but this leavened bread was prophesying a most significant and radical shift for the nature and being of humanity. That shift occurred on the Sunday of the Pentecost Feast after the death and resurrection of Jesus. His death and resurrection had universally reconciled humanity to Divinity as one in Spirit. And then came this further glorious shift of all flesh becoming indwelt by the Person of the Holy Spirit. Therefore the leaven of the Feast of Pentecost had been necessarily baked in for humanity to receive Holy Spirit life in Christ. The blood imagery of Passover was replaced by the new leavened bread imagery of Pentecost. Blood shed by Jesus speaks to us of his life given - Bread speaks of a life shared.   We move past an initial act of rescue to a continual act of communion with God. The new leaven symbolises the Holy Spirit being sent to us and for us.This radically changes our lives from having to be empowered by an Adamic sinful nature into now being sustained and empowered by the indwelling Christ through the Holy Spirit. The righteousness and true holiness of God is the basis of our life now and not the bondage to sinful flesh.  This is the amazing reality of the new Creation humanity – the truth that God does not wait for humanity to be perfected before he accepts them as his family. Universal Reconciliation has done away with need for unleavened bread and blood sacrifice for sin. Separation has ceased because sin no longer is the separation between us and God. He accepts humanity as leavened by grace and being transformed by the Holy Spirit within his love that works by faith. Resistance to believing this is the only problem, and the Holy Spirit has been sent to convict the world of that sin of unbelief (John 16:7). But why only two loaves at Pentecost – wouldn’t the truth of the Trinity assume three loaves for Pentecost? No – because The Holy Sirit was not yet sent upon all flesh, Old Covenant theology did not teach about the Trinity. And during the Old Testament era only two Persons of the Trinity, the Father and the Christ Messiah represented the present and future hope of humanity, and the Holy Spirit's influence was limited to operating only through specific chosen individuals like prophets, kings, and priests and judges like Sampson, Gideon etc. Not mankind But the reality of the Trinity was presented in the Old Testament by so many types and shadows of a hidden threefold expression of God. There was the sun and moon and stars of the heavenly creation, the threefold architecture of Noah’s Ark as the two lower decks and the upper compartment from where the dove of the holy Spirit flew out after the flood. There was the plan of the tabernacle and the temple with the outer court the inner court and the Most Holy Place (in the shape of the cross incidentally). It was all there but hidden. The most striking threefold manifestation of the Trinity which included  blood sacrifice and unleavened bread occurred when Abraham was met by three angels at an encampment where he was with his wife Sarai and his servants and his cattle. He greeted the three messengers as My Lord and not my lords, so in his addressing the three men as Adonai indicates that he had a revelation (called a theophany) of God as the three persons of the Trinity. He told Sarai to bake three loaves of unleavened bread for the men to eat and ordered his servant to slay a calf of sacrifice. The men then told him that Sarai would have a son and that through him Abraham would become the father of many nations and that all the families of the earth would be blessed. This blood sacrifice and the unleavened loaves pre-empted the first Passover feast in Egypt by 400 years and pre-empted the feast of the universal spiritual Pentecost after Jesus died on calvary by 2000 years.  But the Jewish Feast of Pentecost on that day fifty days after Jesus died and rose again sacrificed the usual two loaves of leavened bread. The astonishing revelation is that  The two loaves become three on the day! The third person of the Trinity was revealed as tongues of fire on that Pentecost! The shift from two to three loaves represents the full unveiling of the Trinity's work in the world and the unprecedented outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon all humanity. The prophetic progression to three loaves was also encrypted in the New Testament by Jesus in Matthew 13 where he teaches that the Kingdom of Heaven is like leaven hidden in three loaves of bread until the whole lump becomes transformed. The word “hidden” is fascinating. It is always written as krypto but Jesus used the Greek word egkrypto which is used nowhere else in Scripture. Encryption means not only hidden but encoded - the idea of something deeply embedded within and concealed internally until it transforms everything around it. This numerical shift from two to three prophesied the arrival and indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. This transition illustrates the complete work of the Trinity: The Father is the source of the loving promise of adopting us as his unique and individual children through Jesus. Jesus is the sinless sacrifice and the "first fruits" of the resurrection. The Holy Spirit with tongues of fire represents the purifying and sanctifying fire of the trials of our faith and the empowering of our transformation into the likeness of God. The Holy Spirit concluded the third loaf reality, as His presence was finally poured out upon all flesh. Ultimately, this third loaf blessing is the establishment of the New Covenant. It marks a profound shift from the Old Testament—where the law was written on tablets of clay to a reality where the Holy Spirit writes the law directly onto human hearts. In fact the day of the Feast of Pentecost for Israel was also the exact same day that they celebrated the anniversary of the Law written on stone tablets with Moses at Sinai. That is how the Holy Spirit works. The old covenant operated through external rules written on stone but in the New Covenant the Spirit writes the law upon the heart and the Kingdom grows within.  This the grace in the New Covenant heart. In His expanded, New Covenant role, the Holy Spirit operates as an intensely personal guide and advocate. He universally convicts the world of unbelief and righteousness and the judgment of God upon Darkness. The Holy Spirit empowers those who believe and leads us into all truth, and spreads God's love into and through our hearts. He takes the teachings of Jesus and interprets them for us as individuals in highly personal ways, ensuring that people can hear and understand God ‘s voice regardless of their cultural or circumstantial or religious background – they all heard him that day in their own tongue. Ultimately, this continuous filling of the Holy Spirit empowers the Church to expand the Kingdom of God and express the Trinity of God to the world. The world changes when hearts change and this is why that Universal Pentecost mattered so deeply. Christianity is not institutional look good religion - it is divine life flowing through human vessels. Religion tries to conform people externally while the Spirit transforms people organically from the inside. Leaven works quietly and slowly and patiently, yet eventually it affects the entire loaf. Sometimes we become discouraged because transformation feels slow, but inner fermentation movement is evidence that life is active. You may not see dramatic change every day but if the Spirit is within you and you say yes to his work, something holy is expanding. God is more patient and thorough with your process than you are. Paul OSullivan  pauloss@me.com

