Come and See
Chapter 10 of the Gospel of John
Verily, Verily
Part vi
Before Abraham Was, I am.
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. Â (John 10:1)
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Come and see the works of God: he is terrible in his doing toward the children of men. (Psalm 66:5)
For I [know] their works and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come and see my glory. (Isaiah 66:18)
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He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about tenth hour. (John 1:39)
And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see. (John 1:46)
And said, Where have ye laid him? They said unto him, Lord, come and see. (John 11:34)
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Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; (Philippians 1:27)
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And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.(Revelation 6:1)
And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see.(Revelation 6:3)
And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. (Revelation 6:5)
And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. (Revelation 6:7)
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Introduction
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Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death. (John 8:51)
  In our study of John 10:1, I mentioned, Verily, verily, or truly, truly, or Amen and Amen, and I am moved to return to this important point. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. (John 10:1) In the racing world, it would be known as a pit stop to prepare our car for what is ahead, to open up our chances to see the invisible. So, I am moved to return to this point of importance not only for the value of Verily, verily, but how the Spirit of Christ uses this combination throughout the gospel of John, and ONLY IN the gospel of John. It is evident that the three gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke are predominately of the earth. However, John by the Spirit of God takes us into the unseen world, into the mind of Christ, and into the revelation of God. We pass from the temporal world to the spiritual world in the first three gospels in that we can see the horizon of the earth: Matthew is the gospel of the king, Mark reveals God’s faithful servant in every way, and Luke unfolds the Son of man in a divine form as the Man from heaven. However, in John, we have heavenly things such as the eternal Word being made flesh and being God. Angels ascend and descend upon the Son of man as the Spirit of God looks down from above wherein the three preceding gospels it is the world looking up. In the gospel according to John, it is the Spirit of Christ opening to us spiritual truths found nowhere else in the Scriptures. This reveals the very importance of Verily, verily in the gospel of John. Before we begin, I will list all the verses that have the words Verily, verily.
1. And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man. (John 1:51)
2. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. (John 3:3)
3. Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and [of] the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. (John 3:5)
4. Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. (John 3:11)
5. Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. (John 5:19)
6. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. (John 5:24)
7. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. (John 5:25)
8. Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled. (John 6:26)
9.Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. (John 6:32)
10.Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. (John 6:47)
11.Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. (John 6:53)
12. Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. (John 8:34)
13. Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death. (John 8:51)
14. Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. (John 8:58)
15. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. (John 10:1)
16.Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. (John 10:7)
17. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. (John 12:24)
18.Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. (John 13:16)
19. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that receiveth whomsoever I send receiveth me; and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me. (John 13:20)
20. When Jesus had thus said, he was troubled in spirit, and testified, and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. (John 13:21)
21. Jesus answered him, Wilt thou lay down thy life for my sake? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, The cock shall not crow, till thou hast denied me thrice. (John 13:38)
22.Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater [works] than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. (John 14:12)
23.Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. (John 16:20)
24. And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give [it] you. (John 16:23)
25. Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry [thee] whither thou wouldest not. (John 21:18)
  The different subject matter found with each Verily, verily is extremely important. The Spirit of God emphasizes these verses so that we might know and understand the mind of the Spirit of Christ. Let’s take each Verily, verily together, and open the mind of the Spirit so that we might understand and receive of the glories of Christ. This will take some time, but I believe that this will be our only opportunity to see these truths within the veil. I suggest that you read the previous articles on Verily, verily.
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The GREAT Revealing
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Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. (John 8:58)
  Eternity cannot be measured by man for there are no reference points, neither beginning, nor end; there is no limit of space, nor dominion of time, and there is only One who fills eternity: it is the God of heaven and earth, the God of all eternity. God (through His Spirit, through His Son, and through His Word) revealed Himself to mankind through the very revelation of Himself. Many miss the true purpose of Chapter 1 of the book of Genesis. Yes, creation is revealed, however, the primary purpose is to reveal the God of creation, and this revealed God to man through the revelation of Himself. This revelation of Himself is written from the beginning, in the writings of God through Moses. As both mediator and prophet of God, Moses had the Spirit of Christ within him.
Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:Â (1st Peter 1:10)
Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. (1st Peter 1:11)
Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into. (1st Peter 1:12)
God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, (Hebrews 1:1)
This was the revelation of God, in a written form, to reveal to mankind who He IS, that He is the I AM THAT I AM.
 God met with Moses face to face. And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle. (Exodus 33:11) God instructed Moses to write the very words that He revealed to Moses concerning Himself. This was the revelation of God, in a written form, to reveal to mankind who He IS, that He is the I AM THAT I AM. And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. (Exodus 3:14) He is the vast everlasting expanse in His own Person as the Eternal God. He could say, I AM THAT I AM, and there is none besides ME. (Isaiah 45:6, 21; Zephaniah 2:15)
 He formed the world, and all that is therein. He called man from the dust of the earth, and created him, and breathed life into him that he may be a living soul, and that man may stand before Him upright and walk in HIS sight. Truly, God revealed Himself even before the writings of Moses, and this wonderful revelation then through the written Word of God. Adam received the knowledge of God from God Himself as God walked with Adam in the garden. God was present in His tangible world and walked with man. Adam KNEW His Creator as his Creator, and he knew that all around him (the tangible earth, and all that grew upon it, the animals and the beasts and all that Adam named) was created by the same Creator. All around Adam was a witness to him of God’s great power and eternal Godhead. Even today, at this present time, after man has raped the earth, this earth is still a divine witness to the God of creation so that all men are without excuse to the power of God and His eternal Godhead.
Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. (Romans 1:19) For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: (Romans 1:20)
  We also have the testimony of the Spirit of God who moved over the waters of darkness and who still broods over the spiritual darkness of this world. He testifies to every person who comes into the world that God is Light and in Him there is no darkness at all. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. (John 1:9)
  It is not that one man is chosen, and another man is denied because God makes available His light, His revelation, of Himself to ALL men. This is the very witness of His eternal power and His Godhead. Although the evil heart of man denies Him, He still makes available the very light of life in Jesus Christ. And this is so that every person is without excuse. God has revealed His Son, His Spirit, and His written word so that man may believe. It is man who denies God, and not God who denies man for God knows what is in the heart of mankind.
  Man believes that there are frailties and failures in the written word of God, and that God is not able to KEEP His word in its purity as it was written from heaven, but then God assures all who believe that His word is FOREVER settled in heaven itself. LAMED. For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven. (Psalm 119:89) Since man believes that there is frailty in the written word of God, he continues this erroneous concept in that there is also frailty within the Living Word of God: Jesus Christ.
  Because of sin, man is infatuated with the tangible world. His imagination takes him into a false spiritual world because of sin. Man’s precepts and judgments WITHOUT God are all based upon the sin within man; this sin has tainted man in such a way that his heart has become enmity against God; therefore, God has given a written testimony of Himself, but He has also given a testimony about the fallen race of mankind in Adam. The Spirit of God declares that man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God. But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. (Matthew 4:4) This is not just a verse of reference, it is a verse of fact that man is dead in trespasses and sin, and he can only acquire life through Jesus Christ and nourish that life by the word of God.
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God in Christ Revealed
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  What man fails to see is that Christ is speaking as the Creator in Matthew 4:4, But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God . . . He declared the power of the word of God as the eternal God as He looked with burning eyes right into the eyes of Lucifer, Satan, the old serpent, the devil.
His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire;Â (Revelation 1:14)
His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. (Revelation 19:12)
His body also was like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as lamps of fire, and his arms and his feet like in colour to polished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a multitude. (Daniel 10:6)
  God was in Christ, and He had come to reconcile the world unto Himself. The Lord Jesus was showing the devil that He was not in Adam’s likeness. He was NOT Adam manifested in the flesh, but God manifested in the flesh. I know that this will rub some wrong, but nevertheless it is true, Christ was NOT human. (He was not of the human race, although implanted into a human womb, He was always THAT HOLY THING.) Why and how was He not of the human race? Simple . . . for there was no sin in Him! There was no Adam in Him! This separated Him from sinners, and from the race of Adam. For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; (Hebrews 7:26)
  There are two points that we should recognize that mankind seems to ignore: first, the Father SENT the Son into the world. This was to bring righteousness to mankind. Secondly, the Father sent the Son into the world to take sin OUT of the world by the sacrificial death of Himself. He came to destroy sin and death, which Adam brought into the world; so therefore, He must be a heavenly Man completely different from Adam. He must be the Man from heaven who had come in a body prepared for Him before the foundations of the earth. Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: (Hebrews 10:5)Â
  The great I AM was the Man from heaven. He WAS NOT another man of the earth. He was SENT of the Father to call out a new people, a new creation, a heavenly people called OUT of the world. In Matthew 4:4, this first rebuke to Satan shows the power of God’s word, and that it has dominion over both man and Satan. However, the devil is persistent so that in the next temptation, he quoted two verses out of Psalm 91, and tried to tempt his Lord and his God. Satan has a rebellious heart. The rebellion comes from sin, so all of Satan’s acts are based on sin and rebellion. However, the Lord Jesus stood up against Satan and rebuked him and put Satan in the place of one of His created beings. Read and focus closely on the words of ‘the Lord thy God in Matthew 4:7, Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. Here the Lord Jesus is asserting His divine nature. Christ was not referring to another, but to Himself in that Satan cannot tempt the Lord thy God, for God cannot be tempted. This also revealed the craftiness of Satan, and his method of deception. He did not quote ALL of Psalm 91, only a select two verses, and they were out of context. If this had been Adam, he would have fallen for this deception, and Adam would have had no recourse for Adam was not God. The devil used these two verses as a temptation directed to the Lord and his God, Jesus Christ. The Lord claiming to be God should have been enough, however, sin brings with it a stubborn heart of evil, and Lucifer tried one more of his lies similar to the temptation of Adam. You remember the three-part temptation by Satan in the garden Yea, hath God said, . . . Ye shall not surely die . . . . and ye shall be as gods. But this was not Adam in the gospel of Matthew Chapter 4. This was the One who sets up kingdoms, and also takes them down. He already has the power over all the kingdoms of the world; therefore, this last temptation went badly for Lucifer.
Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; (Matthew 4:8) And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. (Matthew 4:9) Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. (Matthew 4:10)
  This Lucifer is surely persistent, however, the Man from heaven is NOT an easy mark under sin for there was no sin in Him. Christ is truly stranger than Adam, for Adam was a push over, he fell for Lucifer’s lie which was a combination of Ye shall not surely die and ye shall be as gods. The second Man from heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ, had all the right answers to Lucifer’s temptation. Once again, let’s remember, that the Lord was the Man from heaven. The first man [is] of the earth, earthy: the second man [is] the Lord from heaven. (1st Corinthians 15:47) Not only was He the Man from heaven but think of His relationship with God the Father. He was the Son of God, the only begotten of the Father. He was the manifested image of God upon the earth. He was IN a body that was prepared for Him. For God was IN Christ reconciling the world unto Himself. (2nd Corinthians 5:19)
Side Note: God in Christ. Again, think ye that we excuse ourselves unto you? we speak before God in Christ: but [we do] all things, dearly beloved, for your edifying. (2nd Corinthians 12:19)
And this I say, [that] the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect. (Galatians 3:17)
I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:14)
In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. (1st Thessalonians 5:18) To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. (2nd Corinthians 5:19) ♦ End of Side Note: God in Christ.
  The Lord Jesus is also documented as the FIRST BEGOTTEN, not only in His earthly life, but through the eternal pages of God. He is also the first begotten from the dead. This Adam could not do. Adam was completely not capable of redeeming himself, let alone redeem those who came out of his loins. The Scriptures tell us that God the Father loves the Son, and the Son loves the Father. (John 17) This shows the intimacy between the Father and the Son, and the binding of the Spirit where we have the completeness of God’s love in the Godhead bodily, the Lord Jesus Christ.
  In this last temptation of the Lord in Matthew Chapter 4, the devil showed his power of both the spiritual and the temporal realms. Notice the transition and the transport.
Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; (Matthew 4:8) And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. (Matthew 4:9) Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. (Matthew 4:10)
  This last temptation involved more than just the temporal. It involved the spiritual world as well. The devil taketh him (the Lord Jesus) up into an exceeding high mountain, and from this peak he displayed all the kingdoms of this world, and the glory of them. This is some powerful fallen angel. Yet, Lucifer, was ready to give up that which he does not own in this temptation of the Lord Jesus. The earth is the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. (Psalm 24:1)
  We should understand that a deceiver is true to his own character of deception; nevertheless, this deceiver does not understand a logical path for his mind is twisted by sin. Look at the depth of this last temptation. God is NOT going to bow down to an angel of sin, the devil. This was the God-Man standing before Satan, he is not Adam, however, in the serpentine mind of Lucifer, if he could get Jesus of Nazareth to worship him, then Lucifer would become God. However, Jesus is not man. HE IS GOD. Lucifer saw Him as another Adam. Just as man today (when they talk about the Lord Jesus) they do not see His divine nature OVER the nature of Adam. They want the Lord Jesus to merely take the place of Adam, this could not be, for this second Man from heaven had no sin within. He was not of Adam, or in Adam, He was separated from sinners. For the third time, the Lord rebuked Satan and put Satan in his place. Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.(Matthew 4:10) This final rebuke did its work for Satan hung his head in failure and left the presence of the Almighty God.
  The first rebuke was against the guile of Satan because in the stones being made bread, Satan was attacking the physical position of the Lord Jesus Christ for the Lord had fasted forty days and forty nights; yet Satan could not overthrow the physical.
  In the second temptation we see the deception of Satan in twisting the word of God by quoting from Psalm 91. This Psalm is a beautiful psalm, however, it should be read as a whole, if Lucifer had recited the entire psalm, then his deception would have destroyed his argument in the very first verse. He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. (Psalm 91:1)
  The last and final rebuke to Satan ended his attempt to tempt God, and at this point the holy angels of God came to minister to their Sovereign and God. However, Satan was not through, and he is still up to his same cunning dirty tricks today. He goes after the child of God with the needs of life, with fame, with wealth, with position, and even with poverty, often using the word of God to justify his temptations, taking a verse or two completely out of context, and then putting his own spin on that verse to promote his deception. Always be aware of the one verse wonders, they are not of God, but of the devil. Remember what James said by the Spirit of God.
Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: (James 1:13)
But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. (James 1:14)
Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. (James 1:15)
Do not err, my beloved brethren. (James 1:16)
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. (James 1:17)
Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. (James 1:18)
  God is not the tempter . . . . it is Lucifer. The greatest wall against his evil that we possess is our knowledge of the word of God and learning more OF the Lord Jesus Christ. For it is Christ who is our refuge, and He has sent His Spirit into the world to lead every child of God into all truth. Our refuge is to draw nigh unto God, and He will draw nigh unto us. For the gifts of God including wisdom and knowledge are without repentance, and every good and perfect gift comes down from above. So don’t look for it on earth, it has to come from above. It comes from the father of lights and perfection in whom is no variableness or shadow of turning for Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
  In Matthew Chapter 4 the tempter failed because God cannot be tempted. Three times God (in Christ) declared His Person, and His power, first, by His rebuke as the Living Word of God. Secondly, by His own power OVER temptation, for God cannot be tempted, and thirdly, He was God IN Christ reconciling the world unto Himself. In the last rebuke to the devil the staring eyes of righteousness looked in the eyes of evil, and He proclaimed of Himself, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. (Matthew 4:10) The devil was deceived in his own deception. He refused to recognize and accept that God was IN Christ and would not worship Him. Hebrews 1:6 informs us that at the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ the Father instructed ALL the angels of God to worship this newborn child. And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.They could only do this because He was/is Deity. He was God manifested in the flesh. The devil saw Him as a man, and man saw Him as a man, and there was no beauty in Him that they would desire Him, and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. (Isaiah 53:3) However, on God’s side, there was never a shadow of a doubt that His Only Begotten Son was GOD incarnate. Again, let me emphasis that the devil refused to worship this One of Deity. You see the wounds of sin run deep, and they leave permanent scars that cannot be removed. If you ever get a chance, ask Adam and his descendants of all the scars that they have suffered with all the sin that Adam brought into the world.