    24 min

  5. May 17

    EDEN TO PARADISE

    EDEN TO PARADISE  Adam and Eve walked in the Garden of Eden with a blameless soul that they themselves had generated - before Satan appeared on the scene. Their souls enjoyed perfect relationship with God – knowing nothing but the love of God and being grateful and obedient to him in all things. When they were tempted and fell into disobedience their souls lost that perfect relationship and they were cast out of the garden. Eden was a beautiful garden and had many trees and they ate the fruit of them, except for two of the trees, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and the tree of life. A river called Pishon flowed out from the garden where there was gold and the Bible says that the gold was good – a lot in that statement! The Garden of Eden was a picture of Paradise - a Persian word for a walled garden, and it signifies a state of perfect joy and peace, and divine presence. That divine presence and protection of their Paradise was lost for Adam and Eve and for humanity when they sinned against God and ate the forbidden fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. God then barred Adam and Eve from the Tree of Life to prevent them from eating its fruit and living forever in their fallen, sinful state. God said, "The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat and live forever (Genesis 3:22). Death entered - awaiting resurrection. Five other things that were changed or lost by and through Adam and Eve in Eden and restored for us through Jesus in a new true Paradise.  The Garden of Eden and future Paradise.  The two trees – The Tree of Knowledge and the Tree of life – big changes. The River flowing from Eden to Paradise in Revelation – big change The gold of the garden becomes the substance of the Heavenly City in Paradise.  The presence of God and its power in every present moment is now our Paradise. 1 When Paradise was closed off and barred to humanity because of Adam and Eve’s disobedience it was reopened in Christ on the cross, as the Tree of Life.  In Luke 23:43 a robber on a cross next to Jesus had just rebuked his fellow robber for mocking Jesus, saying to him ‘we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong’. He asked for Jesus to remember him in the Kingdom and Jesus said to him ‘Today you will be ‘with Me’ in Paradise’. Access was given to a sinner who was mercifully and lovingly forgiven.  Eden is not just reversed at the Cross - Paradise is now centred in a Person -‘with Me’, Paradise is not simply where we go - it is what happens when nothing obstructs the presence of ‘God with us.’ That is where Paradise started, and that’s how we currently find it, and that’s where it finishes in our final ‘age to age’ existence. Adam in Genesis closed it, Jesus opens it, we live in it now – within us – Book of Revelation completes it. 2 The two trees – The Tree of Knowledge and the Tree of life. What we eat becomes physically part of us. What tree we eat from determines what we become in our inner life. The tree of Life is the indwelling life that Jesus won for us on the cross that we can choose by faith to live out of. The Tree of knowledge of good and evil that Adam and Eve ate separated them relationally from God and from one another. It became all about ‘What is good is only what is good for me’ - ‘I am right and you are wrong’  Instead of the knowledge of good and evil being the answer for humanity it became the problem. When Eve saw that it was ‘desirable to make one wise’ and shared the fruit with Adam, their covetousness for that self-centred meaning of ‘good’ corrupted their wisdom into foolishness. The Bible describes that tree of knowledge kind of wisdom.  if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.( James 3:14+). James goes on to say that this corrupted wisdom causes us to live in conflict with others and in conflict within ourselves. We know we are eating from the wrong tree when we get emotionally involved in proving we are right and get irritable if someone won’t see things our way. The Tree off Life prompts us to wait and listen for God to speak into the situation. The Tree of Life stood at the centre of the garden, and it represents ongoing participation in God’s life - Not mere immortality, but dependent, relational life. Access was open until the fall. After the fall Humanity was barred from the Tree (Gen 3:22–24) and Cherubim guarded the way. The key meaning of the Tree of Life is sustained communion with God as the source of life so the crisis of our lives is not just death—it is the loss of access to divine life. The Tree Reappears as the Cross - Jesus “bore our sins in His body on the tree” (1 Peter 2:24) This is not accidental language. What was once guarded in Eden becomes given at the cross and the reversal is life changing. We can put to death the tree of knowledge in us and be risen up to life in the Tree of Life. It is a commitment of faith that works by love. 3 The River that flowed out from Eden flows through to Paradise in Revelation. This is now the River of Life within for the Tree of Life being Lived in Jesus. River once flowed from Garden – life flows from Jesus through Holy Spirit. Paul tells us that our life is now “in Christ” – we become participants in the flow Ezekiel 47:1 Then he brought me back to the door of the temple, and behold, water was flowing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east…7 I saw on the bank of the river very many trees on the one side and on the other. And he said to me, 9. “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down and enters the sea; And everything will live wherever the river goes.  Revelation 22:1 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb - through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations (ongoing). 4 The gold found in the garden  - everything in the Heavenly City in Paradise is of gold.  Gold speaks of value. It speaks of material value and also of spiritual value. The world stores up gold for economic power and influence and in this its value gets corrupted. The value of Spiritual Gold is that it speaks of the nature of God that dwells within us through Jesus. Peter wrote that the gold is tested through fiery trials of faith to be refined (1Peter 1:7) Job said, when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold. (Job 23:10). The ark of the tabernacle had gold on the inside and was covered by acacia wood on the outside – Humanity overlaying divinity. The interior of Solomon’s Temple was overlaid with gold, the final dwelling place of God in the Old Testament. Jesus said he was that temple. And Paul says we are now that temple on earth. 1Corinthians 3:11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.  Gold is always being revealed through what is being destroyed (the not us).  The silver redemption shekel buys the gold of God’s nature.  Every man shall give a ransom for his soul…”  Exodus 30:12 The silver is explicitly called atonement money, ransom money, Redemption is silver. Joseph and Jesus were both betrayed by silver. Both gold and silver can be corrupted. They appear in Revelation regarding Babylon’s corrupted wealth – The gold is greed and silver is betrayal. Then silver disappears from Paradise in Revelation as final redemption has reached its goal and the Heavenly City is pure gold Revelation 21:18 The city was pure gold… And the street of the city was pure gold,  5 The presence of God - and the power of this present moment that Jesus owns. 2 Corinthians 5:13 Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? Reconciliation awaits our believing and receiving by faith to experience our new reality of being as a ‘New Creation’ (2Corinthians 5:14-21). God awaits the awakening of the world that he has reconciled. His longsuffering (macrothumia – extended heartfelt waiting without retaliation) is our age-to-age salvation (2Peter3:15) Faith comes into focus when we become conscious of what God is doing rather than what we are doing – God consciousness instead of self-consciousness.  God desires drawing near to us more than we do to him, and he does this to achieve non-separation between himself and us – Divinity and humanity reconciled into one New Creation - God with us. Pray this reality into your spirit. Thank you Lord for your loving presence – and for your powerful work you are doing on my behalf in the world of the unseen.  Thank you for your mercy on my shortcomings and your forgiveness that has gone before in all things.  Thank you for this moment that you own in which you are reordering all things. Thank you for including me in this moment of