  In John Chapter 8:6, it was NOT Lucifer, but his children (the Pharisees) who tempted the living God. This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not. But God cannot be tempted. The Lord Jesus went on to expose the evil and sin of their own hearts. The load became so heavy for them that they ALL went out from His presence, and I will add, bearing their sins. But the Pharisees are not the only ones who assumed that they could tempt God. Throughout the Old Testament, we have many men and women who tried to tempt God in their evil ways. But God cannot be tempted. James 1:13. Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man.
  When man beheld the Son of God, sin would only let them see another man. Even when He raised the dead, and opened the eyes of the blind, and cleansed the lepers, those who witnessed these miracles only saw Him as a mere man. John closed his gospel with many other miracles did Jesus and he supposed that if all was written even the very world itself could not contain the books that could be written. And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen. (John 21:25)
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God in Christ Revealed a Supernatural Body
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  The glory of this One from heaven on high was that He came in the LIKENESS of flesh, however, He was NOT here incognito. His purpose was to fulfill the righteousness of God and COMPLETE the plan of redemption IN Himself. He had brought with Him both the Scepter and sword of righteousness, and it was His purpose to take sin out of the world. He was both the sacrifice and the justifier. It would be His blood that would sanctify a whole NEW RACE of heavenly people. Once again, in the cross reconciling the world unto Himself, He would look into the eyes of evil and defeat evil’s sword with the sword of righteousness. Truly, the visage on the cross was beaten and scarred as Isaiah prophesied in Isaiah 52:14 As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men. But the devil fought his greatest battle in the darkness that overshadowed the cross in the unseen world. There the great Gladiator of righteousness overcame the works of the devil, took sin upon Himself, and took it OUT of the world; therefore, becoming the justification for ALL those who believe.
  It’s amazing how many verses we have in the Scriptures when God is speaking of His own things, such as: wisdom, sanctification, righteousness and redemption. Man does not see that God speaks from His side and from His mind concerning His holy things. It is God speaking TO man; however, man cannot comprehend these things with the mind of sin. Sin has warped all the thinking capabilities of mankind. Man makes his decisions based on sin. How can this be? Because sin is within every man, and every person is in bondage to sin, and everyone is ruled by sin. This is exactly why God manifested HIMSELF as a holy and righteous Man to take away sin that He would bear our sin in His own body on the tree. Mankind STILL believes the lie of his father the devil, that old serpent of deception.
Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? (Genesis 3:1)
And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden:Â (Genesis 3:2)
But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. (Genesis 3:3)
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: (Genesis 3:4)
For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. (Genesis 3:5)
Reconciliation HAD to come through righteousness, and righteousness could not be met by man for there is none righteous.
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. (Genesis 3:15)
And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. (Luke 1:35)
Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. (Galatians 3:16)
And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him. (Hebrews 1:6)
  What do we see in these four verses? First, we have God’s promise of a seed. (Genesis 3:15) In Luke 1:35, we have the fulfillment of that promise with the supernatural conception of that holy thing by the Holy Ghost which was the power of the highest. Thirdly, in Galatians 3:16, we have the description of THAT seed that it would be a supernatural Seed and that Seed is Christ. In Hebrews 1:6, we see God’s side of the fulfillment of His promise.
  At the birth of Christ, this supernatural birth was so glorious that God, the Father, commanded ALL the angels of God to worship THAT child, that holy thing, Jesus Christ; therefore, throughout His earthly life, that holy thing, that holy child COULD NEVER BE ANYTHING ELSE BUT HOLY. In His own holiness He was here to fulfill ALL righteousness. This wasn’t a game, or a competition with evil. He was here to DESTROY SIN and DEATH and the WORKS of the devil. What the devil would not do at the last temptation in Matthew Chapter 4, all the angels of God rejoiced at the opportunity to bow down and worship their God and rejoice in the very glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. Man doesn’t see this because of sin. Remember that the tree was the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, however, that tree only had one fruit. It was a fruit specifically to that one tree. This was one of the trees in the garden that could not reproduce itself, the other tree that could not reproduce itself was the tree of life. Both of these trees were created by God. One tree, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, contained evil. The other tree, the tree of righteousness contained life. Each fruit was different, and they were only specific to those two trees. Therefore, when God told Adam that he should not partake of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, lest he die, Adam disobeyed God because his heart was turned by the tempter; consequently, Adam fell into the abyss of sin and death.
  You’ve heard the vain conversations of ignorant men concerning the fruit of the tree. Was it an apple? Was it a fig? Was it a pear? Was it a peach? The argument is ridiculous for the fruit of the tree was specific only to that tree. So why does mankind make these ridiculous suppositions? Just as Adam, they want to shift the blame away from themselves. Wouldn’t it be nice to blame all our problems on an apple, or a pear, or a peach? This is how ridiculous that man sounds. He continually wants to shift his own blame, his own evil deeds to another. This is why among mankind there could never be a redeemer found. Man is not capable of redeeming himself. He is lost in a whirlwind of sin and death. Only God in Christ could reconcile the world unto Himself.
  It is very interesting that Christ is referred to as the first fruit because in Christ we see the tree of life. He came to give life to man, and to destroy sin and death, and, oh, by the way . . . . the price is minimal.
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.(Romans 10:9)　For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. (Romans 10:10) For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. (Romans 10:11)
And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. (Acts 8:37)
  In the manifestation of the Lord Jesus Christ, who was God incarnate, He did not manifest Himself as a man, He was manifested as a God-Man from heaven. Over and over He told the Jews that He was SENT by the Father, and that He was SENT from heaven, and that He was not of this world. However, man could not see the BEAUTY in Him for His glory was shielded by the likeness of flesh in the body that God had prepared for Him to reconcile the world unto Himself. Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: (Hebrews 10:5)
  God prepared what man could not see. A body that was separated from sinners and separated from sin. There is one moral fact that mankind has a difficult time reconciling in his sinful mind: that it HAD to be a HOLY THING, a HOLY MAN, a HOLY SACRIFICE to redeem mankind unto God. The reason that NO MAN in ADAM could redeem the human race is that ALL have sinned, and sin and death IS IN every man. Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: (Romans 5:12)
  I will use a simple example. Take two balloons of the same color and of the same size. Fill balloon (A) with air and call it Adam. Fill the other balloon (C) with helium and call it Christ. When you release the balloon called Adam it falls to the ground. When you release the balloon called Christ, it ascends into the heavens. Yet, both balloons look the same, they have the same likeness without. The difference is within. God WAS IN Christ reconciling the world unto Himself. Christ was NOT humanity because He was GOD within, and it is He who ascended into the heavens.
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God in Christ Revealed His Eternal Being
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There had to be a force, a holy and righteous power outside of Adam’s race to redeem Adam or mankind to God
  This is one statement in the Scriptures that all of Adam’s race makes. The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. (John 10:33) This is one of the big lies of Satan to divert the eyes of man from the Holy Man of God, the Holy Man from heaven, the Holy Man of God within, and the Holy Man who came to be GOD WITH US.
Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us. (Matthew 1:23)
Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)
  I will make this statement, and I will be condemned because almost all of man’s theology today wants to make the Lord Jesus into a human form in the race of Adam. They want to make Him a man as themselves. Yes, of course, let’s bring God down to the beggarly elements of Adam and his race of sin and death. Man loves to elevate himself and by bringing God down closer to their sin, then sin would lose its dastardly depraved value, and their condemnation would be less. Every person without Christ feels that they are justified in their own eyes. They justify themselves within, not acknowledging God’s Christ, or the judgment of God.
  The Pharisees elevated themselves, these were not God’s servants, they had perverted the Law and elected themselves as the rabbi’s and the masters of Israel. These tempters of John 8:6 NOW wanted to stand in judgment over God’s Christ. They wanted to stand in judgment over the great I AM. The Pharisees definitely understood the statement that the Lord made in John 8:58 . . . and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. (John 10:33) YES, they KNEW that Christ had said that HE WAS GOD. YES, the Lord Jesus Christ said that HE WAS/IS the great I AM of the burning bush. YES, He said that HE WAS/IS THE GOD WHO FILLS ETERNITY!
  What did these Pharisees do? They picked up stones to stone Him, to murder Him, to kill the Prince of Life. Then what did the Lord Jesus do? Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by. (John 8:59) Being the great I AM, He cloaked Himself (as in the burning bush) and passed through the midst of them, and so passed by.