    29 min

  6. May 3

    UNIVERSAL REDEMPTION

    UNIVERSAL REDEMPTION  I asked last week what went wrong with the gospel, quoting Paul who wrote concerning a wrong gospel saying there are some who trouble you (tarasso - to strike one's spirit with fear and dread - Galatians 1:7). He says they want to reverse (metastepho) the gospel. Since the time of Christ, a World population of almost 70 billion people has existed, and how many people have heard the true gospel? I believe certain English words have been prejudicially translated from the original language that have altered the nature of the gospel and reversed our perception of a loving saving God. And we will look at some of those words today. And how has that affected our current global Western culture relationally and morally 2Peter 3:9 The Lord…is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance (metanoia – a change of mindset). I am proposing that the trajectory of Scripture presents God’s judgment as ultimately restorative rather than purely retributive, and that words and concepts traditionally interpreted as eternal punishment may instead work through age-to-age judgment, truth, and revelation until human creation is brought into alignment with God. I am arguing that God’s redemptive power and purpose is not ultimately defeated by human resistance.  Philippians 3:21 He will transform our lowly body (tapein??sis – lowly estate) that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself. I would like to personally query three aspects of the nature of the gospel today. This will take more than one session. Is God’s nature one of loving restoration or retributive punishment? What is hell and judgement and the consequence of sin? What is eternity? I perceive God as a divine architect who has designed a relational home where he might enjoy loving relationship with his human family, for them to find utter fulfillment in his company. The home was built on a foundation of love and peace and order. Then the foundation became destructively cracked and flawed by the pride and disorder of Satan. Immediately following that the damaged foundation was built upon with inadequate flawed human material and it has crumpled and subsided time after time. Then a new divine/human foundation was laid which was Christ and a new creation was invited to build upon this new foundation of love and peace and order. The home was made to be filled and not emptied, so the flawed foundation had to be fully restored, and the flawed human material had to be fully redeemed so that it could be filled.  In Matthew 22 a King prepared a feast for his son, and most of the invited guests were too busy or distracted to turn up, but he wanted his house filled with guests for his son so sent his servants out and they ended up having to invite people from the highways and byways, both bad and good. And the house was filled. God wants a full house. The highways and byways people can be seen as ‘fringe people’ The edge or fringe becomes the meeting place of exclusion and inclusion in Scripture, and examples include Ruth as an outsider being included in Israel through marrying Boaz, and the gentile woman who touched the fringe of Jesus’ garment and was healed. It is also typified in the priestly garments and the boundary materials of the tabernacle. And even one of the wedding guest fringe people resisted and was cast into outer darkness for not wearing a wedding garment and I’ll cover that redemption theme at another time. I believe the plan for God’s house being filled was designed before time began, and what follows in real time is restoration and the events of purifying and restoration in the history of human life.  2a. The nature of sin and its consequences – The common established belief is that Sin separates us from God and that sin can finally result in going to hell. The following Scripture is commonly taken to mean that if you believe in Jesus, you will not perish (go to hell) but you will receive eternal life (go to Heaven). John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 2b. The names implying what hell is are Hades, Gehenna, Lake of fire, Tartarus, Sheol and even Outer darkness. Hades (O.T. Sheol), does not really describe the place of eternal torment. It described the realm that is not visible to the living (ha – not and ideis – seen) the unseen, the hidden, what lies beyond the horizon of the living. It occurs in the Epistles once in Revelation, where it is done away with to no longer exist.  