  Christ is the great I AM. Wherein man is the great I THOUGHT. Man, in his sin, cannot think godly thoughts. He thinks with the perspective of a sinner cut off from God. A good example is the history of Naaman, the leper, in 2nd Kings Chapter 5. We see the thoughts of man in verse 11. But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper.Â
  Naaman thought with a mind of sin, however, God had to bring Naaman’s mind and thoughts into compatibility with God’s mind through His prophet. (There are many lessons in 2nd Kings Chapter 5. Read the complete Chapter. But for now, I will summarize: Naaman knew that Elisha was a man of God, and yet, Naaman would not believe God. The man of God (Elisha) took nothing from the world, but the child of Adam (Gehazi, the servant of Elisha) coveted that which is of the world: silver and raiment. However, true riches come from above and are not of this world.) Naaman was motivated by sin within and said, I thought, and then we have a description of his thoughts in verse 11. It is the same today. The Spirit of God comes as a wind, and gives birth in the heart, in the soul and in the spirit of a new born creature in Christ outside of Adam’s race. And man declares, I thought. Man judges everything by his own thoughts in sin and would rather have the silver and raiment of this world.
 The Pharisees, in the day of Christ on earth, loved to show themselves in their fine robes of righteousness with their special borders to elevate themselves into a place of holiness among the Jews. The child of the devil loves to put on shows and to show themselves. You show me a religion based on shows, and I will show you the children of the devil because there is no room in their hearts for the humble Savior Jesus Christ.
  In the book of Acts, we read of a man called Simon who coveted the gifts of God and offered to buy them . . . . this also is the mind of sin . . . . and the mind of I thought.
But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one:Â (Acts 8:9)
To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God. (Acts 8:10)
And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries. (Acts 8:11)
But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. (Acts 8:12)
Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done. (Acts 8:13)
And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, (Acts 8:18)
Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost. (Acts 8:19)
But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. (Acts 8:20)
Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God. (Acts 8:21)
Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee. (Acts 8:22)
For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity. (Acts 8:23)
 Sin twists the minds of men. There are many Simons today; however, for man’s position of religion, they barter in many different ways by attending only the accepted schools, or the seminaries of renown. Building a proper spiritual resume is their goal because they covet a position in man’s religion, and after acquiring their desired position, they continue to covet a higher position. Do not tell me that this is not so! For I have heard many times how a person resigned from his first position for a higher calling. It is the higher calling of his own covetousness. It is the religious ladder of spiritual success. And spiritual success is determined by the largest church venue, and the largest collection plate. These false religionists would not last ten minutes on the Isle of Patmos, neither in a dungeon in Rome, nor doing God’s work truthfully on the streets of New York City, or in San Francisco. You cannot purchase the gifts of God. They come from God and God alone. Spiritual success is not what man thinks is success . . . . I thought is the vanity of the thoughts of mankind. This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, (Ephesians 4:17). The servants of God are not here to be accepted or approved by man. They are here to be obedient to God. When the Spirit of God creates a new creature in Jesus Christ, their mind is changed. Now we have the mind of Christ. We have not the mind of Naaman, or Gehazi, or Simon, but the Spirit of Christ is within us, and this is the hope of future glory. Man is biased in his thoughts because of sin.
  We, as Christians, speak of a new birth, but do not want to admit that Adam experienced a new death when he sinned at the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. In THAT death, sin came in like a magnet opposing its own poles, pushing Adam away from God, and away from God’s thoughts; therefore, God could say about man that their thoughts are not His thoughts, and their ways are not His ways. This statement is only recorded one time in the Scriptures.
For my thoughts [are] not your thoughts, neither [are] your ways my ways, saith the LORD. (Isaiah 55:8) For [as] the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:9)
  God raises His thoughts to the heavens above and that they are higher then all the thoughts of the earth. This also is only mentioned one time in all of Scripture. It is SO dramatic that it demands the attention of all. For man’s thoughts and man’s ways are directed by sin, and man is in bondage to sin.
  There are two opposing forces in the world. One is sin, and the other is righteousness. Sin is of Adam, and righteousness is of God IN Jesus Christ. Man could not acquire righteousness, as we have said previously, because righteousness had to be brought to man; therefore, the Lord Jesus came from heaven to bring and to fulfill ALL righteousness, and to do this, sin MUST be taken out of the way.
  In the self-sacrifice of Himself upon the cross He bore the sin of the world in His own body, as Peter said, on the tree. Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. (1st Peter 2:24) He who knew no sin became sin for us so that we IN Christ could be made the righteousness of God IN Him. In the giving of the Law and the ordinances from God through Moses, God revealed what man was capable of, and most all miss this. Every time God said, ‘thou shalt not’ man said, ‘I will.’ Consequently, the Law could not bring righteousness to man because man was not capable of keeping the Law. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. (Romans 8:7) Throughout man’s entire history, Adam and his seed could not be subject to the Law of God because of sin in his flesh. You might ask yourself; What kind of being could bring righteousness to man and how? Well, let’s look further into Christ Jesus, our Lord, and consider what Scripture teaches about the divine nature and divine truth.
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The Holiness of Christ Revealed
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  And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin. (1st John 3:5) In 1st John 3:5 we have purpose. Christ was manifested to take away our sins. How? First, He was pure with NO SIN. Secondly, this separated Him from all of Adam’s race, and all of humanity. For all humanity has sinned and has sin within. Then, thirdly, we have Hebrews 7:26, For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; In examining Hebrews 7:26, the first element of Christ’s character is HOLY, or holiness unto the Lord. In the conception of the Lord Jesus, He is called THAT HOLY THING that was placed within the womb of Mary. And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. (Luke 1:35)
For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together, (Acts 4:27)
By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus. (Acts 4:30)
But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;Â (Acts 3:14)
Since Christ had no sin within and without, this set Him apart from ALL of mankind because sin had no claim on Him.
  It is recorded that the tempter not only came in Matthew Chapter 4, but both his children and Satan, himself, tried to get the Lord Jesus to abandon the cross and to come down from the cross. They tried to flaunt God’s determinate counsels, but the redemption of man must be completed in the very words It is finished. You can try to tempt a beautiful rose bush, but there is nothing in that rose bush to respond to temptation, it is a futile temptation. The Lord Jesus reaffirmed His position in John 14:30, Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me. At this point in John 14, Christ knew that the tempter was coming again. He knew that there would be a conflict at the cross not only with the race of Adam, but with the devil himself. I find it interesting that the Lord used the title prince of this world referring to Satan. I think that this links back to Matthew Chapter 4 and the last temptation of the Lord concerning all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them. Once again, the tempter would come, and just like that rose bush, there would be nothing in the Lord Jesus to respond to the devil’s temptation. Why could God not be tempted? He was without sin even in His earthly walk, He did no sin. Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: (1st Peter 2:22).
  The Bible also teaches that the Lord Jesus KNEW NO SIN. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. (2nd Corinthians 5:21) He was made sin for us. Sin was laid upon Him not within Him. He bore our sin in His own body on the tree, and His righteous soul was made an offering for sin. Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. (Isaiah 53:10) He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. (Isaiah 53:11)
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The Atonement Revealed in Christ
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 All these verses speak of a Being, a Man from heaven outside of Adam’s realm. At that tree, Adam’s realm became sin and death. Now, let’s continue on with this marvelous image of God IN Jesus Christ. Behold, the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. To understand the atonement, one must see the very state and degradation of sin which brings forth death. Man is helpless for he cannot atone for himself, nor for others. It took the God of all comfort to send His beloved Son for God would provide HIMSELF a lamb.
And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering? (Genesis 22:7) And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together. (Genesis 22:8)
  To say that Genesis 22 is a prophetic picture is true for we see the mind of God in the atonement of Christ. The ram was a male caught in a thicket of thorns by his horns to be a burnt offering. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son. (Genesis 22:13)
The burnt offering was the first offering mentioned in Leviticus Chapter 1.
If his offering be a burnt sacrifice of the herd, let him offer a male without blemish: he shall offer it of his own voluntary will at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the LORD. (Leviticus 1:3)
And he shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt offering; and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him. (Leviticus 1:4)
But his inwards and his legs shall he wash in water: and the priest shall burn all on the altar, to be a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD. (Leviticus 1:9)
  In the offering of the Lord’s soul in Isaiah Chapter 53, we have a continuation and an identification of the burnt offering. Let’s tie this to the Lord Jesus Himself. In Ephesians Chapter 5, verse 2, And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour, we have God concluding the burnt offering and the record that God received the offering as a sweet-smelling savor which reaffirms God’s word, This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.
  In Isaiah 53 we have the offering of the Lord’s soul. Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put [him] to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see [his] seed, he shall prolong [his] days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. (Isaiah 53:10)
He shall see of the travail of his soul, [and] shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. (Isaiah 53:11)
Therefore will I divide him [a portion] with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. (Isaiah 53:12)
  In John 1:29 we have the offering in the Lamb which taketh away the sin out of the world. The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. In 2nd Corinthians 5:21, He became sin for us. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. It was the transference of sin to be removed from the world. Peter declared that the Lord Jesus was a Lamb without blemish both without and within. But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: (1st Peter 1:19) Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, (1st Peter 1:20)
  The Old Testament writings contain many prophecies related to the atonement as the prophets of God were led by the Spirit of Christ within them, they spoke and wrote the very words and mind of God. God also provided in the Old Testament portraits or pictures of future things to come in the history of mankind. In many ways, Israel was used as one of these portraits. One picture of God’s atonement is in the suffering of Israel during their period of severe slavery in Egypt.
Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. (Exodus 3:9) Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt. (Exodus 3:10)
  God took up their part, and He provided a mediator between Him and the children of Israel in Moses and began a work in Israel to remove them from Egypt but first, they had to be under the blood of atonement. They had to be passed over so that God’s judgment would not fall on them.
And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. (Exodus 12:13)
Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them, Draw out and take you a lamb according to your families, and kill the passover. (Exodus 12:21) And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the bason, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the bason; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning. (Exodus 12:22)
  This blood was from a lamb had to be totally consumed because they must be a part of God’s atonement. God required them to inwardly experience the bitter death of the one that was slain for their freedom. Not only were they under the blood and sealed in by the blood, but they had to taste the judgment (the fire) that was felt by another to understand that their redemption came by the death of another (a lamb).
And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it. (Exodus 12:7)
And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it. (Exodus 12:8)
Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof. (Exodus 12:9)
And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD’S passover. (Exodus 12:11)
  Only then would they be set free from their slave masters, and only then would they be sanctified before God under the blood of the lamb. This was also a prefigure of the heavenly people sanctified through the death of the Lord Jesus on the cross and His shed blood of sanctification. Therefore, the child of God is set free from their slave master . . . . sin.
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Christ is Wisdom, Righteousness, Sanctification and Redemption
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Every person has to approach God by God’s terms.Â
  We are sanctified by His blood. Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate. (Hebrews 13:12) God looks upon the sacrifice of His Son, and the shedding of His blood as a HOLY sacrifice. Therefore, He warns all not to trample underfoot the blood of Christ and show contempt to the Spirit of grace. Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? (Hebrews 10:29) Remember the warning that the Israelites received that only those under the blood would be passed over. Throughout Scripture this theme of the smitten lamb, the body of the Lord Jesus Christ, (the Man from heaven) and His shed blood of atonement leads to Calvary. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once [for all]. (Hebrews 10:10)
Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them, Draw out and take you a lamb according to your families, and kill the passover. (Exodus 12:21)
And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the bason, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the bason; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning. (Exodus 12:22)
For the LORD will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you. (Exodus 12:23)
And ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and to thy sons for ever. (Exodus 12:24)
And it shall come to pass, when ye be come to the land which the LORD will give you, according as he hath promised, that ye shall keep this service. (Exodus 12:25)
And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you, What mean ye by this service? (Exodus 12:26)
That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the LORD’S passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed the head and worshipped. (Exodus 12:27)
And the children of Israel went away, and did as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they. (Exodus 12:28)
  Just as the Israelites were warned, we have the reality of Hebrews 10:29 as a warning to those who would ignore the blood of atonement. Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
  The children of Israel took shelter under the blood of the lamb, and the fulfillment of this picture is found in the sacrificial death of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus has put away sin by His atonement on the cross. In the book of Galatians, the Spirit of God gives us two very important verses centered in the Christ of the cross, and the cross of Calvary.
I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)
But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world. (Galatians 6:14)
  The work of the Holy Spirit turns the eyes of our heart to see the fullness of Christ upon the cross in the fulness of time also documented in Galatians 4:4, But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law.
  In Galatians 2:20, God is showing us that Christ bore OUR place on the cross. If all of mankind were to be crucified, they could not atone for one sin . . . . let alone atone for ALL sin. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. The burden of our sin was placed on another, and the only ONE who could bear our sin. God would provide HIMSELF a lamb IN HIMSELF.
  Our identification with the cross is that our sin was crucified WITH HIM, therefore, we are identified with Him on the cross for He took our sins away. But this is not all. You see the very judgment that we deserve because of our sin was taken up IN Christ on the cross making us crucified with Him for we identify with both His death and with His life, as the apostle declared nevertheless I live. However, that life comes through the death of Christ which each and every child of God enters into. We are baptized into His death, and we are raised by His resurrection unto life eternal.
  The visible suffering that man beheld was not the whole story of our redemption, we have the suffering that was within, and we have a portrait or a view of this in both Psalm 22 and in Isaiah 53. However, the reality is that ONLY God knows the depth of His travail, and the sufferings that He endured because of our sin. Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the LORD hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger. (Lamentations 1:12) In the sufferings of Christ, I am crucified with Him, it is my sin that drove Him to the cross. To identify with the crucified the world becomes crucified unto me, and I become crucified to the world. Both the old world, and my old man are dead in the crucified One. But nevertheless, I live, I live with a new power. This power is within for Christ lives in me. And the summary of all this is that I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. Why go through all these Scriptures? When Christ declared Before Abraham was, I am . . . . . I AM is a broad look at the God of eternity. But all that we have been discussing fills in His love, His compassion, His willingness to fulfill the plan of redemption by the death of Himself upon the cross bearing the sin of the whole world. Before Abraham takes in a lot of space and time. This would be before the promises that He made to Abraham that the Law could not annul. Just as He has been preserving the children of Abraham through the desert of sin, so He is now preserving the Church, His body, with those same four pillars, But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption. We could call these four pillars the four pillars of faith. For faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Through faith in Jesus Christ, we acquire the four pillars of faith that are unseen: wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption. These four pillars are contained in the Gift of God, His beloved Son, and we receive these four pillars through the faith of the Son of God.
  Notice that wisdom is first. So, let’s turn to wisdom. Christ is the wisdom of God. Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute: (Luke 11:49)
I wisdom dwell with prudence, and find out knowledge of witty inventions. (Proverbs 8:12)
Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom: I am understanding; I have strength. (Proverbs 8:14)
The LORD possessed me in the beginning of his way, before his works of old. (Proverbs 8:22)
While as yet he had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor the highest part of the dust of the world. (Proverbs 8:26)
When he prepared the heavens, I was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth: (Proverbs 8:27)
When he established the clouds above: when he strengthened the fountains of the deep: (Proverbs 8:28)
When he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth:Â (Proverbs 8:29)
Then I was by him, as one brought up with him: and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him; (Proverbs 8:30)
  In Proverbs Chapter 8 we see that Christ is the wisdom of God. This wisdom was BEFORE the foundations of the world. This wisdom contains the completeness of the Godhead bodily. It would not be wrong to say that God the Father is ALL wisdom. That Jesus Christ is ALL wisdom, that the Spirit of God is ALL wisdom. This is the uniqueness of the Godhead. They are completely compatible and united in ALL aspects of their own existence. Before Abraham was, I AM.
  Man, in Adam, as a created being brought sin into the world by embracing the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. In John Chapter 15 the Lord Jesus gives us a lesson about the divine fruit that HE gives. If we tie this with the wisdom of God and the knowledge of God, we see in the true vine that He is the One who gives the fruit, and the branches must be united to Him, and therefore, the branches then bring forth fruit.