Jesus spoke of Gehenna, the Valley of Hinnom in Jerusalem where the fire of spontaneous combustion destroys the rubbish which symbolizes the judgment and destruction of sinful corruption (also James 3 re the tongue and corrupt speech). I’ve seen Smokey Mountain on a missionary trip to the Philippines with 2 young people. Thousands lived ther and made a living there scavenging what was not consumed by the fire. The epistles interpret the concept of fire as a process of transformation where God’s fire removes what is of the flesh so that life in Christ remains. I’m proposing that the nature of fire called hell is purifying and corrective discipline rather than retributive punishment.  We will get to the others later…Lake of fire …Tartarus…Outer darkness… I have already compared Jonathan Edward’s sermon of ‘sinners in the hands of an angry God with the writings of Athanasius in 350 AD. Edwards said ‘Why should God love you because you have never loved him’. The apostle John answers that - ‘We love him because he first loved us’ (1John 4.18).  Athanasius wrote that Jesus died out of sheer love for us so that… he might turn men again to incorruption who had turned back to corruption and make them alive through death… and by the grace of his resurrection thus he would make death to disappear from them as utterly as straw from fire. The refining fire of God’s love is the divine method for transformation because it looks forward to what is possible and applies the purifying trials of faith to get there. Punishment and retribution look backward at what was done and demand payment to what seems to be to no good end. The fire of judgment in this truth is not the satisfaction of divine wrath; it is the completion of divine purpose - and redemption is the restoration of what was always meant to be. God’s divine wrath is the intense indignation at what sin has done to cripple the souls of his children and it is aimed at the source of evil itself and not the victims of it. That indignation shakes whatever can be shaken to rid it from his children so that what remains cannot be shaken – the Kingdom life within. And whatever evil or darkness we harbour in our own lives will get shaken from our ignorant or resistant grasp for our own sake and those around us.  Hebrews 12:1… let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith… do not despise the chastening of the LORD…He does that for our profit, that we may be partakers of His holiness. Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; Paul says that as a wise master builder (architekt??n) he has laid the foundation. 1Cor 3:11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. This purifying fiery judgement and Hades, and Gehenna all overlap but some are used more as warnings than encouragement. 1 Corinthians 3:13–15 distinguishes between the work and the worker. The work may be tested and found wanting, may be burned away as wood, hay, or straw. But "he himself will be saved, though as through fire." The person passes through and the fire does not consume them - it consumes what was not them. With Peter the illustration is that as that seed grows through faith, the outer husk of the seed, our outer soul-self life, is burned away by the fiery trials of faith. 1 Peter 4:12 Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 1Timothy 5:24 some mens’ sins go on beforehand to judgement and some they follow after. This means we can have the wood and straw burned off in this life or in the next age. The Greek word translated judgment – krisis, throughout the New Testament primarily means decision and judgment. The word carries the act of separating, sifting, distinguishing. A crisis is the decisive moment, the point at which the true nature of something becomes apparent and that can clearly involve adverse outcomes.  The Bible uses the following words; krisis  judgment, decision, evaluation and accountability. kolasis Matthew 25:46 - corrective pruning (like trimming a tree) paideia Hebrews 12 - discipline, training of a child  dike – Justice and being weighed in the balance. Judgment is not retaliatory destruction, but a process that exposes, purifies, and restores. Even the judgment in the apocalyptic vision of Revelation which we will look at in later sessions is about sifting, not retribution, so the pattern holds even at the level of judgment itself. But is the redemption payment enough for