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. (John 15:4) I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. (John 15:5)
  In John Chapter 15 the Lord gives us another insight into the I AM of His Person. Verse 1 of John 15 begins with I AM. I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. It is only the true Vine who brings forth fruit. In the spiritual realm it is only those who are born of the Spirit of Christ. The fruit must come through the true Vine. It is the true Vine that sustains the branches, and then the branches because of their sap from the Vine brings forth fruit.
  The Lord is MADE UNTO US WISDOM, sanctification, righteousness and redemption. These are the elements of the Spirit of God flowing through us in Christ Jesus. These four pillars that are given to us in Christ Jesus are not of the world. The world cannot possess any of these four pillars for the world cannot meet any of the qualifications outside of Christ. One must be IN Christ, and one must be POSSESSED by Christ, or Christ IN me. The spiritual aspect of the new birth has been overlooked for many years. The aspect of a new birth is a supernatural event. The heavens rejoice over one sinner that repents, and God is well pleased with those who love His Son. The spiritual aspect of life in Christ for the individual is the greatest experience of life. And yes, this life is eternal. And yet, as the burning bush in Exodus, the Lord Jesus cloaks Himself within us. Who is sufficient for these things? To the one [we are] the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who [is] sufficient for these things? (2nd Corinthians 2:16) Only the word of God can reveal these wonders of Christ. The concept that He gave in John 15 through using a vine, its branches, and its fruit ALL stems from the great I AM. I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
  It is the wisdom of Christ who cries to His children. It is the wisdom of the knowledge of Christ that allows the heart and the mind of His children to see Him in their hearts and souls as the great I AM.
Doth not wisdom cry? and understanding put forth her voice? (Proverbs 8:1)
Unto you, O men, I call; and my voice is to the sons of man. (Proverbs 8:4)
O ye simple, understand wisdom: and, ye fools, be ye of an understanding heart. (Proverbs 8:5)
Hear; for I will speak of excellent things; and the opening of my lips shall be right things. (Proverbs 8:6)
For my mouth shall speak truth; and wickedness is an abomination to my lips. (Proverbs 8:7)
  And yet, all these things are part of His Eternal Being. He is MADE INTO US wisdom. He is MADE UNTO us sanctification. He is MADE UNTO us righteousness, and He is MADE UNTO us redemption. All these four pillars are part of Him through eternity as the great I AM . . . . and applying wisdom to Christ we follow wisdom through the Scriptures. Once again, we see Christ as the WISDOM of God being lauded and worshiped by the hosts of heaven.
And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;Â (Revelation 5:11)
Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. (Revelation 5:12)
And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. (Revelation 5:13)
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Christ is THE I AM
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Let’s consider these verses in John’s gospel concerning the I AM . . . . who is Christ.
I am come in my Father’s name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive. (John 5:43)
And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. (John 6:35)
The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, I am the bread which came down from heaven. (John 6:41)
I am that bread of life. (John 6:48)
I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. (John 6:51)
Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. (John 8:12)
I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins. (John 8:24)
Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things. (John 8:28)
Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. (John 8:58)
As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world. (John 9:5)
Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. (John 10:7)
The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. (John 10:10)
Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: (John 11:25)
Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. (John 13:13)
Now I tell you before it come, that, when it is come to pass, ye may believe that I am he. (John 13:19)
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6)
Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. (John 14:10)
I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. (John 15:1)
They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. (John 17:16)
  These references in the gospel of John are an overview (by the Spirit of God) so that we might understand the very Person of the Lord Jesus Christ in that He was truly the great I AM. This is the fullness of the Godhead bodily in Jesus Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. Colossians 2:9 is often quickly read over not taking in EVERY word. Think . . . . IN HIM, the Lord Jesus Christ, dwells the FULLNESS of eternity. IN HIM is the FULLNESS of creation, and the very creatorial power of God. In THIS ONE, is the FULLNESS is life itself. He is the Author of life, and the Upholder of life, and he is the FULLNESS of redemption. He is the FULLNESS of all in all.
  Consider the following words that Jesus uttered and what happened to those who heard His words.
They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am he. And Judas also, which betrayed him, stood with them. (John 18:5)
As soon then as he had said unto them, I am he, they went backward, and fell to the ground. (John 18:6)
Jesus answered, I have told you that I am he: if therefore ye seek me, let these go their way: (John 18:8)
  The Lord was not only acknowledging His Person, as Jesus of Nazareth, but the Spirit of God wants us to go deeper and understand that over and above Jesus of Nazareth that He was proclaiming that He was the I AM THAT I AM. How do we see this? Why repeat it three times? Wouldn’t once be enough? Let’s look deeper. They were seeking Jesus of Nazareth; however, the Lord Jesus was REVEALING the great I AM. In the verse 6, we see the power of the great I AM. When He stated, I AM HE, the Spirit of the most high God pushed them backwards, and they fell to the ground showing that man had no strength to apprehend the King of glory. Three times the Lord Jesus declared I am, it is in the second mention that we get the supernatural, it is the unseen that caused them to fall backwards. Consider the great lesson in the burning bush in Exodus Chapter 3 God is never visibly seen, yet, through His Spirit He spoke out of the flames of fire. The voice and flames within this bush that grew out of holy ground were not consumed, and as the Lord Jesus grew out of dry ground and as a tender holy plant was rejected by men He was not consumed by the flames of righteous judgment against sin and the corruption of death. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. (Psalm 16:10)
Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day. (Acts 2:29)
Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne;Â (Acts 2:30)
He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption. (Acts 2:31)
Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? (Isaiah 53:1)
For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. (Isaiah 53:2)
He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not. (Isaiah 53:3)
 Even then in John’s gospel in Chapter 18 when they came to apprehend Him, verse 6 shows us that they had no strength against Him. Yet, He submitted Himself to them, and was led away by them. This also was prophesied in Chapter 53 of the book of Isaiah.
He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. (Isaiah 53:7)
He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. (Isaiah 53:8)
  Consider that what began in the first betrayal against the Creator God (I AM THAT I AM) took place in a garden by one man (Adam), therefore, the same betrayal had to be totally completed once again by the descendants of Adam (mankind) in another garden against THE I AM THAT I AM.
  The Lord Jesus submitted Himself to them. What is the difference between John 8:59 and these verses in the garden of betrayal in John 18:5, 6, 8? In John Chapter 8, His hour had not yet come, and in John 18, His hour was upon Him.
Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? (John 8:57) Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. (John 8:58) Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by. (John 8:59)
  The theme of the Lord’s hour runs through the gospel of John. What is the Lord’s hour? It was the time period when He submitted Himself to both man and God. In man to show man’s complete enmity against God, and in God, to bare the judgment of sin for the whole world. This theme began in John Chapter 2, verse 4. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come.  The Lord Jesus also refers to this period of time as ‘my time.’ We see this in John 7:6 Then Jesus said unto them, My time is not yet come: but your time is alway ready.
Go ye up unto this feast: I go not up yet unto this feast; for my time is not yet full come. (John 7:8)
Then they sought to take him: but no man laid hands on him, because his hour was not yet come. (John 7:30)
These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as he taught in the temple: and no man laid hands on him; for his hour was not yet come. (John 8:20)
  Why should we recognize this time? First, God wants us to know that the enemy in Adam and Satan could NOT TOUCH the Lord’s anointed until His time. Which was more important, man’s enmity against God, or God’s atonement for man’s sin? We know the answer to this one, God’s atonement MUST not and CANNOT be stopped. The stage had already been set in the divine counsels of God. His time had come. Man could do nothing to stop himself from what he was about to do to the holy lamb of God. Remember, this was God’s beloved Son; three times God the Father had opened the doors of heaven to declare His beloved Son. The following verses are the third time that the heavens were opened as a witness to mankind of the coming judgment for sin.
Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour. (John 12:27)
Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again. (John 12:28)
The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him. (John 12:29)
Jesus answered and said, This voice came not because of me, but for your sakes. (John 12:30)
Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out. (John 12:31)
And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. (John 12:32)
  God not only opened the heavens to glorify the Son, but to glorify His name, for His name’s sake. There is only ONE name in all of Scripture that the Holy Spirit has declared to be THAT name which is ABOVE every name, and this is the name of the Savior Jesus the Christ.
Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: (Philippians 2:9) That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; (Philippians 2:10) And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:11)
  Now, look at the end of Philippians 2:11. The name Jesus Christ is connected to His Lordship. Jesus Christ is Lord. THIS name and the confessing of this name are to the glory of God the Father, as we see in John Chapter 12. He will glorify His name and there is only ONE name above every name that can receive the glory of God. Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.
  In John Chapter 18 His hour had come. His time had revealed itself, and man was playing his part and fulfilling all the enmity that was within his depraved heart. Every realm of life is represented in the Lord’s time and at the Lord’s hour. The apprehension of the Lord revealed the mob mind set of man. The trial of the Lord Jesus revealed the evil and deceptive heart of all of mankind in condemning the Just One. For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together. (Acts 4:27)
  The Pharisees and rulers of the Jews AND the people participated in the Lord’s trial as false judges and as false witnesses. The Gentiles (through Pilate being a Gentile) were also guilty in the judgment against the Prince of life. Added to this guiltiness was the bitter rivalry between Herod and Pilate as they forged a friendship in the condemnation of the Lord Jesus Christ. And the same day Pilate and Herod were made friends together: for before they were at enmity between themselves. (Luke 23:12) This was also the fulfillment of prophecy.
The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying, (Psalm 2:2) Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us. (Psalm 2:3)
Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished. (Proverbs 16:5)
Though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be unpunished: but the seed of the righteous shall be delivered. (Proverbs 11:21)
  Although Pilate admitted before all that he could find no fault in this Man; yet Pilate (through the weakness of flesh and blood) condemned Christ to the cross when the Jews and the religious leaders threatened Pilate through their challenge If thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar’s friend.Â
And from thenceforth Pilate sought to release him: but the Jews cried out, saying, If thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar’s friend: whosoever maketh himself a king speaketh against Caesar. (John 19:12)
  The soldiers willfully came into the scene and beat Him with rods and openly mocked Him. The stranger (Simon) was also brought into this scene and forced to carry the cross for the Savior was too weak to bear it. However, in divine symbolism the man who bore the cross (Simon) represented all those who deserved the true judgment of God (mankind in Adam).
And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him. (Matthew 27:31) And as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name: him they compelled to bear his cross. (Matthew 27:32)
And as they led him away, they laid hold upon one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming out of the country, and on him they laid the cross, that he might bear it after Jesus. (Luke 23:26)
  Simon, however, as all of mankind, could not atone for sin. Only the Prince of life, Jesus Christ, could atone for the sin of mankind. The crowd mocked Him, made fun of God. This crucifixion was man’s enjoyment. It was man’s entertainment to see God mutilated before mankind. Am I being too hard on man? Not hardly! At the same time who watched all of this. God the Father looked down on His beloved Son with a love that is beyond man’s understanding. The love in the Father’s heart for the Son, and the love of the Son for the Father was revealed in the willing obedience in the offering of Himself IN love. The Son of the Father’s love would be offered for sin, while mankind (inspired by his father, the devil) would reveal every reason why mankind needed to be redeemed.
  All the vomit and wickedness of sin were spewed out by the mob of murderers gathered around the cross. Very few had compassion upon Him. For the majority cried out, Crucify him, crucify him. Yet, the Lord Jesus would go to the cross as a lamb to the slaughter. He KNEW from the determinate counsels of God BEFORE the foundations of the world that He would be the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world.
And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.(Revelation 13:6)Â And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations. (Revelation 13:7) And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. (Revelation 13:8)
  We (as the children of God, born of His Spirit) see the wonderful in Jesus Christ. We see the power of God as God, as the great I AM that He was the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Therefore, that first sacrifice in Eden that the Lord Jesus offered up for man was a foreshadow of His own sacrificial death upon the cross of Calvary. The I AM of the burning bush also revolves around the cross of Calvary and the Lamb of God. It was the Lamb in Egypt, and the blood of the Lamb that sheltered the people from the angel of death. It was the great I AM of the burning bush who could not be consumed by the fiery judgment. Although the flames of judgment raged within the bush, the bush planted and grown on holy ground could not be consumed.
Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. (Isaiah 53:10) He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. (Isaiah 53:11)
  There are three others mentioned in the condemnation of the Lord Jesus Christ at His trial, and at His crucifixion. Under Roman law, Rome would release a man of their choice, those who had condemned were given a choice to set one free.
And they had then a notable prisoner, called Barabbas. (Matthew 27:16) Therefore when they were gathered together, Pilate said unto them, Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ? (Matthew 27:17)
  Here is the heart of man in Adam revealed. Twice the people willingly and openly chose a murderer and a thief in Barabbas rather than the Prince of life . . . . their Christ, their Messiah. Then, on the tree, Christ was placed between two thieves. One thief condemned the Lord Jesus Christ with the railing mob, but the other thief KNEW that Christ was the Prince of life and he confessed to the Lord his own wickedness, and upon this confession the Lord proclaimed, Today, thou will be with me in paradise. The fires of judgment may rage, but the great I AM can never be consumed. He, who has the power of an endless life, is triumphant over both sin and death. God’s gladiator defeated all His foes, and now He sits at the right hand of God waiting for the judgment of all His enemies. Christ endured the shame and spitting. and the contradiction of sinners for US. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. (Hebrews 12:3)
But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people. (Psalm 22:6) All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, (Psalm 22:7) He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him. (Psalm 22:8)
  The Lord Jesus endured all the hate and the enmity of both man and Satan. And the people stood beholding. And the rulers also with them derided him, saying, He saved others; let him save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God. (Luke 23:35)
And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, (Mark 15:29) Save thyself, and come down from the cross. (Mark 15:30) Likewise also the chief priests mocking said among themselves with the scribes, He saved others; himself he cannot save. (Mark 15:31) Let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe. And they that were crucified with him reviled him. (Mark 15:32)
Now the chief priests, and elders, and all the council, sought false witness against Jesus, to put him to death; (Matthew 26:59)
But found none: yea, though many false witnesses came, yet found they none. At the last came two false witnesses, (Matthew 26:60)
And said, This fellow said, I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to build it in three days. (Matthew 26:61)
And the high priest arose, and said unto him, Answerest thou nothing? what is it which these witness against thee? (Matthew 26:62)
But Jesus held his peace. And the high priest answered and said unto him, I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God. (Matthew 26:63)
Jesus saith unto him, Thou hast said: nevertheless I say unto you, Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. (Matthew 26:64)
Then the high priest rent his clothes, saying, He hath spoken blasphemy; what further need have we of witnesses? behold, now ye have heard his blasphemy. (Matthew 26:65)
What think ye? They answered and said, He is guilty of death. (Matthew 26:66)　
Then released he Barabbas unto them: and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified. (Matthew 27:26)　
And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him. (Matthew 27:31)　
And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads, (Matthew 27:39)Â And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross. (Matthew 27:40) Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said, (Matthew 27:41) He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him. (Matthew 27:42)Â He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God. (Matthew 27:43)
  In all this, He endured the harsh contradiction of sinners. Man was fully represented in his enmity against God. The very ones who Christ called the children of the devil in John 8:44, were acting their part directed by their father the devil.
Side Note: To all new born children of God. You have been put in a position of sonship and joint heirs with Jesus Christ through adoption. You have been brought into the body of Christ as a eternal habitation of the Spirit of God. We are members of His body and dwellers within His house. Whose house are we. But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end. (Hebrews 3:6)
  In the buildings that the world calls churches you will find many Pharisees, you will find more Pharisees than Christians. They will play their part as spiritual, but Christ is not in them. Whether it is a false prophet or a preacher, or the kind old person you are sitting next to. Always be aware it is Christ who has saved you, and not the preacher, nor the congregation, and not the building. So, what do you do? You listen to the voice of the Spirit of Christ within. You hear His voice by spending time with Christ in His word. When the Spirit of God is truly IN you, He will lead you into all truth. The word of God is fortified and upheld by the Spirit of Christ, and Christ will reveal the errors of the world and of religion. He will unmask the phonies, the children of the devil.