    40 min

  7. Apr 26

    UNIVERSAL GOSPEL What went wrong?

    UNIVERSAL GOSPEL What went wrong? Paul was entrusted with the Gospel of the Word of Reconciliation. And he entrusted that to Timothy and it has been entrusted to us.  2Timothy 2:2 and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.  The Gospel Word of Reconciliation. 2Corinthians 5:18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, God was  in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not counting their sins against them, and entrusting to us the message (logos) of reconciliation (katalasso). Logos – (Strong’s Concordance)the Divine Expression (Christ) — account, cause, communication concerning doctrine.  This is the ‘logos’ message, the Good news that God entrusted to Paul. Reconciliation is Katalasso - kata thoroughgoing intensity, alasso means to alter or change and in God’s work of reconciliation he brought Divinity into humanity in a thorough mutual exchange. This was done through the incarnation of Jesus who became eternally changed from pure spirit being into the divine plus human spirit being of Jesus as a new creation, and we become this New Creation in Christ (Isaiah 7:14 – Virgin has a Son, Emmanuel ‘God with us’). Peter also received the revelation of being made one in the spirit with Jesus and he preached the same message about the logos word of God as the seed that brings forth the life of the New Creation. He uses a simpler more organic language to convey it. 2Peter 1:4 we have been given exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature. 1 Peter 1:23 having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God (logos) which lives and abides forever. All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever +++. And this word (logos) is the good news that was preached to you. With Peter the illustration is that as that seed grows through faith, the outer husk of the seed, our outer soul-self life, is burned away by the fiery trials of faith. 1 Peter 4:12 Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you; 19 Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good. This redemptive transformational suffering result in the forever saving of our souls. 1Peter 1:9 Receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation/healing of the soul.  Peter and Paul both had the same gospel, which was that Jesus the new seed of Heavenly life is sown into humanity (Incarnation) so that Divine life and human life become one new life. That describes the initial saving of the human spirit. Then occurs the ongoing salvation of our soul through faith and the purifying of our soul by the fiery trials of faith. John and James also preached this same universal work of the human spirit being eternally joined to God through the incarnation of Jesus. John 1:10 That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world. Vs.16 And of His fullness we have all received,  James 1:21 receive with meekness the implanted word (logos), which is able to save your souls. There are people who are getting this revelation of the exchanged life of ‘God with us’ day after day because of the work of the Holy Spirit revealing the truth taught in the Bible. They can have this truth without knowing exactly what Paul wrote concerning Reconciliation or what Peter wrote about the logos seed of life, or what John or James wrote, but their hearts have received grace and been purified by faith - that is God’s work of grace. I am not insisting upon a dogmatic compliance to what I have found in these Scriptures - but having understood it by the grace of God I am compelled to not withhold anything that may be profitable to you for the sake of the Gospel. Galatians 1:11 For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man’s gospel. For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone; The Gospel comes by revelation from the Holy Spirit in a myriad of ways.  Peter comments on Paul’s message of Reconciliation – and politely says that it can be difficult to understand, but that it is inspired and should not be diminished or twisted. 2Peter 3:15 consider that the longsuffering (withholding of condemnation to achieve transformation) of our Lord is salvation—as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you, as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures. Paul and Peter and James and John jealously guarded the integrity of this amazing salvation of the human spirit by the grace of God and the ongoing transformation and salvation of the human soul.  Paul warns the legalistic Galatians about this. Galatians 1:6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you (tarasso - to strike one's spirit with fear and dread) and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven or anyone else should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed (anathema) Being ‘accursed’ or being ‘anathama’ in the Greek is ana- handing up and tithemi – the gift. It is handing something up to God as a sacrificial gift to be purified from corruption. The handing over leaves that person ‘cut off’ in isolation but the purpose is that the corruption will be destroyed so their spirit and soul can be purified. This is a redemptive act to transform and resttore someone from corruption.  Paul makes this clear later when he says that Jesus has become the anathema curse for us. That is because Jesus took his incorruption up to the altar of the cross as a sacrifice to redeem humanity’s corruption.  Galatians 3:13 Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”), that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the all people in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.  In 1 Corinthians 5:5 Paul even handed a man over to Satan for the ‘destruction of the flesh’ - his embodiment of a serious sin - that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. It was the sin of committing adultery with his father’s wife. The man was cut off from the church community and afterwards turned from his sin and was forgiven and restored. That was not done out of a desire to punish but out of a redemptive desire to see forgiveness and transformation and restoration, which is what happened.  Paul took the integrity of the true Gospel message very seriously. He sought to embody the Gospel in his soul as being one of love and care, and not one of motivating people by fear or from a place of assuming power over other people’s lives. 1Thessalonians 2:4-10 But as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, even so we speak... But we were gentle among you, just as a nursing mother cherishes her own children. So, affectionately longing for you, we were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also our own souls (psyche), because you had become dear to us. The Gospel message became diminished and narrowed over time, starting when Rome lorded Christianity over people turning it into Christendom, but then Martin Luther received the revelation of justification by faith in the reformation in the 1500s till denominational conflict and legalism crept back over the years. there are some who trouble you (tarasso - to strike one's spirit with fear and dread) Jonathan Edwards was a profoundly spiritual man of puritan and reformed theology who preached powerfully and sincerely in the eighteenth century about the death and resurrection of Jesus as our saviour from sin, and many thousands responded to his message. But his influence of puritanism and Calvinism shaped the character of American Protestantism for many years, and it still distorts much modern evangelicalism, a gospel of retribution rather that transformation and restoration. The following is an excerpt of Jonathan Edward’s preaching from ‘Sinners in the hands of an Angry God’. ‘The bow of Gods wrath is bent, and the arrow made ready on the string, and justice bends the arrow at your heart and strains the bow and it is nothing but the mere pleasure of God and that of an angry God, without any promise or obligation at all that keeps the arrow for one moment from being made drunk with your blood.’ And why should God be obliged to express such wonderful love to you, who never exercised the least degree of love to him in all your life? You never have loved God, who is infinitely glorious and lovely; and why then is God under obligation to love you, who are all over deformed and loathsome as a filthy worm, or rather a hateful viper?  (1John 4:18 perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment–kolasis punishment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. We love Him because He first loved us). And why then should God be looked upon as obliged to take so much care for your happiness, as to do such great things for it, as he does

    28 min

  8. Apr 19

    UNIVERSAL RECONCILIATION

    UNIVERSAL RECONCILIATION I’m calling today’s word Universal Reconciliation. This is going to be a doctrinal outline of New Covenant Salvation. I will be discussing the three stages of salvation – salvation of the spirit, salvation of the soul and salvation of the body. And firstly, I want to talk about the foundation, which is about God's initiative through Christ of reconciling the world to himself. God is the initiator and the accomplisher of reconciliation for all humanity through Jesus Christ. This is the salvation of the human spirit. The scope of Christ’s work in reconciliation powerfully surpasses the scope of Satan’s work in the fall of Adam, and the reach of grace surpasses the reach of sin.  Romans 5 :10 For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life… vs 18 therefore as through one man's offence (that was Adam) judgement came to all men resulting in condemnation even so through one man's righteous act (that is Jesus) the free gift came to all men resulting in justification of life.  The free gift of reconciliation came to all men through God's grace in Christ for us to share his life with our life. This results in us being justified – which means being empowered to live in alignment with his heart and mind through faith. Reconciliation is the objective removal of separation between us and God not merely the offer of it. It describes the journey of God's divinity coming into humanity through the Incarnation of Jesus.  2Corinthians 5:18-19 (NKJ) Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation (Katallasso), that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world (universal – not just some people) to Himself, not imputing (logizomai – not taking an inventory – not counting) their sins  against them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. I would like to look at the Greek word for reconciliation which is KATALASSO which means a thorough mutual changing of two different yet similar things or entities into an entirely new entity. In Strongs concordance it says that KATALASSO is a combination of two words kata and alasso – kata gives the meaning of thorough intensity, alasso means to alter or change and in God’s work of reconciliation he brought two entities into effecting one another into a thorough mutual change – a mutual exchange. This was done through the incarnation of Jesus. God moved from one age called BC to the next age called AD, becoming eternally changed from pure spirit being into the divine plus human spirit being of Jesus as a new creation. God had prophesied this through Isaiah. Isaiah 7:14 therefore the lord himself will give you a sign behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son and shall call his name Emmanuel, God with us.  Then through the death and resurrection of Jesus and the sending of the Holy Spirit humanity was eternally changed (Katalasso) from mere human being into God with us spirit being as partakers of the divine nature.  2 Peter 1:4 through which we have been given exceedingly great and precious promises that through these we may be partakers of the divine nature having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust (epithemia- wrong desires) This is for all of humanity and is waiting to be catalysed by our faith to come into the new creation of Christ in us. We become the expression of God's love and goodwill in the earth through Jesus.  By saying that Reconciliation was God's initiative it means that God as Jesus Christ joined himself to us as humanity without consulting us or asking for permission. He planned this before the foundation of the world - not imputing trespass means no longer counting sin as separation. It was his unilateral act, regardless of human virtue or merit That is why reconciliation is classified theologically as an ‘ontological’ Process. That process occurs when one entity causes a new entity to come into being – and the two things have become one new thing - and the second thing cannot not exist without the first but the first now doesn’t exist without the second. For example, the surface skin of an apple is not fully itself without the apple and the fruit of the apple only remains intact when it is within its skin. God did this with himself and humanity in Christ. People who existed before Christ were obviously dependent upon God because they were created by him, but they were separate from him as lesser human beings not just because of sin but because they did not have the oneness of being with him together - as an apple and the apple skin. The Bible says  But your iniquities have separated you from your God. (Isaiah 59:2 also Ephesians 2:1- you who were once dead in trespasses and sins.) But Reconciliation has done away with both separation and sin.  