 These are three basic baby steps for you in your new birth: when in conversation with others (who profess Christ) first notice if their conversation is around Christ because when it is around the world and religion this is a sure warning, a signpost to take heed. The second point is when they never want to talk about the word of God in sincerity, you turn your back, and you cleave to the word of God. What do I mean by sincerity? Some will try to pervert the word of God, to lead you down a path of error away from truth. Some may be ignorantly deceived, and yet, others may embrace the deception to lead others away from the truth. Then what do you do? You prove all things by the word of God. When I speak of the word of God, I speak of the KJV not the words of the world. The third point is to look at their lives. Are they drawn to worldly things, worldly companions, and worldly activities? Are they followers of fads in fashion and in the things that the earthbound celebrate? Are they preoccupied with pleasing those outside of Christ? A Christian does not need the vanities of the world. The three key things to examine and to define are first, what are the things of the world; secondly, what are the things of the flesh, thirdly, what are the things of the devil? Learn to discern what pleases God and what displeases God. And don’t be afraid to JUDGE within yourself. The Lord Jesus taught us to be aware of the Pharisees to watch out for the hypocrites and to not be deceived by the lawyers (those who manipulate words to serve their narrative). These are all judgments that one must make by the word of God. You are in a very corrupt and evil world, and you are surrounded by the children of the devil and his army. And sadly, they have found a home in what is called the church. Beware of good neighbor Sam. Well, that should get you started. Always remember that you are a soldier in God’s army, and all soldiers are involved in conflicts with others. For I would that ye knew what great conflict I have for you, and for them at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh; (Colossians 2:1) This is the Age of Laodicea, the Age of the Great Conflict. The armies of Satan are not guided by the Geneva Conventions. The devil is a dirty player, and his ministers are experts at playing dirty. They do not play by Christian rules. Satan has been a murderer from the beginning and the father of lies, and he is reproduced in his children. Contrary to belief WE ARE NOT ALL CHILDREN OF GOD. Just because ALL beings are CREATED BY GOD does not make ALL beings CHILDREN OF GOD. Every child of Adam, because of sin, is a child of the devil, for the devil sinneth from the beginning, and this same seed of sin in Adam is passed to all of mankind. Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned: (Romans 5:12) ♦End of Side Note. To all new born children of God.
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The GREAT I AM is the SUPERNATURAL GOD
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  Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. (John 8:58) Let’s look at this in the supernatural realm, or the unseen in the invisible God. There are certain truths given to us by the Spirit of God in both 8:58, and 8:59. Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by. One truth is that Christ is the manifest image of the invisible God, and that He existed long before Abraham. Before Abraham was, I am, this statement by the Lord Jesus brought out anger, enmity, and viciousness from the dungeons of pharisaical hearts. They KNEW exactly what the Lord Jesus was referring to, although many today do not. At the profound statement by the Lord Jesus Christ that HE WAS/IS THE I AM, and that He was before Abraham caused those present to take up stones, to kill the Lord of Glory. They could think of nothing else except to murder the Prince of life. However, the visible image of the invisible God cloaked Himself in His invisible likeness and passed through the midst of them. Now this is what the Spirit wishes us to see: first, the Lord Jesus had been the attention of the Pharisees and those who were present in the temple for the entire day. They began by deliberately tempting Him, and were exposed by Him, and when the Lord Jesus told them that their father was the devil their hearts must have been throbbing with hatred and enmity against Him. As you follow through Chapter 8 you will see the level of exposure that Christ made of them. And finally, when He proclaimed, Before Abraham was, I am. They could not contain nor control their hatred. When you have been the center of attention for almost an entire day, there is no place to hide. Whenever a mob wants to kill, their attention cannot be diverted away from their target. (I know something about being a target.) The manifest image of God in Jesus Christ simply used His supernatural power and stepped into the unseen world which was completely under His control for His hour had not yet come.
  Now let’s connect this to the burning bush. The I AM of the burning bush could not be seen. (Exodus 3:4-6) The words of the Lord Jesus Christ in John Chapter 4 remind us that God is Spirit. So, the manifested image of God, who is declared to be the fullness of the Godhead bodily, had complete control of the situation and He simply SLIPPED into the unseen realm. In the burning bush, I AM was unseen, yet He spoke to Moses, and the physical representation of His Person was a bush that was not consumed by fire, and it grew out of holy ground. This should be a blessing to the children of God today, because we have received the promise of the Spirit of Christ who will guide us into all truth. The great deceiver, the father of all lies, does not want us to lay hold of this wonderful truth. He uses his companion, Adam, to deny these truths of God. He exalts man over the word of God in their denial of the word of God. The greatest trap is to continue to listen to those who negate truths in the Bible, when they say, “No, no, no . . . the Bible doesn’t really mean that . . . . the words in the Bible are not always right . . . let me show you the way . . . . believe me . . . do not put your trust in old words, put your trust in me.” Don’t fall for man’s opinion or his deception. It is the Lord Jesus Christ within you who is the great authority. Just as the I AM THAT I AM could not be seen by Moses at the burning bush, He is the same today within every child of God. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, He is the way, the truth, and the life. Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6)
  The chains of sin are very strong. They hold man in bondage so that man passes from one sin to another, and without Christ, he passes into the world of the damned spending his lifetime shoveling sin into the fires of hell waiting for those fires to engulf his soul in torment. The endless lies that flow from the lips of men accumulate from hour to hour, from day to day, from month to month, and from year to year until life ends, and all of a sudden, those very light sins become a heavy load of torment in the midst of fire. Sin which brought forth death is not finished at the grave. Sin then becomes the controlling factor in the realm of hell because each sin is a measure of torment. Chapter 6 in the book of Romans examines the flesh, the whole realm of the flesh and its relationship to sin and death. Finally, God reveals His love and the One who satisfied all of God’s claims against the sinner, the eternal Gift of God in His Son, Jesus Christ who gives us the victory.
In the gospel of John in Chapter 8, we have three verily, verily’s.
1. Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. (John 8:34)
2. Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death. (John 8:51)
3. Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. (John 8:58)
  The first Verily, verily, covers the bondage of man in his sin for all have sinned and have come short of the glory of God. Yet, there is no natural mirror exposing iniquity and sin in man, it takes a supernatural mirror to reveal what is in mankind, and that is the word of God. The world has all kinds of mirrors, some of glass, some of silver, even some are polished gold. Yet not one reveals the sin and enmity of man against God. You have heard this phrase before, “Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the fairest of them all?” This is the pompous, the vain, and the pride of Adam’s race. However, when anyone looks into the word of God and sees the truth of all of Adam’s race, man can only cry out, Who will go for us? And then in the distance, a righteous voice, a voice not tainted by sin, cries out, Here am I; send me. This was God’s Christ. He came because of the love of God, and the horrible need of man. He had to come with all the power of the divine Godhead to take sin out of the world and to defeat death and the works of the devil. And so, the very words of the Lord Jesus exposed the sinner in John 8:34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.
  This is the next verily, verily. Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death. (John 8:51) This reveals to us that the very words that Christ spoke carried life, and freed man from sin and death. And then in John 8:58, Christ takes us into the presence of the eternal God, before Abraham was, I am.
  In Philippians 2, we find that He has a name that is truly above every name, and at the greatness of His name every knee in heaven in earth, and under the earth will one day bow to Jesus God’s Christ. The Lord Jesus was manifested in the body that was prepared for Him. (Hebrews 10:5) to take away sin by the death of Himself. He would endure the fires of judgment against Himself for the sin of others while God the Father looked on as His Son was offered for the sin of the world. The very soul of Christ was the offering for sin. The great I AM THAT I AM was satisfied in His plan and the work of redemption. The fires of judgment could not consume the unseen God, the great I AM THAT I AM.
  Moses could not approach I AM THAT I AM in the burning bush until he removed his shoes. All the years that Moses had walked upon the earth, and all of his deeds (everything that connected him to the earth) had to be removed when he approached the great I AM THAT I AM. When we approach Christ, we must remove our dirty shoes tainted and stained by the filth of the earth in repentance toward God before the Spirit can reveal the unseen God, and His Christ. Then the unseen God, the great I AM THAT I AM leads His children in the path of righteousness for His names’ sake. This is the name that is above all names.
Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: (Philippians 2:9)
That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;Â (Philippians 2:10)
And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:11)
I AM THAT I AM.
Amen and Amen.
© Copyright 2021, Michael Haigh
This article may be used, but not for gain. Freely ye have received, freely give.
All Scripture references are from the King James Bible. (KJV)