And now the New Creation being of Christ has become eternal in Heaven and we are one with him forever. The only proper human response to this then must be faith as this has no meaning to a person who does not know it and believe it and live it. A big challenge! But the startling paradox is that faith does not create reconciliation - faith awakens us to reconciliation as something already done that God in Christ has achieved as the Scriptures above have said. Our obedience of faith to this truth aligns us with the full outworking of reconciliation - For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin so that in him we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2Corinthians 5:1). What a mighty outcome! What an important goal!  But - notwithstanding the significance of the outcome and the goal - I want to emphasise how important the process is – We are to live in the process of being reconciled with Jesus and the Father and the Holy Spirit and we leave the outcomes to God. That is living in the reality of what the overall purpose and goal of God for our lives is from day to day. It is living in the process that brings spiritual growth – not trying to imagine the nature of the goal. That is what God accomplishes in us.  Philippians 2:13 It is God who works in you to will and to do his good purpose. As I said at the beginning the scope of our salvation as a threefold process of salvation.  1.The salvation of our spirit. 2. Salvation of our soul. 3. Salvation of our body. 1. The salvation of our spirit is God’s work of Reconciliation that has already been accomplished 2000 years ago. We have become joined in spirit to the Lord  1Corinthians 6:17 he that is joined to the Lord is one spirit with him. 2Corinthians 5:17 The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation Doctrinal Statement Faith does not create reconciliation—it awakens us to it and aligns us with it. The full outworking of reconciliation is living in the reality of being a New Creation. 2. The salvation of the soul is about us being saved – the process of being transformed and being brought into alignment in our minds and hearts to God as a New Creation. That is the outworking and the result of reconciliation - the justification of life, which comes through our faith. Our focus is the process and God brings about the outcomes. 1 Peter 1:9 receiving the goal of your faith the salvation/healing of your souls. Romans 5:10 having been reconciled we will be saved by his life. (the saving of the soul)  1Corinthians 1:18 for the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (perishing – the wasting/ruin of a life) Doctrinal Statement The soul is being saved through faith – through transformation by participating in the life of Christ, and it is progressive as a growth experience. 3. The third phase or the third process of our threefold salvation is the body the future completion that is the resurrection and glorification of the body.  Romans 8:23 we also who have the first fruits of the spirit even we ourselves groan within ourselves eagerly awaiting for the adoption the redemption of our body (full purchase)  1 Corinthians 15:51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all die, but we shall all be changed— in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. (allass??) I somewhat sadly imagine a conversation in Heaven at Jesus’ Resurrection where the Father congratulates Jesus for his wonderful work of reconciliation for humanity. ‘You’ve achieved the most ultimate work of loving sacrifice for our beloved children my Son. They will be enraptured with joy and gratitude to know this and to believe it and to live it. The epistles will faithfully record it, and the message will be faithfully delivered. One of them will powerfully write in his epistle that we have committed to all who read it the message of reconciliation to be ambassadors for Christ, as though we were even pleading and imploring them on your behalf my Son, to be reconciled to God – to consciously live in the reality of it, not just quote it and hang it on the fridge door. For their sake I made you my Son to be sin who knew no sin so that in you they might become the righteousness of God. They will know that it is no longer just their lives they are living, but that it is your life that is living through them. Epistles wi

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Getting spiritual understanding

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  • Creator
    Paul O’Sullivan
  • Years Active
    2016 - 2026
  • Episodes
    467
  • Rating
    Clean
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    © Copyright 2016 All rights reserved.
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    Spiritcode

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